I Reincarnated into a Game Filled with Mods – Chapter 127

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“You’re going to get the ingredients for me? You?”

“That is correct.”

Fortunately, it seemed like her goal of making the potion hadn’t changed.

The orange-haired woman stared at me intently without denying my words. Her orange eyes scanned me up and down.

Now that I looked at her more closely, she was quite tall, though not as tall as Minerva and me.

“……Well, you seem to know that I’m making a potion, so I guess you’re serious. Come in. It’s not like we can talk while standing here.”

The woman, who had been leaning against the doorframe, turned around and gestured for us to follow her inside.

I signaled to Minerva to come in. Minerva, her face still showing traces of displeasure, followed me obediently.

The inside of the house was quite tidy. It was a space that felt like it belonged in the forest.

The orange-haired woman gestured for us to sit on the chairs around the table, then looked at Minerva next to me and clicked her tongue disapprovingly, as if to tell us that she knew we were listening.

“There’s no chair for you. Sorry about that.”

She said that, but her face didn’t look sorry at all. And there was a chair placed right next to where I was sitting. Her intentions were obvious.

I managed to calm down Minerva, who was also looking displeased. If things went wrong, we could end up in a fight before we even got the weapon.

The woman, who had started the argument and was now calmly resting her chin on her hand, spoke,

“So, where did you hear about me making weapons? I quit blacksmithing quite a while ago. At least ten years ago. And you’re too young to have heard about my old rumors.”

“Well, I have my sources.”

I evaded her question vaguely.

In the game, an old NPC would give you a side quest, and if you completed it, he would tell you to visit this place. But this time, I had come directly.

And you couldn’t enter this place if you hadn’t completed the old man’s quest.

‘Wait, how old is she supposed to be?’

The original NPC had been blacksmithing for over twenty years, and he had said he quit over ten years ago.

So if the setting was the same, even if he started working at ten years old, he would be well over forty by now.

But the woman in front of me looked young enough to be mistaken for a teenager. There wasn’t a single wrinkle or blemish on her face, and the skin on her arms, exposed beneath her short sleeves, was incredibly smooth and firm.

Could it be that women in this world didn’t age until they were about to die?

“Ugh, I figured as much. That damn old woman. I told her not to tell anyone about this place…”

The orange-haired woman muttered to herself.

She grumbled for a while, then spoke again,

“Well, what’s done is done. There’s no point in blaming her now. Since we’re stuck with each other, let’s introduce ourselves. My name is Ceres, and I’ll skip my occupation since you already know why you’re here. As for the rest, you can see for yourself. What about you?”

“My name is Delta. And this is—”

“Minerva Scientia. The Eternal Mage, Master of the Minerva Archives, or Master of the Minerva Mage Tower. Call me whatever you like.”

Minerva interjected before I could even finish my introduction. And she rattled off a list of titles I hadn’t even asked about. It seemed like she had been eagerly waiting for this moment.

“Minerva, the Eternal Mage? Are you really the Scientia I know?”

The orange-haired woman, who had introduced herself as Ceres, looked slightly surprised.

“Do you think there’s another Minerva in this world besides me?”

Minerva’s expression turned smug as Ceres acted like she knew her. It was a bit embarrassing to see her feeling so proud of herself over such a small thing.

The dignity of a 400-year-old Archmage was nowhere to be seen.

“You were already considered an ancient figure even when I was a kid. How old are you?”

Of course, her smugness was immediately shattered.

I twitched my eye and gave Minerva, who was discreetly tightening her grip on her staff, another look that pleaded for her to calm down.

Then I turned to Ceres.

“I’ve been meaning to ask, but could you please refrain from making such remarks, Ms. Ceres?”

“Well, I’ve had a rough life since I was a kid. I can’t help it. Besides, you’re the one who came here for a weapon, right? You’re the one who needs something from me, not the other way around. You’re free to leave if you don’t like it.”

Ceres shrugged, as if she really wouldn’t care if we left right now.

I chuckled and countered,

“You’re just as desperate, aren’t you, Ms. Ceres?”

“Me? Why would I be?”

“You can’t get those potion ingredients on your own, can you? That’s why you haven’t even tried making it for years. And now someone has appeared who’s willing to get them for you. You can’t tell me you’re not desperate.”

“…….”

Ceres groaned and twirled a strand of her hair around her finger. I could push her like this because it was the same in the original game.

Due to the NPC’s personality, she would act like she didn’t care at first, but if the player really chose to leave, she would subtly back down.

Of course, her pride was so strong that if the player chose to leave again, she would kick them out, saying she didn’t need them.

It was a gamble I took, assuming that her personality hadn’t changed much based on her words and actions so far. And my gamble paid off.

“……I can’t deny that. If you’re really here to get those ingredients for me, I’d be a fool to let you go. Fine. I’ll try my best not to be a bitch.”

Ceres backed down gracefully.

Minerva, seeing that she had yielded, relaxed her grip on her staff.

“Now, let’s get down to business. You already know that I’m trying to make a potion, so there’s no need for a long explanation. The deal is simple. You get me the ingredients I need, and I give you the weapon you want. Right?”

“That is correct.”

Ceres rested her chin on one hand and tapped the table with her other index finger as she muttered,

“I don’t know what kind of information you’ve gathered to be so confident… But since you even brought Minerva with you, I guess you’re trustworthy. It’s not like I have anything to lose anyway.”

Ceres straightened her posture, her deliberation brief. True to her character, she was decisive.

“Alright. Deal. Now, I’ll tell you what you need to get. We can start right away, right?”

I nodded and focused intently. It was the same as the game up to the point where she wanted to make a specific potion, but I was sure its purpose would be different. I was 100% certain.

In that case, I had to know if the ingredients had changed as well. If they had, I would have to rely entirely on Minerva to find them.

“First, we need the tissue of a Carderi—”

Thump.

Before Ceres could even finish speaking, Minerva tapped the floor with her staff. A processed object materialized on the table where we were sitting.

We both looked at Minerva with bewildered expressions.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Weren’t you about to say ‘tissue of a Carderias’?”

“Y-Yes, but… You haven’t even finished talking, how…”

“A single mage in our Mage Tower handles more potions in a week than an ordinary person handles in their entire life. And who do you think makes all those potions? Knowing how to select potion ingredients is basic knowledge for mages.”

“B-But there’s no way you could get it so quickly—”

“The Mage Tower has most common potion ingredients in stock, and as the Master of the Mage Tower, I can use them as I please. That’s why I brought it. What’s wrong? Do you have a problem with that?”

“…….”

“…….”

Of course, I had no problem with it.

It was a blind spot I had never considered – the Mage Tower having potion ingredients in stock.

Minerva smiled slightly.

“You look quite surprised, my child.”

“I can’t help it. I never imagined you would provide us with items from the Mage Tower.”

“I’m eager to find the Crystal Scroll as soon as possible. Besides, didn’t you bring me here with this all planned out?”

“Not at all. You overestimate me.”

How could I have predicted this situation? Even I was completely clueless about anything beyond what was in the game.

I had originally planned to listen to the ingredient list, and if it was the same as the game, I would use teleportation to gather them, since I already knew their locations. If they were different, I would ask for Minerva’s help.

“Don’t worry, my child. Once we return with the Crystal Scroll, every mage in the Empire will be praising you.”

That would be a problem for me.

‘I’m not worried, I’m terrified.’

Minerva, oblivious to my inner thoughts, gave me a majestic and mysterious smile, then turned to Ceres.

“Continue.”

“Uh… Um… Well, then…”

Minerva continued to teleport the potion ingredients onto the table as Ceres spoke. I listened to her words with one ear, comparing them to the list I had memorized.

‘…It’s all the same.’

All six ingredients were identical to the ones from the game.

This only made me even more curious. If the ingredients were the same, what kind of potion was she trying to make?

‘It definitely won’t be the same kind as in the game.’

I glanced at Ceres’ long, orange hair swaying behind her. There was clear evidence that the potion she was trying to make wouldn’t be the same as in the game.

“And lastly… Sunlit Holy Water.”

Minerva frowned slightly when she heard those words.

As expected, even the last ingredient was the same.

And that item, called Sunlit Holy Water, was the reason why Ceres’ quest was considered the most annoying quest in BD4.

“I can’t provide that one. We have a small amount in the Mage Tower, but it’s literally a minuscule amount. It’s a very precious item, difficult to take outside of the Holy Kingdom. Bringing that…”

“Don’t worry, I have some shame. I know how precious that item is, and I would never ask you to just hand it over. I would never do that. Well, that’s why I’m here. Even if I could get everything else, where would a person like me get Sunlit Holy Water?”

“Ah, I can get that.”

“Really, my child?”

“Really?!”

Minerva and Ceres both looked surprised.

Ceres’ eyes were practically bulging out of her head.

I nodded, fiddling with the brooch in my pocket. With this brooch proving that I was a guest of the Popes, I could get barrels of Sunlit Holy Water.

Assuming they used the same units of measurement here.

The real problem was transporting it here, but Minerva had assured me it was possible, so I wasn’t worried.

“Th-Then…”

Ceres’ face brightened.

She seemed thrilled at the thought of finally being able to make the potion she had been longing for.

“Ah, before that, hold on a second, Ms. Ceres.”

“What?”

“That potion you’re trying to make, what’s it for?”

I asked seriously.

I had originally planned to just brush it aside, but after seeing that the ingredients were all identical to the ones from the game, I couldn’t just ignore it.

No matter how much I thought about it, I didn’t think Ceres needed the same potion as the NPC she was based on.

After all, in the game, it was used to make hair growth tonic.

But the woman in front of me didn’t seem like someone who needed hair growth tonic. Unless her long, flowing orange hair was a wig.

“…Do I really have to tell you?”

Ceres looked reluctant.

“I’m just curious. If you don’t want to tell me—”

“No, no, it’s not that… Sigh…”

I was about to say it was okay if she didn’t want to tell me.

But Ceres, as if thinking I was threatening her, sighed and opened her mouth. I closed mine obediently. There was no need to correct her misunderstanding.

Ceres, her expression filled with anguish, tapped the table with her fingers, then twirled a strand of hair around her finger before speaking.

“……It’s a breast enlargement potion.”

“Huh?”

I asked, thinking I had misheard.

Ceres shouted,

“It’s a potion to make my breasts bigger! Happy now, asshole?!”

I reflexively, truly reflexively, glanced down at her chest.

It was as flat as a board, as if she had a bulletproof plate inserted underneath. No, even with a bulletproof plate, I thought there would be more curves than that.

Her chest was unbelievably flat.

A wall? No. Even a wooden wall would have more curves than that. The same went for a stone wall. Maybe marble would be comparable.

Could it be that she was so irritable towards Minerva because—

“Hey…”

I flinched and snapped out of it at the sound of a voice through gritted teeth. Ceres was glaring at me with a face like a demon from hell.

“What are you looking at?”

“Ah.”

This was my fault.

Definitely my fault.

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