Noel was utterly exhausted from a full day of mana training. By the time he returned to the alchemy workshop, he wanted nothing more than to collapse onto his bed and pass out. But Mond yanked him up before he could fall asleep.
"I know you're tired, but I need to teach you something now. You're going to need this knowledge tomorrow."
Mond pulled out a Wilderness Survival Guide. Noel was certain he had never seen that book on the bookshelf before.
Where did this book even come from? Noel wondered, but he was too tired to care about its origins, much less question them.
Dragging himself to sit upright, he took the guide from Mond and began flipping through the pages, forcing his blurry eyes to focus.
The crooked handwriting across its pages looked suspiciously like his master's. Wait… could this actually be Master's personal survival notes, compiled into a book just for me?
And he chose to give it to me to read when I'm completely dead on my feet… Since when was Master this much of a demon?
But Noel's body was simply too exhausted. His eyelids drooped as he read, the words overlapping in his vision.
"Hoooonk," came a loud snore.
He had fallen asleep.
---
It was a beautiful day. Sunlight filtered through the forest canopy, warm and comforting as it landed on Noel's face. Maybe it was because of the intense training yesterday, but today, for once, he woke naturally.
Wait… why is the scenery around me so strange? Why am I in a forest? Didn't I fall asleep in my bed last night?
He looked down to find the Wilderness Survival Guide still in his hands, and in that moment, it all clicked.
That irresponsible old man dumped me in the forest while I was asleep!
No wonder Mond had been so insistent last night, saying, "You'll need this book tomorrow." So this was the "test" he meant.
Noel felt like crying. If he had known this would happen, he would have prepared some supplies. Not that it would have helped; Mond never gave advance notice for his trials.
Noel quickly stood, brushing the dust off his clothes, watching the motes scatter in the morning sunlight.
Looking around, he noted the forest was actually quite beautiful. The trees were thick and lush, letting sunlight spill through the gaps in the leaves in shimmering patches. The interplay of shadows and light created a peaceful atmosphere. Birds occasionally flitted by, and even flying fish hovered lazily through the air.
A flying fish drifted nearby, as if offering itself up for breakfast.
> "Blade of the Wind."
A green magic circle appeared beneath his feet, and a blade of wind shot out, slicing the flying fish cleanly in two.
Noel discarded the fish's head, picking up the tail section instead. It was often the most edible part.
With no cooking tools, Noel considered eating it raw. Eating the entire fish raw was out of the question, and it wasn't sanitary, but thinly slicing it into sashimi could work.
But where am I supposed to find a knife out here? he thought helplessly. Alone in the forest, with no one to rely on, he would have to find a way to survive by himself.
Then a thought struck him: If I lower the output frequency of Blade of the Wind and maintain it without firing, could I use it like a close-range cutting weapon?
It was a clever idea, but executing it would be extremely difficult, requiring precise mana control. One slip could result in cutting himself, which would be dangerous, especially in the wilderness.
Cautiously, Noel began gathering a small amount of wind element in his palm, compressing it into the shape of a blade. But the moment he touched the fish, the blade dissipated.
Ugh, it's too unstable. The wind element is too gentle to hold its form under contact.
To stabilize it, he realized he would need to maintain a constant output of mana, and perhaps add a slight vibration to increase its cutting power.
But this would also add instability. If the vibration frequency was too high, he could injure himself.
Magic truly is an art, Noel thought. The higher the difficulty, the greater the demand on the mage's skill.
Well, I have to try. I can't let this food go to waste. I can't let myself go hungry. And it's such a plump fish, it must taste good!
Noel tried again, gathering the wind element, shaping it into a blade, maintaining a steady mana output to hold its form.
This time, he put in too much mana, causing the blade to distort and break apart. Frustrated but determined, he repeated the process several times, gradually learning the correct amount of mana and how to maintain the blade's edge.
Eventually, he looked down at the stable, shimmering blade in his hand, feeling a surge of pride. This is the result of all my effort.
Now it was time to prepare the fish.
First, he cut off the wings, then scraped away the scales. Next, he cleaned out the guts, slicing the fish into thin, translucent pieces.
The sunlight shone through the slices of fish, making them glow. Maybe I was born to be a chef, Noel thought with a hint of amusement.
He popped a slice of the raw fish into his mouth, expecting tender, fresh flavors.
But… what is this taste?!
It was awful. He had expected fresh, melt-in-your-mouth fish, but the taste was overwhelmingly unpleasant.
Why does it taste like this? Why is it so bad? Someone explain this to me!
Maybe it was the method. Every ingredient has its ideal cooking method, and raw fish might not be suitable here. Maybe it needs to be grilled, like meat.
The memory of grilled meat from before made his mouth water. Let's do it!
Noel gathered some dry twigs and branches, piling them up.
The problem was starting a fire. He couldn't use fire magic, so it would be either rubbing sticks together or trying to convert wind magic into fire—a theoretical method of elemental transmutation.
Then an idea struck him.
He found a sharp-pointed stick, placed it upright on a thick log, and used wind magic to spin the stick rapidly, creating friction.
The stick and the log ground against each other, smoke rising as sparks flickered. Noel focused, increasing the wind's force.
Finally, a small flame appeared. He added more twigs, feeding the fire until a modest campfire roared to life.
Skewering the fish slices onto thin sticks, he placed them over the flames.
As the fish cooked, its flesh tightened, the fat sizzling and releasing a savory aroma.
Noel's stomach rumbled in anticipation. This has to taste good! There's no way it won't!
But when he took a bite, his entire body recoiled.
Why does it still taste so bad? Why?!
Even though it was hard to swallow, it was the only food he had for breakfast. Tears welled in his eyes as he forced himself to eat it.
He ate his breakfast in tears.
PS: Access advance chapters at
https://www.patreon.com/c/NanamiTL