Chapter 23 : Snow White (5)

Star Silver.

It was one of the star metals.

Star metals could only be harvested from stars that had fallen from the sky.

There were many types: Star Gold, Star Silver, Star Iron, Star Jade, Star Stone, and so on.

These star metals were rare.

Getting your hands on them was literally like plucking stars from the sky.

And they were beautiful — unlike regular gold or silver, they had an appearance reminiscent of starlight.

But that alone wasn’t why people were so obsessed with star metals.

There was a deeper reason.

Why people sought them out.

It was because of the mysterious powers imbued within them.

Take Star Silver, for instance — just carrying it around was said to bring perfect health and longevity.

Well, in truth, its effects were closer to slightly improving your immune system and giving you a mild health boost.

Star Silver was great, sure, but it wasn’t like it would make all illness disappear.

Still—

“I’ve never seen a Star Silver this big before. But it looks different from what I know?”

“Of course it’s disguised. You can’t just plop a chunk of Star Silver this big into a public hot spring, can you?”

I ran my hand along the Star Silver that Flora was lying on.

Even if its effects weren’t all that impressive, that was for finger-sized pieces.

If you were constantly in contact with a piece this big, you really might live a long and healthy life.

“How did you get it?”

“It took a lot.”

“Not even the emperor could get something this size, I bet.”

“Which is why I’m using it secretly. In case someone asks for it.”

Flora laughed heartily at her own words, puffing on her pipe.

Seeing her like that, I brought up something that had been weighing on my heart.

“Lady Flora.”

“What?”

“So… are you going to sell me that magic or not?”

“Knew you’d bring that up.”

With a long sigh, Flora exhaled smoke and stared blankly up at the peach tree before speaking softly.

“No, I won’t sell it.”

“Is that so.”

“Why are you so desperate to gather magic, anyway?”

“It’s not like people breathe just because they need to do something, right?”

“So collecting magic is the goal?”

“Using it is the goal. If you just stash it in a warehouse, it’s a waste. Magic would feel sorry for itself.”

Magic existed to be used.

There was nothing sadder or more meaningless than magic that was never used.

Flora stared intently at me after my resolute reply.

Then she calmly spoke.

“How old are you?”

“Seventeen this year.”

“Third-tier?”

“Wow, you guessed right.”

“Too skilled for second-tier, too bundled up for fourth-tier.”

“I’m not wearing anything right now though?”

“Can’t you keep that mouth shut? Seventeen and third-tier…”

Her eyes flicked back and forth — she was probably trying to gauge the extent of my talent.

So I kindly offered the details myself.

“I’m average. Took a month to reach first-tier, three years for second-tier.”

“That’s not average, that’s slow.”

“Still made it to third-tier by seventeen.”

“That’s fast, I’ll admit. The price of throwing yourself into fire, huh?”

“Yeah.”

I replied brightly, and Flora narrowed her eyes, muttering:

“So your goal is to learn every magic that exists, and you’re willing to jump into fire to do it.”

“I don’t do that anymore. I promised my master.”

“Then you’ll either go mad and die from hitting a wall, or you’ll break through that wall while being mad.”

“That’s exactly what my master says. But I won’t die. I promised to live long and healthy too.”

“You sure have a lot of promises. Just hearing it, I can tell you were a real handful for your teacher.”

Flora tapped out her pipe and continued.

“I can feel how immense your desire is. It’s almost impressive that you even managed to listen to your teacher.”

“We had a deal, after all.”

“A deal, huh? Sounds more like something deeply personal and affectionate. You two had a good mentor-student bond.”

“Lady Flora.”

“What now?”

“So, why are you asking me all these things?”

I asked out of curiosity — why she was suddenly checking my potential.

But Flora didn’t answer, just focused on her pipe.

Fine then.

I rubbed my cheek against the Star Silver, then slowly spun around on it.

My damp body turned smoothly over the surface, like a spinning top.

“That’s annoying to look at. What are you doing?”

“Checking the state of the Star Silver. It feels fresh.”

“I told you, it’s disguised as plain marble right now. So what you’re checking is marble.”

“Lady Flora.”

“What is it now?”

“Are you… by any chance, terminally ill?”

Flora fell silent.

Like someone hearing an unexpected question.

After a brief pause, she casually opened her mouth.

“Where’d that come from?”

“Because you made immortality the price of a magic deal, said something cryptic about how the Holy Grail would already be found if it were easy to get, and you’re clinging to this giant piece of Star Silver. Your personal magic is also life-related, like making a peach tree bloom in winter. Everything points to a terminal illness.”

She had left so many obvious clues, it was like she wanted me to figure it out.

Was I right?

Flora toyed with her dead pipe for a moment, then snapped her fingers.

With a creak, a tree branch sprouted from the frozen winter ground to serve as a stand.

She placed her pipe on the branch, then stepped into the hot spring from her toes down.

Now we had switched places — I was lying on the Star Silver, and Flora was in the spring.

She scooped the water with her hands, letting it fall between her fingers.

Then she moved her lips.

“You weren’t born with magical talent.”

“I’m average.”

“And I… wasn’t born with the talent for longevity.”

Flora confessed calmly.

“My mentor was a famous seer mage. He would often see far into the future, and one of those visions included my lifespan.”

“Oh dear.”

“Cause of death: illness. I didn’t believe it when I first heard the prophecy as a child, but I soon realized it—I’m not exactly in good health.”

“Was the exact date of your death foretold?”

“Yes.”

“When is it?”

“Spring of my 29th year. So, about half a year from now.”

There really wasn’t much time left.

“To twist this fate, I tried every possible method. Searching for the Holy Grail was one of those attempts.”

“So you were one of the previous challengers?”

“The Grail quest failed, but I discovered this hot spring in the process, so it wasn’t a total failure. After finding it, I decided to stay here permanently.”

So that’s the story behind this unusual inn with a hot spring—something you’d never expect in a typical medieval fantasy setting.

If a high-ranking mage built and ran an inn, a local lord would have no reason to object.

He probably gave permission without much resistance.

“I wanted to change my fate. No matter what it took, I wanted to escape this damn destiny.”

“Then how about the strategy of ending your own life? That would technically go against the fate, wouldn’t it?”

“You shouldn’t treat burn wounds.”

“Why not?”

“If you don’t have burn scars, people might not think you’re crazy, and that could lead to misunderstandings.”

“That’s unexpected.”

Flora sighed deeply, leaned against the wall of the hot spring, and snapped her fingers.

A vine sprouted from the ground and began massaging her shoulder.

My eyes popped out.

“You can give yourself massages?! That’s ridiculous magic…!”

“No matter how desperately you ask, I’m not giving it to you.”

“Can I at least get one too?”

“Get in.”

As I entered the hot spring like she said, a vine popped out and began kneading my shoulder.

My eyes closed without me even realizing it.

It was unbelievably relaxing.

“This massage is so delicate… how is this possible?”

“Thanks to learning massage from a professional therapist.”

“You really did try everything for the sake of your health, huh?”

I could feel just how obsessed Flora was with surviving.

With that kind of drive, no wonder she became a high-ranking mage at such a young age.

I relaxed and enjoyed the massage.

This felt amazing.

“Lady Ruina?”

Just then, I heard a voice and opened my eyes.

It was the cooking pouch.

“Chris? You’re even coming to the public bath now. Don’t just stand there—come on in.”

“…Who’s that?”

“He’s the merchant who made a deal with the devil of money.”

“That’s a merchant? Not a succubus?”

“He’s the type who drains energy from money.”

“Okay, that actually makes sense.”

Chris quietly sat beside us and whispered,

“Lady Ruina, I’m not a succubus.”

“But your body is. And your face too.”

“I can’t tell if that’s a compliment or not.”

“It is a compliment.”

Flora gave Chris a vine massage as well.

She even loosened up the cooking pouch expertly—it was on par with a massage therapist for royalty.

“It actually was passed down from a royal therapist.”

“You really are obsessed with health, huh?”

“That’s the only way to change my fate.”

And so, we thoroughly enjoyed our hot spring soak and then stepped out to chug some milk.

Nothing beats milk after a bath.

“Oh, right. Lady Ruina, you need to hear the final report.”

“The final report?”

“Preparations for the northern expedition are complete. Aren’t you going to check it?”

“Of course I will.”

Time to see whether my money was put to good use.