Chapter 64: Chapter 64: Born of a Chicken…

That night, the group ate a lot of ostrich meat to their heart's content. Dyne showcased his impressive cooking as there were a lot of spices that they found in Drake Castle. Dyne was finally able to eat his long-awaited dream meal.

Tetsu and Vahn were silently staring at Dyne. It was the first time that they saw Dyne cook. He had brought several dried sea salts with him, which he mixed with the many spices and herbs he found properly contained in Drake Castle. Because the King had already made several preparations, several plants were allowed to grow, and with the soil being poured with Drake water, the gardens were breaming and had even grown wildly and had an of plants ready to harvest.

Dyne had brought some back to the village, but he placed it with Calamity’s clone that waited on this side of the river as for the spices. Dyne had taught the steps of cooking to Vahn and Tetsu, who clearly showed no idea what to do in cooking. At first, they obeyed Dyne out of respect.

But when they started to eat, they were in heaven. The dish was something that could not compare to theirs. It was the first time that they tasted real cuisine.

“Hmm… This is alright. But It’s not good.” Dyne concluded.

The pair was amazed at Dyne’s conclusion.

“Master Dyne… We’ve never eaten anything like this!” Vahn praised.

“Well, you never got Ostrich meat. This is what you call Smoked Ostrich Steak. We can try several other cuisines and styles of cooking. But the herb and sauce that I made were only with the ones I found in Drake castle.” Dyne sighed.

“But it’s alright for now.” Dyne had tasted a lot of cuisines during his career. Every place he visited, he would spend his free time eating food. Although gaming was the deepest desire of his heart, the soldiers and his superiors allowed him this form of pass-time and granted him the opportunity to eat the respective bests' meals in each town.

Since Dyne would be sent elsewhere, he took the opportunity to learn the recipes and styles to cook the food in each area. This was a better hobby in the eyes of the Government. As such, although Dyne was not a master chef, his knowledge of how to cook would eclipse even actual chefs. After all, Dyne kept learning tricks from the best chefs around the world.

“I may be acting a bit selfish, but I plan to bring a lot of spices in the place where Biron will send me. We have one more month. And when I go, I’m not sure how long it will be till I get back. It may take hours, days, or possibly months.” Dyne explained.

“We offer no complains, Master Dyne.” Tetsu laughed.

“But don’t worry! Brod and Bertugo were instructed to bring back those spices. We couldn’t bring much on our first trip because we had to bring a lot of Drake Water and weapons. But Bertugo should be able to bring those stuff back.”

Night had fallen, and the group has finally completed their base.

They went down near the edge of the river shore. As the river was also wide, it had a strong current that made it impossible to cross. The strong current created a shoreline that sloped down.

Dyne and the group used their power and attacks and even had Vahn use Gimard on the rocks to create a small cave in the slope. They dug in to create a hole that would fit all of them comfortably inside. When that was done, Calamity divided itself and began to plug the cave's hole while the other clone acted as a cool blanket that covered the group to keep them cool.

“With this, the Mist we would absorb would be minimized. Meta can also act as a guard.” Dyne explained.

“Amazing. I was initially against you two going out on long journeys in the Mist, but it seems that it is possible to resist the maddening effects of it.” Meta praised.

“Actually, we are resting here because we probably don’t have the luxury in the next days to come. We could be moving the entire day tomorrow. The Mist is heavier and thicker. It will be too dangerous for Tetsu if we don’t hurry. By the time I reached Drake castle, I had found that any forms of mental or soul weakness caused the Mist attack to stun me. If it weren’t for the Drake Water and the water from Hunters Springs, I would have been driven mad. So I plan to make a fast sprint from here to Biron. Our rests would only be for several hours just to sleep.”

"I don't know how far we are... But this may take us several days."

"And that's why you guys need to rest now."

“Will we be using the Golden Compass and the Chicken King?”

“No. We need Calamity. What’s more important is to be near Calamity who has Drake Water and the water in Hunter Springs. The refreshing spiritual effect of Drake Water and the stamina recovering properties of Hunter Springs will preserve us. Having those two things nearby is better than using the accessories. So rest up, gang. We’ll see if the wind changes first. If not, we will move mid-morning.” Dyne gave his plans.

Tetsu and Vahn nodded.

They spent the night continuing their discussions on Arts and how to execute it properly. Dyne listened carefully. This was one thing he hasn’t practiced yet. Vahn had seen Tetsu's attacks and was able to copy and make his own version, which was the Art that Dyne knew to be Vahn’s “Power Punch.”

The night passed, and the next day arrived. A stronger breeze blew sometime early morning. The group was already up, and so they began to move.

The group soon encountered another Frog and Ostrich pair and waited to attack it. With the tasty meat they ate that night, the group wanted to see if they could catch an Ostrich and make Calamity carry it. They did not know if they would be able to find another soon, so the group resolved to capture and contain an Ostrich and maybe kill it later when they get to Biron Monastery.

The Mist was getting thicker and thicker, and the group encountered several creatures and even captured an Ostrich. But as they journeyed, there was one thing that confused Dyne.

“Strange… Why are there no Lippians?” Dyne frowned as he looked at this recent kill.

“Another Ostrich and Frog pair. What’s going on?”

“Is there a problem, Master Dyne?” Vahn asked.

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Dyne was considering talking with Strafe, but he knew that this cheapskate won’t let him in on any secrets and would want Dyne to face difficulties.

“Nothing. It’s just that… somethings off. I hope I’m overthinking this.”

The Slime finally finished eating the Ostrich.

“Hey, Calamity. Is there anything peculiar with the Ostrich and Frog?” Dyne asked.

Vahn and Tetsu had strange expressions when they heard Dyne asked that.

“Hmmm… interesting.” Dyne began to rub his chin as he wondered.

“What did Calamity say?”

“They taste weird.” Dyne relayed Calamity’s answer.

“I.. don’t understand.”

“Neither do I. Do you know how these two animals would team up?”

“No. But it has to do with a mutualistic relationship between these two animals.” Tetsu answered.

Dyne gave Tetsu a strange look.

"Is... something wrong?"

"No. I'm just shocked that you know the word mutualistic relationship." Dyne shrugged.

“Let’s just go.” Dyne gave his command, and the group continued to move.

Soon, the thick Mist was coming to view, and Dyne and his team quickly killed the monsters they meet. All of them always had an Ostrich and a frog pair.

“No Lippians. No two Frogs. No two Ostriches. It’s always a Frog-Ostrich pair. You guys better keep your guard up. We might be entering the nest of these two creatures!”

“Should we move further away from the river?”

“Not yet. I don’t want to use Chicken King since we have Calamity with us. If we separate from him, he might die if he meets Serus. We’ll just try to circle around if we get close to the nest of these monsters. But we have to be more careful, and from we stop the killing and avoid monsters.” Dyne made his decision.

The group continued to trail the river, and soon, more and more of the Ostriches and Frogs could be seen wandering about. The group acted silently and would kill in secret and, at the same time, avoid those that they could avoid. But the group had no choice but to finally retreat as more and more of their numbers could be seen.

Dyne and the group sought a safe place to reorganize what they had seen. The effects of the Mist were now wearing them down. Tetsu and Dyne had to drink Drake Water to calm themselves down.

As they were thinking, Dyne finally figured it out.

“A BASILISK!” His shout was so loud that it startled everyone nearby.

Dyne realized his mistake, and the group had to move as it caused some of the monsters to approach them.

The team immediately slaughtered two pairs of an Ostrich and Frog team that approached them.

Meanwhile, Strafe was pleased at Dyne’s analysis.

“You found me out!” Strafe said while Dyne decapitated the frog with his combo.

“It's easy! I knew that most of the side-quest you placed would involve many of the things my memory carried! So I began to think about what could rule over a frog and an ostrich! And, of course, it would be that story! Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets! I played it on PS1 because I loved the story! You copied the lore of the Basilisk. Born of a chicken, hatched by a frog! In this case, born of an ostrich! You created a Basilisk as a boss?”

Strafe couldn’t tell if Dyne was excited or frustrated as his expression had joy, but his voice had frustration.