It's all in the eyes.

After getting all the information I could from the gate guard, I slowly walked back to the inn. On my way there, Faylinn and Astra spotted me.

Faylinn: Leoooooo! We got the sleeping bags and the camping tent!

Astra: What happened, Leo? You don't seem to be okay.

I probably had a depressed expression on my face.

Leonel: I arrived too late...

Faylinn: Late?

Astra: What exactly do you mean by "late"?

Leonel: Marcus, the classmate I was looking for... he is dead.

I wasn't even looking at them; I was just staring at the ground. But judging by the fact that the girls went silent for a few seconds, it's safe to assume they were shocked.

Astra: I'm sure you must feel bad right now, but can you tell us more about it? Are you sure it's him?

Faylinn: Did the Nara do it? Or was it a monster?

Leonel: He was murdered by a human...

Faylinn: Why didn't the town guards help him!? What were they doing!?

Leonel: They couldn't do anything. That fire pillar we saw before we reached this town... that's what killed Marcus.

Astra: A fire spell of such magnitude couldn't have been used by an average person. I understand why the guards couldn't do anything. But I don't understand how a human was able to use that kind of power.

Faylinn: Astra is right. Even the strongest humans, born in the zones of highest mana concentration, would never be able to cast such a fire spell.

Leonel: It was a human from our world. I have no doubts about it.

Faylinn: What!? How does a human from your world use such a powerful spell? That's not possible!

Astra: Leo, are you sure he was from your world? What makes you think he was an otherworldly human?

I told the girls everything I heard from the gate guard. They had a hard time believing it. After all, an otherworldly human isn't supposed to be that powerful.

Astra: So... this old bald guy wanted to steal a large red crystal. If he got what he wanted, then there is no guarantee we will ever see him again...

Faylinn: If he doesn't use his massive fire spell again, then we might never find him.

Astra: If... and only if... he needs more of those red crystals, then finding those crystals might allow us to find him. But this is more of a gamble. It might not work. We might end up wasting our time.

Faylinn: There is a bigger problem. Leo, even if you find him, what are you planning on doing? Even with the skills of all three of us combined, we wouldn't be able to defeat him. Even my natural fire resistance wouldn't fully protect me from a pillar of fire.

Astra: Faylinn is right. Our chances of success would be nearly zero. And if your classmates get involved, the number of victims would be even higher.

Faylinn: If such a powerful person is out there killing people, the Church of Peace and the government would probably try to stop him. We are not talking about a low-profile murderer. The gate guards must have already sent a report to the central government.

Astra: Maybe we should go to the capital city. By the time we get there, the government will probably already be searching for him. And if they find him, or if they actually manage to take him down, reports will swiftly reach the capital and we will hear about it.

Faylinn: Yes! We should probably go to the capital! That's our best option right now.

Leonel: And what if they can't stop him? What if they never even find him?

Astra: Well, the government's information network is huge. At the very least, they have a higher chance of finding him than we do.

Faylinn: It's true. If anybody spots him, the government will know. Leo, we should really go to the capital; otherwise, you might never find him.

They were probably right. Finding him in this vast, unknown world might be impossible for me. If the government actually tries to search for him, then they might find him. I just need to be ready for when that happens.

Leonel: I will need to acquire some things before going to the capital city. Even if the government finds him, I will be the one to take down that bastard.

Astra: Leo, I understand why you want to take him down. But you might get yourself killed if you fight him.

Leonel: His fire spell must have some kind of penalty for using it. I just need to get more info on his magic skill. That's how I'm going to defeat him.

Faylinn: Are there any weapons from your world that can be used to stop him?

Leonel: Lots of them. If he is just a human like me, then it shouldn't be hard to defeat him as long as I land the first hit.

Faylinn: Then I'll help you by distracting him. That way you can hit him first!

Leonel: You have no reason to join the battle. If you come with me, you might die.

Astra: You are wrong, Leo. We do have a reason to join the battle.

Faylinn: Leo, you are the reason. You are stuck with us now.

Leonel: Fine. Do whatever you want. I'll just go and buy all the things I need.

Faylinn: And we will be following you right behind you.

I went directly towards the local alchemist shop, with the girls right behind me all the time.

The alchemist shop was a tower painted entirely in gold and silver with lots of little animals carved on the walls. It must have been just paint. Covering the entire exterior of a tower in precious metals would have been impossible. But, at least, this gave me the impression that the owner probably had lots of resources, and most likely had everything I could possibly need.

I was right.
The place was filled with tons of flasks and animal parts. There were also crystals and powders and other things such as fabrics, paper, sheets of metal, and many other things I couldn't even recognize.
I was surely going to get everything I needed.

There was an old lady at the counter with long black hair almost reaching her waist, a golden bracelet on her left arm and a silver bracelet on her right arm. She was wearing a grey robe with a golden belt.

Leonel: Hello. I'm looking for some alchemy ingredients. Some of them might be a little odd, though.

Alchemist lady: There is no such thing as odd requests. We sell almost anything you can imagine. What are you looking for?

Leonel: First, I will need to secure as much funding as possible for my purchases. Are you interested in buying a unique kind of gem?

Alchemist lady: Define "unique". I have extensive knowledge of gems. I'm not sure if anything can be considered unique by my standards.

I then opened my wallet and pulled out my little alien-shaped keychain. It was made almost entirely out of green glass. It was glass with trace amounts of uranium oxide, which is what gave it its green color. It was not radioactive and was considered safe and legal. And I was sure that no one in this world had ever seen even trace amounts of uranium. This green glass was certainly on the level of a unique gem by this world's standards.

Leonel: Here. This green glass. I bet it's something you have never seen before.

Alchemist lady: Hmmm, that's true. I've never seen anything like that. It seems to be slowly releasing tiny amounts of the little energy it has left in it. As a magic crystal, it wouldn't work. No one wants a magic crystal that is constantly leaking energy.

This did not go as planned. She thinks it's a unique magic crystal, but it's not good at storing energy.

Alchemist lady: This little humanoid creature made of glass—its eyes are made of a different material.

Leonel: That's rhodochrosite. In this case, it's red, but it can also be pink depending on where you mine it.

Alchemist lady: Now this is a truly unique mineral. I don't recall reading about it in any alchemy manuals.

Leonel: That's because most people don't even know that rhodochrosite exists. I'm not surprised you never read anything about it.

It's true. For all we know, maybe rhodochrosite doesn't even exist in this world. This semi-precious stone might be more valuable than I expected.

Alchemist lady: Hmmm, it seems to have acceptable compatibility with fire-attuned mana, but more importantly, it doesn't seem to fully repel water-attuned mana. This is interesting. Perhaps the pink variant you mentioned would be capable of simultaneously storing fire and water-attuned mana.

Leonel: Maybe, but you will need to find out where it's mined. And I have no clue where that would be. I just bought it from a random street vendor. This might be the only piece of rhodochrosite you will see in a while.

Alchemist lady: Well, I certainly need this for research purposes. I'll propose a deal to you. List all the items you need from this shop, and then I'll tell you how many of those things I'm willing to exchange for this strange keychain of yours.

This was exactly what I wanted.
I was going to get as many items and ingredients as possible.
I just had to craft an arsenal of otherworldly weapons to defeat the bald bastard.