Run A Medical Clinic In The Abyssal World

Chapter 111: Headlights Across Time

“With this level of hemostatic potion, I can supply you in bulk. The supply price is 99 copper coins, which is even more advantageous than what you get from others," Charlotte put down the hemostatic potion in his hand and looked at Harry.

"Just 1 copper coin less?" Harry frowned.

"Every little bit counts. If I supply you with 10,000 bottles, wouldn't that be 1 gold coin?" Charlotte emphasized, "When doing business, we have to think long-term. Hemostatic potions are a hot-selling item."

"90 copper coins, that's my final offer," Harry bargained.

"Deal," Charlotte nodded.

Harry: ...

Did he just get screwed again? "How many bottles of hemostatic potion do you want for the first batch?" Charlotte asked with a smile.

Harry replied, "Let's start with 200 bottles. I need them in three days. Can you produce them?"

"No problem, three days from now, I'll deliver them to you along with the anesthetic potions," Charlotte smiled and nodded.

Charlotte sold the hemostatic potion to patients for 100 copper coins per bottle, and wholesale to Harry for 90 copper coins per bottle.

He wasn't losing anything, considering the labor costs and a certain degree of margin of error.josei

The cost of producing a bottle of hemostatic potion was only around 10 copper coins.

Of course, when it came to huge profits, it was the anesthetic potion. With a cost of 50 copper coins, it could be sold for 600 copper coins.

Charlotte couldn't quite understand it.

The alchemy industry, with such high profits, had a scarcity of practitioners.

Moreover, the development was slow and lagging. It couldn't be compared to physicians who had medical associations to support and protect them.

Alchemists were even subjected to various derogatory comments.

But he soon realized one thing.

Even someone like him, a prodigy in alchemy who had studied for many years, had only a few mature prescriptions at his disposal, and the success rate of refining was extremely low.

It was an immature industry with high barriers.

Even if one had good prescriptions, alchemists would hoard and keep them secret, making it difficult for them to circulate widely.

Charlotte approached Harry to find someone who could help sell his potions so that he could confidently produce them in large quantities and improve his proficiency.

"Do you have any light-emitting bodies that are bright and long-lasting in your store?" Charlotte looked at Harry and asked.

"You mean moonstones?"

Harry turned around, unlocked a large box behind him, and took out an exquisite brocade box, holding it with both hands and placing it on the counter.

He opened the lid with an air of mystery.

A pearl emitting a soft white light lay quietly in the box. It was about the size of a baby's fist, semi-transparent, with traces of white interspersed inside, resembling clouds. It was extremely beautiful.

But for Charlotte, it was useless. Its brightness was not even comparable to the oil lamp on the wall.

"Are you planning to give it as a gift to Diana? We're quite familiar with each other, so I can give you a discount—50 gold coins," Harry said with a smirk.

Charlotte shook his head. He couldn't come up with that much money even if he killed him.

Besides, who said he wanted to give Diana a gift? Was he supposed to give gifts to rich women just because he was freeloading off them? That was unheard of.

"How about 40 gold coins?" Harry tried to negotiate himself since Charlotte shook his head.

Charlotte still shook his head.

"25 gold coins, I can't go any lower," Harry stated at the lowest price.

"I'm not looking for decorative moonstones. I need them for illumination during surgery. They must be bright enough, not hot to touch, and also cost-effective, so they can be replaced promptly," Charlotte stopped Harry from further bargaining and clearly stated his requirements.

"That's the type you need," Harry put the moonstone away, returned it to the safe, and thought for a moment.

He nodded and said, "A few days ago, we received a new batch of goods from the outside.

They are produced in my hometown. Since they're involved in mining, carrying oil lamps was inconvenient.

So, a clever young man used moonstones as light-emitting bodies and linked them with an array using elemental stones as energy sources. The moonstones can emit a stable light."

Charlotte's eyes lit up. Wasn't that a flashlight? He quickly said, "Show it to me."

Harry turned around, rummaged through a pile of items, and took out something that looked like a headlamp tied with a rope.

After fiddling with it for a while, he pressed down on an iron piece, and polished white crystal stone, about the size of a baby's fist, emitted a beam of white light, forming a circular shape on the ground, with sufficient brightness.

"It's almost perfect! Just need to get a few more, integrate them into a lighting system, and it will be an invisible light!"

Charlotte's heart pounded with excitement, but his face remained calm as he received the rather rough headlamp from Harry.

The construction was very simple.

The polished white crystal stone was embedded in a curved wooden piece that fits snugly against the head.

A hole was made on the upper side of the wood, in which a black elemental stone was set to provide energy.

Upon closer inspection, through the white crystal stone, one could see a small thumb-sized iron rod connecting the elemental stone and the white crystal stone.

The iron rod was engraved with a few runes and simple patterns, which should be the so-called array.

There was a break in the connection between the iron rod and the elemental stone, and a movable iron plate served as the switch.

Pressing it would connect the elemental stone, activating the headlamp, and releasing it would disconnect the connection, turning off the headlamp.

Except for being a bit rough, with a rope as the strap and weighing over a pound, it was already a very mature headlamp.

"How much does one elemental stone cost? How long can one last?" Charlotte put down the headlamp and asked casually.

Without hesitation, Harry said, "Elemental stones are very cheap. They are just the leftovers from mining operations.

But if you transport them to the Abyss, I can sell you a cartload for 20 silver coins. For elemental stones of this size, you can get around 1,000 pieces. One of this size can last a whole day."

Charlotte quickly did some calculations. If he integrated eight lamps into a single source, forming an array, the daily consumption would be less than 10 copper coins.

Usually, using animal oil lamps consumes a lot of oil. With a price of less than 10 copper coins, it greatly improves surgical conditions. No matter how you calculate it, it's a great deal."

"Do I need to polish the elemental stone to this size and degree before using it?" Charlotte asked again.

Harry couldn't help but laugh and said, "This is worn on the head. Just the weight of the wood and white crystal stone is not insignificant, and adding a large piece of elemental stone would be torturous, wouldn't it?

These things can be found everywhere in the mine. If your headlamp goes out, you can just pick up a suitable-sized one and replace it.

If you want to fix it in a specific place, you can use a larger elemental stone. It will last longer, saving you the trouble of replacement."

"How much does a set of these things cost?" Charlotte began to prepare for bargaining.

"200 copper coins per set, and you'll also get ten elemental stones for free with each set."

Charlotte was about to negotiate the price but held back.

It was too cheap, making him feel embarrassed to haggle.

For such an invention with a significant impact across eras, it was astonishing that it hadn't received the recognition it deserved.

"In that case, give me ten sets and also a cartload of elemental stones the size of human heads," Charlotte placed an order directly.

"Alright, you can take the ten sets of headlamps with you for now. It will take around ten days for the cartload of elemental stones to arrive. I'll have someone deliver them directly to the clinic,"

Harry took out an account book, quickly made a note, and said, "The total comes to 4,000 copper coins."

"Give me some materials as well," Charlotte mentioned a bunch of alchemical ingredients.

Ten minutes later, Charlotte left the general store carrying two large bags of materials, spending a total of 9,500 copper coins.

"Boss, why did you buy so many materials again? We haven't finished using the potions we made before," Vivian asked puzzledly from the corner where the materials were squeezed.

Charlotte casually replied while playing with the headlamp, "I agreed with the store owner. We can sell the potions we make to him in the future, so you can confidently practice alchemy and improve your skills without worrying about not using them up."

"That's great!" Vivian's eyes lit up. With a commission for making potions, she had been worried about making too many and wasting them, so she only dared to make two or three batches every day.

Back at the Harriman Manor, it was already dinner time.

Diana wasn't there, so Charlotte had a quick meal and went straight to the laboratory.

Soon after, Vivian also arrived carrying a bucket of pig stomach and pork.

"With so much, aren't you afraid of being accused of stealing meat?" Charlotte glanced at the bucket of meat and couldn't help but laugh.

"No, I'm acquainted with the chef. These are all leftovers that no one wants. Nobody eats pig stomachs, so once I'm done using them, I'll dispose of them," Vivian said proudly.

Wow, it had only been a few days, and because of his love for food, he had become acquainted with the chef.

"Alright then, you can practice suturing here with peace of mind. I'll demonstrate it once, and you pay close attention,"

Charlotte took out a piece of pig stomach from the bucket, made a cut with a knife, and then took a suture needle to explain and demonstrate the suturing technique.

"Do you understand?" Three minutes later, Charlotte cut off the thread and looked at Vivian, asking.

"I didn't understand the part where you tie the knot at the end. Could you demonstrate it to me again? I didn't get it," Vivian cautiously asked.

Charlotte demonstrated it to him three more times until she confirmed that Vivian had learned it. Then, Charlotte went to the side to start preparing an anesthetic potion.

Lighting up the charcoal fire, placing the iron pot on the rack, pouring in cool well water, and adding various finely ground ingredients to the pot, stirring slowly while observing the situation in the pot... and then, he failed.

After three consecutive failures, Charlotte couldn't help but sigh.

No wonder there were so few alchemists. Even with detailed formulas precise to the gram in his hands, the failure rate was still so high.

One could imagine the survival environment of other alchemists.

Moreover, the anesthetic potion could only be considered a second-tier potion, and yet it was so difficult.

If he encountered higher-level potions in the future, the difficulty of refining them would probably be even higher.

"Tomorrow, I have to try using the alchemical furnace left by the God of Medicine. I want to see if the success rate bonus is that magical," Charlotte thought to himself as he placed the cleaned pot back on the stove and started his fourth attempt.

...

Night fell, and the city of Calva remained brightly lit under the illumination of two large lamps.

In the central headquarters of the Calva Merchants' Guild, within a grand banquet hall, a ball gathering numerous dignitaries and wealthy merchants was underway.

The Calva Merchants' Guild was a well-known guild on the continent of Iso, and with the special status of Calva City, they had expanded their business to various cities and established good relationships with different races.

"You're here too?" Diana, wearing a blue evening gown, saw Roland holding a crystal wine glass and was somewhat surprised as she smiled.

"We have more cooperation with the Calva Merchants' Guild, so we received an invitation. It's hard to refuse," Roland shrugged and looked around.

Lowering his voice, he said, "But today's ball has a high standard. Only the rich and powerful are here. Those young people who used to like to join in the fun are nowhere to be seen."