After Retirement, Living a Stud Life in Another World - 222

Chapter 222: It’s Still Ongoing!

Being called a pervert with a baby fetish by Her Majesty the Queen is extremely frustrating, but there are other frightening experimental results that need to be reported. I have no choice but to tell everything.

“I gave Luize various metals. She showed no interest in copper or tin, but she reacted strongly to lead…”

As Clara spoke, I held out a rough lump, likely made for weighing purposes. However, it was now shining with a golden color.

“Is this lead?”
“It looks like gold.”

Her Majesty and Beatrice exclaimed in surprise. Well, I was shocked too. To see a lead-colored lump turn gold right before my eyes was enough to make anyone’s jaw drop.

“I had it checked by someone with the ‘Identification’ skill. It was confirmed to be pure gold.”

“What?”
The Queen, usually more refined, let out an uncharacteristically crude sound. But, I could understand why. How could a lump of lead, worth so little, be turned into gold?

“Wonderful, just like Clara-nee and Lutz’s child. But this is too dangerous.”

Beatrice’s eyes, usually calm and composed, were wide with shock. But unlike the flustered Queen, she maintained her usual stoic and cold expression. She truly is a well-trained wife.

“Beatrice, this could be a way to make Berzenbrück rich without effort.”

“Mother, you are thinking too simply. If such a technique were used on a large scale, the secret would definitely leak. Once that happens, it wouldn’t just be neighboring countries—ambitious people from all over the continent would swarm to Berzenbrück to capture Luize.”

“Ugh…”
The conversation between this mother and daughter was always blunt and direct, and it made me uneasy. But I guess it was allowed because Her Majesty is kind and generous, and she trusts Beatrice’s political sense.

“When the time comes to destroy surrounding nations, this power could be useful. We could buy lead cheaply, transform it into gold, and release it all at once. That would collapse the continent’s economy. Well, neither you nor I are planning to do that, though.”

Scary! Scary! When it’s just the two of them, Beatrice acts so sweet and childish, but when she turns into a ruler, she can casually drop words like this, showing her cold and calculating nature.

“I will make sure she is disciplined so she doesn’t use it carelessly, don’t worry.”

Clara, who seems used to Beatrice’s behavior, responded calmly. Then, she quietly presented the last experimental result.

“Luize showed a strong obsession with iron. So, when I gave her some, this is what happened.”

She handed over two similar-looking short swords. One was made of regular steel, and the other was infused with suspicious magical power, with the blade showing a reddish tint.

After the first experiment where a steel spoon turned red, Clara immediately switched to experimenting with weapons, showing her deep knowledge of metals. I had opposed letting our child hold such dangerous objects, but Clara gently stopped me, and with her usual timidity and modesty gone, she focused on weapon testing. I was surprised, but it was clear now why she did it.

“What is this reddish sword? It’s beautiful, but I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Look here.”

Clara took the two short swords in both hands and suddenly struck them together in a cross. Despite one of the swords being made of steel, one blade deeply embedded into the other, stopping it.

Ignoring the astonished onlookers, she pointed to the part where the blades met and showed it to Her Majesty.

“This is…?”
The reddish blade had sunk deeply into the steel-colored blade. There was no sign of a chip in the reddish blade. Clara, who hasn’t trained in physical strength, managed to do this. If Gretel had done the same, the steel blade would have been cut in two.

“This metal… How can it cut steel like that so easily?”

“In ancient legends, it is said that the hero’s sword, which drove away demons, was red and could slice through iron armor like butter. That sword was made from adamantite.”

“I know that legend too… But are you saying this short sword is made of adamantite? Can such a legendary material be forged from iron by that child?”

Her Majesty’s shock was understandable. I too was surprised to see such a fantasy-like metal appear. Clara calmly answered.

“Probably. This short sword has probably become a legendary item in its own right.”

A silence fell in Her Majesty’s room. Some of it was due to the joy of discovering that Clara’s daughter, the first person in the continent to have two attributes, was likely the most talented alchemist in history. But more than that, there was a sense of anxiety about the future of a child with such overwhelming abilities.

Breaking the silence, as expected, was Beatrice, who always maintains a calm exterior.

“Well, it’s probably best not to make gold or adamantite for the time being. However… the ability to transform silver into magic silver might be a wonderful blessing for Berzenbrück, a country that relies on magic.”

“Huh? What do you mean by that?”