The road to the alchemist's home was filled with enthusiastic chatter. Eugene almost wished the grumpy old version of the man back that was a tad less outspoken.
"Beyond every corner is a discovery waiting to happen," the minister gushed. "The rebuilding and improving architectures are astonishing. At every visit, the village looks vibrant and new!"
Eugene winced as he thought of the reason why. "Yeah, better not mention that one too much."
They stood in front of the alchemist's home. The small castle on the outskirt of Corona appeared eerily calm and quiet.
"Oh gosh, I am not ready." He rocked back and forth on his heels. "I can't." The nervous wreck of a man stuttered at the tough of meeting his idol.
"Hogwash!" Eugene knocked resolute on the door and the minister held his breath. There was nothing scary about meeting Varian. On the other hand -
With a slow creak the door opened. The teen blinked against the light and tilted his head. He looked drowsy - like he'd just been woken up from a late afternoon nap. Sluggishly the alchemist rubbed over his eyes, while the raccoon, wrapped around his shoulders, buried his head deeper into the kid's neck to shield himself from the sun.
"Surprise!" Rapunzel cheered.
"Rapunzel? Eugene?" Varian asked perplexed and hastily raked his fingers through his hair in the faint hope to tame the mess on his head. " What-"
He stopped mid-sentence as he realized there was another person hiding in their shadows.
"Hi, Mr. Griffin."
The boy smiled and waved his hand. The older man felt like passing out.
"Who?"
"You know him? I thought you two never met?" Rapunzel turned around, crossing her arms. What was going on?
"Huh? Of course. Mr. Griffin visits Corona every summer. We don't have that many tourists or inhabitants for that matter, so everyone knows him and his family. He's basically a local celebrity," Varian explained. "My dad speaks very highly of him. Always polite and very pleasant to be around."
Eugene and Rapunzel exchanged a quick glance while the minister's face turned the shade of a tomato and a stream of nonsensical noises left his mouth.
"I think you just broke him."
"I think he was broken from the get-go."
Eugene complimented the man inside as the princess asked for the latest progress on Varian's current projects. To his surprise, Varian didn't lead them down to his basement of gloom and doom but upstairs into his room. He'd never seen the private chambers of the alchemist before and while he was definitely not as smitten as the minister, he loved to snoop around by nature.
"Mesmerizing," the minister said, inspecting a huge shelf for once not filled with books but jammed with jars containing who knows what.
"Those are for a long-term study to prolong the shelf live of different kinds of fruit and vegetables," Varian added helpfully.
"Jam?" The princess asked and the alchemist smiled proudly.
"Exactly. I tried different kinds of stabilizers. Albeit the analysis of the results will take a while. It's a rather time-consuming process."
"What's this?" Eugene pointed to the bubbling vials under the Bunsen burner on the desk.
"Uhm." Varian blushed slightly. "Cat's birthday present. She got really into baking and I thought it'll be nice to help enhance her flavors a little."
Eugene elbowed him teasingly in the ribs as the minister drew closer. He glanced over the mountain of notes that were laying way too close to the open flame.
"A harvesting device," the man assumed and Varian nodded glad for the distraction.
"The final design is yet to decide but it's based on Demanitus' automatons."
The plans scribbled in excruciating detail seemed everything but undecided.
"Amazing!" Mr. Griffin praised.
"I don't get it. What's so exciting about that?" Eugene dismissed the project.
"Excuse me," the minister of agriculture gasped appalled. "For the amount of land Corona has available, its production rate is incredible. It shouldn't even be possible, but in its current state, it is one of the few kingdoms that are able to export its goods to others. It's ingenious - beyond comprehension. The sprinkler system, the crop rotation," his voice cracked. "The pest control."
Varian laughed sheepishly. "Yeah, the bugs are no biggie, the critters though…"
Ruddiger nipped playfully at his ear which earned him a loving pet on his head.
"Plus we do regular soil and mineral analysis to optimize the fertilizers and use improved seeds." He scratched his nose. "Also my dad talks to the plants."
"I never realized you are such a farm boy," Eugene joked good-natured.
Varian shrugged. "My dad sleeps better if he knows the villagers are not one bad harvest away from starving."
The thief tousled through the kid's hair. "How dramatic."
"So?" Rapunzel drew near the minister. " What do you think? Isn't Corona great?" She inquired with a puffed-out chest.
"I'm not gonna change my opinion on the capital," the man replied strictly and the princess's facial features slipped. "But, I am inclined to adjust my wording in a more fitting manner," he conceded.
"Fair enough."
