Are You Satisfied Now

Luo Li watched the elf lick her lips with her slender tongue and her mouth twitched.

"Stop joking around. What happened that made you come to see me at this hour?"

Normally, everyone was free to do as they pleased at this time.

Camilla said nothing.

The girl waved her hand, signaling the attendants to leave.

Only the three of them remained in the room.

"Tell me, what is it?"

Something that Camilla took so seriously was unlikely to be a small matter.

"Your Highness, I've produced the item you requested."

She took a small bottle from her sleeve and held it in her palm.

Luo Li raised an eyebrow, took the bottle, and examined it.

There was nothing special about the bottle itself; it was just an ordinary glass bottle, common in this era.

The key was the black powder inside.

"Black powder? You made it this quickly?"

Holding the black powder, Luo Li didn't dare shake it hard as she carefully pulled out the stopper.

She pulled a piece of paper from the desk, poured some out, and sprinkled it into the fireplace.

"Nara, light it. Be careful."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Although she didn't know what world-shaking thing her mistress had come up with this time, Nara understood that whenever her mistress said "be careful," it was definitely something dangerous.

Nara carefully picked up some mana stone particles, shook them in her hand, and then sprinkled them into the fireplace.

The moment the fire element mana stone particles were shaken, the elements within became frantic.

In the blink of an eye, the small falling particles flashed with fire as they landed in the fireplace.

BOOM!!

Suddenly, a cloud of black smoke rose from the fireplace, and a wave of heat erupted instantly.

Fortunately, the fireplace was protected by a magic array, so the smoke couldn't escape and could only rise upward.

Luo Li nodded.

She had mentioned it to Camilla once before, but she hadn't expected her to actually produce it.

As for things like saltpeter and sulfur, she didn't know what they were called in this other world.

"What materials are in this?"

She turned to look at Camilla, whose answer was simple.

"Ice stone, foul powder, and charcoal."

Ice stone? That must be saltpeter, and foul powder was likely the name for sulfur in this world.

Luo Li nodded.

"Good, this is exactly what I wanted. Camilla, you've done well."

With this powder, firearms could be developed normally.

And mana guns could be equipped for other elite units.

For example... the dragon cavalry regiment.

Although they were knights, their level allowed them to resonate with the elements to a certain extent.

In other words, they could also provide energy for mana stones.

While mana weapons still seemed somewhat primitive on an equal battlefield, they would be absolutely devastating when crushing weaker opponents.

The dragon cavalry regiment with mana guns would be on an entirely different level.

The enemy wouldn't even be able to get close; they would just be sitting ducks.

"Your Highness, if I may ask, this item is quite dangerous. What exactly do you intend to do with it?"

Camilla's expression was somewhat grave.

Regardless of what the elf was thinking, it seemed she had realized something.

"Nara, bring me that firearm design blueprint."

Nara nodded, turned to take a folder from the nearby bookshelf, pulled out the corresponding drawing, and placed it in Luo Li's hand.

Luo Li didn't waste words and handed it directly to Camilla.

"Take a look. This is what I want."

The mature elf took the blueprint. At first, her fiery red eyebrows were knit in confusion.

But as she continued to look, her eyes were filled only with dread.

"Your Highness, this... is this a new weapon?!"

"Yes, or at least a very important part of one."

Luo Li nodded.

However, black powder alone wasn't enough; she needed the next level, smokeless powder, or even TNT.

Those could be used to create rifle-grade powder.

This current powder was likely only suitable for making something like a revolver.

Camilla lowered her head in thought.

"Your Highness."

Her voice suddenly became solemn, and Luo Li instinctively looked up.

She saw a gaze filled with inquiry and scrutiny.

"Forgive my intrusion."

She looked directly into the girl's eyes, as if trying to pierce through her thoughts to see her true intentions.

"This weapon doesn't seem capable of threatening high-level individuals. What is your purpose for wanting it?"

Seeing Camilla's serious expression, Luo Li felt a flash of insight and set down the bottle, looking directly at her.

"So that even ordinary people will have the power to fight against the demon race."

"Your Highness, once this item appears, even commoners will possess great destructive power. Are you not worried that this will affect many people?"

Luo Li took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and answered calmly.

"Anything new has its pros and cons. As the ruler of this nation, my responsibility is to guide these things in a direction that benefits the country and the people."

The red-haired elf slowly lowered her head.

She seemed to be pondering Luo Li's words.

Luo Li looked at the bottle in her hand and set it aside.

Since it had been created and she knew the names of the ingredients, it would be easy to replicate later.

"Camilla, you've done a great service this time. Nara, take note: reward her with a thousand acres of leased land."

"Wait."

"Hmm?"

It had been a long time since Luo Li had been interrupted mid-sentence.

After all, as the Saintess of the Moon, very few people dared to interrupt her.

"What is it? Is the reward... too small?"

Land was leased; although the right to use it belonged to the recipient, they had no right to buy or sell it.

Of course, they could sub-lease it.

"No, I'd like to change the reward, if that's alright?"

The serious expression on Camilla's face vanished, replaced once again by her usual playful smile.

Luo Li's mouth twitched.

She had a bad feeling.

She asked tentatively, "What do you want?"

"Your Highness, your clothes, or perhaps some kind of liquid~"

"Out of the question. Guards, see her out."

"Wait!!"

"What now!?"

Luo Li stared at Camilla with her wide, watery eyes.

Did this elf really refuse to give up until she reached her goal?

Giving her a set of Saintess's robes last time was already generous enough, right?

This time she was even bolder, actually asking for that kind of thing?

"Your Highness... don't you want something even better?"

The smile on Camilla's face grew wider. That hunter-like gaze, looking at a little rabbit that had fallen into a trap without knowing it, made a chill run down Luo Li's spine.

"What 'something even better'?"

This elf definitely had some twisted thoughts!

She shouldn't have played along; she should have just kicked her out.

But the words "something even better" made Luo Li suppress the urge to throw her out.

"This, of course."

Camilla pulled another bottle from her sleeve.

Inside this bottle were black, grain-like substances.

"What is this?"

Although she already had a guess, Luo Li still found it hard to believe.

Were people of this era all so naturally gifted?

Were they always going to give her these kinds of surprises?

"I don't know what to call it. I synthesized the substance inside. It's more stable than the one in your hand, and I think it's more suitable for the item in this blueprint. Plus, it has greater explosive power and produces no smoke. What do you think?"

Camilla looked at Luo Li with a smile.

"Your Highness, name your price."

Luo Li took a deep breath to calm her slightly excited heart.

Camilla truly lived up to her title as an alchemist.

To think she could develop something like this.

"How did you know beforehand that I wanted this kind of thing?"

Luo Li hesitated, not naming a price but asking this first.

After all, the blueprint had always been with her and hadn't been leaked.

How could she have known in advance?

Camilla smiled and pointed to the bottle of black powder on the table.

"Since I made it, I had to know what its effects were. After seeing it and looking up some references, it was easy to make something more stable."

Luo Li's brow furrowed as she looked at Camilla.

She understood now.

It was no wonder Camilla could develop such a thing.

The history of this world was much longer than that of humans on Earth.

And this gave countless races countless opportunities.

Alchemy was a profession passed down since ancient times.

It had existed for over ten thousand years.

While no one in this era was developing a technology tree, the traces left by their predecessors were enough for later generations to study.

A group of alchemists who buried their heads in researching immortality would naturally touch upon and tinker with everything.

However, they were generally uninterested in anything that was useless for achieving immortality.

That was the nature of alchemists.

What alchemists truly wanted to do was turn lead into gold.

Everything else was just a byproduct.

"Nara, how much Holy Water is left in the Temple?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, there is nearly a ton."

"Give it all to her."

She was truly unlucky to encounter such a talented yet shameless alchemist who would pester her for things.

"Eh? Your Highness, just that much?"

"What else do you want?"

Camilla looked down at Luo Li's delicate feet.

"Your Highness... I see your stockings look a bit old. Why don't you change into a new pair?"

The girl's mouth twitched as she looked down at her toes, faintly visible through the silk stockings.

She ground her teeth and forced out a single word.

"Fine!"

For the sake of the country! I will endure!!

She glared fiercely at Camilla.

This elf was talented, which made it impossible to retaliate.

"Nara, take off my stockings!!"

Luo Li turned and sat on the bed. Nara quickly walked over, seeing the reluctance on her mistress's face.

Though she felt sorry for her, she knew it was best not to speak out of turn.

This was no small matter; she had seen the power of that firearm earlier.

Now, the black granules in this bottle seemed related to firearms as well.

These were matters of state; there was no room for acting on petty whims.

Nara stepped forward and helped her mistress take off her stockings.

She then put them in a bag and set it aside.

The red-haired elf stared at the bag with a look of longing.

"Are you satisfied now? Where is the formula!!"

"Right here."

Having obtained what she wanted, the elf wore a satisfied smile.

"Your Highness, don't forget to call me again next time something like this comes up~"

She placed the formula on the table.

Carrying the bag, she hummed a little tune as she left.

"Your Highness, I'm leaving now."

Throughout the entire process, Luo Li was fuming but helpless.

There was nothing she could do; the elf hadn't done anything excessive, she was just lusting after her body.

If she had stayed cold and maintained her posture as a ruler...

Wouldn't that have dampened the elf's spirits?

If she didn't satisfy her this time, how could she make her work herself to the bone next time?

Luo Li rubbed her forehead, glanced at the paper, and nodded.

On it were the proportions, the use of cotton, and so on.

Luo Li had heard of these things before.

But she hadn't studied them in detail.

However, a general idea was enough.

Since it mostly matched, it proved that Camilla hadn't deceived her.

In addition to cotton, nitric acid, and concentrated sulfuric acid, it used ethanol dissolution and slime adhesive as a coagulant.

The final result was these black granules.

The rest was a matter of how to load these into bullets.

And how to manufacture the casings and projectiles.

She only needed to give the order, and Anton would surely find a way.

With the power of the steam engine, simple machine tools could now be used.

Mass-producing casings and projectiles wouldn't be a problem.

Taking a long breath, Nara walked over with a new pair of silk stockings.

Because stockings were easily damaged, they kept many spares.

Luo Li lifted her legs and let Nara carefully put them on.

Then she stood up and looked out the window.

Seeing the exhaustion on her mistress's face, Nara advised out of concern.

"Your Highness, it's late. Why don't you rest? You can do the rest tomorrow..."

"No, aren't Lola and Audis still waiting for me? Let's go to the side hall."

Nara's brow knit slightly. She thought for a moment but said nothing more, simply nodding.

Luo Li hurried to the main hall and entered the side hall.

She saw Lola and Audis discussing something.

"Her Highness has arrived."

Lola and Audis quickly stood up.

"This old servant, Audis, greets Your Highness."

"Lola greets Your Highness."

"You may rise."

Luo Li spoke casually, glanced at the side hall's decor, and sat in a nearby chair.

The girl turned to the two and said, "Both of you, please sit. Let's talk."

"This old servant thanks Your Highness."

Audis nodded. Lola, who was already used to this, said nothing more.

The two took their seats.

The girl's index finger and thumb gently rubbed her silver hair.

Her gaze held a hint of inquiry.

"Audis, it's been a few days. You look a bit tired."

"I thank Your Highness for your concern. Working for the country is my duty."

Audis quickly stood up to reply, but Luo Li simply waved her hand.

"Sit down first. This isn't the main hall; there's no need for so much etiquette."

"Yes."