Chapter 37
“Well, now that the troublesome people are gone, I’ll continue gathering herbs.”
“Yes, you’re right. There’s no point in dwelling on these issues now, after all.”
Although Lisbeth had encountered two people she shouldn’t have seen that morning, she decided to put all other matters aside for now and focus on completing her current task.
Fortunately, thanks to Natalie, many of the magical beasts in this forest had been eliminated, making Lisbeth’s herb gathering much easier.
As time passed, Lisbeth was soon just one herb away from finishing her gathering. However, before she could even set off for her next collecting spot, the communication crystal Hilda had given her suddenly began to glow.
“ROAR!!!!”
“Hm!?”
Gazing at the flashing crystal, Lisbeth was immediately struck by a sense of foreboding. When she channeled her magic into the crystal and connected the call, the first sounds that erupted were not Hilda’s group, but a series of furious roars from wild beasts.
“Hello? Lisbeth, can you hear me? For some reason, we’re surrounded by a lot of magical beasts! Hurry and come save us!”
Soon, however, the source of the voice shifted to Hilda. Her tone was incredibly anxious, suggesting they had truly fallen into grave danger.
Upon hearing their desperate plea, Lisbeth’s expression turned bewildered. “Huh? Wait? Weren’t you gathering herbs in a safe area with few magical beasts? How did this happen?” she asked urgently.
“I don’t know, but these magical beasts don’t seem to originally live in this area. Yet, for some unknown reason, they’ve all moved here to us. Just hurry over; I’ve already sent our location to your communication crystal. You just need to get here.”
“Understood.”
After disconnecting the call, Lisbeth immediately covered her face. She then turned back, glancing in the direction where many magical beasts had perished earlier.
‘Sigh… If I’m not mistaken, it must be because Natalie killed too many magical beasts here, causing all the beasts that originally lived in this area to flee elsewhere upon hearing the news. And that ‘elsewhere’ seems to be exactly where Hilda and the others are…’
“Seriously? That’s too much of a coincidence, isn’t it? Why would they specifically run to Hilda’s group?”
Upon hearing Lisbeth’s words, Clotilde, who was with her, seemed to sigh as well. She then addressed Lisbeth, “Well, Alex, don’t just stand there. Go save them quickly!”
“I know, but it’s impossible for me to deal with so many magical beasts without using magic and without being able to switch professions. I need to make some preparations first.”
As Lisbeth’s words faded, a colossal magic circle materialized beneath her feet. Immediately, a torrent of magical power erupted from her, causing the entire forest to tremble.
The next second, she maintained that immense magical energy and declared loudly, “Profession ability activated! Profession selected: Tier 1—Priest!”
With her profession chosen, a sacred light surged skyward from the magic circle beneath Lisbeth’s feet, enveloping her entirely. The next moment, as the light dissipated, Lisbeth stood in the forest, now clad in a pristine white mage’s robe.
But it wasn’t over yet. After completing her profession change, Lisbeth took another deep breath and announced, “Profession advancement ability activated! Tier 2—Sage!”
Just as when she advanced to Grand Thief, a weapon slowly rose from beneath Lisbeth’s feet once more. Unlike the dagger from her Grand Thief advancement, this time it was a long staff that gradually emerged from the ground.
As Lisbeth grasped the staff, her pristine white robe vanished instantly, replaced by an opulent silver robe.
“Alex, why did you change to a healing profession here? No one’s injured, after all.”
Seeing Lisbeth transform into a Sage, Clotilde, who was still in her hand, immediately questioned her with confusion.
Lisbeth merely smiled in response, then pulled out a portion of the large quantity of herbs she had already gathered. “Why, to make some healing potions, of course! If my own strength can’t be increased, then at least I can make some healing medicine to fight a prolonged battle~”
After speaking, Lisbeth lined up all the herbs. She then tapped the staff she had just acquired through her profession change against the herbs. “Skill activated—Holy Medicine Crafting.”
“Swish!!”
As Lisbeth touched the staff to the herbs, they seemed to be imbued with life, beginning to float in mid-air. The next moment, countless empty vials appeared before them from seemingly nowhere.
Upon seeing the bottles, the herbs transformed into specks of light and were drawn into the containers.
Once all the herbs had entered the vials, they transformed into a deep crimson liquid, filling the bottles. The number of vials was considerable, easily a dozen or so.
“Alright, all done. Making this many recovery potions should be enough. These potions, imbued with holy properties, are the bane of magical beasts, so they can all be used as weapons.
And if Airenst or the others get injured, I can immediately use these to heal them.”
“Eh? But Lisbeth, how will you explain where these potions came from? You’ve kept your ability to change professions a secret, and now you’re suddenly producing so many healing potions out of thin air. They’re bound to be suspicious.”
Clotilde had, indeed, hit the nail on the head. Hilda and the others weren’t fools; if Lisbeth suddenly appeared with so many potions, they would undoubtedly grow suspicious.
Hearing Clotilde’s concern, Lisbeth simply offered a smile.
“Oh, it’s fine. These potions are all made from the herbs I just gathered. I can simply say they’re the product of my boredom. If they insist on asking how I made them without any tools, I’ll just say it’s my own unique secret recipe.”
“Ha… why does that explanation sound so unreliable to me?”
While Lisbeth’s explanation was indeed rather dubious, she already harbored many secrets. Even if she suddenly produced numerous potions, Hilda and the others would likely just find it astonishing.
Realizing this, Clotilde told Lisbeth, “In that case, quickly revert from your profession and hurry over. If something happens to any of them, you won’t be able to explain it to Chris, will you?”
“Yes, I know. Let’s go then.”
With a final nod, Lisbeth immediately reverted from her profession and ran towards the part of the forest where Hilda and her companions were.
****
“ROAR!!!!”
Although Hilda’s herb gathering spot was a bit of a distance from Lisbeth, she quickly reached them. The next second, she heard numerous magical beast roars continuously echoing from afar.
When she looked up, she realized Hilda and her group had all climbed a large tree, with about a dozen magical beasts besieging them below.
“Waaah, why isn’t that idiot Lisbeth here yet! If this keeps up, we’re going to be eaten!”
“Staros, calm down. These magical beasts can’t get up here yet, so don’t be so scared. Besides, you used to be a big man, so don’t say such cowardly things.”
“Hilda, if my magic and physical abilities hadn’t been severely restricted, of course I wouldn’t be afraid of these magical beasts! The problem is, right now I’m a weak little girl with no power at all, so what’s wrong with being scared?”
Gazing at Staros, who was perched nervously in the tree, Lisbeth suddenly felt like enjoying the spectacle a little longer.
However, the magical beasts seemed to possess some intelligence; seeing they couldn’t climb up, they began to attack the roots of the large tree where Hilda and her companions were.
‘Hmm, I still wanted to scare that scoundrel who ate my sandwich a bit more, but since they’re genuinely about to collapse, I suppose I have no choice but to intervene~’
“Alex, you really hold a grudge.”
“Hmph, of course! The hatred of having one’s food stolen is immense! But anyway, there aren’t as many magical beasts as I thought. If there are fewer than ten, it shouldn’t be a big problem.”
After a brief assessment of the situation, Lisbeth glanced around, and once she confirmed no magical beasts were hidden nearby, she drew the longsword Hilda had given her. ‘In that case, let’s go~’
As her words ended, Lisbeth’s gaze sharpened, and she charged directly towards the pack of magical beasts.
“Swish!!!”
“ROAR!!!”
The moment she closed in on the magical beasts, Lisbeth cleaved one of them away with a single sword strike. Before the other beasts could react, her longsword plunged forcefully into the eye of a nearby beast, instantly killing it.
“ROAR!!!!”
Witnessing the loss of two of their companions, the remaining magical beasts immediately let out furious roars. One by one, their bodies erupted with magical power, seemingly preparing to cast spells.
It was at this precise moment that Lisbeth quickly retrieved the potions she had just crafted from her backpack and hurled them towards the beasts.