Alchemists do not need self-cultivation

"That's why I'm feeding the big brother." She said, holding up the noodles and utensils in her hand.

"...You've really gone to a lot of trouble," Isaac said, feeling embarrassed, though his current situation was indeed quite dire.

Then Olivia sat down on the edge of Isaac's bed.

“Come on, ah—” Olivia forked a noodle and brought it to Isaac’s mouth.

"...Ah." Left with no other choice, I leaned in and swallowed it whole. Well, the noodles were delicious, but...

How embarrassing.

Isaac felt extremely ashamed that he had been reduced to being fed by a little girl.

Thinking back on my time on this continent, it seems that every embarrassing thing I've ever done has been related to girls: being forced to use alchemy by a girl in a fight (Violet), being carried in a princess carry by a girl (Violet), and being fed by a girl (Olivia).

I feel too ashamed to go back to China.

It took me quite a while to finally finish the bowl of noodles.

At this moment, Olivia suddenly asked, "Big brother, can I ask you something?"

"what?"

"Will big brother hate Olivia?" Olivia's voice was a little downcast.

Isaac asked, "Why would you ask that?"

"Because... my big brother lost a part of his body to cure my illness, right?" Olivia said, her voice already trembling with tears.

Isaac was curious how she knew, since he shouldn't have told them about human transmutation, so he asked, "Who told you?"

"It was Violet who said it. She said that Big Brother used an alchemy called 'human transmutation.' When Dad heard about it, he seemed to know something and said that using this forbidden alchemy requires exchanging a part of one's own body!"

Isaac suddenly remembered that he had talked to Oscar about the price of human transmutation at the banquet in Bugambiria.

Violet knew that she had used human transmutation.

But it seems they weren't told what was 'taken away' from them.

“It’s alright, Olivia. It’s just your appendix that you’ve lost, nothing important.” Isaac patted Olivia’s head. “Besides, I promised to heal you, so whatever I lose is my own choice.”

For Isaac, promises are absolute, and he will not allow himself to fail in his area of ​​expertise.

“…Big brother…” Olivia’s eyes were already brimming with tears. The person in front of her was willing to pay the price with his own body for his promise.

Isaac's image was exceptionally tall in her heart.

"Don't cry, Olivia." Isaac didn't know how to deal with little girls, but it seemed like no one was willing to help him.

“Miss Olivia, Mr. Oscar wants you to go to the hospital with him for a check-up.” Violet appeared at the door and said to the little girl who was still crying.

"Okay, I understand. Wait a moment." Olivia wiped away her tears and said to Isaac, "I will definitely repay my big brother!"

After saying that, she and her father went out to the town hospital for a check-up.

Even as the two walked out of the house, Isaac could still sense their location.

'What exactly happened to this ability of mine?'

Now only Isaac and Violet remain in the room.

"Hey Violet, next time you should speak more clearly. What if they feel guilty if you just say I used human transmutation?"

“But it’s true.” Violet didn’t understand why Isaac would say that.

“You could have explained it clearly. Tell them I just lost my appendix. Look how much that little girl is crying,” Isaac said helplessly.

“I have already said that, but Miss Olivia doesn’t seem to know what the appendix is.”

"..." That's true. It's unrealistic to expect a seven or eight-year-old girl living in the countryside to know about human organs.

For the rest of the time, Isaac could only lie in bed reading books.

Of course, Violet helped turn the pages of the book, while he could only lie down.

It was evening.

Oscar rushed into Isaac's room as soon as he entered: "It's amazing! Mr. Isaac!"

"Slow down, don't get excited, what's wrong?" Isaac asked, looking at Oscar who was very excited.

After catching his breath, Oscar said, "The doctor's test results just came back. Olivia is in excellent health, and all her physical indicators are at the highest level for her age."

“That’s great,” Isaac said with a smile.

"This is all thanks to Mr. Isaac." After saying this, he bowed deeply to Isaac.

“It’s nothing,” Isaac waved his hand.

“If Isaac had been swapped for other parts, I…” Oscar trailed off, having heard about the dangers of human transmutation.

"There are no 'ifs.' The fact that I'm here safe and sound means I've already won." Isaac didn't care at all what would happen if he lost; the result was what it was.

"Speaking of Oscars, I have something to ask you."

“Mr. Isaac, please speak.”

"Regarding some strange phenomena in my body right now..."

Chapter Twenty-Nine: The New Chinese

“The physical problem refers to…” Oscar was a little confused about what Isaac was talking about.

“That’s right, ever since I woke up, I’ve felt an energy feedback from you all,” Isaac said. “I can clearly sense your location and your physical condition.”

“Um… Mr. Isaac, I’m a playwright, not a doctor. Even if you ask me this question…” Oscar hesitated, after all, he really knew nothing about medicine, so asking him this kind of question was basically pointless.

Isaac explained, "Of course I know. I've read a lot of medical books, but I can't explain the situation I'm currently facing."

"But you read a lot of foreign literature and legends. Are there any similar stories in those stories you read?"

Isaac's question wasn't unfounded; after all, alchemy appears in storybooks, and perhaps its origins can be found in those stories.

"Let me think..." Oscar heard Isaac say this and began to recall if there were any similar books that mentioned it.

Isaac didn't bother him.

After a while.

"I think there is one!" Oscar thought of something and ran to the bookshelf next to the living room to start looking for it.

Within minutes, he found a dusty black book.

"What is this?" Isaac looked at the black book with curiosity; it looked quite old.

“I found it in an antique bookstore years ago; it’s a biography of a hero from New Zealand.” Oscar showed the cover to Isaac. “I also referenced the story in it when I was writing the script.”

"A mighty general? What is this?" Isaac was completely confused after looking at the cover.

Judging from the cover, it is written in the local language, not the Singaporean script, which proves that the story must have been widely circulated and popular; otherwise, the locals would not have bothered to translate it.

"The story tells of an ordinary boy from the New Kingdom who, after being framed, falls off a cliff, finds a book, and then masters unparalleled martial arts. He becomes a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, kills his enemies, is appreciated by the emperor, marries a princess, and reaches the pinnacle of his life." Oscar recounted the general outline of the story. "At the time, this story was quite popular on this continent. There were translations in both the Kingdom of Ledinsheftrich and the Kingdom of Genatricks. It seems that people in the New Kingdom liked to write this kind of story."

Isaac felt a bit of a stomachache after hearing this.

"Oscar, are you still interested in the story of the new country?"

“Of course, as one of the most powerful countries in the world, and full of mystery, I’m naturally very interested in the stories that have been passed down from there.” Oscar said with a look of longing.

The New Kingdom is indeed an extremely powerful nation, with a territory approximately five times the size of Amestris. Its strength in all aspects is formidable, earning it the titles of "Land of Gourmet Food" and "Land of Martial Arts." However, it rarely interacts with the outside world. Although it engages in trade with various countries, it remains shrouded in mystery.

It is worth mentioning that this country also had a technology that was as famous as alchemy – alchemy.

“The story is only part of it, but what I want to talk about is not the content of the story, but a word that is frequently mentioned in the book,” Oscar said after coughing twice. “In the story, the warriors of the New Kingdom use a magical ability.”

That is 'qi'.

"Angry?" Isaac perked up his ears.

Oscar continued, "That's right, it's 'qi'. In the story, any strong warrior or assassin is a master at sensing 'qi'."

"This story states that this ability has many uses, such as sensing the enemy's location and predicting the enemy's moves; in short, it has a wide range of applications."

Isaac frowned upon hearing this, feeling that it was somewhat similar to his own situation.

I can indeed sense whether there is anyone outside through the door.

“The book doesn’t explain the specific principles of ‘qi’ either, because it’s originally a book from the New Country. Perhaps for the people of the New Country, this ability called ‘qi’ is common knowledge.” Oscar said, then put the book back on the shelf.

Oscar then looked at Isaac with a suspicious expression.

"What's wrong?" Isaac didn't know why he was looking at him like that.

Oscar hesitated for a moment, then asked Isaac, "Speaking of which, Mr. Isaac, you must be from Amestris, right?"

"Yes."

“But there’s something strange. Although there are many races in Amestris, I’ve heard that most people there are blond and have blue eyes.” He glanced at Violet next to Isaac, “Just like Miss Violet.”

“That’s true,” Isaac said. Having lived in Amestris for so many years, he naturally knew about the people there.

However, Amestris is a multi-ethnic country, and not everyone is blond and blue-eyed. For example, several of his subordinates, Roy Mustang and Mas Hughes, have black hair.

"Although I don't know much about the situation there, there must be very few people like Mr. Isaac with black hair and black eyes in Amestris."

"really."

“You told me before that you were found and taken back by that female major general in the north, so I have a bold guess.” Oscar paused here.

“Mr. Isaac, you may be… a New Nation.”

"!"

Isaac was slightly surprised by Oscar's guess.

I've had this question myself: why don't I remember anything from before when I wake up, and why do I look different from the other Amestris people?

However, I didn't think much about such questions. First of all, having lived in the midst of war for so long, I had no interest in thinking about my own background.

And when he saw that Roy and the others had the same hair color as him, he didn't find it strange at all.

But after hearing Oscar say that, it does seem like a possibility.

Oscar then continued, "So I think that if Mr. Isaac wants to know about his current situation, he could go to New Zealand. Maybe he can find the answer there."

“The New Kingdom…” Isaac pondered, “It is indeed necessary to go there.”

He had decided to go to the new country after this mission. To be honest, Isaac didn't care about his background at all, but he thought it would be better to ask a professional there whether his current situation was "angry".