“Dale, that alchemist who went to Kiloveldt Peak, how is he doing?”
“…….”
Dale looked at me questioningly.
Somehow, his expression seemed to change slightly.
“Don't you know?”
“He was producing a lot of practical stuff there, and that helped him a lot.”
"Really?
What's he doing?"
“I understood that he had succeeded in making special barrels for food distributed from the top so that it could be transported without spoiling, and that he had also made special carts for transporting heavy goods.”
Dale stared at me for a moment after he finished speaking, then looked away.
“You were wondering about the man's safety, Enya.”
“How about we make a first aid kit?”
“……First aid kit?”
Dale's eyes narrowed.
“So people can treat wounds at home without having to go far.”
It was an idea I had had ever since I met the man earlier.
Currently, medicine bottles are simple glass or wooden bottles that are affected by the environment and decompose easily.
Dale listened intently and nodded.
“It would be nice to have a quick fix if you hurt your hand while cooking, or if you hurt yourself by touching something that's broken, or if you step on it.”
“It's a good idea.”
“But people who can afford it keep herbs in their homes.”
Dale answered objectively.
"Enya must have a reason for saying that.
What's the difference between that and having a small stock of herbs or bandages on hand?"
In fact, the first aid kit was already there.
A simple toolbox I used when Dale was injured.
But it was not enough, most importantly.
I pointed out exactly what Dale said.
Herbs are expensive.
Specialized medications are more expensive and rarer.
“And when you go to the clinic, that also costs you money, because it's privately run, and they don't charge you a fair price.”
“It's not easy to get to.”
“So when you get sick, you don't go to the clinic, you put up with the disease, and the incomplete treatment cycle caused by Hexagon is repeated.”
We need to stop this vicious cycle.
We don't want to create a situation where Hexagon gains power again.
Duke Hexagon will return soon.
We have to hit him hard so he can't get out like a game of whack-a-mole.
“The problem is also that we do not have representatives in parliament compared to patients, because if you catch a cold, or if you fall and bleed, or if you break your foot and cannot walk, you go to the doctor, no matter how serious the illness is.”
I remember a visitor to the clinic I set up while I was on the run.
There were people coming to the clinic because there were not enough clinics, but they had no other choice.
Even when desperate patients came to the clinic, they were often fed up with the number of visitors and missed treatment.
It was important to make treatment cheaper and more accessible.
We cannot increase the number of clinics immediately, but we can start on a small scale.
Dale's face looked serious, and he lowered his voice carefully.
“Can you tell me what's on your mind?”
“I will ask Marquis Cassion to find out how to make a simple form of the medicine.”
“The Marquis is a deceitful man, there is no guarantee that he will make things easier for you.”
“I'm sure the Marquis hates Hexagon too, especially since he refused to give Marquis Schultz the medicine when he knew he needed it, so he'll help me not because he has to, but because he hates Hexagon.”
“……That seems likely.”
Dale agreed.
"I will divide the pills into small parts, so that people who cannot read or have poor eyesight will not be able to read the instructions.
Bad pills are not medicine, they are poison."
Draw on a piece of paper the shape of a bowl that can hold grains in small pieces.
“I'm going to make a storage container that looks like this.”
“I've never seen this look before.”
“It will increase the shelf life of the beans and be healthier, but the bowl will increase the unit price a little bit.”
Dale nodded.
“So we'll need to mass-produce it to get the price down, although it's still early days, and we'll need someone to do it.”
Dale thought for a moment and then looked at me.
“So this is the alchemist you talked about earlier.”
"This is correct."
She smiled broadly.
* * *
“Hmm…….”
As I stared at the letter, Dale approached me.
“Did he send you any reply?”
“Yes, he said there was no problem with developing the pot.”
“That's good to hear.”
“I was wondering how to add medical equipment to prevent wounds from getting worse, and I think this is a good idea.”
I told him that I had thought about these ideas before, but quickly abandoned them due to my lack of support.
I can help him.
He can help me.
He wrote to me assuring him that he could make them look like the modern first aid kits and storage containers that I had drawn and sent to him.
It was as easy as I thought.
but.
“But there is a problem.”
Since the Hexagon family's monopoly on medicines has caused major problems for the Empire, healthcare in the Empire is under the supervision of the Emperor.
First aid kits are not just goods, as they have a specific purpose, but they are classified under health.
I can use it to make a fortune like the old hexagons.
It's not about private profit, it's about everyone's health.
Higher levels may be able to help with distribution of goods, but not production.
This required the permission of the emperor or the guarantee of a nobleman.
Lord Kilfeldt, who sent the letter, also pointed this out.
“We cannot move forward until we find a family who can guarantee this.”
“We have to find a noble family.”
"exactly."
They needed a shepherd to go to the imperial palace to obtain permission.
Someone to share the responsibility with.
But that in itself is not easy to find, and how many nobles would be willing to take on a task similar to what the Hexagon family did?
The Emperor Faction would not dare to do so, because they were emerging nobles who were just starting to rise to power, and the old nobles would not dare to do so, because they did not want to arouse the Hexagon's wrath.
Even if they did, it was unlikely that the Emperor would grant permission without guarantees from some nobles.
We need a noble family who can convince the Emperor.
“It seems we need a very high family authority, what do you think?”
“My opinion is the same as Enya’s.”
“Do you know any noble family?”
"I know……."
Dale wrote down the family names one by one.
There were a few noble families whose names I had heard.
By the time he finished, he had ten names.
Not counting the ones that looked like they could help.
“zero”
There was no one there.
Because I don't live like a princess now.
I have nothing to offer with confidence.
"or."
I bit my nails and thought.
“Maybe there is nothing at all.”
"Who is this?"
“There's a family that Dale and I know.”
Dale was quick to pick up on my words.
He looked at me as if he was asking me if this was really her.
“Yes, there is only one.”
I took a deep breath and said.
“The Lockhart Family.”
* * *
It eventually went to “that family.”
It took a lot of courage to get here.
The courage to wake up early, for example.
The courage to walk outside.
The courage to plead face to face.