"Milliarde?"
Hearing this name come out of Serie's mouth, Gut was stunned for a moment, then finally remembered who she was.
Milliarde, mentioned during the Emperor's Wine arc in the manga, is also a long-lived female elf who spends her days idly. It seems she is an old acquaintance of Frieren, and their relationship is relatively good.
"You've heard of that name?"
Seeing the look of realization flash across her disciple's face, Serie couldn't help but feel curious.
Milliarde's personality is quite similar to Frieren before the demon king's defeat—living for ages without any real ambition, quietly residing in the countryside and fields, unbothered by fame or fortune.
Logically speaking, after so many years, her name shouldn't have been remembered by humans.
When and where did her disciple hear of it?
"Uh..."
Facing his teacher's questioning, Gut mentally cursed himself for not being cautious enough.
However, the story of Milliarde was relatively easy to explain. He only needed to recount the events as they happened in the story.
"Teacher, it's like this."
"When I passed through the Northern Highlands · Bia Region, I heard an old dwarf tell the story of a certain drink called Emperor's Wine."
"It was said that during the reign of a powerful empire that ruled most of the continent, the citizens brewed an exceptional wine dedicated to the emperor, known as Emperor's Wine."
"Although most people in the Bia Region treat Emperor's Wine as a mere legend, that old dwarf insisted he found an ancient stone tablet inscribed with details of Emperor's Wine. It was written in ancient Elvish, describing the taste as divine nectar, an exquisite drink."
"And the signature on that stone tablet was Milliarde."
After Gut finished recounting the story as it appeared in the original plot, Serie looked understanding, while Frieren's face was full of resignation.
Frieren couldn't help but complain about her old friend.
"Gut, don't believe what she left behind."
"Emperor's Wine is just some cheap drink distributed to the commoners during the emperor's coronation. It's both cheap and disgusting—just as terrible as Milliarde's personality."
"Tsk-tsk, just like you, Frieren."
"Shut up."
Even in such a brief moment, Serie couldn't resist poking fun at Frieren.
But Frieren's retort was equally sharp.
"Alright, alright."
Gut stepped forward just in time, gently pulling his teacher back and giving Himmel a look.
The Hero got the hint and subtly pulled Frieren back as well, preventing the two "little elf kids" from bickering any further.
"Teacher, shall we go up and take a look at that seal?"
Gut smoothly redirected the conversation back on track, and Serie nodded in agreement.
"Alright, let's go take a look."
However, right now it was still Sinseki Era – Year 21, and human magic users had not yet fully mastered Flight Magic, which was still about ten years away.
Gut looked at the seal high on the wall and hesitated. Without the help of climbing tools, he had to turn to his teacher for help.
Fortunately, although human technology in magic was still limited, human imagination certainly wasn't.
Serie only glanced around the room once before coming up with a solution. She waved her hand, and the frozen block of ice covering the underground spring melted instantly.
With the seal lifted, water gushed out again, but under Serie's magical control, it did not splash everywhere. Instead, it was guided in a structured spiral, forming a staircase that led up to the seal.
Next, Serie gently clenched her right hand, and a faint flash of a magic circle seemed to appear in the air—almost like an illusion.
The water, which had just been swirling and flowing, instantly solidified into ice at her command, forming a sturdy, crystal-clear stairway.
"Whew..."
Even though Gut had been with Serie for a long time and had seen her use countless instant-cast spells, every time he witnessed it, he couldn't help but marvel at the smoothness and fluidity of her magic.
"Let's go."
Serie said calmly, taking the lead and stepping onto the ice staircase she had just conjured.
The others followed closely behind, ascending toward the seal.
By the time Gut reached his teacher's side, Serie was already pressing her hand against the seal left by Milliarde.
As she slightly increased the pressure, the massive stone blocking the sealed entrance erupted with a stunning surge of magical energy, flashing with a series of arcane symbols.
And then... nothing.
No matter how much force Serie applied, the stone remained stubbornly in place, entirely immobile.
Just as Serie was about to blow it apart with magic, Gut gently patted her shoulder, signaling if he could give it a try.
"Alright, you go ahead."
Serie stepped aside, crossing her arms with a look of curiosity, clearly interested to see what her physically trained disciple could do.
However, to the warrior Himmel and Mut, seeing a magic user try to force open a massive stone with physical strength seemed utterly abstract.
Even though Himmel could tell that Gut's body was well-trained, the world's common understanding was that no matter how fit a mage was, their physical prowess wouldn't compare to a warrior's.
Yet reality unfolded in a way neither of them expected.
With a single Iron Mountain Lean, Gut's foot shattered the ice beneath him with a crisp crack, and the enormous stone at the sealed entrance shifted backward significantly.
Not stopping there, Gut swiftly transitioned into a series of Earthquake Shatters, his shoulder and elbow repeatedly hammering into the stone. With each successive blow, the massive seal split further and further—until it finally cracked cleanly in two.
Watching the stone that had been smashed apart, Mut couldn't help but gulp.
"Hero, Gut... he is a magic user, right?"
"I think... probably?"
Even Himmel's response was full of uncertainty.
Among them, Frieren—who had lived a long life and seen many things—was less shocked.
Though she was surprised by Gut's physical capabilities, she at least recognized the source.
Poking Serie in the side, Frieren spoke with some amazement:
"That's Bode's Body Refinement Technique, isn't it?"
"I didn't think that such harsh training requirements and talent demands would still have someone to carry it on."
"Yes."
Serie nodded in agreement.
"And his talent far surpasses Bode's."
"He will walk a path his senior brother could never even imagine."
"As his teacher, I'm very confident about that."
Frieren looked at Serie with disbelief.
"I can hardly imagine those words coming from you."
"Oh?"
"Maybe... it's because Gut's talent is truly outstanding."
"Or maybe... I've changed a little as well?"
"Who knows."
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Powerstones?
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