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Early the next morning.

As dawn broke, the mist in the forest had not yet dissipated.

Frieren had her rear end sticking out, her upper body almost completely buried in the bushes next to the camp, rustling around as if searching for something. Her long, silvery-white hair and the hem of her mage's robe were covered with grass and dew.

She wriggled around without a care for her image, and after a while, she suddenly stepped back and emerged from the bushes.

He held up a piece of ore about the size of his palm, gleaming with a bright silver color.

"Finally found it."

A hint of smugness lingered on her face, and her bright green eyes sparkled.

"This thing is amazing!"

Fern had already made the bedding and was preparing to start a fire for breakfast. She glanced at the stone in Frieren's hand and blinked her pale purple eyes.

The stone is quite beautiful, with natural, flowing, subtle patterns on its surface.

But she didn't speak; she simply stretched out her finger towards the pile of dry firewood in front of her, preparing to cast the most basic ignition spell.

A glimmer of light gathers at your fingertips.

Then, it went out.

Fern paused for a moment, then tried again.

The faint light flickered, then vanished silently once more.

"... Huh?"

She tilted her head slightly, a rare look of confusion in her pale purple eyes.

"Fire magic is no longer usable?"

Frieren hugged the ore, squinted, and her smugness became even more pronounced. She shook the stone in her hand.

"This is called Anti-Magic Ore. It's a type of ore that can nullify magic."

She took a few steps forward, closer to Fern and the pile of firewood.

"This level of Anti-Magic Ore has an effective range of about three meters. That's why Fern can't use magic."

As she spoke, she tossed the bright silver ore away with a flick of her arm, as if casually tossing away trash.

The ore traced an arc and landed on the grass three or four meters away.

Almost the instant the ore left my hand and flew beyond some invisible boundary—

At Fern's fingertip, a steady orange-red flame flickered and lit up the dry wood.

"Ah."

Fern watched the flickering flames and spoke softly.

"You can use magic now."

Frieren dusted off non-existent dust from her hands, puffed out her rather unassuming chest, and spoke with an air of "praise me for my extensive knowledge."

"This is a rare item. You can't buy even a tiny piece the size of a fingernail for several gold coins."

She pointed to the ore in the grass in the distance.

"If it's that big... you could probably buy a nice mansion in a good location in Nod-Krai."

Fern paused for a moment as he added water to the small pot.

"... Eh."

She made a short sound of surprise, but her expression didn't change much.

"That's really impressive."

She placed the pot on the fire, then calmly continued, her gaze sweeping over the still ore.

"But, if we have this thing, we're in danger. If a monster attacks, we'll all be wiped out. It's better to throw it away."

"What are you thinking about, Fern?"

Lowell's voice came from the side. He had just finished washing up and was walking over while drying his face with a towel, his tone tinged with helplessness.

"Isn't there me?"

Fern turned to look at him, her pale purple eyes filled with a clear question.

"You're someone who uses magic too."

"I am Demons." Lowell draped a towel over his shoulder, sat down by the fire, and casually picked up a thin twig to pok at the flames. "There are almost no Demons who become powerful solely through physical strength. Even those of the 'General' type rely on extreme magical enhancement to strengthen their bodies in order to perform martial arts-like movements."

He looked at the Anti-Magic Ore.

"If this stuff were truly effective against Demons, humans would have used it to fight Demons long ago. Even if it's rare, with humanity's mining and research capabilities, they should have made some progress over the years."

"But what's the reality?" he countered, pointing to himself with a twig. "Look at me, have I been affected?"

Fern thought for a moment, then shook his head.

"Therefore," Lowell concluded, "This thing has almost no effect on Demons, because for Demons, magic is like eating and drinking; it's part of life, not a skill learned later in life."

He dropped the branch.

"Even if it's rare, it's still valuable and in demand on this continent. Just imagine, if a warrior like Himmel, who relies very little on magic, were to possess this thing..."

He smiled.

"Wouldn't that mean we'd kill any demon that gets in our way? Winning means getting within three meters? For us Demons, magic is like breathing, an instinct, an integral part of our bodies. External things can't interfere with us."

Fern listened quietly, then, as if suddenly grasping a key point, his eyes lit up slightly.

"Doesn't that mean..."

Her voice carried a hint of the joy that belonged to someone her age.

"Will we have endless desserts every day from now on?"

Lowell paused for a moment, then laughed, with an approving look that said, "You've finally figured it out."

"That's right! That's exactly it! But..."

He then changed the subject.

"The Northern Plateau region isn't as rich in resources as the Royal Capital or the south. Towns are far apart, making resupply difficult. For now, we'll mainly rely on food we find along the way, plus the food I have stored in my storage space."

He stroked his chin, recalling.

"A major city on the Northern Plateau... Hmm, I remember that in 'Empire' Eisberg, commerce is quite developed, so you should be able to find some good dessert shops. After all, it's the capital of a country, so there are bound to be some good things. There are certainly many other large towns along the way, but I can't remember them all, and none of them are as good as the ones in the Empire."

Fern seemed instantly inspired by those words.

She gave a soft "hmm," her hands unconsciously clenching into small fists in front of her, her pale purple eyes gleaming with a clear sense of purpose.

"Very well... Let's march towards the Empire!"

She spoke softly but firmly, as if encouraging herself.

"Perfect timing! I've got Ruby- sama's 'I can eat whatever I want and never gain weight' magic, so I want to try it out..."

Frieren glanced at the suddenly spirited Fern, then at the smiling Lowell beside her, and winked.

"It's rare to see Fern so determined."

With a hint of curiosity in her voice, she stood up and brushed the bits of grass off her robe.

"Alright, let's move forward!"

"Haha, of course! Fern won't turn into Fat Philon, so how could he not be motivated? But will that magic really work...?"

The simple breakfast was quickly finished.

After tidying up the campsite and extinguishing the fire, the three continued their journey.

Fern walked at the front, her steps seemingly lighter than usual. She gazed ahead, her pale purple eyes reflecting the gradually brightening sunlight through the forest.

"Lady Frieren," she began, her voice steady, but with a hint of anticipation in it, "the Northern Plateau, is it not far away?"

Frieren followed behind, head down studying the folk magic she had collected yesterday about "softening hard bread with magic." Hearing this, she looked up and thought for a moment.

"Hmm, there's still a long way to go. We need to cross this Kluwen Wetland Forest ahead, and then we'll have to pass through a volcanic area..."

She paused, then added.

"But that volcano hasn't erupted in a long time, so it shouldn't be dangerous."

"Volcano..." Fern repeated softly, his steps pausing almost imperceptibly.

Then, as if she had thought of something, her eyes seemed to brighten a little, and her pace quickened unconsciously. She even tiptoed slightly, walking forward with an almost joyful yet still dignified gait, muttering to herself.

"If there's a volcano... then there must be hot springs too! Forward, forward..."

She seemed lost in her reverie about the hot springs and the imperial desserts, walking with a slightly bold gait that she would never normally display, her attention somewhat wandering.

Result--

"Click."

A soft cracking sound, like earth breaking.

Without warning, a large section of the ground beneath Fern's feet collapsed.

"--!"

Fern was startled, but her body reacted extremely quickly. Before she completely lost her balance, she had already mobilized her magic, lightly touched the ground with her feet, and her body instantly became light, floating upwards and hovering steadily above the collapsed pit.

Almost simultaneously, Frieren also floated up and flew to her side.

"Hmm," Frieren looked down at the dark, seemingly bottomless pit, then at the surface around her that appeared solid but was actually riddled with tiny cracks, and pursed her lips. "Looks like the ground beneath this layer has been hollow for a long time. The foundation of the Kruwin Wetlands is unstable, how annoying."

Her tone carried a sense of nonchalance, as if she were saying, "Here we go again," without much tension.

Just as Fern was about to breathe a sigh of relief and fly away from this dangerous area,

Sudden--

She felt the flow of magic needed to maintain her Flight Magic momentarily stagnate without warning.

His body sank slightly.

"Huh...?"

She subconsciously increased her magical output, but it felt like she had stepped into a sticky swamp, making flying extremely difficult, and her body began to fall slowly and uncontrollably.

"Lord Frieren...?"

She turned her head to look at Frieren beside her, a hint of doubt and a subtle tension flashing in her pale purple eyes.

Frieren seemed to be in the same situation. She was trying to regulate her magic and steady herself, but a rare "this is trouble" expression appeared on her usually calm face.

"Well..."

She looked at Fern and blinked.

The two hovered above the pit, like two leaves spinning in an invisible vortex, slowly but irresistibly falling into the darkness below.