Just as a regular healer had assessed, his body was not in serious trouble, nor was it injured or diseased.
However, while observing through a Magic Power perspective, the Hero discovered an abnormal, miasma-like presence lingering around his organs silently and continuously contaminating the Magic Power within him.
This miasma not only caused him to grow increasingly weaker but could also affect those around him. The breath he exhaled carried trace amounts of miasma. Although very faint, prolonged exposure, especially for those who were constantly around him like his sister, would impact both body and spirit negatively over time.
If this miasma had the ability to self-replicate, it could potentially trigger an extremely terrifying epidemic.
Fortunately, while stubbornly occupying his body, the miasma showed no signs of spreading, and his sister was only slightly affected mentally, perhaps because she spent most of her time working outside, inadvertently avoiding the miasma's erosion.
For a regular Cleric, exorcising and purifying this substance could prove challenging, but for a Hero who possessed the Power of Dawn, clearing this lesion was merely a simple gesture.
Yet, this didn't mean the Hero couldn't recognize the terror of the miasma.
Thus, even though he initially planned to heal the person and leave, the Hero had no choice but to reluctantly wake the other person up and talk extensively about his condition.
Fortunately, the girl's brother was an experienced Adventurer. Although his physical abilities were not what they once were, his insights and talkativeness remained, feeling no great alarm or astonishment at the Hero's unauthorized intrusion.
Upon realizing that the Hero had cured him and understanding his concerns, the retired Adventurer recounted his own past experiences.
"...Underground Temple."
The Hero thoughtfully turned into a familiar alley and then looked up at the familiar darkness.
"You probably know what this is all about, right?"
The Knowledge Hunter silently hovered in the air, greeting the entity that had agreed to the meeting.
"Of course, girl, I'd be glad to answer you."
[Nightmare's Knowledge]
[Hero's Understanding (Intelligence)]
Note: The difference here determines whether the Nightmare's Knowledge and the Hero's field of study overlap,
Nightmare > Hero = Profound Theory (e.g., High-level Mathematics)
Nightmare ≈ Hero = Personally Relevant (e.g., Beast Spirit Advancement)
Hero > Nightmare = Professional Knowledge (e.g., Human Physiology)
In the familiar dusk, within the familiar alley, the Hero confidently faced the dark Knowledge Hunter in the air.
Last night, after comforting the girl troubled by a grey Nightmare and letting her fall into deep sleep, the Hero encountered the remnants of that Nightmare.
Different from the first floating, unstable remnant found next to the Hero's dream, the second piece attracted by the oppressive emotions brought into the dream world by the girl had an opaque, substantial feel to it,
The substantial difference between the first and second pieces, like cotton and iron blocks, allowed the Hero to immediately determine that the second piece, containing 'knowledge', was what the Knowledge Hunter needed.
The Hero had already braced mentally to wander in the dream world for several nights, but he accomplished his goal on the first night.
Although he hadn't traced the Nightmare Sage, since he successfully retrieved the key remnants, the Hero's objective was deemed achieved.
Even though the Hero wished to permanently resolve the Nightmare issue, searching for a conscious Nightmare hiding among countless human dreams, and screening for remnants that don't conceal themselves, were not the same thing.
The Border City had Mages, and dream traveling wasn't a lost Spell; even the Count and Sergeant didn't organize a direct pursuit into the dream world. For the Hero alone to extract the Nightmare Sage was like finding a needle in a haystack.
However, the essentially deceased Nightmare Sage, even without encountering any accidents, would require a lengthy period to recover a certain level of strength, starting from an embryonic state. Although this unclean sensation was somewhat frustrating, it posed no threat for a long time.
So the Hero no longer dwelt on this issue, coming once again before the Knowledge Hunter for the sake of completing the deal.
Within the alley, the sound of pages turning arose, thoughts being articulated in the language of humankind.
"Then, human girl, before I answer your queries, I wish to know, have you acquired the knowledge required for our agreed-upon exchange?"
1. I've memorized it!♛
2. I, I've memorized it…
Upon hearing this, the Hero immediately nodded.
"Rest assured, I've memorized it all!"
A trace of confidence was evident on her face.
Indeed, for the Hero who was once forbidden to enter the library—to the extent that seeing a book later filled her with genuine awe—it was an incredible achievement to have memorized such vast knowledge.
Although she recognized every word, she couldn't comprehend them when strung together, but this didn't hinder her from conveying the information to the Knowledge Hunter.
Furthermore, as her grandfather had previously mentioned, this peculiar knowledge itself possessed a certain vitality, a weird feeling that was hard to describe; if likened to a tree, the Hero was now a sapling, her act of imparting knowledge akin to seeding.
If it were just anyone else, it might have been difficult for the Hero to teach, as she herself did not understand; in such cases, the seeds handed over might simply be dead seeds that couldn't sprout.
But with a Knowledge Hunter as the recipient, presumably, just by faithfully replicating the knowledge, it could rely on its own intellect to reinvigorate the knowledge and rapidly grow into a great, towering tree.
Thus the Hero felt no issue at all with her not understanding.
It took some time for the Knowledge Hunter to comprehend that the Hero hadn't grasped anything at all, and with an unchanging tone, it responded.
"You've done well, human girl, then according to our agreement, I will now establish a Magic Power connection with you. You just need to recite the knowledge from your memory to me, and our trade will be considered complete.
"Then, in accordance to the contract, I will become your guide to the Curse Temple located beneath this city."
The sound of turning pages stopped, and the Knowledge Hunter fell into a brief silence.
"…By the way, this knowledge stemming from the Nightmare, I hope to analyze it for you. It is necessary for you to understand the content to ensure the 'original' quality."
[Nightmare Knowledge Details]
1. The theoretical model for endowing thought material from the Land of Dead Dreams with vitality
2. Discussions on the optimization of Dream Implanting Magic and the feasibility of long-distance dreamshifts
3. Enhancing Prediction Magic by extracting subconscious factors from dreams
7. The ritual of converting real matter into Thought Bodies
8. Land of Dead Dreams map pointer♛
9. Planetary consciousness theory
10. Critical Success/Extreme Failure