Frostfire Legacy

Chapter 238 Stress Relief

Aster stared at Faeloria, quickly realizing she wasn't joking. The silent pressure she exuded, her composed gaze, and the confident smile on her lips told him her level was far beyond his.

Injure her? It would be impossible, even if she stood still and did nothing!

"You're worried about someone right now, aren't you?"

"...!"

Faeloria's words made Aster's shoulders tense. The situation with Cassy wasn't a secret, but it wasn't something he expected to be casually known either. His eyes narrowed in suspicion, but Faeloria remained calm, her smile unwavering.

"No need to glare. I'm loosely connected to Magnus, so information reaches me too," she explained with a shrug. "You're concerned you aren't strong enough to save her, right? But first, let me ask... Do you need to do it yourself?"

Saving Cassy, who was abducted by Lorelai, wasn't going to be easy. It was a monumental task, and Aster didn't have to do it alone. If he relied on Magnus, he could send a few level 1000+ adventurers equipped to handle the situation effortlessly.

"...No, I don't. But...!"

But Aster didn't want that. He couldn't explain it well, but leaving Cassy's rescue to others unsettled him deeply. His pride wouldn't allow it, but more than that, something inside him rejected the idea outright.

"Cassy is waiting for me!" he shouted, raising his blade, which ignited with flames using Elemental Sword Slash. "Since she's relying on me, I'll save her myself!"

Faeloria smiled, amused by his determination. "Alright. If you can make me move from here even a bit, you win. If you do, I'll help you save your party member."

"..."

Aster was surprised, but he didn't let it show. Pushing Faeloria? Given their difference in strength, it seemed impossible, but Aster wasn't one to back down from a challenge.

"Sword Chains!"

He cast the new skill, testing its effects. He expected it to be a restraint ability, but instead, his sword glowed with a red aura, separate from the flames enveloping the blade.

"...!"

The light began to fade without any immediate effect, leading him to guess it was some kind of chain-attack bonus instead of an actual "chain." Without hesitation, he activated his next new skill.

"Ground Shrink!"

It was faint, but there were signs she had been pushed back by an inch. Aster grinned, recalling her promise. "I win!" he declared.

Faeloria glanced down and sighed. She wasn't one to go back on her word. "Well done," she praised before Aster's vision went black.

---

"Ugh..."

Aster woke to the enticing aroma of food. Opening his eyes, he saw the sky still blue, realizing that only a short period of time had passed. He groaned as he stretched, feeling the stiffness in his body from sleeping on the ground.

Before he blacked out, he remembered Faeloria wasn't moving, only smiling at him. She didn't attack at that moment, so he wasn't sure how he had fainted.

"Oh, you're awake?" Her calming voice came from his right.

Turning, Aster saw a table full of beautifully prepared dishes. The sight alone made his stomach rumble loudly.

"You must be starving. Go ahead and eat! I made this to apologize for knocking you out." She smiled sweetly.

"Wait, you knocked me out? When? How?"

He hadn't noticed anything. Other than the damage he caused himself, there had been no signs of an attack.

"It's one of my passive skills," she explained sheepishly. "When an attack reaches a certain level, the skill activates and reflects the damage back to the attacker."

She scratched her cheek awkwardly. "In short, you fainted because you took twice the damage of your explosion."

"I see..."

Though it was frustrating, Aster accepted the result. "Still, I won, right?" He recalled how he managed to push her back an inch. Faeloria nodded, smiling.

Feeling victorious, Aster sat at the table. The food before him was mouthwatering, and the craftsmanship of the table and chairs was immaculate—almost as if they had been grown, not built.

'What a useful skill,' Aster thought as he scanned the dishes.

Though he didn't recognize all the ingredients, the food looked delicious. Each dish seemed to have special properties: some restored mana, others stamina, and a few eased mental fatigue.

But unbeknownst to Aster, all dishes shared a common trait—they bolstered one's vigor!