The Noble Lady Without Magic Aims to Become an Adventurer! - Chapter 29

“Fars, good morning. Are you ready?”

“Yeah, Marloa. You’re all set too, huh? I think we’re supposed to meet the senior at the gate. It’s about time—let’s head out.”
Having submitted our outing application in advance, we made our way toward the gate. Standing there was Senior Arnold.

He was dressed like a typical adventurer, which surprised us a bit.

Students from the alchemy or magic courses typically wore robes, with some even keeping their hoods pulled low indoors. While Arnold wasn’t wearing a hood, we’d always imagined him in a robe, so seeing him in adventurer gear felt oddly out of place.

Notably, he had a comically large backpack strapped to his back.
“Good morning, Senior Arnold,” we greeted in unison.

“Good morning, Fars, Marloa. Let’s head to the guild,” he replied, setting off.

As we walked, we struck up a conversation with him.

“Senior Arnold, you’re not wearing a robe today,” I remarked.
“Ah, I only wear robes when I’m working on alchemy. Those outfits you two are wearing—aren’t they Dungeon Gear sets? The craftsman who makes those is famous for only creating equipment for people he personally approves of. That’s impressive.”

“I didn’t know that. Thank you. But your armor looks like top-tier gear too. I assumed you used magic to gather materials for it.”

“This? My grandfather insists I wear it. He prepares everything for me. And though I’m an alchemist, I’m no magician—I’m better with a sword.”

Though both involve using magical energy, it seemed there was a distinction for him. The fact that he preferred swords over magic was surprising.

“Also, it’s common for noblemen to learn swordsmanship. That said, I’m fairly adept with magic too—I can handle advanced spells to some extent.”

Given his aspiration to become a royal alchemist, his magical prowess must be quite significant.

At the guild, we scanned the list of requests. Arnold swiftly tore three C-Rank request forms from the board and took them to the counter.

“Wait, Senior. Are you sure about this? Those were three C-Rank requests!”

I couldn’t help but voice my concern.

“Yeah, it’s two Yellow Spiders, one Green Snake, and Blue Butterfly scales. They’re all found in the same forest, so it’s easier to handle them all at once. Don’t worry—I’ve got this.”

Trusting his confidence, we handed over our guild cards. We registered as a party of three and set out for our destination.

As we entered the northern forest, it wasn’t long before we noticed clusters of white webs scattered around.

“Senior, are these Yellow Spider nests?”

“No, those are just feeding remnants. See? If you look inside, you’ll find their leftovers.”

Following his gesture, I peeked into the web and saw the desiccated remains of a small bird-shaped magical beast. Arnold skillfully harvested the webbing with his knife.

“I need a lot of this thread. My current alchemy work is tricky—these threads burn up too easily. I’d appreciate your help collecting them.”

We filled burlap sacks with the threads as we found them.
“Senior! There’s a Blue Butterfly caught in the web over there!”
“Oh, what luck. Let’s collect its scales,” Arnold said, quickly filling both the guild-issued bottle and a personal one with the butterfly’s scales.

“Senior, this is dangerous. If it’s still alive, spiders will come soon!”

“Ah, you two handle them, please.”

Before he finished speaking, Yellow Spiders emerged from the underbrush, skittering toward us and shooting threads. We dodged swiftly, while Arnold calmly continued gathering materials.

“By the way, to take down a Yellow Spider, aim your sword between its abdomen and thorax,” he added nonchalantly.

“Good to know! I’ll give it a try,” Fars said, moving to flank one of the spiders. With a single, clean stroke, he brought it down exactly as Arnold had described.

Despite their C-Rank classification for their tough exoskeletons, the spiders were surprisingly easy to defeat with this method.

Arnold, ever composed, tied the defeated spider to his backpack and wandered off in search of more materials. After some time, we encountered a spider with a red abdomen.

“Senior, that’s a Red Spider. Be careful—it spits paralyzing threads.”

We dealt with it cautiously, defeating the larger spider before finding three smaller Yellow Spiders nearby. Though they were just juveniles, spiders reproduced quickly, so leaving them unchecked wasn’t an option.

With the spiders handled, we moved on to the Green Snake.

“Fars, now we just need to find the snake. Where should we look?”

We searched among stones and tall grass until Arnold pointed up.
“There, Marloa.”

Coiled high in a tree was the Green Snake.

“Senior, it’s too high up for us to reach.”

Arnold pulled out a shiny, polished flash bomb from his pack.

Unlike the rough, clumpy bombs we usually used, this one was smooth and sleek.

“Use this,” he said, handing it to me.

“Did you make this, Senior?”

“Yeah, why?”

“It’s so beautiful!”

“Marlowa, you have peculiar taste,” he said, amused.
The bomb was designed to cause minimal damage to avoid angering other creatures in the vicinity. Following his instructions, I hurled it at the snake.

Startled by the flash, the snake fell from the tree, hissing as it hit the ground. Arnold swiftly grabbed its neck and crushed its head.

“Senior, that was amazing. You finished it so quickly.”

“This method is the easiest for smaller creatures, but I’m not great with larger beasts.”

“We usually deal with bigger creatures, so this was a learning experience for us,” I admitted.

After collecting the necessary materials, we returned to the guild and reported the quest completion. Since Arnold needed the materials for his alchemy, we didn’t take them to the magical beast counter.

The Green Snake’s liver, I learned, was an ingredient for medicine, and Arnold carefully processed it for use.

“Thanks for your help today. Let’s do this again next week,” he said, hoisting his materials and heading off with a cheerful smile.

“Fars, that was fun, wasn’t it? His methods were so different from what we’re used to.”

“Yeah, it was interesting. But you know, since I live in the men’s dorm, I hear stories about him. His room is so bizarre it freaks everyone out. I bet he’s drying snake skins outside his door right now.”

People who delve into alchemy, medicine, or magic often end up collecting materials that ordinary folks find unsettling.
I doubt most noble ladies would understand his lifestyle—it’s likely to hurt his chances at marriage.

Our daily lives have gradually fallen into a rhythm. Mornings are for studies, afternoons split between training and more studying.

Weekends are spent hunting with Arnold, who always comes prepared with a variety of alchemical tools.

From E-Rank caterpillars, lizards, snakes, and spiders to aquatic insects and plants, we’ve gathered a wide range of materials. Occasionally, we even get chased by King Bears or Boars.

It’s never boring.

Arnold shares tidbits of knowledge during every hunt. I think Fars and I have grown in both skill and understanding thanks to him.