Deep down, Zelier felt genuinely grateful to Bev.
Despite her noble birth, she had shown no trace of arrogance. Instead, she had warmly shown him around the Mages' Guild and shared a wealth of valuable knowledge.
Then there was Instructor Marvin's kind assistance, which had allowed him to collect the guild stipend early.
These were debts of gratitude, to be repaid little by little over time...
"Good evening, Oro."
Returning to the Nightflower Inn, Zelier gave Oro a friendly wave.
"Good evening, Mr. Zelier."
Oro smiled sweetly. "Your new clothes look very dashing."
"Er... thanks."
Zelier scratched his cheek, instinctively glancing away.
"I'd like a bowl of thick vegetable soup, some toasted bread, and egg fried rice, please."
Thinking back to that vision of the Curse of the Immortal, he had no stomach for meat tonight.
"Right away." Oro turned and called back to the kitchen.
The meal was not expensive, costing him only fifty copper coins.
He did not have to wait long before dinner was brought out. Beside what Zelier had ordered, a mug of ale sat on the table as well.
"On the house," Oro said with a smile.
"Thank you..."
The cook at the Nightflower Inn was quite skilled; every dish possessed its own distinct flavor.
Zelier heartily devoured the food, then gulped down more than half the mug of ale in a single draught.
*Burp...*
Most of his exhaustion melted away, and he let out a satisfied belch.
His evaluation was settled, he had bought his wand, and he had sneakily picked up quite a few spells. Right now, he still had one gold coin and some loose change left in his pocket.
He glanced at his status panel.
The progress for Wind Blade, Light, and Water Ball had all reached 10%.
Spells with relatively simple structures truly analyzed fast.
At this rate, in three or four days at most, he would master them completely, and his combat effectiveness would leap by a wide margin.
By then, it would also be about time to head back to the Adventurers' Association and take on more commissions.
***
Four days later, on the outskirts of Blackstone Town.
Within a sparse patch of woods.
Zelier took a deep breath, adjusting himself to peak condition.
*Wind Blade, activate!*
With a flick of his ash wand, an invisible blade flashed past at blinding speed.
*Crack!*
A deep scar gouged into the bark of the tree before him, sap slowly oozing from the cut.
He stepped forward to inspect the damage.
The gouge left by the Wind Blade was over two centimeters deep. If a strike like that landed on an ordinary person, it would leave them severely wounded at the very least.
Zelier nodded in satisfaction.
The lethality was impressive.
Of the three spells learned from Bev, Wind Blade was Zelier's favorite.
It was stealthy, fast, and in terms of raw physical destructive power, even superior to Fireball—making it exceptionally useful against unarmored foes.
Light was purely an auxiliary spell, while Water Ball...
To be honest, Zelier found that spell somewhat comical.
Hurling a ball of water was completely useless unless the target happened to be a blaze or some other fire creature.
He could only consider it better than nothing.
At the very least, when stranded outside with nothing to drink, it could quench his thirst.
Over the past four days, besides mastering those three spells, a pleasant surprise had been waiting for him.
Because of its massive head start in progress, Fire Dragon had also finished analyzing.
Fire Dragon was a Tier 3 magic with a single-layer spell structure, one tier higher than Fireball.
Moreover, in terms of performance, Fire Dragon could essentially be considered an advanced version of Fireball.
Zelier had compared the spell structures of the two.
He discovered that in the mana-charging circuit, Fire Dragon occupied a far larger share, which was precisely why it packed greater power.
To avoid starting a forest fire, Zelier chose to practice by the riverbank.
Mana began to circulate, slowly tracing out the spell structure.
Since this was his first time testing the spell, Zelier took a bit longer; roughly seven or eight seconds passed before a blazing fiery glow flared at the tip of the ash wand.
*Fire Dragon, activate!*
*Boom!*
A massive fireball roughly five meters long erupted forth, blasting straight ahead with terrifying momentum!
Scorched by the searing heat, the river surface hissed incessantly as thick plumes of white vapor rose into the air.
Whether in the kinetic impact of the mana packed inside or the heat it radiated, Fire Dragon far exceeded an ordinary Fireball.
What was more, Fire Dragon had another distinct trait: it could be channeled continuously by expending mana.
As long as your mana pool held out, you could keep spewing flames, burning enemies to cinders.
Zelier cut off the flow of mana, and the massive fireball gradually died down.
"Truly a straight upgrade to Fireball..." Zelier marveled.
With this trick up his sleeve, he felt considerably more secure.
Everything was ready. Next came slaying monsters, earning money, and leveling up!
***
The Adventurers' Association.
Returning here once again, Zelier felt far more at ease.
The air was filled with the familiar clamor, with adventurers either picking out suitable commissions or recruiting teammates.
Amidst the bustling crowd, Zelier even spotted a burly half-orc.
He had pale green skin, thick body hair, and bulging muscles, with a broadaxe strapped to his back that was practically as wide as a door panel.
Though Zelier had no idea how much orc blood ran in the fellow's veins, it was bound to be a higher proportion than Vallis's elven heritage.
Zelier still remembered what Bev had told him about the relationship between the Mages' Guild and the Adventurers' Association, so he scanned his surroundings, searching the crowd for a candidate.
Luck was on his side. In front of the commission board where quests were accepted, Zelier spotted a familiar silhouette.
Marcus was busy picking out a task.
"Hey, Marcus! How've you been?" Zelier clapped him on the shoulder.
"Oh, it's you... Pretty good. Didn't expect us to run into each other again so soon."
Seeing Zelier, Marcus broke into a grin. "So, what do you say—want to team up again this time?"
"Sure thing." Zelier readily accepted Marcus's invitation.
It was always more reassuring to stick with people he knew. At the very least, Marcus could be trusted.
"What kind of commission are you planning to take?" Zelier asked, his eyes sweeping swiftly across the board.
"What's your take?" Marcus asked.
After fighting alongside him against the Mist Demon, Marcus's view of Zelier had shifted.
He had initially thought the young man was merely an inexperienced greenhorn, but he had proven genuinely useful in a crisis.
Otherwise, Marcus wouldn't have proposed forming a regular party with Zelier after their last quest.
"Let's play it safe. Pick something simple?"
This time, Zelier wanted to test how his newly learned spells performed in actual combat.
If a target was too tough, they couldn't handle it; if it was too weak, it was pointless.
Marcus began browsing through the postings carefully. After a moment, he plucked down a commission parchment.
"How about this one?"
Zelier took it to look. It was a request issued by the Blackstone Town Administrative Hall.
Chapter 19