Parallel World Pharmacy Vol 4 Chapter 9.3

Published at 6th of September 2022 10:02:40 AM

“The Pharmacy Guild seems to be doing well. How about the Pharmacology Guild stores?”

“The number of customers is so poor. At first, I thought the number was sufficient, but when there is a difference in number in comparison to ours…”

The Pharmacology Guild, where Beron was once the pharmacologist guild’s chief, had most of its members absorbed by the newly launched Pharmacy Guild established by Falma. Although most members have been absorbed by the Pharmacy Guild’s dispensary, there are still remnant details about the Pharmacology Guild’s new leadership. However, the handling of dangerous and toxic medicines has been abolished by the Empress’s decree, so the base medicines that can be procured are from herbs, potions, mushrooms, dried animals and plants as crude medicines[5].

“Is that so … “

Falma feels sorry to hear such news.

“There are still some citizens who love traditional medicines, but I wonder if it will be difficult to survive in the Imperial City at this rate.”

Ellen sympathizes with Perrier.

“Please provide financial and technical assistance to the pharmacology dispensaries that are having a hard time.”

Pharmacy Guild’s dispensary provides modern medicine and health goods, and Pharmacology Guild uses traditional medicines. Now the Pharmacology Guild’s members are a few remnants of their past. They have little successes because the Pharmacy Guild has taken most of the patients.

“Hah? Well, if that’s what you want Falma, I’ll do that.”

Doing this is like rubbing salt on the enemy’s wounds, according to Pierre’s perspective, where he doesn’t expect the gap in sales to be closer to each other any time soon.

“They also have their livelihood. If their management fails, please tell them to come to me for a discussion.”

Falma doesn’t want to crush the Pharmacology Guild either, rather he just to prevent the members from selling bad and suspicious medicines to the common people at high prices. The Pharmacology Guild executives that turned hostile towards Falma in the past quietly left the organization. The pharmacology store owners who visit the Different World Pharmacy, Falma provides detailed information on the efficacy of herbal medicines and the related herbs, along with the education of the recipes that can be effectively be used daily in the preparation of medicinal teas.

“There were times … where an alchemist of pharmacology belonging to the Pharmacology Guild suspiciously gathered the alchemists and pharmacologists of the Imperial City.”

“An alchemist …”

Alchemy is the natural science of the earth. It can be said that chemistry has developed through the enormous trials and errors of the alchemists. Many compounds have been discovered by alchemists and applied to drug’s discoveries. This is a good compatibility with the current pharmacy.

However, Bruno appears to have negative doubts about alchemy, and alchemy-related books are not available on the bookshelves at Falma’s residence. Therefore, it is almost likely the reason that this was the first word for Falma to recognize.

“Alchemists, uh … the ultimate goal is to get gold out of base metals. What are they usually doing at the gatherings?”

Falma wonders where their research funding came from.

“Because it is a profession that doesn’t generate much business, there aren’t many alchemists themselves. Usually, they make a living by synthesizing compounds. They sell them to pharmacologists and alchemists also serve as pharmacologists themselves.  But the ultimate goal for alchemists is for humans to be immortal and to synthesize gold.”

“It is said that if one has a Philosopher’s Stone, one can obtain the ultimate goal. However, the master alchemist denied its existence.”

Ellen pinches Falma’s mouth.

“Your father, Count Bruno de Medicis, published a famous paper seven years ago that the Philosopher’s Stone cannot be synthesized to the domestic and foreign pharmacologists and alchemists. He was desperate in discovering methods for the synthesis of gold, but the master alchemist said he could not synthesize the Philosopher’s Stone. “

(There is a concept of the philosopher’s stone in this world …)

While listening to Bruno’s past achievements, Falma is deeply moved by the phrase “Philosopher’s Stone”.

The rumors that Philosopher’s Stone can be used to make elixirs of immortality and has the ability to catalyze gold. It is a grand vision for medicine in the medical field with such power. Of course, it was also a legend on earth.

“It even said to have succeeded in the creation of a homunculus.”

(In such an event, along with the alchemist’s soul of eagerness, the homunculus word appears to have surfaced among the successes.)

Homunculus is believed to be an android dwarf made by an alchemist in a distillation bottle.

“Who saw it?”　

Falma suspects that if there is such a thing, he definitely likes to see it.

“No, it’s said to have taken more than 40 weeks to create a homunculus. It was mentioned that they were exhibiting what they’ve already made. Perhaps they put the corpse of a human fetus in a glass container and caused the appearance of movement. I think it was merely a show and they were paying for it.”

The onlookers were unaware that they were scammed, Pierre concludes with this statement.

“This is being malicious … but was it really a complete scam? What is the purpose of doing so? It was called the Philosopher’s Stone, and even a declared as a homunculus, yet nothing was being called out as a scam.”

Ellen is troubled while removing her glasses.

“Majority of the time, life doesn’t grow in a glass bottle. Falma believes it so too, right?”

Ellen inquires for a confirmation, and Falma senses he’s heading for trouble.

“Theoretically, it’s not impossible.”

“Please repeat that again, because I don’t understand …”

(The fertilized eggs grow outside the body within the blastocyst [after the amniotic sac develops], but he is about to discuss reproductive engineering, which will be a long very discussion.)

Moreover, the subject is a specialty of Falma, but since the story becomes too complicated, he keeps his mouth shut. The fertilized egg can grow up to the stage of blastocyst without a placenta, and with an artificial placenta, it is theoretically possible to grow a fetus outside the body; research and development is quite advanced on the Earth.

Chapter end