Chapter 474 Mental Age

“Really? Auntie Irus knows where my power came from?”

“Yes, in a way.”

“When you Heroes gain the power of the Divine Artifacts, you also awaken an innate ability suited to your own nature. This ability is entirely unique to each person.”

“Take past Divine Staff Heroes, for instance. Some were exceptionally skilled at Curse Breaking. Others, though meant for support, wielded attack magic with surprising sharpness. One in particular possessed astonishing healing power, capable of even Resurrection—reviving anyone who had died within the past minute.”

“I believe the Mind Magic you wield, Prarlulu, is exactly this kind of awakened innate talent.”

“Ehh? So it’s a special talent? It sounds incredible—completely one-of-a-kind……” Prarlulu giggled happily.

“……”

“Ahem! So that’s how it is. I never knew Heroes had such hidden power. But if that’s the case……” Charkin turned to Aralond. “Aralond, do you have any special ability too?”

“I’m not sure if it counts, but…… ever since I obtained the Divine Shield, my defensive power is greatly amplified as long as my feet touch the earth. I can also feel a steady stream of power surging toward me from the ground.”

“Oh, so you do have one! It sounds like you’re blessed by the earth itself! Could you show us?”

“Now? Here, it’s a bit……”

At that moment, Irus asked again:

“Prarlulu, how well have you mastered this Mind Magic? Are you certain it can fix Hena’s condition?”

“Um……”

Prarlulu hesitated,

then shook her head.

“Auntie Irus, I-I’m not entirely sure if I can. Could I try it first?”

“Of course you may. Let’s go.”

Before long,

the group arrived beside the sleeping Hero Hena.

“There’s no need to worry about her waking suddenly. Do as you will.” Irus reminded her from the side.

“O-Okay.”

Prarlulu stepped forward to stand before Hena,

and raised her Divine Staff with a hint of nervousness.

In truth, this was her first time using this type of magic on another person, and she had no real confidence in its effectiveness.

Hum!

The staff emitted a golden radiance, and she slowly brought it close to Hena’s forehead.

“Nngh——”

A soft groan escaped Hena’s lips, and her body twitched slightly.

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The group tensed up at once.

“I-It’s fine, this is a normal reaction!” Prarlulu said quickly.

Only then did the others hold back from acting.

Afterward, Prarlulu took a deep breath to calm herself, then closed her eyes.

The entire room fell silent. Everyone remained perfectly still, not making a single sound.

Time ticked by, minute after minute.

After roughly one minute,

Prarlulu slowly opened her eyes and pulled the staff away from Hena’s forehead.

“How did it go? Can it be done?” Irus asked.

Prarlulu wore a troubled expression.

After a few seconds of hesitation, she nodded.

“It can be done, but……”

“But what?”

“But the difficulty is far greater than I imagined.”

“You mean…… the magic itself is hard to cast?”

“Huh?”

Prarlulu blinked in surprise and waved her hands hurriedly.

“Ah, no, no! That’s not what I mean. Casting the magic isn’t hard. The difficulty comes after it’s cast.”

“?”

The group looked on in confusion.

Prarlulu began to explain:

“When I tried channeling the Mind Magic just now, I discovered two problems.”

“First, my current ability is limited. I can only bring those with a Mental Age younger than mine into the Inner World.”

“Second, I found that the Inner World is far more dangerous than I anticipated.”

“It is the core of a person’s being, and their absolute domain. Everything manifested from their heart within it will have its power amplified to an extreme degree. As intruders, our own power will be suppressed, greatly weakening us.”

“You’re saying……” Irus said slowly. “Only those with a Mental Age younger than yours can enter with you, but those who enter must also possess sufficient strength—otherwise, they cannot resolve the problem?”

“M-More or less, that’s it.”

“……I must ask. What happens if those who enter fail, or even die inside?”

“Well……” Prarlulu thought carefully, then answered. “At best, they would suffer severe mental trauma and fall into a coma for around ten days. At worst——”

“They could lose their memories, or become permanently mentally impaired.”

“Ah, but there will be no problem as long as we retreat in time!”

“……”

The group fell silent.

After a moment, Charkin spoke up with a sigh:

“Little lady, your magic is ridiculously dangerous……”

“I can’t help it!”

Prarlulu blushed slightly and mumbled quietly:

“This is all I can do with my current level of skill……”

“Alright, let’s set aside the question of danger for now. What matters is that this is the only method we have. Besides, danger can be avoided as long as we are cautious. Am I correct?”

“Y-Yes, exactly what Auntie Irus said! As long as we escape before it becomes truly dangerous, everything will be fine!”

“In that case, we can finalize the plan. Prarlulu, can you identify those who can enter with you?”

“I can!” Prarlulu raised her Divine Staff at once. “I can test for it with this!”

“Then it’s up to you. First, select those who are eligible.”

……

Some time later,

the group fell silent once more as they looked at the sole cat-eared girl, Miko, standing beside Prarlulu.

“……”

This is completely useless!

“No good.”

“Yeah, definitely no good.”

“Exactly. If we don’t have even one person who can match Hena’s strength, going in would be pointless.”

“Hey! Stop looking down on me!” Miko shouted in frustration.

“Miko, no one is targeting you. There’s no need to take it to heart.” Laki walked to her side, patting her head to comfort her.

“Nngh…… I know, Grandma Laki.” Miko hung her head unwillingly.

“Speaking of which……” Laki’s gaze drifted involuntarily to Hulim Heyerar standing to the side, deep in puzzlement.

Why is this girl’s Mental Age older than the elf girl’s?

Isn’t this normally proportional to one’s actual age?

Or has this girl experienced far too many deeply traumatic events……?

Laki was not the only one utterly confused.

The others felt the same way.

Their eyes all turned, to varying degrees, toward Hulim.

Hulim: “……”

“Alright, alright, stop staring at Hulim like that. For someone who has reached S-Rank, it’s only normal for their mental state to be unusual, isn’t it?” Irus spoke up.

“Hmm, that’s true……” Laki said after a moment of thought.

“While Mental Age is generally proportional to physical age, it is more accurately determined by the volume of one’s memories. Hulim has reached S-Rank at such a young age; it’s likely she retains extremely clear memories of everything in her past.”

“Calculating it this way, her Mental Age over the same period of time could be several times that of an ordinary person. It’s only natural for it to be higher than the young elf’s.”

“That makes sense……”

“It must be as Lord Laki says……”

Hulim said nothing, only glancing silently at the Seven Luminaries in her hand.

Volume of memories……?

“……”

Somehow, it felt as though everyone had gotten the wrong idea.