Chapter 104: S-rank Alchemist.
Chapter 104: S-rank Alchemist.
James Theodore’s <Pandora>.
It’s a piece I saw when I was struggling with the curse of gluttony, and it helped me regain my senses a bit.
That’s why it’s a work that holds deep meaning for me.
The first piece drawn on top of <Towel Slime> using <Coloring Play Slime (for slime)>.
The story goes that James Theodore, after suffering from dementia for many years, finally regained his mind and completed this work.
The rarity comes from the fact that I bought it as soon as it appeared at auction, so it’s never been publicly displayed.
If you’re someone interested in contemporary artists, it’s the kind of piece you’d want to come see at least once.
But even if a piece holds deep meaning, I never intended to keep it completely hidden away.
That’s why I decided to exhibit it inside Slime Land.
But I’m not a collector of art, and it would be a bit odd to start buying and gathering pieces now, and displaying just this one felt too empty.
Just in time, this <Pandora> had an interesting trait, so I decided to make use of it.
<Pandora> is made purely out of <Slime>, so for me, it’s a piece that’s quite easy to replicate.
With modern scientific technology, you can make a counterfeit that’s impossible to distinguish by any means.
There’s a considerable difference in the skills I have now compared to when James Theodore painted this, so you can’t say it’s exactly the same.
But unless you’re Ash, an ordinary person wouldn’t notice differences like the skill ratio of the <Slime>.
So the attraction I prepared is [Slime Course]’s [Find James Theodore’s <Pandora>].
Up until now, there haven’t been many visitors.
Since Slime Land itself is so astonishing, even those who came to see <Pandora> probably got distracted and never made it this far.
Still, someone with the title of art critic came here.
And was shocked.
Because no matter how you look at it, there are a ton of <Pandora>s that look completely identical.
Since it wouldn’t be fun if they were all exactly the same, I did place some subtly different fakes.
I don’t know if that critic noticed that fact.
Anyway, the moment word spreads that a bunch of counterfeits have been made, the value of <Pandora> will plummet.
I mean, who would want to buy a piece that can be so easily forged and that even appraisers can’t distinguish?
There are people who could tell the difference, but for all practical purposes, it’s as good as if there aren’t any.
If you’re in a position to ask someone with that ability for a favor, you’d be better off asking them to do something more important than appraising <Pandora>.
Even if it’s just for fun, I didn’t do this to reduce the value of <Pandora> to slime residue.
I wanted to see how many people could spot the difference.
To me, the feeling is completely different.
The real one contains a power you can’t explain.
No matter how perfectly I churn out <Pandora>s, there’s something I can never reach.
Maybe the real <Pandora> still holds James Theodore’s strong will.
If grudges create curses.
Then a strong will creates miracles.
I had no way of knowing whether other people could feel this miracle or not.
Since the piece is made of slime, maybe my slime sensor is just especially sensitive to it.
So I experimented with my staff.
Someone managed to recognize it.
Lee Doa and Hans.
It seems the world looks different to the madman with clear eyes and to the alien.
For the record, Uh Byungwook, who is closest to an ordinary person, and Marco, who only knows exploration, both failed.
The rest of the staff all failed.
Occasionally, someone would hole up in the museum staring at <Pandora>, determined to figure it out no matter what, but no one else managed to identify the genuine article.
So I figured it must be rare for an ordinary person to figure it out.
But then, someone already did.
A man who seemed to have weathered many storms in life, and his young daughter.
The father didn’t seem to notice, but the daughter was clearly looking at the real one.
“To find it right away-you have a talented child.”
At my voice, the man looked at me in surprise.
“Th-thank you….”
He seems to be a rather timid person.
You can be more confident in Slime Land.
“Does your daughter have any drawings?”
The man hurriedly pulled out his phone and handed it to me.
“You’ll need to unlock it first.”
“Ah, yes!”
The man had taken quite a lot of photos.
They were all drawings done on <Towel Slime> with <Coloring Play Slime (for slime)>.
It’s not at the level of ‘the genius of the century is here!’
She seems to have talent, but lacks the basics.
Still, they’re works that make excellent use of the medium of <Slime>.
“Have you ever thought about working for AlchemySlime Company?”
Increasing the number of artists is a good idea.
If the shopping mall picks up a bit more, it’d be nice to have art pieces to display here and there.
If only novels, comics, and anime illustrations keep increasing, it’ll become a place that’s harder and harder for ordinary people to approach.
If you have a bunch of luxury stores, and next to them only sparkling girls’ drawings, or pictures of men holding swords and looking serious, or humanoid robots, it’s a bit much.
The man ended his short deliberation by bowing his head ninety degrees.
“Please take care of my daughter.”
“I meant I’d hire you, sir.”
“Me too?”
“I’m not planning to hire your daughter. Whether she studies art or plays, there are things a child her age should be doing. If she creates a piece, I could buy it, but that’s more like an exclusive contract than employment.”
“I don’t really have any particular skills….”
“What kind of work are you doing now?”
“…I’m working day labor.”
“Then you must have stamina, strength, and perseverance. There’s a lot you can do with just that, so it’s strange to say you don’t know how to do anything.”
“Is there really something I could do?”
“Of course.”
I pulled out <Tablet Slime> and showed him the endless stream of job requests.
There’s no shortage of work to do in Slime Land right now.
“Right now, Slime Land is very short on hands.”
Most of it is work Mother could handle, but if possible, it’s better for people to do it.
“To be honest, your daughter is my goal. If your job is stable, your daughter’s talent will be able to blossom. But that doesn’t mean your daughter is my only goal. After all, people hold infinite potential. As long as you don’t give up trying while working inside Slime Land, maybe you’ll be able to do things you never thought you could do.
Everyone has something only they can do, even if they just haven’t discovered it yet.”
In Slime Land, the land of dreams, tentacles, hope, and slime, people can be given opportunities.
“Everyone has something only they can do, even if they just haven’t discovered it yet.”
Since the daughter seems to have found hers, now I need to help the father find his.
“Dad?”
At that, the daughter turned away from <Pandora> and looked back.
“Why are you crying?”
Then, seeing her father in tears, she stepped between us protectively and glared at me.
They’re a deeply affectionate father and daughter.
“It’s okay. That slime didn’t do anything bad. In fact, it’s offering you a really good opportunity.”
The man hugged his daughter tightly.
He cried a bit more like that, then stood up and bowed deeply.
“Please take care of me from now on. I’ll do my best.”
“Yes. I look forward to working with you. I’ll send the contract to your bracelet, so read it carefully and sign. Oh, but if you can’t pass the <Slime> test, things could get a bit troublesome. Sorry, but that’s not something I can do anything about.”
To join AlchemySlime Company, you have to pass the infamous <Slime> test. Since I said I’d hire him directly, he should be able to get the job.
But in this case, he’ll be treated more like a contract worker.
At AlchemySlime Company, contract workers aren’t treated like outsiders.
They just gather around and start telling long stories about <Slime>.
At that point, there are only two paths left.
Either you get brainwashed, or you run away.
***
After parting ways with the father and daughter, I looked around at the people.
Slime Land is a place anyone can come and enjoy, regardless of age or gender.
So I’ve hidden little ways here and there for people to get simple products.
Because if you can’t have fun just because you don’t have money, that’s just too sad.
There are few things more heartbreaking than clutching your empty stomach while others walk by happily eating something delicious.
But I didn’t make it so easy that anyone could just take things.
If you make it too easy to take items that are supposed to be bought, it just cheapens the value of the money people spend to buy them.
It’s a reward for working hard, after all, so you can’t let its value drop.
And not everything can be exchanged.
For sweet snacks like <Ice Cream Slime>, <Churros Slime>, and <Cotton Candy Slime>, I’ve set up ways for people to get them.
What if there’s something you really want, but you can’t buy it because you have no money?
There’s always a way.
If you reach the end of the [Adventure Course] Marco prepared, you might get something like a voucher you can use instead of cash.
There should always be treasure at the end of an adventure.
But it’s actually pretty hard to succeed at this.
Even now, people who heard about it are trying, but most of them are failing.
Still, the fact that you can enjoy Slime Land even without money was slowly spreading among the people.
I showed the scene of exchanging found coins for ice cream on the SLimelove channel. The price list even said that if you bring a <Coin Slime>, you can exchange it.
It’s spreading on social media too, so soon there won’t be anyone holding back their appetite just because they don’t know there’s a way to get food.
Quite a few people came here knowing their wallets would take a hit, but now everyone’s faces have brightened up.
In a few days, even people who didn’t come because of money will start showing up one by one.
But I don’t plan to offer a job to every single person who comes.
Is it because the kids or their parents don’t have enough talent?
That’s not the reason.
Honestly, even hiring the father of the <Pandora> girl wasn’t just about his daughter’s talent.
It’s because the dad acted with his child’s best interests in mind that I decided to hire him.
Slime Land has plenty of facilities for adults, not just kids.
There are many facilities in the [Scream Course] that kids can’t use.
[My Own Story] is basically designed to be enjoyed alone.
Some parents just leave their kids in a crowded spot and go off to have fun themselves.
There was even someone who tried to send their kid off alone to run the [Family Course] in full-auto mode.
And there are people who, even while walking with their kids, only think about themselves and wander off.
No matter how poor or hard their life is, I have no intention of hiring people like that at Slime Land.
Making a place where everyone can have fun, no matter who they are, is really tough.
Is time the only answer for this?
***
S-rank Alchemist.
In Korea, there are no benefits given to legendary alchemists who’ve reached this rank.
And it’s not just in Korea.
Nowhere in the world are there benefits given to S-rank Alchemists.
S-rank Alchemist is more of an honorary position.
Instead, you get a special title and universal respect.
S-rank Alchemists are treated as even more precious than S-rank Hunters.
S-rank Hunters, how should I put it-
In military terms, they’re like generals.
There aren’t many of them, but most countries have at least one.
On the other hand, there are only six officially recognized S-rank Alchemists in the entire world.
That’s fewer than the number of S-rank Hunters in America.
There’s a pretty good chance you’ll become an S-rank Hunter if you just keep leveling up.
But to become an S-rank Alchemist, you have to create something that could be considered the ultimate achievement in your field.
It’s a tough thing to do.
As your skill level increases, your technique gets better, but that doesn’t always lead to creativity.
The reason I suddenly became interested in S-rank Alchemists.
It’s because S-rank Alchemists have to reach the ultimate limit in some field.
‘You explored the unknown material called slime and created an entire world from it. So you are a true Alchemist.’
Isn’t that similar to what Ash said to me?
“-In Slime Land, we could feel our bodies and minds being healed.
Until now, no alchemist in history has succeeded in healing and making more people happy than Alchemy Slime.
And Alchemy Slime will heal and make even more people happy in the future.
We believe Alchemy Slime has reached the ultimate peak of ‘healing.’
Therefore, we propose that Alchemy Slime be granted the title of ‘Alchemist of Healing.'”
The vote to promote me to S-rank Alchemist has begun.
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woah s rank finally?