There were many people coming and going on the streets. He didn’t get lost. After going back and forth several times, he was starting to get familiar with the area. He was shedding his country bumpkin image.

He entered the Alchemist’s house. Perhaps because he had visited yesterday, the man at the counter recognized Rael.

“What brings you here?”

“To get a job.”

“No jobs.”

The man cut him off sharply. His reaction was cold. It seemed even more so when he remembered how politely he had treated Dorian. He thought this was a normal reaction.

Before the man could chase him out, he placed his Mercenary ID on the counter. The man paused. He seemed to be able to read.

Because of that, the Old Man seemed likely to teach him new magic in advance. It was a ploy to ignite his disciple’s motivation.

“Yes.”

“You were a Mercenary?”

He nodded. The man looked troubled. He also presented the request note. He added that he had come after seeing the bulletin board. Still, it seemed insufficient. Judging by his attitude, if he had come directly without stopping by the Mercenary Guild, he would have been kicked out.

“You said your master was doing research, right?”

“How do you know that?”

“I heard you talking when I came last time. You said you were short-handed, didn’t you?”

“That’s true, but.”

“I’m good at picking herbs. All the herbs I brought yesterday, I picked them myself.”

“Really?”

“If you don’t like it after trying me out, it’s fine if you dismiss me.”

The man stared blankly. His expression was disbelieving. He seemed to be checking if it was a lie.

It seemed like he had collected a lot of herbs on the way to the castle. There were indeed many herbs. If he hadn’t sensed the mana and smelled it, he wouldn’t have been able to collect even half of them.

“Can you read?”

“No.”

“Which herbs do you know?”

“I know all the ones that were in the sack.”

“So you know the basics.”

The man nodded. Seeing his expression, I felt relieved. At least he didn’t seem like he was going to kick me out.

“When do you want to start working?”

“I can start now.”

“Then let’s go right away. Get ready.”

The man’s name was Belief.

He taught me what I had to do. The work was nothing special. It was a simple job of going up the mountain every morning with the alchemist’s apprentices to gather herbs.

Including him, there were four apprentices.

They said they would come back after finishing their meal and some simple tasks. In the meantime, I had nothing to do. My gaze moved around. I saw a book on the counter.

It seemed to be a book about herbs. If I followed him, I thought I could learn about herbs.

At the same time, I wished I could read. Perhaps the herb book might even have a description of the Blue Flower.

After a while, more people appeared. All of them exuded a strong scent of herbs.

There were two men and one girl mixed in. The girl didn’t even look at me.

One of the men looked this way.

“Who is this?”

“This is the new recruit.”

“New recruit?”

The man’s expression crumpled. It was the look of someone who thought an unnecessary burden had arrived.

“Are you sure about this?”

“I decided to give him a try.”

“I don’t think there’s any need to see.”

The man scoffed. It was blatant disregard.

Being young, he was looked down on wherever he went.

He hid his expression, suppressing his anger. It would be resolved once they climbed the mountain anyway. No matter how good the Alchemist’s apprentices were at harvesting herbs, they probably wouldn’t find more than the Protagonist.

The group left the Castle.

The Guard Soldier didn’t stop them. He bowed excessively, which seemed strange. He felt intimidated by how well they were treated. Even the Guard Soldier was flustered around Rael.

Belief’s steps were quick. It seemed like he was familiar with the path. Still, he didn’t look like he had good stamina. They had only walked for an hour before he suggested they rest.

“Rael.”

“Yes.”

“We’re going to split up and collect herbs until sunset. Bring the herbs you’ve found back here by then.”

Belief opened his Book and showed them pictures. It was the herb book that had been on the counter. Fortunately, the ones he showed were herbs he recognized. Perhaps he had intentionally pointed out those ones.

“Is there a quota?”

“Just don’t come back empty-handed.”

His tone was dismissive.

A moment later, the group dispersed. He walked, surveying his surroundings. The task was the same.

There seemed to be no herbs nearby. Even when he sniffed, he couldn’t detect the lingering scent of mana.

He took a deep breath. The cold outdoor air entered and left his body, calming his mind. He closed his eyes and heightened his senses.

The more stable he felt mentally, the more sensitive his perception of mana became. He sniffed again to feel the mana. Mana had various scents. Sometimes it smelled like Wild Boar meat. Today, it smelled like the Herring he ate yesterday. It was different every time, but it always smelled like delicious food.

He walked towards the source of the scent. Even with enhanced senses, it was faint, so it seemed he would have to walk a bit further.

“Found it.”

He found a Flower blooming near a tree. It was one of the herbs Belief had pointed out. There were more of the same nearby. He swept them all into his bag.

Sniff, sniff.

He smelled something again from somewhere else. He walked as if possessed. He thought that if he followed the delicious scent, valuable herbs would appear. Thinking that, his steps naturally became lighter.

By sunset, his bag was somewhat full. Even though he moved quickly, it felt insufficient. He was a little disappointed, but he turned back. It was time to gather. He returned to the spot where they had met before dispersing.

The group had already gathered. The atmosphere wasn’t very good. He approached Belief. He hadn’t done anything wrong, but he felt self-conscious.

“What’s wrong?”

“Today’s harvest isn’t great.”

“You couldn’t find any Herbs?”

“Don’t even ask. Some of us came back empty-handed. If we go back like this, our Master will be angry. I’m thinking if I should look around a bit more.”

There was a reason for his dejection. He thought the disciples would be different somehow. But when he saw them, they couldn’t gather Herbs. They seemed a bit more human.

At the same time, he felt worried. He didn’t know how many Herbs the Alchemist needed. If what the Protagonist brought wasn’t enough, he’d be searching for Herbs even at night. That was absolutely out of the question.

“How much do you need?”

“Quite a lot.”

“Hmm.”

“How much did you bring?”

“Take a look.”

Belief spread open the sack. His voice rose slightly.

“You picked all of this?”

“Is this enough?”

“You won’t have to worry about getting hit by the Master.”

Belief laughed. The disciples who had approached also laughed as if nothing had happened. Among them was the one he had ignored.

The Alchemist’s disciples couldn’t sense mana. If they could, they wouldn’t have wandered around unable to find Herbs.

Rael could not only see mana but also smell it. He was happier about having accomplished something others couldn’t, rather than the fact that he had gathered a lot of Herbs. Perhaps that’s why he spontaneously smiled.

“That’s great. Haha.”

They descended from the mountain.

The atmosphere was good on the way back. They chatted among themselves until they passed the City Gate and returned to the Alchemist’s house. Occasionally, they also spoke to Rael.

It was pointless chatter, but he liked it. He felt accepted and integrated into the group. Belief asked if he would go to the mountain again tomorrow. He nodded.

They arrived at the Alchemist’s house. The entrance was locked. Belief opened the door with a key. It was fascinating.

Locks were expensive. Few people bought locks unless they had something valuable. In the Village, everyone used bolts. That was because there was no Blacksmith.

Even in the Castle, locks were rare. He hadn’t seen any buildings with locks on them during his few days of coming and going.

Being an Alchemist seemed to be a promising profession. Seeing him spend money like water to buy Herbs confirmed it. He suddenly envied Belief. He probably ate expensive meals too.

He asked if he sprinkled gold dust on his meals. The thought that rich Nobles sprinkled gold dust on their food came to him belatedly.

Belief laughed, even shedding tears. He wasn’t usually one to laugh much. Unexpectedly, the atmosphere softened. He seemed to think it was a joke Rael made to make him laugh.

Rael was genuinely curious. Unfortunately, he didn’t get an answer. It was a pity.

That day, I received Coins as my daily wage.

They were the same as the Coins Dorian had given me. They were Silver Coins.

I also received a small number of Copper Coins. The calculation was precise. I didn’t fully understand it, but it seemed to be correct. Even if it wasn’t, it was enough money that it didn’t matter.

Before I left, Belief stopped me. It seemed he had something specific to say.

It wasn’t anything special. He just asked if I could come tomorrow as well. I hesitated for a moment. It seemed he took that as a refusal.

Belief babbled on about something. It was about the good things that would come from working. It didn’t really register. The situation was amusing.

Just this morning, he was desperate to get rid of me. But now, he was practically begging the Protagonist.

I was only released after I nodded my head.

If I earned this much every day, I wouldn’t have to worry about making a living.

Just this morning, when I woke up, I was worried about having to cut back on food expenses. It was unnecessary worry. As soon as my living and sleeping arrangements seemed secure, a new desire welled up within me.

I wanted to learn to read and write.

Just today, I had to ask someone else to read something for me because I couldn’t. It wasn’t good. Even if the other person said something incorrectly, I wouldn’t know the truth.

Most importantly, to acquire knowledge, I needed to be literate. I needed to build a foundation of knowledge about Magic. For now, I was following what I learned in my dreams, but there was no telling when I might fall behind.

In fact, a gap was already slowly widening. This was because the Old Man, my master, had set a bait. At the mention of new Magic, my Dream Self was poring over the Books day and night, forgetting everything else. I felt a sense of urgency.

It was at that moment.

A scolding voice came from the Alchemist’s house.

The sound was coming from inside.

It was the Old Man’s stern voice. Belief told me to wait a moment and went into the inner room.

I stood in front of the counter. Many thoughts crossed my mind. I wondered if it was because I brought too few Herbs. I regretted not bringing more if I had known this would happen.