Erik made his way to the village, stopping right before the door to his home. This was it, the result of his hard work was with him. He gulped dry before gaining the confidence to go with it.

The old door creaked as he pushed it open.

“Ben?” A voice from inside asked—his sister. “I've told you to not bother us until you’ve done it. If you have that big of a talent with magic then do your job!” she continued, in a mocking tone.

Erik laughed and stepped inside. “No, don’t worry. Just plain old me.”

“Oh, hey Erik. You came home early today,” Anna said, noting on how during the past few weeks he spent most of his time in the woods and only came home to sleep. “Luckily it wasn’t Ben, I’ve been trying to figure out the old bread recipe mom used and if I had to scold him for going against his word I’d waste a lot of time.”

Erik nodded. ‘Mom’s bread was really good,’ he thought before shaking his head, he didn’t really want to go on a tangent right now.

“Well, either way, I’ve got something special today.” Erik placed the potions on the table, a smug appeared all over his face.

Anna approached them. “What are those?”

Erik gestured to the shimmering green vials, “These are restoration and healing potions. They’re the kind used by adventurers to recover from wounds. I learned how to brew them, and Grandma said they’re good quality. We can sell them for quite a bit of coin.”

Anna’s eyes widened. “Erik, that’s incredible! Mom will be so proud,” she said while stepping back and brought her hands away.

Erik chuckled, she probably didn’t dare to touch them or get too close out of fear of breaking something.

“I hope so, how is she today?” Erik replied.

Anna’s smile faltered a little. “She’s been resting a lot. Some days are better than others. But I’m sure she’ll be thrilled to see you.” she said, trying to not be negative though her eyes told Erik she was done with all of this.

He inwardly bit his lip, trying to not show any emotion to the outside. ‘She has only turned ten recently and she looks like a completely different person compared to last year…’ he felt like he failed as a brother, he wasn’t strong enough to let her have a good childhood.

“Well, wanna go see her? I think this potion might help,” he said as he picked it up. “They cure physical wounds and ailments so Erik thought whatever his mom had would be healed as well.”

What his mom had wasn’t an injury or something that could be fixed. But they hoped, really hoped that the potion could energize her. Perhaps it could make her feel better physically—even if just a little.

Anna shook her head, her eyes avoiding his gaze, and looked beyond him—to their mother’s bedroom door. “I can’t face her, Erik. I just... I can’t. She says she’s fine. She goes around and does things for us… but then there are days we don’t see her.”.

Erik nodded, understanding her reluctance. “It’s okay, Anna. I’ll go see her.”

He walked until just before the door and stopped just like before. ‘This is it,’ he thought, preparing himself to face her again. He had done it many times but it never got easier.

He knocked on the door thrice and asked to get in.

“Yes, you can enter,” the voice from inside invited him.

As he got inside, he was greeted by the small room where his mother spent most of her days. She was sitting by the window, a thin, pale figure working on a shirt. Her once vibrant brown hair had lost some color, and her hands looked calloused and bruised—she wasn’t just lying down like before.

She was so concentrated on sewing that she didn’t even take her eyes off her work as Erik waited before her.

“Mom,” Erik said softly, approaching her.

“What is it, my dear?” she looked up, meeting his eyes.

“Anna is making bread, the kind you used to make.. wanna come to the kitchen and help or just eat some when it's done?” he said, trying to get her out of her room.

“Oh, I’ll go later. I just wanna finish this shirt, it's the first job I’ve picked in a while.”

He understood why she wouldn’t want to stop now however, from the way she was now it probably felt that if she decided to stop, it just would go down and she wouldn’t get any job done. Still, he didn’t want it to be like this.

“Just promise me you’ll go eat in a bit and then we can all spend some time together.”

There was a moment as she guided the needle through the fabric, carefully aligning it with the intricate pattern of the shirt. She then stopped and seemed to ponder it.

“Of course dear, don’t worry. I’ll be better than I’ve been until now,” she said with a small smile. Her words were firm.

Erik tried to say something back but couldn’t. He wasn’t sure whether things would actually change this time, whether this would just be one more good day in the midst of many.

He nodded.

His gaze drifted back to her hands as she skillfully threaded the needle through the fabric. Suddenly, the needle slipped, making her gasp. A tiny drop of blood ran down her fingertip.

“I have this for you, Mom,” he said, stepping forward and placing the small bottle on the old table she worked on.

She looked confused for a moment, it was as if she hadn’t even noticed the potion in his hands.

“This is…” she picked it in her hands, moving it as it to understand before something seemed to click on her. “A potion? So this means...”

“Yeah,” Erik said sheepishly before scratching the back of his head. “It's from the first batch of potions I made. I want you to use it, and get better.”

She hesitated, her brow furrowing slightly. “Erik, I don’t need to use the hard-earned things you keep getting us. It's just a small cut.”

“It's not just for that, Mom. I see how you’ve lost your energy over time… I want to at the very least try to make it a bit better.”

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“Erik, dear, I’m fine. I’m sorry that I haven’t been that present but I’m working on lots of stuff—”

“PLEASE, MOM!” Erik had screamed at his mother for the second time ever.

This time though, wanting to make her feel better.

She opened her mouth but nothing but a sigh came. She looked down before breathing. “Sorry,” she muttered under her breath.

As Erik watched, holding his breath in anticipation, his mother opened the vial and drank its contents in one swift motion. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen. Then, a soft, greenish glow enveloped her, casting a gentle light around the room.

Slowly, Erik began to notice small changes. The calluses on her hands softened and vanished, leaving the skin smoother. The fresh cuts and bruises she had from the day’s work faded, and healed almost instantly. She blinked in astonishment, flexing her fingers, now free from the wear and tear of her labors.

Her hair or skin didn’t regain their healthy glow though, it seemed like that kind of thing wasn’t possible to be “healed”.

Erik knew that one shouldn’t abuse potions as their toxicity would build up in the body over time but he felt this was necessary today-

Alice looked up at him, a small, genuine smile lighting up her face, one he hadn’t seen in far too long. "Erik, I feel... better, it's like I have more energy than ever," she murmured softly.

Erik smiled warmly at her upon hearing those words.

Deep down, Erik knew that the deeper pain she carried was still within. But just seeing her smile again, seeing a small hint of her old self, was enough to lift his spirits.

Without hesitation, he stepped forward and hugged her tightly. She pulled him close, her arms encircling him with the same warmth they once had.

"I miss this," Erik admitted softly.

"Me too," Alice whispered, holding him tighter. "I’ll make sure we have this more often."

The rest of the day passed in a warmth they hadn’t felt in a long time. Alice and Erik helped Anna to her delight and afterward helped Ben in the thing he had been out the whole day for—a farm. Erik wasn’t sure if it would work but it was probably a good idea to start producing some food while they could.

----------------------------------------

The next day, Erik stood outside the village elder’s home, clutching the bag of potions he had brewed. He looked to his side, watching the first rays of sunlight shrouding the land. He had come here to sell the potions he still had before they could go bad.

‘Perhaps with this, I can finally stop working for them,’ he thought, remembering the gang. He hadn’t gone to Ashford in over a month since he stocked in food items and was busy with Katherine. Hopefully, no one figured out where he lived.

This could be his new way of life: creating elixirs with his grandmother and selling them for the good of the village. Of course, he still had to strike a deal.

The village was small and didn’t have any proper market or any shop that would buy those things directly from him, so the only way was to trade the potions for food and money—the latter wasn’t useful here but it was better to have some nonetheless.

He knocked on the door a few times.

“Coming,” a coarse voice from the inside said.

Moments later, the door creaked open, revealing the stooped figure of Elder Faren. His eyes, sharp and inquisitive, peered at Erik from beneath bushy brows. His face looked tired as if he had just woken up and didn’t want to talk to an annoying child.

“Hello old-” Erik stopped himself in his tracks and coughed. He didn’t want to antagonize the man that could give him money. “Elder Faren.”

The man’s gaze pondered on the boy for a moment before his eyes looked to the sides. The elder of the village was a skeptical and cautious man, a trait that let him usually choose the best options for the village.

“What do you want?”

“I wish to sell three of these. I think you’ll find a good use for them as the elder of our village,” Erik opened his pouch and took one of the potions, showing it to the man.

Faren's eyes narrowed. He sighed. “Whatever, come in so we can sit and talk. These old bones don’t like being up all the time,” he said, inviting Erik.

He entered the elder’s home and was directed to sit in a chair near the kitchen table. The elder’s house was considerably larger than Erik’s, with spacious rooms and well-kept furniture. Erik couldn't help but feel some jealousy as he looked around. 'Well, he definitely doesn’t have to share a bedroom with two siblings,' Erik thought, envying the prospect of such luxury.

Elder Faren walked over to a small cabinet, opened a drawer, and retrieved a monocle. He placed it over his left eye and secured the metal chain around his neck.

“Let me analyze the potions,” he said firmly as he sat down.

Erik carefully placed all the vials on the table. Faren approached and one by one, he picked up the potions, holding each vial up to the light. His eyes scoured the liquid inside, looking for any impurities, any sign that something might be amiss. He rotated the vials slowly, watching how the light refracted through the viscous contents.

Satisfied with the visual inspection, Faren uncorked the first vial and brought it close to his nose. He inhaled deeply, closing his eyes as he assessed the smell. It was foul but he seemed to expect that as his face didn’t change. After a moment, he corked the vial and set it down, repeating the process with the remaining potions.

Finally, after inspecting the last vial, he placed it gently back on the table and removed his monocle, his gaze turning back to Erik with a mixture of curiosity.

“These potions are very good. It's been well over a decade since I saw healing potions of this quality. Tell me, how have you made them?”

Erik took a deep breath, feeling the weight of the elder’s scrutiny. “I learned from the witch that lives in the woods, my grandmother. She’s been teaching me her methods.”

Upon hearing that, the elder frowned slightly, his gaze set on Erik. “Oh so you’re Kaf’s and Alice’s son,” he said, as if that name held weight.

“Yes, what about them?”

“Nothing, much. It just makes me think of how your father used to do these kinds of things for us, and now his own son does the same. Either way, he was a good man and I don’t wish to and I don’t wish to diminish his memory.” Faren's expression softened momentarily, a hint of nostalgia in his eyes.

“Then why don’t we make a deal? I’ll provide potions to the village for a set amount of food and money. No one has to die from injuries anymore as long as we have those. Let me help the village my father sacrificed himself for,” Erik seized Elder Faren’s respect for his father and used it as an advantage.

Faren pondered for a moment, bringing his hand to his chin. “I want to help you honestly.”

“Then-” Erik started but was interrupted as the elder continued.

“But I don’t think I got the backing to pay for these kinds of things, most potions go bad after a week or two and I can’t afford to keep paying for them without some contribution from the rest of the village,” his voice seemed to hit Erik in the chest.

“Why don’t you get it, then?”

Faren sighed, and he slowly scratched his thick white beard. “I don’t think they would want to help your family—even if it's stupid.”

Erik clenched his fists, knowing the truth. The people of the village didn’t bother to help the Blake family despite Kaf’s sacrifice. “It’s because of my family, isn’t it? They’ve always envied us, especially after my father’s death. They ignored us when we needed help.”

“It’s... true that there are some who harbor resentment,” Faren hesitated at first but decided to go on. “Your father was admired, but at the same time, he was too perfect. For many, someone like that shouldn’t be a mere human. That’s why they envied him.”

‘Really? That’s the reason? That’s so fucking petty,’ Erik thought to himself, frustrated. That self-made resentment being the reason they disliked them was the dumbest thing Erik could have heard.

“Can’t you help me change their opinion? People here respect you, if you get them to agree to pay some money then we can have a deal. Last year alone three people died from animal attacks in the woods, saving three lives this time is worth more to everyone than some copper coins and potatoes, right?”

Elder Faren slowly nodded. He opened his mouth but before he could answer, the door burst open. A group of people stood there, their faces looked mortified. “Elder Faren! Please, you have to come quickly. A bear in the forest mauled one of our hunters!”

Faren’s eyes widened in alarm, and he turned to Erik. “Stay here, Erik. This is urgent.” He ran to his cabinet and grabbed some alcohol and cloth.

As the elder stepped outside that’s when Erik noticed he didn’t bring a potion with him. Erik grabbed one of his vials and followed Faren outside, his heart pounding in his chest.

Outside, the injured hunter lay on the ground, groaning in pain, blood seeping through his torn clothes. The villagers gathered around, looking to Elder Faren for guidance.

It was a terrifying sight.

Even the elder didn’t seem like he knew what to do for a moment as he kneeled and simply looked at the gaping wound.