Chương 36: Bonus story : The Druids' Guild: Part 6 : The Most Powerful of the Druids

The automatic doors slid shut behind them, abruptly cutting off the background music that had accompanied their visit. The sounds of the street immediately returned the steady flow of traffic, the conversations of passersby, and the gentle breeze rustling the trees lining the sidewalk.

"So?" His gaze remained fixed on nothing in particular. They walked another few dozen yards without exchanging a single word.

"Aldric?" Still no response. He came to a stop in the middle of the sidewalk and lowered his eyes to the shopping bag Emma was carrying. His gaze lingered on the vegetables, the dietary supplements, and the small bottle of oil peeking out from the top before slowly rising to meet the young woman's face.

"I finally understand why druids held such an important place in the legends of my world," he said at last.

"You didn't meet any druids." Aldric didn't even acknowledge the remark. He resumed walking at a slow pace, as though presenting the conclusions of an investigation whose outcome was now beyond all doubt.

"The ancient tales described druids as guardians of botanical knowledge. They lived surrounded by plants, understood the properties of hundreds of species, and knew how to prepare remedies from roots, leaves, and seeds. People sought them out to heal the sick, cleanse the body, or restore the strength of those who had grown weak."

"They're just specialized salespeople, Aldric."

"That's exactly what I just said."

"No... not exactly."

"In that shop, the members of the brotherhood also live surrounded by plants. They hang from the ceiling, line the walls, and even appear on the packaging. Their sanctuary was deliberately designed to resemble a forest, with wood, dried herbs, and the scent of vegetation. Nothing was left to chance."

"That's called interior decorating."

"Decorating meant to reflect their bond with nature. They also know the properties of hundreds of plant species," Aldric continued.

"The staff know which plants promote sleep, which improve digestion, which restore energy, and which strengthen the body's natural defenses. They can recommend an herbal tea, an oil, or a powder based on each visitor's condition."

"Because they're trained to know the products they sell."

"The druids of my world brewed potions," he continued.

"The druids of this age sell dietary supplements. The former combined plants, minerals, and mushrooms to influence the body. The latter use powders, extracts, capsules, and beverages to achieve the same results."

"Supplements aren't potions."

"They do claim to restore energy, improve concentration, strengthen the body's natural defenses, and slow the effects of aging."

"Labels sometimes promise a lot of things."

"So do alchemists." Aldric seemed to have been waiting for that moment of silence before continuing. He explained that oils had once held an important place in druidic practices because they concentrated a plant's properties into a small amount of liquid. Some were used for healing, others for rituals, and the rarest were stored in tiny vials to prevent even the slightest waste. In the shop they had just left, the oils had been presented in exactly the same way.

"You're talking about that little bottle of olive oil again?" Emma asked.

"The one from the organic tree." Emma pressed her lips together to keep from laughing.

"That's still not a species of tree."

"And yet every bottle bore a seal certifying its origin."

"A certification."

"An official seal confirming that it complied with the standards of the brotherhood. They also master fermented beverages," he continued.

"They allow invisible organisms to transform plants until they produce drinks with entirely new properties. In my world, such a practice would have been entrusted to the most accomplished alchemists."

"Kefir and kombucha don't give people magical powers."

"They are consumed for their effects on the body."

"Mostly for the taste."

"And for digestion." Emma sighed.

"Sometimes."

"So they are indeed preparations intended to affect the body." Without waiting for a reply, he continued with the same calm certainty. In his opinion, the customers themselves confirmed the existence of this brotherhood. They did not merely buy products; they spoke of cleansing, energy, balance, and vibrations as though such concepts were perfectly ordinary. Some sought to realign their bodies, others to cleanse themselves after winter, while others looked for foods that were still alive.

They all seemed to understand this language without requiring any explanation. This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Those are mostly vague buzzwords," Emma replied.

"A lot of people use them because they find them reassuring or because they read them somewhere."

"A language can evolve without the knowledge behind it disappearing."

"It's not magical knowledge."

"I never claimed they were casting spells." Emma shot him an incredulous look.

"You've been talking about druids ever since we walked into that store."

"Druids were never limited to magic. Their true strength came from their knowledge of the living world. In my world," he continued, "druids protected forests and endangered species. Here, they preserve heirloom varieties of tomatoes, apples, and carrots. They safeguard seeds, record their origins, and support those who continue to cultivate them. The methods have changed, but the purpose remains the same. The druids of old brewed potions," he went on.

"These ones produce supplements. The former healed with plants. These recommend herbal teas, oils, and botanical extracts. The former preserved seeds and forests. These protect heirloom varieties and monitor the origin of every product. They passed their knowledge on to visitors, and the people in that shop do exactly the same."

"They mostly sell things."

"The guilds sold their preparations too." Emma couldn't hold back a quiet laugh.

"You really do have an answer for everything." Aldric leaned toward the shopping bag and lifted it by the handles. He weighed it in his hand, studied the vegetables sticking out from the top and the small bottle of oil nestled safely among the other items, then remained silent for several seconds. Emma watched him, convinced he was once again trying to verify either the price or the nature of their purchases.

"I finally understand why druids are held in such high regard in your kingdom," he declared. Emma smiled.

"Why?" Aldric lowered his eyes to the contents of the bag. He contemplated the vegetables, the powders, the herbal tea, and the oil before slowly raising his head.

"Because they transform ordinary plants... into treasures."

"You're serious?" Emma asked between bursts of laughter.

"Naturally."

"You really believe they turn plants into treasures?"

"You just paid a fortune for four vegetables, two powders, a box of herbal tea, and a small bottle of oil."

"That's not exactly proof of magic."

"No mage in my kingdom could have increased the value of a carrot by that much." Emma burst into laughter again, unable to answer.

"You still haven't grasped the true significance of their discovery," he said calmly.

"I promise I'm trying..."

"In my world," he explained, "the greatest alchemists pursued a dream that most people believed to be impossible. Some devoted their entire lives to that pursuit, spent their fortunes on rare ingredients, and filled entire libraries with incomprehensible notes in the hope of achieving a single result."

"The Philosopher's Stone?"

"Exactly. They hoped to discover a substance capable of turning an ordinary metal into gold. Lead was often used in their experiments because it was common, inexpensive, and easy enough to obtain for countless attempts. They heated it, ground it into powder, combined it with other powders, acids, or minerals, then started all over again whenever the experiment failed."

"And they failed most of the time, I assume."

"Some claimed they had come close. Others insisted they possessed an incomplete formula or a fragment of the Philosopher's Stone. Yet no one was ever able to reproduce the feat in front of multiple witnesses. The few alchemists who claimed to have turned lead into gold usually disappeared before a king could ask them for a demonstration." Emma smiled.

"Convenient."

"The kings thought so as well. Even so, that quest fascinated alchemists for centuries. The Philosopher's Stone represented more than mere wealth. It was meant to prove that matter itself could be transformed beyond its natural limits. Whoever possessed it would be able to take something the world considered worthless and give it the highest possible value."

"Turning lead into gold."

"Exactly. Taking a metal that no one desires and making it into a treasure coveted by every kingdom." They continued walking, but Aldric slowed once more before turning back for one last look at the shop. His gaze swept across the sign, the display windows, and the silhouettes moving behind the glass. New customers stepped through the doors, picked up baskets, and disappeared among the aisles filled with vegetables, powders, and oils.

The staff greeted them, ready to explain the properties of a plant, the benefits of a preparation, or the origin of an heirloom variety. To any passerby, it was nothing more than another shop. To Aldric, that storefront concealed an achievement greater than every discovery the alchemists of his era had ever boasted about.

"They have discovered something far more powerful."

"What?" Aldric remained silent for several seconds. He stared at the storefront with such intensity that Emma almost expected him to start talking about some new form of magic before finally saying,"How to sell a carrot for ten times its value."

"Aldric..." Emma managed between laughs.

"You can't seriously compare that to the Philosopher's Stone."

"Why not?"

"Because they're not turning anything into gold."

"They're transforming value."

"An alchemist in my world would take an ordinary material, like lead, and try to give it a value it did not possess. The druids in that shop do exactly the same thing with plants. They take a tomato, a root, a handful of seeds, or a small quantity of oil, then transform it until everyone agrees to buy it at the price of precious objects."

"They don't necessarily transform them," Emma protested between breaths.

"They grow them differently, select certain varieties, control their origin..."

"Which increases their value. Then they place them in an environment dedicated to plants."

"A store."

"They display their origin as though it were that of a sacred relic."

"That's called traceability."

"They add seals certifying their purity."

"Certifications."

"And then they explain that these products possess more energy, more benefits, or greater properties than ordinary versions."

"That's still not alchemy," she insisted.

"It's more effective."

"More effective than what?"

"Than the Philosopher's Stone. The alchemists of my world spent centuries searching for a stone whose existence was never proven. They spent fortunes, destroyed their laboratories, and sometimes even poisoned their assistants in an attempt to produce a few grams of gold. Here, no one needs to alter matter. All they have to do is convince people that an ordinary plant possesses extraordinary value."

"You've just discovered marketing. It's the collection of techniques used to present a product, make it desirable, and persuade people to buy it."

"Even if it already existed in a less expensive form?"

"Yes."

"Even if its true nature has barely changed?"

"Sometimes."

"Then marketing is the modern form of transmutation."

"No, it isn't..."

"The Philosopher's Stone sought to transform matter. Your marketing transforms the judgment of the buyer. And it truly works," Aldric continued.

"We have proof." He pointed to the shopping bag she was carrying.

"We willingly paid seventy-four invisible gold coins for vegetables, two powders, a box of herbal tea, and a small bottle of oil."

"Euros."

"Invisible." Emma let out another laugh.

"You're never going to let go of this invisible gold coin idea, are you?"

"They disappeared from your vault."

"My bank account."

"Without either of us ever seeing them."

"All right. Invisible."

"The achievement of these druids is therefore greater than that of the ancient alchemists," Aldric concluded.

"The Philosopher's Stone may never have existed, but their method works every single day. They have no need to create gold, because they have discovered how to persuade people to hand it over willingly."