Chapter 31: Serie's Self-blame
The group did not head straight to the human village; instead, they searched along the river for Kurtz's whereabouts.
However, even after searching all day, they made no discoveries. The rushing water had swallowed any trace of their missing companion, leaving growing worry for his safety.
It wasn't until night fell that they set up a small temporary camp and lit a bonfire.
They didn't need to worry about monster attacks here, and as for wild beasts, they posed no danger to them. The Gemir Forest's barrier ensured their safety, though it felt like cold comfort with one of their own missing.
"Don't worry, tomorrow we'll go to that human village. Maybe Kurtz has already arrived there," Kraft comforted, seeing Serie's pale little face.
Mana exhaustion had clearly drained her complexion. The usual ethereal glow that surrounded her had dimmed to almost nothing.
Besides, he had learned earlier that Serie had killed the demon and all the monsters under the demon's command.
Serie had obviously exhausted a lot of her mana.
"I should have done that sooner," Serie murmured to herself, staring into the flames.
They shouldn't have been chased so raggedly by this monster. Her pride stung almost as much as her depleted mana reserves.
But Serie hesitated.
The monster created by that demon possessed the special ability to devour magic, and Serie had no quick way to deal with it.
Every spell she cast had only made it stronger and more dangerous.
Even when she eventually defeated it, she had over-expended her mana, continuously casting spells for it to devour, literally stuffing the monster until it exploded.
The memory left a bitter taste, victory through brute force rather than her skill.
If Kurtz hadn't severely wounded that demon before he fell, her chances of winning against it would have been minuscule.
Even now, Serie's mana remained almost depleted.
She wouldn't be able to use very powerful magic for at least a month. For someone accustomed to having limitless magical power at her disposal, the weakness felt almost nauseating.
"Kurtz is a lucky one; he'll definitely be fine this time too," Dwarf Somo also chimed in to comfort her, his gruff voice unusually gentle.
Everyone could see that Serie and Kurtz had a very good relationship, and now that Kurtz was missing, Serie must be feeling terrible.
The ancient elf who usually maintained perfect composure looked fragile in the firelight.
Looking at the flickering bonfire, Serie felt her thoughts growing more and more grave, as she thought whether Kurtz was even alive or not.
She had only been traveling with this human for a month, so why was she so anxious about his disappearance?
The question gnawed at her like a persistent heartache.
Serie didn't quite understand her current feelings. Regret and frustration intertwined with something else, something she couldn't name.
The flames danced before her eyes, but all she could see was Kurtz falling into the churning water below.
She had clearly promised to protect him and teach him how to survive in this world.
'I am really a useless partner in the end.'
Unbeknownst to her, Serie had already come to regard Kurtz as a partner. The realization would have shocked her if she'd been conscious of it.
Seemingly, just a partner.
Seeing Serie remain silent, Somo scratched his head and looked at Kraft with his eyes, asking if he had any good ideas.
The warrior's usual confidence seemed to have abandoned him in the face of Serie's distress.
But Kraft shook his head.
He was currently in a phase of emotional exploration himself. Understanding others' feelings when his own remained a mystery felt like trying to map uncharted territory.
While he could understand Serie's feelings toward Kurtz, he didn't know how to console her.
Such attachment among others had always intrigued and puzzled him.
The reason he appeared more emotionally expressive than Serie was simply that he had encountered more beings over the years, thus witnessing various kinds of emotions and being influenced by them.
Until the bonfire died out and everyone lay on the ground, Serie still felt no sleepiness. Her mind churned like the river that could only think about Kurtz.
Looking at the starry sky, she recalled her previous discussions about stars with Kurtz. He'd had such strange ideas about them, theories she'd never heard from any scholar or mage.
The small grass on the ground was a bit prickly, and after sleeping on soft blankets for so long, returning to the ground now felt a bit uncomfortable.
She seemed to have been well cared for by that guy.
When had she become so accustomed to his small considerations?
'I'm clearly the more powerful one.'
For some reason, Serie's lips curved slightly upward, a fact she didn't even notice herself.
The memory of Kurtz fussing over her comfort and holding her at night brought unexpected warmth to her chest.
...
On the other side, after a full day of rest, Kurtz felt much better now.
At least walking for him was no longer an issue; although intense movement still hurt a bit, it was within an acceptable range.
He'd tested his limits carefully that morning, stretching and moving until he found the boundaries of his recovery.
It might also be related to the herbal soup Norn gave him. He heard Norn say it was a secret recipe passed down through generations in their village, highly effective for internal injuries.
Even if you suffered a very serious injury, drinking it continuously for a week would allow you to walk, and half a month would restore you to normal. The village's knowledge impressed him; perhaps isolation had its advantages.
Last night, Norn thoughtfully brought him a bowl of feather chicken soup, which contained a large chicken leg and some unidentified wild vegetables.
The chicken soup was very delicious, neither too salty nor too bland. The broth had been rich and warming, settling into his bones with surprising comfort.
Kurtz also found some seasoning spices mixed in. He could only say that humans truly lived up to their reputation; no matter where they are, they can invent all sorts of delicious foods.
"It seems your injury isn't serious anymore," Norn said with a smile, seeing Kurtz walking without problems.
"Yes, what are you doing?"
Kurtz saw Norn holding a quill pen, writing on a piece of animal hide. The scene was surprisingly refined for such a remote village.
However, this quill pen was somewhat abstract; it felt a little out of place in such a primitive setting.
"I'm assigning tasks now." Norn lifted the quill pen in his hand and noticed Kurtz's gaze on it. "Are you curious about this?" he asked with a smile. "It's a feather from a feather chicken. I found it perfect for writing."
Practical innovation, Kurtz was impressed by the simple elegance of the solution.
"Kurtz, you don't need to worry about this guy," Eric walked over from a distance, grinning widely.
"Norn comes up with all sorts of strange ideas every day. I don't know what's going on in his head."
"There has to be some order. If we keep arguing endlessly about food distribution like before, it'll be a headache. This way, there's a basis," Norn said grumpily, not looking up from his writing.
Kurtz looked at the beast hide record in Norn's hand with interest.
There were markings made with charcoal ash mixed with plant juice, resembling ink, clearly indicating the material distribution for each household.
The system showed surprising sophistication.
"Your village already has writing?" Kurtz couldn't help but say.
In this primitive world, seeing such a systematic distribution method was truly surprising.
Earlier, in Somo's village, he had also seen the dwarves writing the standard script of this world, but since the dwarves once ruled a glorious kingdom, it didn't seem so unusual.
But seeing this familiar script in a human village in such a primitive society momentarily took Kurtz aback.
Norn scratched his head awkwardly: "Actually, we all learned from Mr. Kraft. He taught us many things, including writing and counting methods."
'That explains it.'
Eric interrupted, saying, "But Norn is even more extreme. He's constantly experimenting with odd objects. Once, he even tried using tree bark instead of animal hide for writing, but the ink soaked right into the bark."
"Ahem, next time I'll try drying the tree bark before writing." Norn's cheeks flushed slightly at the reminder of his failed experiment.
"Wouldn't it just crumble if you touched it lightly?"
Eric replied with a playful grin, then shifted his gaze back to Kurtz: "You're recovering quite fast."
"Yeah! Why? Want to spar together?"
Eric's eagerness was impossible to miss. Kurtz recognised the look.
"Hmm... can I?"
"Of course, you can."
Kurtz swung his arm in a circle, demonstrating that his body was okay. The motion only caused slight twinges in his healing muscles.
"Eric!!!" Norn called out to his best friend in a tone of dissatisfaction. "You're at it again."
Ever since their fighting skills have improved, no one in the village has been a match for them anymore. The isolation that protected them also limited their growth.
After he got busy managing the village, there was rarely any time to spar with Eric.
So, after Eric found Kurtz, who was from outside, he immediately realised that this guy was probably eager for a fight.
The gleam in Eric's eyes for a good fight was hard to miss.
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