Survivors' Gratitude

Pete turned around and saw a girl about his age hurrying toward him.

She had thick brown hair, its softly curled strands falling smoothly over her shoulders. Her blue eyes shone with enthusiasm and excitement, and her lips were rosy and full. She wore a gray cotton apron that had faded somewhat from repeated washing, with a broad belt tied around her waist that accentuated her slender figure.

"Sir, thank you so much!"

Pete took a moment to react, looking at the girl uncertainly. "You are?"

The girl hurriedly introduced herself. "Sir, it's like this—you may not know me."

"I was tricked by those bad people in black robes before. They told me they had a way to solve the trouble I was facing, but they brought me into that cave instead. When I saw that monster, Lord of Radiance above, I thought I was going to die there!"

"Luckily, you acted in time, sir. You used that powerful spell to destroy the monster and save everyone. You seemed too exhausted and fainted afterward, so I ran out to find the people from the police station. They said they needed to take everyone back to confirm a few things."

"I wanted to thank you in person, so after they finished questioning me, I kept waiting here for you to come out."

"Oh! Right, sir, I haven't told you my name yet!"

"Rena Monia. If you don't mind, you can just call me Rena."

Pete suddenly understood.

The girl before him, Rena, was another unlucky victim like him, dragged into the ritual site without knowing what was happening.

And judging by her appearance, she was not a professional. Pete was at least a Tier 2 spellcaster. Although he did not know any offensive spells, he was still a professional with some ability to protect himself. If he had been an ordinary person, he would have felt even more hopeless in that situation.

"No, no, there's no need to be so polite. My name is Pete Chinar. Actually, I was just like you. I was fooled by those lunatics' nonsense, thinking I could learn magic if I went with them, and nearly got myself killed," Pete said, waving his hands repeatedly.

Rena's eyes glittered with admiration. "Mr. Chinar, you're too modest. I heard it from the other people who were rescued. The spell you cast was at least a Tier 3 spell, one of the most powerful kinds. And everyone was terrified at the time. No one dared step forward to stop that monster. Only you did it!"

Pete felt his face heating up again and unconsciously rubbed the corner of his clothes. Rena's praise made him a little embarrassed.

The truth was that he had nearly fallen into despair as well. If the God of Knowledge, Noven, had not reached out to help him at that critical moment, he would only have thought that making one last desperate attempt before dying was better than lying down and waiting for death. He had cast the spell according to Noven's divine revelation. Otherwise, he probably would not have performed much better than the others.

"It was only because everyone was frightened out of their wits at the time. I think that when life and death are truly on the line, anyone can muster up courage. You really don't need to praise me like that," Pete explained awkwardly. "Just call me Pete. Calling me Mr. Chinar makes me feel rather embarrassed."

Rena sighed softly, her tone filled with longing. "But even if we wanted to resist, it probably wouldn't have made any difference. You're a professional. You can release powerful spells with a wave of your hand. Those monsters must be nothing in front of you. I'm just an ordinary person."

If his face had merely been a little warm before, Pete now felt that he was probably bright red. Rena's gratitude was undoubtedly sincere, but those descriptions were truly more praise than he deserved!

A powerful professional?

Someone who could cast devastating spells with a wave of his hand?

If time went back a few days, none of those descriptions would have had anything to do with Pete!

No one knew their own situation better than they did.

As a citizen of the Rayak Kingdom, why had Pete not gone to Rayak Royal Arcane Academy? Why had he traveled all this way to Greenport instead? Was it because he did not want to go?

It was because, with his meager affinity for the Goddess of Magic, the Royal Arcane Academy did not think highly enough of him. He could not get in even if he wanted to!

Pete's father, Mr. Chinar, was a minor baron granted his title by the Rayak Kingdom's royal family. He did have a little status, but under Rayak Kingdom inheritance law, Pete Chinar, as the baron's eldest son, had to fulfill one of three conditions if he wished to inherit the barony:

Become a true believer of the Radiance Church;

Pay the king a hefty inheritance tax on a regular basis;

Become a Tier 3 professional.

Pete did not want to choose either of the first two options.

True believers were different from casual believers, who could adopt or abandon a faith at any time. Once one became a true believer, one had to strictly abide by the various doctrines and commandments of the god's church. It meant that one's words and actions would be constrained.

As for paying taxes?

Pete's father was only a minor baron. There were countless nobles like him in the Rayak Kingdom. Their estate's output allowed them to live comfortably, and they even had enough money left over to send Pete to Greenport to buy an enrollment place at Caron Academy.

If they had to pay the king regularly, their quality of life would inevitably decline drastically. Unless there was no other choice, Pete naturally did not want that.

That left him with only one option: become a Tier 3 professional.

Compared with paths like warrior, ranger, and monk, which clearly required daily hardship and training, becoming a mage—something that did not demand physical strength—was obviously better suited to a noble's son like Pete.

Of course, his training as a mage was only half-baked. He had spent three years at Caron Academy without becoming a Tier 3 spellcaster. On top of that, nobles who did not engage in labor naturally tended to be physically weaker. His actual combat ability was only slightly better than that of an ordinary person. Before this, he had not truly deserved any of the praise Rena had given him.

To avoid further embarrassment, Pete decisively changed the subject. "I heard you mention the God of Radiance just now. Are you a believer of the God of Radiance? Are you from Rayak as well?"

The Radiance Church was the largest sect in the Rayak Kingdom and also its most mainstream faith. Even the royal family were casual believers of the God of Radiance. If someone said they believed in the God of Radiance, there was a good chance they were from Rayak.

Rena's face lit up with delight. "Yes! I was born in Starosh, the royal capital, but my father runs a tavern here in Greenport. I came here to help him manage it, which is why I'm here. So you're from Rayak too, Mr. Pete?"

"Yes. I came here to study. I'm currently a third-year student at Caron Academy. If nothing unexpected happens, I'll be able to graduate and leave soon. Who would have thought I'd get dragged into something this dangerous?" Pete replied.

Seeing that Pete was preparing to leave after speaking, Rena immediately offered, "How about visiting my family's tavern? I still haven't properly thanked you. At least let me buy you a drink!"

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