Chapter 69: Little Shara's Fear

Humming a meaningless tune, I turned left and right, getting lost n times, and finally found that evil capitalist building of Ral's, but I felt a bit uneasy, afraid of hearing some bad news. They are my only friends now.

*Knock knock knock...*

After hesitating a few steps at the door, I finally stepped forward and knocked. We are civilized people, not like that barbarian Doug who would just barge in.

"Uncle Ral, are you home? It's Wu Fan, I'm back from my training."

After a while, the door opened a crack, and a cute pink head peeked out. Who else could it be but my little angel Shara?

"Shara, it's your big brother!"

I put on what I thought was my most amiable expression and smiled at Shara.

Shara stared at me blankly, and her eyes suddenly flashed with...

Fear???

*Slam*, the door was tightly shut, and I was completely stunned. What's going on? We were so close last time, even though it's been about half a year, but it shouldn't be this attitude, right?

After a while, the door opened again, and Aunt Shari appeared. She saw me, paused for a moment, and then exclaimed in surprise.

"Heavens, dear Wu, you're finally back! It's been half a year, and we've been so worried."

She quickly welcomed me in and carefully dusted off the dirt from my clothes.

"Aunt Shari, where are Ral and the others? Are they okay?"

At critical moments, I never beat around the bush. As soon as I asked, I felt my breath catch, staring at Aunt Shari, afraid of hearing any bad news.

Seeing my tense expression, Aunt Shari couldn't help but chuckle and gently stroked my shoulder-length hair.

"Don't worry, they all returned safely a few months ago. But after staying for a while, they went out again."

"Oh, I see. That's good. I knew they were as tough as the Fallen, they wouldn't die so easily..."

I relaxed and laughed heartily.

"Look at you, you rascal."

Aunt Shari rolled her eyes and led me to sit down inside.

Only then did I notice that little Shara was hiding behind Aunt Shari, clutching her clothes, carefully examining me as if she didn't recognize me.

"Shara, it's me, your big brother. Don't you recognize me? I told you interesting stories half a year ago."

Shara timidly showed half her face, glanced at me, and immediately hid again.

Why is this happening? I felt a bit depressed. Over these past few months, with my inner longing and the gradual change in my feelings, I had almost started treating little Shara like my fiancée. Seeing her like this now, it seems all my efforts have been in vain.

Since I knew Ral and the others had made it through the tough times, I could breathe a sigh of relief. My purpose for coming here was achieved. After enjoying Aunt Shari's delicious dinner, although she tried to keep me, seeing the fearful look in Shara's eyes, I had no more heart to stay. I was already extremely depressed. Is love really so luxurious in this world, not even leaving me a tiny bit of hope?

I left Ral's house with a gloomy face, returned to the inn, and fell onto the bed, feeling dejected.

The next day, I got up early and went to Akara's, only to find she wasn't home. It made sense; as the leader of the Rogue Encampment, she couldn't be so idle. I waited near her tent until almost noon when she finally returned.

"Hello, Lady Akara."

"Oh, I'm sorry, you must have waited a long time, right? Today, a few new initiates were born, and I had to preside over the ceremony, which took up the whole morning." Akara smiled at me.

"Lady Akara, please don't worry. I just arrived, and it's just a small matter, I wouldn't want to delay your work." I immediately responded respectfully.

As we chatted, I walked inside and took out the magic cores Charsi had picked out, handing them to Akara. In return, I received a large pile of items, including dozens of teleportation scrolls, which are precious, the more the better, some dissolving agents, and antidotes. Finally, Akara, thinking it wasn't enough, even brought out a large jar of concentrated Spirit Water for me. This isn't the regular Spirit Water I used to drink, but a concentrated version. To make the regular Spirit Water, you just need to mix these concentrated Spirit Waters with clean water in a 1:10 ratio and boil them.

"I heard your training this time was quite successful, and you even had extra equipment to sell to Charsi." After I had packed everything, Akara suddenly said with a smile.

I was startled. Although I knew I couldn't hide it from her, I didn't expect her to know so quickly after I visited Charsi yesterday.

Before I could respond, Akara continued.

"Actually, I don't approve of high-level initiates selling equipment to newbies. I remember telling you that the main purpose of the first world is to train new initiates. If they start with a lot of equipment, it loses its meaning."

I nodded, agreeing with Akara. Indeed, new initiates should earn their equipment through their own efforts, which would make them value it more. Of course, there was also a bit of selfishness in my thoughts—when I went through training, I only had a wooden stick...

"However, that bit of equipment isn't much, and it can stimulate competition among the newbies. So, if you want to sell in the future, just take it to Charsi. Charsi is a pitiful child, and it would help ease her burden a bit. But only you, and only white-grade equipment. Otherwise, the old guys will scold me. Young man, you wouldn't make things difficult for this poor old lady, would you?"

Seeing Akara put on a pitiful smile, I almost couldn't help but laugh. But after carefully considering her words, I suddenly broke out in a cold sweat. A terrifying thought flashed through my mind—could it be that Charsi's hammer was actually Akara's doing?

But thinking about it, Akara was indeed thinking of the Rogue Encampment. She had devoted her whole life to it. Even if it was true, although the means were a bit extreme, how could I bear to blame her? Sigh...

"Lady Akara, do you have a quiet place for training?"

My main goal this time was to practice the idea of using ghost wolves for aerial ambushes and to train my elemental skills. I didn't expect to optimize them immediately, but if I could become more proficient and slightly reduce the casting time, it would be a success. These things can't be achieved overnight, and I wasn't arrogant enough to think I was a genius.

"Training skills?"

Akara looked at me with confusion. Generally, only mages would practice skills on the training ground because their mana regenerates quickly. Other classes usually practice on the battlefield.

"Yes."

I saw Akara's confusion and took out a bottle of light blue liquid from my inventory, tossing it in the air: "Although Druids regenerate mana very slowly, I have this."

I didn't plan to hide this from Akara. Yes, my biggest advantage over other initiates is that I have thousands of mana potions in my inventory, allowing me to practice skills extravagantly, just like using a mana-burning bot in an online game. I also have a +3 Warmth Eagle's Eye: increases mana regeneration by 54%, which significantly reduces my mana recovery time, making it perfect for mana-burning practice.

Akara stared at the light blue bottle in my hand for a while before shaking her head with a bitter smile: "Wu, you really are... sigh, well, extraordinary people do extraordinary things. I can't do much about it. Here, take this." She handed me a key.

"What is this?"

"This is the key to the church's main door. It's usually empty, only used for major events and prayers, so no one should disturb you." Akara shook her head and placed the key in my hand.

"Behind the church is a large open area where you can do as you please. Unless you're casting a world-destroying spell, it should be big enough. I must warn you, you absolutely cannot damage the church, or it won't be just a matter of paying for the damage." Akara gave me a light glare.

"Haha... of course not, I'm not that kind of person." I laughed.

Damn, I forgot that Akara can easily read people's minds...

With the key in hand, I bid farewell to Akara and followed her directions to the east gate of the Rogue Encampment. At the east gate, a male Rogue was already waiting to guide me. It seems my reputation as a directionally challenged person had reached Akara. How sad.

The church wasn't far from the Rogue Encampment. After walking along a quiet, cool forest path for a few minutes, a white building appeared before me. The style was similar to Western churches in my old world, but it was a bit smaller and more modestly decorated. However, it was well-maintained, indicating its importance. No wonder Akara repeatedly warned me not to damage it.

As I got closer, I noticed the church was surrounded by a wide, snow-white iron fence, about 3 meters high, with a large, white-painted iron gate in the center. No wonder Akara gave me the key. Two Rogues with longbows were guarding the gate. They must have received Akara's instructions, as they didn't seem surprised by my arrival, only giving me a slight nod.

I used the key to open the gate, entered, and closed it tightly. Following Akara's instructions, I circled around the church to the back. Indeed, a large open area appeared before me, with flower beds, grass, a forest, and even hard yellow mud. I walked around the area and found it to be very large. As long as I was careful, I was confident that even the widest-range spell, "World Destroyer," wouldn't touch the church. The area was also enclosed by the white fence, with guards at the gate, so I didn't need to worry about being disturbed.

Satisfied, I walked around the area a few more times, confirming that it was as Akara described. I then took out the Eagle's Eye from my inventory and held it in one hand, while taking a mana potion with the other.

Training, officially begins...