Gardenia’s Heart

The revelation caught Lily off guard. Learning that there was a way out of the misty territories she hadn’t known was a significant surprise.

(Maybe we won’t have to cross illegally after all.)

Nia’s hopeful tone resonated in Lily’s mind, but she knew it wouldn’t be that simple. She murmured, careful that the other two women wouldn’t overhear.

“I’d like to think so, but we’d have to make our existence public for that.”

With just those words, the metamorph understood Lily’s worry immediately. If being a perfect fusion of human and monster wasn’t enough; the girls also wielded dark mana to cast spells. Lily didn’t want to imagine what would happen if a band of mages decided to dissect her to uncover what she really was.

“Now that I think about it, what does a mage need to do to increase their star rating?”

As they continued their walk, Lily subtly shifted the topic. She was eager to gather any useful information for herself and Nia. They didn’t know who they might need to face in the future, so finding someone like Cleomel, who loved to explain things, was an opportunity she didn’t want to waste.

“I’m not entirely sure about the formal process, but to be recognized as a one-star mage, you at least need to demonstrate mastery and control over a specific branch of spells, like offensive or defensive magic. You also need a well-developed mana reserve and control over it.”

Cleomel’s explanation made sense. While Nia grew her dark mana reserves with each Book of Truth she consumed, Lily was curious to understand how common mages expanded their mana through training.

“And what about beyond one star?” Lily asked.

“Well, to be recognized as a two-star mage, you need to be capable of multi-casting.”

This surprised Lily somewhat. After clearing a line of branches with Nia’s tentacles, she asked, “Is being able to cast multiple spells at once that important?”

“It’s not a hard rule,” Cleomel clarified, “but advanced spells are often combinations of several smaller spells cast and shaped simultaneously, increasing their scale and potency and achieving different effects. So, the ability to handle multiple basic spells is a crucial skill before mastering complex ones.”

Lily paused her questions to reflect on her past experiences. Cleomel’s explanation made her realize that every mage she had encountered focused on casting just one spell at a time.

Casually extending her hand forward, Lily wished for dark ice crystals to form before her. Without a moment’s delay, Nia understood her beloved’s desires perfectly and created them.

“Like this?”

Cleomel’s battle-scarred face looked as though it had exploded with shock as she watched over ten dark ice crystals floating in the air. Her amber eyes held a mix of fear and curiosity, making Lily realize she may have overdone her display.

“L-Lady Lily can multi-cast? And at such speed?!”

Both the dark-skinned knight and the noblewoman swallowed hard, their eyes wide as the crystals vanished just as quickly as they had appeared.

“When Lady Lily created those… exotic purple threads… earlier, each one moved independently to keep us safely away from the branches and trees, even as we ran at high speed. Your precision and mana control are things I have rarely encountered in my life,” Abelia said, joining the conversation, her voice tinged with a slight hint of awe.

Hearing this, Lily could barely contain her smile of joy at the praise for her beloved wife’s efforts.

“Though I admit focusing on more than one spell is difficult, is creating so many at once that incredible?” Lily continued her questions, still hiding her excitement.

The knight nearly frowned at this question. Her enthusiasm, which had been helping her overcome the sadness of her previous failure a little, was now replaced by genuine doubt as to whether the woman before her was testing her knowledge in some way.

“Mana isn’t the foundation of a human’s life. If it were, common folk with tiny, poorly developed mana reserves wouldn’t survive past childhood. But even if the mana reserve is small, if you keep casting spells repeatedly, it’s almost certain that you’ll lose control of the spell, and all the mana in your body will be drained at once. I’ve never witnessed it personally, but I’ve read records of reckless mages who died from overloading their bodies, with their uncontrolled spells killing them.”

Lily couldn’t help but turn her face away, making a slight grimace, as she fell into the category of “reckless mages” Cleomel had just described.

While casting individual spells was challenging, to defeat Nox, Lily had overloaded her body by consuming all of her mana to cast spells repeatedly, caring only for the damage potential of each strike. Although her mana was limited compared to others, she managed to create thousands of small ice crystals, enough to kill the guardian—at the cost of her life.

Nia, however, could effortlessly control dozens, if not hundreds, of complex spells, filling Lily with joy. Although she doubted she could safely repeat such a feat alone, with Nia’s assistance in precise controls, she was confident she could recreate her one named technique, which at that moment was the only spell in her arsenal that she had developed herself.

As she walked, her thoughts reluctantly turned to Agni. Though he, too, had burned through all his mana, he had transferred the burden to his stardust staff, which not only allowed him to survive but also gave him time to escape from the uncontrolled bursts of light.

Unaware of Lily’s thoughts, Cleomel, following closely behind her, could only look at her with a growing sense of unease. Her hand still held her lady’s with care.

Cleomel had no way to estimate Lily’s true power, but the idea that a woman with the strength of a two-star mage, yet entirely unknown in the territory of the Mist, could exist seemed absurd to her.

“I know that five stars are reserved for the five heroes who saved the world, but what about three- and four-star mages?” After finishing her thoughts, Lily resumed her questions.

Helping Abelia over a large root obstructing the path, Cleomel thought for a few moments before responding.

”From here, it’s just my speculation since I don’t know exactly how the mage’s tower operates. To obtain the third star, you likely need to achieve some significant merit, whether mastering an ancient-era spell or conquering a labyrinth. If the ratio of one-star mages to two-star mages is a hundred to one, only one in ten two-star mages manages to ascend to the third star.”

This was essentially saying that out of every thousand one-star mages, only one would reach the rank of three stars.

”As for four-star mages… I believe only the king himself or the leader of the mage’s tower can grant that title.”

Lily hadn’t had much access to education or information in her small village, so learning more about how her country treated mages was invaluable to her.

The silver-haired girl thought of asking more questions, but as the dense vegetation around them began to thin and the last of the towering trees stopped shading their heads, the girls found themselves speechless. The shared body of the married couple froze as they stared ahead, unable to say a word.

Beyond the vast plain stretching to the horizon, a colossal canyon opened up, framed by twisted trees around a large, gray lake. The frigid water was so expansive it could easily be mistaken for the ocean itself, and a dense fog covered its surface, completely obscuring its depths. Yet the mist served to accentuate the enormous bridge of dark stone that spanned the canyon parallel to them. On one end of the bridge, nestled on a hill washed by the lake’s gentle waves, was a breathtaking sight.

The city of Caligo, with its octagonal shape, was surrounded by walls and defense towers, creating the impression of an impenetrable fortress. The tall walls made it difficult to see inside, but at the center, an elevated hill created multiple levels, where the city’s most important buildings were likely located.

At the city’s highest point, a structure that was more fortress than mansion had been built from cold stone, as solid as the walls surrounding it.

“Is this Lady Lily’s first time in Caligo?”

Abelia asked, snapping Lily and Nia out of their trance as they gazed at the massive city.

“Y-Yes, it’s my first time…”

Unable to hide her embarrassment, Lily led the group forward. As they crossed more of the plain, the city became increasingly clear to them, as did the sounds of the crowd waiting in line at the gates.

”There are so many people, aren’t there? I believe they already consider it a city-state due to the growing population in the last decade and its importance in regional trade.”

In terms of economy and urban planning, Abelia was much like Cleomel, launching into several explanations fueled solely by Lily’s awestruck face.

At Nia’s reminder, Lily pulled up her hood before joining the groups clustered along a narrow dirt road. The line had at least fifty carts and groups of people of various ages, carrying all sorts of goods and herbs. If it were just that, Lily might have seen it as normal, but something else stood out.

Two girls, one with dog-like ears and the other with raccoon features, cheerfully swung their feet off the side of a cart. Men with lizard-like arms, tails, and green-toned skin carried sacks of wheat, while some women with scales fed the horses.

(So many demi-humans here!)

Nia’s voice was completely filled with excitement. Remembering Lily saying how rare it was to encounter demi-humans, seeing so many in one place thrilled her.

“Amazing, isn’t it?” Abelia positioned herself beside Lily, her free hand covering her mouth to hide the smile forming in response to Lily’s funny reactions.

“There are so many demi-humans, and of all kinds… Is this common here?”

“It seems that crossbreeding between demi-humans and humans isn’t that unusual in Caligo. While there’s still prejudice in the rest of the country over whether they should be considered part of the human race or not, it’s at least a relief to see there’s no ethnic segregation here.”

Abelia’s words reminded Lily of her conversation with Nox, the labyrinth guardian who had mentioned that his species wasn’t considered a race when he was taken in by Sylvan. Lily hadn’t had the chance to ask whether that great wooden being was a demi-human or a subspecies of another sentient race. Just when she thought she’d learned more about the world, it was as if a new horizon of possibilities opened up before her, filling her with eagerness.

(Look, Lily, they have coffee beans here! Over there, Lily, those foods are so colorful!)

Unaware of Abelia’s words, Nia continued to point out all the fascinating things she saw, barely pausing for a single second. Nia was so delighted to see such a unique place that her purple tentacles wrapped tightly around Lily’s waist. Lily couldn’t help but smile and gently stroke them over her dress.

Listening to Nia’s animated discoveries was so enjoyable that, before Lily even noticed, they had moved forward in the line, and soon the heavily fortified gates, towering over five meters above them—much more imposing than those at the Stardust Spring—were directly ahead.

When it was finally their turn to speak to the guard, Lily reached for her small pouch to pay the entry fee, but Abelia quickly intervened.

“Please, allow us to cover the entry fee for you.”

Although Cleomel’s equipment had been destroyed when they were captured, the bandits had kept her money. Abelia had thus managed to retrieve her purse, which contained enough silver coins to maintain her cover as a villager with some room to spare.

With no reason to refuse, Lily stepped aside, and Abelia, along with Cleomel, approached the guard.

“Are the three of you part of a single group? May I see your resident cards, please?”

The broad-shouldered man in silver armor was tall, and the fatigue in his voice hinted that his shift was coming to an end.

“We’re visitors; we’ll pay the entrance fee.”

As Abelia handed over some silver coins, the guard shook his head, declining the money.

“My lady, there’s no need to worry about payment. Yesterday, it was confirmed that the monsters in the forest were behaving suspiciously, so our beloved Lord has allowed all visitors free entry until the situation stabilizes.”

Before Abelia could ask further, the guard took three items from a small box behind him and handed them to the three women. Lily noticed the structure resembled the hourglass used to time their stay in Stardust Spring, except this one contained red sand instead of blue.

”The new model we’re using now has a recorded time of seven days, but don’t worry; you can return here to renew it for free if the situation doesn’t stabilize. Have a good day!”

Without leaving room for questions, the young guard left the group with no choice but to proceed through the gates, finally stepping into the city.