For Tori, the Miniature Meditation Potion was only the beginning. There were many different formulas for it alone, and she’d only mastered one.

Besides, Ethan wasn’t sharing any other methods for making Potions. But this was already enough. The process known as the flushing method had given Tori plenty of ideas, even if researching them would be a hassle.

She rewrote the formula she’d developed in her notebook. Compared to the vague, hard-to-understand formula Ethan had given her, Tori thought hers was clear enough for anyone to follow. Then she added plenty of notes.

She wanted to put more effort into researching other Potions, but for the time being, Tori was grounded.

How should she put it? Disappearing for several days without a word—and with a man she’d only met twice, no less—was too much, even for someone as open-minded as Xilika. Especially in this day and age, a girl’s reputation could easily suffer after something like that—even if Tori was only eight years old.

So Tori was punished harshly. Xilika told her she wasn’t allowed to go anywhere. Of course, Tori had enough ingredients to brew around a dozen Meditation Potions, so she wasn’t in a hurry to go anywhere anyway.

You couldn’t drink too much Meditation Potion.

Drink too much, and it might become difficult to return from deep meditation. That was what Tori had experienced after taking the Potion. She’d only tried a tiny sip herself, but even that had nearly made her lose consciousness. Ethan said it wasn’t actually impossible to come back, but it could take a long time. Without someone to look after you, you might starve or die of thirst.

That would be a pretty miserable way to go.

So Lydia became Tori’s little assistant for the time being. Tori gave her a Meditation Potion and had her try meditating.

Lydia looked completely uninterested. “Boss~ I don’t wanna meditate! It’s so boring!” For someone her age, it really was hard to sit still and meditate. Still, Lydia was more mature than most children her age. The hardships she’d been through had taught her the importance of certain things, so she didn’t avoid meditation altogether. She was just very inefficient at it.

The Meditation Potion helped a lot, but Lydia still treated meditation like a chore. She’d much rather help Tori with work, like carrying drinks or selling wine—

Well, “the little wine seller” was Lydia’s nickname in Lusaka Village. She’d help deliver wine to people’s homes, though she charged an extra copper coin for it.

Tori had no intention of doing anything about Lydia’s tips. Lydia had earned them herself, and it wasn’t a lot anyway. As for Tori, she had entered a deep meditative state.

There was one thing she understood very clearly: money was only one part of the equation.

What mattered more was whether you could hold on to it.

In a world like this, even nobles like Ethan could be targeted for assassination. Merchants were even more vulnerable. Potion Makers held a prestigious status—but so what? Greed could sway people’s hearts. If someone set their sights on you and you couldn’t defend yourself, you were as good as dead.

Her eagerness to brew Miniature Meditation Potions was partly driven by that concern. She needed to improve her strength as quickly as possible. If she could, she wanted to reach the rank of The Weak before entering the Mage Academy. At the very least, she wanted to surpass the other children her age in the village. The village chief’s grandson was a good point of comparison. He was a year younger than her. His magical power definitely wasn’t as strong as hers was now. What level would he be at this time next year, when she enrolled? And what rank would he reach by the time he enrolled himself?

He’d probably be The Weak, too.

But he might not rush to advance. Someone as far-sighted as the village chief probably wouldn’t hurry his grandson into breaking through to the next level. After all, the advancement Potion for The Weak was expensive: ten gold coins.

In theory, that was 100,000. Even if the village chief was fairly wealthy, that figure couldn’t be easy to afford. It wasn’t impossible, of course. The village chief’s daughter and son-in-law apparently worked in Dais City, and they probably had quite a bit saved up. So… reaching the strength of The Weak wasn’t out of the question.

What a gap!

They were from the same village, and yet the difference between them was already this huge! Tori felt keenly how uneven this world was. In some ways, its class divide was even harder to cross than the one in her old world. Then again, the class system here was pretty clear-cut.

There weren’t as many vague standards to judge by. If you were strong, you could do whatever you wanted.

There were far more opportunities than in her old world.

With the help of the Potions, her training was progressing rapidly. She planned to head to Blackwater Town once she’d used up her supply and officially get the shop up and running. She needed to finalize her deal with Ethan quickly. Then she could see if she could bring her dad over to help… No, she couldn’t leave Mom alone in the village. She’d better send Dad back instead. She’d have to find two more shop assistants.

Thinking about it that way only gave her more things to worry about.

But as long as she could make money, everything else was a small matter. Her mood brightened again.

…

“Young Master, this is a letter from the lord.” Yabu, the butler, respectfully handed Ethan a letter that required the recipient’s magical power to open.

Ethan took the letter and read its contents. “My old man’s started pressuring me to put his plans into action. Is he being a little too impatient? Does he need this achievement that badly? Or is something unpleasant going to happen to him if he can’t prove something?”

Yabu couldn’t comment on that. He was a butler, not someone who could take part in the kingdom’s politics. The lord didn’t tell him many things.

Ethan frowned, then finally sighed. “I have to start using a few measures. Otherwise, my father will send someone to inspect my work. He might call it an inspection, but by then I won’t have any say in the matter.”

“I’d planned to keep observing the town and the surrounding villages, to see if there were any more talents worth cultivating. But someone like Tori is already enough. She’ll definitely achieve great things. The trouble is, I need time, and so does she. I just don’t know if we have that much time.” He looked at Yabu. “Come with me to the town chief’s residence. It’s time to put some pressure on him. He can’t really think that because he couldn’t disobey my sister’s orders that night, he could get away with attacking me, can he?”

“Young Master…”

Yabu hesitated, as if he wanted to say something.

Ethan shook his head. “I know you’re in a difficult position, Uncle Yabu. But since my father assigned you to follow me, protecting me while you’re at my side is your responsibility, isn’t it? You don’t have to do anything else. Besides, in that attack, the town chief only dared to send someone at the rank of The Mediocre. He was just putting on a show. If he really wanted to kill me, why not pay a price to bring in a Mage who was Extraordinary, or even Mighty? He just wanted to tell my sister that he hadn’t refused to act—he’d only had someone of that rank to send. If they couldn’t kill me, there was nothing he could do.”

“Well…”

“My brothers and sisters, older and younger, have spent too long in the city. They probably think that’s the truth. Or perhaps they think a town chief really can’t find Mages who are Extraordinary or Mighty. Otherwise, things wouldn’t be so peaceful right now. They’ve never actually been to a town like this. They don’t understand how much power a town chief has here. Of course, I didn’t understand it either before I came here to investigate for myself.”

“So, Uncle Yabu, your strength is enough to protect me. That’s what gives me leverage in my negotiations with the town chief. My status is my biggest backing; you’re just here in case something goes wrong. This has nothing to do with where your loyalties lie. You’re simply carrying out your assigned duty.”

Yabu, the butler, didn’t want to get involved in the lord’s children’s struggles. He was a man who followed the lord’s wishes and had served him since childhood. He understood many of the lord’s thoughts, but there was still a great deal he didn’t know. All he could do was sigh. He didn’t really have any other choice. It was very difficult to do everything right by everyone.

“As you wish, Young Master.”

The two of them headed for the town chief’s residence together.

…

Tori left a letter for her mother, saying she was going to town to make money and that Dad could come back to keep her company in a couple of days. Then, just after four in the morning, she set off with a sleepy, barely awake Lydia in tow.

It was a surprise attack. Even Lydia hadn’t known Tori would set off at this hour, effectively preventing her from telling her mother. Tori brought almost nothing with her—just two or three changes of clothes she liked and her savings. She was sure Ethan had everything else, and if he didn’t, they could get it later. The two little girls reached town just as the sky was growing light.

Most merchants were only just setting up their stalls at this hour; it wasn’t busy yet. Tori had already brought Lydia to the shop where she and Ethan had stayed before. She looked around from outside. The window Ethan had cut open with his cross-shaped light sword had been repaired at some point. So someone really did come to fix it the next day?

Then she led Lydia into the shop.

“…M-Master Ethan?! What are you doing here?”

Tori froze when she saw Ethan cleaning the shop. He smiled at her. “I had a feeling you’d be coming soon. This works out perfectly.”

“W-what do you want to do?”

Ethan spread his hands. “I’m the one funding this shop, right?”

“Y-yes, that’s right.”

“Since I’m funding it, what’s wrong with me being here as the owner? I have to make sure you’re working hard, don’t I? I can’t really go adventuring for the time being, so I might as well help out here. What do you think? The two of you can’t run this shop by yourselves, can you? You’ll be selling drinks and Potions, and you’ll have to make the Potions yourself. You’ll need to hire people, too. Uncle Yabu and I can help you out. How about it?”

Tori eyed him suspiciously. Since when did things like this happen for free?

“What’s with that look? Don’t you welcome me as the owner?”

“Of course, of course I do—I was just wondering, why can’t you be an adventurer for the time being?”

Ethan chuckled. “Because it’s dangerous.”

“D-dangerous?”

“That’s right!” Ethan said firmly. “It’s very dangerous. If you want to hear the details, I can tell you. It’s partly my fault—I was a little too arrogant. I never thought my siblings could be so ruthless!”

“That’s enough. I don’t need to hear any more!” Tori covered her ears, making it clear she didn’t want to hear a word he said.