SWNOVELXO Chapter 71.1
Smooth Hair Thanks To Shampoo?
“By the way, Yuuri-chan, did you change your shampoo?”
“…Huh?”
Yuuri was left dumbfounded by Leopold’s question. He was having tea together when Leopold, with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes, suddenly asked this as the conversation lulled. Yuuri blinked repeatedly and stared at Leopold, who returned a dazzling smile with that beautiful face of his. His eyes, however, still weren’t smiling.
Yuuri’s first thought was, “Wow, sharp-eyed.” The women at the base had caught on immediately because, well, women are perceptive about beauty. Plus, it was pretty obvious once Yuuri placed a different shampoo in the bath. Still, Yuuri hadn’t expected Leopold to notice so soon, especially without even seeing the shampoo. It seemed that beauty-conscious people were truly sharp.
“That’s amazing. You can tell?”
“Of course! The shine and smoothness are on a whole different level. What did you do?”
“Well… I just found some good ingredients and made it. It’s still in the experimental phase.”
“Teach me how to make it.”
“…It’s still experimental…”
Yuuri waved his hands, trying to calm down Leopold, who had latched onto the topic with great enthusiasm. Yuuri didn’t feel like it was at a stage where it could be recommended to others yet. Currently, he was just letting the women at the base try it out to see if it suited their hair types.
The truth is, that Yuuri had made the shampoo with ingredients found during a supply run. He tossed those materials into an alchemy pot, and voila! Shampoo. He’d also made conditioner and treatment the same way. Though it was different from what he used to make at home with his mother and sister, the plants unique to this world helped produce a similar product. As a result, Yuuri’s hair became glossy and smooth, with restored cuticles. He hadn’t realized it, but apparently, the base shampoo had been slowly killing the cuticles.
Though Yuuri’s short hair didn’t make the difference obvious, the women with long hair—Frau, Tifaana, Hermine—seemed ecstatic over the results. Interestingly, Camille, one of the only men to show any reaction, had also commented on how good it felt. Since he had long, tied-up blonde hair, he had started using Yuuri’s homemade shampoo, conditioner, and occasionally the treatment, which improved his hair’s texture. Though he wasn’t interested in beauty, he could appreciate that the comb glided through his hair more smoothly now.
The method was quite simple: just toss the ingredients into the alchemy pot. The only catch is that not just anyone can make it. Once he confirmed that the formula worked for different hair types, Yuuri planned to hand the whole business side of things over to Harrows.
“When the recipe’s finalized, and I’m sure it works for everyone, I’ll let Harrows handle it and get it on the market.”
“That’s nice and all, but I’d rather make it myself. How did you do it?”
“With an alchemy pot.”
“Wait a minute—Ali! This kid’s totally misusing the alchemy pot! What kind of education is you giving them?!”
“Don’t blame me for this!!”
Yuuri’s calm reply made Leopold shout out loud. The one on the receiving end of that shout, however, was Ali, who just happened to be walking by. The poor parental figure was once again being unfairly blamed. While it was true that Ali was responsible for keeping Yuuri from going overboard, the decision to use the alchemy pot as a catch-all tool had been Yuuri’s alone. No matter how often he told them to stop, this bad habit wouldn’t change. Ali really wasn’t at fault.
Leopold sighed, purely out of frustration. Then, he turned to face Yuuri, who was blinking at him in confusion. Leopold knew enough about alchemy pots— those high-spec magic tools—to feel compelled to say something.
“Yuuri-chan? An alchemy pot isn’t meant for making household items, you know?”
“Why not?”
“‘Why not?’ you ask… What do you usually make with it?”
“…Seasoning?”
“Ali!!”
“I told you not to drag me into this!!”
Leopold’s shout was answered by Ali’s own desperate cry. He really wasn’t at fault. Not at all. Even though he’d repeatedly told Yuuri not to make seasonings, he always brushed it off with a simple, “But it’s convenient.” In the end, Harrows had gotten involved, too—though it was more like he’d jumped in on his own— and now alchemists were mass-producing powdered dashi stock. It was ridiculous, really, how far things had gone.
As Yuuri tilted his head, watching the two go back and forth, a thought occurred to them, and he spoke up.
“Ali-san, would you like some tea?”
“…”
“Ali-san?”
As usual, the gentlemanly Ali gave in. Leopold and Ali exchanged glances, sighed in unison, and then Ali pulled up a chair, sitting down as a sign he’d take some tea. Yuuri, realizing this, walked to the kitchen to get another cup. As he watched Yuuri’s back, Leopold reached for his own cup, exhaling softly.
It was one of those moments where Leopold felt a little exasperated. While Yuuri’s peculiar behavior was nothing new, even Leopold hadn’t seen this one coming. He almost regretted bringing up the topic in the first place, lured in by that gorgeous shiny hair.
“By the way, Ali.”
“What?”
“The ingredients for that shampoo… He’s not anything weird, right?”
“It’s just regular stuff like vegetable oil from the local shops. Nothing rare.”
“I see. As long as that’s the case… You really are something else, aren’t you?”
“Huh?”