Chapter 78

By the time the battle with the Mutsashidora was over, the dense forest had become quite dark. Al himself could still see due to the effects of the Perception Enhancement spell, but the other three would have a hard time seeing. Al approached Orson and, after saying, "Please accept it," he tried to cast the Perception Enhancement spell. However, he suddenly felt dizzy and inadvertently knelt down.

"Al, what's wrong?"

Orson, thinking Al might be injured, hurried to support him.

"Hmm, I just tried to use magic and got dizzy..."

"Did you overuse your magic?"

Al tilted his head. Previously, when working for Eric, he had tested how many light spells he could light simultaneously. At that time, the success rate of the spells dropped sharply when he exceeded a certain number, but he didn't get dizzy. Still, it was true that he had used the Floating Eye spell continuously and felt unusually fatigued.

"Maybe... But we need to move before the Ishinagebongo comes..."

He tried to steady himself and looked in the direction they had fled. There was no sign of anything pursuing them from behind. Perhaps they were afraid of the dead Mutsashidora and wouldn't come near.

"The Mutsashidora's fur might fetch a high price. And its tusks too. It's a bit smelly, but I'd like to try to skin it."

The giant creature was over 6 meters long. Skinning it would be a major task. If no monsters approached out of fear, they could take turns resting and work on it. However, if they couldn't use spells, they would need to light a bonfire to illuminate the area.

"Let's take a short break and try again in about 30 minutes."

"Sounds good. We'll prepare a simple meal in the meantime. And we'll get torches ready just in case."

Orson found a place to sit a little away from the Mutsashidora's massive corpse and started a small fire in the shade of a tree. The fire was very visible from a distance. Ideally, he would have preferred to avoid lighting a fire and rely only on the dark vision from the Perception Enhancement spell, but given the possibility that magic might not work, it was necessary.

The surroundings quickly turned pitch black, and the four of them relied on the small fire to retrieve dried grapes, dried meat, and bread from their bags and started to eat.

"Should we spend the night here? What might be attracted by the smell of blood?"

Madoc mused, taking a sip of water from his canteen.

"Probably not. The Ishinagebongo won't come until it's light. Of course, insects will gather, but we should be fine for the night."

Orson replied thoughtfully. The creatures he could think of that scavenged in the forest were mainly insects like black ants, red ants, and stink bugs.

"Then, let's stay here until morning until Al can use magic again."

"Sorry, this is the first time I've become this fatigued from using magic."

Nijera said, and Al scratched his head. She lightly shook her head and smiled, saying it was no big deal.

"Maybe that's why mages are always so dramatic about using spells. Al, you overdo it. I never thought you'd rely on us so much that you'd get dizzy. I'm sorry. From now on, tell us if you're tired."

Orson said, bowing his head. Al hurriedly shook his head.

"It's because I couldn't control it. I thought it would be fine since Eric and the others used the Floating Eye spell all day in the carriage."

This was the first time he had used the Floating Eye spell continuously for such a long time. During the march with Narish and others, they used it only occasionally when they stopped. Perhaps it wouldn't be so tiring if he didn't move the eyes so much. He would ask Eric about it next time.

"Well, you'll get used to it gradually."

Orson bit into his bread and chewed slowly. Madoc smiled at the sight.

"You seem to be feeling better."

"Huh?"

"No, sorry. For a while, you were sulking and staying alone. I was worried. I'm relieved."

Madoc had been concerned about Orson hunting alone after his serious injury last year. When he was called sulking, Orson smiled wryly.

"It's a bit childish, but maybe that's how it was. It hurt to have to limp even after recovering from the injury, and there were other things like Blair hanging out with other companions during the treatment."

Hearing Blair's name, Al tilted his head. He remembered encountering a man named Blair when they were hunting the large-mouthed lizards. Blair had been quite provocative but ended up failing miserably.

"What happened with Blair? You taught him so much."

Madoc asked. Al nodded, recalling the encounter.

"Well..."

Orson paused.

"You don't have to say it if you don't want to."

Nijera said, and Orson lightly shook his head.

"I was planning to tell you guys eventually. It's nothing much. I thought a lot about it at the time, but looking back, there were already issues before. I just didn't realize it. Blair wanted to gather more companions and form a mercenary group. I found that troublesome and didn't like it. More people mean more unnecessary rules and more constraints."

Orson said, biting into the dried meat.

"Can't the injury be healed by the church?"

Nijera asked. Al had heard that limb loss could be healed by sacred spells at the church, but since Orson hadn't gone, he thought it might just be a rumor. Orson smiled wryly and shook his head.

"Apparently, if a high-ranking noble vouches for you, the bishop in the capital might heal it. Or, if you donate about 100 gold coins, it might be possible. But 'might be possible' for 100 gold coins..."

Even with sacred spells, it wasn't certain if it could be healed. If it were possible, I would...

Al thought but didn't say it out loud. It was Orson's decision.

"Let me try to use the spell again... I feel a bit better after eating and resting. I'll cast Perception Enhancement, so please accept it properly."

Al touched Orson's shoulder.

'Perception Enhancement' - Visual Enhancement, Dark Vision, Contact Grant

Fortunately, he didn't get dizzy. Orson opened his eyes slightly and looked around. It seemed the effect was working.

"Seems to be fine. But I'm sorry, I'll only cast the minimum, just Perception Enhancement. Next, Madoc, please remember to accept it properly. And it lasts about an hour, so be careful."

Al emphasized and then cast Perception Enhancement on Madoc and Nijera.

"Thanks. Let's start the dissection work with the three of us. Al, take a break for a while."

Orson stood up. Madoc and Nijera nodded, put away their canteens, and stood up.

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