Opening her eyes, she saw a familiar ceiling. Frieren looked around again. It was indeed her room.
She also confirmed that the seal of the Moon God was in good condition; she had not entered the dreamscape.
So she lay back down. Although the Ancient God prevented her from sleeping normally, a sleep-like meditation was still viable. At least she could recover from the fatigue of the Soul of Cinder Incarnation more quickly. That would be the plan for now.
The silver-haired girl remained in meditation for an unknown amount of time... until she heard the creak of a door opening.
"The barrier is down? That means she's awake. And she didn't tell me."
A warm, booming voice announced the visitor's identity.
"Sister Adele, Master might be resting. I can feel an unstable magical presence, probably the traces left after her soul burned so intensely."
"Your senses are getting sharper. All I can sense is that the wine in Frieren's cabinet smells more mellow than before."
"Good morning."
Only then did the two visitors see the master of the house sitting up in bed, rubbing her eyes. Her long silver hair was a tangled mess of curls. As she shook her head, a faint, pleasant scent wafted from her, a clear sign she had just woken up.
Flamme nodded quickly. "I'll go make breakfast. Sister Adele and Master, please have a seat."
The cool water on her face and the feel of the solid wood floor gradually invigorated Frieren. She tilted her head back, feeling the gentle breeze from the skylight. The spring sunlight was beautiful.
The climate in Elf Town was like spring all year round. Summer was a bit hot, but winter was practically nonexistent; a couple of snowfalls were all it took to mark the season's passing. The following year would be another warm spring. She figured she had once again perfectly slept through the winter.
There were still traces of icicles on the eaves outside, but it wasn't cold.
The wooden house was still sturdy, and many support pillars showed signs of maintenance—likely the work of her precious apprentice.
She stretched her limbs and gradually recovered.
"By the way, a huge burst of magic erupted from you while you were sleeping earlier. It was terrifying. Did some intense battle happen that required you to change phases?"
Adele had guessed correctly, even deducing she had used her Soul of Cinder Incarnation. As a childhood friend, she knew most of the details.
Frieren only had two options for changing phases, and she couldn't possibly use the form of the Ancient God of the Moon, could she? So, the most familiar Soul of Cinder Incarnation was the primary choice.
"Yes, but it's all been resolved."
"You must be very tired."
"More or less. A good sleep is all I need. It won't affect my combat strength."
Defeating the King of Promise and the god had yielded a massive amount of Runes, all of which Melina had used to enhance her health and stamina, taking her physique to the next level. Her body in reality was a fusion of multiple accounts, making its adaptability even greater.
After her meditation, Frieren was basically fine.
She even flexed her arm for the alcoholic elf, putting on an invigorated expression. Seeing this, the latter smiled knowingly.
With that, Adele was completely at ease. No one in the world believed in her childhood friend's strength more than she did. A small setback was nothing to worry about; seeing her safe and sound was all that mattered.
A moment later.
Flamme served the steaming hot food. Her cooking was getting better and better, a feast for the senses.
From her familiar movements, it was clear she had been living here while her master was asleep. After all, Frieren's barrier didn't affect Flamme, so the apprentice could come and go as she pleased.
Since it wasn't far from the association branch where she worked, she stayed in Elf Town from time to time.
Adele trusted her as well.
But she didn't trust the wine. If the alcoholic elf were to stumble in drunk one day and cause some trouble, it would be an unholy mess to clean up.
The three of them sat around the table, enjoying the meal. The taste of the food brought a long-lost sense of relaxation to Frieren. The food in the Lands Between was extravagant, feasts at every meal, but it couldn't compare to the taste of home, especially Flamme's cooking.
The feeling of a full stomach completely swept away her fatigue, and her magic power became restrained once more. The pressure from changing phases had been mostly eliminated.
"By the way, did anything major happen while I was gone?" Frieren asked with concern.
"The usual. My business is expanding, Flamme is planning the construction of the southern branch... Nothing special. At least it's peaceful here in the central lands." Adele said smugly.
The presence of the Mage of the Mythical Era was a source of pride for her; things wouldn't easily go wrong.
Frieren turned her inquisitive gaze to Flamme.
When she asked, she wasn't looking for good news or normal news; she needed to hear the bad news to weigh the priorities.
"Master is probably most concerned about the war with the demons."
"After readjusting its strategy to target the northern front, the Empire launched an offensive and made some gains, but their advance hasn't been significant..."
"Is it because a power on the level of the Seven Sages of Destruction is resisting them?"
"Yes."
She had guessed it immediately. After all, top-tier experts among the demons who could single-handedly hold back a large army were exceedingly rare.
With the allied forces of the human kingdoms on a fierce offensive, there weren't many options to maintain the front line; they were likely stretched thin.
Of course, Frieren knew well that one couldn't be rash in matters of war, so she simply nodded.
No other reaction was needed from her. The front lines didn't require her presence yet.
"Additionally, the Empire's investigation into the mist in the magical nation of Berletania has been hindered. They ultimately entrusted it to President Serie, who has already gone there with her disciples. She left a message for you, Master: 'It's quite interesting. If you want to kill some time, come and see.'" Flamme repeated, mimicking that nonchalant attitude.
In her eyes, the founder of magic had the air of a grandmaster, but not much of one. Occasionally, she displayed a child-like mentality, which was very similar to her master.
The long-lived races are strange. Perhaps they grew strong too quickly and didn't need to arm themselves with maturity. The armor of magic allowed them to show their true colors, so some of their actions seemed childish.
Hearing this, Frieren nodded and murmured, "I didn't expect the Empire's investigation to be hindered..."
"I think the Berletania matter is a nuisance, but not yet a major threat, otherwise the Empire would have reacted fiercely long ago. But it has indeed diverted some of their attention, otherwise the front line would be progressing more smoothly."
"Are you going to intervene?" Adele asked curiously.
"I haven't decided yet. Let's wait and see."
"Master, you don't know yet, but our central association has expanded again. It's now hosting sorcerers from the south."
Flamme vividly described the Magic Association's rapid development during this time. The expansion into the south was progressing smoothly, attracting a large number of sorcerers.
And on a larger scale, mobilizing them to fight against the demons.
The Continental Magic Association was increasingly living up to the "Continental" in its name. The organization was rapidly growing into a behemoth spanning multiple nations, its influence increasing by the day.
"I never thought I'd see the association fully established in my lifetime," Flamme remarked with emotion. "But everything is perfect now. I suppose I've hitched a ride on the wave of the times, thanks to the demons."
She gazed northward and smiled.
"And of course, Sister Adele's financial support."
"You've been investing again!"
When the topic turned to herself, the alcoholic elf crossed her arms and laughed heartily.
"That's right. I foresaw that the Continental Magic Association's new expansion would have a funding gap; everything involving people costs money. But we can't rely too much on the court's budget, so I'll handle some of it."
Behind those casual words was a mountain of gold and silver.
"How big was the gap?"
Frieren was also getting better at management and knew very well that a plan for the south like this would require an astronomical amount of money. It was amazing Adele could pull it off.
"You're good at making money, but even better at spending it. Much better than those nobles who just hoard their wealth."
"My duty is to spend the value generated by the money they're unwilling to spend and keep with me. Besides, you can't take money with you when you die. Do you remember? We've lived through 50 currency changes since we were children."
"Have we? You've been keeping track?"
"I noticed because I buy wine so often. So, spend money when you have it, before some turmoil turns it all into worthless scraps."
Adele explained the financial philosophy a long-lived being would have. When she managed the bank, she wasn't a miser. Instead, she did everything she could to spend money to expand her returns, ultimately creating a snowball effect.
It wasn't just because of her philosophy, but also from witnessing the rise and fall of human kingdoms time and again.
The lesson elves learned from the short-lived humans was: they are very good at causing trouble.
Even ignoring the biggest variable, the demons, the internal power struggles, mutual attacks, and economic changes within human kingdoms never ceased. Everything happened too quickly.
It was better to spend it and have peace of mind.
The three of them chatted away the breakfast hour.
During this time, Adele even pulled Frieren into having a little wine. Urged on with the excuse that "it's been so long since we've seen each other," it was hard to refuse, so she just went along with it and tasted the new wine with her.
The alcoholic elf even pressed Flamme down into her seat, claiming she had to try the new product that was about to be released.
Although her expanding business had given her a busier air, when she relaxed, her style of leisurely enjoyment came out in full force.
After a hearty meal and drinks.
Frieren refused Adele's attempt to continue the drinking party, instead heading to the edge of the village's barrier. So, Adele had no choice but to follow the master and apprentice.
"It hasn't been maintained for a long time. You must pay regular attention to the protective measures and not let your guard down."
With that, she channeled a stream of magic into the barrier.
The seemingly simple action revealed an immense amount of energy. It flowed into the barrier like a great river into the sea.
A magnificent light illuminated the semi-circular dome in the sky before slowly fading, shocking the elves.
Some of the elf children who were seeing it for the first time said excitedly:
"It's Senior Frieren's magic! It's so beautiful, I want to learn magic too."
"Don't bother her. She's maintaining the barrier."
"Her presence already makes this the safest place in the world, yet she's still so cautious. It makes you feel so secure."
"The barrier has expanded, too. Our little town has grown without us even noticing."
It wasn't just the elves; the people who had come to live and work here also witnessed the brilliant light streaking across the sky. The scale of the barrier was hard to imagine. It was like a miracle.
This was a Mage of the Mythical Era. No wonder everyone was so confident in its safety.
Whether it had been attacked or not wasn't important. How many places on the continent hadn't been bothered by demons?
The key was to repeatedly counterattack and achieve victory.
This was the reason the powerful and wealthy were willing to support the elven bank.
Vmmm!
As ripples of magic spread, the barrier gradually formed and expanded. Only then did Frieren slowly release the spell.
As the caster, she was naturally the first to notice the town's expansion. It should now have a permanent population of over 30,000, and the number of elves was also steadily growing.
A population of 100,000 would be considered a major city. At one-third of that standard, the small elven town could no longer be called a "town"; it was now a city.
It was no wonder there were few signs of barrier maintenance during her slumber. Besides herself, very few people could improve it.
It wasn't a matter of knowledge, but that the area to be covered was too large, and the gap in the required amount of magic power was too immense.
"Master, I can no longer keep up with maintaining a barrier of this scale." Flamme sighed.
She might have reached the limit for a human sorcerer. It wasn't that her skill was lacking, but that her magic power was insufficient to support such a vast operation.
Just as she was feeling regretful, a hand gently patted her head.
"You've misjudged, Flamme." Frieren's emerald eyes were shining. "You are still growing. You haven't reached the peak of a person's age."
"You'll have to wait until you're at least 30 to even talk about limits. You have a long way to go. Your future is something even I cannot predict."
This was no empty talk, because the blessing she had given her apprentice long ago was still growing, nourished by Flamme herself.
A solid foundation meant that Flamme was far from reaching her peak.
There was still time.
Adele laughed. "If even you feel inadequate, shouldn't sorcerers your age just kill themselves? Even as a human, you're still young. You can catch up to us."
"Excluding phase changes, your magic power is only slightly stronger than Flamme's now, Adele. Don't slack off on your training."
"But I've been mastering the magic of winemaking!"
The bickering of the childhood friends made the red-haired girl smile. The atmosphere between those two was always so lively.
They were two people who preferred quiet and stillness, yet they always managed to resonate with a kind of vitality.
She thought to herself that she should focus on refining more magic power to test her limits in this area...
"Frieren, it's not just me studying. There are more and more elf sorcerers now. The town is constantly getting stronger."
"A new kinsman has indeed arrived."
The moment she awoke, she had detected the presence of a powerful sorcerer. However, there was no hostility, so she hadn't paid it much mind.
In any case, she recognized at a glance the Vixen who had recently been removed from the wanted list: Minus.
The elf sorcerer who had slaughtered an entire unit of Imperial mages.
Shadow warriors were originally going to be sent to subjugate her, but the verdict on Minus became part of the deal between Frieren, Serie, and the court mage, Barke.
"After the meeting at the association headquarters, she wrote me a letter of thanks, and I took the opportunity to invite her."
"She also said she wanted to thank you in person. Since she's so polite and perceptive, I hired her as the town's sorcerer instructor for now. After all, we're all too busy, and the others aren't skilled enough." Adele declared smugly.
After all, the gratitude of a famous, powerful, and elven sorcerer was a rare thing to come by.
Flamme, however, gave a blunt assessment: "That sister is very gloomy. She has a dark feeling about her, almost like a demon in her pursuit of battle and magical research. She's sparred with me several times."
"But she's serious about her work and has experience teaching magic."
The red-haired girl pointed to a training ground not far away.
"Let's go meet Minus."
Although Frieren had already met the guest's gaze through her perception, a face-to-face meeting would make it official.
____
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