Chapter 15: On the Road
When Alisar woke up in the morning and crawled out of his tent, he saw that the girls were already awake and calmly having breakfast. They were sitting on the soft grass, with neatly arranged pieces of bread and dried fruit laid out beside them.
"Good morning," he greeted them. Receiving short nods in response, he took some food from his bag—tough bread, a few dried fruits, and a flask of water. Sitting down nearby, he started eating.
But as soon as he took the first bite, he couldn't help but glance at the girls' food. Even from a glance, their bread looked fresher and softer, with a delicate, crispy crust. Their dried fruits were large and vibrant, as if freshly picked. The aroma wafting from their food was rich and sweet, while his own had barely any scent at all.
"Must be expensive," he thought to himself, swallowing awkwardly.
He looked at his tent, then at the bag full of potions.
"No matter. Soon I'll have money too, and I'll be able to buy good food," he added inwardly, chewing his plain flatbread.
After breakfast, Rem turned to him.
"So, you're planning to stay here?"
"Well…" Alisar hesitated. "I was thinking of staying for a couple more days. I want to gain a few more levels, then sell all the potions I've made at the local guild. Stock up on provisions and keep training here."
"I wouldn't recommend that," Rem said calmly.
"Why not?" Alisar asked, surprised.
"Because if you stay here alone, there's a good chance you'll get killed in your sleep. Some monster might sneak up at night—and that's it." She paused briefly. "And even if nothing attacks you, selling that many potions in a village like this… is incredibly risky."
She looked him straight in the eyes.
"Think about it. Where would so many healing potions come from in a place like this? There's not even a dungeon around to loot them from. Well… one did appear recently. But no one knows about it yet. We're only planning to report it to the guild. Only after that might they send other adventurers here."
Rem fell silent for a moment, then added:
"Even if you decide to stay a bit longer, until the dungeon becomes publicly known and others start arriving… it's still a bad idea."
She spoke steadily, but there was firmness in her voice.
"We've already cleared that dungeon several times. And the only things we got were mana stones from rank-zero monsters. The rank-one ones we got only by defeating the boss. That's it."
Rem shook her head.
"No treasure chests, no rare items, no potions. So even this dungeon won't work as a cover for your potion stock. If you try to pass them off as dungeon loot, no one will believe you."
"Damn... she's right," Alisar thought grimly, glancing toward the village.
"My plan wasn't really thought through. I just had an idea—to stay here and sell..."
He sighed and looked at Rem.
"So, what should I do then?" he asked seriously.
There was no irritation in his voice—just a genuine question. He really didn't know what to do next.
Rem thought for a second.
"Well... if you're serious about selling potions in large quantities, the best option for you is to head to Gildora."
"But I thought going to a big city would be even more dangerous than staying here," Alisar said, uncertain.
Rem shook her head.
"No, I think you're misjudging the situation. Sure, it can be dangerous. Selling a large amount of potions is always a risk, especially if you can't explain their origin. But not in a city like Gildora."
She paused, then added:
"Gildora has a huge number of adventurers. And most importantly, there are several large dungeons nearby. How many healing potions do you think pass through the guild there every day? How many do adventurers bring in from dungeon runs?"
Alisar furrowed his brow and thought for a moment.
"Well… I don't know." He shrugged. "Maybe… a few hundred?"
Rem chuckled.
"Tens of thousands. Per day."
"What? Tens of thousands?" he repeated in shock.
"That's right." She nodded. "And among the potions brought to the guild, some are even ranked as high as fourth tier. There are hundreds of those. Dozens of fifth-tier potions. Sometimes even sixth or seventh tier. And those are just the healing potions. Imagine how much more is brought in overall."
She looked at him seriously.
"The guild in Gildora is massive, and the flow of adventurers is constant. So even if you were turning in a few hundred potions every few days—no one would care. It's just a drop in the ocean."
"Damn... she's really right," Alisar thought, staring off toward the horizon.
"Better to go to a big city full of adventurers than sit alone in the wilderness near some tiny village. If I really want to sell potions, only a large city will do."
He mentally agreed with everything she'd said.
"She's absolutely right," he repeated to himself.
But Rem wasn't finished.
"And one more thing," she said, frowning slightly.
"What is it?" Alisar turned to her.
"Remember the first time we met you? You were running from those rabbit monsters."
He nodded.
"I remember. If it weren't for you, I'd be dead."
"So then tell me—why didn't you use your skill? The one you mentioned yesterday. You said you can disappear from this world and enter some kind of training room. Why didn't you use it back then to escape?"
Alisar froze. It was a direct question—one he'd asked himself more than once.
"I tried," he finally said, staring at the ground. "I really tried. Many times. But it just wouldn't activate. At all."
He furrowed his brow, remembering that day.
"I don't know why. I called it, like usual, tried to trigger it—nothing. No sound, no flash, not even a flicker. As if the skill didn't exist."
"So it just didn't work at all back then?" Rem asked, narrowing her eyes.
"Yeah," Alisar confirmed. "I tried again and again—nothing."
Rem thought for a moment, then asked:
"And now? You can use it without any problem?"
Alisar nodded.
"Yeah. Now it works fine. I can activate it whenever I want."
"Then… try it now," she said calmly.
"Now?"
"Yes. Right now, use your skill."
Alisar stood up, focused for a moment, and activated the training room. In an instant, he vanished—and found himself inside the familiar space. He looked around, silently counted to ten, and then triggered the skill again. The world shifted—and he reappeared next to the girls.
"There. Like that," he said, brushing dust from his sleeves.
Rem watched him closely.
"You really did use the skill. But… why did you come back so quickly? You disappeared and returned in less than a second."
She tilted her head slightly.
"If we weren't high-level, I might not have even noticed you vanished."
"I told you yesterday—time flows faster in the training room," Alisar reminded her. "I waited about ten seconds in there before I came back."
"Hm… interesting," Rem murmured. Then she looked up. "Now walk a bit. Try activating the skill while moving."
"What? Walk and use it?"
"Yes. But don't stop. Use the skill while walking. I need to check something."
Alisar nodded obediently, took a few steps, and tried to activate the skill. Nothing.
He frowned, kept walking, and tried again. Still nothing.
He stopped, glanced at Rem, then walked again and tried a third time. No result. He tried again and again, staying in motion—but the skill refused to activate.
"Damn…" he muttered, stopping. "I can't trigger it."
"Well, now we know," Rem said, thoughtful.
"Know what?" Alisar asked, confused.
"Now we understand how your skill works," she said. "It seems you can't activate it while moving. You have to be standing still."
Alisar thought for a second, then nodded.
"Yeah… I think you're right."
He stood still, focused again—and the skill activated without issue. He disappeared into the training room. A few seconds later, he returned and looked at her.
"How did you figure that out?"
Rem raised an eyebrow slightly.
"To put it simply—your skill looks like teleportation. And teleportation spells usually require the user to be completely still. If they're moving, the spell fails. Only very skilled mages can teleport while in motion. And you're not exactly a teleportation master, are you?"
Alisar grinned.
"Definitely not."
"Exactly. Your skill likely follows the same rules. No activation while moving."
"Yeah… now I get it," Alisar said thoughtfully. "That's why I couldn't use it when I was running from those rabbit monsters. I never stopped moving."
"Alright, enough talking," came Sherial's voice from nearby.
She had already packed her things and stood waiting, arms crossed.
"And one more thing—are you coming with us or not?" she asked. "If you want to travel with us to Gildora, you'd better hurry up. We're not wasting time. We need to reach the city in two days. I'm not staying in this wilderness longer than necessary. I want a proper inn, a hot bath, good food—and a whole day of rest."
Rem glanced at Alisar, who hesitated for a second.
"So? Are you coming with us or staying here?" she asked more seriously.
"Yes, yes, I'm coming!" he quickly replied and rushed toward his tent.
He dove inside, crouched by his backpack, and looked over the neatly arranged potions.
"Alright, I can't mix these up," he muttered. "First-rank and second-rank..."
He found a small food pouch and carefully packed the second-rank potions inside. Tied the mouth tight and placed the pouch deep in his bag, away from the rest. Then he placed the rest of his food supplies on top.
With coordinated but rushed movements, he began disassembling the tent, trying not to waste a second.
Alisar tried to take the tent apart carefully… but it didn't go well. One of the fastenings jammed, the fabric caught—and when he yanked it, a sharp tear echoed in the air.
He froze, stared at the torn cloth, and swore under his breath.
"Damn…"
Several spots along the seams had split, and some areas had started to fray.
"Will I even be able to use this tent again…?" he thought uncertainly.
"Maybe I can patch it up somehow… but probably not."
No time to think. He glanced at the girls—they were waiting. If he kept fumbling, they might just change their minds about letting him come.
He had planned to ask them for help reaching Gildora. And now that they had invited him themselves—he wasn't going to ruin it. Not by being slow.
He quickly packed the rest, tightened the straps, and slung the heavy bag over his shoulders.
The girls were already standing to the side, ready to leave. Sherial was looking toward the woods, while Rem looked directly at him.
Alisar hurried to them, trying not to show how tense he felt. All that was left was to keep moving forward.
When he reached them, he said:
"I'm ready."
Rem, speaking just a bit faster than usual but still keeping her voice even, replied:
"Alright. Let's go."
"Yeah, let's," added Sherial, and they all set off together.
Alisar followed without another word.
Walking through the morning forest was easy—the grass was still damp with dew, and the air was cool. But after just a few steps, a new thought entered his mind: "Why are their backpacks so small?"
He glanced at the girls. Their gear was compact, even elegant. They didn't have a tent, but they had blankets. He clearly remembered them sleeping on separate mattresses. And they had food, clean clothes… It had to take up space.
"Weird. Their packs are clearly smaller than mine, but they seem to carry more…" he thought.
He looked down at his own bag. Heavy. Bulky. Straps sticking out. Nothing graceful about it. Hauling that thing through the woods was uncomfortable and awkward. He already felt the straps biting into his shoulders.
"Alright… enough thinking about useless things," he told himself, exhaled, and picked up his pace to stay close behind the girls.