[“Could you not build another stairway using [Terra Wall]?”] Saori asked me.

I remembered the stairway I created on the cliff’s wall, intending to have Saori use it to scale the cliff during our rescue attempt. It, unfortunately, got destroyed during the battle, but that was not the problem here.

[“I could.”] I nodded. [“However, the last thing I wanted to be was ‘Forest Burner’ and ‘Cliffer Breaker’ Hestia.”]

I still remember what happened when that troll shaman managed to break the cliff down after I hollowed it out with [Terra Wall]. For the sake of the future and to prevent having environmental damage on my conscience, I decided it would be better to avoid it.

I mean, how many trees have I burned down? Didn’t Saori and I collapse two cliff sides a few days ago? Pretty damning if you asked me. However, the actual reason why I didn’t want to go with that plan was due to something else.

In my fight against the trolls, I received the skill [Air Walk] after [Acrobatic] reached level ten.

Air Walk: A skill that allows the user to concentrate mana around their limbs, holding them in the air. Mana and stamina will be continuously used until this skill is deactivated

Reading the description, an idea that might just work popped up in my head.

Considering the description mentioned, I would have to use quite a lot of my mana and stamina to keep myself afloat; it probably would be hard to use it in a combat situation for a prolonged time. Maybe dodging or just holding myself in the air for a few seconds should be possible, though.

Still, it should have its usage outside of a fight; in fact, I believed it was an amazing scouting and traveling tool. It also depended on my proficiency with it and how I managed my resources while using the skill, so I was sure that if I used it more often or got more mana and stamina, this skill would become a staple for me.

So …

[“Could you guys move a bit back?”] I held my palm up and gestured to Tasianna and Saori to move away from the area.

Once they were at an acceptable distance, I returned back to my [Humanize Lv. 7] form, giving me my wings back. Two green magic circles then appeared under my hands, directly below my wings, ready to shoot [Wind Blast] onto the ground. I also readied the spell [Flame Explosion] under me.

My parallel minds were warning me that I shouldn’t overdo it; otherwise, I would burn myself with my own flames. With how high my intelligence stat was and how low my wisdom was, that was actually a real concern.

I haven’t trained my resistance skills through self-mutilation in a very long time. Once I evolved into a [Young Spark Fire Dragon], any of my spells were very likely to hurt me.

However, now that my basic knowledge of magic theory improved, I believe it would be best to resume it. It would double as a way for me to become more adept at controlling my magic while also upgrading my resistance skills in the process. SP was getting harder to get, so I should be more frugal about it.

Ok, [Flame Explosion], don’t kill me, please. Reduce the power of the flame to the level that my [Inferno Resistance Lv. 1] can fully block the damage. Come on, System, I know you can hear my thoughts. I just need a boom, not a grilled dragonewt.

All right, here goes nothing!

Having steeled my resolve, I jumped into the air and activated my spell.

“Flame Explosion!”

The magical circle flickered for a bit, sending sparks into the air, until a great fire exploded from the ground, sending me up into the air from the shockwave alone.

Proficiency requirement fulfilled. [Inferno Resistance Lv. 1] evolved into [Inferno Resistance Lv. 2]

Arrrrgh, Major Heal! Scheiße, it still huuuurts! … But I didn’t kill myself! Yaaaaaah!

After a couple of seconds, a warm updraft began forming, slowing down my descent as I glided in the air. Unfortunately for my nose, the wind carried around the scent of my burned flesh and scales, assaulting me with the disgusting smell of “Rare Hestia.” Clenching my nose, I activated my [Wind Blast], sending winds down to collide with the updraft, which converged together to send me even higher.

With this, I reached the height of the cliff, but I wasn’t done yet. I still had more parallel minds to shoot out more wind spells. I continued doing this until the flame on the ground died out. At that point, my little experiment sent me high enough that I could view the whole forest again, just like during my first flight.

My lips curled into a smile as I confirmed the direction where the elven kingdom should be—behind a valley where the Belzac mountains separated in two. This was north, according to Tasianna. At the same time, I had to frown a bit since the only way we could reach it would be through the giant Niagara Falls swamp place I had seen before.

“Woooooooohoooooooooo!” Disregarding that, though, being so high in the air, to the point it felt hard to breathe, was an amazing experience.

Despite my attempts to flap my wings, I was unable to create enough lift to keep myself from free-falling. I wasn’t disappointed. I knew it would be impossible for me to fly without [Wind Blast] or so until the mana paths in my left wings healed up.

Still, I enjoyed this little bit of time I could be up here. Flying was liberating, but even some skydiving could be great fun. It helped that I didn’t need to fear heights at all at this point.

Twirling and tumbling in the air, my body was closing to the ground. From this distance, I saw Tasianna screaming and panicking while Saori simply held up a thumbs up, probably saying, “Hope you’re having fun.”

Oh yes, I was.

To prevent myself from turning into a lump of meat, I activated [Aerokinesis] and started controlling the air to slow down my fall. Once the speed of my descent was at an adequate level, I poured my mana into my feet and activated [Air Walk], hop-skipping the rest of the way to the ground.

[“Princess Hestia, are you okay?! Did you hurt yourself somewhere? Why were you falling so fast!”] The first one to greet me after landing was an anxiety-filled Tasianna. I was honestly feeling a bit bad for not warning her, but Saori didn’t seem to mind.

[“Sorry, Tasianna.”] I soothed her by letting her land on my palm. [“To answer your question, I damaged my wings when I was younger. I can’t fly anymore.”]

It was true. I lost my ability to fly when I was four months old, so technically I wasn’t lying.

Tasianna covered her opened mouth with her hands in disbelief before demanding to see where the injured area was. [“Unbelievable! You cannot heal yourself? Please, show me.”]

[“My left wing. My status board says that my mana paths are damaged, and without them, I can’t fly. Not even in my dragon form.”]

[“Your mana paths?”] Tasianna looked a bit confused at what I said but immediately shook it off and gave my left wing a check-up. [“Oh dear, it’s true. I can’t see it exactly, but I feel there is a blockage in your mana somewhere here, including slight accumulation in these areas around the joint of your wings.”]

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She then started touching the part where my wing was connected to my back. She told me that as a fairy, she was more sensitive to mana than most races, Although she couldn’t tell what exactly was wrong, she told me there was an uneven amount of mana around that area. It meant it should be hard to allow mana to flow from my body to my left wing, which I confirmed.

She frowned before giving me the bad news, [“It is unfortunate, but you will need a doctor.”]

Tasianna explained to me that mana paths were millions of little long paths that transported my mana throughout my body. There were gateways in my skin that allowed the mana from the air to flow into me. Coupled with my body’s natural mana regeneration, this made up how I recovered mana.

The explanation made me think these “mana paths” were very similar to blood vessels. Was it like a physical thing inside my body? Was I born with these, or could they be grown? What would happen when somebody from another world were to be transported here, just like a normal “Portal Fantasy” novel?

Tasianna explained these mana paths were actually just mana flowing around my body, so they were invisible to the common eye like the pure, raw mana in the air or ground. Although she didn’t understand why I brought my last point up, she predicted if that were to happen, mana would slowly form inside their body. It would mean their mana growth would be lower than Peolyncians, though. Probably.

Back to my injury, the System was the one to determine the state of my wings. I still could feel mana inside of it, but it felt extremely hard to control it right now. I could probably cast a spell with it, but it would be significantly slowed down to the point that it would inconvenience me as parallel minds would be occupied.

Normally, I could heal them with healing spells. Although not physical like blood, the mana paths adapted to my general form, so if I healed my body, they could reconnect. However, for some reason, it wasn’t happening right now. Saori brought up that “uneven amount” Tasianna mentioned, which probably was the reason, even if none of us knew what that meant.

Now that I think about it, it probably occurred during the garm matriarch fight, where I messed up my healing process when she slashed my back. That was where I received this status ailment, after all.

Most likely, when I used my healing spell on it, I only had them heal my wounds. The matriarch mentioned I shouldn’t use any spells when she did that, but in my panic, I did. She used some venom on me back then, so it could be that some of those fluids were still inside me. It could probably be the reason why my mana paths were severed.

Hmm, maybe I could try it now. System, heal my mana paths. I want to be able to pour mana back through my left wing! Cure! Major Heal!

…

[“What a shame …”] I cried out in disappointment. [“Even [Major Heal] doesn’t work. How will a doctor help at this point, Tasianna?”]

[“Well, we specifically require a mana surgeon, a person specialized in fixing mana-based problems. During a mage’s training, accidents can happen which may cripple an apprentice’s mana paths,”] Tasianna stated before beginning to describe the process she heard from a book. [“Using tools and techniques, they open up your wounded area and release pressure from it, I believe. Once done, they would heal you with either holy magic or potions.”]

That simple?

[“If it’s that simple, then I can do that, too. Tell me where I should cut, please,”] I demanded.

[“Hold on, Hestia.”] However, before I could do it, Saori interjected herself into the conversation with a brow raised. [“I believe it would be wise to leave this to an expert. You will only make your injury worse if you are being rash about it.”]

[“I agree with Madam Saori. I must beg you to reconsider,”] Tasianna supported Saori’s argument with a worried face. [“I’m but a simple maid. I cannot tell you all the details you will need to perform a successful surgery. However, we are going to Saelariel, yes? I can assure you that they will have plenty of surgeons if you remain patient, my lady.”]

Giving a sigh of resignation, I decided to listen to the sound judgment of my companions. Tasianna’s explanation probably was too simple for me to rely on. If I were to cause another accident, what else would I harm myself with? In my eagerness to fly again, I nearly made a fatal mistake.

Seeing me worried, Tasianna clapped her hands and began speaking with a bright expression, [“There is another thing, Princess Hestia. Good news, actually. You actually don’t need proper mana paths to be able to fly.”]

I tilted my head and let out a “Huh?” before asking Tasianna to clarify.

[“Your wings haven’t matured yet. They are far too small to carry you in the air. I haven’t inspected your dragon form’s wings yet, but they must be similar.”]

[“W-wait, you’re telling me that I can still fly despite my injury?”] In my shock, my voice went high-pitched, sounding extremely shrill, when I wanted to confirm her words.

Tasianna nodded. [“You are still a dragon whelpling, aren’t you? You are not even a year old yet. Dragons grow fast like most monsters, so you will only need to wait. Your wings will grow strong in no time!”]

Nice!

Still holding Tasianna in my palm, I jumped and cheered like a little girl completely enamored with somebody who agreed to one of her wishes. In fact, I should have probably realized this earlier, but I really thought dragons could only fly using mana in this world. Kinda weird that I had to wait for somebody to tell me the most obvious thing in the world.

Wait, if my dragon form is the size of a horse, then how large will I be once I become an adult dragon?

[“Princess Hestia, if you would allow me, I would be honored to take care of your wings until they are strong enough to lift you.”] Tasianna left my palm and began flying in the air, flapping her blue, butterfly-like wings at a wingbeat resembling a real butterfly.

Tasianna was proudly offering her services, knowing she could finally help me with something besides making tea and cooking. As it wouldn’t obstruct me very much, I agreed wholeheartedly. I didn’t know what she would do, but I still thanked her nonetheless. In my excitement, I immediately grabbed Tasianna in my left arm and wrapped my arm around Saori’s waist with my right one, grinning mischievously.

[“P-Princess Hestia?”] Tasianna let out, panicked.

[“Hestia, what are you planning to do?”] Saori yelped a bit, anxiously staring at my face.

Once they noticed the green magic circles appearing under my right wing and the giant red one under us, their panic turned into terror.

[“W-wait, Hestia! It is okay when you do it, but do not think of doing it with us!”] Saori, having realized my intentions, tried to tear my arm off her waist, but sadly for her, my strength was still higher!

[“No, no, Princess Hestia! I can fly. I can fly. I can fly—”]

Without letting Tasianna end her sentence, I jumped and activated [Flame Explosion] to send us all into the air while continuously activating [Wind Blast] to ascend even higher.

[“—oooooonnnnnn myyyyyyyy ooooooowwwwwwnnnn!”]

Due to my previous experiment, I already knew what to adjust about the spell, significantly reducing the firepower but still keeping the shockwave that sent me upwards. Saori held on to me tightly, looking scared as she clenched her teeth and eyes shut. It looked a bit weird as I was a head shorter than her.

[“Saori, open your eyes!”] Having reached the same height I previously was at, I called out to Saori to open her eyes so she wouldn’t miss this sight.

She hesitatingly opened her eyes, immediately widening in amazement once she was able to see the sight. Her mouth was agape as she continued staring into the sunset, before glancing down at the emerald sea of trees, framed by a ring of large mountains in the distance, and the clear, slight orange sky above. She turned her head around, fully immersing herself in the experience, not wasting even a single second of this spectacle.

“Wow …” Saori let out an amazed voice.

[“I rarely ever would fly this high, but seeing the sunset again brings back fond memories of my earlier years,”] Tasianna reminisced while enjoying the horizon.

Being able to share this sight with my friends made my chest feel warm. I was imagining being able to do this with them every day and all the potential ways we could have fun.

The whole-wide world was still so small to me. I only knew this forest, so this was all I had for a worldview. Would the rest of Peolynca bring me happiness, or would it bring me sadness? The future was unknown, but I couldn’t wait to take a step towards it.

However, for now, I couldn’t leave my birthplace just yet. Our trip would lead us north to the elves. My dream and new life lay behind that goal, and I had to toughen up and walk forward. I had to start becoming an idol.

[“Uhhh, Hestia?”] Saori’s voice woke me up from my daydream.

[“Yeah?”] I replied nonchalantly.

[“We are falling!”]

Looking down, I watched as we were falling towards the forest at a frightening rate. Controlling the air with my [Aerokinesis], I slowed down our descent and then started walking on air.

The night would come soon, so we needed to find a place to rest for the night. As I wanted to take a bath for the night, I decided to head towards the lake we found a few days ago, with Saori and Tasianna still in hand.

[“Oof, my legs are really feeling it now.”] You would think walking on air was easy, but [Air Walk] said no.

After what felt like a ten minute walk, we finally reached the lake. Releasing Saori and Tasianna from my grip, both began stretching, probably from how uncomfortable “Hestia Airlines” was. I mean, it wasn’t like I could afford luxury at this point, no?

[“Urgh, you held me too tightly, Hestia,”] Saori grumbled while adjusting her clothes. [“Hmm, there seem to be a few monsters in the lake.”]

[“Oh, really?”] I checked using my own skills, confirming that something was in it. [“Well, some grilled fish sounds like a pleasant dinner.”]

I then took out our camping tools and placed them on the ground so Saori and Tasianna could prepare our camp for tonight while I walked to the lake to fish.

“All right, time to do some exercise. Ahem, come out now!” To note, when I mentioned fishing, I meant killing the fish with a grand EXPLOSION. This was grenade fishing!

Once it entered the water, it only took the bomb a few seconds before it created a deafening boom burst, sending a huge geyser of water into the air. As I was looking proudly at my handiwork, I suddenly noticed the silhouette of the monsters being tossed into the air, hiding behind the falling water.

Huh!

Multiple large monsters with moist-looking skin and two long hind legs.

Eeeeeek!

A sudden primal fear inside me resurfaced. A fear that I had since I was a child, which had never appeared while I lived in this forest. I completely forgot I ever had it, but tonight, this very trauma came back to me. With loud ribbits, it felt like they were laughing at my face. Taunting me.

I knew it was a simply childish and stupid trauma, but I averted my face the moment I caught even a peek at those “things.” My teeth clattered against each other, my body shivered, and my eyes couldn’t open despite my will to do so.

“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEK! KYAAAAAAAAAAHH!”

[Terror (Minor)] applied on [Young Spark Inferno Dragon, Hestia Atsuko]