The New Gate (LN)

Shin didn’t return to the inn and headed outside the city walls.

Using 【Mind Chat】, he informed Schnee and the others about Kluck and Jayf, and materialized the Moon Shrine while using 【Hiding】. He couldn’t analyze a sample of poisonous smoke at the inn.

He activated an analysis machine developed by Oxygen and Hydro, subordinates of Hecate, the ‘Red Alchemist’, and put the sample into it.

This provided more detailed data than the 【Analyze】 skill.

While he was analyzing the poisonous smoke, Schnee and Tiera arrived. Since the poison was mainly derived from plants, they came hoping that they could be of help.

Through their analysis, they discovered that of the elements that made up the poison, there were three that contained particularly strong ingredients. Each one came from a specific plant. And that the ingredients themselves were quite potent poisons.

These were items that were hard to come by even in the game era, and when he checked with Schnee, she said they were treated as legendary items that weren’t in circulation. When he checked with the former Emperor, Shibaid, using 【Mind Chat】, he said that it was an item that you couldn’t get even if you wanted it.

Even in the game era, it was a hard material to come by. Now, as Schnee said, it would not be strange if it had become a legendary item. Even in a great country, it would not be easy to obtain.

Shin’s item box also contained similar items, but there were only a few of them.

When he used them to compare the ingredients, the results showed that it would be impossible to detect the same level of poison as the sample unless there were more than the number Shin had.

“Even a national organization can collect that much?”

Schnee shook her head at Shin’s question.

“No, I think it would be difficult even in a powerful country. It’s a plant that you don’t even know where it grows these days.”

Just to be sure, he contacted Berett of the Golden Company, but he received a reply that it was impossible to obtain.

If even the Golden Company couldn’t obtain it, it was safe to say that it was an item that was nearly impossible to get. Of course, it might be growing somewhere, but, if you went near it without any precautions, it could kill an ordinary person. It should be difficult to find even by accident.

“I’m surprised that there haven’t been any health problems from using this. I guess the purpose is not to poison, but to spread a curse.”

“That’s possible. 【Analyze】 detected the poison, but the people at the nearby royal castle didn’t seem to be any different. Normally, they would have collapsed long ago.”

He had hoped that there would be an obvious rumor that the people working at the castle were unwell, but at least none of the people Shin saw while moving around looked unwell.

“Are the people who were doing this work really human?”

Schnee agreed with the possibility Tiera had raised, though she was thinking about it.

“I don’t know. Shin couldn’t see them clearly either. We should assume they had taken precautions, but there are certainly some people who are basically immune to poison.”

If the people working on it were miasma demons or undead monsters that were immune to or had little effect from poison, then even if they used a dangerous poison, they wouldn’t be harmed.

There was also the option of controlling the corpses, like Hihiganula, who controlled the men and women guarding the research lab.

“Anyway, I’ll tell Jayf what I found out.”

Since he’d told him about the message card, Shin sent him the results of his analysis.

Next, he took out the materials that were likely the source of the poisonous smoke from his item box.

“I don’t think I should go near any of them.”

Tiera pointed to the materials timidly.

“This is the material that would have been the source of the poisonous smoke. If you touch it with your bare hands, you’ll die within a few seconds. Of course, I’ve treated it so that it’s safe—”

Before Shin could say the latter part of his line, Tiera had made full use of her increased stats and circled around behind him.

Tiera was well aware of High Humans’ resistance to abnormal conditions — or rather, she probably thought that, since Shin had said something that surprised him, it would be okay to use him as a shield.

Shin reflected that he might have been a bit too intimidating.

“What are you doing with that?”

“It looks like they were boiling these in a cauldron. I was thinking that with this combination of materials, I might be able to make some kind of chemical that I don’t know anything about. I thought I’d give it a try. If it doesn’t work, I can turn it into an antidote.”

The poison that could be created from the materials lined up was not strong enough to break through the resistance of the equipment Shin had made. However, in case it was used by someone other than Shin and his friends, he decided to prepare some antidotes. Besides, there might not be an item that could nullify the effects of the equipment.

“Then let’s call Sety as well. She did a lot of research while she was holed up in the ‘Orchard’.”

“If we keep going like this, we’ll be up all night, won’t we?”

“She isn’t so weak that she can’t handle not sleeping for a day. Besides, Sety was the last one to join us, so she’s a little worried about whether she’s being of any use.”

What I told you is a secret — Schnee winked as she placed her index finger over her lips.

Even though the power of her words pierced his heart, Shin somehow managed to nod back and connect with Sety through 【Mind Chat】.

However, apart from Schnee’s, he was a bit surprised by Sety’s secret feeling. Normally she didn’t show even the slightest hint of such a thing. Even if she did, it would only be taken as a joke. In fact, Shin was a little worried that she was still holding back.

Schnee hadn’t been consulted about it face to face either, but she sometimes felt that way when she talked to her. Perhaps because it was Schnee, she could catch a glimpse of her inner thoughts.

“She won’t mind if we spend more time together. More importantly, if you know where the enemy’s base is, don’t you think it’s necessary to at least keep an eye on them? If we can catch that Tekkosai person leaving the lab, it won’t be an immediate solution, but I feel it’s dangerous to leave him there. If necessary, I’ll be right there.”

Watch over the most suspicious places. Schnee’s suggestion was natural. Aside from Shin, she was the most suitable. While she could do some recon from a distance with the help of items and skills, the other support characters were a few steps behind Shin and Schnee in terms of their ability to remain unnoticed at close range. When it came to hiding and monitoring, the other members of the team were in danger of being discovered.

“…Please do so. However, you will only keep an eye on them. If you notice any movement, please use 【Teleport】 to escape immediately.”

“Okay. I’m off.”

Schnee immediately took action.

“Um, is there anything I can help you with?”

“Well, do you sense anything in the smoke sample?”

Shin showed the remaining poisonous smoke to Tiera, who seemed a little uncomfortable. Tiera, who had senses that Shin and the support characters didn’t have, might be able to read some information from it.

“I don’t think there’s anything particularly strange about it. But it gives me the same unpleasant feeling as the cursed weapons and items Shin found. I think what Shin said about it being a catalyst for spreading the curse is probably true.”

If it was just poisonous smoke, it wouldn’t have felt the same as a curse. The fact that Tiera felt it made it more likely that the parts that couldn’t be analyzed were cursed.

“I’m here!”

“I’m here too!”

Sety and, for some reason, Milt arrived at the right time.

Seeing Shin tilt his head, Milt puffed out her cheeks and said. 

“I’m a poison user, too.”

“Now that I think about it, that’s right.”

Since coming here, Milt had been concentrating on close combat and spirit magic, so Shin had completely forgotten. She was also a poison user.

“Come on, come on, let’s start the experiment.”

“I’ll do my own analysis of the poison.”

Shin’s knowledge of poisons, a remnant of his time as a PKK (Player-Killer-Killer), focused on the effects and how to weaken or detoxify them. He hadn’t done much experimenting on what effects could be achieved by combining different things. So he decided to leave that to Sety and Milt, who seemed confident.

“I’ll make the antidote first.”

If he knew the base material, it would be easy for Shin to make an antidote. Since he’s here, he’ll teach Tiera how to make it.

Of course, just in case, he’s confirmed that the antidote was also effective on Schnee. With Tiera fired up, he began by instructing her on how to extract the ingredients.

◆◆◆◆

They kept on analyzing the poisonous smoke all night. Thanks to Sety and Milt’s hard work, they were able to identify several effects of the poisonous smoke.

Firstly, it inflicted a curse. As Shin had guessed, the poisonous ingredients weren’t used as a poison that would harm the human body. Instead, they were used as a catalyst to spread the curse.

In addition, it probably has the effect of preventing the curse from making the victim feel ill or uncomfortable.

Sety frowned. She was frustrated that she hadn’t been able to fully analyze it. She asked, “Has Schnee made any progress?”

Schnee, who was keeping an eye on the laboratory, reported that no one had been entering or leaving the laboratory so far. It did not necessarily mean that someone named Tekkosai was in the laboratory, but it was the most suspicious place. It would not hurt to keep an eye on it.

Shin suggested that they take turns monitoring, but Schnee replied that it would be fine for a while, as she had learned how to monitor the target’s movements while resting. 

Why would she need such skills? Shin wondered, but he decided to rely on her for now.

“What are you up to today?”

Shin stretched as he answered Tiera, who looked a little sleepy.

“I heard from the inn that the Battle Festival is restarting, so I’m going with Milt. I’ll sneak in and see what they’re doing while they’re inspecting the weapons.”

Shin unintentionally removed the curse on Milt’s weapon, so it’s unclear if they’ll try it again. But it’s entirely possible that they were doing the same thing to other prominent participants. He was planning to sneak in and capture the scene.

“I’ll keep going for a bit longer.”

“Don’t push yourself too hard, okay?”

Sety said she’d be staying with Tiera at the Moon Shrine, so he left the storage of the shrine in their hands.

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