"The sedative effect of Sucrose's potion is surprisingly strong. How long has it been, and it's still working."
Victor Wang nervously swung his sword. It felt the same as always. Then he selected Cryo, pressed down, and Cryo particles floated out from the center of the sword guard.
["Hey! I'm talking to you!"]
That voice again.
"Does this thing cause auditory hallucinations every time it's used?"
["Hallucinations?! You're the hallucination!"]
Uhh... Victor Wang exchanged glances with Albedo and Sucrose, only to find both of them looking just as puzzled.
"You guys heard that too?"
Sucrose nodded quickly like a pecking chick.
Albedo spoke after some thought. "Perhaps… you created a life."
["Created? At most, he awakened me!"] the voice protested indignantly.
"Are you saying I discovered a new alchemical formula for creating life?"
"That still needs to be verified. It could be due to some randomness in the alchemical materials, or…" Albedo stared deeply at Victor Wang, but didn't continue.
If creating life were truly that easy, alchemical beings would be running all over the place. As an alchemical lifeform himself, Albedo understood the difficulty better than anyone.
["Hey! Don't ignore me!"]
"Who even are you?" Victor Wang waved his sword a bit, trying to see if he could shake it dizzy.
["Hmph! I am a spirit stone born of nature and earth itself. I've existed for one hundred thousand years, enduring the scorching sun, howling winds, torrential rain, and crackling lightning. Though I had a faint consciousness, I had yet to awaken. Later, someone forged me into a sword embryo. When I came into your hands, I gained this form and, nourished by the seven elements, I finally gained the ability to speak."]
"A hundred thousand years? Seriously? Stop making stuff up."
["Hmph! I've endured more suffering than you've had meals."]
"Is that even comparable?"
["Ugh! Anyway, I'm very impressive, alright?"]
The sword lowered its voice meaninglessly and said, ["For example, I know all your little secrets very well~"]
Albedo's face turned odd—who doesn't have a few secrets? But a weapon you carry every day spying on everything? That's a bit much.
Victor Wang's heart skipped a beat. If this sword really had developed a mind long ago, then his privacy had been completely exposed. This was the second privacy-invading device, right after Alice's bracelet...
Why does this stuff still happen even in another world?
And the sword had a female voice. That made it all the more awkward.
He brought the sword up to his face and threatened in a harsh tone, "So you have been spying on me, huh? Watch out or I'll kill the sword to shut you up~"
["Aiya! Look at you getting all worked up. You're my master—how could I ever do anything to harm you? I swear on my sword guard, I'm totally loyal to you!"]
"Hah, smooth talker." Victor Wang held the sword up in front of him and examined it carefully. "Do you feel any discomfort right now? You'd better not shatter like that test sample earlier."
["Tch! Please, we've barely even started. I feel great. And I can even tell you how much energy is still inside me. If you use one elemental particle per use, you've still got over a thousand uses for each element."]
Injected into your body? You don't think that sounds a bit weird?
But Victor Wang felt relieved. Despite the sword's talking side effect, the 'portable elemental particle generator' was a success.
The afternoon was nearly over, with just about an hour left before the Knights of Favonius clocked out.
Only one set of materials remained in Victor Wang's stockpile. Albedo split it further, trying to replicate Victor Wang's alchemical result.
"In theory, the amount of alchemical material can vary within limits. Even this small portion should work, as long as the formula is right."
Still, he didn't dare use a four-star weapon for the test until they were sure. The goal was to replicate that magic crystal stopwatch.
Under Victor Wang's guidance, he attempted both the transportation ritual and the messy one Victor had cobbled together. Both exploded.
Even when Victor Wang personally performed the steps again, it exploded.
"...Maybe this alchemy formula has a minimum material requirement... I'll pay for it. Let's split up and buy everything quickly—five sets should be enough this time."
After confirming which two materials each would get, the trio set out simultaneously.
After buying his assigned materials, Albedo slipped into a deserted alley, closed his eyes, and vanished—reappearing on the second floor of the lab.
With Sucrose and Victor Wang still absent downstairs, he closed his eyes again, drawing the entire first floor into his alchemical space, scanning every detail—even the flowing elements in the air.
"..."
Ten minutes later, they had all five sets of materials. Following Albedo's suggestion, Victor Wang attempted it first—under the exact same conditions as the original successful experiment.
Still exploded. He tried it twice. Both times—boom.
"What's going on? As soon as I add the materials to the crystal, it explodes. It wasn't like this before!"
Albedo tried two more times. Sucrose tried once. Same result.
With a furrowed brow, Albedo was silent for a long while before muttering, "Forget it… maybe this alchemical formula has a time requirement."
"A time requirement?" Sucrose had never heard of such a thing.
"Eliminate the impossible. Whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."
Even Albedo had never seen a formula that required a specific time. But with Victor Wang personally operating, the only remaining variable was time.
Victor Wang felt the scabbard tremble and drew the Wentian Sword.
["Hmph! I told you already, Master succeeded before because of my unique traits."]
"Stop it. The first two magic crystal stopwatches I made had nothing to do with you."
["Hmph! Having me by your side is a major factor."]
"Then why did I fail this time too?"
["Uh... well... I don't know."]
Victor Wang realized this sword spirit never shut up. From the moment it awakened, it had been talking nonstop.
"You're so annoying. I've got two awful names for you—'Nitpicker' and 'Chatterbox.' Pick one."
["Hmph! Why? Didn't you name the sword Wentian? I'm Wentian! Wentian, Wentian, Wentian!"]
Oh god, you really have been spying on me for a long time…
"Shh!" Victor Wang awkwardly covered the sword guard, trying to muffle the voice—pointless, since it didn't use sound.
Although Sucrose and Albedo didn't react much to the name, Victor Wang's toes were curling with secondhand embarrassment. To him, the name just screamed edgy.
"How about I give you a nicer name, alright? Just stop shouting!"
["Hmph! I'm Wentian, Wentian, Wentian, Wentian..."]
Such a lovely voice, yet such a childish mind. Victor Wang shook his head and shoved the Wentian Sword back into its sheath. The volume dropped instantly.
"In a couple days, Alice in Wonderland is coming out. I'll send you both a few copies." After saying goodbye to Albedo and Sucrose, Victor Wang hurried out of the lab.
Once he was sure no one was nearby, he held the sheathed sword in his hand and whispered furtively, "Wentian is fine, but let's keep it low-key. I'll give you a nickname—how about Little Wen?"
["Hmph!"]
"That's your catchphrase. You need to quit it."
["Hmph! I need it to vent all the words I've been bottling up. Now that I can talk, I'll say whatever I want."]
"You're lucky I'm kind. If you'd shown up in someone else's home, who knows how many times you'd have been turned into bamboo-stir-fried meat."
["Hey! I'm not some little brat! I'm way older than you! Even the Seven Archons should call me senior!"]
"Only if I could bring the Archons right to your face, huh?"
["Heh! I'm totally ancient. Very mature."]
"How exactly are you mature?" Victor Wang couldn't help but ask.
["...I'm mature everywhere!"]
"Heh, sounds like you have no idea what that means."
["Hmph! I do know, I just can't be bothered arguing with you. I can even do this: 'Master~ Let me snuggle with you tonight~'"]
"Ugh—"
That cutesy voice made Victor Wang break out in goosebumps—he nearly puked up yesterday's dinner.
"You're a sword."
["So what? Got a problem with swords?"]
"You obviously don't know who Xu Xian or Ning Caichen are."
["Who are they?"] Little Wen's brain crashed.
"Too adult. Not for kids, not for kids~"
For the first time in a while, amidst the squabbles with this sword spirit who knew all his secrets, Victor Wang felt something like lightness.
Someone he could speak to without reservation. Someone to listen. A companion.
Maybe… he wasn't so alone after all.
Even if it was just a sword.