Immortal Quest - "Death" is a Slap on the Wrist!

[O4rfish]

>"Great. Thanks."

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Great. Thanks."

>"You're welcome. Now please excuse me while I return to my duties." says Sakuya, before walking back the way you came and leaving the two of you by the door.
>_

[Randomizer]

>Knock on the door. Wait for a response.

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>Knock on the door. Wait for a response.

>You knock on the door.
>After several minutes of no response, the door finally opens. You see a woman with long, red hair, wearing a white-sleeved, black dress. A pair of large, leathery wings protrude from her back, while a smaller pair is situated on her head.
>"You know you don't have to knock, right?" she says, "Most people just come right in."
>_

[O4rfish]

>"Sorry Patchouli, but we need your help."

>"Oh, I'm Mokou Fujiwara and this is Kaguya Houraisan."

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Sorry Patchouli, but we need your help."

>"Oh! You think I'm..." says the winged woman, a bit embarrassed. "...Sorry, but I'm not Patchouli. I'm Patchouli's assistant. I can take you to her if you want."

>"Oh, I'm Mokou Fujiwara and this is Kaguya Houraisan."

>"I'm Koakuma." she replies, "Nice to meet you."
>_

[O4rfish]

>"Sakuya said ... well, all right. Where is she?"

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Sakuya said ... well, all right. Where is she?"

>"Follow me." says Koakuma, before retreating inside the door.
>_

[O4rfish]

>Do so.

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>Do so.

>You follow Koakuma through the door.
>You're immediately greeted by an absolutely HUGE room. There are massive, towering bookshelves of varying age everywhere. The sheer amount of books within the shelves is mind-boggling, it must've taken quite a long time to amass a collection this large. As the two of you follow Koakuma, you glance down the passages between the bookshelves, showing that they lead to even more bookshelves. You'd expect it to be quite easy to get lost in this labyrinth of books.
>After a while, the three of you reach a large, square-shaped, open area. In the middle is a large desk, a couple stacks of books are situated upon it. Sitting at the desk, reading a book, is a purple-haired woman adorned in whitish-lavender apparel. What appears to be a crescent moon is situated on her hat.
>The three of you approach the woman.

>"Miss Patchouli," Koakuma began, "these two came here to see you, they said they wanted your help or something."
>"Thank you, Koakuma," the woman replies, "return to your duties now."
>"Yes, miss Patchouli." says Koakuma, before departing to another section of the library.

>Patchouli looks up from her book and studies you and Kaguya for a moment.
>"Well, I don't believe we've met. Let us begin with a proper introduction, shall we?" she says, "I'm Patchouli Knowledge, at your service."
>_

[O4rfish]

>"Mokou Fujiwara."

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Mokou Fujiwara."

>"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Patchouli replies. "And you?" she asks, addressing Kaguya.
>"I'm Kaguya Houraisan." Kaguya responds.
>"Alright then. Now that introductions are out of the way, would you care to tell me why you came here to see me?" Patchouli asks.
>_

[Randomizer]

>"The two of us are in a very difficult situation, and we wanted to ask an experienced magician such as yourself about something."
>Show her Eirin's list.
>Could you tell us any information about these materials?

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"The two of us are in a very difficult situation, and we wanted to ask an experienced magician such as yourself about something."

>"Hmm? And what would that be?" she responds.

>Show her Eirin's list.
>"Could you tell us any information about these materials?"

>Patchouli studies the list.
>"Yes. I'm familiar with most of the materials listed here." she began, "Which would you like to hear about first?"
>_

[Hope ♦ Metal]

>"Let's start with the ones that are easiest to obtain."

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Let's start with the ones that are easiest to obtain."

>"Very well," Patchouli began, "Let's start with mercury then. Mercury is a type of metal that exists as a liquid. Under normal circumstances, mercury is quite difficult to obtain. However, fortunately for you, I happen to have some in storage: leftovers from my days of practicing alchemy." she pauses to cough several times into her sleeve, "I don't really have a use for it anymore these days, and now the two of you have finally given me an excuse to get rid of it. You'd also probably have an easy time obtaining ningyo blood, provided that you have a container for it. The onl-"
>"What exactly is a ningyo?" Kaguya interrupts.
>"Please don't interrupt me." Patchouli replies, a bit annoyed, "If you really must know, a ningyo is a youkai that possesses traits of both humans and fish. They're also known as mermaids. Now, if you'll let me continue, the only ningyo in Gensokyo just so happens to live in the lake outside the mansion. The only real challenge would be catching her. Ningyo are known to be quite agile, and they rarely leave the water voluntarily."
>"As for the minerals," she continues, "You'll likely find those on the rock faces of Youkai Mountain. Alternatively, you could try looking for them in the caverns of The Underground, assuming you're human. Once you're in those areas, you'll need to know what each mineral looks like. Jade is easily distinguished by its green color and the fact that it usually does not form crystals. Hematite usually occurs blackish, roughly spherical deposits with an occasional red hue. Lapis lazuli is a deep blue color, and, like jade, tends not to form crystals. Cinnabar is a scarlet or brick-red mineral that usually occurs as a massive, granular mass. It also occurs as red crystals." Patchouli coughs repeatedly into her sleeve again, "Did you get all that?"
>_

[Randomizer]

>"Yeah, I see. What about the essences, sap from a yew tree and panacea?"
>"Also, would you happen to have any information about Medicine Melancholy?"

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Yeah, I see. What about the essences, sap from a yew tree and panacea?"

>"Those are going to be a bit tricky." Patchouli explains, "I'm no botanist, so I, unfortunately, can't help you much with the yew tree. All I know is that they can be identified by their dark green, lance-like leaves and their peculiar red berries. Perhaps an expert on plants could help you find one, but I don't know any. I'm familiar with panacea, and I know that it's quite hard to come by. It's an archaic substance craftable only by means of alchemy. However, shops that deal in arcane goods are known to rarely carry it from time to time." she pauses to cough, "As for the essences, sunlight essence is normally captured through an error-prone process that takes centuries to complete. One mistake and you have to start over. However, I know that The Underground has a power source that's quite similar to the sun, perhaps they could lend you some of it. Essence of concentrated souls, on the other hand, will require a spell of unimaginable magnitude and countless sacrifices to create. I do know that during the Extended Winter Incident several years ago, our head maid, Sakuya, encountered a ghost by the name of Yuyuko Saigyouji along with her servant, Youmu Konpaku. I'd advise seeking one of them out on the subject of concentrated souls. Since both of them are closely associated with the dead, they might be able to provide a better way to get the essence you require."
>_

>"Also, would you happen to have any information about Medicine Melancholy?"

>"Isn't that the doll youkai who used to live on Nameless Hill?" Patchouli asks, "Sorry, I don't know much about her. You'd be better off asking Sakuya, since she's actually had an encounter with Medicine during the Flower Bloom Incident several years ago."
>_

[Randomizer]

>"That's fine, thank you. Your help is much appreciated. Could we get that leftover mercury that you have, before we start gathering our other items then?"
>"Would you happen to know where I could find Sakuya?"

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"That's fine, thank you. Your help is much appreciated. Could we get that leftover mercury that you have, before we start gathering our other items then?"

>"You're welcome," Patchouli replies, "and yes, please take the mercury. Just be sure not to take the lids of the containers, mercury, and the vapors it gives off, are highly toxic." her gaze shifts to a different part of the library, "Koakuma! Could you come over here for a second?"
>Within moments, Koakuma comes flying in.
>"Yes, miss Patchouli?" she asks.
>"When these two are ready, take them to the back of the library, to the room where the leftover alchemy supplies are stored." says Patchouli.
>"Understood." Koakuma replies.

>"Would you happen to know where I could find Sakuya?"

>"She's either overseeing the fairy maids, or tending to Remilia upstairs." Patchouli replies, "Usually it's the latter."
>_

[Randomizer]

>"Thank you very much. We're ready to leave."
>Follow Koakuma.

[O4rfish]

>Remember Youmu and Yuyuko.

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Thank you very much. We're ready to leave."

>"You're welcome." Patchouli responds.

>Follow Koakuma.

>You and Kaguya follow Koakuma through the labyrinth of bookshelves. After a while you end up at a door.
>"Here we are," says Koakuma as she produces a key, "be careful while you're in there, several of the substances being stored in this room are very volatile, and many more are either corrosive or toxic."
>Koakuma threads the key into the keyhole and unlocks the door.

>Remember Youmu and Yuyuko.

>You remember two people who went by those names. You encountered them immediately after the Imperishable Night Incident, they were among the parties Kaguya sent in an attempt to assassinate you that day.
>You make a mental note to seek at least one of them out.
>_

[Randomizer]

>"Thanks, we'll look after ourselves."
>Enter the room and look around.

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Thanks, we'll look after ourselves."
>Enter the room and look around.

>"You're welcome. I'll be out here if you need anything then." Koakuma replies.

>You enter the room.
>There are many shelves on the walls, upon which are countless labeled bottles, phials, and crates filled with various substances, many of the labels are words you have never seen before.
>There are several large bottles on a nearby shelf, filled with a silvery liquid, and labeled, in bold letters, "MERCURY" that are situated between a larger bottle labeled "ALKAHEST" and a small phial labeled "UNSTABLE CATALYST - DO NOT TOUCH!"
>"These are some of the strangest substances I've ever seen." you hear Kaguya comment, "I've never even heard of half of these things."
>_

[Randomizer]

>Take the bottle with the mercury very carefully and make sure not to touch anything else.
>Glance over at Kaguya. Let's hope she doesn't stuff things up.

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>Take the bottle with the mercury very carefully and make sure not to touch anything else.

>With the skill of a surgeon, you gently remove one of the bottles labeled "MERCURY" from its place on the shelf.

>Glance over at Kaguya. Let's hope she doesn't stuff things up.

>You look over at Kaguya
>She is currently holding a bottle full of a yellowish liquid, inspecting it.
>_

[Your Everyday NEET]

>"Come on Kaguya, we're done here."

[Evil_Nazgul0616]

>"Come on Kaguya, we're done here."

>"Alright." Kaguya replies, before placing the bottle back on the shelf.
>_

[FlamingRok]

Well, let's head back to Eientei. Eirin's bound to have containers remaining.