Repairing the Bow and Alchemy Lessons

Lucian didn't forget Carrie's request, and after training concluded, he led her back to his lab. He retrieved the broken bow from his space ring.

"If it can't be fully repaired, fixing just the appearance would be fine…" Carrie murmured nervously, glancing at the snapped bow.

Lucian didn't respond, focusing on examining the bow. With the basic alchemical knowledge he'd picked up recently, he could easily "patch up" the bow to look whole again. A simple adhesive spell would bind the two halves, and a bit of polishing would make it pass as an ornamental piece.

However, fully restoring it to make it combat-ready with some enhancements—was more challenging. He pondered over possible methods, glancing at Carrie, who fidgeted silently, repeatedly pinching her leg in anticipation.

Her nervous habit sparked an idea. Compared to potion crafting, alchemy had a much lower entry barrier. Given Carrie's current abilities, she might be able to start learning. He was also curious about any potential rewards from the system if he taught her how to repair the bow herself.

With this in mind, Lucian set the broken bow down and looked at Carrie, shaking his head. "I don't think it's best to repair this bow just yet."

Carrie's face fell as she looked between Lucian and the bow, shoulders slumping. "It's okay, Master Lucian…" she mumbled, forcing a smile that couldn't hide her disappointment.

She reached out to take back her "first bow," resigned to it becoming a relic of the past.

"I only said we shouldn't fix it yet; I didn't say it was beyond repair." Lucian gently patted her hand away. "Since this bow holds such meaning, wouldn't it be better if you participated in restoring it?"

Carrie blinked, glancing up at him, hope rekindling in her eyes.

"I'd like to teach you some basic alchemy, and then we'll repair it together."

Stunned, Carrie nodded slowly, a bit dazed.

"Are… are you sure I can do it?" she stammered.

"That depends on you," Lucian replied, pulling out an alchemical notebook and handing it to her. "Take notes on the first thirty pages. But, just so you know, learning alchemy wasn't part of our original plan."

"Oh, I understand! Equivalent exchange, right? What's the price?" she asked, eyes gleaming.

"No price, just that it'll use up some of your free time and come with extra assignments," he said with a shrug.

Carrie's excited grin froze. Glancing at the broken bow, though, she reluctantly agreed. "Master Lucian, it won't be like… like The Little Wizard's Guide, right? Not that much homework?"

"I'll keep it reasonable," he replied, smiling a little too mysteriously.

For some reason, Carrie found herself feeling slightly apprehensive under his gaze, her unease confirmed by the system's notification:

[Your student Carrie fears you deeply. Reverence points +20.]

"All right," he began, "let's start with the basics of alchemy and identifying materials. Since our main goal is to repair the bow, I'll focus on what you'll need for that project. We can cover other materials and comprehensive knowledge later."

With a wave, Lucian produced a few minerals and a piece of wood with greenish veins from his space ring.

"This here is starmetal ore," he explained. "It's a common alchemical material with good flexibility, often used for sections needing added resilience. Its hallmark is the faint sparkle in its grain, and under light spirit energy, it gives off a soft blue glow. We can use it to reinforce the bow, creating a foundation for future enchantments."

He held up the wood next. "This is windwood, a type of magical wood with a hint of wind energy. Items made with windwood naturally gain a minor speed boost, even without inscriptions. This same wood was used as the core of your original bow."

As Lucian went through each material, he led Carrie toward the goal of restoring the bow. He was curious to see if the system would reward him for guiding her in creating a basic enchanted bow.

Truthfully, the process was not overly complex. Carrie's expectations weren't high; she only wanted the bow back, even if it was slightly improved. After three hours, she had sketched a draft of the design on paper.

The plan was to splice the broken bow with windwood and starmetal to reinforce the damaged areas. Lucian suggested inscribing basic acceleration runes on the new sections so that, by channelling a small amount of spirit energy, the bowstring would imbue arrows with a slight speed boost.

"Master Lucian, the design is ready." Carrie placed the final draft in front of him.

[Your student Carrie has designed a basic alchemical hunting bow (unnamed). Congratulations, you have acquired the blueprint for a Modified Alchemical Hunting Bow!]