NOVEL NEXT
63 Weeds
Before I could even notice, the day in the forest started to near the end of its cycle. The sun rose up and away, done with the daily dose of feeding its intense light to the earth. And with only its last few rays illuminating the forest, Leinei spoke out a few muted words and cast a spark onto a small pile of wood, starting a fire in a mere fraction of how long it would take me to do the same. 'Damn magic,' I cursed in my thoughts, the sense of jealousy taking over. 'I wonder what I need to do to cast spells myself.'
Being able to wield magic was the wet dream of every nerd in existence. To wield the power that exceeded human understanding… And for how rational I strove to be, I couldn't ignore the allure of this mystical power. Yet, when the fire started to settle in the small logs, I couldn't help but raise my eyes and look at the dried. For how nice it was to feel the warmth from the fire to help in the fight against the late-night chill… Wasn't Leinei burning her brethren just to warm us up?
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Leinei asked when she raised her eyes from the fire and noticed my stare. Despite how I started to doubt her intelligence at times, she was quick enough to connect the dots and figure out what was puzzling me so much. "I do get cold too," she claimed while rolling her eyes. "In nature, everything gets used by everything. Today, I use this wood to warm myself. Tomorrow, the wood of my bones will serve as fodder for the new generation of the forest's undergrowth."
Leinei summed up her philosophical claim with a shrug of her shoulders, already done with the topic. 'I wonder how many years and burned trees will it take for you to die and close this cycle,' I thought, feeling a sense of irony well up in me. Wisely enough, though, I kept my tongue locked behind my teeth. Even though I noticed the hypocrisy of this beast that pretty much appeared to be eternal, I wasn't stupid enough to happily call it out. Because, what exactly could I get by bragging right now, outside of a momentary satisfaction?
"Anyway, cheers!" Warmed up by the fire, I raised my cup in the first toast of the night. And from what Leinei told us about this herbal wine, only had of its effects was born out of the alcohol inside. The other half came from various herbs that Leinei cultivated herself and thus decided to add to her brew. I raised the cup and angled it towards my mouth, taking a hearty sip of the drink. And even though, while it wasn't my first time drinking, I didn't really know about alcohol much… I could tell without a shred of doubt that this was the lightest, most pleasant sip of a beverage I had taken in my entire life!
The impeccable taste of this berry-infused drink came at the cost of its strength, making me even doubt whether it had any alcohol to begin with. "It's delicious," Fay hummed happily while carefully portioning her drink out into small tips. Rather than chugging it down like some of my former alleged friends would, she properly enjoyed the taste rather than trying to get herself wasted as soon as humanly possible. Despite initial reluctance, as more and more cups were filled and emptied out, Leinei started to warm up to me a bit. And while there wasn't even an ounce of sympathy in her, she, at the very least, managed to shelve her inborn hostility. I was a human, for sure, but I didn't belong to this world. In other words, whatever grudges she had towards humans didn't apply to me. After all, she couldn't even blame my ancestors for anything she experienced, as I was the very first one in my line to get to this…
My thoughts froze a little when they reached this unnecessary and unwanted road. 'Wait, if this system and portal are gifts from my father… doesn't that mean he originally came from here? From this world?' The more I thought about it, the less funny the situation became for me. And in spite of the delicious drinks circulating between all four of us at a quicker and quicker rate… I couldn't relax at all. My only respite was Fay snuggling up to my side as she enjoyed the small party. Before I could even notice, the light of the sun vanished completely, leaving only our small fire to light up the entire area. And yet, even when the darkness of the night began, the girls continued to make merry. "So," sensing that everyone was properly toasted, I finally moved on to the second step of my plan. "Let's assume for a moment that you will like the gifts I will bring back in a week. That you will find some value in them," I started with some preconditions. "Yeah?" A short description… but one that brought a lot of information. What I was looking for was a herb that even locals would consider precious yet one that wouldn't amount to much in Madam's or Leinei's eyes. 20:05
Even though Leinei's face was made from wood, I could still tell she ended up flushed a little, clearly under the influence. "If such were the case, would you mind helping me with another small thing?"
If I got Leinei to promise me something while drunk, I would have a much easier time enforcing it later on. But at the same, using this kind of lowly trick would drastically decrease the points I had in Leinei's eyes. But I wasn't worried at all. And from the long yet not-hostile look, the dryad gave me, I was perfectly on the spot with my prediction… again. "I need to find three specific herbs. Something that an extremely weak human could use to the benefit of their growth," I explained, trying to derive as much information from the mission status in my system as I could. 'Find the three precious herbs populating the forest that will help accelerate your growth."
A short description… but one that brought a lot of information. What I was looking for was a herb that even locals would consider precious yet one that wouldn't amount to much in Madam's or Leinei's eyes. "It should be something rather easy to find or obtain. And again, its effects should be somewhat limited," I explained all I could when directed by nothing but the fact that the mission of finding herbs was actually supposed to be an easy one. "Sure," Leinei simply shrugged her shoulders again before taking a long sip from her cup. "I can list out tens of herbs that fit your description," she bragged again, only to raise her chin and look at me along the edge of her nose. "And I know where they all grow!"
'She really isn't all that smart,' I thought, baffled by how easily this dryad would reveal what she knew and what she didn't, making my job all the easier in the process. "Let's save it for tonight, though." My request came right as Leinei's eyes filled with strangely serious anticipation. "I will ask if you want to help again, tomorrow," I revealed my plans, finally free to stop acting and actually say what I meant. "So, once you sober up and stop anyone from claiming I forced you to help out." I retreated a few steps only to grab my own cup and raise it high into the air while enjoying the warmth of Fay's sleepy head nodding off on my shoulders. "For today, though, let's have some fun!" I shouted out loud, shaking my cup as high above my head as I could before lowering my arm. "Cheers!" 2/3 daily 0/3 bonus