Till asked me to shake up Iris’ self-indulgent lifestyle, so I’m taking her from the mansion, where she was just lazing around, with me to the guild.
We could hunt goblins in the nearby forest, but I haven’t been to the Great Vidd Forest in a while, so we could camp there, and fish in the stream.
“Maybe I’ll go to the Great Vidd Forest this time. Are you okay with that?”
“Yes, the stream there makes for a wonderful camping area.”
Iris is on board.
The quest I’m choosing is about taking down Mushroom Punchmen. As the name implies, these are demons that look like mushrooms. And they punch you in the stomach if you get too close.
The effectiveness of these punches depends on the threat level of the territory, but in any case, they’re not too strong, so this is perfect for us to go together.
If it’s a short quest, it can be our exercise after we eat. Two birds with one stone.
We can eat the set meal of tonkatsu that uses black pig meat.
Tonkatsu gives a lot of energy, so I’m sure Till would be happy with that too.
We head to the cafeteria where adventurers get a discount.
The meat slices are very juicy, and Iris looks very happy with it too. It goes great with the Minerva sauce made of a blend of fruits and vegetables.
After we’re done eating, we wait for the wagon to take us to the Great Vidd Forest, but then Mars and Lela show up.”
“Hello Iris. Are you going out?”
“We are going camping. Do you know the Great Vidd Forest? There is a camping area near there.”
I’m also doing a quest, but there’s no need to point that out, so I just nod.
“What a coincidence, we’re also going to the Great Vidd Forest.
We are mainly going to do a quest, but since it’s the same place, how about we camp together after we’re done?”
Askss Lela.
“That almost sounds like you’re telling us to help you with the quest.”
“Hehehe, ya got it, big bro Loyd.”
Says Lela while rubbing her hands.
I don’t mind, but how will Iris react? I’m not going there alone, so we need to hear her opinion.
“I want to see their quest as well.”
I guess she’s okay with it, so we all get in a wagon, and leave Minerva.
“By the way, what quest did you accept?”
“To hunt alraune in the Great Vidd Forest.
They are usually far from the main route, but for some reason one appeared there.
And apparently the quest was put out after a lot of adventurers were harmed.”
Says Mars while spreading a map and pointing to area F.
This area F is in the center of the Great Vidd Forest. It’s a very big area, so a lot of spots have designated codes.
Also, the alraune Mars is talking about is a humanoid plant monster.
It spreads pollen infused with all sorts of effects, attacks enemies that are far away with tentacles, and uses brainwashing bees to control nearby monsters.
It’s an opponent we have to watch out for, and I’d say it’s in the upper levels of mid rank in terms of strength.
I’m not too fond of them, so they’re high rank for me.
“Are these alraune strong, Mars?”
“Pretty strong. And especially bad because of the numbing pollen they spread.”
“And they use their tentacles as whips like dominatrix play.”
Adds Lela. I’m pretty sure she said that without thinking.
“Dominatrix play… Mister Loyd, what does Lela mean?”
A question mark pops up on Iris’ head.
Y-you…
Don’t use filthy language in front of the former saintess. I’m refraining from saying that sort of thing too.
What do I tell her? It’s like if she asked me how babies are made.
And what if that awakens that fetish in her?
“It means elegantly swinging a whip.”
I give her that vague answer.”
“Eh, is that so?”
It looks like she’s buying it.
I glare at Lela, and she says she’s sorry, before changing the subject.
“Also, alraune drop a lot of nectar orbs, which are a tasty treat that’s sweet if we lick it.”
Iris is a glutton, so she forgets about that from before and instead gets interested in these nectar orbs.
“We can also spread it on bread in cream form, or mix it with batter to make donuts.”
“It sounds delicious. I can’t wait until after we are done fighting these alraune.”
She’s raring to go.
And after three days of shaking in the wagon, we reach the Vidd village near the Great Vidd Forest as the sun sets.
We stay the night here, and enter the Great Vidd Forest the next morning.
This place is pretty popular as a hunting ground, so there are a lot of adventurers here.
Iris’ face is getting to be pretty well known too, and she’s a bit of a celebrity, so a lot of adventurers talk to her.
Some ask her if she wants to join their quests, but she always says ‘I’m sorry, but I am with people today, so I have to decline’.
We form a line, and advance while checking the map. I’m in front with Mars, Iris is in the middle, and Lela in the back.
The forest gets progressively thicker as we head to the center. It’s generally dim, because the leaves block the sunlight.
There’s not much risk if we don’t stray from the route designated by the guild, but we still need to be careful.
The Great Vidd Forest has a lot of plant monsters, so there’s a chance we’ll come across one in hiding.
And just as I’m thinking that, a piranha plant appears.
It’s two meters tall, but it disguises itself as a small plant by keeping its body buried, and jumps out when people get near it.
They’re not very strong, but a lot of adventurers get hurt because they get caught off guard when they suddenly appear.
Iris screams with surprise, but I stay calm and fire the beginner wind magic spell Wing to bisect the monster.
“Are you all right, Iris?”
I ask after turning around.
“I-I’m sorry. It startled me a little.”
“No no, it’s like that for everyone the first time. Lela fell on her butt when she was surprised.”
“Geez Mars, you could have left the last part out.”
Lela gets upset, and Mars apologizes. These two really go well together.
I pull out the map, and check where we are.
“The area F is around here, right? There’s even the big stump marked on the map.”
“Yes. This is the rumored area F.”
Lela agrees.
“Use Rain to support, like we discussed last night, Loyd. Iris, please cast Healing if Mars gets hurt.”
Mars and Lela are going to do the fighting, and we’ll mostly support them.
“Understood.”
“All right. Leave the healing to me.”
My role is to use the weather spell Rain to make it rain in this area.
Rain works great against alraune because it makes it harder for them to spread their spore.
Iris is going to use her powers as saintess to heal. Lela can cast healing magic too, but you can never have too many healers.
And that helps them focus on their roles.
“We can focus on fighting thanks to you, sensei and Iris. Thank you.”
Says Mars with a bow.
“Watch out you two, alraune are pretty strong.”
I value them pretty highly too. Especially the last stage of their evolution, alraune queen.
All monsters get a power up depending on the curse level of an area, but it generally makes plant monsters a lot stronger compared to beast types.
The curse uses an area’s earth, so it’s easy for plant and fairy types to be influenced by it.
Area Two, alraune.
Area One, dark alraune.
Area Zero, alraune queen.
Their stats increase, but most importantly, so does their intelligence.
Alraune queens in particular are far above humans in intelligence.
They have great stats, exceptional resistance against magic, and their healing ability means they can easily take Explosion after Explosion.
The wyvern I took out before was a baby compared to those monsters.
That history is why I don’t let my guard down around any alraune. Even if it’s a normal one.
I look around, checking how much the curse has crept in this land.
There’s no purple mist, or cracks in the air. It’s definitely an Area Two.
Area Two alraune aren’t that strong, but still, just in case.
I call Mars and Lela to cast support magic on them.
“Thank you Loyd. Even just the Rain magic would have been great help.”
“No no, this is just normal for a mage. You first, Lela.”
I touch her shoulder and chant.
When mages cast support magic, something called a technique light appears. This one’s a rainbow light.
Strengthen All Muscles, Strengthen All Senses, Automatic Healing Factor, Automatic Magic Energy Consumption Reduction, Immunity to Freezing, Immunity to Lightning Attacks, Immunity to Spore, Magic Energy Regeneration Acceleration, Brainwashing Immunity, All Magic Reflection, Physical Attack Reflection, Nightmare Immunity, Sleeping Immunity, Crazed Status Immunity, Deadly Poison Immunity…
“Wait wait wait. What are you doing, Loyd!?”
Lela yells, so I stop.
“Eh?”
“Sorry for yelling. Hum, how many support spells did you cast?”
“I think it was thirteen.”
I didn’t count.
“Thirteen support spells!?”
She’s taken aback, and Mars shrinks back a little.
“S-sensei, that’s way too many.”
“Eh? I-is it? I was going to cast three hundred fifty…”
““Three hundred fifty!?””
They’re at a loss for words.
I guess my common sense isn’t still quite the same as other people’s. I need to brush up on my common sense…
After all this, Lela blows the alraune away with the beginner ice magic spell Ice, leaving no trace of it left.
I’m glad no one got hurt.
Lela looks dumbfounded by her own spell and Mars’ face twitches, but I pretend not to see that.
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