Chapter 151: A Promise of Healing

Ethan’s thoughts drifted to the Ashwood family.

Before the Tide, he had visited them almost every day to check on Elene’s condition. But since the Tide, he had been unconscious, and they had no idea what had happened to him. He could only imagine how worried they must have been. He hoped Iron Wolf had reassured them, especially after the chaos of the Tide.

Back then, he hadn’t had enough War Merit to buy the cure, even with the War God Divine Exchange Voucher. But now, with the War Merit he had earned from the Tide, he could finally buy it for Elene.

Without wasting a moment, he opened the System Store and quickly found it.

[Purified Elixir of the Life Fruit (Legendary)]

Price: 480,000 War Merit

He didn’t hesitate.

Ding!

[Purchase Successful. 480,000 War Merit has been deducted.]

A small crystal vial appeared in his hand, the liquid inside glowing with brilliant colours that shifted from green to gold. Even without opening it, Ethan could feel its quality and the immense vitality it held. A smile appeared on his lips… With this, he could finally cure Elene and keep his promise. Her strength had increased considerably from the elixirs he had prepared for her over the past few weeks, so he was sure her body could handle its potency by now.

With Elena here, he thought of asking his mother to administer the elixir to Elene. He could have done it himself, but Elena’s control was far finer because of her realm, so he decided to ask his mother instead.

Putting those thoughts away, he turned his attention to what Mythralis had given him.

Looking at the pristine storage ring, he knew she must have made it personally… but before he could check what it held.

Knock. Knock.

Turning his attention away from the ring, Ethan quickly sensed the presence outside the door. He stood up and went to unlock it.

“Sister Sarah,” Ethan said.

Sarah stood there calmly, her long sapphire hair flowing gently as her eyes met his.

“Did I disturb you?” she asked quietly.

“No. I was still awake,” Ethan said, stepping aside to let her in.

She walked inside and sat on the chair near the bed, her eyes going over him carefully. “I couldn’t sleep,” she admitted after a moment. “So I thought I’d check on you.”

“I’m fine,” Ethan said with a small smile as he sat back down on the bed.

Earlier, he hadn’t been able to say anything with everyone present, but seeing Sarah again after so long, alive and well, made him genuinely happy. They had grown up together for as long as he could remember, and she had always looked out for him.

In his past life, just before his mother died, Sarah had set out for the Holy Kingdom to meet the Saintess of the Life God Church and ask her to examine Elena’s condition. But before she could reach it, a great war broke out, and she died protecting the innocent people caught in it. Ethan had been fighting at the Eternal Forest at the time, and by the time news of her death reached him, both he and Amelia, who were still grieving the loss of their father, had broken down even further…

He had promised to protect her, yet he hadn’t been there when she needed him most. She had been one of the most talented mages in the Empire, but she had never reached her full potential. This time, he would make sure she did.

Unaware of what was going through Ethan’s mind, Sarah looked at him for a little longer, then let out a soft laugh. “You’ve grown so much in the few months we’ve been apart. At this rate, you’ll be taller than me within a year,” she said, breaking his train of thought.

“You’ve grown a lot too, Sister Sarah,” Ethan said quietly.

“Not as much as you,” she teased. Before he could respond, she reached over and gently ruffled his hair, catching him by surprise.

“Happy birthday once again,” she said, taking out a gift from her storage ring and handing it to him.

“Thank you,” Ethan said.

After that, they talked about what Sarah had been doing while they were apart, and she asked him about a few things she had been curious about. Finally, Ethan asked what had happened to the Ice Dragon after he lost consciousness, and who had been behind all of this… but Sarah’s answer made his eyes widen.

She told him what Marcus’s report had said about the Abyssal Pact member and the demon who had been behind it all, which confirmed Ethan’s assumption. Rage boiled inside him as he listened, but he didn’t let any of it show on his face.

Sarah then told him about the phenomenon, along with Mythralis’s words that she wouldn’t be able to return for a while before the spatial fluctuation swallowed her, and how it was the Ice Dragon who had treated his injuries. Even Marcus and Evelyn didn’t know what the phenomenon was or what had caused it, and Mythralis hadn’t explained it to them either.

From what Sarah said, Ethan could already infer the rest… it was something Mythralis couldn’t speak about.

“Get some rest, okay? Lady Elena will scold both of us if she finds out I kept you up.”

“Okay.”

She stood up and walked to the door, glancing back at him once before stepping out and closing it softly behind her.

The room fell quiet once again.

“I hope you’re doing well,” Ethan whispered gently.

He sat there for a while, looking at the door. Then he slowly lowered his gaze to the pristine white ring resting on his finger. He didn’t know what Mythralis had done, but the ring was already bound to him… It was a Legendary Grade storage ring, of even higher quality than the one she had given Marcus. But it wasn’t just a storage ring. Apart from its storage space and its other properties, it also had some special functions. The moment Ethan imbued it with his Intent, everything inside the ring, along with all the information about each item, flowed directly into his mind.

She didn’t have to do all this… Ethan could only smile helplessly.

———

The next morning, Ethan found Elena and Aisha in the guest house, the two of them discussing something. Both turned their attention towards him at the sound of his footsteps.

“Good morning, Mother. Good morning, Aunt Aisha,” Ethan greeted them.

“You’re here,” Elena said with a gentle smile, while Aisha gestured for him to take a seat.

“It seems you woke up early again. Don’t even think about training for a few days,” Aisha said.

“Yes…” Ethan replied obediently.

Sensing that Ethan wanted to say something, Elena asked, “Is there something you want to tell us?”

“Yes, Mother.” Ethan turned towards Aisha. “Aunt Aisha, did you check on the Ashwood family?”

“I did, a few days ago,” Aisha told him. She explained that she hadn’t told them about his condition, thinking it would only make them worry more, and had reassured them instead.

Elena didn’t say anything the whole time and simply listened to their conversation. She could already piece together a few details from it, but she waited for Ethan to continue.

Ethan then told her everything… how he had met the Ashwood family, how Elene had been suffering from Silveravyn all this time, how both of the Ashwood sisters had been able to sense mana within a few days, and finally, how he was planning to cure her.

Elena was a little surprised by everything he described, but she was even more surprised when he mentioned that both sisters had been able to sense mana in only a few days.

Even though Ethan knew Elena would help them once she knew their circumstances, he had deliberately mentioned their talent. He already knew Sepharina would awaken an SS-Rank talent along with an S-Rank Mage Core… Even though her core was only S-Rank, her talent was one of the rarest. He didn’t know exactly what it was, but he was sure it was related to alchemy. As for Anna, he would have to wait until the ceremony next week to find out what she awakened.

In the North, mages were quite rare. For every few hundred warriors, not even a dozen awakened as mages, and most of those awakened low-ranked cores or talents. That was why high-ranked mages were so highly valued, and why they were useful in such a wide range of fields.

It was also one of the reasons Elena had proposed to the Ocean Tower multiple times that they set up a branch here. Each time, they had not only declined but insulted the North as well. They knew the North was powerful, yet they still looked down on its people as nothing more than brutes. Ethan already knew the Ocean Tower would reject her proposal again. In his previous life, he hadn’t done anything about it, but this time, he would make sure they regretted it.

For now, he planned to let Elena teach the sisters herself if both of them awakened as mages, which he knew she would be glad to do.

Elena and Aisha both looked at him for a moment. Even after everything he had said, there was still no cure for Silveravyn, and the most they could do was keep her symptoms from deteriorating further, just as they had done until now… But they also knew Ethan wouldn’t have brought up curing Elene without a plan.

Sensing their questioning gazes, Ethan brought out the Purified Elixir of the Life Fruit from the storage ring Mythralis had given him.

Elena’s and Aisha’s eyes widened as they looked at the purified energy within the vial. Both of them had seen Legendary Grade elixirs before, but what surprised them was the purity and vitality overflowing from it, which they could sense even without probing it. The Life Fruit used in the elixir was the reason behind that massive vitality, and Ethan could only smile at their reactions.

“T-This… was it inside the ring?” Aisha murmured, and even Elena looked at him in surprise.

They knew about the ring from Marcus, who had told them the Ice Dragon had given it to Ethan. They didn’t know what it held, nor were they planning to ask unless he wished to tell them. Ethan told them he had been curious about what was inside, so he had looked into it, found this among the other items, and learned that it could treat Silveravyn, so he had brought it to them right away.

Ethan couldn’t tell them about the War Merit Store or how he had acquired it because of the System’s constraints… so he told them a white lie, that it had been among the things Mythralis had given him.

Elena smiled gently. Seeing Ethan like this made her immensely proud. She had always cared deeply for her people, yet Ethan’s kindness made her worry a little. If it were sold on the market, an elixir like this would fetch an astronomical price, since apart from the elixirs produced by the Elves, which were almost impossible to acquire, there was no cure for Silveravyn at all. Yet he was giving it away without a second thought.

“Then… will you help, Mother?” Ethan asked, looking into her eyes.

“I will,” she said, standing up and gently pulling him into a hug.