Michael stared at the ceiling for what felt like a long time. He closed his eyes, taking deep breaths. The pain remained, but it was almost gone. He would have activated Cleansing, but it was better not to reveal his location. His Dragonheart lay dormant, as he couldn’t keep it active all the time, which hindered his healing. Waves of green mana washed over him. Every cast represented a brief respite. Michael thought to himself.

What if I could turn Minor Heal into a constant stream of mana instead of just a burst?

There was nothing to be lost by attempting it. Once he cast Minor Heal, he tried to keep the mana flowing through him for as long as possible. As was the case every time he attempted to use his Skills differently, he struggled at first. He was plagued by the sensation that he wasn’t making any progress, but he now knew better. He had talent. So long as he didn’t give up, he could do this. He kept trying.

After some time, the waves would wash over him twice instead of once per wave at the cost of more mana. This drastically improved his healing abilities, reducing the pain and allowing him to focus even further. The additional mana cost wasn’t something to be worried about. His mana pool was his greatest resource.

Before he could continue with his small experiment, however, he heard the sound of footsteps. Michael stood up, more stable than before. He was managing to deal with the damage he had accumulated.

The footsteps got closer and closer. Michael lifted his hand in preparation. If the people approaching were enemies, he needed to be ready for battle. Thankfully, his expectations were thwarted. The people who walked around the corner and entered the nook were people he was familiar with. James had returned with Elizabeth. Elizabeth took large steps forward.

“Michael! Finally!”

Her arms were outstretched; he accepted her hug with glee and a smile. James grinned at the sight. He spoke.

“Are you sure you don’t need to be healed? I knew you could heal yourself, but I assumed a proper Healer would be better.”

Before Michael could reply, Elizabeth turned to James.

“He can heal himself?” she looked at Michael, “Were you injured when fighting against Derek and his people?”

Michael shook his head.

“I’m alright. The injuries are almost gone. Nothing to worry about.”

James and Elizabeth stared at him for a few seconds before nodding almost at the same time.

“James told me that you managed to kill Derek.”

Michael nodded with a grim expression.

“Yes, but Lohann is still out there. I can’t stop until I deal with him too.”

James sighed.

“You’ve never managed to celebrate small victories, even though this one isn’t small at all. I understand you have a bigger objective to go after but recognize what you have already achieved.”

Elizabeth nodded next to him. Michael let out a deep breath and looked at the ceiling once more. He spoke.

“I guess you’re right. One down, one to go. We should get moving.”

Elizabeth spoke.

“You need to rest, at least for some time. I don’t know what kind of battle you fought against Derek or how many you faced, but you can’t just jump into another one,” she turned to James, “I’ll try to find out if he can enter our Village safely. Stay with him.”

Michael frowned.

“I don’t need protection. I said I’m fine.”

If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

“Just allow me to worry a bit, as a friend.”

James nodded with a solemn expression. Michael sighed. Elizabeth turned around and ran back toward the Village. Michael remained standing, focusing his attention on his surroundings. An enemy could appear at any moment. Next to him, James spoke.

“Relax a bit.”

“No. I’m protecting you too.”

James sighed and shook his head, before changing the subject.

“There’s something you should know. There’s another group of people looking for Lohann. They were also going against Derek, but you’ve taken care of that.”

Michael glanced at him with surprise.

“Oh? Who are they?”

“They’re a faction from Yellowbright. Well, its only faction, really. Unlike Derek’s, it wasn’t built upon fear and violence. From the core members to the newest ones, everything works like a well-oiled machine under the leadership of a single man and his group. This man is antagonistic to Lohann, for reasons I don’t know about.”

A bit of light surged in Michael’s eyes.

“I suppose that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Possibly. Does this organization have a name?”

“Not that I know of, but it shouldn’t be too hard to meet them, since even I am aware of their existence. After you’re done resting, we should make our way to Yellowbright and see.”

With a deep breath, Michael nodded. James glanced at him.

“I have no idea how you managed to obtain a healing Skill. Didn’t you have something better to spend the Skill Point on?”

Michael let out a chuckle.

“I didn’t spend a Skill Point. I learned this one on my own.”

James watched him, mouth agape. It took him a few seconds to recompose himself.

“…Damn. We’ve barely just found out that it’s possible to learn Skills without spending a Skill Point, but you have already learned one so distant from your Class.”

Michael shook his head.

“It’s not as distant as you think. It’s all just mana. The green mana wielded by the Healers and the blue mana of the Mages aren’t too different. I just needed to realize that.”

“If that were true, all of our Mages would be learning healing Skills left and right. You’re talented, my dude. I’m glad. You can fight more than we can.”

“Don’t sell yourselves short. Fighting is about will and determination, not just about firepower.”

After that, silence reigned between the two. However, it wasn’t an uncomfortable kind of silence that pushed one to speak as soon as possible, but instead a peaceful atmosphere. There were no words that needed to be said. Both men understood each other after their long years of friendship. Michael knew that James was simply digesting what he’d heard. Soon, the sound of footsteps rang out. Elizabeth appeared around the corner, entering the nook. She carried new, fresh robes. She spoke.

“Alright, I’ve managed to find out that Michael can enter the Village to rest without negative consequences, so long as he doesn’t start a battle. And,” she pointed at his robe, “Anyone would be able to recognize him as long as he’s wearing those. Change into these robes and then let’s go.”

Michael agreed with her. He readied himself to enter Redglow Village.

Michael spoke after changing his clothes.

“There’s no way to tell how Lohann will react to Derek’s death. We need to reach him as soon as possible.”

Elizabeth chimed in.

“It will take some time for the news to reach Lohann, since none of the Mages in Derek’s hideout were known to be capable of using Whisper. Lohann’s only going to find out once he takes the initiative to Whisper to one of them or to Derek himself.”

“We have no idea how long it will take him to do so. For all we know, Lohann might already be aware of what happened.”

“That’s true, but-”

“No ‘buts.’ We must prepare for the worst-case scenario. I will rush to the possible hideouts Derek mentioned as soon as I can.”

At that moment, a hand grabbed his shoulder. It belonged to James, who spoke with an angry expression.

“What are you saying? Going off alone to fight Lohann and his group? Are you serious? We should get in contact with Yellowbright as soon as possible and receive support.”

Michael fired back.

“I fight better alone. Other groups can’t be trusted, as they all have their own agendas. I’m ready to do it on my own.”

James scoffed. Elizabeth stepped in between them just as the situation was about to devolve into an argument and spoke.

“First things first. We need to get Michael to a safe place where he can rest and finish healing. I know your wounds aren’t serious, but it’s better to be in pristine condition before facing Lohann. He’s powerful.”

James nodded. On that, it seemed that he agreed. Michael let out a small sigh.

“How powerful?”

“Based on what I’ve seen, he’s definitely the most powerful Mage I know. Uh, maybe apart from you.”

Michael scratched his chin in thought. He had reached his level of power, so couldn’t Lohann also be powerful? Of course, there was no way to match his Dragon blood, but…

I’ll be careful.

“Alright. I’ll follow your advice.”

Elizabeth let out a sigh of relief and continued leading the way. At the same time, Michael was lost in his thoughts. He was used to fighting alone and had fully planned to go after Lohann on his own, using other people only as sources of information, including this organization in Yellowbright. Part of the reason was also that he didn’t want his friends to be in danger. It was a naïve and rather foolish wish given the state of the Tutorial, but he still clung to it. He would keep his friends away from harm.

As his thoughts reached this point, he naturally thought of his mother. At least he would be able to look for her in Redglow as well, even though his friends had failed to find her there. He didn’t want to lose hope.