Chapter 14
Elior POV
After leaving Magnolia, I walked for a few minutes until the city was no longer visible behind me.
Once I was far enough away, I stopped beside the road and took out a map of Fiore.
I unfolded it and carefully checked the locations of the three quests I had accepted.
The first two were material-gathering quests, and fortunately, both materials were located relatively close to each other.
The final quest was the bandit-subjugation mission.
I'll do the two material quests first and deal with the bandits afterward.
That seemed like the most efficient plan.
I memorized the locations of both materials before putting the map back into my storage ring.
During the past few years, my training hadn't only consisted of magic and swordsmanship.
Irene had made sure I learned plenty of practical skills as well.
Reading maps.
Hunting.
Cooking.
Setting up tents.
Identifying edible plants.
Navigating through forests.
Basic first aid.
And plenty of other things that someone might need while traveling through the wilderness.
At first, I hadn't really understood why she was making me learn all of this.
After all, with my magic, there wasn't much I couldn't accomplish.
But as time passed, I realized that relying entirely on magic was a bad habit.
A good mage needed to be adaptable.
And besides…
Cooking is important.
I wasn't going to spend my entire life eating whatever happened to be available.
Once I had memorized the route, I put the map away.
I looked toward the distant mountain range.
It was several dozen kilometers away.
I smiled.
"Time to fly."
Light began spreading across my body.
My physical form gradually transformed into light.
The next moment—
Whoosh!
I shot into the sky.
The landscape beneath me blurred almost instantly.
Trees, rivers, roads, and hills passed by at incredible speed.
The higher I climbed, the more incredible the view became.
From up here, Fiore looked completely different.
The towns looked tiny.
The roads looked like thin lines.
The forests seemed endless.
And the mountains ahead slowly grew larger.
It's amazing.
Even after all these years, I still wasn't completely used to traveling like this.
Moving at extremely high speeds while transformed into light made the entire world seem slower.
Of course, I still had limitations.
My body might be able to become light, but controlling that much speed wasn't as simple as just deciding to move faster.
My magical perception helped tremendously.
Without it, changing direction or reacting to obstacles at high speeds would be extremely difficult.
And even then, I still had plenty of room to improve.
After roughly half an hour, I reached the mountain range.
I slowed down and returned to my normal form.
I looked back toward Magnolia.
It was completely out of sight.
I wasn't even traveling at my maximum speed.
I scratched my cheek.
"I probably could have reached here in half the time if I went all out."
I sighed.
"But I'm still a long way from reaching anything close to the true speed of light."
That was one of the goals I had set for myself.
Not because I needed to become the fastest person alive.
Rather, I wanted to understand exactly how far I could push my magic.
For now, however, I had a quest to complete.
According to the mission details, both materials could be found somewhere around the highest peak of the mountain range.
I began climbing.
The higher I went, the colder the air became.
Rocky terrain gradually replaced grass and trees.
The path became steeper, but that wasn't much of an issue for me.
I eventually reached the upper section of the mountain.
I stopped and closed my eyes.
Instead of relying on my normal eyesight, I focused on the ethernano around me.
My magical perception spread outward.
I could sense the flow of magic through the environment.
Small fluctuations.
Movement.
Living creatures.
Magical energy concentrated around certain areas.
I carefully scanned the mountain peak.
This was one of the abilities I had been refining for years.
My magical perception wasn't merely a way to sense someone's magical power.
With enough concentration, I could distinguish subtle changes in magical flow and use them to locate living beings, magical materials, and even hidden spaces.
It was especially useful when searching for something specific.
I quickly detected the presence of several creatures inside a natural cave near the summit.
And something else.
A faint but distinct magical signature.
There it is.
The Reflexia herb.
Reflexia was a rare medicinal plant known for its healing properties.
Because healing magic was closely connected to my Light Magic, I had an easier time recognizing its magical characteristics.
The moment my perception touched it, I could tell that it was different from the surrounding vegetation.
I headed toward the cave.
The entrance was partially hidden between several large rocks.
I stepped inside.
Tap.
Tap.
My footsteps echoed through the cave.
I had expected the interior to be dark, cold, and damp.
Instead, I was greeted by a surprisingly warm atmosphere.
A faint white glow illuminated the walls.
Light reflected from various mineral deposits embedded in the stone, giving the cave an almost magical appearance.
I continued walking.
The deeper I went, the stronger the magical presence became.
I also sensed several living creatures.
Different species.
All of them had varying magical signatures.
Magical beasts.
I kept moving until I reached the end of the cave.
And there it was.
A small patch of Reflexia herbs grew from a narrow crevice between two large rocks.
The plants emitted a beautiful white glow.
They were considerably brighter than the faint vegetation outside.
But the herbs weren't alone.
Several magical beasts were lying around them.
A wolf-like creature.
A small reptilian beast.
Something resembling a large cat.
A strange bird with brightly colored feathers.
And several other creatures I couldn't immediately identify.
There was one thing they all had in common.
They were injured.
Some had cuts.
Others had burns.
A few were limping.
Yet despite their injuries, they were guarding the herbs.
I slowly approached.
Tap.
Tap.
The moment my footsteps echoed through the cave, every beast lifted its head.
Their eyes locked onto me.
In an instant, they rose.
Growl!
Roar!
Hiss!
The beasts moved into defensive positions around the herbs.
I stopped.
"Now, now."
I raised both hands.
"No need to get angry."
The creatures continued growling.
I could sense their hostility.
But underneath it, there was something else.
Fear.
They were protecting something important to them.
I understood.
"How about we start with this?"
White light gathered around my hands.
Then—
Whoosh!
A gentle wave of healing magic spread toward the beasts.
The creatures immediately panicked.
Some attempted to dodge.
Others roared and prepared to attack.
But the moment the light touched them, their expressions changed.
The cuts began closing.
Bruises disappeared.
Burns faded.
Broken bones slowly returned to their proper positions.
Their injuries healed right before my eyes.
The beasts stared at their own bodies in confusion.
One of the wolves cautiously moved its injured leg.
It was completely healed.
The creatures slowly lowered their guard.
I smiled.
"See?"
I lowered my hands.
"I'm not here to hurt you."
They stared at me silently.
I pointed toward the glowing herbs.
"I'm here for that."
Several of them immediately became tense again.
I quickly raised my hands.
"Wait."
I pointed toward the small patch.
"I understand now that these herbs are important to you."
I glanced around at the creatures.
"Judging by your injuries, I'm guessing you come here because of their healing properties."
The beasts remained silent.
"Unfortunately, I need one for my quest."
I held up one finger.
"Just one."
I released a small amount of magical pressure.
Not enough to hurt them.
Just enough to make them understand that I wasn't someone they could easily drive away.
Their expressions became wary.
"I won't take more than I need."
I lowered my hand.
"And in exchange, I've already healed all of you."
I paused.
"Sounds fair, right?"
The creatures looked at each other.
I could almost imagine them having a proper discussion.
I stepped back.
"You have ten minutes to make a decision."
I sat down against a nearby rock.
"I'm not going anywhere."
The creatures began communicating among themselves.
"Roar!"
"Hiss!"
"Maww…"
"Growl…"
It was surprisingly entertaining to watch.
I wonder what they're saying.
Eventually, the discussion seemed to reach its conclusion.
One by one, the beasts moved away from the herbs.
I smiled.
"Good decision."
I walked toward the plants.
I carefully selected a single Reflexia herb.
Just one.
I wasn't going to take advantage of their trust.
I placed it inside my storage ring.
Since the space inside the ring was isolated from the outside world, the passage of time wouldn't affect the herb, meaning it would retain its effectiveness.
I looked back toward the beasts.
"Thank you."
The creatures simply watched me.
I turned around and began walking toward the cave entrance.
I had almost reached the exit when—
Tug.
I stopped.
"Huh?"
I looked down.
Something was pulling gently at my trousers.
I slowly lowered my gaze.
A tiny white fox cub was standing beside my leg.
Its fur was soft and completely white.
Its large eyes stared up at me.
It rubbed its head against my leg again.
Tug.
Then it looked up at me.
I blinked.
"…What?"
The little fox wagged its tail.
I glanced toward the other beasts.
They were watching us.
None of them seemed particularly surprised.
I looked back down at the fox cub.
It rubbed against my leg once more.
A small smile appeared on my face.
"Are you asking me for something?"
The fox cub tilted its head.
And somehow, I had a feeling that my first material-gathering quest had just become a lot more complicated.