Inside an elegant office, a young man around twenty years old was leaning on his desk, which was situated in the middle of the room. He stood at 177cm.
He had nicely trimmed brown hair, styled elegantly, with an eye shape that gave him a gentle demeanor. Combined with his overall face, he gave off the impression of a kind gentleman.
He was none other than Alex, who was wearing a noble, expensive version of the common professional clothes of the capital, consisting of a grey vest with blue patterns and a white shirt underneath.
On his legs were black trousers coupled with elegant loafers. The fit accentuated his body shape properly — after years of training, his physique had become quite athletic, his torso taking on an inverse-triangle shape. He had a good amount of muscle without looking too big.
Now that his body was enhanced by mana, and coupled with the outfit, Alex could be considered handsome. Not blinding, but certainly someone with nothing to envy, at least as long as he remained well groomed — otherwise, he could still look somewhat shabby.
This was by no means something Alex would normally wear, but since he was the face of an alchemy shop, he had to look the part, especially to attract wealthy clients.
Typically, he would have worn something far more comfortable, such as mage robes, but he had a role to play.
'It has been three years already,' Alex thought.
Today marked the third year since he arrived in Aurethia. He had gone through some trouble to get here, but after settling, most of his time had been dedicated to building the shop and pushing it toward success.
Alex reminisced about the days he spent inside the cave between continents.
Back then, when he first entered the cave, it seemed empty, but the deeper he walked, the more slimy monsters appeared one after another.
They weren't particularly strong, which made Alex even more cautious. That usually meant a powerful predator was lurking somewhere inside, hunting down anything that posed a threat.
He also spent a good amount of time searching for the secret stash of the alchemist. He needed the plants to heal Sylvana.
It took him two days to finally find the stash, where he located Ardent Mallow, Etherleaf, and Primefern — all ancient-class plants.
There were many more expensive magical plants in the stash, but he took none. He didn't know how often the alchemist visited the place, but if the man was a legendary being, Alex hoped that taking only the plants he needed would anger him less than emptying the entire stash.
This meant he still had to find the Saint's Tear eventually, but he was too weak at the time.
After spending another day searching for the exit, Alex found two things: one was the monster responsible for keeping the cave cleared of others.
Alex did not see it directly, but at one crossroad, the mana pulse coming from one of the pathways was so intense that it triggered every instinct he had to flee.
Just like the clawed monster he encountered back in the forest — but this one felt far, far more terrifying.
Alex had no idea how close he was to that creature, and he did not intend to find out.
'I-It's probably a grandmaster or exalted monster.' Alex was so shaken by the mana pulse that even his thoughts stammered.
Fortunately, he was only an apprentice mage. For a monster of that strength, hunting someone as weak as him was probably not worth the effort.
He returned to normal once he reached the end of the opposite pathway, which opened to the outside.
He felt a breeze first, guiding him, and moments later he saw light at the end of the tunnel.
He had spent so long inside that the sunlight almost blinded him.
What greeted him outside was yet another massive expanse of jungle.
It took him weeks of dodging monsters and walking to make his way out. He could no longer fight properly due to his Mana Leakage Syndrome.
This forced him to choose his battles carefully, replenishing his mana only through meditation or the occasional mana potion — he took few of them since further abusing potions risked worsening his condition.
On the way, he also found many useful plants, and others that resembled magical plants but were unfamiliar. He collected them anyway.
Once he finally exited the jungle, he reached a small village composed primarily of hunters and mercenaries who took commissions within the vast forest.
After selling most of his potions, Alex earned enough to hire a carriage toward the port village where he had told Susan to wait for him.
The trip took a week and a half, but he arrived safely in the end.
When he reached the village, it didn't take long to find his family. They rushed to him immediately, embracing him so tightly that Alex had to pry them off him.
Susan was ugly crying now that her son had returned safe and sound. It was as if all the tension she had accumulated since receiving his letter had finally snapped free.
After a while, the family rented another carriage toward the capital.
Along the way, they shared their stories.
Susan explained how the Alderfells had launched a continent-wide hunt for him, and Alex told her — the same as he told Lydia — that he hadn't killed the girl who was with Bren.
After another two weeks of traveling, they reached the capital, where they searched for a house to buy and eventually found one.
It was located near the outskirts of the magnificent capital and was a two-floor building.
Susan bought it with the enormous amount of money she and Eve had earned through their work at Octaviou's alchemy shop.
After purchasing the place, they paid for a full redecoration and for the certification needed to legally sell Alchemy-related items.
Back in the present, Alex's memories were interrupted by a knock on the office door.
"Come in," he said.
The door opened, and a smaller version of Susan popped in.
Eve was now eleven — the age at which she could safely begin practicing magic — and she was more than excited to learn.
"Hey, brother, you promised you'd teach me magic, come on!" she said, her smile wide.
"Yeah, you're right!" Alex said, remembering.
"Then let's go!" Eve said, grabbing him by the hand and dragging him out of the office.