The concern in my mother’s eyes was obvious and it pained me to see it.

“How are you holding up with all this?” I asked her, concerned for her mental health.

“I’m worried for you. I always am.”

“Don’t be,” I said in an attempt to cheer her up. “I have Elysa behind me. We’ll figure out what this is all about and take action where necessary. For now, let’s just get a talk with Soranir and inform him about things, see what he thinks.”

“I’ll speak with him as soon as I get the chance. I think the earliest would be tomorrow,” My father said.

I nodded. “That’s fine. Let’s look at it then.” My lips curled into a smile. “For now, we have a bit of a present, as promised.”

Lilinia simply nodded but didn’t speak. It would seem I wasn’t going to wash her worries away as easily as Cellestra did with mine. I removed the bag from my back which held the cold slab of meat and laid it on the table.

My father curiously peeked inside and chuckled.

“You were right when you said not to prepare for dinner too much. This looks amazing. You got this from the dungeon?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Apparently it has creatures called Bisons. They look like cows, but hmmm… stronger I guess. Its meat is delicious.”

“Thank you,” He said warmly. “That’s very sweet of you.”

He then paused for a few seconds. “What are your plans for today if I may ask?”

“Hum,” I let out. “Not sure. I think we should go to the forest, work some on our shelter. We can’t stick around here for too long, but we’ll be here for dinner.”

“Uhm,” Cellestra let out quietly. “Could I have something for lunch, perhaps?”

“Sure,” My mother replied. “A sandwich with cheese okay?”

The brunette nodded as Lilinia stood up and took the bag with her inside.

“You said you were creating a nest, right?” My father asked to which I nodded. “Are you really okay with all that? I mean…” He seemed to be concerned about my mental health. Even though I told him I was perfectly fine with what I was now, he still didn’t seem to grasp it entirely.

“I get it,” I said. “And yes, I am. It’s surprisingly comfortable, and it’s really the best way for me to sleep. As I said before, it’s strong and warm as well.”

“Are you not worried about what people will do when they find something like that? I guess I should have a look myself soon.”

“I am, actually, but we’ve put up notes and I believe people know it belongs to me. They will soon enough anyway.” I was still a bit worried about people who may have bad intentions. I chuckled before I continued. “You should definitely check it out. Although, it’s not finished just yet.”

“I’m looking forward to it. Just give me a heads up when you’re done and want me to look at it.”

“I will,” I replied, trying to put him more at ease with a smile.

My mother returned with some food for Cellestra, and cups of tea for us both. I thanked her for the gesture and took my time drinking it. I formally invited my mother to check out our home in the forest when it was done. Of course, Elira would join too. I could already see the little elf’s glowing eyes in my mind.

After a quick lunch, we waved them goodbye for now as we made our way to the forest, coming up with a plan for the day. First, we would check at the shrine if we could sell the scroll and what the possible gain would be. Then, we would work on our home and practice magic, and by the end of that, it should be late enough for Elira to be done with school.

And so we arrived at Nilene’s shrine. The fires still reacted in the same manner to me, invoking awe from some of the visitors. Cellestra headed inside to summon the head priest from earlier. A minute or two later, he walked out with the green-robed and hooded figure.

“Greetings,” He said warmly. “I was told you wish to sell a magic item you found in a dungeon?”

“Yes. A spell scroll for a permanent spell called holy bolt.”

“And you found this item, personally?”

“I did, yes,” I said with a nod.

The priest then turned his gaze to one of the roaring braziers, as if waiting for something. Nothing happened, and several seconds later, he turned back to me.

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“Could I check the first line?”

“Of course.”

Cellestra placed her backpack on the grass and took the spell scroll, carefully opening it to only reveal the first line. She then held it up so the priest could read the beginning.

“A very interesting find indeed. Why would you sell this?”

“I already have a holy spell, two actually. We’re looking to sell it and then buy some different spell scrolls later on.”

“I see,” He said as Cellestra closed the scroll.

“How does fifty gold coins sound?”

“Before we sell it, could you tell us the average price of scrolls that teach you permanent magic spells? They don’t have to be that advanced. Basic spells are fine.”

“It depends on the supply,” The priest said honestly. “On average, for basic spells, I would say about five coins, but again, it fluctuates. This spell scroll falls under intermediate magic.”

“How do you know?” I asked. The only thing I knew of the spell was the name, and nothing about it implied it was of a certain quality.

“We have plenty of experience with holy spells,” He said. “And while there are many types of spells, the one constant is their name. Mid-tier spells are called Holy, whereas advanced spells are called ‘heavenly’. The basic ones are called ‘light’. Of course, there is a bit more to it, such as the shape of magic, in this case, bolt, but this has more to do with the required mana pool of the caster. Holy spells require a great deal of magic to cast, and advanced ones are hardly appropriate for everyone to learn for that reason. Basic and intermediate ones are very sought after, just to have something that works against certain enemy types. They are simply a must-have in some dungeons.”

That was a good deal of important and interesting information that he just provided us.

“That’s… very interesting. Thanks a lot.”

I thought for a few moments more about the price that was offered. It was clear I’d been incredibly lucky with this find. This new dungeon here had yielded no confirmation of treasure, or the mere presence of it yet, let alone anything as special as a spell scroll. If I sold this, even with fluctuating prices, I would still be able to buy several scrolls in return.

Of course, I wouldn’t spend all the money on that, but I wanted to buy just one or two for Elira.

I shook my head. I couldn’t believe how easily she had stolen my heart.

“Fifty gold sounds good,” I said after a while.

It would be plenty of coins to support us, not that we used them for much. For the time being, we would save the majority and look at what we needed in terms of armor and weapons. Cellestra would take full priority in that regard.

The priest nodded. “If you’d be so kind to wait for a few moments then,” He said before walking towards the shrine.

“We should check in the city where to buy those scrolls,” I said to Cellestra.

“We can do that tomorrow,” She replied. “Our items should be finished by then as well.”

I nodded. “I was thinking the same. Do you think it would be a good idea for you to pick up a spell scroll as well? I mean, as far as I can tell, we will be stuck on this healing spell for quite some time. We could simply get you a spell so we can finish the trial.”

Cellestra shook her head. “I don’t think that will work. Your spells are different than what I’m used to. I fear that if I used any other magic, it could result in misfires. If you’re in a hurry to join the guild, you could do the dungeon if you want to.”

“But you won’t get to do anything then.”

“That’s fine,” She said. “It can’t be helped. That healing spell is too important. Besides, it’s only the entry trial. You can always teach me your spells so we can do things together later on.”

“That’s true.”

I thought about all the things we would be doing in the coming days and chuckled. “With all this, how are we ever going to have the time to enjoy life?”

Cellestra giggled softly and patted my back. “Don’t know about you, but I’m enjoying life a lot right now.”

“Yeah,” I said, watching the brunette’s smile and purple eyes. “You’re right. Even with all this, I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed it as much as I am right now.”