Gregory's Relic

Lu Yuan sat down on the other side of the workbench and continued chewing on the dried meat.

His mind, however, involuntarily drifted elsewhere.

Herman had mentioned that matter in his letter.

It should be Gregory.

Lu Yuan's chewing slowed down.

He remembered something.

Back in Sandworm Town, when they were dividing the spoils after Gregory's death, he had found a badge in a hidden compartment of the man's satchel.

It was made of copper, thicker than a normal badge, and had a thin slit on the back that suggested it contained a hidden layer.

He had tried to open it before but failed, so he hadn't paid it much mind since.

Combined with how busy and packed things had been in Bronze City, the badge had been sitting quietly at the bottom of his item bag until today.

Herman's letter had brought that badge back to the forefront of his mind.

Lu Yuan set down the dried meat, wiped his hands, and pulled the badge from his bag.

He held it in his palm.

Flipping it over, his thumb brushed over the thin slit.

It was nearly seamless; one could only barely make out the existence of the gap by the way light reflected off the material.

As he observed it, a line of greyish-white text popped up in his vision.

【Target detected: Faint traces of knowledge residue.】

"Hmm?"

Lu Yuan was somewhat surprised.

There really was something hidden inside this badge?

However, he didn't seem to have the means to deal with it himself.

But wasn't Laurina right here? As an alchemy genius of the Alchemy Department, she should have some tricks up her sleeve, right?

Laurina was still busy at the workbench, the liquid in the crucible having turned from pale yellow to a faint green.

Her movements were steady as she observed the liquid's changes while adding various powders.

Lu Yuan walked over and sat down across from her.

He didn't rush to speak, waiting for her to finish the task at hand.

Laurina added another spoonful of powder, stirred it a few times, then moved the crucible away from the heat and set it on a stone slab to cool.

She looked up and glanced at Lu Yuan.

"What is it?"

Lu Yuan placed the copper badge on the workbench.

"Take a look at this for me."

Laurina's gaze fell upon the badge.

She didn't pick it up immediately, instead studying it for a few seconds.

A copper surface, a clock-patterned badge with hands frozen in time.

Then she picked it up, turned it over, and ran her finger along the thin slit.

"Where did you get this?"

"A suspicious item seized during an investigation," Lu Yuan continued. "I haven't been able to open it. I've checked it in my own way, and there should be a hidden compartment inside."

Laurina didn't press for details.

She held the badge up to her eyes, carefully examining the surface against the light from the window.

Then she did something.

She took a long, thin silver needle from a drawer beneath the workbench and lightly scratched the surface of the badge.

The tip of the needle left a nearly invisible white scratch on the copper surface.

Laurina stared at the mark, her brow furrowing slightly.

"What did you find?"

"If a silver needle scratches ordinary copper, it should leave a dark mark. But this is white." Her tone carried a hint of seriousness. "This is a special alloy."

She paused as if recalling something.

"Have you heard of memory materials?"

Lu Yuan shook his head.

"It was a research direction established by a group of mentors at the Polymath Tower who attempted to crack the secrets of Bronze City." Laurina leaned back against her chair, twirling the silver needle between two fingers. "Simply put, it is a type of metal that can 'remember.'"

"Remember what?"

"Alchemical imprints, or anything that takes effect once inscribed." She looked at Lu Yuan. "Ordinary metals can only carry imprints, not store them. If an alchemist carves a rune on it, the rune stays on the surface; if it's damaged by external force, it's gone."

"But metal memory materials are different. They can 'eat' the alchemical imprint, integrating it into the metal's internal structure. Even if the surface is completely destroyed, as long as the carrier remains, the things hidden inside can still be used."

Lu Yuan looked at the badge in his palm.

"Is this material rare?"

"It's more than just rare." Laurina's expression was subtle. "It's basically a lost art."

She put the silver needle back in the drawer.

"I took a cross-disciplinary course at the College of Materials when I was at the Polymath Tower, and this direction was mentioned. The mentor said a group of people in the College of Materials was doing this research many years ago. Later, that group was gone, and the project was cut short."

"Gone?" Lu Yuan was a bit surprised.

"Disappeared," Laurina said flatly. "The mentor didn't go into details about the circumstances, only that the group went on a long journey and never returned. The project data is still stored in the tower, but since no one took it over, it's just been sitting there."

Lu Yuan didn't reply.

Then he asked the most critical question.

"Can you help me open this?"

Laurina picked up the badge again and turned it over.

"I can try..." Her tone returned to the professional realm of an alchemist. "If it's a memory material, to open it without using brute force, one must constantly experiment to find what kind of material solution the previous owner used as a key."

She lightly tapped the slit on the back of the badge with her fingernail.

"The logic isn't complicated. But..."

She paused.

"I'm not sure."

Those were three words Lu Yuan rarely heard from her.

"I've only seen literature on metal memory materials once in class, and it was just an overview. The specific trigger mechanism should still be in the archives of the College of Materials at the Polymath Tower."

She glanced at Lu Yuan.

"But I wouldn't dare go back there now."

"I can only infer based on general alchemical principles and then test. Through the combination of type, concentration, and catalysts—if even one thing is slightly off, it won't work. It might work on the first try, or it might take several attempts."

She looked at the row of medicinal bottles on the workbench.

"I have basic acidic solvents here. For the catalytic components... I have enough silver leaf powder and mineralized salt... but I'm still missing one thing."

"What?"

"Hemlock extract." Laurina closed the drawer. "The Alchemy Workshop doesn't have it. It's an obscure item that isn't used for daily tasks."

She turned around and leaned against the cabinet.

"The medicinal storehouse at the Nightwatchers branch should have it. They occasionally use hemlock when dealing with pollutants."

Lu Yuan nodded.

He had to go to the branch anyway; Raymond had already cleared his access to the archives yesterday.

He could pick up some hemlock extract along the way.

"I'm going to the branch this afternoon. I'll bring it back for you."

"Fine." Laurina pushed the badge back to him. "Keep it for now. We'll talk once the materials are ready."

She paused and added another sentence.

"This material is uncommon. Even after it's opened, the contents inside might not be stable. After all, this field of study has disappeared; it's highly likely that whatever is inside is already damaged."

Lu Yuan tucked the badge away.

"I understand."

Laurina didn't respond; she had already lowered her head again, her attention returning to the pale green liquid cooling in the crucible.

Lu Yuan didn't go out for the rest of the morning.

Sitting by the window, he pulled out the Knowledge Pathway Guide and closed his eyes, adjusting the flow of his Sanity according to the methods in the book.

Fifteen minutes later, Lu Yuan opened his eyes in frustration.

【Guard I: +0.1…1.3/10】

【Sanity: -1…91/120】

It had only ticked three times before stopping again.

It was slow, incredibly slow.

But Lu Yuan had no other choice and didn't know the reason why. He could only hope that when he tried again tonight, the experience points would move.