Who Says I'm Not a Proper Adventurer?
Chapter 10: Unlocking the Research Function

Chapter 10: Chapter 10: Unlocking the Research Function

Flora clasped her hands behind her back, tilting her head up to look at him as her two signature dimples appeared on her face.

"It details some very basic Potion-making techniques. Learning them can help you earn a lot of extra cash on the side."

They had all seen how hard Lance had been working.

Lance’s heart warmed as he looked into the young woman’s sincere eyes.

"Thank you."

His gratitude was heartfelt.

Carrying the books they had chosen, the two of them went to the counter to check out.

However, when the old gentleman announced the price, Lance’s previously relaxed expression instantly froze.

The prices for these three books were extremely high; a single volume cost between two and four Silver Coins.

Lance quickly did the math in his head.

’Just the price for this stack of paper is more expensive than the Iron-Plated Armor I’m wearing.’

’No wonder this rundown bookstore is always deserted. This isn’t selling books, it’s straight-up robbery.’

He awkwardly fumbled with his coin pouch.

The joy of his recent windfall vanished completely. The money he had on hand was, at best, only enough to buy one of the books.

Just as he was hesitating over which two books to return, a fair, slender hand reached out.

A few shiny Silver Coins were gently placed on the counter.

"Let’s pay for them together."

Flora’s voice was soft, but to Lance’s ears, it was as beautiful as the song of a descending goddess.

In the end, it was only with Flora’s financial help that Lance was able to bring the three heavy tomes of knowledge home.

As they left the bookstore, Lance thumped his chest and swore he would pay her back as soon as he earned some money.

Flora, on the other hand, didn’t seem to mind. She just smiled, waved goodbye, and hurried back to help at the potion shop.

...

「For the next few days, until his next day off.」

Lance’s life returned to its usual peaceful and regular rhythm.

During the day, he was the low-key Copyist at the Adventurer’s Guild, and at night, he would gather with the girls at their usual spot to play Three Dragon Card.

He spent the rest of his free time poring over the books he had spent a fortune on.

His hard work paid off. Soon, an entry for Botany appeared on his system panel.

But to Lance’s surprise, it didn’t appear in the [Skills] column, but rather under a new, separate category.

Knowledge: Botany Level 1 (2/1000)

This was a completely new section.

Compared to Skills, leveling up Knowledge was clearly much more difficult. The experience required to level up was several times higher.

Lance tried allocating the 10 [Knowledge Experience] points from his previous quest reward into Botany.

The moment the experience points were injected, a peculiar feeling washed over him.

It wasn’t just an infusion of memories.

He felt as if the previously isolated points of knowledge in his mind had come to life, sprouting countless tiny tendrils that reached out into unknown territory.

For example, the book mentioned a "Cup-shaped Mushroom" that grew in the Copper Creek Forest.

He had originally only known that it was non-toxic, had a crisp texture, and could be used as an emergency food source in the wild.

But under the effect of the extended knowledge, he suddenly had a flash of insight and grasped a new Trait.

This mushroom’s cap had a special structure that could filter and store dew in its center.

In an emergency, when water was scarce, it could be used as a direct source of fresh water.

This knowledge wasn’t just implanted out of thin air; it was a logical deduction and extension based on his existing understanding, which was quite magical.

Moreover, this growth was extremely stable, becoming a part of Lance’s own instincts.

’If I keep using Knowledge Experience to fill this up,’ Lance thought, ’I’ll soon be able to surpass those so-called senior scholars in breadth of knowledge.’

At least, neither the *Copper Creek Herbal and Mineral Atlas* he had on hand nor the potion-making book Flora recommended had any record of the Cup-shaped Mushroom’s ability to store water.

This wasn’t to say that this piece of information was particularly rare.

Rather, the book’s author, limited by page space or focus, simply hadn’t included it.

But the Knowledge granted by the system could fill in these missing details.

And with the opening of the Knowledge section, a new functional module was unlocked at the bottom of the panel.

[Research Section]

Lance couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow when he saw this interface.

This function had also existed in the original game.

In the game, the research section primarily had two directions.

One was Biological Research.

This function was exploited to its fullest by veteran players back in the day.

Through in-depth research of a specific species, you could increase your damage values against that species.

As for what kind of "damage" that was... those who know, know.

On the other hand, through research, you could obtain special physical bonuses from different types of Sub-humans in order to better defeat them.

Lance remembered clearly that in order to unlock a special interactive scene called "Deep Sea Kiss"...

...he had spent a great deal of time researching Aquatic Demons, eventually succeeding in obtaining the "Underwater Breathing" ability from a certain fish-person, which allowed him to dive to the seabed.

It now seemed that this function had also been perfectly adapted to the real world.

However, the Biological Research column was currently empty.

He figured he would probably have to make actual contact with a living species other than humans to unlock any related projects.

But on the other side, under the [Potion Research] column, the first project had already appeared.

[hemostatic ointment (Improving)]

This was the simplest recipe recorded in *Basic Botany and Simple Potion Making*, which he had just been reading.

He hadn’t expected it to go directly into Potion Research.

This Potion was a staple in an Adventurer’s backpack, and a small jar could sell for about twenty-odd Copper Coins.

Its main ingredient was a Low Tier plant called "Blood Coagulation Moss."

The first research task given by the system was very straightforward:

Mission Objective: Personally collect and dry 30 ounces of Blood Coagulation Moss powder.

In this world’s units of measurement, 1 ounce was roughly equivalent to the weight of a Kingdom Gold Coin, which converted to about 28 grams.

ounces of powder was close to a kilogram of finished product.

Considering the loss during the drying process, this would require collecting a large amount of raw material.

However, Blood Coagulation Moss wasn’t particularly rare in the forest, so Lance planned to just grab a handful on the side the next time he took a mission.

What truly attracted Lance was the anticipated reward upon completing the mission.

Effect: Moderately Fast (+) coagulation of blood from small to medium-sized cuts, forming a protective medicinal film, with a slight anti-infection effect (+).

The hemostatic ointment made by others was actually normal speed in its effect, and it didn’t have that anti-infection effect either.

Although he didn’t know exactly how much faster this "Moderately Fast (+)" was compared to the ordinary stuff on the market...

...this extra "anti-infection" Attribute was an absolute life-saving Divine Skill.

When injured in the wild, the real fear wasn’t bleeding, but the high fevers and complications caused by an infected wound.

Once this recipe was successfully researched...

...the hemostatic ointment Lance produced in the future would deliver a crushing blow to the products of others in terms of effectiveness.

’There’s nothing more profitable than mastering the core technology.’