Luo Ge fell silent for a moment.
Honestly, he had snapped at this old man a few times earlier over what had happened to Sara's family... He had assumed the man held a grudge and had secretly followed him to take revenge.
That was what he had thought.
He had thought he could easily see through people's hearts, but the human heart was actually the most unfathomable thing of all, as well as the most complicated and changeable.
Unexpected... He had been unexpectedly wrong about him.
His Transparent World let him see the closest thing to the true essence of everything in the world, but the one thing he could not see through was the human heart.
Luo Ge slowly walked over and patted the old man's shoulder. "Pierre, you have my approval. You see things more clearly than most people I know. You're a good man."
Pierre froze for a moment, then broke into a grin, his wrinkles bunching together as he smiled like a child.
Then he began to grow serious.
"Ahem, Master, though this may be a little presumptuous... Your disciple has something to say, but I'm not sure whether I should..."
"Go ahead."
"Oh, and stand up first."
Luo Ge noticed that he was still kneeling on the ground.
Pierre did not budge. "No, please let your disciple remain kneeling."
"Only this way can I better gaze upon your face and your greatness."
"Enough, stop!"
"Know when to quit!"
Luo Ge waved him off and sighed helplessly. "Keep this up and I really will expel you. Now... back to what we were discussing. What did you want to tell me?"
"Ahem!"
Only then did Pierre rein in his fanatical expression and speak seriously. "Your disciple hopes that, in the future, Master will avoid using God-Rank Healing Magic in front of others whenever possible. In fact, Intermediate-Rank or High-Rank Healing Magic would have been more than enough for Funika's condition earlier. There was absolutely no need for God Rank."
"Please don't misunderstand. Your disciple is not saying this out of jealousy or any other ulterior intention. It is because God-Rank Healing Magic is far too rare."
"Once someone with an agenda spreads word of it, Master will instantly become everyone's target. Wolves will surround you, and everyone will want to pounce and tear off a vicious bite."
"Every nation and every ambitious schemer will regard a God-Rank healing magician like you as a precious strategic resource and try every possible means to claim you."
He paused, his voice growing heavier. "When that happens, Master will become a juicy prize countless people fight over, without a moment's peace. In more serious circumstances, Master might even..."
"I'll be imprisoned and lose my freedom forever, right?"
Luo Ge suddenly spoke.
Pierre froze, then nodded. "Mm... Indeed. Naturally, Master had already seen through something even your disciple could think of."
A hint of appreciation entered Luo Ge's eyes.
Though this man spoke a little too bluntly and harshly, he was sincerely considering Luo Ge's safety.
After all, in this world, magicians might be useful, but their combat strength was absolute fodder.
Never mind a magician fighting a swordsman of the same rank; even someone whose swordsmanship was several ranks lower would have little trouble killing a magician.
Magicians needed to chant to cast magic. By the time they finished reciting their spells, who knew how many times they could have been killed?
Thinking about it that way... made it clear just how broken the voiceless skill was for magicians. It was pure easy mode.
Still, to be fair...
He wanted to use Intermediate-Rank or High-Rank Healing Magic too, but the man surely could never have imagined... that aside from God-Rank Healing Magic, the only healing magic he was good at was the Beginner-Rank Healing Magic Roxy had first taught him back then.
He had only learned that so he could eat pufferfish.
Pierre probably could never have imagined that all of Luo Ge's other magic remained at Advanced Rank... while God-Rank Healing Magic was actually his greatest magical accomplishment.
Just as Pierre was endlessly showering Luo Ge with adoration, the animal-hide backpack on Luo Ge's back suddenly squirmed.
Then the little Red Dragon inside suddenly poked his head out.
Having probably slept enough, he curiously surveyed the world outside.
The moment Pierre saw those red scales, his eyes widened and he sprang up. "Oh, oh, oh! A monster! We're being attacked by a monster!"
"Master, take cover!"
"Your disciple will cover your retreat! Even if I must sacrifice myself, I will buy you a chance to escape!"
"Run!"
He abruptly planted himself in front of Luo Ge, spreading his arms as though prepared to face death.
Yet all that stood before him was a ball-sized Red Dragon hatchling, looking utterly bewildered after just waking up, evidently still unsure what was happening.
Luo Ge calmly patted Pierre's shoulder. "Relax. This is my pet."
"Oh, oh, oh!"
"So it's a pet!"
Only then did Pierre breathe a sigh of relief, before his face filled with amazement again. "As expected of Master! You can even tame monsters as pets! What kind of monster is this little red lizard? Is it some hybrid lizard species?"
???
The baby Red Dragon beside them was unhappy.
It had been sleeping soundly, only for this man's shouting to wake it up, and then he had pointed right at its nose and called it a lizard.
What lizard monster deserved to sit at the same table as a noble Red Dragon like itself?
It grew angry, smacked its mouth, and began spitting out a string of little flames that chased after Pierre's heels.
"Owww!"
"Master, save me! It's so hot... I'm going to burn to death!" Pierre ran circles around Luo Ge for his life, running so hard that his magician's hat went crooked.
Watching the farce the two were putting on...
Luo Ge shook his head helplessly, raised a hand, and precisely extinguished the little flames with a Water Ball. Then he held down the baby Red Dragon's head. "Enough... Stop bullying the elderly."
"We should respect the old and care for the young, understand?"
The baby Red Dragon gave two aggrieved little whines but obediently snuggled back into Luo Ge's arms, glaring viciously at Pierre with its round eyes.
As if saying, I'll burn you to death next time.
"Huff, huff, huff... Incredible..."
Still shaken, Pierre braced his hands on his knees and panted. "As expected of Master. Even monsters obey you so well. Truly incredible."
After all that commotion, Pierre suddenly asked curiously, "Where do you intend to go next, Master?"
"Please don't misunderstand..."
"Your disciple only wishes to travel with you and remain by your side to serve you, ready whenever you call."
"Well, the place I'm heading next is very far away. It really wouldn't be convenient... Why don't we part ways here?"
"Boo-hoo... We've only just met... Is your disciple already being so heartlessly abandoned by Master?"
"Oh, no-"
Pierre let out a wail, but he did not pester him. Instead, he took a deep breath, composed himself, and said solemnly, "Still... since this is Master's decision, there must be some profound meaning behind it."
"Oh, your disciple understands now."
"Master must be going to do something terribly dangerous. That's why you won't let your disciple follow!"
He suddenly clutched his chest, his eyes growing wet again. "Ooh! Your disciple is so moved... Is this Master's love for his disciple?!"
"..."
The corner of Luo Ge's mouth twitched.
If those words had come from a pretty girl, he could have barely accepted them.
Instead, the person professing love to him was a white-bearded old man past fifty.
The first person in this other world to speak of loving him was actually an old man?
Even telling anyone about it would sound ridiculous.
The corner of Luo Ge's mouth twitched as he turned, preparing to slip away.
Just then, Pierre's impassioned shout came from behind him. "Then allow your disciple to wish Master a smooth journey and great fortune in battle!"
"But before we part, please allow your disciple one final selfish request!"
"Just once! Let me gaze upon Master's magnificent face and witness your full-power voiceless God-Rank Healing Magic with my own eyes!"
Luo Ge stopped, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. "Then your wish is granted."
He did not cast voicelessly. Instead, he chose a complete incantation, casting it in a way Pierre could understand.
Word by word, as though bringing this encounter to a formal close.
The surrounding air trembled with the flowing incantation, and mana rushed in like the tide...
"Supreme light that governs the vitality of all things, please hear my prayer."
"Reshape flesh and blood, reconnect sinew and bone, restore life to its rightful form."
"Soothe all wounds, restore withering life-God's Rejuvenation!"
The chanting continued for several full minutes, as complex and obscure as reciting a short essay.
Vast mana spread in every direction from Luo Ge like a surging river.
Plants and vines, flowers, grasses, and trees were the first to sense that immense breath of life.
Tender buds emerged from bare branches at a speed visible to the naked eye, and fresh green leaves pushed up through withered grass, as though spring had descended in an instant upon this land on the verge of winter.
Animals also poked their heads out of tree hollows and dens, surveying the changes around them in astonishment.
When the incantation finally ended, the surrounding forest had been transformed in those few short minutes. Sunlight shone brightly, and all things grew.
Time throughout the entire forest seemed to have reversed upon this land.
He...
He alone had changed the forest's environment. Even the weather had been affected.
Pierre stood rooted to the spot.
His mouth fell open, both hands clamped tightly over it as he watched the miraculous sight before him.
His entire body began trembling uncontrollably.
Cloudy old tears slipped from the corners of his eyes, falling drop by drop into the soil at his feet.
"A miracle... A miracle..."
He choked out broken words as tears streamed down his aged face. "Ohhh... Wonderful... As expected of Master...!"
He fell to both knees and buried his forehead deep in the dirt. "Please forgive me, Lord Saint Millis... Your believer is no longer devout."
For at that moment, in his heart, this youth who could use Voiceless Magic had already surpassed the Saint Millis he believed in, even with only his back in view.
Luo Ge did not look back. He simply waved with his back to him, indicating that he really was leaving.
Before long, his light footsteps disappeared beyond the end of the forest path.
Golden sunlight spilled through the gaps between the treetops, bathing the blond hair over his forehead in a warm halo. Together with the little Red Dragon perched on his shoulder, he gradually blended into the distant horizon.
He would soon head to the Sword Sanctum... to begin a new journey, and the story's curtain rose.