Research Life of a New Professor at Magic University

First, pre-made products sold by the guild.
Second, counterfeit products made by following the recipe to the letter.
Third, something made by Arien using an unknown method.

At first, I thought the previous result was just a coincidence, and there was enough of a possibility that Arien couldn’t reproduce it.
But it’s probably not.
With the difference in the ingredients used alone, it’s not strange that the results differ.

“Let’s start with the guild’s first.”

At this intensity, it should remain effective for more than 10 minutes. It took 8 minutes and 42 seconds.

“Professor? Can I try?”

“Try what?”

“Analyzing it?”

We cannot do this carelessly, as we would have to remake the potion for each attempt.
It’s a very commendable attitude to want to learn, but should I entrust it to her at this point?
I brought the potion bottle I had taken the lid off to measure earlier and handed it to Arien.

“Try measuring this first.”

After receiving the guild’s potion, Arien went to the alchemy workstation and activated the circuit.
She struggled to follow the manual, often pausing to read the book.
Thanks to that, the procedure had few flaws, but it took quite a long time to get started.

“Then let’s begin.”

Arien went through most of the procedure smoothly but made a small mistake in the end.
The measured result was 9 minutes and 15 seconds.

“Do you know why the magical flow was disturbed?”

“I’m sorry.”

“There’s no need to apologize. It might be better if I do it next time. It’s too late now.”

“Yes.”

I analyzed two more bottles of guild potions in the same way.
Clearly, the pre-made products had close results.
The quality is consistent since it is produced in bulk according to a specified method.

So, in this case, it was very consistently poor.

The results were 8 minutes and 45 seconds and 8 minutes and 39 seconds. The average would be around 8 minutes and 42 seconds for the three tests.

The result values are gathered like this, so it’s unlikely that the ones we tested were defective products mixed in.
At the very least, it’s right to think that all the potions I received this time are like that.

“What’s this? Why is it all like this?”

They were all defective products.
With how consistent it was, it probably isn’t a measurement error.

“It’s suspicious that the guild sent out items with defects.”

“What should we do then? Should we report it?”

“We can’t be certain. It could be a mistake on our side. There might be a problem with the alchemy circuit.”

Of course, that’s not the case.
Still, we need to gather evidence conclusively.

“First, let’s measure my potion. If the same result is obtained, it will be certain the problem is with the method. If my potion comes out fine, we can assume a defect in the guild’s items.”

We wasted too much time.
Since I showed enough to Arien anyway, let’s finish quickly.
I implemented three magic circles and connected them to each circuit.

The three implemented magic circles applied continuous magical pressure to each sample.
Watching from the side, Arien seemed very interested in this series of actions.

This is something I can’t explain.

The measurement results were 10 minutes and 4 seconds, 10 minutes and 35 seconds, and 10 minutes and 11 seconds.
Although we had fewer samples than the guild’s to test, the result is clear.

“It’s certain. These rascals… Did they even dilute the water?”

“Isn’t this illegal? What are you going to do?”

“I’ll have to think about it some more before deciding.”

This is why you shouldn’t compromise with adventurers.
Did they send me defective products, or are all the potions they supply like this?

Either way, I won’t settle for a refund.
I’ll have to think about what to do later. I’m tired now.

“By the way, this watch is really convenient. I’ve never seen anything like it before. Where can I get one?”

“I only have one too. It’ll be hard to get another one.”

The guild could probably be so brazen because of this.
It’s rare to find someone who can measure time in seconds.
No one would bother to re-measure it and bring it back to argue about it, and even if someone did, there wouldn’t be much to say if they just asked, ‘Did you measure it wrong?’

“You probably can’t use this every time either. Borrow it when you have time. It’s good to measure the time of the hourglasses.”

“Huh? Don’t we already know?”

“If the potion results are like, can you trust hourglasses?”

“Now that you mention it…”

“And it’s good to mark the intervals in between. We don’t have an hourglass for 9 minutes, but you can time it with a 7-minute and a half of 4-minute.”

Arien grimaced at my words.

“Ugh… just hearing about it gives me a headache. Why do humans like these kinds of problems?”

“How should I know? But sometimes solving them can be fun.”

“Ugh.”

Why make such a fuss?

Ignoring Arien’s contorted expression, I began the final experiment.
I analyzed the potion Arien made using the same process.

I could definitely feel it.
It took much longer than the two types of potions I inspected earlier.

Upon checking the time, it was 15 minutes and 2 seconds, 15 minutes and 45 seconds, and 16 minutes and 52 seconds.

“The difference is too big.”

Of course, this was to be expected, considering the mischief Arien committed during the production process.
It would have been more surprising if the time had been as well gathered as in the previous two cases.

“But still… the results are good, right?”

“For now, this is acceptable… but be more careful in the future. It would have been hard to say it was better if the difference hadn’t been so large.”

“So, did we find a way to improve the potion today?”

But I shook my head. It’s not that simple.

“I doubt it. What kind of potion did we make today? A healing potion?”

“Yes, it was a health restoration potion.”

“In the end, the most important thing is the healing effect.
Even if the stability is good, it’s useless if the healing effect is lower than usual.”

“Wouldn’t the healing effect have improved too? Oh, of course, I know we shouldn’t make conclusions without trying it.”

“I think so too. If you choose good ingredients and the stability increases, the healing effect will also increase. The problem is how to demonstrate that. Have you thought about how to experiment with the healing effect?”

“Uh…”

“More important than discovery is proof.”

Arien, who was previously delighted, became gloomy again.

“But there’s no need to be too disappointed. We don’t have to do all the experiments ourselves.”

“Are you planning to collaborate with other places?”

“That’s one way, and if we show today’s results, plenty of people will be willing to invest their money in experiments.”

Alchemy workshops, alchemy guilds, adventurer guilds… There are not just one or two places that come to mind immediately.
Even if we limit it to just potions, if this effect applies to other types, such as stamina or strength, lords and wizards from all over the continent will rush for it.

“So, we must ensure we have as much evidence as possible. We need to present the results properly so that others can move. With proper research, this could even be published in a good academic journal.”

Arien’s face brightened noticeably again.

“With these crude experiments, it’s hard to secure research funding. Coincidentally, the alchemy workshop is calling for potion proposals. The deadline is April.”

“Next month?”

“Yeah. But just proposing a project won’t cut it with this level of experiment.
We need to give them confidence that it’s worth opening their wallets.”

“How much should we do then?”

“First and foremost, it’s best to clarify the principles. If that’s difficult, testing the extent to which the same method can be applied is good. This time, we extended the lifespan of a cheap potion, but we need to show more potential than that.”

“It sounds difficult.”

“Yeah. There’s a lot to do. So, we need to hurry.
Repeated experiments take time, and it’s not easy to figure out what experiments to do.
After all the experiments are done, summarizing and presenting them is also a job.”

“Wow. It sounds hectic.”

“Yeah, so for now, you’ll summarize today’s experimental results into a report and give it to me by tomorrow.”

As soon as Arien heard that, her expression stiffened very quickly.
She seemed to have a lot of emotional fluctuations today.
Was she always this emotionally volatile?

“…Professor? I have three classes to attend tomorrow.”

“Even if you combine them, it’s not even five hours. A day has 24 hours.”

“I also have to prepare next week’s lecture materials.”

“That sounds tough.”

Arien muttered dejectedly, then soon resigned herself to the situation.
That’s a good attitude. Even if you can’t accept it, nothing will change.

“Do humans normally live like this?”

“I don’t know about that, but graduate students sure do.”

“That’s absurd…”

It will be tough to organize all of this and write a report.
I’m not in a position to complain. There’s a mountain of work to be done.

I spent too much time on the experiment than planned.

I had to write a proposal for the assignment that almost got me excommunicated last time and actually conduct the research.
I also have to prepare for the experiments on Friday.

If today’s experiment develops into formal research, I’ll have to write another proposal.
Since there’s no way Arien can properly plan that, it’s up to me.
I have to prepare not only the overall plan but also the individual experiment plans.

And in the midst of all that, I have to think about another research project.

The life absorption research succeeded in image improvement, but it doesn’t have much funding.
I’ve got material for a paper, so I need to do another research project that’s good for funding.

Oh, speaking of papers, there’s something else I forgot about.

“Oh, and I found a few papers for you to read. Get ready to read them over tomorrow.”

Her lack of response made me think her soul left her body.

She heard me, right?