Chapter 24: 24 Laketown

Chapter 24: 24. Lake Town

Ronen had already accumulated 220 points of energy essence. The reason he hadn't used them to boost Maken's strength was precisely to save them for when the light-attribute mage appeared, allowing him to upgrade him directly.

Upgrading a mage from beginner to intermediate required 150 points of energy essence, 50 points more than the corresponding upgrade for a knight.

As these points of energy essence were invested, Elrond's attribute panel underwent a change—

[Elrond Faol]: Intermediate Mage · Light (0/300) +

In the span of a single breath, Elrond had traversed a path that other mages might not necessarily complete in several years.

"My Lord, what is this..." He was so shocked that he was at a loss for words.

Ronen waved his hand. "This is my special ability. Remember to keep it a secret for me. Do not reveal any information to anyone other than Maken."

Elrond slowly recovered from his shock. "May the light be with you, My Lord. Your gift and teachings, I shall forever remember!"

This fellow had spoken only a few sentences since they met, yet two of them were already "May the light be with you," giving him quite the flavor of a religious charlatan.

"Alright, Elrond, do you master any other magic?"

"Yes!" Elrond answered with absolute certainty. "After I became an intermediate mage, the art of healing appeared in my mind."

Hearing this, Ronen beamed with joy.

Possessing a healing spell was exactly what fit his image of a light-attribute mage.

"How effective is the healing spell?" he inquired.

"Ordinary sword and blade wounds can be healed completely. More severe ones might require casting it a few more times."

Elrond added, "However, if the injury is too grievous, touching the bone or internal organs, the effectiveness of the healing spell will be greatly diminished."

Ronen nodded slowly. Though it couldn't cure all ailments, being able to treat common blade wounds was already quite excellent.

To witness the effects of the healing spell with his own eyes, Ronen took his sword and lightly drew a cut across his pinky finger. Bright red blood immediately flowed out. Truth be told, it stung quite a bit.

"My Lord, what are you doing?" Elrond asked in alarm.

"Come, use the healing spell to treat it!"

Only then did Elrond understand that Ronen was merely testing the efficacy of the healing spell.

"My Lord, you could have completely cut my finger just now instead!"

Regretting that he hadn't anticipated his master's intent beforehand, he hurriedly placed his palm above the bleeding finger.

Soon, a brilliant glow descended upon the wound.

Ronen felt only a warm, itchy sensation at the cut, and then he watched as it healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

From bleeding to scabbing, and finally back to a state of pristine wholeness, the entire process took no more than five seconds!

"Not bad!"

Having seen it with his own eyes, Ronen was even more satisfied with the effects of the healing spell.

He believed that with Elrond around, if the territory guards were wounded in battle, they wouldn't be crippled or even lose their lives due to backward medical conditions.

In Ronen's eyes, Elrond was practically a field medic now.

The only regret was that Elrond had not mastered any offensive types of magic.

Invigorate, Flash, and Heal were all of an auxiliary nature. Ronen felt a bit concerned about his safety on the battlefield.

After another round of conversation, Ronen gained a relatively comprehensive understanding of Elrond.

He stepped out of the tent, sending the manservant away by having Chahar fetch some hot water for him, and then brought Elrond before Maken.

"Maken, this is your new friend, Elrond Faol. Take him to get acquainted with our current situation, and then arrange tonight's camp."

"Remember, do not reveal the information that Elrond is a mage to the outside world for the time being. Just say he is a friend of mine."

"Understood, My Lord!"

While accepting the order, Maken sized him up from head to toe, then performed a knight's salute. "Maken Saliton, it is a pleasure to meet you!"

"May the light be with you, warrior!"

Ronen chuckled softly, then turned back into his tent to rest.

Tonight passed peacefully, without any disturbance from wild beasts.

Early the next morning, after breakfast, Ronen did not have the guards train. Instead, they set out at full speed, escorting the siblings of the Green family toward Lake Town.

Lake Town was right on the way to Mountain Forest Town, close to Horse Pasture City, so it wasn't considered a detour for Ronen.

In this manner, after another day and a half, Ronen and his company finally entered the Green territory.

They had set out on the fourth, and now it was noon on the ninth. It had taken them five days to arrive here, a speed that couldn't be called fast.

"Brother Ronen, following this road forward for another dozen miles or so will bring us to Lake Castle."

Over the past day or so, although Marina had not brought up the idea of entering the tent again, she still sat with Ronen whenever she had free time.

Fortunately, this girl's sprained ankle hadn't fully recovered; otherwise, Ronen might not have had any personal space at all.

"The scenery of Lake Town is quite nice," he praised casually.

Since entering the Green territory, the streams and ponds on both sides of the road had grown more numerous. Ronen even saw people catching fish in the water.

Green water and verdant hills gave him quite the feeling of returning to his old home on Earth.

Except, as the convoy passed through Lake Town, the sanitation issues were still quite prominent.

But this time Ronen was no longer surprised by such sights, nor would he ask silly questions like why they didn't manage the sanitation.

Lake Castle was not located on the lake itself, but like Black Mountain Castle, it was situated on a hill a few miles away from the urban area.

Although the castle's defensive works—such as the walls, the wooden spikes outside the walls, and the moats—were not as grand or sturdy as those of Black Mountain Castle, everything necessary was present.

Before the company could even enter the castle grounds, a squad of cavalry galloped forward, blocking the path ahead.

"Halt!" a tall knight barked, his voice laden with a heavy tone of warning.

However, upon seeing the Black Mountain family emblem on the carriage, his tone softened slightly.

"May I ask which lord of the Black Mountain family has come to Lake Town?"

When nobles visited, servants were usually sent ahead to deliver a formal visit request.

It was very rare for anyone to appear outside another noble's castle with soldiers and carriages without a prior notice.

"Uncle, it's us!" Marina poked her head out from the carriage.

"Miss Marina? Master Malik is here too!"

The knight froze for a moment, then immediately drove his horse over. "Why are you here?"

Having lost his horse, Kane stumbled from the rear to the front. He cried out in deep grief:

"Lord Andrea, our knight squad was ambushed and assassinated! Captain Noel fell in battle! If not for Lord Ronen's rescue, the young master and young lady probably wouldn't have survived either!"

Knight Andrea's expression changed dramatically. How could such a thing suddenly happen?

Considering the safety of the journey, he had already arranged a knight squad to pick up Malik and his sister, yet he hadn't expected them to be nearly wiped out.

"How are the young master and young lady? Are they hurt?" Andrea asked in an urgent rush.

Malik emerged from the carriage, his arm still wrapped in bandages, though the injury had improved considerably from before.

"We suffered some light wounds, but they're relatively minor. With a couple more days of recovery, we should be fine."

Malik raised his hand toward Ronin and introduced him, "This is the Baron of Mountain Forest Town, a descendant of the Ushan family, Ronin Blaze Storm. Thanks to him, we were fortunate to survive this ordeal."

Andrea finally emerged from his state of concern, carefully observing Ronin.

In fact, the events involving the Ushan and Heade families had already spread to the territories of all the vassals over the past few days. Some people privately mocked Wiggins and Ronin.

When Andrea heard the news, he too had mocked them.

However, that was done privately. In public, he would still show respect upon meeting Ronin, rarely causing offense openly.

Moreover, Ronin had now saved the descendants of the Green family—his nephew and niece.

Andrea Knight performed a formal knightly salute toward Ronin, "Andrea greets you. I apologize for my earlier lapse; I truly did not expect the young master and lady to be attacked."

He then bowed deeply once more, "Thank you for your rescue!"

"Greetings, Andrea Knight."

Ronin responded with a smile, "The Green family is a vassal of the Ushan family, and I carry the blood of the Ushan lineage within me. It was only right to assist Malik and the others."

He paused briefly before asking further, "I heard from Cain that Baron Germain Green was wounded in this battle. How is his condition now?"

Andrea replied, "Thank you for your concern. Lord Germain's injury is almost fully healed."

Both Malik and Marina, the siblings, were somewhat anxious. They had only heard that he was wounded in the chest and resting in bed, without knowing the severity. Upon hearing their uncle say the injury was nearly healed, their worried hearts eased.

Marina said, "Lord Ronin and Uncle, perhaps we should return to the castle first."

"Of course, Lady!"

Andrea signaled his subordinates to return to the castle and report ahead, then turned his horse aside, allowing Ronin's procession to proceed.

Ronin searched his memory for information about Baron Germain Green.

It seemed this man possessed Bronze-level strength, which was not low among the barons.

"I saved his son and daughter. What might he offer in return?"

(End of chapter)