Chương 38

"What are you doing?" Elysia asked, staring at him.

"Alchemy," Rudra said. He was currently mashing a handful of blue forest mushrooms and a crushed goblin fang in a wooden bowl.

"That is not alchemy," Elysia sighed, rubbing her temples.

"That is a war crime. You are going to blow off your own hands."

"Relax, I know what I'm doing," Rudra promised. He didn't know what he was doing. It had been three days since they left the waterfall. Traveling with a former elite knight of the Empire was definitely interesting. Elysia was strict, paranoid, and constantly checking their trail for Imperial hounds. Rudra, on the other hand, was having the time of his life even though he usually didn't immediately feel comfortable around strangers, something about her made it fine for him.

The inland forests were packed with new ingredients. Every time they stopped to rest, he immediately started grinding his two new skills. He treated [Beginner Alchemy] and [Beginner Medicine Making] exactly like cooking. He just threw stuff together to see what happened. He poured a splash of fresh river water into his wooden bowl and stirred it with a stick. The blue mush bubbled aggressively. It smelled like wet dirt and mint. [You have successfully created a 'Minor Stamina Poultice'!] [Rating: Normal] [A very messy, foul-smelling paste. If applied to a wound, it restores 30 Stamina.] [Beginner Medicine Making proficiency has increased by 0. 1%.]"Ha! See?" Rudra cheered, holding up the gross blue paste.

"Medicine." Elysia looked at the bowl in pure disgust.

"If an imperial combat medic saw you make that, they would arrest you. You didn't purify the mushrooms. You didn't balance the mana in the bone. You just mashed it like a potato."

"But it works," Rudra pointed out.

"And honestly, it kind of smells like pesto. I wonder if I can put it on bread."

"Do not eat the medicine," Elysia ordered, her voice completely deadpan.

"Fine, fine," Rudra mumbled, tossing the poultice into his inventory. He wiped his hands on a rag and stood up. He grabbed his Abyssal Ironwood Staff and slung it over his shoulder.

"How are you holding up, anyway?" he asked, looking her over. Elysia was still wearing her torn crimson cape to hide her silver breastplate. She looked a lot better than she did three days ago. The dark purple veins on her neck hadn't returned.

"I am stable," she said quietly, picking up her longsword.

"The meals you cook have an absurd amount of vitality. As long as I keep eating them, the poison stays suppressed. But I am still far from my peak." Rudra nodded. His quest required him to feed her ten Epic-rated meals to fully cure her. So far, he had zero. Cooking an Epic meal on command was incredibly hard. Over the last three days, he had cooked roasted boar, fried river fish, and spiced wild bird. Thanks to his [Intermediate Cooking], they all came out as Rare-rated.

They tasted amazing and gave him a few permanent stats, but they didn't count toward her quest. To hit the Epic rating, he needed high-end, premium ingredients. Normal forest animals just weren't going to cut it.

"I need to find a boss monster," Rudra grumbled to himself.

"Or a really fancy vegetable." They walked for another hour through the thick pine trees. The dirt path slowly widened, showing signs of wagon tracks.

"Civilization ahead," Elysia noted, pulling her crimson hood up over her silver hair.

"Keep your head down. Do not draw attention."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Rudra said, pulling his own leather mask up over his nose. The trees finally cleared, revealing a small, walled settlement sitting at the base of a large hill. A weathered wooden sign near the dirt road read: Silverwood Logging Village. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Rudra frowned.

"That doesn't look right." Logging villages were usually loud. You could normally hear axes chopping wood, saws buzzing, and merchants yelling over the noise. Silverwood was dead quiet. The heavy wooden gates were shut tight. There was no smoke coming from the chimneys. The massive stacks of timber sitting outside the walls were covered in moss, like nobody had touched them in weeks. As they walked closer, Rudra noticed a few pale, skinny villagers peeking at them over the wooden palisade.

They looked completely terrified.

"They look like they're starving," Elysia whispered, her knightly instincts immediately kicking in. Her hand drifted to the hilt of her sword.

"This isn't an Imperial blockade. The Empire doesn't care about backwater logging towns."

"Maybe a bandit raid?" Rudra guessed.

"No. The walls are intact," she replied, her eyes scanning the treeline.

"Something else has them trapped inside." Rudra's stomach gave a quiet rumble. A starving village meant no local taverns to buy salt or spices. But a trapped village meant there was definitely a local monster problem. And big monsters usually dropped premium meat. Rudra walked right up to the heavy wooden gates. He raised his fist and knocked hard on the wood.

"Hello?" Rudra called out.

"Is there a grocery store open?" The heavy wooden gate creaked open just a few inches. An old, frail-looking man with a patchy grey beard peeked out. He stared at Rudra's dark leather mask, then at Elysia's hidden face.

"Groceries?" the old man wheezed, looking completely baffled.

"Boy, we haven't seen fresh food in a month. If you have bread, name your price." Rudra frowned. He reached into his inventory, pulled out a thick loaf of Broc's leftover bread, and tossed it through the gap in the gate. The old man caught it like it was made of solid gold. He immediately broke off a piece and shoved it in his mouth.

"Slow down," Rudra warned.

"Why are you all hiding? You're a logging town. Go chop some trees." The old man swallowed hard and pushed the gate open a little wider.

"I am Chief Toben. We can't go into the woods. The King of the Forest went mad." Elysia stepped forward, keeping her head low.

"What kind of beast?"

"A lion," Toben shivered.

"A massive thing. Golden fur that glows in the dark. It moved into the logging trails three weeks ago. At first, it just watched us. But then it started hunting. It tore apart our best lumberjacks. We haven't been able to leave the walls since." Elysia's eyes widened slightly under her hood.

"A glowing golden lion? You mean an Imperial Light Lion?" Toben nodded quickly.

"Yes! Exactly that."

"That is impossible," Elysia said, crossing her arms.

"Light Lions are divine beasts. They are apex predators, but they are strictly peaceful. They only eat mana from the environment. They never hunt humans unless they are provoked."

"We didn't provoke it!" Toben pleaded, gripping the wooden gate.

"It just went completely feral! Please, travelers. If you are strong enough to wander the roads safely, you have to help us. If that thing doesn't leave, my people are going to starve to death." Rudra scratched the back of his neck.

"Look, Chief. I feel bad for you guys, but I'm not a charity worker. I need rare ingredients. If you guys are broke and starving, I don't really have a reason to fight a giant glowing lion." Toben looked desperate.

"We don't have gold! But we have the Sun Grove!" Rudra tilted his head.

"The what?"

"It's a secret cave system at the edge of our territory," the Chief explained quickly.

"The soil there catches the morning light perfectly. It's the only place in the region that grows Sun-Kissed Truffles. They are incredibly rare. If you kill the lion, I'll give you the key to the grove. You can take all of them." Rudra froze. Truffles, Rudra thought, his mouth instantly watering. Sun-Kissed Truffles. That is guaranteed high-end dining. If I pair that with boss meat... that is easily an Epic-rated meal. A translucent blue window chimed in his vision.

[Quest Generated: The Mad King of the Forest] [Difficulty: A] [An Imperial Light Lion has gone feral, trapping the villagers of Silverwood. Hunt the beast and free the town.] [Reward: Key to the Sun Grove, Increased Affinity with Silverwood.] Rudra didn't even hesitate. He tapped 'Accept'.

"Chief Toben," Rudra said, his voice suddenly full of absolute, unwavering determination.

"You have yourself a deal. Where is the lion?"

"It usually patrols the northern logging trail," Toben pointed a shaky finger toward the thickest part of the forest.

"Please be careful. It is incredibly fast."

"Don't worry," Rudra grinned behind his mask, pulling his heavy ironwood staff off his shoulder.

"I'm pretty fast too." He turned around and started marching right toward the northern woods. Elysia let out a quiet sigh and followed right behind him.

"You were ready to walk away until he mentioned mushrooms," Elysia noted, her voice completely flat.

"They aren't just mushrooms, Elysia," Rudra argued, spinning his staff excitedly.

"They are truffles. Do you have any idea how much flavor a good truffle adds to a broth? This is exactly what we need for your medicine." Elysia shook her head.

"Just don't underestimate it. A Light Lion is a holy creature. Its attacks carry the divine attribute. Your leather armor won't completely block its claws."

"Got it. Don't get hit. Find the truffles," Rudra nodded. They stepped off the dirt road and vanished into the dark, towering pine trees. The hunt was on.