In the seventh floor of the Baire Labyrinth, the Escape Goats that appear are quite troublesome.
If you hit them with three magic attacks or one hit from Durandal, they will run away.
If multiple ones appear, you can defeat them with five Firestorms, but even if itâs theoretically fine, in practice itâs a close call.
Thereâs also a possibility that they might escape.
If it were just the Escape Goats, it would be manageable, but it gets even more difficult when they appear with other monsters.
While dodging the attacks of the monsters youâre facing, the timing for the fifth magic attack can be delayed.
If you want to play it safe, itâs better to use Durandal to defeat them.
First, cast two area-of-effect magic spells.
Draw out Durandal and slaughter the Escape Goats.
Put Durandal away and use magic to defeat the remaining monsters.
Itâs a rather tedious and meticulous process.
But, in terms of efficiency, this is probably the best way to go.
Strictly speaking, it hasnât been fully verified whether this is truly the most efficient.
At what point does experience value come in, and at what point does the skill that increases gained experience become effective?
After using the Tenfold Experience Gain and reducing the health with magic, removing the Tenfold Experience Gain and using Durandal to defeat the Escape Goats, then reapplying the Tenfold Experience Gain to defeat the other monstersâwould this really be the best approach?
Well, judging from how the Job Level of the cook is progressing, this method should be fine.
"Um, you canât use magic when you have that sword, right?"
While handing over the Goat Thread, a drop item from the Escape Goats, Roxanne asked.
She must have thought that was the case.
"Itâs not that I canât use magic, but this is more efficient. Iâm sorry to trouble you, Roxanne."
"No, itâs fine. Donât worry about it."
"Youâre very helpful as a front-liner, and Iâm very grateful to have you, Roxanne."
"Thank you."
It takes a bit of time to draw out and put away Durandal, so during that time, I have Roxanne deal with the monsters.
Given Roxanneâs skills, she can easily dodge them.
With two monsters, sheâs perfect, and with three, she rarely gets hit.
However, itâs uncertain what will happen in the future.
From the eighth floor, up to four monsters can appear.
I might need to come up with a strategy.
The Slow Rabbits that appear from the seventh floor of the Kooratal Labyrinth leave behind rabbit skins.
To sell these rabbit skins, Iâve been visiting the imperial capital frequently.
The imperial capital has a variety of shops.
With so many people, they sell all sorts of things.
While selling the rabbit skins, I walk around.
For example, a spice shop.
They have vinegar and fish sauce.
I happily tried the fish sauce, but it was a bit different from soy sauce.
The smell was also quite strong.
Some of it was similar to Chinese soy sauce.
I might be able to make Mapo Tofu.
On the main street of the imperial capital, there are people selling from stalls.
Theyâre more like night market stalls than fast food.
There are shops that grill meat on skewers, shops that bake pizza-like dishes, and shops that make crepe-like treats.
Today, I saw a stall where someone was making and selling something.
It was a brown, baked food.
Since children were gathered around, it was probably a snack.
"Do you know what theyâre selling there?"
"I donât know."
"Then letâs try it."
Leaving Roxanne with that, I stood in front of the stall.
Thinking of a brown snack, I imagined a senbei (rice cracker).
It might be something similar.
"One costs ten nals."
"Give me two."
When I ordered, the stall worker poured some liquid into a small pot.
The idea of it being a senbei was dispelled at that point.
It might be something like a castella (Japanese sponge cake).
Soon, the liquid expanded significantly.
It formed a large mound on the pot.
The children cheered.
"Here you go."
The worker quickly removed it from the pot and wrapped it in a leaf.
I paid and took it.
Since the worker is a Villager Job, the 30% discount doesnât apply.
I gave one to Roxanne and the other to the cutest girl nearby.
"Do you want to eat it?"
"Sure."
Thereâs no need to give it to a guy.
Cute girls always get the better deal.
After seeing the girl leave, I moved a bit away from the stall.
"Was it good?"
"I can taste it."
Yes, I know this dish.
Itâs caramel candy.
I made it in a science experiment in middle school.
However, I donât remember the taste.
I canât be sure if itâs exactly the same as what Iâm eating now.
Actually, I donât remember it being that delicious.
"Itâs sweet and delicious."
Well, Roxanne is eating it with a satisfied look, so it must be good.
In modern Japan, middle school students are used to having various snacks, so thatâs probably the case.
I waited for Roxanne to finish eating while looking at the stall from a distance.
I remember that caramel candy expands when baking soda is dissolved in a liquid and heated.
I think the stallâs snack uses the same principle.
The liquid expanded rapidly when the pot was heated.
As I watched, the stall worker turned around.
He opened a box and took something out.
He mixed water and the powder he took out in a bucket to make the liquid for the caramel candy.
This is my chance.
I looked at the box and chanted "Identify."
Unfortunately, I couldnât identify the powder itself.
If a little of a Cobalt Salt were missing, it would no longer be an item and couldnât be identified or stored in an item box.
Cobalt Salt
Shell Powder
Still, I confirmed that the box contained Cobalt Salt and Shell Powder.
The worker wouldnât tell me the ingredients because itâs a trade secret.
I donât really want to make caramel candy, so knowing the ingredient names is enough.
The powder the worker used is probably a mixture of mainly flour with Cobalt Salt and Shell Powder.
Mixing flour with sugar and baking soda makes caramel candy.
Sugar is sucrose.
The remaining Shell Powder must be baking soda.
Shell Powder = Baking Soda = Sodium Bicarbonate.
"Shall we go?"
"Yes. Thank you for the treat."
After Roxanne finished eating, we headed to the Adventurerâs Guild.
"Do you know what Shell Powder is?"
"Itâs a fire extinguishing agent."
"Fire extinguishing agent?"
"The Shell Powder left by Clamshells doesnât have the power to cancel fire magic, but it can extinguish fires that have spread early. Using the Scallop Shell Essence left by Scallop Shells can cancel fire magic once."
It seems different from baking soda.
It shouldnât be related to magic.
"Can you mix it with flour and bake it, or use it for cleaning?"
"Shell Powder?"
"Yes."
"I havenât heard of that."
It seems different after all.
"Do you use vinegar for cleaning?"
"I havenât heard of that."
I asked just in case, but it seems vinegar isnât used here.
Vinegar exists in this world.
Vinegar is acidic, and baking soda is alkaline, so both should be effective for cleaning.
If vinegar isnât used for cleaning, itâs likely that baking soda isnât known for cleaning either.
I bought Shell Powder at the Adventurerâs Guild, and on the way back, I also bought a pot and the bran of Koiichi fruit to return home.
The science experiment to make caramel candy wasnât the main goal.
We made soap using rice bran.
The reaction between the fatty acids in plant oil and the sodium in baking soda produces sodium fatty acid, which is soap.
I remember the procedure well because I was the only one who had to make it in front of the teacher when forming experiment groups.
It was an unpleasant memory.
Groups should be formed by attendance number.
In any case, with baking soda, I can make soap.
Although I donât have rice bran, I can substitute with some plant oil.
Iâll try using the bran of Koiichi fruit, which is used as a soap substitute.
Rice bran was also used as a soap substitute in the past.
I immediately went to the kitchen when I got home.
I filled the pot halfway with water and boiled it.
If this works, Iâll use this pot exclusively for soap.
I added the ground Shell Powder to the boiling water.
Bubbles started to form.
Indeed, the Shell Powder is baking soda.
After the bubbles decreased, I added the bran of Koiichi fruit.
I added it randomly since I didnât know the right amount.
I remember adding a lot of rice bran.
Well, itâs okay to fail at first.
As I stirred, a brown, sticky liquid formed.
It went better than I expected.
It became so sticky that I got tired of stirring.
"What is this?"
Roxanne, who was cleaning, came over with interest.
"Itâs soap."
"Really? Thatâs amazing."
"It might not work, but Iâm trying to make soap."
"Even just trying to make soap is impressive."
If I didnât know how to make it, I wouldnât have thought to try.
Soap seems to be a valuable item in this world.
If it works, it will be useful.
"Try using this Shell Powder for cleaning. It should remove dirt well."
"Really?"
"Definitely."
"I didnât know. Iâll try it now."
"Different types of dirt respond differently to Shell Powder. For dirt that doesnât come off with Shell Powder, try using vinegar."
Baking soda is alkaline, so it works well on acidic dirt but not on alkaline dirt.
For alkaline dirt, use acidic vinegar.
Shell Powder seems to have various uses.
I remember reading that the hot springs in Nagano, where we went for a ski trip in middle school, were baking soda springs, so adding it to the bath might be a good idea.
"Um, how do I use this? Do I rub it?"
"Actually, I think itâs better to dissolve it in water and use it for cleaning."
I only know this theoretically; I havenât actually used it.
But logically, dissolving it in water makes sense.
"Master, this is amazing."
Soon, Roxanne came back with shining eyes.
It seems to have worked.
I took the pot off the heat.
It seems to have worked.
All thatâs left is to dry it to complete the soap.
That night, I checked and saw that I had gained a new Job.
Alchemist Level 1
Effect: Slight increase in Intelligence, minor increase in Dexterity
Skill: Plating
An Alchemist.
Making soap is a legitimate chemical reaction, so thatâs probably why I gained this Job.
The next morning, I entered the labyrinth.
I decided to try the Alchemist Job.
Kagatou Dofu, Male, 17 years old
Explorer Level 32, Hero Level 30, Mage Level 32, Priest Level 30, Chef Level 25, Alchemist Level 1
Equipment: Wand, Leather Hat, Leather Armor, Leather Gloves, Leather Boots