Today, my mind feels unusually clear, and I can sense my head spinning with energy.
My confidence has reached a level where I could even feel omnipotent.
With this condition, I really feel like I could take on a real dragon.
“Yerna, you seem to have a lot of energy today. Is your condition good?”
“Oh, does it look that way?”
At Daphne’s question, Yerna smiled slightly and thought to herself.
“It’s really effective; I haven’t felt any fatigue even after staying up all night.”
It’s a bit embarrassing, but is this the power of motherhood?
Yerna felt proud and impressed that Luke had made tea for her, and she couldn’t help but boast about it.
“The tea that Luke made this morning was really effective. I don’t feel tired at all.”
“Tea? Luke makes tea too?”
Daphne asked with a puzzled voice.
“It seems so. Maybe he learned by watching me make it.”
“That could be. You drink a lot of tea, after all.”
The Forest Keeper, in principle, was not allowed to smoke, so the only way to recover from fatigue was through tea.
Yerna, with her workaholic tendencies, usually drinks a lot of tea.
The fact that she liked it so much means Luke’s tea-making skills have reached a high level.
Daphne licked her lips slightly and said, “I want to drink that tea too.”
“Then why don’t you ask him to make it for you later? He really makes it well, maybe even better than I do.”
“Should I?”
Yerna was even more excited at the thought that he might make it better than she could.
Well, whether he really makes it better than Yerna, who has been drinking tea for 40 years, remains to be seen. But if Luke made the tea himself, it would certainly be invigorating.
“Then shall we do our best today too?”
Yerna cheerfully exclaimed as she secured her cane and other gear on her body.
She thought about where to go with Luke after the wave ended.
——–
After the tea party, stepping outside, she slung her lighter bag over her shoulder and looked up at the sky.
It was 1 PM; the sun was still high.
The once heavy thermos was empty, and with all the snacks gone, it felt a bit hollow. But Luke felt rather satisfied.
Reflecting on his conversation with Gerard and organizing his knowledge was enough to make him feel fulfilled.
Intellectual conversations are food for the soul, and Luke was feeling intellectually satiated.
However, he was also feeling quite physically satiated.
It was lunch hour, and he had been treated to a meal before heading back.
The place was the nearby employee cafeteria, and the meal included soup, hamburgers, and salad.
It was also incredibly delicious.
The buffet style allowed him to take as much as he wanted, which he liked.
He felt slightly regretful that he couldn’t eat much because he had snacked earlier.
If the circumstances allowed, he would have wanted to get a job there.
Doing the most wizardly work while enjoying a satisfying meal.
And if he could even earn money? How great would that be?
When he asked whether it was actually possible to get a job, the answer came back that a wizard degree was essential.
Because of that, Luke could only blame himself for lacking the necessary degree.
He thought about how one more reason to graduate quickly had arisen, and he steadied his resolve.
The weather was so nice that Luke decided to walk back.
If he rushed home, all that would greet him would be the books he had already read.
There wasn’t any new knowledge left in Yerna’s house.
So, it couldn’t be helped that he would end up wandering outside.
At first, everything had seemed new, and Yerna’s house had appeared impressive. But after experiencing various things and gradually comparing it with others’ homes, he began to think that Yerna’s house was a little bleak in comparison.
Well, if only there had been a TV, it might have been different, but there wasn’t even a TV in Yerna’s house.
“Hmm, I wonder why Yerna hasn’t brought a TV in?”
Was there some sort of reason?
“I have no idea how Yerna lived when I wasn’t around.”
Come to think of it, he realized he hadn’t paid any attention to what Yerna liked or how she usually lived.
After having lived alone for a long time, he hadn’t been able to care deeply for others.
Had he been selfish all this time?
Suddenly, Luke realized she had never scolded him much.
Why was that?
He thought that he still didn’t understand the emotions of others very well.
He had just maintained the principle that as long as he didn’t anger the other person, that was enough.
In his younger years, he had thought that personal emotions were less important than his research, his achievements, and his curiosity, and that was how he defined “cold rationality.”
He had adhered to that belief almost rigorously.
Arrogant, dogmatic, and indifferent to others…
He thought that was an essential underlying psychology for a wizard, and he genuinely believed it was beneficial.
It was only after getting old that he realized the truth was not so simplistic.
“Once I return, I want to do something for her…”
What can he do now to help Yerna directly?
He felt guilty for worrying her too much lately.
Most of the time, it was just her who was worried on his behalf, though.
“Speaking of which, the potion was quite well received.”
Besides the fatigue recovery potion, there were many useful recipes for everyday use.
Right at this moment, recipes came to mind, but well…
“Finding magic herbs is difficult.”
Luke rummaged through his pockets and pulled out the money he had.
It was 5000 gils neatly tucked in his wallet.
This was enough for ten bus rides.
It wasn’t small change, but according to Daphne, the magic herb was 9000 gils.
Currently, there was nearly a two-fold difference between the funds available and what was needed.
Other magic herbs wouldn’t likely be any cheaper.
Even if he could cultivate magic herbs, we live in an era where mana is a paid resource.
The mana cost needed to bloom and maintain them must also be priced as such.
He wasn’t sure if he could find magic herbs that cost around 5000 gils if he looked around…
Even if he could buy them for 5000 gils, that would still be too expensive.
However, he couldn’t easily go into the forest to gather them, so what should he do?
While deep in thought and walking, a cigarette butt on the ground caught Luke’s eye.
Cigarettes, cigarettes…
“Ah.”
Don’t they make magic herbs out of this?
Luke picked up the cigarette he had found while looking down and contemplated.
“If I collect and refine this…”
He might be able to create a great potion without needing to buy magic herbs at all.
The magic herb used in modern cigarettes is usually “Filus,” which has the advantage that the mana it absorbs doesn’t easily dissipate even when dried.
However, the amount of mana it can hold is small, so he needed quite a lot.
So, Luke spent the whole day walking around the streets picking up cigarette butts.
With magic sight, he could find magic herbs easily.
But no matter how much he collected, it still wasn’t enough to satisfy him.
“This is strange; I feel like I used to see a lot more of these.”
In the past and now.
Why is it that when he needs materials, they don’t seem visible?
It’s truly a puzzling thing.
———-
Puff, puff.
Phew…
A middle-aged man was smoking a cigarette at the bus stop.
Many people grimaced at the smoke, but no one really felt inclined to voice their displeasure towards others.
Perhaps it’s because they didn’t want to waste time quarreling.
If saying something would change the situation, they wouldn’t have started smoking in the first place, filling their hearts with resignation.
So, the man was just smoking as he always did, until someone called out to him.
Tap, tap.
A hand touched his knuckles.
He looked down to see what had brushed against him.
It was a girl who looked like a hybrid beastman with platinum blonde hair.
A girl with cat ears and horns, with an odd-eyed gaze and a mature appearance that belied her age.
Even in a society where mixed blood was common, she was a child who left a lasting impression at first glance.
The girl asked with pure eyes, “How long are you going to keep smoking that?”
“Huh? Why do you ask?”
“I was just curious.”
The man thought to himself.
“What’s it to you, coming up to a smoker and asking how long they’ll smoke?”
Is she suggesting he should put it out?
The man looked around in a fluster.
But it seemed the girl’s sweet voice had drawn quite a bit of attention, as many were now watching him.
“Ugh…”
He couldn’t ignore those stares; his tolerance was not that good.
His face flushed with embarrassment.
“Alright, alright. I’ll stop smoking.”
He flicked the cigarette to the ground and stomped out the ember.
The girl smiled slightly and said, “Oh, thank you very much.”
“…Sure.”
What could he do when a child said to put it out?
Still, it felt like a waste.
He hadn’t smoked much…
But those who had seen him seemed content.
He felt a slight easing of the hostility in their glances as they looked over.
However, that shift faded again when the girl bent down, picked up the cigarette butt, and put it in her bag.
“This, this…”
It felt like he had turned into garbage.
Or was he the garbage?
With ordinary courage, he could hardly endure their gazes.
Cold sweat trickled down, and his heart raced.
He fidgeted and addressed the girl.
“I-I could have picked it up, you know…”
But the girl just smiled brightly, turned away, and said, “It’s fine! Thanks for cooperating, have a great day!”
“W-wait, just a moment…!”
Panicked, he stuttered while calling out to the disappearing back of the girl, but she had already gone away, humming a tune.
At that moment, the bus stop felt like a frozen prison of time, and he was the only prisoner here.
It was as if something deep within his chest compelled him to say the words he needed to say.
“…I’m sorry.”
He felt that maybe this was a sufficient atonement, as the stares seemed to soften a little.
Though perhaps it was just that he felt that way.
He thought to himself.
That from now on, he wouldn’t smoke in public places.
