53: The Hall of the Luminous, Part Eighteen

The Hall of the Luminous, Part Eighteen

"As you and I are both healers, we're not very good at learning other types of magic," the man said. "So, I will only teach you things healers can make use of."

[Oh, look at you, System. You found a subtle way of saying "I'll only sell you stuff your class can use". Good job.] 

"Uh, are you listening?" He asked as Neve sat in front of the pacing priest. 

"Yeah, yeah. You were saying that you'd only teach me healer stuff."

"Indeed. Now, throughout the years," he began to say, "the nulin have faced off against many enemies on the surface. Though the knowledge of those fights has waned the longer we've remained here, I have maintained some recollection of them. Among the most useful abilities that I personally called upon in my battles, earlier on in life, were two spells. {Great Healing Dart} and {Field of Brilliance}." 

"YEEEES!" 

Neve shot up from her chair, throwing her fists up into the air. 

"FINALLY!" She exclaimed so happily she could nearly cry. 

"... What is going on? Are you alright?" The man asked, genuinely concerned. 

The reason why Neve was so excited was simple. 

The first spell he listed sounded like a healing spell. One that was very likely to be an improvement over {Healing Ground}, which she had been in desperate need of. 

After all, {Healing Ground} was a beginner-tier spell. The fact that she'd gotten as much mileage out of it as she had was incredible, given that it was, objectively, likely the worst healing spell out there. 

[No more spamming {Healing Ground}. No more spamming {Healing Ground}...]

She nearly cried. 

"I-I'm good, I'm good, I just... those spells sound useful!" 

"I see... Anyway," he dismissed her insanity, "We will start with {Great Healing Dart}. Come, follow me." 

The man walked out of the shop then and Neve did as he asked, following after him. They moved around the quaint store to a spot out back where there were some target dummies set up. 

There were no residual signs of any magic here. Neve guessed it must have been a long time since this place had been used. 

"Hey, what healing spells do you know?" He asked. 

"Um... Just one. {Healing Ground}." 

"That's it?" He asked, confused. "That's the only one?" 

"Yeah."

"Why!?" 

"I never really needed any other," Neve replied with a shrug. "That one on its own was always enough for me to do my job." 

"Huh... What kind of prodigy am I talking to here?" He asked with a chuckle, shaking his head. "Anyway, I'm guessing your kind's spells and mine are similar because I know that one. It's an absolute beginner-level spell. The first one you learn as a healer." 

[Yep, and I've gotten a ton of mileage out of it.] 

"Do you know how healing spells work?" He asked suddenly. 

"Uh... What do you mean?" 

"I'll take that as a 'no', then." He aimed his staff at the center of the training area, casting {Healing Ground}. "A lot of spells function on the basis of risk versus reward. Simply put, the more risk there is in a spell, the more reward there is. Sure, every now and then there are some spells that are so utterly busted that they have a ton of reward and little to no risk at all, but most aren't like that. Healing spells are no different." 

Pointing ahead at the rune he created, he tapped on it twice with his staff. 

"The reason {Healing Ground} is the premier beginner-level healer spell is because it's almost impossible to fuck it up. The premise of it is painfully simple. Stand in the zone, get healed. And, the zone is generous as hell. In return, it heals the least out of any of the healing spells out there." 

Neve blinked a couple of times as she internalized that information. 

"So, what you're saying is that there are spells that are harder to execute but that heal more?" 

"Exactly. Glad you catch on quick. The first spell I'm going to be teaching you is {Great Healing Dart}. It's a few steps up from {Healing Ground}, and that means that while it is going to heal for more per cast, it is also going to be harder to land on the target you want to heal. So, how does it work? Here, watch." 

He aimed his staff at the dummy and cast the spell, triggering a white dart of some sort to fly across the field, striking it like an arrow. 

The dummy was briefly covered in a white glow. 

"You can't really tell just from seeing it like this, but if you use this spell several times in a row, it will end up outhealing {Healing Ground}, understand? It's a spell you have to use repeatedly to get full value out of it." 

"Uh, okay. How do I use it to heal myself, though?" 

"Good question. The way to do that is like this." 

He then aimed his staff directly over his own head. Casting the spell, a white dart shot up, but stopped quickly and then moved back down, landing on him. Like the dummy, he was briefly covered in a white aura. 

"This is trickier than it looks. Give it a shot." 

[What, just like that?] 

Looking over her own head, she saw a bar that was about one-third of the way full. She aimed her staff at the dummy and tried to cast the spell. 

Nothing happened, of course, since she didn't know it. But, the bar saw some progress be made. 

[... Does the system want me to roleplay like I'm learning how to cast it? Is that seriously how spells are learned? Fine. I'll play along.] 

---

By the time the bar filled up completely, it had been a little over ten minutes. 

And, finally, Neve was able to cast the spell. 

Great Healing Dart - 10 MP

{Fires off a dart of divine energy that heals the target for a small amount.}

As the mage had explained earlier, the description of the spell was a half-truth. 

Yes, if one only used the spell a single time, it was objectively worse than {Healing Ground}. However, if used multiple times in rapid succession, not only did it consume more mana, but it also healed for more. 

It wasn't hard to think about how using this spell could go wrong, though. Erin, who would be the recipient of this spell most of the time, was fast. Extremely fast.

Neve would really be putting her Precision to the test with this new ability. 

"Alright, the second spell I'm going to be teaching you is {Field of Brilliance}. It's a buff-type spell that increases the effectiveness of spells and techniques cast inside of the zone."

Neve's eyes gleamed. 

[That's awesome too! Wait, I'm getting exactly the kind of stuff I need... Tamira, seriously, is this intentional?] 

For the first time in a while, calling upon the snake yielded no answer. 

[... Maybe she's busy or something.] 

"It's less risky than {Great Healing Dart}, so, don't worry too much about execution here. You make a zone, and spells and techniques are improved by people using them within that zone. Simple." 

He cast the spell and a rune that looked similar to {Sacred Ground} appeared, though with magical drawings of weapons around it.  0

"Try it out." 

Again, the same process began. A bar appeared over Neve's head, she played the part of the apprentice actually trying to cast some magic she didn't know, and kept that roleplay up until the bar was full. 

Field of Brilliance - 75MP

{Creates a zone that increases damage and effectiveness of all Spells and Techniques cast inside by 10%. The zone lasts for 1 minute.} 

Once she was done, the mage appeared to be curious about something. He walked up to Neve and said:

"Neve, can I ask you a question?" 

"Uhm... Sure. What's up?" 

"Why did you come here?" His white pupils inspected Neve's face, as though she was already speaking the answer. 

"To clear the Infested Hall," Neve replied, but he shook his head. 

"No, you fool. That is what you are here to do. I am asking *why* you are here. What is your purpose? What is the point of coming and clearing the Infested Hall?" 

"Oh." 

Neve pulled back a little. She'd already tried playing the naive little priestess before and he'd seen through it. She didn't want to bother doing that again. 

"Because I want to get stronger," she finally answered. "I heard about what was happening here and figured it would be a good chance to do that. But, don't worry, I actually can clear the Infested Hall... That's just my reasoning."

[Why am I justifying myself to an NPC?] 

Before she could answer that question, she was asked another one.

"Ah... And, why do you need to be stronger?" 

Letting out a deep breath, she looked away. 

"There's someone I need to kill," she stated. "A few people, actually. I can't do it as I am now. I need more tools. More power. So, I came here to find some." 

The man nodded. 

"Vengeance is as valid a motivator as any. I won't judge you for using it as your fuel. That said, I would urge to... perhaps, take a look around on the way to it."

"Uh, what does that mean?" 

"It means that many things may happen right under your weirdly pale nose if you only focus on your revenge. The actions you take will, inevitably, affect more than just the people you're pointing your staff at. Just keep that in mind." 

Making that statement, the mage concluded their session. 

"I may have something else to show you. Come back tomorrow."

"I will. Thanks." 

Neve walked away then, feeling genuinely excited. She'd gained two valuable tools to use during the next 10 waves. The fact that there could still be more the old man wanted to show her was even more reason to feel the way she did. 

She made her way back to the fighting ring where Erin was. 

She could hear the clashing of swords a whole street away, and a crowd had gathered around the ring while Neve had been gone. 

The healer squeezed past the curious onlookers, finding that her summon was, as far as Neve could tell, having the time of her life. 

Neve was stunned. 

A grin, royal and proud decorated Erin's elegant face as she traded blows with two guards at once. The energy with which she fought was fiery. Neve could feel herself being pulled in by her performance, captivated by the ease with which she moved like she was dancing across the stone. 

Until Erin caught sight of her and her upbeat mood vanished. 

A sour expression graced her face and she called a stop to the action, slithering toward Neve. 

Wiping sweat off her brows, she asked:

"Do you need me?" 

It didn't take a genius to know that Erin was hoping the answer to that question would be "no". And, she was right. 

"Nah, I'm just here to tell you that I'm heading back to Minerva's house. Once you're done, just head there." 

"Understood." 

It stung a little, but if Erin was having this much fun precisely because she'd forgotten she was a summon for a few minutes, then Neve figured it would be best if she turned around and walked back to Minerva's house alone, so Erin could continue basking in the familiarity of battle. 

[... Why should I care about whether she's happy or not? She's just...] 

She couldn't even finish that thought. She felt too guilty. 

[I really wish she would have just been a normal summon. You people are cruel,] she stated, directing some anger at the Forces That Be for making Erin this way. 

Soon enough, she found her way back to Minerva's house. It was a productive day, all in all. Neve did not think she was ready to take on the next waves yet, but she was getting there. 

[I should ask Ahlakan if she can make any more potions for me,] Neve thought. [Is she here?] 

And so, she began walking up the steps to where the woman's room was, across from her own. 

As she was about halfway, though, she heard something. 

"Mmm~ ahh..." 

Neve froze. 

Her brows pulled together. 

[... What was that?] 

"Ahhh... AH!" 

That was, unmistakably, Ahlakan's voice. 

And, it sounded like she was in pain. 

[Shit. I should see what's up.] 

So, she went to do just that, pacing in a hurry toward Ahlakan's room, where the door had been left open, if just barely. 

Without a word, she pushed it open. 

... And found Ahlakan curled up on her bed. 

With one hand buried between her legs. 

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