85: Escort

We rode into the cold morning air. As we went, I was handed all the supplies the others had been holding for me—especially Jen, who’d kept most of my clothes and the gear for Sable. It quickly filled up the majority of my storage device. Milo also gave me twenty-five gold, which I was pretty sure was more than I was supposed to have, especially after how much I’d spent back in Divinmere.

I didn’t question it. Milo even admitted he’d probably short-changed me earlier and said he’d check his notes when we stopped for the night to make sure I was paid correctly now that I could carry it all myself.

Micca was doing far better on horseback than I had on my first day. Honestly, she made it look like she had plenty of experience with riding. I was jealous.

It took us several days to travel from Greenstone through the forest, but without a wagon to slow us down, our goal was simple—speed.

Which brought up a very important question.

If I could make food that gave us speed buffs, and we knew it worked on creatures like Lily, then surely I could make something similar for the horses. At the very least, a dish that gave them stamina.

When I brought up the idea to Milo, he got excited and immediately started brainstorming with me. The only grass-based food we knew of that gave a speed buff was the lemon tea, but there was a real possibility it’d be too sour for the horses to want to eat it.

We figured we’d need to mix it into their usual feed and, if possible, disguise the flavour. The only other speed-related ingredient we knew about was Thunar—but the horses wouldn’t touch that at all.

Milo pointed out that if we ever ended up getting Drakhals like Sarah’s group, they’d absolutely eat thunar, since they were known to eat both grasses and meat.

I decided I’d experiment tonight and see if there was anything I could do with the horse feed. If it were possible to buff them like we did ourselves, it might make a big difference.

We didn’t stop for lunch that day, just chewed on some jerky and a fresh roll while riding. As we moved through the forest, we passed two caravans who mentioned increased activity in the area—but said the threats had been minor. So far, we hadn’t seen anything of note.

Hari must’ve been playing things cautiously, because when anyone asked, he told them we were headed to a dungeon in the southwest. With the mountain pass down, the smartest route was via the southern road to the coast, then turning west.

By the time we stopped, the sun was already low on the horizon. The dense trees around us made it feel like night had already fallen. Milo quickly set up a structure, and I took the opportunity to use Arcane Foraging, spotting a few interesting items nearby.

With Jen’s support, we ventured into the forest. We still hadn’t seen anything hostile that day—but it wasn’t the first time that had happened, and something about it felt off.

I was curious whether our suspicions were correct.

So, I decided to run a test.

“Lily, are you watching?” I said aloud.

Jen jumped, eyes going wide like I’d just summoned a demon.

“Did you see something?” she asked, worry creeping into her voice.

“No, sorry. I was just thinking… it’s strange we haven’t run into anything all day, especially when both caravans said activity was higher than normal. Also, I can see what looks like a carcass off in the distance,” I explained.

“It’s probably best you don’t cal—” Jen was cut off by a rustle to our side.

Sure enough, there sat Lily, watching us.

I hadn’t brought food for her, so I had to quickly come up with a plan.

“Sorry, Lily! I didn’t mean to disturb you. We’re just heading into the forest to look for ingredients. I’ll have food for you tonight!” I tried to sound cheerful at the end, but Lily just tilted her head at me like I was a complete idiot.

Jen was still staring wide-eyed at the situation. But an idea struck me—and yeah, I knew Jen would probably tell me off later. That was a later problem.

“Uh, Lily? Before you go… you wouldn’t happen to know of any particularly potent magical plants or food ingredients nearby, would you?”

But Lily’s attention wasn’t on me anymore. She was fully focused on Crisplet.

She reappeared closer, eyes locked on the little elemental, and gently tapped him on the head with a paw.

Crisplet immediately responded with a Disruption Flare.

I stared in horror.

Had Crisplet just attacked Lily?

But Lily just sat there, blinking a few times before calmly returning to her inspection of him—completely unbothered.

Then, without warning, she turned and looked off into the distance before beginning to walk. I didn’t know if she was leaving or leading, but when she stopped, turned back to watch me, and a spark from Crisplet hit my shoulder as he scampered after her, I got the message.

She was leading us somewhere.

“Come on, Jen. Let’s go see what she has to show us!” I said, practically buzzing with excitement.

“I don’t know if this is the best idea, Trev,” Jen said, her voice edged with concern.

“We’ll be fine. Lily is here,” I replied.

Stolen story; please report.

I probably shouldn’t have sounded so confident—at any moment, she could vanish and leave us completely alone in the middle of the forest.

“Ugh, fine. Let me mark the way so we can find our way back,” she said, conceding.

We followed Lily for at least twenty minutes. I was running Arcane Foraging the whole time; I ate a shard of candy to maintain my mana. It worked brilliantly for this skill.

We passed plenty of things I would’ve loved to collect. I swear I spotted several Mana Truffles, clusters of mushrooms, and more than a few Dilwater bushes. I made a mental note to grab them on our way back.

But Lily kept leading us onward.

That’s when I saw it—the bright blue, giant, glowing melon-shaped thing…

I didn’t know if it was actually a melon, but it certainly looked like one. And it was huge.

Were we really this close to the spot where we’d first encountered Lily? Or was this just another of the same kind?

I wasn’t sure, but it didn’t take long for us to get closer. I heard it before I saw it clearly—a deep buzzing hum filled the air.

When it finally came into full view, I realised what it was.

A beehive?

No… not just a normal beehive.

The comb was red, and the bees were massive. The sound was almost overwhelming, a heavy hum that felt like it vibrated through the trees.

Before I could even react or ask Jen what we were going to do, a dome of ash formed around us. I barely had time to realise what was happening.

Through the haze, I could make out movement outside.

A cloud of ash was drifting toward the hive. It reached the buzzing swarm, sending the bees into the air in a thick, swirling cloud. Many hovered above, agitated but not attacking.