Water Masses floated in the air.

It wasn’t just one.

Two were floating.

Their size was also slightly larger than what he had intended to create. It was an astonishing feat.

Normally, he would have had to overexert himself to create them.

But now, his head wasn’t throbbing.

If anything, it was at the level he usually experienced when creating a single Water Mass.

He realized that the number of Water Masses he could create had increased.

There was a significant difference between having one Water Mass and two.

Immediately, the number of enemies he could kill at once with each spell increased.

And yet, the throbbing in his head was much less severe.

The Alchemist’s words, that it would further enhance his abilities as a Mage, were not wrong.

No, this was even more incredible.

If it boosted him this much, he was, to exaggerate, twice as strong.

He went from dealing with one creature per spell to being able to deal with two.

That wasn’t wrong at all.

The biggest advantage was that he didn’t have to wave his hands around.

Just holding the staff made the casting speed faster than when forming hand seals.

It wasn’t incredibly fast, but casting a spell and forming hand seals during combat was quite difficult.

In that confusing situation, there was always the chance of miscasting a spell or making a wrong hand seal. From that perspective, it also became easier to use magic during combat.

Being able to create two Water Masses normally meant he could create three if he pushed himself.

In that case, he could eliminate up to three people at once.

Or, it could be concentrated on one person in the Capital City.

If two Water Masses hit one person, the power would be doubled.

The power itself did not improve.

It was slightly bigger than the Water Mass he usually made, but that was all.

He felt that no matter how hard he tried here, he couldn’t make the Water Mass any bigger.

It wasn’t that the Protagonist was clumsy, but rather the limitation of the learned spell.

Even if he mastered all the Water Ball spells, all he could do was create a Water Mass the size of a torso.

If he wanted to exert even greater power, he had to learn a higher-level spell.

He stood up from his seat.

Before that, there was something he had to take care of. He had to find out if there was a Trade Caravan going to the Northern Faction.

He wrapped the staff in cloth again and slung it over his back.

He tightened the straps so it wouldn’t come loose.

He was still afraid to carry the staff openly.

The fact that it was worth 10 gold made his hands and feet tremble.

He felt like something terrible would happen if someone recognized it.

He felt that he still lacked the strength to carry this staff.

It was an item beyond the Protagonist’s means.

But that was about to change.

He would become strong enough to carry it as a matter of course.

Only then could he protect what he had and please the Alchemist in the Capital City.

For now, it seemed best to go to the Mercenary Guild.

If there was a large Trade Caravan, they would be recruiting mercenaries. And he also needed to meet the Guild Employee who had warned the Protagonist.

He left the inn and walked down the street.

A cloak worn by one of the passersby caught his eye.

He remembered thinking of buying a cloak after seeing the mercenaries on the way with the Trade Caravan.

He headed to the Clothing Store.

It was the store where he had been scammed when he first came with Dorian.

“Welcome.”

“Hello.”

He remembered the shop owner’s face. It was still there.

At that time, the shop owner had doubled the price of 10 copper coin wool clothes and sold them. The shop owner didn’t seem to recognize the protagonist.

Perhaps it was because he had gotten older in the Capital City.

During that time, he had gained experience through battles.

Perhaps he had developed an aura that made him not to be underestimated.

Thinking that made him feel good.

“Did you come to buy clothes?”

It wasn’t even a question of whether he had money. When he first came, the shop owner tried to confirm if he had money first.

“Yes.”

“What kind of clothes?”

“I came to buy a cloak.”

“What kind? A cape? A robe?”

“What’s the difference?”

“A cape is short, and a robe is long.”

The shop owner kindly brought cloaks and explained them while showing them.

He nodded after seeing them.

A cape was a short cloak that reached the elbows.

Conversely, a cloak that covered the entire body was a robe.

What Rael was going to buy was a robe.

If he wanted to use it like a quilt to sleep when necessary, a large one was definitely better. He asked for a warm one, even if it was a bit heavy.

He also added that black would be good if possible. It was because the magic stone of the staff was black, so matching the color seemed good.

Then, the shop owner said he had just the right item and brought a cloak.

It was a jet-black cloak with a slightly stiff texture.

“It’s 10 silver.”

“10 silver?”

The shop owner made a fuss, saying it was made of lizardman leather.

They said it wouldn’t get wet and that it could keep you warm even in the dead of winter.

I didn’t know if that was true.

Looking closely, I saw a scratch.

It was so minor I didn’t need to worry about it, but it was definitely a scratch.

Pointing it out, I haggled the price down by half.

Upon closer inspection, there were signs of use. I offered 3 Silver Coins.

The Shop Owner countered.

He made a fuss, claiming it wasn’t a scratch. As for the signs of use, he cleared his throat, having no argument, and asked for 7 Silver Coins.

3 Silver Coins vanished in an instant. Seeing him haggle, I figured he’d probably inflated the price. 10 Silver was indeed too expensive.

Rael raised his voice and found more scratches.

They weren’t even visible, but it didn’t matter.

It was a contest where the person who found fault and raised their voice won.

After a few more rounds of that, the Robe made of Lizardman leather, which had been 10 Silver, dropped to 5 Silver Coins.

Only then did I nod.

I figured I hadn’t lost out, at least. It was all thanks to Dorian.

When I put it on, it felt good.

I thought I’d look like a real Mage if I just wore a Pointed Hat with this.

But the Pointed Hat was too uncomfortable. If I bought one, I’d have to put it off for later.

Anyway, the Cloak already had a hood.

The Shop Owner was staring at me with a tired expression.

I left the shop. I felt good.

I immediately headed to the Mercenary Guild.

I walked down the street.

I felt people glancing at me from around.

It seemed to be because of the new Cloak.

Just wearing the Cloak made the atmosphere feel different.

I even regretted not buying it sooner.

Even when I bought the wool clothes for 10 copper coins, the way people looked at me changed.

From looking at me like a beggar to looking at me like a proper kid.

But this time, I was wearing a cloak worth 5 silver coins.

Of course, things had to change. I felt that others wouldn’t treat me lightly.

When I arrived at the Mercenary Guild, I went to the counter. The mercenaries glared at me, but didn’t say anything.

I remembered being reprimanded when I first came here.

I recall hearing it from a Guild Employee.

The middle-aged man was still at his post. He would likely stay there no matter what. Thinking that made him feel strange.

The middle-aged man didn’t sneer this time. He just looked him up and down and said one thing.

“You fool.”

“…”

“Still, you’re amazing. Honestly, I thought you’d die.”

“I was lucky.”

“A mercenary needs to be lucky to survive. That’s a good thing.”

The middle-aged man grinned.

He felt a little acknowledged.

He felt good.

It seemed to be because he had survived a life-threatening situation.

He might have felt that the atmosphere had changed.

He didn’t know the details, but he was observant.

“Do you have any requests?”

“What kind of request?”

“Like a trade caravan going to the Northern Faction.”

“Are you going to war?”

The middle-aged man frowned.

He was truly observant. With just a few words, he figured out the protagonist’s purpose.

He nodded. There was no need to hide it.

“Yes.”

“Not yet.”

“Not yet?”

“It seems like there will be one soon, but it’s not certain yet. Come back later.”

“When will it be decided?”

“A week at the shortest. A month at the longest.”

“A month…”

It was a long time.

He had to go to war and be the Fortress Master right away, but if things went wrong, he would have to stay for a month.

A month was enough time to make him feel anxious.

“Go visit later.”

The middle-aged man wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it over. The name and location of the Merchant Guild were written on it. It seemed to be the Merchant Guild that would depart with the Trade Caravan.

He thanked him and turned around.

He thought he should train for a while.

He went to meet Lorina.

Behind the Alchemist’s house was a large building. It wasn’t quite a Lord’s Mansion, but it was considerably large. It would be the largest building in the Outer Fortress.

The Alchemist and Lorina lived there.

There was also a Gatekeeper. He said he came to see Lorina.

But he couldn’t meet her. He was just told to go back because she was busy.

He was a little disappointed.

He thought it was because he expected a girl to at least show her face.

He went back to the inn that way.

He met a working girl on the stairs. She greeted him.

Her attitude was friendly. Her demeanor had changed since she made him a drink last time. It seemed to be because he was a Mage. She subtly tried to talk to him.

After answering a few words, he went into his room.

The bed was soft.

He remembered that he had been sleeping rough for a long time. He remembered when he used to wrap himself in a blanket in front of a campfire and fall asleep.

The inn room was warm.

He tried to sleep.

The dreams continued every day.

Instead of ending fragmentarily, time flowed like reality.

The Old Man was teaching the Protagonist magic.

He first taught Water Ball and then demonstrated Sleep.

Once Dream Self mastered all of it, the Old Man presented a new choice.

The choice he offered was simple.

He showed two types of magic and let him choose which one to learn first.

The first was a spell to create a Golem.

Although called a Golem, it was shaped from water, making it closer to a Slime than a Golem.

Moreover, being made of water, it had no proper defenses. It was a spell that was difficult to learn, so it was often avoided, but if one reached a certain level, they would gain a reliable ally. The Old Man added that it would take a long time to reach that certain level.

The second was a spell to shoot a Water Pillar.

It was an inefficient magic that took a long time to cast and consumed a lot of mana, but it was a more powerful offensive magic than Water Ball, so it had to be learned no matter what.

However, Dream Self chose the first one.

And then he chose the second one. It was his intention to learn both at once.

The Old Man hit his disciple.

He hit him with a staff.

He didn’t actually hit him; he was just so dumbfounded that he pretended to.

It was understandable.

Even the Protagonist would have probably hit him.

On the one hand, he was impressed. Dream Self seemed very greedy. It wasn’t easy to say such a thing to someone’s face.

“Water Spell Blast!”

The Old Man cast the magic.

The magic that shot out a Water Pillar had considerable power.

It was enough to destroy most cabins. However, its lethality was not outstanding.

You had to be hit directly to die, and the spell was too long.

He had to chant for at least three minutes right away.

It was a trashy spell.

There was no way there would be three minutes to chant a spell on a battlefield.

Instead of learning that, it was much better to continuously cast Water Ball.

“Water Spell Golem!”

On the other hand, the spell to create a Golem, while more difficult, had excellent utility once learned.

It created a reliable ally and could draw attention away from me.

It would be much easier to handle enemies when encountering them alone, so I decided to practice this first.

But it was a disaster.

I couldn’t even form a Human shape right away. At first, they said I just needed to make it like a Slime. I couldn’t even do that.

Creating the core, which was the key, was important because it was the beginning and the entirety of Magic.

But I didn’t give up.

I approached it leisurely, thinking I was diligently practicing every day.

It was for the future.

It’s only limited to manipulating water for now.

The story would be different once I could create ice.

Then I would be able to create and command Ice Golems.

Then I could face any number of enemies alone. Perhaps I could even face an army. That was still a distant dream.

While training, I also made Delicious Water.

It was more popular than I expected.

There are no Herbalists in Langs Castle.

You needed knowledge to properly identify herbs, and the income wasn’t worth the danger of going outside the Castle.

The biggest reason was that Herbs were hard to find.

At least Woodcutters never came back empty-handed. Perhaps that’s why water infused with Herbs was so popular.

The fact that it was a taste they couldn’t usually experience seemed to be a big factor.

Thanks to this, the Innkeeper even pestered me to make more.

I wondered what kind of expression he would make if I told him I was leaving soon.

He would probably cling to my pants and try to stop me. It would be one thing if it was a woman, but a man doing that would be a bit much.

The sun rose and set. This repeated twenty times.

Around that time, I heard the Trade Caravan would be departing soon.

Lorina didn’t show her face.

I was sad.

The Protagonist was planning to leave soon. He had to prepare for goodbye.

But it seemed there wouldn’t even be a chance for that.

The day I heard there was a Trade Caravan to the Northern Faction.

Rael headed to the Merchant Guild.