Tested.

—

While walking toward the largest tent in the division army, where Yen and other important people were gathered, Richard deactivated his Sun Breathing technique, which had encompassed ten thousand people. The intense cold of the freezing climate of Ofir was felt by everyone, from the old and sickly to the babies in their mothers' arms. Seeing them shiver from the cold and realizing they might die if he didn't continue to provide them with vitality, Richard breathed out his Breathing Technique onto the ground to make the area a safe haven from the cold.

Similar to what he had done in Redenia, where he scattered Sun fireballs around, Richard performed a similar action on a much larger scale. After fifteen minutes of constant exhaling, during which he unknowingly exited the camp to ensure a wide area of warmth, Richard transformed the ground of the army's camp into a place of safety. He completed the procedure and felt satisfied. Positioned far from the massive collection of tents, Richard then needed to walk toward the distant camp again, which was fortified by a wagon fort encircling it and had been teleported from the archipelago and settlement they had rescued.

Hearing the gratitude expressed by the mother, the motherless, and the advanced mother one after another for the warmth provided to the area, Richard nodded in passing and smiled gently in response to their thanks. One of the children even offered him a single dried salmon fish, a provision from Skellige, saying that he could share the meal but must leave the head part because he liked it. Although Richard personally dislikes fish and always feels queasy when eating it, he decided to accept it with the help of his calm state of mind after seeing the child's pleading eyes.

"You didn't eat it properly."

Sighing as his ruse of creating the illusion of eating the fish was seen through, Richard decided to take a proper bite of the dried salmon. Instantly feeling queasy and wanting to throw up, he then shifted to a super calm state of mind, with even a glimpse of a flaming mark appearing on his right temple. After properly eating the salmon, he gave it to the child and shook his head with a slight laugh over the brief episode. Walking toward the largest tent once more, Richard finally arrived at the command center of the joint army after ten minutes. Wanting to say goodbye to Yennefer and return to the archipelago, he was interrupted by the Malliq of the area, named Nibras, just as he was about to speak.

"Say, Slayer. Can you give that breathing of yours permanently to us, instead of just giving it to the lifeless ground?"

Shaking his head, Richard replied, "I can, but I don't want to."

"Pity. Here I thought you were one of the good ones. It seems you are just the same as me."

Sighing at the Malliq's blatant manipulation, Richard ignored him and wanted to say goodbye to Yennefer.

"Ah, I wonder what will happen to these people when the specter decides to come back, especially without that enhanced body from just a moment ago. Maybe they will share the same fate as those taken away by the Aen Elle."

Remaining silent and wanting to say goodbye, Richard was interrupted once again.

"Hmm, this land is a good place for magic. I wonder if the specters' motivation to return is not just because they want more slaves, but because of this warm area specifically. Maybe they will—"

"Okay, that's enough, Malliq. You don't need to push him over the edge just because you're greedy for his breathing abilities," Yennefer interjected.

"What is my mistake, woman? I am just stating the truth. If this gentleman here does not provide us with the vitality like before, our numbers will dwindle quickly. Maybe not because of the cold, but because of the monsters that will keep attacking us, drawn to this place. I assume that by the end of the month, we will probably be left with just hundreds of us."

"Does your victimization also include hyperbole, oh great and wise Malliq?" Yennefer mocked.

"Heheheh, well of course not. But the truth, however small it is, is also a truth."

Looking around the warm area that would later produce Mana more quickly and imagining this place becoming the center of a battlefield for monarchs, monsters, and demons greedy for his powers, which had only delayed the death of these people, Richard suddenly turned his gaze toward the boy who had given him the salmon.

Confused and torn between drawing on the energy he had left behind or leaving it as it is, he faced two possible outcomes: either they would die from the cold or from the greed of these beings.

With his conviction to help common folks being tested again and again amidst public scrutiny, Richard didn't know how to choose. Sighing and suddenly wondering how Superman and Batman handle such situations without losing their mind in the process, especially given that they don't have abilities like his Selfless State, Richard shook his head and decided to return to Undvik first to discuss countermeasures with his assistant and Margarita.

"Such a pity, truly a pity."

Hearing the words from the manipulative man just before he disappeared into Undvik, Richard sighed in lamentation, pondering whether he could reach the end of the road as Moraine had stated and still be the same. One thing he did know was that his state of calm had become a part of him after his heart-to-heart talk with Moraine in the frozen wasteland. Perhaps because of this, he might reach the end of the road with at least a passable score.

Looking around and realizing he had teleported to the heart of the town, Richard saw everyone gazing at him with respect and admiration, much like the salmon boy and the people at the camps after being rescued. Richard wondered how long this scene would last before it became a thing of the past, fearing that many of these people might eventually turn into someone like the manipulative man he didn't know. Chuckling bitterly to himself, knowing it would happen sooner or later, Richard just nodded and smiled gently in passing to the second group of people he had saved.

—