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“Merc. Do you know which skill uses the most Mana while providing the most result?”
“Huh?”

Merc was startled since she had expected Rosemary to start telling her a story instead of asking a question.

The spell that uses the most Mana… Extreme Magic, I guess?

The most powerful spells of each attribute were the first thing that came to Merc’s mind. However, she wasn’t sure exactly which one of them consumed the most Mana. Merc knew Rosemary wasn’t asking for such a vague answer.

Vague… Wait, it’s not vague at all! Master’s question was not which spell consumed the most mana, but which one produced the best results for the quantity of mana it consumed.

“… I see. It’s Healing, right?”
“Correct. Healing can use the most Mana of any spell, depending on the situation. And by Healing, I don’t mean the Lesser Heal that humans utilize, but rather the Heal that we use.”
“Master, could you please explain the difference between Lesser Heal and Heal to me once more? I understand that Heal is times better than Lesser Heal, but why is Heal considered harmful while Lesser Heal is not?”

Rosemary pointed her left palm up as soon as Merc voiced her question.

“Look closely. This is how Lesser Heal consumes Mana.”

As Rosemary said, a ball of Mana formed above her left palm. The light-tinged Mana hung in mid-air for a moment before dissipating.

“And this is how Heal consumes Mana.”

Mana once again began to flow out of Rosemary’s hand. However, instead of forming a ball, the warm light particles streamed out of her hand in a continuous stream. At the same time, a tremendous amount of Mana was seeping from Rosemary’s body.

“M-Master?!”

Merc expressed her concern as she looked at Rosemary, who was focused on the Mana particles. Rosemary softly closed her eyes and stopped the flow of Mana when she heard Merc call out to her.

“You could say this is the main difference between Lesser Heal and Heal. Lesser Heal’s Mana consumption is predetermined, whereas Heal’s can be left to flow, which can be dangerous. That is, if it is utilized by a race that does not have adequate Mana Manipulation control.”
“I see… However, does this indicate that the healing effect will be proportional to the amount of Mana consumed?”
“You may argue that there are changes based on the spellcaster’s proficiency, but in most circumstances, yes. Furthermore, if you cast Lesser Heal on the same person twice in a row, the second cast will be ineffective. You need to wait a bit between each cast. Lesser Heal can heal some minor wounds, but it is only effective as a stop-gap remedy for fatal wounds.”

Nonetheless, Lesser Heal could treat bone fractures and wounds to some extent, making even Healers who could only use Lesser Heal rather valuable.
　
However, because there were no humans who could use Heal, all of the Healers who worked as adventurers relied only on Lesser Heal.

“On the other hand, Heal has an enormous effect, but it can also kill the caster. I’ve witnessed a number of individuals die as a result of using Heal, one of whom was also my first disciple.”
“Your first disciple died by using Heal?!”
“That’s right… She was a very sweet child. She was a human orphan who had been banished from her village. After that, she wandered into the elf village, where I accidentally found her and took her up.”
“A human? Your first disciple was a human?”

Merc was completely taken aback when she heard that.
　
Merc felt it all the odder that her Master had chosen a human disciple because she had lived as a human. Rather, she struggled to imagine her Master having another disciple than herself.

“Well, you could say I did it mostly out of curiosity. I was quite young at the time; you see… I had just passed the two-hundred-year mark.”
“What do you mean quite young?”
“Nothing! I was curious about the disparities in Mana Manipulation between humans and elves at the time. I was curious to see how far elves outperformed humans when it came to Mana Manipulation… And whether a human could use Mana in the same way that an elf could.”
“In other words she was your guinea pig?”

Merc didn’t like what she heard mostly because she had already lived as a human. What struck her even more was Rosemary’s willingness to engage in such inhumane behavior.

“Well, to be honest, that was the case. However, I never mistreated my disciple. She was my first disciple after all. I picked her up out of selfishness at first, but with time I grew attached to her and raised her as if she were my own daughter.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”

Merc felt relieved when she heard her Master say that, but there was still something that was bothering her.

Merc couldn’t picture her Master leaving that girl to die without doing anything, even though she had been her Master’s first student.
　
Above all, Merc was perplexed by the fact that her Master’s disciple had died as a result of Heal. A spell which Rosemary was well familiar with.

“You could say I got too carried away. Honestly speaking, that girl was a genius. She’d take everything I told her and make it her own right away. Her understanding of Mana much exceeded that of other elves. Despite the fact that she was still a novice at Mana Manipulation, she had the potential to exceed elves. That is… That is why I slipped up and taught her Heal.”

Rosemary spoke in a hoarser tone than normal, her wrinkles more visible than usual. Merc thought of the word “old” for the first time since seeing her Master.

Rosemary, who always kept her cool and exuded a mysterious atmosphere around her, now appeared to be a regular old lady.

“It was a tragic accident. That day, she went up to the mountains with a friend of hers. They climbed to a somewhat steep region. Her friend ended up slipping and falling, suffering serious injuries as a result. Lesser Heal was unlikely to be able to heal the injuries.”
“… So she used Heal?”
“That’s right. Her Mana Manipulation was nowhere near good enough, but the worst part was that her Mana pool was half that of a normal elf’s. Since you’ve already undergone your training you can probably imagine what happened when she used Heal, right?”
“I can…”

It had almost certainly been the same as suicide.

Heal was the spell that used the most Mana, precisely as Rosemary had just described to Merc. The spell drained more Mana the longer it was employed.
　
In other words, the more severe the wounds, the more Mana the caster would need.

If a person skilled in Mana Manipulation used the spell, they would be able to recognize their limits and stop, even if they couldn’t heal the wounds due to their lack of Mana.
　
Similarly to how Merc had ceased expending her Mana when she believed she had reached her limit during her childhood training to build her mana pool.

However, given that that girl had not yet mastered Mana Manipulation, she was unlikely to have figured out her own limit.
　
She had likely been focused solely on saving her friend that she hadn’t noticed her Mana dwindling.
　
In the end she had likely reached Mana Depletion and died¹. It was truly a sad story.

“You are different from her, Merc. You were able to do Mana Manipulation from the start and even if you use Heal, you won’t go over your limit. I’m certain of that. I am but… I don’t want any more of my disciple to die while casting a spell meant to help others…”
“Master…”

Merc couldn’t think of anything to say as she approached Rosemary, who was staring down. Rosemary suddenly spoke after a brief silence.

“But I guess that ends today. Starting today you’re free to do whatever you want?”
“Huh?”

Merc was utterly taken aback when Rosemary, who appeared to be in a bad mood, exclaimed with a bright smile.
　
The change in her behavior was just too sudden.

“Don’t ‘Huh?’ me. Your final lesson is over. You are no longer my disciple. You have complete freedom to use Healing and Magic as you see fit. Wasn’t that the reason you came here in the first place?”
“I-I mean it is but… Just what are you saying, Master?!”
“I’m not your Master anymore! From now on we’re equals. Isn’t that right? Miss Merc.”
“Don’t play dumb, Master! No matter what you say, a master is always a master, and a disciple is always a disciple.”
“Hmph? In that case, I forbid you from using Healing from now on. You’re also forbidden from leaving the village.”
“…”

Merc was once again left completely speechless.
　
Merc hated losing Rosemary as her Master, but she couldn’t just accept her Master’s words because her dream was to leave the town and become a Healer.

“I’m kidding. If you want to continue calling me master, then so be it. Just keep in mind that I can’t teach you anything else. I also won’t be able to come and visit you once you leave the village and become an adventurer.”
“That doesn’t matter. If that time comes then I’ll just come and visit you.”

Just as Law said he’d come and see me.

After all, Merc could do anything that Law could. If she felt like seeing Rosemary she would come back to see her.

“Master, thank you for everything.”　

Merc expressed her gratitude by bending her head deeply. As she did she felt something hit her head.

“Don’t get over your head. You’re still fourteen. By failing, becoming frustrated, and compromising, you can still learn a lot. Try to live your life by not being overconfident, but also not doubting yourself excessively.”
“I will try.”

Even though those were things her Master had always said to her, Merc felt as if they were overflowing with kindness today.

1. Robinxen: That is… surprisingly dark.