Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 616

“A transfer to the upper workshop district…?”

While Renok and Mauzer blinked at the unexpected notice, Nasisa, perched on the edge of the workbench, crossed her arms and leaned back.

“Given the emergency regarding capacity, this isn’t something that can be changed through negotiation or compromise. It’s already been decided.”

“……”

To think that the workshop’s location had to be forcibly moved due to the barrier’s load, Machina must be managing the capacity of each district that strictly.

Renok had thought that the influx of people to his workshop could cause various repercussions, but he never imagined that it would lead to the relocation of his workshop for this reason.

‘There must be a reason why the city’s districts must strictly adhere to the set load limits….’

In other words, it meant that the barriers shouldn’t collapse due to excessive load.

What could be hidden deep within the barriers that span the city’s sky and land, that would require such measures?

“The problem is deciding which area to send the relocated workshop to.”

While Renok was lost in thought, Nasisa spoke again.

“The mid-level workshop district, where artisans who are building their reputations gather, and the upper-level workshop district, where artisans who have already proven their skills gather. And even the exclusive workshop district that serves the nobles.”

Nasisa’s cold eyes carefully scanned Renok.

“Considering your performance in the selection, it has been decided to dispatch you to the upper workshop district, but it’s not yet confirmed. Ex Machina [the organization managing the city’s workshops] is demanding a more rigorous evaluation of the workshop relocation candidates due to this matter.”

Only then did Mauzer, realizing why Nasisa was giving this explanation, open his mouth with a slightly subdued gaze.

“And that means you’re the one who’s in charge of making that decision, Nasisa.”

It wasn’t for nothing that she had come all the way to Renok’s workshop, pointing out all sorts of problems and evaluating it.

The fact that the workshop would be relocated was already a done deal.

And the one who had the authority to decide where to relocate that workshop was none other than the old woman in front of them, Nasisa.

“Frankly speaking, your workshop management skills are terrible. You completely fail to meet the standards in the know-how and management fields required for an artisan to run a workshop. If I had my way, I’d send you to the mid-level workshop district to learn the basics….”

Nasisa said, looking at Renok with a sharp gaze.

“However, considering the fact that your furnace hasn’t gone out even after the selection, I’m willing to give you this opportunity.”

“……”

So she already knew that the furnace in the workshop had never gone out even once while Renok had been working as an artisan.

For someone who had just suddenly appeared with her hands behind her back and looked around, her observational skills were incredibly sharp.

That was an area of experience that only a seasoned artisan who had been running a workshop for longer than Renok could have acquired.

Perhaps the old woman in front of him, despite her outwardly irritable attitude, was also a highly skilled artisan.

As if sensing Renok’s thoughts, Mauzer, who was standing next to him, reluctantly introduced Nasisa.

“Nasisa Solmer. She’s a member of Ex Machina, the manager in charge of the upper workshop district, and a Meister [a master artisan] who has distinguished herself in the field of crafting.”

“Meister….”

“She was also a fellow disciple under the same master as me.”

A fellow disciple.

Renok wasn’t that surprised to hear Mauzer’s words.

From the moment Nasisa suddenly poured a bottle of alcohol on Mauzer’s face, it was clear that the two knew each other.

However, Nasisa only snorted at Mauzer’s words, not showing much agreement.

“Who was it that went out to start their own workshop and ruined their business?”

“Umm….”

“It doesn’t matter if you’re wasting your days drinking in this lower workshop district. I’m not here for you, but for this guy.”

Mauzer, who had been chosen as a delegate representing the mechanical city and had visited the Blaver Magic Tower, had his own merits to boast about, but he didn’t seem to have any intention of making excuses in front of Nasisa right now.

He just scratched his head with a slightly embarrassed look and turned to Renok.

“What are you going to do?”

Renok turned to Mauzer and asked back.

“Is there anything we can do?”

“Well… that’s true. The issue of workshop district capacity is something that Ex Machina takes extremely seriously.”

Mauzer clicked his tongue and shrugged.

“However, where your workshop will be relocated to can be changed a bit depending on Nasisa’s judgment.”

“……”

“But she doesn’t seem to have a bad impression of you, so why don’t you try talking to her?”

At Mauzer’s words, Renok chuckled as if he was dumbfounded.

“You’re saying that’s not a bad impression?”

“Nasisa is a very meticulous and neat person, but she’s generous when it comes to an artisan’s passion or talent. She’s gained popularity in that aspect and has taken on the role of manager in charge of the upper workshop district.”

Mauzer turned his back to Nasisa and whispered quietly.

“If you’re lucky and Nasisa takes a liking to you, you might be able to skip the other procedures and enter the upper workshop district right away.”

“Then, will Artisan Mauzer come with us too?”

“Me? There’s no way Nasisa would move me along with you just because she likes you.”

Mauzer smiled and shook his head.

“Besides, I like this street.”

“……”

“Well, I did promise to help you out while you’re staying in this city….”

Having received confirmation from Mauzer that he would help out to some extent even after the workshop was relocated, Renok faced her.

“You said you’d give me an opportunity. What criteria should I use to judge?”

“I heard you gave advice to other artisans during the Meister selection.”

“Yes?”

“Many artisans who received better scores than their skills in the selection talked about you. They said you have a knack for finding problems with equipment and identifying their causes.”

“……”

Without waiting for Renok’s answer, Nasisa abruptly took out a circular pendant.

A pendant with a red gem embedded in the center, and hundreds of gears rotating intricately around the gem.

“This pendant. It’s a broken item that even the artisans in the upper workshop district couldn’t repair. Normally, it should have been sent to the exclusive workshop district for Meister-level artisans long ago.”

Nasisa placed the pendant on the workbench and nodded with her arms crossed.

“I won’t tell you to repair it right here and now. Find out the original function of this pendant and the cause of its malfunction.”

Nasisa’s eyes gleamed sharply.

“Right now. In front of me.”

“……”

It seemed that Nasisa had come after roughly knowing how Renok had been handling his artisan work.

Otherwise, there was no way she would have brought this kind of item for testing, which was more about identifying the origins and repairing a specific item rather than crafting.

Was it to thoroughly confirm his abilities as an artisan based on Renok’s strengths?

Despite not liking the internal management of the workshop, her words about giving him an opportunity seemed to be genuine.

That’s why Renok also picked up the pendant quietly without complaint.

“……”

Sitting in front of the workbench surrounded by soldiers guarding Nasisa, he carefully examined the pendant.

“Among the customers who visited the workshop today, there was someone who came with a bike.”

Renok opened his mouth while touching and examining the red gem and the intricate gear parts one by one.

“The bike’s engine parts were a mix of old and new, and it wasn’t functioning properly.”

“What?”

“This pendant is the same.”

Renok said, placing the pendant gently on the workbench.

“Some of the gear parts that make up the artifact are damaged. Because of that, the flow of mana is twisted, and the pendant’s function cannot be brought out as it should be.”

“There’s no damage to the parts. You seem to be mistaken.”

Nasisa frowned, belatedly understanding the meaning of Renok’s words.

“It has already been verified by over a dozen artisans that there is no problem with the condition of the parts. Or are you saying that your eyes are more accurate than theirs?”

“Physical deformation and loss aren’t the only kinds of damage.”

Renok said, turning the pendant around.

“What I’m talking about is closer to wear and tear over time.”

“……Wear and tear?”

“Depending on how much time has passed for the parts that make up the artifact, the flow of mana that rotates through them can also change.”

Renok said, picking up a screwdriver that was placed next to the workbench.

“This pendant is designed to guide mana in a specific direction, ultimately stimulating the red gem located in the center. But if the flow of mana reaching the gem is twisted, it obviously won’t work.”

Even the soldiers surrounding the two seemed to be listening intently to Renok’s words.

In the workshop, which had become quiet, only Renok’s voice echoed softly.

“From the beginning, this pendant wasn’t seriously broken. It’s just that the flow of mana, which should have been maintained at a constant level, stopped working because it was twisted due to the positional changes of the parts.”

“……”

“In my opinion, the original owner must have changed the position of the parts while repairing the artifact, and it became so twisted that it couldn’t be fixed after going through the hands of many people.”

“……It is true that the owner of the artifact initially tried to repair it himself.”

Nasisa reluctantly agreed with Renok’s guess with a stiff expression and asked.

“But if the manufacturing origins of each gear were different, why didn’t the other artisans notice that fact?”

“It’s not that they didn’t notice.”

“What?”

“The parts aren’t hidden enough to make it difficult to know that their manufacturing origins are different. It’s just that they didn’t think that fact was the problem.”

Same specifications. Same size. Same material and metal, processing method. But the only difference was that the manufacturing dates differed by as much as a dozen years.

The fact that the flow of mana passing between the parts subtly changes depending on that time difference was something that even Renok had only recently learned.

While researching Kaise’s pocket watch, he realized why he used parts made by different companies, and he realized it.

The movement of very subtle mana is affected by the time of the object flowing around it.

If the parts of this pendant were made at the same time, the mana flowing through the pendant would also flow normally.

However, the subtle twist that occurs because some of the pendant’s parts were made much earlier than other parts.

What does it mean that the artifact doesn’t work properly because of that twist?

“The creator who made this pendant intentionally mixed parts with different manufacturing times from the beginning.”

“……”

“The subtle twist that occurs through that… I think the change in mana itself was the core principle for activating the artifact.”

As Renok said that, he used the screwdriver to slowly take out and disassemble the gear parts, then started reassembling the pendant on the spot, changing the positions of the parts.

Even though the appearance didn’t change at all, the only thing that changed was the direction in which the old gears were located.

“The principle of remembering, recalling, reproducing, and constructing the concept of time from the perspective of microscopic particles. Perhaps the original form of this pendant is….”

But the moment Renok flowed mana between the completed pendant.

Mana flowed into the rapidly counter-rotating gears, and the red gem began to shine brightly.

Fwaaa!

At the same time as emitting the gem’s brilliance, hundreds of parts surrounding the gem began to rotate and reassemble themselves on the spot.

Charrrr!

A bizarre sight, as if they were reacting to the gem’s mana with their own will and reconstructing their shape.

On the workbench where Renok had taken his hands off, the parts of the pendant quickly increased in size, flipped and bent their shape.

Finally, it transformed into the shape of a sleek hammer that could be held in one hand.

“……”

No one could open their mouths and quietly watched the scene in the center of the workshop.

Renok, who slowly lifted the hammer, lightly stroked it and nodded.

“A relic-level crafting tool. It’s also one with an automatic adjustment function.”

The moment he lightly tapped the old rifle that was placed right next to him with the hammer,

Charrr!

The parts that made up the hammer reassembled themselves on the spot, reducing in size and becoming sharper.

A relic-level artifact that scans the size and material of the item it tapped and transforms into the most suitable crafting tool for repair on the spot.

Renok put down the pendant, which had instantly changed its shape into a screwdriver suitable for rifle repair, and said.

“This is the first time I’ve seen a crafting artifact that is this precise and convenient. I think it’s a treasure that only a Meister would be able to see….”

It is said that a skilled artisan doesn’t discriminate against tools, but that is actually a meaningless statement for those who work on the front lines.

The stability and increase in ability that adjusted equipment brings to those who are sensitive to minor variables or conditions is an area that cannot be explained by theory.

After touching this pendant once, Renok was certain.

The creator who made this artifact was undoubtedly a genius who reproduced the abilities of relics from the old world with the technological power of this world.

“Can you say that this meets the standard?”