"Toby, quit messing with the Alchemist!" The newcomer's voice rang outside of her shack.
Alchemist Mossblossom recognized it and paused at her door. It was that young man who introduced himself as the son of her former Alchemist master.
He sounded distinctly aggrieved at Tobias' actions, as if he was taking her side in this matter. Anybody would have been fooled to believe that.
There was a certain inflection in his tone that suggested he just wanted to get out of here.
As if her presence was terrible.
"You shouldn't bother someone who's evidently doing important work inside their laboratory," Owen Liddell said. "What are you doing here in the first place, Toby?"
There was a particular shrill in her Herb Gatherer's voice, indignation at Owen's remarks. The two of them certainly saw this case from a different perspective than the other. Tobias was unafraid to show it.
"Really? But you said—"
"Forget what I told you, Toby and let's get out of here."
The sound of argument and other noises soon disappeared from the space around her shack. It made her glad that it was finally done.
Albeit, she was a little put out.
This new person in the village seemed to have decided that she was a kooky Alchemist.
But wasn't this what she wanted?
You sometimes needed to keep yourself away from the world for everyone's own good… that was what Arreya Mossblossom was doing for the past years. But right now, she couldn't help but get curious.
Not on those two young men—heavens, no!
On the contrary, her thoughts didn't wander in that direction. Instead, this was about what Tobias was pitching for the last half hour when he came knocking at her door.
"He had spoken of this new plant, but I'm sure he'll just bring it to me if he ever needs the extra money." Arreya whispered to herself.
It was a fair trade.
Gaining other ingredients would cost a bit of her present living expenses. If this discovered flora was as phenomenal as Toby claimed to be, then it was great.
This would give a a fresh angle for her ongoing research.
The boy wasn't lying, was he?
The Alchemist glanced one last time out through the tiny space in her boarded windows. She saw the fleeing figures of the two in the more populated area of the village. Tobias particularly looked as if he was being chased by ghosts or phantoms in the broad daylight.
"What is he so spooked about from being here?" she asked.
Arreya shook her head. It didn't matter if they were afraid of her or something else. That was good for the three of them—she did not want to be disturbed by anybody.
The Alchemist refused to be seen at all.
Alchemist Mossblossom ignored Tobias' words and shut down his ideas to prevent him from entering the laboratory and seeing the truth of the matter. It wasn't because she was selfish enough to keep the alchemical equipment all to herself. That was far from the truth.
The idea of working with someone else was actually pleasant.
Arreya remembered the late Christopher Liddell.
He was a good man who trained everyone who was interested to study the art of potion making and was always willing to listen to peculiar ideas that sometimes didn't even have a chance for success.
"As long as you're learning new things and enjoying the process… I'm sure that good will come out of it." Arreya Mossblossom smiled slightly as she repeated his words.
It was a mantra that she lived through.
When the man went away—so did most of his students here in Wolfcrest Village, choosing to move for better opportunities. Even he had gone to Kraelonia Academy to pursue what he wanted. Experience new things like finding the love of his life.
Only she had stayed.
And that was because she was a werewolf.
Well, no—that was the simplest notion anyone would assume once anybody saw the fur all over her. If she wasn't that legendary beast, then she was a Beastkin, an infiltrator that sought to destroy the Yegarian kingdom from within.
She was seeking to destroy humanity—poisoning people by selling them what they needed and wanted.
But that wasn't quite the truth, either.
Arreya scratched her hairy neck and carefully maneuvered around the tight spaces in her shack. She bumped against a table and bit back down a hiss, making sure that nothing fell over her perfectly arranged table.
The villagers might have assumed that she was extremely frugal or cheap to live in such a dump, but she was actually dirt poor.
This was the most that she could pay the Village Head while still maintaining her projects.
Alchemy was expensive and time-consuming.
While most had turned to the mass production of healing potions, stamina potions and other items which were necessary for every person's daily affairs… she had explored more!
If one could change one's internal condition by ingesting ingredients, then it was also possible to change one's outside form as well. There was supposed to be an external reaction whenever one changed one's composition as well.
It bound people to think this was horrendous.
But it wasn't that bad.
Arreya stared down at the rough, absolutely thick gray fur that sprouted on her arms and all over her body… it even sometimes grew around the scruff of her neck.
This was out of her own doing.
Alchemist Arreya Mossblossom wasn't interested in undoing it at all. Instead, she'd rather start exploring everything that was possible about this state. While she couldn't do many physical tests on herself in the cramped living space, this was what she knew.
Arrows and other projectiles didn't seem to hurt that much and could be deflected at times due to how furry she was. This extra layer of fur kept her extra warm and snug during the winter seasons—but she once attempted to shave everything off during the summer.
Gone was her once beautiful appearance that used to capture people's eyes in this village, but if this was the price she had to pay to further her studies?
Then it was worth every price.