“Kid! Goddamn, you sure took your sweet time.”
Michael smiled. He could feel the old dark elf’s care.
“Don’t worry, old man. I’m fine.”
“Come back quickly! We need to treat your injuries. Entering Mushroom Grotto was the same as punching above your weight, but since you’re out and alive, it would seem that you have cleared it. Congratulations. Are your wounds too severe?”
Tairy’s assumption that he would be injured while coming out of the Dungeon was a fair one, as he had, in fact, been seriously wounded. If he hadn’t learned the Minor Heal Skill, he would have long been turned into a corpse. The Boss fight and his first fight against the Mushroom Warriors had been particularly deadly. His Dragonheart’s assistance proved to be invaluable in ensuring that he did not get permanently damaged.
“Don’t worry. I learned a healing Skill. I’m not injured anymore.”
He could hear the dark elf’s sigh of relief.
“That means you were still injured, right? I’m going to have someone take a look at you when you come back. You may have sustained some damage that your healing Skill wasn’t able to fix. Good work learning a new Skill on your own, although I’m not sure how you did it in such a short period of time.”
“I feel completely fine. If one use of Minor Heal wasn’t enough, I’d just use it again. After repeatedly doing this, I feel brand-new.”
“So it was Minor Heal? A good healing Skill overall but one that doesn’t focus on anything in particular. Just trust me and let me have you looked at.”
Michael sighed and relented. Sure, a check-up couldn’t hurt. He didn’t feel any pain or anything like that, but he would do it, even if only to humor Tairy. He heard his mentor’s voice through the spell.
“What Skill did you pick at Level 20?”
“None. I was planning to do it with you once I got back.”
“A good choice. I can’t believe you weren’t forced to pick a Skill at Level 20 to kill the Boss. You’re stronger than I anticipated. Good work, Michael. I’m glad you didn’t die.”
He smiled.
“I’m glad you’re still around too, old man. Just wait right there for a bit. I’m already on my way back.”
The two shared their goodbyes. The Whisper spell came undone. The journey back was largely uneventful. Even though he had smelled blood and heard fighting, nothing approached him. He had no idea if it was because of simple dumb luck or something else.
Are they actively avoiding me?
He couldn’t help but think so after walking for kilometers unimpeded. He had already left the Dungeon’s immediate surroundings long ago, but not even a single enemy had shown themselves to him. He still had his twin Mana Shields up just in case something happened, but it seemed like he would be able to get back to Bluestone Village without a hitch. At that moment, something in the corner of his vision caught his attention.
Rose’s health bar was nearly empty.
He stopped in place immediately and watched it attentively. He wasn’t on particularly good terms with the woman and they certainly weren’t friends, but there was something morbid about watching someone die through their health bar on a System screen. Then, he realized that her HP wasn’t getting any lower. It seemed to be steadily recovering, albeit very slowly.
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She’s probably out of danger.
His hands danced in the air. In an instant, a complex symbol appeared, with something that looked like a woman’s mouth and lips in its center. He felt a connection. The other party had picked up his “call.” The mouth moved as Rose’s voice came out of it.
“Michael? Is that you? How are you doing this and how did I know it was you before I even responded?”
“It’s a spell I’ve learned. No matter. I saw that your health bar got dangerously low. What happened?”
Michael heard the sound of Rose gritting her teeth.
“Are you in the Village right now?”
“No, but I’m on my way back.”
“Then I’ll tell you in person. This spell kind of freaks me out. In short, I was attacked.”
That’s only obvious.
He held back his desire to let out the biting remark. Rose continued.
“But I wasn’t attacked by monsters. My assailants were people.”
Michael blinked. Now this was a different scenario. Being attacked by monsters was to be expected, but other humans? He momentarily wondered if humans were worth XP to one another before coming to the instant conclusion that yes, they likely were. There was nothing that indicated that the System would treat humans differently. Every living being was a sack of XP to any other living being. He spoke.
“Fine, just sit tight. I’ll arrive soon.”
He dismissed the spell, cutting off the connection. Now that he stopped to think about it, it wasn’t absurd for some people to decide to attack others, for XP or any other reason. There were plenty of people willing to do so even back on Earth. The realization hadn’t yet hit him. Even among the people he had met, they were all comfortable with hunting beasts or monsters for rewards, even if they needed to do so to survive; after all, Bluestone Village only offered resources and shelter to those who proved themselves. In their first meeting, Rose had also attacked him without holding back.
I need to be careful.
So far, in his mind, he had only thought of monsters as enemies. It had been a foolish and naïve train of thought. Humans were much more dangerous than any beast could be. With this in mind, he continued to make his way to the Village. Soon, it was visible in the distance. His arrival drew plenty of stares, as he had expected. A realization struck him. The sight of him was even more strange due to his lack of injuries. His clothes – if they could still even be called that – were destroyed and burned, having been reduced to a mere skirt. He, however, was uninjured.
Looking at it this way, I wouldn’t be shocked if they think I’m like this because I enjoy exposing myself.
With a deep sigh, he hurriedly made his way to Tairy’s home. After entering the Village, he dismissed his dual Shields, which enabled him to walk faster. Of course, he didn’t move too quickly; he didn’t want to risk having his clothing fall off entirely. He reached the front of Tairy’s house after enduring much more attention than he was used to. He knocked on the door, then raised his gaze to watch the tree with blue leaves. It seemed to be glowing even more. It was beautiful. He turned his head once the door opened.
The old dark elf met him with a deadpan stare. After a few seconds of looking at each other, a question was finally raised.
“…Why are you almost naked?”
Michael replied with a powerless voice.
“…Do you have any clothes that I could wear?”
Tairy stifled a chuckle. He walked back into the house, gesturing with his hand for Michael to do the same. The inside of the house was the same as usual: simple and rustic. There were no decorations or anything of the sort. Only the necessary furniture adorned the place. He walked to his room, which had been offered by Tairy. The old dark elf returned after a short while.
“Here. Fresh clothes, but you can only wear them after you take a bath. You might not have any visible injuries, but you still smell like you’ve been through a massacre.”
Michael nodded, visibly relieved, and did as he was told. By the time he was done with his bath and had put on his new clothes and robe, Tairy was already sitting on the stone dais in the house’s courtyard. Next to him stood a new figure. She was an old female dark elf, tall and with graying hair. Her green robe reminded Michael of the color of healing mana.
Tairy uncrossed his legs and turned around on the dais, facing him. He spoke.
“This ancient fossil over here is the one who will see if you still have any injuries. Come on, come over here.”
The old lady scoffed.
“You’re even older than I am, you scummy old man.”
“So what? Being old isn’t just about age. It’s a state of mind.”
“What bullshit.”
The two bickered like old friends. It made Michael smile. He walked up to the woman. She gave Tairy a nasty glance before extending her hands toward Michael. Green and white energy flowed out of her palms, enveloping him in his entirety.