NABC Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Recently, trends among children in the Empire have been changing rapidly.
Until not long ago, children, whether commoners or nobles, were busy imitating characters from The Kingdom of Ice.
Parents had to memorize entire dialogues from The Kingdom of Ice because their children begged them to buy Elsa dresses and waved wands, asking them to play along.
However, recently another trend emerged.
“Equivalent exchange!!!”
“I am Edmund Eldrick, the Iron-Blooded Alchemist certified by the Empire!”
“Look, I copied the transmutation circle exactly as it appears in the book!”
The children were captivated by the new manga The Iron-Blooded Alchemist and were engrossed in mimicking its content.
Unlike before, when girls mainly were enthusiastic, this time, it was the boys who were thrilled.
Though it made one wonder why it was even called alchemy, it was easy to find boys waving sticks and reciting lines.
The more surprising thing was that not only children but even adults were making The Iron-Blooded Alchemist a topic of conversation.
Though they didn’t imitate the dialogue like the children, they were often seen in taverns, engaging in serious debates about whether the Iron-Blooded Alchemist was the strongest or whether the Flame Alchemist, who appeared at the end of Volume 1, was more powerful.
While everyone was enjoying The Iron-Blooded Alchemist in their own way, there was one place that couldn’t afford to laugh.
That place was the Alchemy Guild.
The headquarters of the Alchemy Guild was located in the capital of the Borus Empire, Caldea.
Usually, the place was relatively quiet, with alchemists coming for materials and merchants buying potions and other products.
Until last week.
“I'm not just asking for your secrets for free. I’ve brought enough compensation, so please tell me!!!”
“I’m sorry, but we have no knowledge of human transmutation.”
Harun, the Empire’s top alchemist and head of the Alchemy Guild, was on the verge of madness from the recent flood of visitors.
‘Human transmutation? I’ve never heard of such a horrible thing.’
If it were just random visitors, they would have been kicked out immediately, but the problem was that high-ranking nobles were among the visitors.
If it wasn’t Count Christian demanding knowledge about human transmutation, he would have been thrown out immediately.
“Hmph, then what is the content in this book? Are you saying it’s really false?!”
“That is....”
Yes, that damn book was the root of all the problems.
A manga thought to be just for kids.
But he remembered being so surprised when he bought the new manga titled The Iron-Blooded Alchemist out of curiosity and read it.
‘Where on earth did it find those unknown components of the human body and that transmutation circle?’
If it were absurd, it could have been dismissed as fiction, but surprisingly, the content in the manga was partly true.
Especially the components of the human body were filled with things they hadn’t fully identified yet.
The manga accurately described them, which sent chills down his spine.
Moreover, the transmutation circles depicted were not just nonsense.
They were clearly shaped like transmutation circles but included new elements.
Some young alchemists locked themselves in, claiming it was new knowledge, proving it was not just a book for kids.
‘Rebound... this is surely a side effect associated with forbidden alchemy and secret arts.’
It was still in the speculative stage, but he couldn’t help but think the author of this book knew about forbidden or ancient lost alchemy.
Rupert Somerset.
Harun etched that name into his memory. He was undoubtedly someone who knew and hid something.
For such a person to embed this vision in a book read by many people surely meant he was planning something.
“Rupert, what on earth are you...?”
Alex couldn’t stop his tears.
He was overwhelmed with emotion after seeing the new manga The Iron-Blooded Alchemist that Rupert published.
A father who left home, a mother and siblings left behind.
The scene where the brothers, having lost their mother to illness, reached for the forbidden art of human transmutation left the Crown Prince sobbing.
Of course, it’s winter now, but Koreans stick to iced Americano no matter what.
I can’t even imagine blowing on hot coffee to drink it.
“I want some too!”
Ada quietly approached, seeing me drink coffee and asked for some, staring at the cup in my hand.
‘She wouldn’t even look me in the eye out of sulking.’
I sat Ada on my lap and carefully handed her the cup.
I had hidden the manuscript because the newly released manga The Iron-Blooded Alchemist seemed too early for Ada.
She was sulking and wouldn’t answer or make eye contact, but now she clung to me quietly, curious about the coffee or had she just gotten over it.
“Yuck! What is this? It’s not tasty....”
Ada took a sip of the cold coffee and grimaced, spitting it out.
“Ada, even though your brother drinks it.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“I don’t care, give me something sweet!”
I had no choice but to retrieve a candy hidden in my desk drawer at Ada’s demand.
“That’s it for today, okay?”
Ada nodded and unwrapped the candy wrapper.
The other day, when that strange guest saw Ada’s plump body and messy dress, they were horrified and scolded the maid.
Since then, Ada’s Elsa dress and snacks had been confiscated, so she had to make do with what I secretly gave her.
‘Whoever it was, how dare they slander cute Ada like this.’
Even considering that kids of this age have baby fat, she was a little chubby, but that was her charm point.
I reached out and pinched Ada’s cheek as she chewed the candy.
She made a strange sound and tried to resist, but already captivated by the candy, she soon gave up and complied.
“Ada, do you want to read a fairy tale?”
“A fairy tale?”
Ada nodded at my words.
Her words struck me. The reason I started making fairy tales was originally for Ada.
At some point, I forgot the purpose and drew only what I wanted, not realizing Ada was getting bored.
‘Haa... I need to work on the second volume of The Iron-Blooded Alchemist, but making a fairy tale would be tough.’
Now that I think about it, the trading company owner also said other companies started making fairy tales besides mine.
Although not threatening yet, he said a decent fairy tale could come out anytime.
“What kind of story would you like to see, Ada?”
“Umm... I don’t know!”
So confident. She reminded me of the most troublesome type of client I encountered as a freelancer before drawing webtoons.
I tried to recall fairy tales I knew, but none stood out.
I excluded the brutal ones and had already used romantic tales with princesses like Cinderella, Snow White, and The Little Mermaid.
Wait, why did I forget this?
A fairy tale that comes to mind during cold winters.
Moreover, it’s not long and is educational despite being sad for children.
“Ada, I’ll quickly make a fairy tale book for you!”
“Really?”
Ada beamed and hugged me tightly.
I flinched as Ada’s face touched my neck, remembering the last time she bit me.
But now, Ada was hugging me and shouting that I was the best.
Wait, I’ll make you cry soon.
I was already looking forward to creating the fairy tale book.@@@@