Chương 38: Extra Subsidies

"Try to be careful whenever you're out adventuring." Marven hesitated for a moment, as if he wanted to say something more, but ultimately kept it to himself.

"Master Marven, I have one more thing I'd like to ask."

"What is it?"

"How much is the monthly stipend for a Low-tier Mage?" Zelier asked seriously.

"…" Marven silently stared at him.

"Twenty gold coins." The moment he heard the amount, Zelier's eyes lit up. Twenty gold coins… Just by becoming a Low-tier Mage, he could get twenty extra gold coins every month out of nowhere?! Seeing the way Zelier's eyes practically sparkled at the mention of money, Marven couldn't help but shake his head. Every day he went out taking quests from the Adventurer's Association, yet he had still managed to raise his strength to this level through meditation. Sigh…

If only Zelier had been born into a noble family that never had to worry about resources. Perhaps his growth would have been even more astonishing. …

"Zelier, wait for me!" Just as Zelier left the Quiet Chamber, he heard Lante calling out from behind. The young noble hurried over from the tree-lined path, taking small hurried steps while breathing heavily.

"What's wrong?" Zelier stopped and looked at him curiously.

"Well…" Lante steadied his breathing, but his eyes kept darting away nervously. After hesitating for a long while, he finally gathered enough courage to say:"Zelier, I want to ask you… please teach me!"

"Teach you?" Zelier was slightly surprised.

"Teach you what?"

"About magic!" Lante raised his voice.

"I want to have the same level of mana strength and mana control as you!"

"Shouldn't you already have a teacher?" Zelier still didn't quite understand.

"Their skills are definitely better than mine. If there's something you don't understand, wouldn't it be better to ask your own teacher?"

"It's different." Lante shook his head repeatedly.

"Although I can't really explain it… I just feel like you and my teachers are completely different. There's something special about you…" If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it. He paused, searching for the right words.

"Your temperament, maybe?" That actually caught Zelier's interest. He smiled slightly.

"What kind of temperament?"

"A sharp and decisive aura!" Lante finally found the words.

"You're an adventurer, right? I heard adventurers take extremely dangerous quests. Your magic abilities were forged in that kind of environment, weren't they?"

"Uh…" Zelier narrowed his eyes and thought for a moment.

"Probably not…?" It was true that he gained experience by killing monsters and improving his attributes. But that method only worked for him. If other mages spent too much time completing quests instead of meditating, their progress would actually fall behind those who focused solely on meditation. For a mage, the only true path to increasing strength was meditation.

"No, I think that's exactly it!" Lante clenched his fists. Zelier's denial didn't weaken his belief at all.

"The essence of magic must be understood between life and death! Only by constantly challenging powerful enemies can someone grow stronger faster!"

"Why does that sound more like something a warrior would say…" Zelier quietly muttered.

"Which is why!" Lante looked at him with burning determination.

"Zelier, please take me with you next time you go on a quest!" Such overflowing enthusiasm… Zelier sighed inwardly. However—"No." Zelier rejected him without hesitation.

"Why? I won't make you take me for free! I can pay you, really!" Lante became anxious.

"You just said it yourself. Adventuring is dangerous. Taking you along on a quest when you're not prepared would be extremely irresponsible."

"I'm not afraid." Lante answered firmly.

"This isn't about whether you're afraid or not." Zelier's expression became serious.

"You could die." Only after hearing those words did Lante finally quiet down. He lowered his gaze, his expression dimming.

"Right… I guess that's true. I can't even meet the requirements to become an Apprentice Mage right now. Going with you would only make me a burden…"

"Don't be so discouraged." Seeing Lante's disappointed expression, Zelier felt a little sorry for him. He patted the young mage's shoulder.

"How about this? When there's a suitable quest in the future, I'll bring you along." Lante immediately looked up, his eyes shining again.

"Really?!"

"I won't lie to you. But before that, you have to promise me you'll meditate properly and improve your strength."

"I promise!" … The outskirts of Blackstone Town. A deserted woodland. Vaelis stood alone in the center of an empty clearing, his hand tightly gripping his longbow, Luna's Edge. The first impression this bow gave wasn't brutality. It was elegance. Crafted from snow-wood, the entire bow was pure white, its curves flowing with extraordinary smoothness. Like the arc of a crescent moon. Or the horns of a swift antelope. This was his inherited weapon. A weapon that carried his mother's will. Vaelis closed his eyes.

His entire body became as still as a silent statue, almost blending completely into the surrounding forest. Inside his mind, the battle against the Giant Winged Bat from several days ago replayed over and over. Every scene slowed down. Every movement stretched endlessly. The airflow created by each beat of the monster's wings. The trajectory of every dive and glide. The bone spurs wrapped in razor-sharp wind blades. Fast. Deadly. Savage. Yet incredibly precise.

"No…"

"I was wrong…"

"Its wind wasn't simply wrapping around the bone spurs…" Vaelis dissected the memory again and again.

"That wind was pushing them forward. Accelerating them. Enhancing the speed and sharpness of a physical object…" He attempted to incorporate the Giant Winged Bat's attack method into his own techniques. Time passed. He didn't know how long he had remained immersed in his thoughts. Finally, Vaelis opened his eyes. His gaze was filled with absolute focus and calm. He centered his mind and directed all his attention toward his Heart of Qi.

Although it was called a Heart of Qi, the core was actually located in his lower abdomen. As Vaelis reached a state of perfect concentration, a unique energy slowly seeped out from his Heart of Qi. It flowed into his bloodstream. Then traveled all the way to his fingertips. A sharp numbness and aching pain spread through his right arm. A sign that his body had yet to fully merge with Aura. Vaelis endured the discomfort and pulled a normal broadhead iron arrow from his quiver. He nocked the arrow. Drew the string.

The bow bent into a perfect crescent. The Aura gathered at his fingertips began attempting to merge with the arrow.

"Release!"

"Whoosh!" The arrow shot forward. But the instant it left the string, the unstable Aura at the arrow's tail suddenly erupted! Crack! The wooden shaft snapped in half. The arrow failed before it even flew several meters, tumbling uselessly into the dirt. Failure. Vaelis narrowed his eyes and fell into thought.