After Surviving the Apocalypse, I Built a City in Another World - Chapter 1752

Chapter 1752: The Grandmaster’s Birthday!

Two days later was finally the Grandmaster’s Birthday. It was held in the Research Center’s meeting room, which was quite large and designed for large conferences.

Knowing the old man’s personality, and since most of the attendees were experts, they chose cocktail-style dining without a program.

He’d rather be in his lab, anyway; a long program would be cumbersome for him.

Anyway, the buffet tables lined two entire walls, and there were dozens of cocktail tables ready for everyone. There was a wide variety of food, making sure that everyone and their varied tastes would be satisfied. Of course, the greatest majority were the dishes the birthday-alchemist loved the most.

One of these was curry. He just loved the complex and flavorful dish full of layers of spices. It was to the point that he had studied its rich history in Terran (there were a few historians who were hired by the territory to write down Terran history, on top of what was already stored in Althea’s tablet).

Most of all, the transformative powers of spices intrigued him so much. Too bad that, unlike Althea, he couldn’t cook well.

They tended to put ‘good’ ingredients together, including those that could be healthy and complementary, except that oftentimes the actual product didn’t taste good.

There were various other dishes that Hoffen loved to eat there, too, including snacks and desserts.

Of course, because the birthday man wasn’t there yet, everyone squeezed in on the free walls, waiting for him to enter. The light was also turned off.

This was, after all, a surprise party.

Outside the room, Althea looked at the old man. “Can you at least pretend to be surprised…please?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

She opened the door for him, and let him enter first. As soon as he entered the threshold, the light burst open.

“SURPRISE!!”

Hoffen widened his eyes in surprise. “Oh.my.word~”

He really couldn’t act, and a few people’s lips twitched.

That said, the old man, regardless of whether he was surprised, did have a smile on his face.

He was then dragged around, greeted by the invitees, and then also dragged to the small mountain of gifts, some people pointing out which gift was theirs. There wasn’t much one could give to a Grandmaster, but it was the thought that counted.

Gregor, who was next to Althea, smiled as he watched his adoptive father’s back as he was guided around by many people who had smiles on their faces, genuinely admiring him.

“Thank you,” he told her, and she only smiled back.

The old man hadn’t celebrated his birthday for a hundred years because he didn’t see the point of it.

But seeing so many people gather for his stead, not because of his achievements, not because of his potions, but because of him. They were not expecting anything in return for their gifts, either.

At this time, that old man was definitely happy.

“We did it because we wanted to,” she said, patting the old man’s shoulder. “Thank you for coming to our home.”

…

The party began at the sound of music (it was someone’s classical music collection on their phones, amplified by their speaker systems).

People started getting their food of preference, joining random tables for conversation, likely jumping tables every time they refilled their plates.

And everyone definitely refilled their plates often.

The concessionaires were naturally prepared for the most ravenous audience, so the food was free-flowing, and it didn’t seem like it’d ever end.

This was the purpose of using a cocktail setup, so people could go around and chat, and exchange ideas with several people.

The birthday-chemist socialized quite a bit before settling down at his friends’ table. It’d take him a while, though, because everyone invited there could have a topic with him.

Whether it was from fellow pharmacy departments, the equipment department (especially since he was exploring the combination of potions and equipment, he had been there often lately), or the biology departments (whether it was related to his limb repair potions or his new interest in plants, courtesy of his apprentice).

That said, the two alchemists, Zenno and Cheman, were surprisingly social and had rotated tables with strangers, too. Althea and Hoffen hadn’t even done formal introductions, and the two newcomers did ask them not to spread their presence there, so they simply mentioned their names and none of the accolades associated with them.

They wanted to vacation, and now that they were so far away from their usual area of activity, it was a rare time to go around without someone blocking their way and currying favor.

In fact, neither of them were social butterflies at all. It was just that everyone invited there were science or the technical folk. This included all the pharmacists (awakened or not) hired by the Research Center.

They would excitedly fill a plate and then overhear a conversation at one table. If the topic interested them, then they’d be joining that, giving the impression of high sociability.

For example, someone was discussing potions that would ultimately increase one’s hold of their elements, and Zenno was right there next to them and chiming in.

Another, some people from the biology team and the hospital were discussing more about fecundity of the races, and Cheman practically teleported to their area.

Althea also observed the interactions. The atmosphere really encouraged blabbering about the field. If there was someone who held on to what they knew tightly and was not planning to contribute anything, then they’d definitely be out of place.

Of course, the two other high alchemists weren’t that type. She doubted her master would’ve been so close with them at all if that was the case.

That said, who’d have thought that the two Class A alchemists would be close? Wasn’t this proof enough that a scholar or professional needed others in order to improve their craft? In order to reach that level, they had to have had help in some form or another.

Whether it was teaching, help with materials, or critique of their own works, these were all necessary for growth in a profession.

To be honest, she highly doubted anyone would reach Class B and above if they hadn’t made some sort of knowledge exchange.

The more she heard, the more she was sure: The creation of the Guilds…would not just be a passion project of hers. But, if they wanted to gain a lot more advancements in the fields, it was really a must.

At some point, Althea ended up with the old men’s tables, who somehow gathered together after a few rounds.

“Ah, we meet again!” the old men greeted, bright and flushed, obviously having a blast. Althea giggled.

“How are you enjoying the party?”

“The food is delicious!”

“The booze is the besttttt!”

One had to know that the higher the level, the harder it was to get drunk. The fact that these old men were inebriated already was (other than the factor of their advanced age) meant that they drank a lot, and probably took the strong spirits, too.

“I just like this place more and more…” Cheman said, very frank, though he looked a bit woozy.

The past two days, they had naturally gotten around Alterra, tasted many delicacies, and experienced the various amenities there. Their next goal was to gather contribution points somehow.

According to Hoffen, it wouldn’t be too difficult for them, considering their accomplishments, though they’d have to be open to sharing their own knowledge too.

Give and take, so to speak.

Now that an elder—no, a minister—was right there at the table with them, wouldn’t it be the best time? Well, when the topic props up.

“It has been a very long time since I have enjoyed a place, and I travel a lot,” Cheman said. He wasn’t even exaggerating. After reaching Class B, he hadn’t stayed in one place for more than a year.

There were plenty of reasons for this. One, it was because he had already received all the unique materials that could be found in the region (money could expedite a lot of things). He also already had the time to study the material itself in that time frame, or at least gain the basic ideas about them.

Another, it was to get the annoying people off his back.

They could get really annoying, asking for favors, especially asking for his fertility pills. Did they think it was easy to make those? He had to get materials found in level 40 monsters, for goodness’ sake!

One of the most common and disgusting lines he heard was “I work my brother down below so much, how can I still not have children?” and was usually spoken by the people whose faces were painful to the eyes. Who would stay sane staying in a single place?

Althea nodded. “I am envious that you can travel so much,” she said, and her expression told them she really thought so.

Well, Althea thought, her life was long. She’d make sure to go around the place. Xeno was so big, there were so many places to visit. For that, they had to finish up that Token upgrade they have been working on…

Well, that would be for later.