Chapter 67: Gotta Roll Without Mana (2)
He sat still for twenty minutes, grumbling to himself.
Its strange that the fire wont start
Ray massaged his numb shoulders as he looked down at the firewood.
He attempted to replicate what he had once seen in a book from modern times, but it seemed ineffective.
Even though he needed to generate enough heat to surpass the ignition point, the ember constantly went out just as it seemed about to catch fire.
After all, the ember needed to catch fire to start a blaze.
Ray was then thirty minutes into vigorously rubbing sticks together, but it still seemed hopeless.
Initially, it was cold enough to make his body shiver, but now he was sweating from his effort.
If there had been a contest for vigorously starting a fire, he would undoubtedly have taken first place.
Even though the piece of firewood might not have known, Rays eyes were already ablaze.
Finally, the rubbing of the sticks became so intense that the firewood gave in, and a smoky scent filled the air along with a small wisp of smoke.
Before he knew it, the ember had transferred to the firewood, along with some ash. Even though Ray wanted to cheer at the sight, he was afraid that doing so would extinguish the ember.
He hastily placed the ember on a bed of twigs arranged in the middle of the tinder.
Holding it with his hands, he gently blew on the ember to fan it into a larger flame.
Hoo. Hoo.
Although he was merely exhaling, he did so with precision and a serious demeanor, akin to a surgeon performing an operation.
Gently cradling the now-larger ember, he placed it on a pile of firewood meant for the bonfire.
For a moment, there was no reaction from the ember, but gradually it began to transfer to the firewood, growing larger in the process.
Eventually,
Crackle- Pop-
The sound of firewood burning accompanied the successful lighting of the bonfire.
Done!
With a triumphant cheer, Ray knelt down and gazed endlessly at the bonfire.
He finally succeeded in lighting the fire, something that would normally have required him to say fire to a branch. But, without magic, he had no choice but to struggle with the task.
Tears seemed to well up in his eyes as he looked at the result of his efforts.
As the saying goes, a man cries three times. He decided to save the remaining times for the future, so he did not cry in the end.
With the bonfire lit, he would be able to pass the night safely.
Hopefully, no monsters will appear, right?
As he looked at the dark forest, a natural wariness of monsters arose in him.
However, his worries were short-lived. Even if there were monsters, they would find it difficult to climb up the foolish stone staircase.
Pushing aside needless imagination, Ray took out a book from his backpack again.
Now that there was light, he could read the books he had not finished during the day.
After all, increasing ones medical knowledge was never a disadvantage.
As he read, he lay down and drifted off to sleep, marking the end of the first day of the rites.
Swoosh-
The spear cut through the water.
Ray was in the valley, holding a spear he had carved from a branch with a stone, hunting fish.
His elastic body and robust strength provided good support for spearing, but catching the swimming fish was a futile task.
No matter how tasty the fruits were, they could only be enjoyed once or twice. Now, he was craving meat.
His taste buds were tantalized as he missed the fish.
Just one, please get caught.
The valley was not small, so there were big fish in the water.
However, despite their large bodies, they were incredibly fast.
He could have caught them easily using mana, but without it, he had to struggle.
No matter how much he tried spearing, not a single fish was caught, causing Ray to sigh in frustration.
Whew I really did not want to resort to this method
As he spoke, he picked up stones and began building a dam on one side.
As he densely packed the stones, a pool of water started to form.
Ray removed his clothes and placed them on one side of the dam.
Suddenly, he created a plausible fishing net.
The saintly ceremonial robes, made of the finest silk and crafted by master artisans, so sacred that not even the Pope dared touch them, transformed into a fishing net in the blink of an eye.
If anyone saw this, their jaws would have dropped, and they might have screamed out in disbelief.
He was also reluctant to use such a garment as a mere fishing net, but he had no choice.
The fish in this stream were simply uncatchable with a spear.
After setting up the net, he lay by the valley and read a book for two hours.
After all, reading a book was more beneficial than watching the fish that would eventually be caught.
About two hours passed since he sat quietly and read his book.
When he checked the fishing net, many small fish were caught in it.
Among them, there were quite a few big fish, enough to last him for the day and the next.
Salivating, he gathered the fish and hurriedly ran to the bonfire.
However, the sight before him made him drop the caught fish on the ground.
The fire went out
Only ashes and smoldering smoke remained from the bonfire.
Ray hastily approached and tried to salvage any remaining embers inside the bonfire, but it was no use.
The bonfire was already dead. There was no saving it.
The only thing left to do was to create a new fire.
.
He knelt in the ashes and looked up at the sky.
They said a man cried three times in his life. It seemed like now was one of those times.
Thats strange.
Ray skillfully started the bonfire and muttered to himself.
He was as adept at starting a bonfire as if he had been born to do just that.
it feels like its been a week.
Since the days had brightened at least seven times, it must have been a week.
At the very least, it was a week, and at most, it was ten days.
However, during this week, there were no signs that he received divine power.
By then, there should have been some sort of change. All he did so far was start a fire, catch fish, and read a book.
Based on Iriels words that he hadnt done anything for a week, he continued to live like this, but he was just as anxious.
However, Ray shook his head and brushed off his thoughts.
Its only been a week. Lets not be too hasty.
After all, he had plenty of time. Spending that time reading books he hadnt read before was another pleasure.
He decided to be patient and wait.
It was the second week.
Something seemed terribly wrong.
Had he made a mistake? Or was this some sort of revenge for lying during the ritual?
But it was natural to get angry if someone didnt answer for half a day!
All sorts of thoughts began to flood his mind.
Iriel, who had been waiting below, must have gotten tired and left, and the tired commoners and nobles must have returned to their homes.
Two weeks. The time spent here was too short to be called short and too long to be called long.
Just as he contemplated leaving this place, he seemed to hear Iriels voice.
Devotion to God is showing sincerity in ones practice.
I must show sincerity. Leaving halfway through would not show sincerity.
Ray forcefully restrained his legs, which seemed ready to stand up and leave any moment.
Patience. I must show sincerity.
He gritted his teeth and started kindling the fire.
Ssssh-
The quick catch of the fire spark indicated that he had become proficient in starting fires.
After starting the fire, he skillfully picked fruits and laid them out to dry in the sun.
Ray no longer spent his days just reading books. Rather, it would be more accurate to say that he could no longer afford to just read books.
He gave up reading books to navigate through the situation handed to him.
Swish-
The well-trimmed branch created a swishing sound as it sliced through the air and then the water.
A palm-sized fish was seen wriggling on the branch afterward.
The fish wasnt large, but it was enough for a meal.
He acquired the skill of spearfishing and could now catch fish with a javelin.
This accomplishment filled him with a sense of euphoria.
Wasnt it said that humans are creatures of adaptation? That statement proved to be true.
Over the past two weeks, he completely adapted to his current lifestyle.
He didnt show sincerity to the gods through his actions, but he waited patiently while living here.
That was his interpretation of sincerity.
A month passed since he started living this way.
Sincerity, my foot. Feed it to the dogs.
He lived as though he didnt care whether someone would come for him or not.
Besides, it was unlikely that anyone would come looking for him in this sacred place with strict entry regulations.
He might have felt bored, but he got used to it after a month.
Every morning, he picked fruits, caught fish to smoke over the fire, and gathered herbs he read about in books for research.
His life was monotonous, but there were set tasks to do, making each day pass suitably.
As usual, he lay down on the grass and opened a book.
Not long after, he suddenly felt a heavy pressure enveloping his whole body.
It felt as though something was pressing down on him.
It wasnt painful, nor was it comfortable, but the different sensation made his heart flutter as if he was a young girl experiencing her first love.
Could it finally be!
He waited for more than a month. The sudden occurrence of this sign didnt surprise him, as it had been quite a while since he started waiting.
A holy and reverent feeling washed over his entire body.
Oh!
A sound that was half a sigh and half an exclamation of admiration involuntarily escaped his lips.
A tremendous amount of divine power engulfed him.
Woosh-
It felt as if a waterfall poured down on him. The quantity was overwhelming and not easily controlled.
The immense divine power emanating from Uriel made him wonder where it all came from.
The divine power swirled around in Rays mana road, exploring it.
However, unable to find a place to settle, the divine power simply flowed through the empty and hollow mana road, brushing past him like the surrounding mana in the air.
This peculiar characteristic of Rays mana road left him baffled.
Huh?
The divine power floated around his body.
Once again, absorption began, and Ray let out another exclamation.
Oh!
But that was it. Just like before, the dense divine power simply flowed out of Rays mana road.
Ray slightly frowned and looked up at the sky.
It felt as if he was asking the gods, What are you doing?
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