593 – Foraging in the Forest of Ngai

『Master-dono… Are you really going to eat that?』

『Is that bad?』

I tilt my head to the side.

『…It’s not bad, no…』

After collecting the kesaran-pasarans, I strip off their fur-like bits and pulled out their organ-like bits, then hung them on a branch to drain… Though, it’s doubtful whether what’s draining can really be called blood.

The kesaran-parasarans are like giant dandelion heads. I’d thought they might be more plant-like, but the structure of their bodies seem closer to animals.

While is draining blood drains, I set about searching the nearby area for anything edible. I turn my attention to the sinister dark green grass that’s growing all over the forest floor. I sense a strong magic coming from it. It might be a valuable ingredient.

Without a moment’s delay, treant uproots the grass and holds to me. The dangling roots sway unsettlingly. They almost look like human faces.

『Master-dono! How is it? Do you think you can eat it?』

As he asks, I check it over.

【[Grudge Grass]: Value: B-】
【Grass that grows in areas steeped in strong hatred.】
【The stagnant magic contained in the roots is often used as material for undead or as a catalyst for curses.】

Steeped in hatred… A catalyst for curses… It wouldn’t be strange to say that this Forest of Ngai is rich in hatred for God’s Voice. This grass must have been fed by that.

I draw my nose closer. The smell is a bit like burnt hair.

『It looks like it’s valuable, but… The smell is too bad, so it’s out. It feels like a bit of a waste though.』

『I see…』

Treant drops it to the ground in disappointment.

“Dragon-god-sama! Look! Look! I found some pretty flowers!”

From a slight distance away, Aro runs up to us. Clasped in her hand is a bright red flower. The inner parts of the petals are golden coloured. It’s beautiful.

【[Phoenix Flower]: Value A】
【A flower that never withers, produced as a result of sudden mutation.】
【In addition, it will not burn even when dropped in flames.】
【As a result of these properties, it is prized as an ornament or charm.】
【The powerful yet pleasant scent evokes happiness in the smeller.】

O-ooh…! To be able to find A and B rank plants so easily… I suppose this isn’t the private world of God’s Voice for nothing.

I try sniffing the phoenix flower, and sense a strong vitality from the aroma.

“Hey dragon-god-sama! Isn’t this flower super pretty and cute…?”

I nod my head in agreement.

『Yeah, it looks usable as a condiment. It’ll also cheer up the appearance of the dish. Nice find, Aro.』

Aro goes expressionless for a moment, but then a wide smile soon appears on her face.

“Ehehe… Dragon-god-sama praised me.”

『…Are you okay with this, Aro-dono?』

Treant asks worriedly as he watches her.

For a while after that we continue to collect plants. As I get close to the roots of one of the trees, I notice a strange earth-covered mushroom. It’s knobbly and yellow-brown in colour.

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As I’m staring at the strange mushroom, treant swiftly digs it out and presents it to me.

『How is it, master-dono?』

『Ah, thank you, treant. I’ll take a look.』

I focus my concentration on the mushroom.

【[Gold-Vermillion[1] Mushroom]: Value L+ (Upper Legendary)】
【A mushroom mutated by strange space magic.】
【Although highly toxic, it confers eternal youth to whatever human ingests it.】
【A sample was once taken to the human world, only for the ruler who consumed to end up assassinated just a few years later.】

G-gold-vermillion mushroom… Something amazing has shown up. So there really is an L+ rank… It’s the first time I’ve seen it.

Still though, it’s apparently toxic… Well, we’re all at least B+, so this much poison should be fine I suppose. It says it’s highly toxic, but humans can also eat it without dying.

Eternal youth… Aro’s a high-tier undead, and I’m already immortal since being an ourorobos. 

『Master-dono… Is it no good?』

Treant asks forlornly. I bring my nose closer to the mushroom. It smells mouth-wateringly good. It should be a fine addition.

『Let’s eat that too.』

It feels like a bit of a waste, but probably nothing good would come of bringing it back with us anyway. It’s not something I can casually sell on to someone, and even if I explained what it was and they believed me, it could easily cause wars. It’d probably just be a repeat of the anecdote from the description.

At times like this, it’s best not to think too deeply about it and just eat away. It’s a high-grade ingredient, so hopefully it’ll have the taste to match.

『Yay! An ingredient I picked is going to be used!』

Treant jumps in joy and runs off in search of the next ingredient.

『H-hey, stay where I can see you, please. I’m not noticing anything with [Presence Perception], but it’s possible some dangerous monster could be lurking underground.』

I notice Aro staring at his back, burning with a sense of rivalry.

I smile wryly and then turn my attention to the giant trees that I’m already sick of seeing.

【[Noroi Tree]: Value L (Legendary)】
【A giant tree that grows to a set height extremely quickly.】
【It is abnormally tough and resistant to attribute-based attacks.】
【Any missing branches are swiftly regrown.】
【However, it will never grow in the normal world.】
【The pollen it scatters induces the [God of Madness] state.】

…So these trees are responsible for [God of Madness]. There’s an incredible number of them too… I know first hand how tough they are from when I was [Rolling] through them.

It’s much tougher than most monsters, including of course treant-san. Trying to burn them away seems like it would be reckless too.

“What’s wrong, dragon-god-sama?”

I shake my head in response to Aro.

『No… It can come later. That’s what dinnertime conversations are for, after all.』

There are still things I have yet to tell them, including a lot of my speculations. I’d like to share it in as calm an environment as possible.

『Master-dono! Look what I found! How does this look? There’s a lot of them over here!』

Treant runs up to me, holding a bunch of red grape-like fruits.

[1] – Called 金丹 (kintan) in the Japanese, this is a reference to the ancient Chinese alchemical practice of mixing gold and cinnabar to create an (actually just toxic) elixir of immortality – EN wiki

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