A roar sounded in the distance, waking William from his fantasies. His head turned toward the noise and listened intently. Thankfully there was no torrent of wind to follow the roar, so William didn't have to worry about being blasted off his feet.
The roars continued, followed by a few bright flashes of light. The Magical Beast seemed to be fighting with someone.
With the increase in Magical Affinities, William felt more confident in surviving a run with the mystery Beast. Where there's fighting, there's an opportunity for more loot!
William left the things he had acquired in the clearing near the depleted Life Vein, then ran in the direction of the battle, sticking close to the trees to avoid any stray magic. It wasn't long before Will spotted a two-meter tall wolf with green and white fur.
[Bestiary] Wind Wolf: +1 Potential Point
So I can gain Potential Points from seeing new beasts now, nice! Will was focused on the movements of the Wind Wolf, noticing its opponent was none other than Briar and his two bodyguards.
"Take it down!" Briar yelled to the two Foundation Establishment Cultivators in front.
"Hmph!" the first Cultivator let out a snort, followed by a punching motion. His arm was set ablaze and projected out a large fist made entirely of flames. The flaming punch landed squarely on the Wind Wolf, causing it to let out a painful howl.
The Wind Wolf rushed forward, sending a massive claw in the direction of the first Cultivator. He was thrown back a few meters, while a bloody cut opened up on his chest.
The second Cultivator wasn't idle. He prepared a long bolt of lightning and threw it at the Wind Wolf. A crackling sound could be heard as the lightning struck its side, creating large patches of charred flesh and temporarily paralyzing the Wind Wolf.
Just after the second Cultivator threw out the lightning, Briar conjured a fireball of his own, but with a large mix of the Wind element. The Wind magic seemed to be pulling oxygen towards the fireball, leading to a rapid expansion in size. His fireball doubled in size, turning into a raging inferno that was launched at the paralyzed Wind Wolf. The action surprised William, who didn't know magic could be strengthened in this way.
The Wind Wolf was engulfed in flames and let out a final cry before its body fell to the ground in defeat. Its body continued to burn for a few more seconds before it was put out by a gust of wind from Briar. The smell of burnt flesh wafted through the forest, making William cover his nose and mouth.
Briar sent his companions to inspect the body of the Wind Wolf.
"It's dead." the injured companion confirmed before taking a seat on the corpse.
"I'm all out of healing potions, you're going to have to wait until we get back to the Village." Briar spoke with no emotion.
This seemed to be a good opportunity. William stepped out from behind a tree. "I can heal him, but it's going to cost you 5 Gold Coins."
Briar's group had noticed William before and weren't surprised at the sudden intrusion. "5 Gold? You're insane, Charlotte only charges 2 for an injury like this!" the uninjured Cultivator was furious at the peasant's attitude.
William was unmoved. "She's not here right now, and from the looks of it, he won't have enough time to reach the Village before dying of blood loss."
Briar stepped forward. "I'll give you 4 Gold Coins, but only if Ret is healed properly." He walked over to Ret's side and looked back at Will. "Don't waste my time."
"Sure."
William walked up to Ret slowly. This is a good chance to see the effects of healing Cultivators. Hopefully my upgrades were strong enough. William remembered how Charlotte treated him and copied her movements.
It took a moment to grow accustomed, but using Life Magic wasn't too complicated. Similar to Fire Magic, William just had to focus on what goal he wanted to achieve with his Mana. A green light soon covered Ret's entire body, quickly closing the wounds on his chest. The wounds turned into light scars that were barely visible, and even healed some of the minor scars across Ret's arms and legs.
Briar was shocked. "A Manamatus! No wonder he dared to take a Quest as a non-Cultivator." Briar's expression turned into shock as he realized how quickly Ret was healing. How can a normal person have such a strong Affinity? Ret is a Foundation Establishment Cultivator! Briar felt the world was unfair for a peasant in a backwater town to have such skill.
William continued healing Ret for a few more seconds, before pulling back. "It's done, 4 Gold Coins please." he said to Briar with a mischievous smile.
———
--Unlocked Title: +1 Potential Point
-Savior (Common): You have saved a life. Healing effects are 5% stronger.
-Obtained your first Common Title: +1 Potential Point
———
Briar returned to his usual arrogant self. "Ok fine, but don't expect any thanks from me, hmph." Briar tapped a ring on his right index finger, causing 4 shiny Gold Coins to appear. They were handed over to William, who quickly stuffed them into his pocket.
-Own one Gold Coin: +5 Potential Points
--Unlocked Title: +1 Potential Point
-Moneybags (Common): You have earned (or scammed) a total of 1 Gold Coin. Fame is increased by 1.
--Unlocked Extended Statistic: +3 Potential Points
-Fame: People are more likely to remember your name.
Fame? What a useless stat. At least I get more Potential Points. William was not impressed, but the endless flood of System Messages made William excited about his quick progression.
"Thanks for doing business, I have a quest to finish so I will take my leave first." William pretended to be a gracious senior who had seen the vicissitudes of life. His acting skills must have been quite good, because Briar and the other Cultivators looked at William in silence.
"You mother-" Briar began to speak, but realized William had already left. 'Why is it so hard to win an argument with this unruly peasant?' It wasn't worth thinking about. Briar motioned with his hands in the direction of the Wind Wolf, causing its body to disappear into Briar's Space Ring.
Ret whispered to Briar, "What should we do about the Commoner? There's no way you're actually going to let him go after charging someone of your status for a healing treatment." he was grateful for the Young Master's willingness to help him, but Ret didn't feel it was deserved. He was angry at William for taking advantage of such a situation.
"Don't worry about him. That fool won't get anywhere in life if he can't even afford a Cultivation Technique. Being a Manamatus won't change his background."
Briar could have just killed William after healing Ret, but didn't see the extortion of a few extra Gold Coins as an issue. Besides, if the Guild investigated the cause of William's death, it might create unnecessary issues for Briar's family.
"I understand Sir."
***
William returned to the clearing, and picked up the untouched stash of items from before. He didn't have any way to store the items, so dragging would have to do for now. He lugged the Liffox corpse toward the edge of the forest.
He dragged the body for an hour before exiting the forest without any mishaps. The magical beast population seemed much lower in the forest than William expected.
Three hours later, William had arrived back at the Village with his loot close behind. Entering the gate with a corpse and a glowing bedsheet drew a few odd looks, but no one asked any questions. Entering the Guild Hall was another story however.
"Get that thing out of here right now!" Jenny yelled at William after seeing the disgusting corpse behind. If any blood gets on these floors I'm screwed. Jenny knew how serious the Guild master was about keeping the Hall clean. If he was downstairs, William wouldn't even have time to apologize before being thrown out.
"Sorry! Sorry!" William had failed to realize the shape of the Liffox before him. The fur was now completely brown, and it was starting to smell after being dragged in the sun for so long. I am such an idiot. This wasn't some video game where things stay in perfect condition. How could he have been so stupid?
William left the Liffox outside, then approached the counter with his bedsheet full of Lifeshrooms. At least with mushrooms it wasn't difficult to keep them in decent shape.
"So...can I turn these in for the Quest?"