Alchemy

There is only one thing important to remember while studying alchemy; it isn't magic. Though it's true some regents hold mystical properties, Alchemy is the scientific study of those properties and how to maximize their potential when mixed with other regents. It is study of the Material Plane and how it functions. It is the effort of understanding the world, not manipulating it to your will through raw power.

— Erek "The Black Hound"

Alchemy is a mixture of chemistry, herbology, and zoology. It is a form of advanced scientific study to understand the world, what it's made of, and the effects those compounds have on the world and one another. How far this goes is entirely dependant on the level of knowledge that the individual alchemist may have. Though there are official "Licensed" Alchemists, these are simply those that have gone through official testing of their countries, earning a license and approval of the government for special pay and funding.
Despite these individuals existing, anyone can claim to be an Alchemist that has a modicum of training in the fields required. In order to be known for expertise one must go through the Order of the White Flower. Many however are considered amateur alchemists, but can still be masters in their focused field. For instance, a well-known doctor of a town could easily be a Master Herbologist and Expert Physician with some rudimentary chemical and animal knowledge. Such an individual could claim to be a decently skilled Alchemist, and most of the populace wouldn't question this in the slightest.
The most commonly researched fields in Alchemy are those based in medicine. Due to the rarity of Healing Magical being one in tens of thousands, medicine is incredibly valuable to the general public. As such brewing various herbs and regents together to create poultices is a common form of alchemy seen throughout the world. Despite this, Alchemy can go beyond this and create potions and pills of various effects to enhance, heal, or even poison and harm. The end result is based around the individual's skill to a degree, but also their regents used.
Rare regents taken from mystical creatures and plants or rare minerals can create far more powerful effects. As such, funds are a constant struggle for most alchemists as in order to test out new ideas and recipes, let alone produce their own creations to sell, they must acquire rare regents that run at a high price.
Though potions and pills are common, it's hardly the limitation of this field. Ronia was known for its masterful knowledge of Alchemy and crafting to create black powder that they used to devastate the invading armies of the Ceridian Empire. This can also be created to utilize explosives, smoke bombs, toxic gasses, even acids and the like can theoretically be made depending on the resources found. It's not uncommon at all for Alchemists to refine "basic" regents with enough mastery using magic instead of technology to save on currency. In doing so, even simple regents can be refined to such a level that they become strong enough to match magic in its uses.

Spell Components

It's well known that a mage is capable of using various forms of mana through Primordial and Natural magic. However, there are some that are capable of augmenting their magic even further by combining unique alchemical components together with their spells. This allows them to augment a spell through Alchemy. However incorrect ratios of various components can cause a spell to completely change, or worse, backfire. As such it's rarely done in the midst of battle and is usually done for ritualistic spells instead.
For instance, a mage could mix guano, wood ash, and sulfur in a radio of three parts wood ash, two parts guano, and one part sulfur. This could then be made into a rudimentary ball that the mage could use while channeling a fire-based spell to greatly augment the destructive properties of the flames with the added fuel. This could then be multiplied even further using rarer reagents such as Imp Guano and Ironwood ash instead.

Alkahest

Though Alchemy is not magic, it can be combined with magic without the usage of spell components. In doing this the magic is known as "Alkahest", and is capable of breaking down anything that they make contact with in the world using magic into its base compounds. The user is then able to manipulate these compounds creating something entirely new using them, however it will only create something that those chemical compounds could normally create. For instance, breaking down a stream of water and turning it instead into a thick fog that fills the area with their magic instead.
Due to Alkahest relying on the magical manipulation of Natural Magic it can still be draining to use. However, because it does not create matter or energy from nothing, but instead alters matter or energy that already exists in the world, it drains the user far less than normal Natural Magic. To learn this requires one to be skilled in both alchemy and magic. This limits one's ability to "transmute" as it is often called quite heavily based on their individual knowledge. As such this is a rare form of magic, but can be quite potent.