Black Onyx - Forgotten Magic

The infirmary at the Guild was quite lively. The conversation of a few people could be heard constantly. The nurses only had to take care of one patient at the moment and they were bored out of their minds.

While some people thought Gerald would crumble after such a devastating blow, the reality couldn't be further from the truth.

He was born on Earth and people there did just fine even if they lost all four limbs. What was just one hand?

It was a devastating blow to be sure, but it wasn't the end of the world.

It was a heavy price to pay, but now he got a better understanding of his own place in this world. At first, he thought he was something great, able to use every Element without difficulties and whatnot.

But the reality was harsh. He had a sudden realization of how weak he really was. He was near the bottom of the food chain. Even with all his magic, he was unable to do any serious damage to the Earth Dragon.

Now he understood how this world stagnated for so long. If exploration and discoveries were hindered by the environment to such a degree that a group of humans could be wiped out by a single beast, then it was no wonder the world seemed to be stuck in the middle ages for millennia.

And the beast wasn't even one of the strongest… It could be considered just slightly stronger than the average beasts in the area, far below the top ranks.

Gerald remembered the day he joined the Guild when Luna measured his strength and explained the ranks.

That lizard, with his Iron 6 rank had a strength of 600 kilograms, and Gerald didn't consider him too much of a threat at first. But that did not take into consideration its body weight. The beast was probably a few tones in weight and it could still run faster than he could sprint.

That immense mass going that fast, compared to the amount of force the Earth Dragon could casually produce, Gerald was like a baby fighting against a grown-up soldier.

Indeed, he was flailed around by the beast like it was nothing. Only by sacrificing his arm and almost his life, did he manage to defeat it.

Not to mention there were beasts whose strength went up to Silver and Gold rank, hundreds of times stronger than a human.

"I'm so weak!" Gerald squeezed his fist. The amount of strength he could utilize now was even less than a third of his peak state. He lay in a coma for almost two weeks so, of course, he would be weak.

Although he was fed a few Healing Potions, they had limited duration and influence. They managed to keep him from the brink of death, but after they ran out, his body had to recover gradually in a natural way.

Usually, a person would require a blood transfusion in severe cases like this, but that didn't exist in this world.

Gerald had no choice but to slowly recover until he was strong enough to take care of himself. He closed his eyes to rest and with a whisper, cast a few healing spells on himself.

He spent the next few days like that, sleeping, meditating, and healing himself.

He had plenty of time to think. He had a few nightmares of the recent battle, where he made a single mistake and lost.

Every time that happened was when the lizard went to attack Sera instead of him.

She was frozen in fear, just as she was in reality, and when he tried to help, the lizard would tear him apart.

He woke up covered in sweat many times, and although he didn't want to admit it, the girl was a liability.

With her limited fighting capabilities and unstable mind, she was a hindrance to him.

Maybe, if she could at least use some magic, he could consider taking her with him on dangerous expeditions, but after the recent incident, he realized that was not so.

He was so wrong.

A mage's most valuable possession was his mind. If the mind was weak and easily crippled, the mage would be useless in extreme situations.

He could, of course, fix her state of mind if she wanted to, but that did not seem to be the case.

Something was preventing her from utilizing her talent in magic and if she didn't want to change, he couldn't force her, and they could only go their separate ways.

He was curious about the world and he was ready to leave this small city behind.

His comrades had to at least be able to take care of themselves and not be a burden, otherwise, they would get nowhere. A human's time was limited and every second wasted was gone forever, never to return.

Gerald couldn't afford to waste time and had to push himself to improve at the fastest speed possible, even if he had to make some sacrifices along the way.

***

Soon almost a week passed and Gerald's recovery was going well. He could already stand back on his own feet, without any help from others.

He could also finally take care of himself again and at least the embarrassing time of having the nurses clean him was over. Now he could at least wipe his ass by himself. It brought him a great deal of confidence back.

During his recovery, Sera visited him quite a few times. At first, she was crying and apologizing for being angry at him and failing to notice the signs of danger earlier. She was blaming herself for the suffering Gerald had to go through.

Eventually, Gerald had to order her to shut up and stop apologizing. No amount of words would bring his arm back or heal his scars and bones, so why waste the energy with it?

They had a long talk where Gerald expressed some of the plans for his future as well as the Black Onyx.

He already received the money from the sale of the Earth Dragon and so he gave Sera ten gold coins.

She was confused about his actions and wanted to reject him, but he insisted and said, "You misunderstood. I'm not simply gifting you the money… I'm paying you back for the gold you spent on signing me up with the Guild. And if you think it's too much, just consider it as a payment for the information you provided me with."

He did not want to owe anything to anyone.

"But you didn't need to pay me back! I never said I wanted you to return-"

Gerald lifted his hand to stop her from talking. He pointed at his stump and smiled wryly, "As you can see I'm missing a hand and the doc- I mean, the head alchemist said that I probably won't be able to completely recover."

"But that doesn't…" Sera tried to protest but Gerald cut her off again.

"From today onward, the Black Onyx is retired and I will not be accepting any missions anymore. You can do whatever you want. You can join another team, take a vacation or do something you like… The choice is up to you."

The conversation left a sour feeling in both of them but it left a much stronger impact on Sera, as she was feeling guilty for taking the money and she also considered herself at fault for the recent incident.

She was, after all, angry for no good reason and it was her distraction that made her miss the signs of danger.

***

Three weeks after the attack, Gerald finally left the infirmary and could start living normally once again.

During his recovery, the majority of the food he received was soup and a bone broth once in a while. It made him miss the delicious smell and taste of a good spitroast.

So, with that in mind, his first stop was at an Inn for a good meal.

He ordered some freshly roasted spicy venison and a mug of mead to wash it down with.

He did not have to wait long for his order to arrive. It smelled soo good that he was barely able to hold back his saliva from dripping out of his mouth.

He couldn't wait any longer so he quickly picked up the cutlery, a two-pronged fork with his left hand and a knife with his right. Only, the fork didn't move.

Immediately, all the excitement was gone from his face. He frowned and propped up his head on the back of his hand, "Right, I forgot… Is this what they call a phantom limb? I can clearly feel my hand, but it's just not there… That's annoying."

"Should I help you cut the roast, sir?" A waitress saw his dilemma and so she came to offer her help.

Gerald looked at her, but then waved his hand and politely declined, "No, no, I'm just not used to it, that's all. But thanks for asking."

As the waitress saw she was not wanted, she left.

Meanwhile, Gerald focused his mind on the fork, and the light barrier around his body extended and wrapped around it.

Just like that, the fork flew in the air and stabbed itself in the meat. Gerald then proceeded to cut the juicy meat and carry it in his mouth with Telekinesis.

"Mmm, delicious…" he moaned quietly as he was savoring the taste.

But then, a man's high-pitched scream ruined his mood…

"Aaaah! A ghost!"