Chapter 61: Homecoming and New Horizons

  Three days later, Emilia said goodbye to the mayor and Fjorn, and the family set off on the long journey back toward the city. They stopped for two days in a neighboring village, where Emilia met more children and tried various honey-based sweets. Around noon on the second day, a large transport boat with eight oars arrived, taking them downriver to Tyre—Mira's hometown.

  There, they met with more relatives, presented the loan documents, and Mira didn't stop praising Emilia's skills. After that, they sold the herbs and acquired a total of 1120 silver coins!

  Emilia examined the inks and brushes in the bigger city. She bought ink for 100 silver coins and a brush for 580 coins, which would last her for about 600-650 talismans. This brush was special, capable of withstanding significantly rougher use, but it didn't particularly aid in the effectiveness of the talismans.

  After staying two more days with relatives, Mira found a suitable traveling wagon, and a few days later, they returned to their hometown. On the way, they were attacked a few times by magical beasts, but the guards handled them. Emilia watched the bodies, reflecting on Fjorn and the formations he had taught her.

  Once they arrived back home, they spent the entire day recounting their adventures. Ronan and Kael didn't stop asking questions, and Emilia had to tell the story again and again.

  "Yes, Kael, the bronze Golem was made of bronze."

  "Yes, Kael, it probably weighed several tons."

  "Yes, Dad, if we could somehow sell the bronze in it, we could buy an entire house in the city center. Along with the furniture and the servants. Not to mention the Golem's power core - that would have been priceless treasure."

  Emilia described the battles, and Kael often chimed in, threatening how he would slay the monsters with his arrows.

  "I can kill an Earth Spider with a single arrow to the eye!"

  "Possibly, but the bronze Golem has no eyes. And the Medusas can see with the snakes in their hair."

  "Then I would shoot magical arrows. Boom, boom, boom, like that."

  "But, we didn't have any magical arrows." Emilia smiled mischievously.

  "That's because you didn't search properly," said Kael with absolute conviction. "In the myth books, heroes always find magical weapons. If I had been with you, I would have found a golden bow, like Lartes, the father of Odysseus."

  "Lartes had a bow made of a meteorite and a Water Dragon's horn. It was so strong that almost no one could draw it."

  "Really? And who had a golden bow then?"

  "Achilles had a golden bow in one of his feats. His mother, Thetis, who was a sea nymph, implored Hephaestus, the smith god, for it."

  "Wasn't Hephaestus in Tartarus, chained by Prometheus?"

  “Yes, that’s right,” Ronan interjected. “The Old Gods ARE traitors, and their names should NOT be spoken freely! Even by youngsters like you. They are cursed and bring bad luck to anyone who speaks their names.”

  The conversations then shifted in another direction, and all the sweets Emilia had brought from the bee village and the big city of Tyre were soon finished. Ronan had received three full demijohns of mead, one of which he drank, and the other two he put away in the cool cellar so they wouldn't spoil.

  "And is there no gift for me?" asked Kael.

  "We will sign you up for archery and survival courses. I will pay for half a year. You're just the right age to unlock different skills."

  "Wow, I'll become a Hunter!"

  "You don't have to become a Hunter. They don't make that much money, and their work is quite dangerous. For now, focus on developing your skills. You always talk about how you'd protect me and Mom."

  Kael made a strange face. He looked like he both wanted to be a Hunter and wanted to protect his sister and mother.

  "Don't worry about it Kael. For now, just attend the courses. Besides, I'm going to buy you a new bow. A real combat one with a full quiver of steel arrows."

  The conversations continued, and the sun set, then rose anew. Time passed, and Emilia hurried to find Boss Titus.

  "Boss Titus, I'm glad I managed to find you. I have a favor to ask."

  "Emilia, you've been gone for three months. You finally remembered your oldest customer."

  Boss Titus leaned toward Emilia's ear and whispered in a mock-serious voice.

  "A little bird told me you've become the best talisman artist in the kingdom, and now their price has dropped from four to three silver coins for a power talisman drawn on bark."

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  "Ha, that little bird was mistaken..." She then pondered for a moment. "But I have an even better offer than that."

  "Oh, that sounds interesting. Let's hear it."

  At that moment, Lora entered the room.

  "Hello, Emilia. I'm happy to see you're well. How was the village?"

  "Hello, Aunt Lora. It was... interesting. I'll tell you about it later. But I have a big request for both of you."

  "Go on, don't worry about it," Lora smiled and ruffled Emilia's hair.

  "Hey, I'm already grown up!" she protested.

  After a moment, Emilia continued.

  "Brother Titus, I have a big request for you. I want to start coming with you into the forest while you hunt monsters... No, please, don't interrupt me, wait for me to explain. I've been training for months with the retired Captain Cassian. He's teaching me to use a spear, magic, and most importantly, how to enhance my body with mana and how to dodge different attacks. I have experience using talismans in battle, and I can draw them at home. And that's precisely one of the reasons I want to come with you. I've learned how to extract blood from monsters' hearts and use it to draw talismans and some of the simplest formations. But I need a lot of practice. Magical inks are super expensive and are usually under the control of the most influential nobles. Monster mana blood can't be stored for long, maybe for a week to ten days with the right processing. That's why I want to come with you. I'll pay you with talismans, and I won't get in the way. And if it gets dangerous, I have defensive and offensive talismans. Come, let me show you."

  After that, Boss Titus reluctantly led Emilia to the training arena in his backyard. There were many different targets there, in front of which she demonstrated two combat talismans.

  "That's a full sixty silver coins..." Lora whispered quietly from the side.

  "Yes, they are quite expensive, but they are capable of surprising monsters, especially if they hit them in the head, near the eyes. Their surprise attacks from a safe distance can change a lot."

  Lora nodded her head and pondered while looking at the scorch marks left by the fire talismans.

  Next, Emilia asked Titus to attack her so she could test her defensive talisman.

  Titus had experience with similar defensive magic, but he decided to personally test Emilia's work nonetheless. He gripped his sword firmly and shouted a warning. Then he aimed slightly to the side of the girl's body and swung with all his might—but without infusing mana into the blow.

  The blade whistled through the air. In the same instant, Emilia activated the protective talisman, just as the sword approached. Instead of colliding with her fragile body, Titus's blade slammed into the shimmering, ethereal barrier that the talisman instantly raised.

  The blow was powerful, but instead of the expected recoil or crack, there was only a muffled, dull sound—as if striking a dense cloud. The tip of the sword met the invisible force, and for a moment, it dipped inward, like the surface of a taut water balloon, absorbing the entire kinetic impulse.

  A bright, bluish-white light flashed around the point of contact—like a small bolt of lightning that quickly faded. Emilia remained motionless behind the barrier, which did not tremble or shake despite the force of the strike. Titus's sword was halted as if it had slammed into an invisible, yet incredibly elastic wall.

  Titus felt the shock of the contact travel up his arms—not the sharp clang of metal on metal, but the heavy resistance of something that refused to break. He abruptly stopped his swing, his muscles tensing from the surprising resilience of the talisman. The defensive magic remained intact, demonstrating its impressive effectiveness.

  "Hmm... not bad," Titus muttered, slightly raising an eyebrow.

  Not bad? Emilia thought to herself. This was a new, far stronger version of the defensive talisman I learned from Fjorn and trained in within the private space. It requires at least twice the ink and mana, but it's 50% more effective. Due to its lower success rate, its price is at least double!

  A playful smile then appeared on Emilia's face, and she swiftly darted away, bent down, grabbed a small clump of dirt, and threw it at Titus.

  "Catch me if you can," she said and stuck out her tongue.

  "You little fox, come here," he threatened and began chasing Emilia around.

  The two ran around the various obstacles, and to Titus's surprise, the young girl expertly used the terrain to evade his attempts to grab her. She was like a small rabbit, quick and low to the ground.

  After about ten minutes, Titus finally grew more serious, began using all his mana, and almost immediately managed to catch the flushed Emilia.

  "I got you," he said, holding the young girl securely. "I have to admit, Cassian trained you well. When you grow up and develop special skills, you'll be practically untouchable."

  "That's my goal."

  "Hmm, let me think."

  Afterward, he and Lora began quietly discussing Emilia's proposal. This was a quite serious "favor." Emilia couldn't stand it and called out from the side.

  "No matter what happens, I won't hold you responsible. After all, there are many hunters in the city, everyone knows the risks they take."

  Lora nodded her head and smiled, then continued to discuss quietly with her husband.

  After about ten minutes, Boss Titus approached.

  "Emilia, no matter what you say, we will be responsible for you. But for now, our group is relatively weak, and most of our members were apprentices until recently. We hunt weak creatures, and your defensive talismans will be able to offer good protection. If you just stand aside and don't interfere in the battles, I think you'll be fine."

  Emilia smiled joyfully and began nodding her head energetically, like a chicken pecking rice. "I'll do fine, I'll do fine," she repeated incessantly.

  She knew that hunting groups always had new apprentices, often the children of one hunter or another. They were accustomed for generations to training new hunters and knew how to protect them.

  "Alright, Emilia, I'll ask the others, and if they agree, you can come with us when we go after weaker monsters. But you will provide us with talismans for free, and you'll also have to find yourself some armor. Otherwise, I won't take you with us."

  Most hunters had rattan armor reinforced with monster leather. These were light and inexpensive armors, crafted by local artisans. Only the most elite hunting groups had metal armor, reinforced with complex formations. However, they hunted deep within the forest, facing Level Three monsters.

  Despite the relatively inexpensive materials, this armor was quite important because even Level One monsters were capable of all sorts of strange, mutated, zero-level magic.

  These spells were different every time, and no one could predict what the hunters would be up against on any given hunt. Therefore, they could only rely on their armor against these weaker, mutated attacks.

  This was also why Level Two monsters were so dangerous for groups like Boss Titus's. Their magic often penetrated the hunters' armor and inflicted severe wounds. Every battle with a Level Two monster was a major risk. Whether their magic would be strong or weak was a matter of pure luck.