"Alright Meiros, do you know how to brew a potion?" Chrysos asked him with a serious tone.
"I do not." Meiros answered almost instantly.
"Then we have a serious problem." Chrysos looked at Meiros.
He didn't like how dirty this kid's clothes are. If he wants to get a decent student, decent clothing is necessary.
It wasn't clean and Chrysos does not have extra clothes that fit him, so it needed to be changed. Plus, he's been in many clothing ads before, so he has some sense towards fashion too.
"We're going to buy you clothes and we're going to buy brewing ingredients. After that, I'll be teaching you all you need to know." Chrysos patted Meiros' shoulder and opened his other hand to make a swirl of Divinious. This simple gesture made Meiros feel safer around Chrysos.
Of course, Meiros was hyped. "Yes! I'll do my best!"
Chrysos wagged his finger at Meiros to curb his excitement. "Oh no no no, alchemy takes a lot of memory and skill to master. Are you sure you can handle this?"
"Uhm, most psychics get perfect memory. I'm one of them." Meiros scratched his head. He thought his master already knew that.
"Perfect memory? Then you just need to work on your skills and it'll be good." Chrysos was already liking the idea of having Meiros as a student. "However, I have strict rules that you must follow."
"I'm listening." Meiros looked at him attentively
Chrysos stood up from his seat because he realized that Meiros is taller than him while he's sitting. He needed to be a bit imposing to create an impression.
Chrysos thought for a bit before he began speaking. "First rule, hygiene and cleanliness is a must. Second rule, you must listen to what I say and don't try to be hasty and start experimenting if I don't say so. Third rule, no killing unless I permit you to, or if it's a deadly situation, then I allow you. Fourth rule, ask for permission first if you want something from me. If you did something remarkable, then you will get a reward."
Meiros memorized them and burned them into his memory.
"Now the most important and final rule, have fun and enjoy each day as much as possible." Chrysos gave out a thumbs up.
Meiros was taken aback and stood there blankly before nodding.
"Great, now go to the bathroom and follow rule one." Chrysos pointed to the bathroom.
"Alright.. but… what is hygiene?" Meiros frowned at the unfamiliar term.
Realizing that he pronounced it as its English term instead of using the Aliqiertan language, Chrysos began to explain. "It means personal cleanliness, smell and appearance. And than includes trimmed nails, washed face, your body must be clean and you shouldn't stink at all. Also, wash your hands everytime you eat."
Meiros sniffed himself and immediately regretted it. He quickly made his way to the bathroom.
While Meiros was inside the bathroom, Chrysos decided to relax and sit down, read a book and drink some herbal tea. Of course, he opened the mouth area of his mask to allow him to drink it.
But before he got to do so, Meiros began asking from the bathroom.
"What are these round things on the wall?" Meiros asked.
"That's the faucet and the shower." Chrysos explained. "Twist it and water will flow down."
"Oh." Chrysos could hear Meiros' voice from the bathroom. He then heard twisting noises of metal followed by running water.
Chrysos could hear the faucet and shower turn on and off several times, so he figured that Meiros must've been experimenting a bit.
"I almost forgot, close the faucet and the shower thoroughly once you're done to not waste water." Chrysos reminded him as he took a sip of his tea.
"Okay." Meiros responded.
"..." Chrysos heard no more questions, so he continued reading his book about alchemy.
"Master Gerald?" Meiros asked once again.
Chrysos wasn't annoyed and asked back. "What is it?"
"What is this shiny blue bar hanging from the wall?" Meiros asked with a questioning tone. "And why is it bubbly?"
"You don't know what soap is?" Chrysos asked.
"No." Chrysos could hear the embarrassment from Meiros' tone.
Sighing, Chrysos patiently explained. "Do you see a piece of rough cloth next to it?"
"Yep." Meiros quickly responded.
"Grab the soap and wrap the cloth around it. Now rub the cloth against the soap and once it's bubbly, place the soap back and use the cloth to rub your body clean. It's that simple. You can also use it on your hair. And after doing so, rinse the soap off your body by using the water from the shower." Chrysos felt like an older brother explaining how things work to his little brother.
But regardless, he wasn't mad.
Hearing no more questions, Chrysos was no longer disturbed from his reading session.
Five minutes later however, Meiros asked him once again.
"How do I dry myself?" Chrysos could hear that the faucet and shower was turned off, so he knew that Meiros was probably done.
Chrysos stood up, closed his mask shut and said, "Wait for me."
He then went to his room and grabbed a towel and the smallest clothes that he had, alongside with a small rope.
He knocked on the door and Meiros opened it slightly so that he could see outside.
"Use this cloth to wipe and dry yourself clean and wear these clothes instead of your old ones. And use this rope to tighten your pants and stop them from falling off." Chrysos then passed the clothes to Meiros.
It took a short while until Meiros came out of the bathroom wearing a loose shirt and tightly secured pants.
Chrysos used all of his strength not to laugh. "We're going to buy you clothes. You can't wear my clothes all the time."
Meiros looked down and nodded.
…
They then left his house and went to the clothing store.
It was the first time Meiros walked around the city without hiding in the shadows, so he hid beside Chrysos the entire time.
Soon enough, they arrived.
Even though Meiros saw the clothing store many times everytime he passed by when he was still living in the streets, being inside made him feel excited. This experience was entirely new for him.
"Alright, let's give you something good." Chrysos checked as many hangers as he could.
When Meiros was looking at Chrysos, it made Meiros very confused. Was there really a need to take things way too quickly?
Plus, from what Meiros could see, Chrysos was just randomly taking clothes after looking at them for a second. Is his teacher's head alright?
Meiros sighed. "Well, I guess everyone has weird sides?" Meiros didn't know what to say in this situation. He just waited until Chrysos was done.
It wasn't Chrysos being weird on purpose, it was just a custom in the Divine Lands to check the quality, the strength and the appearance of clothes very carefully if they want to keep something good for themselves.
But for Chrysos, he has been in many malls so this is just a normal day for him. Unlike the rest who takes minutes just to pick clothes, Chrysos didn't need to do so. As some could say, this was the power of modern knowledge.
People snuck doubtful gazes at Chrysos from time to time.
After getting some clothes, Chrysos walked towards Meiros who hid behind the window curtain.
"Here you go, try them on." Chrysos gave Meiros the clothes that he picked.
"Master, are you sure?" Even though Meiros trusted Chrysos, he still couldn't see how it's possible to examine clothing that quickly.
Chrysos held his mask's chin and thought for a second before saying, "Yeah I'm sure. I double checked them."
Meiros turned his head away and coughed discreetly. "Double check? Master, I didn't even see how you did it.." Meiros muttered under his breath.
"What was that?" Chrysos heard a slight murmur.
"Nothing, I'll put them on." Meiros snapped back and went into the dressing room.
...
Meiros came out of the dressing room with black boots, gray pants, and a gray shirt inside a black jacket. In Earth's standards, this could be seen as a cool mage cosplay or something like that.
"Does this look ridiculous?" Meiros scratched his head. As someone from the Divine Lands, Meiros saw this as excessive and strange. To most people here, only rich nobles waste their money on something so trivial like fashion.
"Nope, not at all." Chrysos clapped his hands together. "Alright, I'll pay for it now. Wait here." Chrysos went to the counter and paid 40 silver coins.
The receptionist, who was a young lady, smiled warmly and bid the two farewell.
The master and student went out the store and walked towards Chrysos' favorite place in Ironmountain.
…
Nalkar's Market of Desires
Nalkar is a famous and rich merchant who buys anything and everything random. And usually, the items being sold are actually very useful for those looking for that specific thing. Nalkar is a Shaman who has the ability to predict things by offering sacrifices to the Ferryman Of Time's River, Thanctinitus.
And from that alone, he knew what kind of items he would buy for cheap and sell for a bigger price because he knew that someone would need it in the future.
Many people tried stealing his altar, but he kept it safe all these years.
God altars are rare and are scattered all over the Divine Lands. Some are common to find, and some are rare. They come in all shapes and sizes, so trying to steal one might be difficult because of the altar's peculiar physical appearance.
Moving on, Chrysos and Meiros saw a huge market from afar. This huge establishment could be called a mall back on earth if it had more than one floor.
...
Many people looked at Meiros from time to time. His attire was nice to look at, and people would look at him because of it.
But Meiros wasn't having any of it so he turned his head to Chrysos and asked, "Master, why did I have to wear this?" Meiros pouted unhappily.
"What do you mean? It looks amazing." Chrysos didn't see anything wrong with it.
Meiros rolled his eyes. "It is a great outfit, don't get me wrong but.. It's just too excessive for me."
"Excessive? Then what does my outfit look like?" Chrysos pointed to a small tank strapped on his back, his belt filled with potions that glowed from time to time, his gas mask that made his breathing sound rough from the outside, and his coat that almost reached his ankles. "If your clothes are weird, then am I an abomination?"
"Well, you are an alchemist.. no one would think of it as strange." Meiros said as a matter of fact.
"Excuse me? Just because I'm an alchemist doesn't mean that we're expected to look weird." Chrysos spoke with a proud tone. "Plus, some alchemists are handsome too, you know?"
"Master, if you say that you're handsome, I haven't even seen your face yet." Meiros spoke just in case Chrysos started bragging.
"But I am handsome. I also fixed my sleeping schedule to remove dark circles under my eyes and I wash my face very often." Chrysos removed his mask, revealing his face. This time, his eyes no longer had dark circles under them, and he even brushed his teeth more often than his past self used to.
"Eh... I guess it's decent, but not handsome." Meiros shrugged.
"Okay, why do you have to be so honest?" Chrysos laughed. He then put on his mask and replied, "But hey, if it's decent it's decent. And plus, I think you shouldn't be ashamed if you're doing something unconventional. Your clothing might be strange, but it looks good so why hate it? Don't think about what others think. If you're happy, I think you should pursue that unless someone is being affected in a negative way." Chrysos cheered him up.
Meiros stared at Chrysos for a short while before nodding with a faint smile. "I guess you're right.." Meiros moved on with another topic. "Oh uh, master.. What's your favorite animal?"
"Dogs." Chrysos answered without a second thought.
"Eh? Aren't they weak? I personally like a tiger or a lion." Meiros clenched his fists at the thought of those powerful creatures. "Oh, and dragons are also cool."
"Dragons? I can understand that.. but I hate lions, vultures, tigers, plain faces and skulls with a passion." Chrysos cracked his knuckles. "Good thing I killed some of them with a gun."
"Plain faces and skulls? Are those even animals...?" Meiros kept this thought in his head. He felt that it would be better not to ask.
"..Master, what's a gun?" Meiros asked.
"I have no clue either." Chrysos feigned ignorance.
...
The two entered the market and it was very lively. Many people were walking around the various stalls to buy what they needed. Of course, Chrysos walked towards alchemy related products.
But as they kept walking, Meiros was getting tired because of how long they have to travel just to get to their destination. It felt like they were going in circles.
"Master Gerald, please wait up.." Meiros was surprised that Chrysos could walk for this long.
Chrysos turned his head around without stopping. "Don't worry, we're almost there." Chrysos said as he wiped off the moisture on the glass of his mask.
He was lying.
...
Three hours and thirty minutes later..
Meiros was heavily panting because he had to walk and run sometimes just to catch up. "Please... don't walk... *cough* any more..." Meiros looked around for a chair and sat down.
Chrysos sat next to Meiros to keep him company. They waited for a few minutes until Meiros recovered.
Chrysos intentionally took longer turns and ran from time to time in order to force Meiros to run, all because he wanted to test Meiros' patience. And from the results, he was satisfied and even held it in a positive regard.
After waiting for Meiros to recover, Chrysos made an excuse that he wanted to test Meiros' physical endurance, which of course, the naive Meiros believed.
Chrysos finally brought Meiros to his favorite place to buy ingredients from. When he saw the stall, Meiros also saw a man with a long moustache and a brown wooden pair of glasses.
From what he's seeing, Meiros assumed that this man is also an alchemist.
"Cireno, long time no see." Chrysos walked up to the man and smiled with enthusiasm. However since he has a mask on, it was seen as an intimidating gesture for the other customers.
The man turned around and looked at Chrysos and said, "It hasn't even been a day.. So, what do you want to purchase this time?"
"Here's the list." Chrysos passed a piece of paper to Cireno.
After skimming through the entire thing, Cireno went to get all of them and came back with seven sacks full of ingredients.
"That would be 80 silver coins." Cireno passed a piece of paper with his calculation to Chrysos to check if anything's wrong with it.
"Absolutely." Chrysos took out 80 silver coins and left with a satisfied smile. And of course, no one could see it because of his mask.
...
Back at Chrysos' house.
Meiros was being taught what the ingredients do and how they can be refined, extracted, and purified without Divinious because he does not have the unique abilities for the job.
"Alright, now this is the Zarch Pink Capped Mushroom and it is used for what?" Chrysos was lecturing Meiros after explaining the basic ingredients to him.
"It is used as a basic disinfectant and helps digestion of potions." Meiros responded from what he remembered.
"Good.." Chrysos clapped his hands. "You indeed have a perfect memory. However, it's still not enough if you want to brew something extraordinary."
Meiros nodded.
"Alright, do you know what the world is made of?" Chrysos asked randomly.
"Eh? That wasn't in the books you gave me earlier. Meiros was confused why Chrysos would ask something like this.
"No no no, just answer me." Chrysos waited for Meiros' answer.
After thinking about it for a while, Meiros said, "Divinious?"
"No. The world is made of atoms." Chrysos laughed. "This table is made of atoms, this water is made of atoms, the air is also made of atoms." Chrysos pointed at random things around the house.
"What are atoms?" Meiros was intrigued by this thing called "atoms'' that his teacher was talking about. "Is Divinious also made of atoms?" Meiros asked.
"Hard to say, but let's move on later with the questions. I'll explain what atoms are to you first. Of course you have to imagine this as well." Chrysos used his finger and tapped the side of his head twice.
"Psychics have great imagination too.. I can predict things to a small extent. And I can also see how things would work by imagining how it would go." Meiros explained.
"It must be great being a psychic huh? Wait, I need my alchemy abilities so I'm still grateful for it." Chrysos thought to himself and didn't reject being an alchemist for a psychic.
He coughed twice and explained atomic theory to Meiros.
This is something that Meiros wouldn't forget for the rest of his life.
Well it's not like he'll forget anything anyway..