Cursed Heroine

Chapter 11: Heroes’ departure

Waking up the next morning, I can feel a burning sensation and pain all over my body. It may have felt good last night, but it stings like hell the morning after. I use my lesser heal and most of the pain fades away. Using another would probably rid me completely of the aftermath, but I only have enough energy to use it three times in a day. I still want to cultivate my divine energy a little later today. Sophia wakes up and has me immediately heal her as well, not letting me get away with anything today. We get cleaned up and eat. Then I help her get dressed up for the send-off parade. She is wearing a white dress with the silver jewelry set from last night and a decorative green waist cincher. I do up her hair in a princess style, slightly less complicated than last night and place some strappy green heels on her feet. We quickly find our place among the official send off party when it is time and head directly to the mage quarters after for lessons.

“Mistress, I’ve achieved the next level of my mind cultivation.”~me

<Status> +[disguised stats], -[hidden stats]
Name: Lilia | Age: 20 | Sex: Female
+Race: {Vampire(50%)}{Blood demon(25%)}{Dragon(20%)}{Dryad(5%)}
Cultivation Stages: {Body: 1(17%)}{Mind: 2(0%)}{Spirit: 0}{Divine: 0(36%)}{Law: 0}
Energy Reserves: {Qi: 23/23}{Mana: 50/100}{Spirit: 10/10}{Divine: 4/10}
Attributes: Str: 15(50%) | Vit: 25(50%) | Agi: 30(50%) | Int: 100(70%)
Soul Potential: 22
<Skills>
{passive}
[Sense Mana 1]
-[Soul Devourer 1], [Sense Presence(activate: 9sp)], [Sense Intent 1]
{active}
[Mana Control 1], [Mana Shaping 1]
-[Contract(activate: 19sp)], [Shadowmeld(activate: 49sp)]

“Mmm, good job Lilia. Though it looks like we will need to get you some mana crystals to help you improve further.”~Sophia

“Mana crystals?”~me

Sophia explains to me the uses of the various crystals found in dungeons and I can’t help but feel frustrated at my stupidity, using all that sp before to increase my attributes. Qi and mana crystals are more than just extra reserves of energy that can be used to cultivate or use skills. When used to cultivate one’s attributes, it can directly raise the cultivated attribute without the use of soul potential. You still have to circulate your own energy, so there is actually a double energy loss, but it saves those precious soul potential points. Skill crystals will of course grant skills, but they also give the appropriate amount of raw soul potential if the skill is already possessed. Spirit cultivation isn’t normally cultivated and the locals have very little knowledge of what they could do with it. Contract is one example of a soul skill that utilizes spirit to perform. Max spirit also determines how effective a person’s prayer is, one spirit gives the person one faith power which can be converted into divine energy when directed to the Goddess. The Goddess usually takes twenty percent off the top of what you give her. Ten percent as the necessary energy to do the conversion and another ten for payment.  I currently have a backlog of faith energy from when I first started praying with a mere one divine energy. Which gives me an idea.

“Mistress, could I ask a favor from you?”~me

“Oh, this is rare. You hardly ever ask for anything from me. Go ahead and make your request, we will see whether I will grant it or not.”~Sophia

“Mu, you didn’t need to say it in such a cautious way. I just wanted to ask you if you would pray with me each day. It helps me to cultivate my divine energy when I can lead others in prayer or have them pray for my sake.”~me

“Don’t I have to be baptized as a priestess to offer prayers?”~Sophia

“You don’t. The goddess can receive all prayers, it’s just that priest and priestesses are the only ones who gain tangible benefits from their prayers.”~me

“So how do I perform a prayer?”~Sophia

“The simplest way is to simply will your thoughts to reach her, much like we do with our link when speaking to each other.”~me

“That simple? ...Done?”~Sophia

“Mm, thank you very much.”~me

“You can tell? How?”~Sophia

“Yes, I can feel a kind of warm, fuzzy feeling energy gather on me.”~me

Sophia asked her mentor for some mana crystals for me and we both resumed our training. Qi and mana crystals are readily available for the use of the royal family members. The only reason she isn’t rapidly increasing her attributes to the max is because she hasn’t mastered the spells at the current stage. Even if she promotes herself to the next stage, she would be unlikely to be able to cast any spells at that level. Later at the archery range, Sophia acquires a bag of qi crystals for me at my request.

There’s only a week left before she has to depart for Belgra to be wed. I have a rough plan in mind on how to stop it without causing her mother to be harmed, but I’m not yet confident that I can successfully carry it out. My memory makes me really good at magic. I just need to get up to the level that can make an impact on the situation. I need to get to stage three before we depart. There will definitely be elites in our party’s escorts, stage three practitioners. Finding myself a goal, I proceed with dedicated training. I only take breaks at night and when serving Sophia. It takes me only four days to max out my intelligence, special thanks to my glass cannon curse. I would also take some time to gain some physical attributes as well, but only managed to max out my agility. I’ve held back on my massage technique in order to conserve my divine energy for cultivation as well. Today, we are going shopping again due to my insistence that she have proper travel wear.

“I still don’t see why I need a set of clothing specifically to travel with. We will travel by carriage the entire way and the towns along our route are close enough that we will stay at inns each night.”~Sophia

“Mistress, you can never be too careful for things like this, besides I have no intention of delivering you to Belgra. I’ve been planning to spirit you away ever since I heard about your engagement.”~me

“I’m thankful for the thought, but the king has my mother under a slave contract. She can’t escape and he will hurt her if I run away. Have you thought about this?”~Sophia

“I have and if things go as planned, he will think you’re dead. He’ll have no reason to harm your mother over a dead girl and every reason to keep her well. That prince is going to want a half-elf princess from him after all and he has more than enough time to wait for one to grow up.”~me

“That’s horrible, you want me to pass on my responsibility to a sister who isn’t even born yet? I can’t do something like that.”~Sophia

“No. I want to buy ourselves some time to grow strong enough to take your mother out of here by force. Magic contracts can be broken, you merely need to find somebody with a higher level of skill or enough spirit energy to break it directly.”~me

“Wait, that can be done? You really aren’t lying to me, are you.”~Sophia

“Do you remember those legends about great people taking treasures into the central mountains and returning free from their burdens? Dragons are born naturally gifted with spirit energy. It’s a simple thing for them to break a human’s contract.”~me

“So why the need to get stronger ourselves? Can’t we just go get a dragon to help?”~Sophia

“Did you not hear the parts about great people or treasure? If we aren’t strong enough, the dragon is more likely to just eat us and where do you suppose you can get a treasure a dragon would want beside perhaps the king’s personal collection? I doubt he’d give you a share.”~me

“Um, so how do you plan to fake my death?”~Sophia

“I’m still working on it, but I’m thinking that it should be possible in the dungeon city of Kellor, near the border. We just need to show an interest in the dungeon and push ‘too deep’ inside. As long as it appears impossible for us to have survived, the guards will report us dead.”~me

“Yeah, that's a great idea. Only leaves the problem of delving too deep into a dungeon and avoid really dying.”~Sophia

“Mmm, which is why I’m hoping instead for bandits along the way to overwhelm our escort party while we slip away in the chaos.”~me

“Don’t forget the little detail about not getting caught by those same bandits. If they overwhelm our escort, there’s very little chance we could defeat them should they come after us.”~Sophia

“It’s still a work in progress.”~me

With all that said, we had arrived at a high-end leather work and tailoring boutique. I pick out a supple yet durable grayish brown colored leather for the leather work to be done in and a deep forest dark green for the travel cloak, clothing and embellishments to be done. Then I hand over the drawings of what I want crafted, explain any details the worker has questions on through Sophia and hand over the payment before we head back to the castle. I’ve already managed to acquire travel funds, bags and camping gear for the two of us under the guise of being prepared for anything. We will unfortunately just have to see how things turn out and jump on any opportunity.