Arachne

 

- Liana -

 

Oh goddess, oh goddess, oh goddess!
How did I get myself into this?
I was perfectly fine with doing receptionist work in the guild.
That and taking care of the occasional injured adventurer is really all I can do.
If they make it back to the guild it can't be so bad after all.
Seriously, what are they thinking bringing my mediocre self along?
I'm not supposed to go on missions, not to speak of an expedition!
Especially not with a group of twenty seasoned adventurers!

What am I supposed to do if something happens?!
My magical power is, at most, enough to heal one or two smaller injuries, not a whole troop.
There's another healer with us that they got at short notice, but I don't think I can rely on him to do everything by himself.
Just why did they insist so much when I tried so hard to decline?!

 

"Liana! Get going! You're holding up the whole group!" (R)

 

What am I supposed to say?
I just can't anymore.

 

"S-sorry. I'm not used to traveling. I, I'm exhausted." (L)

 

I never had to walk so much.
Neither at the academy nor in the guild.

 

"Then heal it off! It's gonna be some time till we encounter anything at all. See it as practice!" (R)

 

Right.
Healing magic can be used to mitigate smaller ailments.
The life element is able to invigorate a body.
But I don't know if I can pull this off in an efficient manner.
Also, mages who deplete too much of their energy will feel their very own kind of fatigue.
My teacher taught me so.
I'm not sure if I'll be able to maintain the balance.

Okay, okay.
I need to concentrate.
Focus on your body and let the energy gather from the flesh to your aching muscles.
This should alleviate the strain.
Good, I can feel the flow.
Just a bit more and I should be fine to keep going.
Don't forget the lungs.
They hurt from exhaustion.

Oh no, that was too much!
I feel how I'm depleting!

 

"Plock"

 

"What now!? What are you doing there on the ground?" (R)

"S-sorry." (L)

"What are you waiting for? Stand up!" (R)

"I, I don't think I can." (L)

"God, can this be the truth? Alian, would you mind?" (R)

 

Oh, is he a creationist believer?
Despite seeing him regularly in the guild I never asked.
This would be impolite after all.
They might be the biggest religion on the continent, yet in these lands not quite as popular.

 

"Fine. I have some to spare." (Alian)

 

Oh no, the other healer.
I'm going to bother him.

 

"Seriously, a single invigorating spell and you're depleted? As a healer you should be able to constantly circulate your magic inside your body." (A)

"S-sorry." (L)

 

He touches my shoulder and soon I feel how the life element coming from him infuses me, quickly restoring my reserves.

 

"This is it? Seriously?" (A)

"Something wrong, Alian?" (R)

"I was trying to replenish her reserves..." (A)

"Yes?" (R)

 

Please, don't!

 

"...Okay, but I'm just saying this because it's necessary to know before you rely on her healing you up. I was going to refill her life energy, but her body is already at the containment limit. She's barely above the average human with her shallow capacity. I can't believe she's a healer. With this amount, it's no wonder she's already exhausted. I doubt she can heal more than a scratch." (A)

"Sigh, just what was Garon thinking? Is there any chance she is going to get better? Mages can train their capacity, right?" (R)

"Oh certainly, but only because I have no idea how she could get worse. It's like she never had any circulation training. So yes, maybe we can double her ability to two scratches. Which still won’t mean much." (A)

 

I never wanted to come in the first place.
Just why am I forced to do this?

The rest of the way I have to live with the ridicule of the others.
They're not directly hostile, yet naturally, I notice their whispers and looks.
The fact that group leader Robert assigned Alian to do a basic healing training to get me "halfway operational" only stalls us further, which I naturally get blamed for as well.

The issue is, I just didn't have very much time to do the practice routines recently.
The guild work occupied most of my time, which led to a noteworthy decrease in my capacity.
What aggravates this is that my double affinity not only decreases my connection to the element, making the practice harder, but also messes with my ability to convert the magic in my body into something usable.
I never figured out how to directly transmute one into the other.
My teacher wanted to show me, but... that never happened.

After a long travel, we apparently reach the site of the attack.
Everything was prearranged, so we don't face any problems accessing this place.
John is the best ranger we have, so he's the one looking for anything of relevance.

It doesn't take long for him to find something.

 

"Those are traces of acid. It seems we have here a spewing variant." (J)

"That means we need to be extra careful. Ranged attacks aren't evaded as easily." (R)

"Yeah! Especially against a whole group of them!"

 

That's Edward.
I made sure to remember everyone's name before heading out.

 

"Does everyone have their acid resistance potions ready? I didn't distribute them for fun." (R)

 

Uh, I don't.
I raise my hand.
Yet it seems like Robert can predict what is on my mind.

 

"Liana, you're not going to fight, so you don't need one. Make sure to stay out of their range." (R)

 

Easier said than done.
How am I supposed to dodge?

 

"Will those potions really make a difference?"

"Don't forget, they're not going to make you immune, only mitigate the burns. However, at least our vanguard will probably have to face them. I don't want to see anyone who should shield their comrades evade the attack. For the resulting smaller burns we have our healers here with us." (R)

"Hah, at least one of them." (Edward)

 

It would probably hurt less if it wasn’t true.

 

"John, look and see if you can find out where they went." (R)

"Sure. Should be no problem with so many. Especially, the indentations in the ground they make with their pointy legs give them away." (J)

"Great. I wouldn't want to stay close to Diroen for too long. Who knows, the inhabitants might try something despite better judgment." (R)

 

He might be right.
This town is pretty infamous and merely the equipment of an adventurer is already quite valuable.
A short time later, we're already back on track.
During the walk, I find Robert next to me.
Naturally, I'm directly nervous again.
With Alian's help, I can now keep up, but my performance still isn't too great.

 

"Liana, can you refill the water canteen?" (R)

 

Oh, great, a task I can manage.
Procuring a bit of water out of the air is a doable practice.
Though, I wasn't able to conjure it out of nothing.
Gratefully, the desert is much farther to the south, so it's no issue.
As long as I don't need to do more than a liter at once, that is.
For filling the water canteen, it's good enough.

 

"Here. Is this alright?" (L)

 

Oh no, my anxiety is getting the better of me again.

 

"Well, I won't lie. I've seen more capable water mages than you. Some are strong enough to summon concussive blasts that might even take down lesser monsters. You aren't even getting close in that regard. However, your ability to summon small quantities is convenient. So we can spare ourselves worrying about our water supply. That's at least something." (R)

 

It might not be much, but "walking water tank" means they at least recognize me in some way, right?

 

"That aside, I had a question to ask. I need to know if you are afraid of spiders." (R)

"Not terribly, sir. Though, I don't like having them crawling on me." (L)

"Well, that has to be good enough. We'll keep you in the background. Just don't panic and run off if we get into a combat situation. You know how to use that staff of yours, right?" (R)

 

Uh, it's not like it needs an elaborate explanation.

 

"I have to hit something that's coming close." (L)

"Please, don't try anything fancy. You're not a martial artist. Just swing it around to keep anything at bay that might've slipped through to you until one of the fighters can deal with it. No need to risk anything. That's basic healer knowledge." (R)

"S-sorry. I didn't have very much practice." (L)

"Sigh, I know. Just to be clear, your share will be halved. Given your performance, I simply wouldn't know how to explain anything else to the others. This will still be a generous sum. In addition, it might help to mitigate any hard feelings towards you." (R)

"Y-yes sir." (L)

"Alright. Good that you understand." (R)

 

I didn't really think about the money until now.
Hundred gold coins for twenty people.
That makes five gold for everyone.
Two and a half, that's still good.
He's right that I can't expect more.
I, I mean, I'm quite useless.
All I can do is sit down while the others do all the work.

I stop my thoughts when I become aware of the sight in front of me.
At first, I notice several trees, bushes, and grasses, all far greener, or simply of a healthier color, than is common.
Yet while they at first are a bit more spread out, some distance behind them the plant life turns into a thick wall of green.
The Evergrove!