Magic Warrior Chapter 88 (Patreon)

Exploring the Forest

The three of us came to the guild to look for a request.

As usual, they avoid the crowds and look at the noticeboard with requests posted after a bit of spare time.

"I think it would be ideal if we could receive a request to take down a tree and, while we're at it, we could also do a gathering request."

"Hmmm."

Even if the gathering request was not a standing request, there is a way to go ahead and gather the materials without processing the order, and then collect the order and hand over the materials together.

Although there is a possibility that the request will be taken by someone else meanwhile, the risk of failure due to failure to collect is eliminated, and the materials can be bought as normal materials, so they do not all go to waste.

Many adventurers seem to think in the same way, and most of the requests for collection seem to be left with the request form attached.

The guilds are free to take orders at any time, but the first party to receive a request has priority, and no one else has any say in the matter.

The same can be done with requests for defeats, as long as they are for the collection of materials, but for some reason not many adventurers do so.

This is because if parties with the same objective collide in the hunting grounds, efficiency and the rate of achievement drops dramatically.

For the same reason, it is a basic rule to accept requests to collect rare and valuable items first.

While looking at the noticeboard, I think about what kind of request I want to receive.

I've received a number of requests from the west gate, so I'd like to go to the north or east.

There are two that seem to be applicable: 'Defeat the Grey Bear' and 'Defeat the Little Devil Imp'. Both seem to inhabit the forests north of the eastern road we took to get to Mineina.

The Grey Bear, as the name suggests, has gray fur, and at a level of around 20 in SeveChro, it is quite a bit stronger than the enemies we have fought so far.

This request is for materials for bear bile. Bear bile is a medicine made from dried bear bile. In addition, they also want to buy fur and other materials.

The Imp is a small demon, about the height of a toddler, with wings. They are often red or green, but their body color and strength varies from region to region.

Sometimes called the servant of the demon god because of their appearance, the imps are supposed to be creatures that inhabit the Virtuari; in SeveChro, they are basically hostile active and will attack you, but some imps are friendly to you.

The level of the small demon imps varied from region to region, ranging from about 15 low to over 100 high.

The small devil imps in this area are probably lower grade as they are attached to D Rank requests. This request has become a standing request.

The number of sightings seems to have increased recently, and the aim seems to be to reduce the number. It is said that only horns or tusks need to be brought to prove that the bear has been killed.

The gray bear request seems to have remained because it is a slightly stronger monster for D Rank.

"Sis, are you going to go for the Grey Bear or the Little Devil Imp?"

Clare seemed to have guessed because I was reading the content seriously.

"Yeah, I was thinking that area would be good."

"Then, since it's a forest, maybe we can collect medicinal herbs or bark?"

"Well, there's also the sap collection."

Many of these materials are used in the production of medicines or woodwork.

There may be specialized tools, but both bark and sap can be collected by scraping with a knife.

"Did you have any other requests that sounded good?"

"Hmm, there was a request for a crab that I knocked down before."

The request to defeat the long-legged crab Long Leg Crab was an E Rank request, but there was one that was put up as a D Rank request, probably because of the large number specified.

"It's not bad if you also collect cotton, but it's the same request again."

"Let's go for the Grey Bear after all."

He peels off the Grey Bear request form and takes it to the reception desk.

"This request is very difficult for D Rank because of the strong monsters, but... no, it looks fine. Excuse me."

The woman at the reception desk who processed the order turned her hand brilliantly in the middle of saying.

She probably saw the endorsement on our guild card on the way in.

◇

After buying lunch in the square, we left the town through the east gate.

We walked a little along the road into the forest. Near the entrance to the forest, a trodden dirt path leads to the forest north of the road.

It appears to be largely inaccessible, as no paths into the south are to be found.

There are few monsters, and we have not seen any adventurers coming as far as Feld Village, so there is probably no advantage for adventurers to enter the south side of the road.

This area is just beyond the northern forest from Feld Village, so the atmosphere and vegetation here seems similar. However, sometimes there are plants growing here that we have not seen before.

"There are often one or two gray bears, and maybe three or more little devil imps."

"That's what I think, and I'll look for them."

This is SeveChro knowledge, not book knowledge.

I don't know if it's right, but as expected, Rilfana knows that much.

To add to that, the Little Devil Imp was often found near man-made structures, such as collapsed ruins. Now that it's a reality, it's probably not that useful knowledge, as it's likely to move on an empty stomach.

Leaving the detection of monsters to Rilfana, I walk around looking for the desired medicinal herbs and bark.

The medicinal herb I'm looking for is aro leaves, which I've collected before.

There were no requests for other medicinal herbs, but Rilfana can process them into potions, and the guild buys them, so there is no harm in collecting what you find.

The bark and sap are from a tree called Webb.

Webb trees are dark blue with a blackish tinge. It stands out in this area because it is a more distinct color than the Hashigana tree, which is only somewhat bluish.

Rather than wood, the bark, sap, leaves and buds seem to be used mainly as medicinal material.

"There's a Webb tree over there, isn't there?"

"It's a more prominent color than it looks in the illustrated book, isn't it?"

The illustrated book I bought at the bookshop had some color in it, but I thought the overall color was dull. I don't know whether it's the printing or the quality of the ink.

Webb's sap is easy to collect.

First, only a thin layer of bark is scraped off to secure the bark. Then, if you scratch the wood a bit more, it naturally seeps out.

The sap has the property of hardening on contact with air, so it can be removed by hand after a short wait.

It seems to return to a liquid state when heated in hot water, so it can be brought to the guild in solid form.

There were several Webb trees clustered together, so the three of us took a little time to collect the bark and sap.

"There's more than one of something here."

Rilfana had found something. If it's more than one, it's probably a little devil imp.

As the three of us sneaked closer through the trees, we saw three squirrels, each about the size of a large dog, clumped together and scrambling about, doing something. They seemed to be digging holes. A pile of nuts has formed near the squirrels.

"Sis, it's a wild squirrel."

This monster was not in SeveChro, but it was in the Monster Book.

It is simply a large squirrel and will not attack people unless we touch it. I think there was also a note in the illustrated book that it was a wild animal rather than a monster.

Its behavior seems to be almost the same as that of squirrels, and it probably digs holes to store the nuts it collects. Earth squirrels do this before hibernating, though.

"Shall we leave them alone?"

"Yes."

"Yes."

I'm not sure if it's a habit, but his tail was wagging. Even when they grow up, their behavior doesn't change, so it's cute to watch.

I had no particular business with the squirrel, so after watching it from afar for a while, I decided to leave quietly with a feeling of dust.

"There's something in that hole over there, isn't there?"

After walking through the forest for a while, I found a small heap of earth. Looking closely, I could see that it was hollow in one place and looked like the entrance to a nest of some kind.

"That's too small to be a gray bear..."

"Yes, wild animals and monsters dig dens that are just about as big as they can get through. It's about as big as the squirrel you just saw."

As I looked to see if anything came out, I saw something scrambling about at the right moment. It appears to be widening its entrance.

When the movement that seemed to be widening the hole stopped, a monster with a red body color and the appearance of a child with wings came out of the slightly enlarged entrance.

"Little demon imp...?"

The little demon imp that emerged is looking around with a twitching look. It did not seem to be going anywhere and sat down.

"...I didn't expect the Little Demon Imp to come out, but isn't this a chance to defeat it?"

"Okay, let's take them down."

We hurriedly picked up our weapons and took a combat stance.