Chapter 348: Part of the Experiment
No matter what, Salana was still just a child who didn’t think much about the future. So when Rachel asked to borrow money, Salana didn’t think too much about it. She only remembered what her father had told her.
“If money can buy relationships, then buy them.”
So, without hesitation, Salana gave Rachel her allowance and told her, “If you need more, just come get it.”
...So rich.
At that moment, Rachel held that shiny gold card and nearly drooled on it.
If she had known things would be like this, she never would’ve worked for the royal family back then. The money they gave her wasn’t even close to what Salana just “gave away.” She should’ve gotten close to the Carle family a long time ago!
But soon, that thought was washed away by the small bit of guilt she had left.
She had used a kind child’s generosity to get money, and even worse, she was still thinking of ways to get more. It really was kind of heartless.
Thinking this, she looked up at Salana with a guilty feeling, only to see Salana’s innocent face looking back at her. That pure and gentle gaze wasn’t fake, it was real. It was full of kindness toward her.
Ahhh… even though she felt guilty, just looking at Salana made her feel like she was about to be “purified.” She almost wanted to fall to her knees right there, pray, and confess all her sins from the past few decades.
Salana really was a holy and pure child in every way…
But strangely, Rachel also felt something else deep in her heart, something a little painful. Not because of guilt. But because… Salana was the daughter of the vice-captain of the knight order.
Normally, people respected that. But when war came… a child like her would definitely become a victim.
The Carle family was full of kind people. Even their servants were polite and warm. Rachel had only visited a few times, but they had already left a great impression on her.
As for Rachel herself, she could run away at any time. She could change her appearance and become anyone. The money Salana gave her, plus what she already had, was more than enough to build a new, more grown-up identity and escape from this land full of danger.
But... she couldn’t just stand by and watch her friend get hurt by war.
Yes… friend.
How funny. She had lived for so many years without ever having a real friend.
And now? She had a friend who was much younger than her. But somehow, when she was with Salana, she didn’t feel uncomfortable at all.
It seemed… she had become a child too.
Just like how Red Crow had changed. Her body, her habits, her surroundings had all changed. And her heart changed too. The cold assassin had now become a warm, gentle woman by Armand’s side.
She wasn’t quite a perfect “good wife and loving mother” yet, but she was doing her best to become one.
At first, Rachel thought this change was good for Evelia, but she also found it a bit unbelievable. Could someone really change that much? Could a cold assassin truly turn into that kind of person?
But now, she understood.
It wasn’t just Evelia, who had turned from male to female, who had changed. She, the one who had grown old and then become young again, had also changed.
She had switched bodies many times before, but because she never opened her heart to others, the outside world didn’t affect her much. But now, because she had real family and real friends around her, she had also changed her way of living.
Her physical change was just a small part of it. The real reason her mind and soul changed was because of the environment around her.
Yes… that’s how it is.
So this is the result of the experiment.
Rachel wasn’t just someone who watched it happen, she was also part of the experiment. Through her own experiences, she slowly helped complete it.
Everything was coming to an end now. She would do her best, but she wasn’t some kind of superhero. She couldn’t make everything turn out the way she wanted.
But like she always said, she would do her best, and at the end, write a final report that ended in a way she could accept.
………………………………………
After returning home, Rachel, as usual, secretly arranged for some people to help her buy materials.
Making soul stones wasn’t easy. Rachel had spent a long time refining the materials herself before she was able to make the stones she used now. And for someone using them for the first time, the stones needed to be even more precise. These kinds of stones were hard to find, they were rare even in markets.
But luckily, because she now had enough money, she also had access to the right people.
If she couldn’t buy a soul stone, then she’d just make one with her own hands.
That’s the difference between a “genius alchemist” and a regular one.
Most normal alchemists only know how to use ready-made materials in their experiments. But Rachel could break down every formula and rebuild it in her own way, using whatever she had on hand and her own understanding to mix things in special ways. She used unique alchemical reactions to create exactly what she needed.
A once-in-a-century genius, that’s what she was.
Of course, that was something Rachel could truly be proud of. Her skills were worthy of that title.
“…Hope it works.”
Rachel wasn’t so much worried about the complicated experiment itself. What she was really worried about was the future, hers and the people around her.
She wasn’t someone who always expected the worst, but after going through some really tough times, including dying once, she wasn’t as fearless as she had been when she was younger.
There was just so much she had to do. None of the experiments could afford to go wrong. She had to work faster, and still avoid being noticed by others.
To Rachel now, explaining herself after getting caught would just waste time. In some ways, she shared the same thoughts as Armand.
They both believed that some things, even if they could be explained, were just too troublesome to talk about. And if too many people knew, it would be even worse. So they’d rather keep things to themselves and say nothing.
After all, in this age, information was just too important. If you were trying hard to learn something about your enemy, your enemy was trying just as hard to learn about you. The more you said, the more chances there were for mistakes, so it was better to just stay quiet from the start.
“Hoo…”
As if trying to calm her restless mind, Rachel took a deep breath.
She couldn’t save the world, or even a small group of people.
But she would still try her best.
And maybe… that was also part of her experiment.