As soon as I finished jotting down the notable characteristics of the plants I’d found and assigning them arbitrary names, I was finally ready to start eating.
All I really remembered about the forest’s vegetation was that it was not exactly a gourmet experience. I wasn’t all that excited about it, but when I reminded myself that it was all part of my training, I managed to pluck up my nerve.
The first thing I ate was a sketchy-looking mushroom, since I remembered from my last trip that the mushrooms here were actually not that bad.
This one had a white cap dotted with several red specks. Something about the way it smelled suggested that it wasn’t fit for human consumption.
After roasting it over the fire a bit to make it a little more palatable, I shoved the whole mushroom in my mouth all at once. Just like I remembered, it tasted a whole lot better than the green plants. It even had a hint of umami.
I was a little put off by the gritty texture and the unpleasantly salty aftertaste, but I would have taken that over the relentless bitterness of the plants any day.
After the first mushroom, I took out two more species and ate them easily. All that was left now was to eat the plants.
I psyched myself up and popped the first one into my mouth, starting to regret that I’d saved the worst for last.
This plant was an especially creepy one that kind of looked like a giant mouth. Worse yet, it had several little...things...growing out of it that kind of looked like bugs’ antennae.
After hesitating for a moment, I steeled myself and started chewing it...releasing a disgusting texture that practically burst in my mouth.
A rancid, sour taste coated my mouth, and in the back of my mind, I couldn’t help but think that I might’ve bitten into some kind of bug that had hitched a ride on the plant.
My body rejected the foul substance, making me retch involuntarily, but I covered my mouth with both hands and forced myself to swallow it.
The plant itself had been bitter and horrifically disgusting, but the rancid, sour taste of whatever else had been inside had been especially unpleasant.
I couldn’t help dwelling on the possibility that the plant had been carnivorous and the strangely sour taste had been a partially digested bug, which really threw cold water on my excitement for this experiment. But I continued undeterred, pushing the next plant into my mouth.
I ate a lot slower overall than I had when I was last here (probably because I wasn’t operating on a completely empty stomach this time), but I still managed to eat about eight different species of poisonous plants in one sitting.
Even after I’d finished, though, an awful, acidic bile threatened to make its way up my throat. That was all the evidence I needed to feel vindicated in my aversion to eating them. These particular plants might have had some valuable uses, but they definitely weren’t culinary ones.
As I cleansed my palate with some dried fruit I’d packed, I took a look at my plant journal.
My goal for this expedition was to ingest thirty different species of poisonous plants, and to take them all back to Realzahd with me.
I put the rest of the eight species I’d foraged today in the woven basket I’d set up earlier so they could dry in the sun and last a bit longer.
I was concerned about being detained during the gate inspection, but I was still determined to take them back to Realzahd with me.
Hoping that all this effort would pay off, I left the plants there in the basket, tucked myself into my sleeping bag, and fell asleep.
Five days had passed since my return to Patia Forest.
As usual, I hadn’t encountered any monsters, and there were really no incidents to speak of. I’d finished collecting thirty different species of plants the day before yesterday. I’d used up the whole following day drying the specimens out in the sun, and today I was finally ready to head back.
In spite of the trepidation that had made me tremble at the entrance six days ago, my time here had actually been peaceful and quiet. I felt like this expedition had helped me overcome my fear of the forest, and next time, I was bound to be a lot more relaxed—maybe it’d even feel like taking a nice break from adventuring?
If there was anything to complain about, it was that I had to eat nasty-tasting plants every day. But that was kind of the whole reason I’d come here in the first place, so I knew I’d just have to grit my teeth and bear it.
As I reflected on my six days in the woods, I returned my shelter once again to the way I’d found it and packed the dried plant specimens into my backpack.
Now that they were dry, they’d shrunk significantly. I’d collected three samples of each of the thirty different species to take back with me—which was kind of a lot—but they took up so little space now that I could shove them into the bottom of my backpack, and security at the gate probably wouldn’t even notice.
Finally, I got all of my things together and prepared to leave.
I gave a bow of thanks to my shelter and began making my way out of the deep woods. I got a little lost on the way, so it took about half a day for me to reach the edge of Patia Forest.
Once I was out of the woods, I set off down the highway for Realzahd. It had been about a week since I’d left.
I was looking forward to being treated with a lot less suspicion now that my clothes weren’t full of holes. Plus, I’d even gotten to wash off at the forest’s spring.
I lined up outside the gate and tried to look as normal and unassuming as possible. As long as I didn’t look anxious or do anything weird, I was a lot more confident than last time that the inspection would go smoothly.
“Got any ID?” the guard asked me.
“I’ve got an adventurer’s card.”
“Well, let’s see it, then. And open up your bag so we can check inside.”
I handed the guard my adventurer’s card and took my backpack off, opening it up for another guard to inspect the contents.
Just as I’d expected, they gave it a quick glance, and that was that. I’d made it through the bag check. Once they’d confirmed that my adventurer’s card was legit, I was able to make my way easily through Realzahd’s gate.
I’d enjoyed hearing nothing but the sounds of nature back in Patia Forest, but it was nice to hear the bustling of the city again.
As I looked around at the teeming crowds, I decided to stop by the church on my way back to the hotel. Needless to say, I wanted to get another ability assessment done.
It felt kind of bad to use up two of the three gold coins that I’d saved up throughout these last two months, but I knew this was probably just the beginning. I had no doubt that I’d be spending a lot of coin on these assessments going forward.
As reluctant as I was to part with my money, this wasn’t the place to be trying to cut costs. I’d pay whatever it took.
I entered the church and noticed that there wasn’t a service today. Unlike when I’d come in before, it was almost deserted.
I made my way through the empty church and entered the room where I’d gotten my ability assessment done before. Then I rang the little bell.
After a few minutes, the door opened and revealed a priest. It was the same handsome blond, blue-eyed man from before: Father Graham.