The Lost Daughter II

While there was trouble in Japan now, Soren was staying over at Cato El Altestan's home for a short break as she was waiting for her entire travel set of clothes and shoes to dry, before traveling again and updated them on her journey and about the Gate.

She can dry them instantly with magic, but she needs rest too, so she let it go au natural.

'I see...so you fear that its not really YOUR Japan so you gave up on it.' Cato felt sorry for the younger mage. Home is so near, yet so far for the otherworlder with them.

'Alternate realities do exist, as do Parallel Dimensions.' said Soren gloomily. 'There are many branches of the future based on choices made in the present. Different futures exist because of actions made in the past. Not only that, in Alternate Realities, its a separate universe or world that coexists with our known universe but is very different from it. In my case, it's Alternate.'

'I see, so you fear that is the case that you'd rather not go back to Japan, huh.' Lelei shook her head. 'Logical as indeed, you don't know what awaits you there that gambling on your fate for a possibility that may not exist is illogically-detrimental. You would give up what you worked hard on and start over with no support, given how you told us your world works. If at our age we are considered of marriageable age as full adults, in Japan, you still go to school and unable to have a job. Moreover, you would lack records of existence that will prevent you from even enrolling in school or have a part-time job and even then, your world is expensive in living expenses compared to here. You will be helpless over there.'

'Yeah.' Soren sighed. 'So yup, I abandoned the idea. Here, I'm an accomplished person with a home to go back to. I'll travel to Italica to ask Countess Formal for permission to open a plot of land for my own use to farm medicinal herbs to begin production of medicine.'

'Alright. Good luck with that.' said Lelei. '...medicine...for such a treasure item to be proliferate would be good.'

'Again, this world's medical and medicinal progress is worth shit. Back in my homeworld, we can get a few pills for only 50 solda and our cold is gone in a week yet here it's 'put up with it in bed'.' Soren shook her head as her fellow mages recalled memories of years past when they were sick with no fondness whatsoever, they really envy Soren's world. 'Once illnesses are taken care of, maybe people here will live a lot longer.'

'Mm. You already recreated 'soap'.' said Lelei as two years after she left Rondel, Soren recreated the bathing luxury item as well as laundry item, hence two different types of soaps that people no longer have body odor. However, she took different races in consideration as different races mean different skin AND fur types. One can only buy it in Rondel and there are currently four companies working on producing soap. Two for bathing and two for laundry. A bar of soap sells for 10 denari due to supply and demand, and the workers earn 5 denari a month.

'Good for better cleaning of clothes and better bathing results. We smell nicer too.' she said with a small smile. 'Before, people just mask their stink with perfume and just make things worse, but unable to say a word for politeness' sake, or risk getting killed by offended person.' Lelei shook her head. 'What ended the stink, was your idea of bathing with hot water heated with fire magic and softened our body grime enough to be easier to rub off, as well as remove sweat and oiliness easier before you reinvented soap here.'

'Ahahaha...and I cannot publish fire magic for all our sakes...for obvious reasons.' said Soren in utter vexation. 'I don't have the power Master Cato has that he can deny even Emperor the knowledge of Explosion Magic. I'm a mere Master-Class Mage, not influential enough for that, so very few people benefit off Fire Magic for now...' she sighed as she thought of her adoptive family. THAT few. Oh, and the elves she befriended as they would never abuse Fire Magic out of their love and respect for nature, worshipping two gods in Wareharun and Lunaryur. 'Or humanity will cease to exist in this era no thanks to a power-hungry war freak.'

She can't even publish Flight Magic to protect people from quick attacks from hostiles! Many good things are denied to everyone because of the war-freak nature of this world, thus certain things are better off unknown, to her chagrin.

'Indeed...there's an unsaid, sacred rule in Rondel that 'be careful what you give away' indeed.' Cato agreed with her grimly. 'Medicinal knowledge is a lot safer to give away so people will be less sickly...'

xxx

Upon leaving Cato's cottage after all she owns are clean again, Soren traveled again, this time westwards for Italica. She flies at high speed on her staff, much like a witch's broom plus a barrier in front of her face, so she can see ahead without wind and dust hurting her eyes, and bypassing the massive fields under Italica's control.

The fields are mostly wheat, barley, spices and vegetables. Things ancient greeks brought with them when they explored the Gate...and got trapped in! Then more other worlders who brought in other stuff before they got marooned here too.

She arrived in two hours in what would take a week riding in a wagon.

Upon gaining entry, she sent a letter using a courier and waited things out.

xxx

Countess Formal's Office...

'Hmmm...wanting to rent land for planting of discovered medicinal plants, huh? It'd be nice if this was true.' Myui Formal, the current Countess still learning under Princess Pina Co Lada lamented as she gave the letter to her. 'We have talent, but with lack of knowledge and goods, our people still suffer sicknesses. Doctors need both, not just one and trying to guess around what works and what doesn't.'

'Soren El Sawada is a respectable master mage, though she leans more on Research than actual sorcery.' said Pina. 'She published the benefits of hot bathing and created soap so we'd feel and smell cleaner. If what she has is actual medicine for various illnesses, it'd be good to sponsor her project while keeping a close eye to be sure in the form of assistants who will watch her actions.' she said, giving her ward a meaningful look.

Myui learned how to manage a country, safety and politics as her primary education growing up, other than language, arithmetic and manners. This was because she was a Head of State at an impossibly-young-age by succession. Her older sisters married out and fought over who'd be legal guardian for power's sake until things calmed down, enabling Pina to step in, seeing disaster in the making.

Thus Myui's upbringing eschewed lady lessons in favor of political and landowning training to better manage her territory.

But no thanks to the Imperial Order, there's no soldiers to spare, and public order in Italica worsened as a result that Pina took charge with the demihumans to quell troublemakers while Myui begins her independent small steps so when she's fifteen, she can govern by herself with confident competence as Pina hopes.

'For now, do we have a spare place for this big undertaking?' Pina asked Kaine, the Head Maid.

'As the surrounding plains are already occupied, it'll be a bit difficult though there's free space in our mountainous regions, but farming there is an ability only demihumans can manage with their stronger bodies. Humans like us cannot withstand living up there for long.' Kaine explained. 'Sacrifices must be made if Master Soren wishes to pursue medicinal cultivation.'

'Mm. We'll see how far her resolve goes.' Pina agreed as she had the butler send their reply letter to the inn Soren was staying in.

They want a meeting. Now.

And so...

'...you came prepared...' Pina was stunned with Soren's compounded book. Standard size, but the writing of the books are super-neat, penmanship so clear and easy-to-read with incredible detail on both information and the drawing! Dear lord the drawing! Lifelike! Easier to study as herbs are organized by chapter based on illness treated! That, and medicinal benefits of certain ingredients to improve health and combat malnourishment.

There's a book for minor and moderate diseases that can be cured by medicinal herbs alone, plus stabilizers that can process them as medicine. Sadly, major illnesses are the kind that need surgery...and that, will take YEARS of study!

'Of course, in order to endorse my projects.' Soren smiled. 'I found all those herbs after years of travel, but I let them be in their native habitats. I gathered their seeds instead for cultivation. Incase wars or bandit attacks destroy the medicinal farms, these treasures are not wiped off the map, and still exist in their natural habitats.'

'Mm. That's logical.' Pina agreed with Soren's rationale. 'This will take at least two years.'

'Yes, so it'll take me three years to present, so I have samples on hand unless I get lucky.'

'Mm. We talked about it while the letter reached you, and its agreed that we can lend you land with an annual rent of 10 sinku a year, but will you be able to survive in the mountains where air is thin and terrain is horrible for human legs?' Pina wondered anxiously. 'Demihumans manage the fields up in the mountains and never suffered accidents, while humans who tried 300 years ago retired permanently from accidents. Human shoes cause fatal slips.'

Soren began thinking.

Shoes of this world, are made of smooth rubber. Even the soles are smooth that slips really ARE inevitable. Thus she makes her own shoes that have grooves in soles to prevent accidents.

She creates the shoes of her foster family.

'I'll get by somehow since I can't get picky with land.' she said. 'This really has to get done.'

'Very well! A risk-taker are we? We won't be liable for injury!' Myui reminded Soren who nodded. 'We will give you a team of six as helpers.'

xxx

'...Me thinks Princess Pina underestimated Mistress Soren too much!'

Was the consensus of six demihumans as as soon as they left Italica, she tapped all of them and herself with her staff, and they all ended up flying away!

A rare male Warrior Bunny, a werecat, a volralden, a leonoid, a dwarf and a snake-haired medusa maid. They flew away and feeling weightless with even their heavy luggages on their backs! Though they took periodic breaks to replenish Soren's magical energy...

'Well, even if marriageable age IS 14 for humans, that's still young by standards, so older adults tend to look down on those who came of age.' Soren huffed. 'And I'm only fourteen! Princess Pina is 19, right?'

But she's still single unlike damn near everyone in nobility. Even her royal female cousins are married.

But the children of Emperor Molt, are still single.

Zorzal's reputation is in the dumps. Diabo was reasonable but also overthinking things and Pina was both idealistic and realistic, an oxymoron of a mindset while loyal to her country, and also defying her lot in life. As in women need only sit and look pretty, spread their legs and bear children of their husband. For Pina Co Lada, that predetermined fate, is unacceptable. She believed in the potential of women, hence her Rose Order of Knights. That if women can become mages, why not warriors too?

That, and she is teaching an impressionable Countess to adapt to her way of thinking.

'Can mages in Rondel do this though?' the medusa maid Birika asked her.

'Nope. I only taught this spell to my adoptive family as its too dangerous to teach to everyone.' said Soren in frustration. 'If only the Empire isn't a power-hungry bunch of war freaks, people could have benefited more from Rondel's research and life would have become better, but alas, all mages have an ironclad law...be careful what you give out...in terms of knowledge. Because if I publish what my creations are...' she looked at them with a frightening expression. 'The Emperor will waste no time training his loyalists, and fan the flames of war, until everything that walks and talks are in submission to him.'

The Demihumans who endured heinous persecution just for being what they are, can certainly picture that horrible future in their minds and it terrified them.

Empire soldiers that can fly at high speed? They won't have time to defend themselves!

Walls are useless if they can attack from above!

Rain arrows, poison and invade from above!

'And I want my conscience to be free of that level of shit.'

The six servants gulped.

House Formal was seen as weirdoes and oddballs for taking in Demihumans, and gave them what was stolen from them by the empire. Territory and a home in exchange for protection and work. They can go to school, learn skills, and openly have jobs and fair wages, as long as they protect House Formal. Any mistreatment was cracked down on hard that the Demihumans saw hope, and can trust the current Count Formal.

The catch was they live in hidden villages in mountains where the Empire's soldiers cannot reach, that they can safely raise their young. Secretly repopulate themselves! In villages only they know the locations of. Due to Count Formal's 'odd tastes', his power in politics weaned in turn. What keeps them alive is that they feed the empire, owning vast plantations of farms.

The current Count Formal and his family may be open-minded and understanding, but he cannot say the same for his descendants who may spit on his ideals and sell their souls for political gain and greed.

The animal-type demihumans and draconians owed their existence to Count Formal. Thus they have absolutely no loyalty to the empire the family has to serve to survive and they don't want them to get any more power either.

'So all this time, Rondel...'

'Yes. We come up with new things, but even then we don't share to each other either...we don't know who's a true Rondel Citizen, or a spy raised from birth sent to Rondel to pretend to be a student and gain war developments for the empire after appealing to a teacher to be their student. After all, everyone can come and go...because that means money flows in as do goods.' she informed them.

'However, attack any one of us is inviting death in turn. We are loyal to ourselves and to our teachers only. We know full well the disasters we contain in our own brains. We love to think, study, research and create, and think of pros and cons...that even if we create, we can't even fully enjoy our creations, as long as the war freaks exist. We have to think of the safety of those who can't protect themselves. We don't want any part in genocide even if indirectly. Sharing knowledge will mean we're indirectly committing murder too.' she sighed.

'So we are careful in what we let out to the world.'

'We understand, mistress.' said the dwarf solemnly. 'We also agree with your views.' he said. 'The only reason we dwarves can live is because of our metalwork skill being better than that of humans. The empire left us alone as long as we make weapons for them. We too, indirectly murder people by giving those tyrants weapons for our survival. We're not like mages who can deny them and can actually bite after barking.'

'We blow up people who piss us off, not bite them...'