Chapter 10

"Fire at me!"

"Fireball!"

We, who had accepted a request to gather herbs, were watching Arisa's magic in that forest. At that moment, I began to have doubts.

"With an aptitude of SS, why is the power so low?"

"Th-That's not it! It's strange that Nigris can withstand it! It can easily knock down three trees!?"

"By layering healing magic, the body becomes resilient, and there's no worry about taking damage. This is a technique I came up with, called [Heavy Healing]."

It's a magic that involves constantly deploying and supporting healing spells, even on myself. Since I've never been on the front lines, I wanted to be a target and experience Arisa's magic.

However, Arisa's Fireball didn't cause any damage to me.

Ferus's magic aptitude is A. Even so, the first time he used magic, it showed more power than Arisa's, and I thought it would be even stronger with an S rank.

"Is it because of this...?"

The [Primitive Fireball User] that appeared during the appraisal.

"Arisa isn't cursed like Ferus. But, can you only use Fireball?"

"Yes, I am destined to only use Fireball."

"...I don't really understand."

Ferus tilted his head.

That's understandable. I don't really understand either.

What does 'destiny' mean?

"I fell in love with Fireball at first sight! Everything is for Fireball; Fireball is my origin!"

"...I get that Arisa likes it. The problem is the power. Why is it so weak?"

Despite having more talent than Ferus, her magic's power is low.

If it's not a curse, is it something like the same skill I have?

I can't figure anything out with my current knowledge.

"I don't know. This is the maximum power of my Fireball. Nigris said I had talent, right? Maybe I don't have any talent?"

"...No, you do."

The appraisal skill doesn't go wrong.

In fact, the status hasn't changed. It's not a mistake.

If only there was a useful spell for situations like this.

After a break, as we settled down, Arisa asked:

"Hey, why is Nigris's healing magic so abnormal compared to others?"

"I don't know if it's amazing, but I do focus on it to some extent."

When it came to Florence, I had a strong desire to help her, to do something for her.

"If you use healing magic with the intention of helping, it responds to that. That's what I believe."

I've always tried to be helpful for everyone.

Even if I'm called a hypocrite, I can't argue against it.

That's who I am.

"...Right, right!"

"What's with the sudden change?"

"Magic was originally created to make everyone happy. I forgot something important..."

It seems she found an answer. Arisa aimed her staff at the deeper part of the forest.

"The problem was the intention... not for money or power. Just like Nigris, who genuinely wants to help people. I should have thought about someone who believes in my talent before casting!"

She raised the tip of her staff.

"Fireball!!"

A spiral vortex concentrated at the tip, forming a large sphere.

The wind pressure made the forest sway, and the magic was released, gouging the earth.

───BOOM

The dust settled, revealing a gruesome scene.

"What is this power...!!"

"I, I can cast such a powerful spell...?"

Magic aptitude S.

This is her true power.

Surprise and joy. It had completely slipped my mind.

"A-Arisa? Why did you fire over there?"

"I don't know. I just thought I'd aim that way. There aren't any significant monsters around here, right?"

"...The spell you cast hit the worst possible spot."

I had been adventuring in this forest for years.

The deeper you go into this monster forest, the more terrifying the monsters become.

And Arisa's spell had hit the nest of the forest's master, the Dragon of Fortitude.

...This is the worst. Why did she pick a fight with the most troublesome one!?

I used the appraisal on the dragon to confirm.

"There's a Dragon of Fortitude in a dangerous state flying this way."

"...Really?"

The Dragon of Fortitude.

Difficulty: SS Rank.

A monster that was upgraded from S Rank to SS Rank after the S Rank party, Silver Wings, failed to defeat it.

The Adventurer's Guild has given up on defeating this dragon.

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