Sofia guessed correctly, Andrew indeed had more than just "casual wandering" on his mind.
At this moment, Andrew was walking down the streets of Wildfire Town.
Outwardly he pretended to look frail, but in reality, he had once again entered battle preparation mode.
The little relaxation at the temporary camp not long ago was merely a brief moment of leisure.
The threat posed by the old Mage Humboldt was still unresolved, and Andrew couldn't afford to relax just because he had successfully convinced Ivan.
Occasionally, townspeople on either side greeted him, saying, "Hi, Andrew, good morning." "Take care of yourself, you'll get better!"
Some straightforward ones would say, "Young man, you're doing great, go with peace of mind, we'll all remember you."
Which left Andrew quite at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
So he had to cough a few times as if putting on an act and said, "Could I bother you to ask, where is the 'Living People Cemetery'? Could you help point the way?"
The Living People Cemetery was Andrew's destination for today.
It was also the core key of the next battle preparation plan.
"The Living People Cemetery?"
The person was taken aback for a moment, then showed an enlightened expression and said, "Turn left ahead, then right, it's at the end. Ah, Living People Cemetery...sigh."
Andrew knew why the person sighed.
Because this so-called "Living People Cemetery" was not actually a cemetery.
It was a "hotel."
The hotel's most prominent feature was that it only accepted patients with pulmonary injuries caused by burns.
Simply put, it was a place for patients with lung injuries to huddle together for warmth and seek psychological solace.
It was the gathering place for nearly all pulmonary burn patients in Wildfire Town!
So today's plan was actually quite simple:
First, cure all patients in the Living People Cemetery, aiming to unlock the next skill after "Water Spirit Technique."
Second, during the treatment, don't let others discover it was done by himself!
This world, after all, was dominated and ruled by Fire Mages.
Who knew what the Magic Guild's attitude was towards Water Mages?
Andrew didn't even know if there were any other Water Mages in this world besides himself.
Being new here, it was better not to expose the capability to heal pulmonary burns, an action enough to cause a big stir, just yet.
"Sigh!"
The old gentleman who gave Andrew directions was still sighing deeply, "Pity, poor thing, such a pity, so young..."
In his view...
No, it should be said that in everyone's view, Andrew, as a "doomed pulmonary burn sufferer," seeking solace at the Living People Cemetery was entirely normal.
No one would think that Andrew was actually going there to heal those patients!
Andrew even felt that if he didn't go to the Living People Cemetery today, it might raise some people's suspicions.
The old gentleman, being warm-hearted, decided to accompany Andrew to the Living People Cemetery.
The old gentleman was also quite the talker, chatting all the way: "Ah, back in the day, I was neighbors with the owner of that Living People Cemetery. Sigh, that was over ten years ago. He suffered pulmonary burns and opened the hotel with his daughter, inviting other patients to live together, huddling together for warmth. Now, so many years have passed in the blink of an eye."
Andrew asked, "So the hotel owner and founder was also burned in a fire caused by a magic experiment accident?"
The old gentleman slowly shook his head, "Not quite. Although Grand Mage Humboldt has been in our town for many years, causing constant accidents and numerous fires... my old friend, though injured in a fire, wasn't in one caused by a laboratory accident."
"Oh? How so?" Andrew seemed to be making small talk, but in fact, he was gathering information.
The old gentleman shrugged and said, "Actually, there's nothing special about it, just an ordinary fire, unrelated to magic. You know, it's really too hot and dry here. Even without frequent accidents in the Magic Laboratory, there wouldn't be any shortage of fires."
This explanation piqued Andrew's interest thoughtfully.
It seemed this world had an inherent tendency towards being "overly inclined to the Fire Element."
And Fire Mages didn't lead this tendency; rather, they were just one of its products?
Mmm... it seems necessary, after dealing with the old Mage Humboldt, to leave Wildfire Town and explore the real big cities of this world.
Frankly speaking, Andrew hadn't yet managed to form a clear picture of the Flame Realm in his mind.
After pondering for a while, Andrew suddenly chuckled to himself: It seemed he was temporarily in no position to worry about these distant matters.
He should first focus on overcoming Humboldt.
At this moment, the "Tear of the Water God" on his chest suddenly quivered as if signaling caution.
Andrew immediately stopped walking.
Simultaneously, he raised a hand to hold the old gentleman beside him.
Almost at the same time, a pebble whooshed past their eyes.
If they hadn't stopped in time, either he or the old gentleman would have been hit by the stone.
"Ow... damn! Who threw that stone?"
The shop owner nearby stormed out, clutching his bleeding forehead angrily.
But as he rushed out furiously, he quickly retreated like a rabbit.
He saw Sheriff Raymond leading the town patrol, swaggering through the nearby intersection.
It was one of Raymond's men who threw the stone.
The man maintained a stiff throwing pose with a frozen grin on his face—
He had almost seen Andrew's head smashed and bleeding, yet how did he manage to dodge?
He wouldn't think Andrew deliberately stopped walking; he assumed it was just luck that Andrew avoided his thrown stone.
But what a piece of luck, wasn't it?!
"Get out of the way, stop blocking my path!"
Raymond kicked his subordinate's backside and rolled his eyes, "Incompetent fool, can't even throw a stone properly."
Then he glanced at Andrew with a bright smile, "Good morning, hero of the day!"
Though his words were warm, he made a gesture to choke himself while wearing an exaggerated "I'm suffocating" expression.
This was to mock Andrew, insinuating that he would suffocate and die from pulmonary failure in seven days.
He was nothing like a Sheriff, more like a bully!
Andrew stayed silent, continuing to fake a few coughs.
He thought, what's the point of mocking suffocation? If you're so tough, try mimicking my coughs? I'll take you on as my runner-up in minutes.
But the old gentleman beside him, disappearing faster than the shop owner, vanished.
The speed at which he bolted...
Andrew wasn't quite sure what to say.
If he was a master-level chatterbox and a social butterfly, then his escape speed was that of a supreme king, no doubt.
Allowing a brief distraction, when he came to, a tower-like figure was blocking the sunlight.
Raymond had come up to him, his tall frame even more imposing than Ivan's.
"Andrew, I am greeting you, didn't you hear?"
Isn't it impolite?"
Raymond grinned, his smile slightly sinister.
As he spoke, he reached down with one hand, aiming to grab Andrew's shoulder!