Chapter 26 Mischievous Apothecary

After leaving the village barracks, Azi led Shizu to the northern part of Shisayama which was where one could find an assortment of shops that sold trinkets, tools, luxury goods, and high-quality services.

He took the chance to explore his new surroundings on his own for the first time. The northern market was an interesting place due to the many goods that arrived from the Empire's capital, Yamato.

He had never been to this part of the village before so there was an assortment of different kinds of goods that excited Azi's inquisitive mind.

He noted the difference in price for the goods that could be found there and deduced that these goods were priced so highly because they must have come from Yamato due to the evident quality he could ascertain.

The vibrant colors of fabrics and dyes lined the shop's shelves and stalls. Some sold dresses and others sold jewelry that had a level of craftsmanship that would put what he saw in the southern markets to shame.

Shizu kept Azi company throughout his exploration and introduced him to a few passing villagers she knew.

Noticed a familiar person, a reminiscent smile formed on her lips as she excitedly called out to the person in question.

"Saki! Hey, how have you been?"

"Oh Shizu, it's so good to see you again. I have been busy these days. The number of wounded has increased from all the monster attacks and my teacher has been putting me through hell since I have to help during the long nights. I finally got a day off since we got more help from King Ozen. How about you? And umm who is the small boy that is staring at all the shops?"

Laughing at the mention of how childish Azi was being at the moment, Shizu wiped a tear from her eye and puffed her chest up high with pride. "Hahaha, I am doing fine, in fact, I found an apprentice."

"Apprentice!" The shock was so evident in Saki's voice that it made the villagers somewhat jump in surprise.

"And it's funny you ask that, but that young man you see ogling the stalls is my new apprentice."

Recovering from her shock, she gave Shizu a deadpan look after eyeing up the boy a bit.

"Yeah right. Enough with the jokes. Now spill, who is your apprentice? And who's the weird kid?"

"It's no lie, that "kid" is my apprentice."

Saki was again taken aback by Shizu's second affirmation and stared at the boy who was running around from shop to shop as he looked fervently at the goods that were on display.

Thinking that Shizu might still be messing with her, she thought to admonish her a bit for messing with her to this extent but changed her mind as she saw Shizu's smug face. She knew that this kind of expression only came out when Shizu was sincere or proud of something she accomplished.

Convinced, she teased Shizu a bit to get some details.

"That is quite surprising, didn't you say that you would only accept apprentices who were strong enough to be your equal? I find it hard to believe that the boy is as strong as you."

"Yes, I can't deny that his appearance makes him seem weak, but don't let his appearance trick you. That "kid" is actually 27 years old."

"Ok, that has to be a lie. You have to be messing with me. He is so small and so young."

"If you don't trust what I say, why don't you ask him yourself." Noticing her approach, Azi turned around to see that Shizu and Saki were conversing. He could tell that the two of them looked to be friends but asked his question absentmindedly as he was more focused on taking notes in his brown book.

"Is there something you need from me?"

"No but my friend wants to meet you." Pointing to Saki who stood next to her, Azi could feel her probing stare stick to his face which made him uncomfortable. "This is my friend Saki. She and I were friends in the academy and while I trained in combat classes, Saki here took up classes as an apothecary. By the way, just to confirm it again, how old are you?"

"*Sigh* Again, I am 27 years old. Why do you ask?"

"See! I told you he is 27 years old."

Somewhat convinced, but irked by Shizu smugness, she begrudgingly nodded in acceptance.

"I guess you weren't kidding, sorry about that. Anyway it's nice to meet you Azi, I am Saki."

"I am Azi. It's nice to meet you." Accepting Saki's handshake, Azi noticed that she had a somewhat teasing expression on her lips and felt that she could be similar to Shizu.

A bit hesitant he nonetheless continued to introduce himself, but made a note to be wary of her.

"I am Shizu's recent apprentice. By the way, did Shizu said that you trained as an apothecary?"

Saki, still a bit suspicious of Azi, could not believe that the small boy in front of her was her senior in age, but she put this to the back of her mind as she knew that Shizu would not lie when it came to choosing an apprentice.

She recalled how Shizu had a streak of always taking her knightly duties seriously, so for now Saki believed that Azi was her apprentice and treated him with a bit of formal respect

"Yes, why do you ask?"

"I am currently working on a project that might involve the use of medicines, so I am working on figuring out how to make them. Could you help teach me the basics?"

With a grimace on her face, Saki admitted her shortcomings. "I don't think I would be able to teach you. I am still in the middle of practical training but I can introduce you to my teacher. Will this be sufficient?"

"Fine with me. How about you Shizu? Do you wanna come along?"

Shizu paused to think for a moment, she did have work related to Shisayama's current monster situation but the recent efforts made by her and her brother had helped to push back any monster concerns. The only work she had to do was a mountain of paperwork that could always be answered later on.

Not wanting to spend her time at a desk, she opted to skip out on a bit of work to become closer to Azi.

"Sure, there is not much work for me to do today and if there is I can just do it tomorrow. So I have time."

"Then it is agreed." Said Saki. "Follow me."

The pair nodded and the group of three began trekking their way around parts of the northern market.

Along the way Azi explained to Saki about how he met Shizu and how he had amnesia. She grimaced when Azi stated that he could not remember his family or friends, but to lighten the mood she teased them both about their first interaction.

The two of them laughed awkwardly as it was quite the rough and rocky experience. Azi could still remember the feeling of his face getting punched and Shizu remembered just how hard she had punched him.

After a bit of time, a two story shop with a green four-leaf clover symbol embossed on the entrance's wooden sliding door came into sight. Saki went up to the door and knocked while calling out to get the occupants attention.

"Teacher! Are you in? There are some people who want to see you."

After a few moments, the door opened and a mature woman came out.

The mature woman, noticing who was at her doorstep came outside. "Ah Saki, just who have you brought today? I am not sure I can fit them into the schedule."

"I met Lady Shizu and her apprentice on my day off. It seems Shizu's apprentice would like to learn the basics of being an apothecary. Surely, we can make time for Lady Shizu's request?"

"Oh my, Lady Shizu, you are here?! Of course, I can help you right away. It would be an honor."

"Thank you Elder Sung." Said Shizu. "I leave my apprentice in your hands. He is quite bright, so you don't have to hold back when teaching him."

Azi frowned at Shizu and retorted.

"Thanks for the compliment, but just because I'm smart doesn't mean I can learn anything if I'm lectured by someone. *Sigh* In any case, Elder?... Sung?. Wait a minute? Shizu!? Isn't it rude to call her Elder, she doesn't look that old."

To this, Elder Sung giggled a bit as Saki stepped in to explain. "My teacher here is a special case like you. Even though she looks young, she is actually huh?"

Feeling a glare coming from behind, Saki suddenly tensed up and shut her mouth quickly as she did not want to suffer her teacher's wrath.

With a voice icy cold, Elder Sung spoke. "Saki? Please go inside and be good. I'll need your help later today."

Doing as she was told, Saki went inside and slumped a bit as she had just lost out on enjoying the rest of her day off.

Elder Sung then gestured her hands in welcome. "Well met young one. In any case, come inside all of you."

A bit stunned, Azi and Shizu complied but felt as if they had just entered a witch's den as the smile on Elder Sung's face was foreboding.

After settling down at the front counter, Elder Sung served tea to each of them and then began to answer Azi's questions.

Concerning burn medications, she suggested the use of numerous herbs that could be found in the nearby forest which Azi noted down in his brown book. He believed that these burn medications were essential as he knew that he would need them to prevent himself from getting an infection when working the forge for the first time.

Mistakes were bound to happen so Azi was planning ahead.

Azi then asked about magical plants as he was still fascinated on how magic really existed. While his memory was somewhat sparse and fractured he knew of no magic prior to his arrival to Shisayama.

He still had no idea where he came from or who he was in the past. To him, he could have either gone to another world or have gone to the past as the advancement of technology was not what it once was from his memory.

But this didn't bother him for now as he was more concerned with his newly found talent in magic and wanted to find a way to help him advance his mastery in aptitudes through medical means as it was a trope in those cultivation books that he could remember reading. His knowledge of anime, manga, and light novels made him suspect that there were possibly magical plants he could find or grow.

Unfortunately, Elder Sung said that there were no such plants that contained magical energies.

Azi was a bit depressed by the revelation that this fantastical world might not have all the fantasy-like items he was expecting. But that did not break his fascination into the art of being an apothecary.

He continued asking his questions and Elder Sung was obliged to answer them all. After finishing up with his last inquiry, he began looking for what he needed from the shop to get started with his self taught apothecary lessons.

He was again offered another apprenticeship from Elder Sung, but he refused as he got a somewhat creepy vibe from her.

Moving his attention to the shelves that were filled with medicinal potions, tonics, and tools, Azi began shopping around. There was a section locked up behind a thick glass pane that had numerous locks on it.

Azi could recognize that the plants behind the thick glass were poisonous plants that Kajima had educated him on. Opting to keep some distance between himself and danger, he turned away and moved on.

"So, what are you looking for now, Azi?" Asked Shizu.

With a focused attention on the items on the shelves, Azi gave an inattentive reply.

"For now, I just need the basics. A mortar and pestle, measuring cups, glass bottles, and a pouch to hold them in."

Hearing his list of items, Elder Sung began rummaging through the front counter's drawers.

"I think these will do and I'll give you a discount if you buy it as a set."

From behind the store counter Elder Sung set a black mortar and pestle, metal measuring cups, a set of 10 glass bottles of about 3 inches in height and 1 inch in diameter, and finally 2 crimson red leather bags with a black four-leaf clover on its flap.

"Oh, this will work, and it looks nice as well, just how much does it cost?" Asked Azi.

With a practiced hand, Elder Sung pulled out a wooden abacus and began calculating the cost. This triggered Azi to remember a memory of his parents who did a lot of paperwork and math for their full time jobs. He still could not remember their names or faces, but he felt nostalgic when he looked at Elder Sung's actions.

With a clink from the moving wooden beads on the abacus, Elder Sung nodded in satisfaction. "Usually, these all cost about 4000 Minos, but since you are Shizu's apprentice I'll sell it for 3000 Minos."

With a smile, Azi nodded to her.

"You got yourself a deal."

He was enthused by the deal he was getting but Elder Sung stopped him by clapping her hands together to get his attention.

"Now now Azi, while I am giving you a good deal would you like to be given a better deal?" A smile creeped onto Elder Sung's lips which made Azi flinch a bit.

With a bit of skepticism, he agreed to hear Elder Sung out.

"Alright Elder Sung, what do you propose?"

Her grin widened from ear to ear when she heard Azi ask which caused Shizu and Azi to feel a sudden chill down their spines.

While this occurred, Saki was at the side and was chuckling to herself as she knew of the pranks her teacher would usually play on couples and guests.

Elder Sung picked up the pestle on the counter and pointed it at them. "Well! While I do believe that you are Shizu's apprentice, I don't think you two have really gotten to know each other. So as a sign of loyalty and respect I would like you two to offer a kiss of fealty to each other."

(New characters New personalities. I hope you like Elder Sung and her apprentice Saki. Comment on what you think about the story.)

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