The next afternoon, Ain was helping Maria sort out documents.
"Where should these red ones go?" He asked, referring to an entire stack of papers with a large red stamp on them.
"You can just leave those ones on the bottom shelf. I'll get to them later." Maria responded as she wrote down her signature.
She tapped her pen against her head as she looked at the diligently working young man.
"You know you don't have to help me to get my permission to go with your friends. I've already sent the letter to Axel."
"Mmn, I know. But I asked Core to find me a book about local plants and herbs, and he hasn't got it yet, so I have nothing better to do." Ain shrugged.
"Herbs? Are you interested in Alchemy?"
The Alchemy she was referring to was much less refined than what Ain was familiar with. He wasn't sure to what extent, but he couldn't find any mention of Alchemist transmuting matter like he did all those years ago to escape his crib.
"A little." He nodded.
His interest in the topic has grown considerably over the years, and now he hoped to learn how to make basic potions for the group when they enter the forest.
Maria hummed curiously before she began to rummage through the numerous papers.
"Ah. Here it is." She said as she grabbed an envelope.
"If you want to learn about that, go bring this to the nearby Apothecary. The owner should have a couple of books that a beginner could read. Just tell her that I sent you."
"Eh? Are you sure she'd lend one to me?" Ain asked as he grabbed the letter. It was addressed to Lilee R. Quarrie.
Maria laughed.
"That woman will. Since she's the only Alchemist in the city, she's constantly swamped with work. She'll probably jump at the chance for someone else to share the burden. Not to mention, she already has a disciple around your age, so just think of it as a chance to make another friend."
Ain thought that her having a disciple already would lessen his chances of getting what he wanted, but there was no harm in asking. It wasn't like he was trying to inherit all her knowledge or anything.
"Alright! I'll be back!" Ain said as he ran out of the room.
Only for him to come back.
"Love you, Granny!" He said before rushing out the front door.
As she adjusted her glasses, Maria let out a chuckle.
"Those brats have too much energy for my old bones."
Running through the streets, they weren't nearly as crowded as they were years ago.
Some folks were beginning to put out their decorations for the festival early, but very few, if any, merchants had arrived yet.
"Oh, Ain! How's it going? Running an errand for Mayor Maria?" Shouted a man named Dan.
"Mr. Dan! Afternoon! Yeah, something like that."
"Alright, I won't stall you then! Whenever you return, could you give the Mayor my thanks for helping with construction down on 7th?"
Ain turned to face Dan for a bit while he ran to wave.
"I don't know. Can I ride Ascel if I do?" Ain asked sarcastically.
He was a construction worker who worked closely with Maria. His Kindred was a massive rhino. In the entire town, nobody could match his work efficiency.
"Maybe when you're a little older!" He laughed.
On his way to the Apothecary, a few more people greeted Ain in much the same way.
It was a rather heartwarming, if not a bizarre, sight: a community almost unanimously liking their direct government.
Maybe it was because he rarely visited small settlements, but he couldn't get used to it no matter how hard he tried.
Eventually, he arrived at his location—a building with a large sign that said Lavender Willow's Apothecary.
When Ain opened the door, a few bells went off.
'Woah.' He thought inwardly.
The outside of the building seemed as normal and inconspicuous as any other, but the inside was everything but.
It looked more like a rustic pub with seats lining a counter, candles that weren't quite bright enough to light the entire area, and colorful flowers that left a strong floral scent.
He couldn't call the place anything but cozy.
"I'll be right there in one minute!" A young voice called from the back.
Ain could hear uneven footsteps that changed to something more akin to hopping.
"Woah! Woah! Woah!" The voice shouted as she revealed herself in front of the open door to the back.
She was carrying a heavy box and moving around, almost losing her balance. Still, she managed to put the box in its presumably correct location and rushed to the counter.
"Customer! Welcome to Lavender Willow's! A cure, a brew, or perhaps something new?" The young girl said as if she had rehearsed it a thousand times before she actually looked at who the customer was.
"A kid?" She asked with a confused tone.
"You're not much older than me, though?" Ain contested.
Judging by her height and proportions, the girl was probably around 12.
She had long pink hair and black eyes. She wore a dark plum tunic dress with a high collar and short sleeves that fell to her knees, an ivory coat with four visible pockets and possibly more hidden, black leggings, and dark brown heavy-duty boots that ended around her calf.
The two children looked at each other for several seconds before the girl regained her wits. She wasn't ready for this small boy to retort her at all, much less instantly.
"Uhm… Are you lost?"
"Is there another Apothecary in the town?"
"No." She shook her head.
"Then no," Ain responded.
Her eyes narrowed at the boy.
"Then what can I help you with?" She smiled.
Ain pulled out the envelope from his pocket.
"Granny sent me here to deliver something to the owner here."
"For… Teacher?"
The young girl froze for a moment as if her brain couldn't process mail coming in for her teacher.
'So she's the Alchemist's disciple?' Ain let out a sigh of relief.
Alchemists loved making themselves look younger than they actually were. Sometimes too young. He had to question their peculiar tastes.
"Ah! Oh, right! Yeah. One moment!" She said before leaving Ain's vision.