Chapter 86: Something's Off with Serie
The party had taken up temporary residence in the elven village. Fortunately, news of the Sky-Winged's attack on the dwarven ruins, and on Serie, had not yet spread. Otherwise, Olivia would have likely been cast out. The entire dwarven ruins had been wiped from the face of the earth, leaving only a massive crater. It was clear to anyone that only a Divine Strike could have caused such devastation.
During their stay, Rhodes had made a point of asking the elves here for news from the front lines. The situation was not good. At first, for some reason, the demons' offensive had weakened. Even without the Sky-Winged army, the elves and dwarves had been able to hold their own. But then, the demons had renewed their assault with even greater ferocity. The front lines were now in a precarious state, and everyone was eagerly awaiting the return of their allies. But their hope was in vain. The Sky-Winged were finished. The demons had likely split their forces, with one group pinning down the allied army on the front lines while the other launched a surprise attack on the weakened Sky-Winged. Now, with the successful ambush force having returned to the front lines, the pressure on the elves and dwarves had undoubtedly intensified.
But there was nothing Rhodes could do. Perhaps, once Org was recharged, he could unleash a 'light-beam cannon' on the demon army and turn the tide of the battle.
And in their time in the elven village, he and Serie had been studying the healing magic in the holy scripture together.
"The structure of this healing spell is very unique," Rhodes said, pointing to the complex runes on the page. "You have to split your mana into three streams and condense them in different ways."
Serie leaned in to look, and then, as if suddenly realizing how close they were, she took a step back. "I'll try," she said.
Rhodes looked at her, a little puzzled. "What's wrong? Why are you so far away? Can you still see my mana flow?"
They had always been close when studying magic, the better to observe each other's mana flow. But for some reason, she was now deliberately keeping her distance.
"I can see it just fine," she said, turning her head away.
Seeing this, he scooted closer to her. She moved away. He followed. And so it went, until her back was against a tree and she had nowhere else to go.
"Why are you being so distant all of a sudden?" he asked, completely baffled. The same Grand Master who had let him into her tent, who had even let him hold her while they slept... why wouldn't she even let him get close now? Had he done something to upset her? He couldn't think of anything.
"I'm not being distant! I just... I just..."
She didn't know why she was doing it either. Perhaps the chaotic mana radiating from him was making her uncomfortable. Yes, that must be it, she thought, and then explained, "Haven't you noticed how chaotic your own mana is?"
"Eh, I hadn't, actually."
To him, all mana was good mana, as long as he could use it. When he had wielded Org, he had drawn its power into himself without any kind of purification, a crude and forceful infusion. As a result, his own mana was indeed in a chaotic state. But it wasn't to the point of causing him any real harm; he just needed some time to get used to it.
"You should avoid using magic for a while, at least until your own mana has calmed down."
"Alright. Then I'll have to rely on the great Lady Serie to protect this humble servant."
Hearing this, a small smile touched her lips. "Of course."
But just then, an unwelcome presence approached.
Olivia, holding a bundle of freshly picked herbs, came over and knelt before him. "Lord Rhodes, these are the Moon-Dew herbs and Star-Flowers you asked for. They both help to speed up mana recovery."
"Thank you," he said, taking the herbs. "But haven't I told you to just call me by my name? And you don't have to kneel." Honestly, he thought, this is all a bit too feudal.
"My apologies, Lord Rho— I am just used to it," she said.
Her faith had been transferred to him, so it was only natural for her to treat him as she had once treated the Goddess. But her new god didn't seem to want to be served, which was a bit of a problem for her. Everything she was doing was, to her, perfectly normal.
"But we're partners now. Partners don't kneel to each other," he said.
"I understand," she said with a solemn nod, committing her new god's command to memory. "Lord Rhodes, are you studying the spells in the scripture? I can teach you, if you like."
"You've... read the original text?"
"No, but the scripture I learned from was a copy of it."
Seeing the two of them interact, Serie felt an inexplicable surge of anger. "Hey, we're studying here! Can't you read the room?"
Rhodes looked at her in shock. It was a strange thing to hear from her, of all people.
"My sincerest apologies, Miss Serie."
"Alright, alright. Olivia, you can go now," Rhodes said, quickly turning back to the scripture. "Let's continue."
"Yes."
But for the rest of their study session, Serie was distracted. Whenever Olivia came near, her attitude would become hostile.
"Serie," he finally asked, "do you have some problem with Olivia? Don't the two of you know each other?"
"Why should I like her?" she huffed. "She used a Divine Strike on us! Have you forgotten that?"
"No, but... it's a complicated situation. And haven't the Sky-Winged already paid the price?"
"The price they paid doesn't mean I have to forgive them. Those are two different things."
"Well, yes," he conceded. He had no intention of forcing her to forgive Olivia. Perhaps, with time, her attitude would change.
Seeing this, Olivia spoke up. "Miss Serie, I am truly sorry for what happened. If you can find it in your heart to forgive me, I will do anything you ask." She did not deny that it had been their fault. If they had not unthinkingly obeyed the false goddess's command, things would have never turned out this way. At their full strength, they would have never been wiped out by a demon ambush. They might have even been able to fight them off.
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