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Chapter 8
A grand banquet held by the Cartier family, a famous jewel merchant house.
As the atmosphere grew lively—
“I’m sorry, I’m a bit late.”
Ellen Cartier, the host, entered the hall.
“Hello, Lady Ellen. Have you been well—”
The nobles who turned to greet her—
suddenly fell silent.
“…What is that? I’ve never seen anything like it…”
Because—
Ellen was wearing accessories with completely unfamiliar designs.
Normally, accessories were made with gold, silver, platinum, and gems like diamonds, rubies, and sapphires.
And their designs were usually complex and flashy—
to highlight the value of the materials.
The more complex the design, the more expensive and valuable it was considered.
But—
“…Why does it look so simple?”
Ellen’s accessories were different.
The designs were simple.
They had engravings of the Cartier family’s symbol—
a bitten apple—
and leaf patterns.
But overall—
they were clean and minimal.
Bracelets, rings, necklaces, brooches—
just the basics.
Some had gems, some didn’t.
They almost looked like armor rather than jewelry.
But—
“…No… the details are actually very refined…”
The edges were smooth curves.
The engravings were softly rounded.
Simple—but carefully crafted.
A calm, sharp elegance.
And most importantly—
“…What material is that?”
The metal itself was unfamiliar.
Not gold. Not silver. Not iron.
Something in between.
Its surface had fine lines—
giving it a cold, sharp, modern feeling.
“It feels like it cuts through the entire atmosphere…”
The nobles couldn’t take their eyes off her.
Just as planned.
Ellen thought calmly.
All eyes were on her.
That meant her strategy was working.
For nobles—
banquets were everything.
They built connections, formed alliances, and showed their status.
And the best way to show yourself—
was through clothes and accessories.
The better and newer they were—
the higher your status appeared.
That’s why Ellen regularly hosted grand banquets.
Even though they cost a lot—
“Because the profit is even greater.”
For her—
this was a showcase.
A place to present new products.
And—
“If the showcase succeeds, the return is huge.”
“Excuse me, Lady Ellen… may I touch your bracelet?”
Lady Ronefelt asked, unable to hold back her curiosity.
“Of course.”
Ellen smiled and handed it over.
“…Oh? The weight…?”
Lady Ronefelt was shocked.
“It’s… so light?”
It felt like holding air.
“Is this some kind of weight-reduction enchantment?”
“No. There’s no enchantment.”
“Then how is it so light?”
“It’s made from a newly discovered metal.”
Ellen said calmly.
“It’s called aluminum. A very rare metal.”
“Rare…?”
The nobles’ eyes lit up.
Rare meant valuable.
Valuable meant special.
And special—
meant superiority.
Soon, nobles gathered around her.
“Lady Ellen, when will this be released?”
“When can we place orders?”
“Price doesn’t matter—send it to me first!”
Ellen smiled.
“If they ask out of curiosity… that means complete success.”
And this—
was beyond success.
“This is a perfect success.”
“Products will be released soon. Our craftsmen are working hard.”
“Reservations aren’t open yet, but for you…”
“The price is higher due to rarity—but that’s fine?”
She handled them smoothly.
But then—
she thought of Yujin Magnus.
“I should have brought him into our family…”
Still—
this was a great result.
“I should strengthen our relationship instead.”
Then—
an idea came to her.
“Ah… he’s an alchemist. I know what he would like.”
A Few Days Later
“…What is this?”
Yujin was shocked.
A large box arrived from the Cartier family.
Inside—
were neatly organized ore samples.
“…Why send this?”
He opened the letter.
[This is Ellen Cartier. I hope you’ve been well, Yujin Magnus.]
[Thanks to your aluminum, our new accessories achieved the highest sales since I became the head.]
[Without you and Workshop 43, this would not have been possible.]
“…It sold that well?”
Yujin was surprised.
He kept reading.
[I am sending you ore samples that we collected while searching for new materials.]
[I thought they might help your research.]
[I heard that alchemists originally tried to create gold.]
[Since you created aluminum—something even more valuable—I believe these will help you.]
“…Ah, I see.”
Yujin understood.
She sent them to support his research.
“She’s an interesting person.”
He put the letter down.
“I should use these for research.”
He needed new metals anyway.
But then—
“…What’s this?”
There were also gold bars in the box.
“Are these for research too?”
He picked one up.
Then—
“…The purity feels low.”
He checked it.
Measured its density.
And—
“As expected.”
Pure gold has a density of 19.32.
This one—
was about 18.3.
Around 90% purity.
“…Isn’t this supposed to be high-quality?”
That meant—
“It’s a refining problem.”
The technology wasn’t good enough.
Then—
“I could refine this with electrolysis…”
He could raise purity to 99.99%.
But—
“Who would even need that?”
He didn’t think anyone would.
Meanwhile — Kalibor Magic Tower
Inside the top laboratory—
“Damn it! Failed again!”
The old mage, Robak, shouted in anger.
His artifact—
had exploded again due to mana flow issues.
He examined it.
Then—
“…It’s the gold again.”
The gold circuit was burned.
Gold helped mana flow—
but if impure—
it caused instability.
“The problem is the purity.”
Impurities caused mana to gather—
then explode.
He needed—
“Almost perfect gold… 99.99% purity.”
But—
“Where can I even find something like that?”
No one in the Empire could make it.
Robak sighed in despair.
“If someone could make it for me… I’d grant any request.”
