Chapter 16: The First Day on the Road to Geldor
They moved confidently through the forest, walking forward lightly and almost without a sound. For the girls, it was nothing more than a stroll. But Alisar constantly had to dodge branches and press his backpack closer to himself—not because it was heavy. With his attributes, the weight wasn't an issue. The problem was something else: the backpack was too large and awkward.
Bulky and angular, it constantly got caught on branches and bushes. Trying to move between trees with that kind of gear was a real challenge—the protruding straps and dangling side pouches got in the way all the time. More than once he nearly lost his balance when he got stuck in a particularly dense bush.
"Even on a wide road this thing is inconvenient, and going through the forest with it… total disaster," Alisar sighed mentally.
By around noon, they stepped onto a small open road where they could finally walk in peace—no more trees in the way, and thin wheel tracks could be seen in the dirt. Apparently, carts passed through here from time to time.
By then, Alisar had already consumed two health potions. Keeping up with these two girls turned out to be even harder than training in the training room. Even though the backpack didn't feel heavy thanks to his enhanced stats, its sheer size still made it clumsy—it kept catching on branches and made it hard to move through narrow forest trails.
Rhem looked at Alisar.
— "You look tired."
— "Well, yeah… a little," he admitted.
— "Then let's take a short break by the road," she suggested.
They sat down on the soft grass and allowed themselves a brief rest.
They pulled out some dried fruit for a quick snack. Looks like there won't be a proper lunch, Alisar thought. But he didn't complain. After all, he already knew: the life of an adventurer rarely offers comfort. Usually, only breakfast and dinner. He had read that in novels, heard it in stories, and now was experiencing it for himself. During travel, long stops for lunch weren't customary. The most one could expect during the day was a short break and a quick bite. Lunch was often nothing more than a few dried fruits or a piece of bread.
For a while, they sat in silence. Alisar leaned back and fell into thought. His eyes glanced over his backpack, and suddenly he remembered something important.
— "Rhem," he spoke, "Can I ask you something?"
She looked at him and nodded.
— "I was thinking… Recently, I managed to create a second-rank health potion. But externally… they look exactly the same as first-rank potions. How are they even distinguished? Are there any indicators?"
Rhem paused for a moment, then smiled slightly.
— "By appearance, you can't tell a first-rank potion from a second-rank one," she said calmly. "They look completely identical."
Alisar frowned.
— "No way to tell at all?"
— "None," she confirmed. "The only way is to feel the mana. If you have sensitivity to mana, you'll notice the difference right away. A first-rank potion feels like a weak candle. A second-rank one feels like a torch. And a third-rank… like a real bonfire. The difference is huge."
She paused briefly, then added:
— "But if you can't feel mana… it's really easy to get scammed. Someone might sell you a cheap potion disguised as a high-grade one—and you wouldn't even notice."
Alisar nodded silently, thinking over what she'd said.
— "But you don't need to worry," Rhem added, smiling a little more warmly. "With your skill, you might never need to buy health potions at all."
Alisar raised an eyebrow in surprise, but she continued:
— "As for other types of potions… that's trickier. If you want to buy mana or experience potions—be careful. It's best to do that through the guild or official shops. They usually don't cheat. Usually."
She emphasized those last words, as if to remind him that exceptions still existed.
Alisar nodded again, committing her advice to memory.
— "Thanks for explaining," he said quietly.
He sat on the soft grass, leaning back slightly and gazing at the sky, where beams of sunlight filtered through. After a short rest with some dried fruit and water, he felt a little less tired, but his thoughts kept turning.
"I need to learn how to make experience potions as soon as possible," he thought. "That way I won't have to spend so much time in the training room. Mana regenerates way too slowly…"
He glanced at his backpack, then at the girls resting nearby. Rhem stared silently at the road, while Sherial lazily stretched, her eyes half-closed.
"If I keep increasing my mana only through leveling, it'll take forever. Maybe… I should just ask them? They already know most of my abilities. Even about the training room. What's one more secret?"
He hesitated for a moment but then gave a silent nod to himself.
"Alright. Better just ask."
Alisar looked at the sky through the leaves overhead.
"I really need to learn how to make experience potions. That way I could spend less time grinding," he thought. "But if the only way to increase my mana pool is by leveling up... it'll take an eternity."
He glanced at Rhem and Sherial. The girls sat nearby, resting after their brief snack. Alisar frowned slightly. They already knew almost everything about his skill. The experience potion likely wouldn't seem that strange or suspicious to them. If he was going to say something, now was the time—while they were relaxed and calm. He took a deep breath.
— "Sorry, Rhem. I have another question."
— "Go ahead. I'll try to answer," she nodded.
— "How do I put this… My skill lets me create not just health potions. I can also make mana potions… and experience potions too," Alisar said, lowering his voice slightly.
When he spoke those last words, Rhem's expression changed ever so slightly. Just a little. But Alisar didn't notice—he was too focused on his own thoughts.
— "Wait… Are you saying your skill lets you create experience potions? Just by using mana?" Rhem asked, now clearly interested.
— "Theoretically, yes," he continued. "But I don't have enough mana to actually make one."
— "Why? How much does it take?" Rhem leaned forward, genuinely curious.
— "An experience potion of the first rank requires one million mana," he answered honestly.
— "Hm… yeah, that's a lot," she nodded.
— "That's the problem. I don't even have two percent of that," Alisar said, frustrated. "Do you know if there's a way to increase your mana pool? Even without leveling up?"
He looked at her with hope. Even the smallest chance—and he'd jump at it.
Rhem thought for a moment.
— "Well… there are things like magic wands or staves. Various magical tools that increase your mana. There are even artifacts that can raise your mana pool to ten or even a hundred million."
— "What?" Alisar straightened sharply. "Seriously?"
His eyes lit up. The dream of making experience potions suddenly didn't feel so far off.
— "But there's a small problem," Rhem added calmly.
Alisar froze. The smile vanished from his face.
— "So… what's the catch?"
— "They're very expensive," she said simply.
— "Expensive… but I can save up!" he replied quickly. "If I sell enough potions—I can buy one."
— "No, you don't understand," Rhem said. "It's not just expensive. It's very expensive. The last such artifact I heard about was sold for two million gold coins."
— "Two million gold..." Alisar repeated.
— "Two million gold..." he said again and fell silent for a few seconds. "If I sell first-rank potions... I'd have to sell… two hundred and fifty million of them… Damn. That's really expensive…"
— "Don't be too discouraged. Such artifacts can be found in dungeons too. Higher-ranked ones, of course. And usually, they're given as rewards after defeating a very powerful dungeon boss. So, you might get one someday," Rhem said with a faintly reassuring tone.
— "But if I'm strong enough to beat a boss like that… why would I need the artifact? If I'm that strong, wouldn't I already have enough mana?" Alisar asked.
— "Well, think of it this way. Even if you have one million mana… or ten million… an artifact that boosts it by a hundred million is still a massive improvement," Rhem said.
— "Yeah… that's true," Alisar thought.
— "Alright, enough resting. We need to move. We've been sitting too long," Sherial's voice rang out.
They got up quickly and resumed their journey.
Once again, they continued on, and Alisar still lagged a bit behind. Yes, it was easier walking along an open road, even with a well-secured pack on his back. But the girls had also picked up the pace.
By evening, they reached a village. It was noticeably smaller than the one Alisar had visited earlier. But apparently, it still had several inns. Probably because it was right on a carriage route. Travelers often stopped here.
Along the way, they had indeed seen several carriages. At one point, they even passed a small caravan—more than ten wagons carrying cargo and guarded by a few escorts.
They walked into what appeared to be the most expensive inn in the village—the girls chose it without hesitation. Alisar followed them in.
The girls booked a room for two. Alisar got a single room. He immediately asked for the cheapest one available.
But even the cheapest cost one silver. Dinner added another thirty copper, and breakfast was another thirty.
After paying for the room and meals, he had less than twenty copper coins left in his purse.
Damn. If we don't make it to Geldor tomorrow… I'll have to borrow money from Rhem or Sherial. Maybe they'll lend me a little. Or I could sell them a few potions, he thought.
Dinner wasn't very tasty. In fact, it was even more bland than the meal he'd had at the previous inn. But the room? Yeah—it was worth the money. Much more spacious, and the bed was significantly softer.
Damn. I forgot to use my regenerated mana, Alisar remembered.
He quickly created three second-rank potions. Making first-rank health potions no longer made sense—they took up too much space and were becoming inconvenient. It was better to focus only on second-rank ones now.
While creating the potions, a thought crossed his mind:
Damn, I'm tired…
But he shook his head.
No. I can't just rest. I need to train and gain more levels.
He activated his Training Room skill and disappeared from the inn room.
He appeared in the training room. As always, a message glowed on the wall:
Level 33. Progress: 87%
— "Well, I think I'll finish soon," he told himself.
In less than two hours, progress reached 100%. He earned thirty million experience points and immediately spent them to level up.
---
Name: Alisar
Level: 64
Rank: 3
HP: 9530 + 720
MP: 15,780 + 1440
Strength: 335 + 24
Defense: 308 + 24
Speed: 310 + 24
Intellect: 534 + 48
Magic Power: 517 + 48
Magic Defense: 527 + 48
Free Attribute Points: 0
Skills: —
Special Skills:
— Training Room (Level 34)
— Alchemy (Rank 2)
Remaining Experience Points: 8,015,441
---
Damn, just two hundred thousand more experience… and I would've hit level sixty-five. Oh well. This is fine too, Alisar thought.
He appeared back in his room at the inn.
Time to sleep.
And he quickly fell asleep.
---
In the girls' room, all was quiet.
— "What do you think of him?" Rhem asked.
— "Of who?" Sherial replied.
— "His Alchemy skill. The fact that he can make health potions using only mana. That's a rare ability."
— "Yeah, we need to be careful. But it's not particularly dangerous on its own," Sherial said. "But when it comes to experience potions… that's a different matter."
— "Yes, that's serious," Rhem said, her voice turning colder. "If someone finds out about him… they'll start hunting. Even a nation might declare a manhunt just for a skill like that."
— "A skill like that, in the wrong hands, could cause huge problems," Rhem said quietly.
— "Good thing he can't use it as easily as health potions. If he could… that would be a catastrophe."
— "Yeah…" Sherial nodded. "Maybe we should just kill him?"
Rhem looked at her silently.
— "Sorry. But killing an innocent person… just because his skill might be dangerous someday… I can't do that," Rhem said.
— "It was just a suggestion," Sherial replied. "We'll have to keep an eye on him."
— "Yes. We will," Rhem agreed. "He can't fall into the wrong hands. And if it turns out he himself is dangerous… we'll have to kill him immediately."
— "Yeah. People with skills like that… they can bring catastrophe to the world," Sherial said.
— "Alright. For now, let's just keep watching him," Rhem said.
— "Yeah."