Volume 3: Chapter 26 - Repayment

Outer Edge of Eldoria Mountain Range

Usually, I leave my family early in the morning and set out to search the Outer Edge of the Mountain Range for Magical Herbs, materials, etc.

Then, from Morning until noon, I search alone for Magical Herbs and Materials with Master Cecilia guiding me.

At noon, I use the lunch box prepared by Aunt Martha to fill my stomach, then continue searching the nearby area.

In the process, I also sometimes encounter Magical Beasts who become my targets of practice.

Thanks to my constant fight with Magical Beasts, my combat experience has progressed rapidly with the help of Master Cecilia, and I am no longer as afraid of the outer Edge of the Eldoria Mountain Range as I was at the start.

Now this area was as familiar to me as my own home.

However, familiarity was familiarity; I couldn't help but feel nervous today.

I looked back at the boy who insisted on following me as a form of repayment and somewhat regretted agreeing to his request.

Time goes back to an hour ago,

Not long after I finished having breakfast with Aunt Martha today, Robert found me and told me he wanted to follow me to the Eldoria Mountain Range and help me collect Magical Herbs and Monster Materials.

He said it was a form of repayment.

"That, Robert, are you sure you want to follow me in the Eldoria Mountain Range? The Mountain isn't very safe, you know? If we encounter dangerous magical beasts, I won't be able to protect you."

"Don't worry, Miss Reina. I am sure. Although I may not look like it, I am a Second Order Martial Artist and also a Second Order Mage. My strength isn't weak, and I can protect myself."

"Since you saved me before, it's only natural for me to do something to repay this gratitude. I have nothing else besides offering some labour as compensation."

Robert shook his head slightly and sighed at the end.

Although I didn't know why he sighed, I could feel that he genuinely wanted to help me.

However, I really wasn't prepared to take someone with me.

"But you were so heavily injured before..."

"My injuries have completely healed. No need to worry about it, Miss Reina. I am completely fine, and I am in a perfect state."

Before I could finish speaking, Robert stopped me midway, and his words made me speechless.

Really, I get that you want to help me, but I don't want it.

You, a frail person who just recovered, should honestly stay in bed to recover. Why the hell are you so verbose and eloquent? This style doesn't suit a patient.

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I couldn't help but feel frustrated when facing Robert's persistence.

It's not that I can't understand his feelings. If I were in his position, I would have done similar things.

But I genuinely can't accept the fact that he didn't pay attention to his own health and well-being, insisting on facing danger. I am not going to run anywhere. He can just rest and recover to full health before trying to help. It's not like I won't let him.

Just as I was feeling helpless, Master Cecilia's voice transmitted to my mind.

"Take him with you, Reina. He may bring you surprises that you don't expect."

Hm! What does Master Cecilia mean?

I tried to ask Master Cecilia what she meant, but she only pretended to be mysterious and said that I would understand after I took him to the Eldoria Mountain Range.

Listening to her words, I accepted Robert's request in the end and brought him to the Eldoria Mountain Range.

Returning to the present,

"Robert, we need to be careful next. Although this is just the Outer Edge, there are still many First and Second Grade Magical Beasts. You must listen to my instructions next, remember..."

I reminded Robert of common warnings and dangers of the Eldoria Mountain Range.

Watching Robert nod calmly from the side, I breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, Robert wasn't a pig teammate like those in the third rate novels. He listened intently to my instructions and followed them for the next couple of hours of the journey.

The next few hours passed surprisingly peacefully.

At first, I had been worried that Robert would slow me down.

After all, although he claimed to be a Second Order Martial Artist and Second Order Mage, he had only recently recovered from injuries severe enough to leave him unconscious for days.

I had therefore prepared myself to constantly watch over him.

But I soon realised that my worries were unnecessary.

Robert was unexpectedly careful.

He didn't recklessly wander away, didn't touch unknown plants without asking, and didn't make unnecessary noise while we travelled through the forest.

Whenever I stopped, he stopped. Whenever I signalled for silence, he immediately became quiet.

He looked so experienced that it was as if he had spent years living in danger.

In him, I saw a quality that only those constantly on edge would possess.

And this quality was caution. Not just caution, it was extreme caution, which had been honed into instinct. It had become a subconscious actions which needed no thinking.

Exactly what had Robert experienced? Why and how did he develop such habit. He looked so sunny but his past was definitely very heavy.

For a moment, I felt a little curious about the boy next to me.

Corruption of an Evil God, Heavily injured and a strange power which kept him alive. Now his extreme caution.

Everything about Robert was full of mystery.

"Miss Reina, look over there." Robert suddenly called out to me.

"Hm?"

I stopped and turned to look to the side he pointed.

"That's... A Nightstar Mushrooms!"

Looking at the small cluster of mushrooms growing in the narrow gap between two roots of a giant tree, I couldn't help but feel surprised.

Nightstar Mushrooms; they were a rare Second Order Magical Herb and could even considered the best among the Second Order, growing only in places where Magical Energy has accumulated naturally for a long time

Their main use is in alchemy. They're particularly valuable for potions that restore Magical Energy and medicines that stabilise a damaged Magic Core.

Plus, the Magical Energy stored inside a mature Nightstar Mushroom is unusually pure, which makes it an extremely sought-after material by Mages and Martial Artists because it can help them in cultivation and breakthrough.

Normally, this kind of Magical Herb should have been eaten by a Magical Beast in the wild. So anyone who can find it is considered very lucky.

"Robert, we are lucky. This is Nightstar Mushroom..."

I shared my excitement with Robert and told him about how lucky we were to find it.

"Is it that amazing?"

Robert looked quite amazed after hearing my explanation. It seems he hadn't seen anything similar to the Nightstar Mushroom before.

"Quick, there are dozens of Nightstar Mushrooms here. Let's pick them up. We will split them equally later."

I nodded and quickly started to pick up the mushrooms. But then I remembered Robert didn't know the method of picking up the Nightstar Mushroom. So I explained the process to him.

"By the way, be careful when picking them up. You need to..."

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