Volume 7 Chapter 7 Fatigue
By the time the battle with the Six-Legged Tiger was over, the jungle had become quite dark. Al himself could still see because the effect of the 'Sensory Boost' spell hadn't worn off yet, but the other 3 probably found it hard to see. Al approached Orson and said, "Please accept this," before trying to cast the 'Sensory Boost' spell again. However, he suddenly felt dizzy and instinctively knelt down.
"Al, what's wrong?"
Orson hurriedly tried to support him, worried he might be injured.
"Um, I was going to use some magic, but I got dizzy..."
"Did you use too much magic?"
Al tilted his head. Previously, when he was working with Eric, he had tested how many 'Light' spells he could cast at the same time. At that time, once he exceeded a certain number, the success rate of the spells suddenly dropped, but he hadn't felt dizzy. Still, it was true that he had used the 'Floating Eye' spell repeatedly and was feeling unusually tired.
"Maybe... But for now, we need to move before the Stone Hurling Bongo..."
He steadied himself and looked back in the direction they had escaped from. He couldn't see anything chasing them from behind. Perhaps the dead Six-Legged Tiger scared them off.
"The fur of the Six-Legged Tiger might sell for a high price. And the fangs too. The smell is a concern, but I want to try to skin it somehow."
The creature was over 6m long (� 19.7ft). Skinning it would be a big job. If magic beasts were too scared to come near, they might be able to work in shifts while taking short naps. Still, if Al couldn't use spells, they would need to light a campfire to brighten the area.
"For now, let's take a break and try again in about 30 minutes."
"Yeah, let's grab a quick bite to eat in the meantime. Also, we should prepare some torches just in case."
Orson found a spot a little away from the giant Six-Legged Tiger's corpse, choosing a place in the shade of a tree to start a small campfire. The fire stood out well from a distance. Ideally, he wanted to avoid lighting the fire unless he could use 'Sensory Boost' for Night Sight, but considering the possibility of not being able to use magic, it couldn't be helped.
The surroundings quickly became pitch dark, and the 4 of them relied on the small firelight to pull out dried grapes, jerky, and bread from their bags, starting to munch on their food.
"What if we end up staying up all night? I wonder what might come sniffing around because of the blood."
Madoc said, deep in thought as he took a sip from his water bottle.
"Yeah, the Stone Hurling Bongo probably won't come until it gets light. Of course, bugs will gather, but maybe we can handle that for just one night."
Orson replied, thinking. The only creatures he could think of that would scavenge on rotting meat in the jungle were insects like the Black Giant Ant, Red Demon Ant, and the Stag Beetle.
"Then let's stay here until Al can use magic again, at least until it gets light."
"I'm sorry, it's my first time using magic like this."
At Najira's words, Al scratched his head. She lightly shook her head and smiled, saying it was no big deal.
"Magicians always act like they're being all fancy with their spells, but maybe it's because of stuff like this. Al, you're just too generous. I never thought it would come to this, but I relied on you so much that you ended up feeling dizzy. I'm sorry. Next time you're tired, let me know earlier."
Orson said this and bowed his head. Al quickly shook his head.
"No, it was my fault for not being able to control it. I thought it would be fine since Mr. Eric and the others used the 'Floating Eye' spell all day during my previous guard duty."
It was the first time he had used 'Floating Eye' for such a long time to keep watch. When he was marching with Naresh and the others, he only used it occasionally when they stopped. Maybe if he didn't move his eyes for so long, he wouldn't get so tired. He should ask Eric about it next time they meet.
"Well, you'll get used to it little by little."
Orson took a bite of bread and chewed slowly. Seeing this, Madoc smiled.
"You seem to be getting back to normal."
"Huh?"
"Sorry. For a while, you were off by yourself like you were sulking. I was worried. I'm relieved now."
It seemed that Madoc had been concerned about Orson hunting alone for a while after he got seriously injured last year. Hearing that he looked like he was sulking made Orson smile wryly.
"It's a childish thing to say, but maybe that was the case. It hurt to have to limp even after recovering from my injury, and there were all those times when Blair was hanging out with other friends while I was in treatment."
"Yeah, yeah, why did you break up with Blair? You were teaching him so hard, after all."
When Al heard the name Blair, he paused. He recalled seeing a guy named Blair while they were hunting a giant lizard. Blair had made some bold comments, but in the end, he didn't catch anything and looked quite unfortunate.
"Well, that's because..."
At that point, Orson paused.
"You don't have to force yourself to say it."
Najira said this, and Orson lightly shook his head.
"Well, I wanted to discuss this with you all eventually. It�s not a big deal. I thought a lot about it at the time, but now I see there were misunderstandings. I didn�t realize it back then. Blair wanted to bring in more people to form a mercenary group, but I didn�t agree. It seemed complicated. More people mean more rules, and it can feel crowded."
After saying that, Orson took a bite of dried meat.
"Is that injury something that can't be fixed even if you go to the church?"
Najira asked. Al had heard rumors that if you had missing body parts, you could go to the church and use a magic called a holy spell to heal them. However, seeing that Orson hadn't gone, he thought it might just be a rumor. Orson shook his head with a wry smile at that question.
"They said if you have the backing of a high-ranking noble, you might be able to ask the bishop in the capital to heal you. And if you donate about 100 gold coins, you might be able to ask for it too. But being told 'maybe' for 100 gold coins is just... ugh."
Is it certain that a holy spell can heal? Even if it can, if healing is possible, then I... Al thought this but decided not to say it out loud. It was up to Orson to decide.
"Alright, I think it's time to try using a spell... I feel like I can eat and rest a bit now. I'm going to use 'Sensory Boost,' so make sure to accept it, okay?"
"Yeah, I get it, Al. Don't push yourself too hard."
Al touched Orson's shoulder.
'Sensory Boost'--Enhanced Vision: Night Sight, Enhanced Touch
Fortunately, there was no dizziness. Orson opened his eyes slightly and looked around. Seeing that, it seemed the effect was working well.
"It seems okay. But I'm sorry, I'll keep it to just 'Sensory Boost' for now. Next is Madoc. Don't forget to really accept it. Also, it will wear off in about an hour, so be careful."
Al reminded Madoc and Najira as he continued to use 'Sensory Boost' on them.
"Thanks, that helps. So, for now, let's work on the disassembly together. Al, you should rest for a bit."
Orson and the others stood up. Madoc and Najira nodded, putting away their water bottles and standing up as well.
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