Gladesbale Grove Book 2 - Chapters 22,23,24 (Patreon)

Chapter 22

Setts

Rud emerged from a bush, brushing the leaves away from his face. He had used Thicket Travel to arrive in a glade to the south. With only a few points of data to go by, he had to do his best to find the source of the various infections. His two-phase plan was fairly simple, but required him to cast Nature’s Banishment enough times to make his head spin. The second phase of the plan was prevention. What good was casting the spell—even if it made the animals more resistant—if he didn’t fix the source. He would need to draw on his knowledge from back on Earth and the things the local spirits knew.

“Phase once,” Rud said, reassuring himself of this course. “Look, Major. Badgers.”

“They are annoying creatures.”

Stepping away from the bushes, Rud cleared his throat. The heads of several badgers swiveled, locking onto him. It was too difficult for him to see if the animals had any biters on them, and the other diseases were invisible. But if he couldn’t get the badgers, squirrels, and other forest creatures to work with him none of this would work. Those he hadn’t treated would become carriers.

“Greetings fellow badgers,” Rud said, using his Clear Communication upgrade. “We’re all out here searching for worms, aren’t we?”

“You’re no badger!” one badger said. “Begone!”

Rud looked back at Major, shaking his head. “Yeah. These guys suck.” He cleared his throat. “I suppose I’ll just toss this large pile of worms into the lake, then. What a shame.”

“Worms?” another badger said, poking his head out of his hole. Rud supposed those holes were called setts. According to Dean, anyway.

“Ah, yes. Just a big handful of worms,” Rud said, holding out the clumped soil in his hand. There might have been a few worms within, but nothing like the bounty he promised.

With the badgers lured in, Rud worked his healing magic. As expected, the badgers had just as many diseases as the deer. They didn’t even seem to notice how few worms he provided, accepting what they got without complaint. One even complimented him on making them feel better. So the diseases they had weren’t just latent things, but points of pain for the creatures.

“Have you fine badgers been anywhere strange recently?” Rud asked.

“Strange? No. Just our holes,” one badger shot back. “More worms?”

Rud tossed the frumpy badger another worm. He had treated 10 badgers total. “You’re certain? Each of you had the biters.”

“Don’t look at me!” another badger shouted.

Rud nodded, giving away the last of his worms. He inspected the area around the holes in the ground, looking for signs of biters. Ticks on Earth always clung to plants, waiting for something warm to go by. That’s when they would latch on, biting an unsuspecting person or animal. If he couldn’t find the source of the biters, this entire affair would have been for nothing.

“They drink from puddles,” Rud said, standing back as he watched the badgers talk about the day’s events. “They roll in mud, eating worms. I can’t think of a stronger vector for disease.”

“You’ve yet to explain the biters,” Major countered.

“There’s only one vector I can think of…”

It would be one thing if all the animals he treated passed through the same area. Perhaps a common watering hole or something like that. But the badger and deer population was separated by a great distance. If a roaming creature were to drink from one source of water, then another at another time, that might explain how this nastiness was transmitting. Rud had two culprits in mind. The squirrels, or the wolves. Not the spiritually imbued wolves, though. He had already confirmed that Mint, Dean, Sarya, himself, and Major were resistant to the disease. And the biters.

“We’re talking about squirrels or wolves dragging this crap around,” Rud said, rubbing his hands together. “I’d put money on the problem coming from squirrels. They get around.”

“What about birds?” Major asked, nodding upward to the boughs.

“We’re screwed if the birds are transmitting it. They refuse to talk to me, and move around way too much.”

“No. Consider them as the… what did you call it?”

“Vector,” Rud said, gesturing as though moving forward.

“Call it a source. What if they’re picking stuff up and dropping it at common watering holes?”

Rud scratched his chin. Phase one would take a while. He was restricted by the amount of mana he had, making it hard to cast his spell repeatedly. “Okay. Let’s get some help on this one.”

“The wolves?” Major asked.

“The deer,” Rud said, tapping his head. “They know all the good sources. Let’s split up. Go question the deer and we’ll work from there.”

“Got it,” Major said, dashing off into the nearest bush.

Rud shifted into his flying squirrel form, giving a bird above the stink-eye before vanishing himself. He returned to the spot with the deer he had first cured, but found them gone. After some gliding and searching, he found the same herd and questioned them. The deer migrated around the grove, moving in a circular pattern to avoid naughty wolves. Although Mint had done well to keep the trouble-makers out of the grove, that didn’t stop the deer from developing a fear of errant predators. The stag among the group listed all the sources of water he could remember. Which was a lot for a mundane deer.

“For the future, could you ensure your herd is only drinking from running water?” Rud asked.

“Why?”

“Stagnant water is more likely to contain diseases. I’ll be checking up on your herd to ensure you remain without illness, but it won’t hurt.”

The deer bowed his head low. “Thank you, Great Spirit.”

Rud did an army salute, shifted back into his squirrel form, and ran away. He passed through a bush and appeared at the first suspicious pond. It was nestled at the bottom of a rise on either side with a layer of scum on the top. Perhaps it was too cold for the algae to grow as much as it would in warmer weather, but the water looked foul. This was the most recent pond the deer had drunk from. The druid paused, reading over the description of his Nature’s Banishment spell.

“Target,” Rud muttered to himself. “That’s a target, isn’t it?”

Spells were funny like that. Ban had taught Rud early on about how spells worked. If it was in the description, he could do it. The system didn’t obfuscate information. If he could target a person only, it would say. But if it used words like ‘target’ that meant he could cast it on anything, sentient or not. Perhaps some spells even separated sentience and sapience, but whatever. The pond was a thing and he could target it. Otherwise he’d just need to practice with freecasting.

“Here goes nothing,” Rud said, taking in a deep breath. He held his hands out as the power of River flooded through his body. Floating orbs of light poured from his hands, dancing over the disgusting surface of the pond. It soaked into the water, scouring away the diseases it held in an instant.

[Nature’s Banishment]

Burrowing Worms removed from Standing Water.

Corrupting Bacteria removed from Standing Water.

Creeping Infection removed from Standing Water.

“There you are,” Rud said, sagging slightly as half his mana was removed. He looked up, narrowing his eyes at the trees above. “Hey! You!”

“Me?” a squeaky voice said.

“Yeah, you. Come down here, squirrel.”

“Why?”

“I’ve got some delicious food for you.”

A red squirrel scampered down the tree, running up to Rud and pausing before standing on its hind legs. The druid fished a nut from his bag, tossing it over before casting his Nature’s Banishment spell again. The squirrel glowed a shade of gold and green, all diseases removed. He stomped the biter afterward. Now came the unenviable task of getting information from a squirrel.

“Have you been anywhere strange recently? Somewhere you wouldn’t normally go?”

“Go? I go!” The squirrel darted up the tree without hesitation.

Rud pinched the tip of his ear, grumbling to himself. That somehow went worse than he expected. “No, don’t leave… he’s gone. Yeah, the squirrels are moving these ticks around. And the ponds are the reason they animals are getting the diseases.”

It took a few hours, but Rud cleared a few of the commonly used watering holes before linking up with Major once again. The bear spirit had discovered four distinct herds of deer, all doing their own things. Dean and Sarya seemed worse at cross-species communication, but Major was pretty good at it. Enough to get some information, anyway.

“Guess bear-language is close to deer, huh?” Rud asked, slapping the big bear on the side. “Learn anything fun?”

“Fun? Not really. I can only get a few words in with the deer before it all sounds the same.”

“Well, you’ll be happy to know the bird theory might be true. I’ve cleared a few ponds of the diseases, but I have nothing on the biters.”

“Perhaps our search is in error…” Major trailed off, looking into the forest. “Let’s expand our search. I have a theory.”

“Really? I’d think the deer would know where to look. What’s your big idea, big guy?”

Major turned, producing something of a smile. To Rud, it just looked like the bear was ready to attack by showing his teeth. “I know your aversion to leaving the grove. I’ll round up the others.”

“Good idea. I hate leaving the grove.”

Major headed off to gather Sarya, and Dean. Mint was always too busy to help with small things like this. Rud didn’t really know what she was doing, but it seemed important. The druid arrived in Ban’s clearing, taking stock of the chores he had neglected for the day. Well, the tea farm could always use attention. And he was trying to make some serious improvements on his customer service skill.

The tea farm was doing great. Of course it was. With a constant drip-feed from the magical spring, the plants had grown larger than ever before. Spice, earth, citrus, and sweet all mingled together, reaching toward the sky. Rud selected the best leaves of each to pluck, stuffing them in his bag before moving on to the next. He nodded as he passed by the lightbulb plants, eager to get them in their planters. But that was a lot of work…

Forming new jars out of the mushrooms was therapeutic. But Rud doubted it would do much to increase his Construction Magic. Compared to when he first got the skill, he could now create finer details on his jars. ‘Gladesbale Grove, Mint’s Reserve’ was emblazoned on the front of his current jar. He stuffed it with a generous helping of the mixture, packing the leaves within the jar but not crushing them. Whole-leaf brewing was popular, and if people wanted to crush the dried tea they could. Rud wouldn’t stop them.

“I love the tea factory,” Taz said, coming from nowhere. He was covered in a layer of soot and sweating, despite the colder weather.

“Well, if it isn’t the resident blacksmith,” Rud said with a wide smile. “Having fun?”

“More fun than I’ve had in years,” Taz said, making the sign of reverence and bowing to the forest. “I’ll pray to Aegael every day of my life. I swear it.”

“Yeah, the salamander is my favorite, too. Just kidding, River! I love you all!”

“Heard some talk about the diseased critters. Ever find a solution?”

Taz was becoming more and more a part of the grove as the days went on. There was some worry that a dwarf couldn’t adapt to the wide-open conditions, but the man had done well for himself. He was spending more time out of his cave, and even helped with the customer service side of things. Well, before long there would be forged items in the store. Just not weapons. Rud still refused to export weapons from the grove—especially if those weapons were infused with his magical power.

“We’re chasing down solutions. The spirits are searching for the bugs, but we’ve identified one of the major problems. Diseased ponds.”

“A clean water source is needed for a happy home,” Taz said, sighing with contentment. “Why don’t they just drink from the spring?”

“Meh. The deer rove throughout the grove. Most like to be in constant motion. Easier just to clean up the ponds, I think.” Rud sealed another pot of tea, setting it to the side. He got to work on the next after enchanting that one. Perhaps his Crafting Magic skill would go up if he did enough of these.

“Mind if I show you something?” Taz asked, cautious about his words. He had a goofy smile on his face and something hidden behind his back.

Rud cleared a space on his worktable, gesturing for Taz to produce the goods.

The dwarf up-ended a sack, spilling many metal items onto the table. Trinkets, buckles, and angled brackets all clattered together. They were brut de forge—not polished or finished. It gave them a rustic charm. Rud scooped up a bracket, nodding with approval. His low Strength meant he was unlikely to bend it anyway, but it seemed sturdy.

“Looks like some fine pieces,” Rud said, tossing the bracket to the side. He picked up another piece, holding it out for Taz to see. “What’s this?”

“A buckle.”

Rud picked another piece up. “And this?”

“A clasp for a cloak.”

“Oh! I see,” Rud said, patting the dwarf on the shoulder. “Replacement items for adventurers. Dang, that’s really smart.”

Taz straightened his back, thrusting his chest out. “A lot of blacksmiths focus on making interesting things. But a lot of shops get by making the little things. Especially in outpost holds for the dwarves. You get adventurers passing through who have a broken buckle, or a destroyed axle for their cart. I was considering offering cart repair services.”

Rud had been promised there would be people riding on beast-drawn carriages coming through the grove. While he hadn’t seen them, he believed it. But the common items Taz had forged would be amazing for passing travelers.

“Oh! Perhaps you can offer sharpening services.”

“I think it can be done,” Taz said with a nod. “Only problem is, there is no path leading from the main road to the workshop.”

“That’s where I come in!” Rud shouted, striking a pose.

“Exactly. Think you could whip me up some signs and a path?”

“Absolutely,” Rud said, gesturing to the pots of tea. “Help me finish with the tea and we can bang that road out.”

Taz rolled his sleeves up, but was given a stern look from Rud. Once the dwarf had washed his hands, he came back and helped stuff tea into the pots. As each mixture of tea was exactly half of each variety, it was a simple job. They knocked out twenty pots of tea and stocked them in the general store. Rud collected the offerings from the passing adventurers before heading off to work on the road extension.

“First, we’re going to need a sign here,” Rud said, gesturing to the spot where the eastern road joined with Ban’s clearing. “What do you want it to say?”

Rud worked on the requested sign. When he was done, he had woven a sign from the material of the road itself. It read ‘Taznoz Coalbranch, Blacksmithing Repairs and Service.’ The druid stepped back, appreciating his work. The sign included an arrow pointing straight ahead. They made another sign on the path that led to the north, and another at the fork that would lead to Ban’s blacksmithing building.

“Look at you work your druid magic,” Taz said, laughing.

Rud turned to smile at his friend. He wove the trees together, creating a similar road to the one he had already constructed. The woven pieces of tree weren’t stable enough for a cart to ride on—or even for a person to walk on. But once he applied the Lacquer spell, the surface was smoothed to perfection. It wasn’t so smooth that a cart couldn’t find traction, though. He had found a perfect medium with his Construction Magic.

“And we can have a service area right here,” Rud said, gesturing to the clearing in front of the smithing building. “What about a stable for the beasts? What do people use to draw their carts?”

“Badgers,” Taz said with a nod. “Giant badgers.”

Rud narrowed his gaze at the dwarf. “That’s what dwarves use, right? What do the other mortal races use?”

Taz shrugged.

Rud whittled away the rest of the day, working on both the service area and the stables. He created a wide platform out of tree material, complete with simple structures for holding the beasts while the mortals waited for service. The pair stood back as dusk approached, appreciating their work.

“I don’t know about you, but I could eat,” Taz said, clapping a hand on Rud’s shoulder. “You even made the stables big enough for a giant badger… if needed.”

“Come on,” Rud said, jerking his head to the side. “I gotta make my evening report then we can go get some grub!”

Chapter 23

My Giant Bear is Here

Rud sipped his tea in the longhouse the next morning. Taz was excited about his new business idea, even if he wasn’t getting paid. The mortals never left donations of coin, so the grove never actually made money. Only when the druid went to town did they ever offer to give him money for his wares. But money was useless to them, as the grove provided everything they needed. Major sauntered in just as he was finishing his breakfast, doing that creepy bear-smile thing again.

“Good news, Rud,” Major said, sitting on his butt near the table. The only adventurer in the longhouse winced as the bear approached, but let out a sigh of relief. To them, it only sounded like the bear was growling, rather than talking.

“Did you find the source of the biters?” Rud asked.

“No. But we have an idea of what’s going on.”

Rud narrowed his gaze. If it was too difficult for the spirit animals to figure out within a day, there was something magical afoot. “Cursed items or dungeons,” he said.

Major’s brow furrowed. “How did you know?”

“Isn’t it always cursed items or dungeons?” Rud asked. “But please, tell me.”

“Nulsa helped us pinpoint a shroud of magical energy outside of the grove’s boundaries. There was another colony of insects influenced by a cursed item. They grew far larger than normal, eventually becoming monsterized.”

“Do you need me to seal the cursed item?” Rud asked.

“Yes, if you don’t mind. It isn’t urgent as the item only gives off a magical field. But we suspect there are more of them littering the area outside of the grove.”

So cursed items were coming back to bite Rud in the butt. Well, the insects they were generating were biting the other animals in the grove all over the place. Not just the butt. When he had approached the problem at the start, it seemed like a linear series of events. Looking at it now, it was clear to him the problem had at least two sides. Disease and bugs. It was hard not to wonder if the diseases were also being influenced by cursed items.

Rud finished his tea, feeling the energizing effects flooding through his body. “I’ve gotta run a bath, then I can seal the object away. Meet ya there.”

Major agreed, allowing Rud to head off and start a bath. The lone human adventurer had requested one. That adventurer wasn’t alone, but had been sent by his party to request a bath. No one else in the party had the courage to ask something of the Great Spirits. That always made the druid laugh. Filling the bath was easy enough, and he got some more work done on the interconnected springwater delivery system on his way to the logging camp to the east. A few more days of light work and he would have enough of the sprinklers set to install his lightbulb plants.

“Mira!” Rud shouted, bounding over the open field. The cat-woman was standing with her logging crews, directing them on which trees to cut for the day.

The woman smiled back at him, offering a hearty wave. “How are you, little forest spirit?”

Since Rud had improved his magic and skills, the trees were growing larger than ever. When he first arrived, the loggers were content with cutting down smaller trees. That meant they ended up clearcutting a lot of the forested area outside of Gladesbale. The trees the druid now grew were massive, towering into the sky and presenting a challenge for the loggers. That also meant they had to take less trees from the area, making everyone’s job easier.

“I’m great. Just sealing away a cursed object,” Rud said with a wink. He leaned against his staff. “You know how it goes.”

Mira shivered, looking over at her workers. She lowered her voice to just above a whisper. “Keep it down. You’re going to scare the loggers.”

“Oh. Right. Forgot you guys were afraid of the cursed objects.”

“With good reason,” Mira said, looking between Rud and her workers nervously. “They’re dangerous.”

“Not when I seal them away. Okay. My giant bear is here,” Rud said, waving at Mira again. “See ya.”

With the technique to seal the cursed objects away down pat, Rud only had to go through the motions. The spell, Purification Ritual, required a jug of enchanted river water, a leaf imbued with druidic magic, and twelve acorns or beans. Why beans? Who knows. Mint brought the water and acorns, leaving him to enchant a random leaf from a nearby tree. The druid created a containment building out of a nearby tree, creating all the markings on the outside to warn away curious mortals.

Thankfully, the ritual was under the umbrella of Healing Magic. Rud had been intimidated by ritual magic from the start, but once he got into it, he found it was very easy. It was just like casting any other spell, only he had to create the magical circles that sealed away the cursed item. Once the item was sealed, he enclosed the tree and hardened the bark so no curious adventurers would pry inside. He relied on their innate fear of the objects and their respect for the grove to keep them out.

“We may have more objects,” Major said. “Once we locate where the biters are being enhanced.”

“That means the biters we found aren’t normal,” Rud said with a sigh. “A fact I’m thankful for. Those things are nasty.”

“And it can get worse,” Major said. “If we don’t control their population and purify these objects, we could have wolf-sized biters before long.”

Well, it was a good thing they were being so proactive. “Can we get Nulsa on the job today?”

“He already is. No need to worry, little druid,” Major said.

Rud breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. I’ve got some work to do, but you know how to find me.”

“Absolutely.”

“See ya later, Mira!” Rud shouted, waving at the woman before dashing back to the forest. When he shifted into his squirrel form again, he was delighted to see his Shapeshifting Magic skill reach Level 7. That warranted a small dance before he moved on to his next goal for the day.

Today was a day Rud planned to spend expanding the network of tree roots that carried his enchanted spring water. He split his attention and mana between creating planters for his lightbulb plants and expanding the root network. Instead of making the trip on foot, he shifted between his squirrel form and true form, taking the Thicket Travel to reduce travel times. Walking at a mortal’s pace would cause this job to take weeks, and his attention was already waning. But it was hard to keep himself from pushing forward, thanks to the inspiring view in Basil’s grove.

“I guess we have enough to plant starting at Ban’s clearing,” Rud said, looking over the long stretch of straight road. It reminded him of the highways back on Earth. Well, except that this road was made from wood and magic.

Heading back to the clearing after a few good hours of making planters and extending his root network, Rud shoved some lightbulb plants into his bag. With a bucket of soil, he attended to the planters closest to Ban. Shaking off the old dirt, he placed the new plants into the pots, pressing the surface down before sprinkling enchanted springwater on top. The plant straightened up in an instant, reaching for the sunlight peeking through the boughs. It then recoiled, sinking down slightly to await the fall of night.

Rud walked along the path, shifting and planting as he went. There was also the matter of the diseased animals and ponds. Instructions had been relayed to the deer to avoid standing water, but it was hard to tell if the other creatures would follow their example. This strained his mana further, even considering the regenerative effects of his staff. It was a battle of planting, growing, healing, and resting. The effect would be worth it, despite the incredible amount of work he was putting in.

Somewhere in the distance, he felt the power of Ban gathering. Although she was constructing a building to help him care for the animals, she hadn’t gone to sleep. The effects of her new energy gathering methods were vast, putting into perspective the amount of energy required to maintain a portal to the other groves. Perhaps if the other trees were aware of their efforts, they could stretch their roots out to form a connection. But it was hard to complain when Ban herself had made much progress. Although Rud hadn’t made as much headway into his class, he was happy to see her growing by the day.

And Ban wasn’t the only one growing. Taz had made amazing strides into his future, as had Dean, Sarya, and Major. Even the mortal adventurers were discovering the fruits of a well-maintained grove. They could now travel to the west, exploring places that were too dangerous before. All because the druid was a dungeon watcher for the area—a dungeon watcher was a profession similar to a fire lookout, of course. Well, that and the roads. Everyone loved a good road.

Returning to the clearing once again, Rud decided on a tea break before figuring out the rest of his day. He was most excited about seeing the lightbulb plants in action tonight. Entering the longhouse, he heated his water and poured himself some delicious tea. The aromatic scent of the brewing tea overpowered the smell of the burning Fairy Peat. With his nose above the freshly poured cup, he inhaled deeply.

“That’s the stuff,” Rud said with a contented sigh.

“Hey little spirit,” a familiar voice said.

Rud turned, realizing he had missed the adventurers sitting at the table. He blinked a few times before he recognized the human man and elven woman.

“Barrow! Oak!” Rud shouted, jumping up onto the table. He nearly spilled his tea.

Barrow was a massive human man with wide shoulders and heavy plate armor. He was scarred from his years as an adventurer, his shaven head displaying more scars. Likely from his most recent adventure to the west. Oak was a lithe elven priestess of some mortal god. She had long red hair and a thin scar on her left cheek. She didn’t smile as much as Barrow, but always had an infectiously bubbly personality that always put Rud in a good mood. She was already bouncing in her seat.

“Did you guys go west—again?” Rud asked, jumping on the table. “Or wait, are you heading back? How is Elm doing and what scent are you wearing, Oak. Smells good.”

Oak laughed, politely placing her hand over her mouth. “I don’t think he realizes we were the one to take advantage of his new bath…”

“He certainly doesn’t,” Barrow said, nodding in agreement. “We’re heading back out.”

Rud hopped back, landing in his seat. He placed his elbows onto the counter and leaned in. “Okay. Ya gotta tell me what’s in the west. Everyone’s always talking about the west like I should care.”

Oak and Barrow shared a look. The fighter cleared his throat, trying not to laugh. “Adventuring is about collecting monster parts and selling them, right?”

“Adventuring is about defending the weak,” Oak said, narrowing her eyes at the man.

“Well, sure… But we can’t defend the weak if we’re broke, right?”

“Rud does just fine.”

“Ruh-roh. Marital dispute,” Rud said, pushing away from the table. “I just remembered I left my… goldfish on fire.”

“I’ll answer your question, you silly spirit,” Barrows said. “Keeping dungeons at bay is our job. We make money doing the job. In this area, the dungeons can be claimed by the local town, meaning we have trouble getting in.”

“Also, when a dungeon overflows, the monsters go all over the place,” Oak said, nodding along to both Barrow’s words and her own. “The west is untouched, giving us access to both. Not only do we help people and make money, but we also increase our skills. Which increases our level and rank.”

“I mean, that’s fair,” Rud said, finally returning to his seat. “Guess you have to go where you can get skills, huh?”

“Most people wouldn’t make the trip without a healer,” Barrow said, patting Oak on the shoulder. “Which is why we have her.”

“Even if you’re lacking Elm,” Rud pointed out.

“I blame you for that, you know,” Oak said, pointing an accusatory finger at Rud. “She’s been buried so deep in her research after you gave her the enchanted ingots.”

“You’re not wrong,” Rud said, doing a less-impressive pose than normal. But Elm was a big girl. She could make her own decisions. The druid didn’t see the point of doing so much adventuring, but only because he didn’t have the constitution for it. “Any feedback on the road?”

“The road has a boon,” Barrow said. He let out a contented sigh. “When we leave the road, it is misery afterwards. But when coming back from the field, nothing brings me greater comfort than entering the grove.”

Once the mortals ducked into the grove, they were safe. Mint alone was enough to deal with almost any threat. Combined with Ban, the adventurers were very safe after they were within the boundaries. And the road was almost completely level, not on a grade, and had minimal turns. It was far better than walking on the ground. If only the adventures would bring along their beasts of burden. Rud was close to getting his animal husbandry building. He would be happy to take care of some giant badgers.

“Hey! What do you guys use to draw your carts?” Rud asked, leaning in over the table again. He calmed down, sitting back to sip his tea. As casual as possible.

“Horses,” Barrow said.

“Oh. Lame.” Rud folded his arms.

“And donkeys,” Oak said as though that would make things better.

“Well, donkeys are cute… I heard the dwarves use giant badgers.”

“Of course they do. But badgers don’t like being above ground.” Oak tilted her head to one side. “I think the elven empire uses something else. I’ve never been and you can’t trust the stories.”

“Unicorns?” Rud asked.

“Uni-what?” Barrow asked.

“Lame again. Anyway, we got some goats now. Want some milk?” Rud asked. “We can’t figure out how to make cheese.”

“I have sampled the milk already,” Oak said with eager nodding. She raised her cup of tea. “Very delicious.”

“Hmmm, yes. Cheese would be nice…” Barrow trailed off, lost in cheesy thoughts.

But there would be no cheese today or tomorrow. Not until Rud figured out how to turn their goat milk into cheese. Barrow and Oak had some lighter stuff to chat about, and the druid wouldn’t deny he had fun engaging. While it was faint, he could feel his Custodianship skill growing. They were guests in the grove, after all. No matter how small the contribution, he was helping them feel comfortable. Taz came to eat dinner eventually, dishing out bowls of soup for everyone. Rud barely noticed the time passing from mid-afternoon to evening.

“Oh!” Rud jumped up from his chair, knocking his bowl of soup over. Sarya was there to lap it up from the ground. “We gotta go see this stuff!”

Rud didn’t wait for the others to follow him. He dashed out into Ban’s clearing, scampering off toward the path heading to the east. The sun was dropping onto the horizon, casting the forest in shades of pale orange. The light that filtered through the trees was rendered as specks of light on the ground, dancing as though bright stars on a dirt-strewn sky. He waited with anticipation as the others caught up, all waiting to see what he was talking about. They asked their questions, and he refused to answer.

“Just watch,” Rud said, bouncing up and down with excitement. “Gonna be worth it. I promise.”

Those orange dots faded until the night insects came out to sing. The stars shone in the sky above—barely visible through the dense boughs overhead. An errant breeze blew from the north, bringing with it the scent of fires from the rental houses.

“I think our little spirit has lost it,” Barrow said, patting Rud on the head.

“Maybe they need a few days to expand their roots or something,” Rud said, scratching his head. But the lightbulb plants looked fine.

“What is it?” Oak asked, bending low to match his eyeline. “I just don’t see it.”

Rud gasped, watching as the nearest of the plants opened up. Oak’s mouth fell open when the orb of light rose into the air, hovering a few feet from the plant itself. After the first plant bloomed, the others followed suit. Before long the road’s border was lined with many glowing lights, all bobbing up and down in the air. They shone with different colors, casting long shadows across the walkway.

“Wow. That’s magical,” Barrow said, looking on in bewilderment. “I’ve never seen a plant like that.”

“Elm would kill to see such a plant,” Oak said. “Best if we don’t tell her.”

The light of the plants glittered in Rud’s eyes. Yeah, the project wasn’t done by a longshot. He didn’t even have all of the eastern path done, and he still had the three other cardinal directions to do. But from where he stood near the start of that road, it looked pretty good.

Chapter 24

Ban’s Grace

Rud spent the next morning catching up with Barrow and Oak. Elm had left a hole in their party that would be impossible to fill, but they were making do with what they could get in the town. He bid them farewell after sharing tea and breakfast. As always, the mortals appreciated the comforts provided by the bath and the warm beds. The party set off with high expectations, bolstered enough by those comforts to hit the road hard.

Leveling the Druid class wouldn’t be hard, so long as Rud focused on three skills. Animal Communication, Growth Magic, Construction Magic, and Plant Care were all candidates. Construction Magic was the only skill at Level 9, and it seemed to refuse to gain anymore experience. That left Rud with the choice of three others. Working with plants would be easier than dealing with animals, so he picked that for now.

After Rud took care of his tea farm for the morning, he headed off to prune more trees in the grove. Regrowing swathes of trees would be an easy way to level up Growth Magic. Tending to those trees also added to his Plant Care skill, so there was that. Starting from the central point of the grove, he walked in a circle. While the markings on the tree were useful, the druid ensured that each tree he passed wasn’t diseased. It was hard to tell how the disease was spreading through the trees, but it wouldn’t matter. The moment Ban brought the trees under her control, they should have been immune to further infections.

Unsurprisingly, Growth Magic hit Level 9 within the first hour of work. Rud hedged his bets, talking with nearby squirrels and shapeshifting as often as he could while he worked. To his surprise, around noon his Animal Communication skill rolled over to Level 9. Well before Plant Care.

[Ding!]

You have gained a level in your Druid class!

Level 9!

You have gained one free attribute point.

“Woo-hoo,” Rud said with exactly no enthusiasm. “Another attribute point.”

Rud placed his free attribute point into Endurance, seeking to reap the rewards of being more… enduring. It just felt odd to place all his points into Mind and Affinity without a plan. The extra point of Endurance sent his health up a few points, but he felt nothing dramatic. But he was one step closer to hitting Level 10, which would give him his first rank.

“You’ll be excited,” Ban said, speaking into Rud’s mind.

The tree might not have gone to sleep, but she had been fairly silent over the past few days. Despite her claims, Rud suspected she still struggled creating the new building. Perhaps that would never change, as it drew so much power from her body.

“What is it?” Rud asked into the forest.

“Southwest of the grove’s center. That’s where I’ve seen the most deer.”

Rud shifted into his squirrel form, darting into the nearest bush. He arrived in a clearing, at the center of which rested a barn-like building. The new structure was about as big as the longhouse, but much higher. On either side were barn doors, leading into individual stables to house the creatures. The building was clearly intended for many different types of animals, considering how tall each stable was. Outside was the effigy of the Wild Aspect, Harg. The bear stood on its hind legs, seeming to swat at the observer.

He inspected the building.

[Barn]

Rank 0 Level 1 Sacred Tree Building

Upgrade Progress: 0%

Description:

A building dedicated to the rearing and care of animals.

Upgrades:

NONE

“Oh, just a barn?” Rud asked, trying not to laugh at the description. “Seems plain compared to the other buildings we have.”

“Indeed. I’m hoping for some decent upgrades.”

Rud withdrew a Dungeon Core Fragment from his bag, waggling it in the air. “Well, we might as well get to it?”

“Should you use them so freely?”

Rud shrugged, shoving the first core fragment into the building. “The adventurers have been leaving more of these things. And from what I understand, we’ll need higher rank fragments to upgrade the buildings past a point.”

“Very well.”

The first range of upgrades appeared for Rud to look through. But it didn’t take him long to settle on one that would make his life a lot easier.

[Animal Tracking]

Barn Upgrade

Building Synergy:

[Observatory]

Description:

Drawing on the power of your Observatory and the grove, this upgrade grants you the ability to track animals within your grove.

Effect:

Gain basic information on every animal within the grove, including location and general health.

“What do you think about that?” Rud asked, thrusting his chest out with pride.

“That’s an excellent upgrade,” Ban said.

“Yeah,” Rud said, selecting the upgrade. “This will make my life a lot easier.”

More interesting than the upgrade itself was the synergy tag it held. He had seen one of Ban’s buildings gain a synergistic upgrade before. This example of that system tied two buildings together, drawing on the power of one to empower the other. It was an interesting thought to consider that most of the buildings in the grove could accept such an upgrade. And it made him wonder how much Ban’s will and desires went into providing the upgrades.

“I’m gonna use it,” Rud said, closing his eyes. He had no idea how to use it, but that never really mattered. ‘Fake it ‘till you make it’ had been his motto since he was a child.

Accepting Harg’s aspect was easy enough, unlocking the Animal Husbandry skill. The moment he focused on the concept of animals within the grove, Rud gained a sense for every living critter within. He felt a rush of information flooding through his mind that had him reeling. It didn’t provide him with a nice printout like most skills and upgrades in the system did, instead just giving him the knowledge right to his brain.

“Okay, that’s a lot of deer. And I’m not even sure what this creature is… I guess I need to be aware of the species before it tells me anything useful.”

“Any interesting information about the deer?”

“Yeah, we only cured about a quarter of the population. I’m guessing there are others hiding out that just don’t want contact with any non-deer.”

Rud turned away, feeling the Aspect of Harg fading away from him as he passed through a nearby bush. Ban seemed to watch him with amusement as he shifted into his squirrel form, slinking through the forest before climbing a tree. He had teleported to the northwest part of the grove, near the foot of the dwarven mountains to the north. It was colder there, but his insulating fur helped with that. Sure enough, he found the deer in question shortly after.

There was a problem, though. Those deer didn’t look too friendly, and he was certain they would flee before he could pop a spell off. This required only the finest of squirrel-based stealth action. Jumping from one tree to the other, Rud approached the herd from above. There were two bucks, and about twelve does, but it was hard to tell with how much they moved while grazing. Focusing his magical senses, the druid scanned each deer in search of diseases. He couldn’t sense them from here, but he could feel the cursed power radiating from a few biters. Now that he knew what he was looking for, they were easy enough to spot.

“My healing magic is going to go up by a lot,” Rud said, sending his thoughts directly to Ban. She giggled back, still watching him from afar.

Rud shifted back into his true form while straddling a branch. He rubbed his hands together, pointing his open palms at the lead buck. The spell fulminated, filling the air with glittering orbs of light. A moment later, the biter which had attached itself to the creature’s neck fell off. The entire herd was spooked, fleeing eastward with haste.

“One down thirteen to go,” Rud grumbled, climbing down from the tree to squash the biter. At least all the other diseases were purged from the poor critter.

Employing the same tactic, Rud shifted into his squirrel form, stalked the deer, squashed the bug, and repeated. It was arduous, but during the adventure, he leveled his Healing Magic skill to Level 5, giving him access to an upgrade for the skill. But he didn’t look at the upgrade options right away, wanting to get the job done before he took a break.

Rud settled down on a treebranch the moment he had a break. He wanted to slap himself in the face, realizing he had gotten distracted from the day’s task. When Ban revealed the new building she made for him, he cast all other tasks to the side. Well, at least his Animal Husbandry for his subclass gained a single level. Just from that one pulse of information. That was a comfort though, since it was unlikely he would bring animals back to the barn.

“Let’s see,” Rud said, finally having a chance to inspect his upgrade potential. “You know the best way to pick upgrades?”

“What’s that?” Ban asked.

“Look for the one with your name on it,” Rud said, selecting the upgrade that—indeed—had Ban’s name on it.

[Ban’Tanthein’s Grace]

Healing Magic Upgrade

Description:

Healing Magic spells gain additional power from the Sacred Tree Ban’Tanthein.

Effect:

While within Gladesbale Grove, all healing spells have a greatly reduced cost.

All healing magic gains the Aspect of Ban’Tanthein.

The Aspect of Ban’tanthein increases the potency of purification-style Healing Magic.

“Well, that’s an obvious selection,” Ban said with a chuckle.

Reduced cost of mana for any spells was always the best pick. Especially since Rud only had 100 mana to work with, if he could take the cost of his healing magic down from 50 to even 30, he could get three casts per rest rather than two. The moment he selected the upgrade, he felt something warm flowing through his chest. Closing his eyes, the Druid felt Ban’s energy flowing through his body. It stung the tips of his fingers and tickled the ends of his ears. It was surprising to feel something so powerful be filled with so many warm emotions. After a moment, he opened his eyes and let out a breath.

“You’re the best tree,” Rud said, nodding to himself. “Okay, gonna heal more deer!”

Although Rud was upset about forgetting his other plan, he was now too eager to check out this upgrade to think about anything else. He shifted back into his squirrel form and darted through the nearest bush, soaring through the air. The next group of deer he had to deal with was in the southwest, near where they had a lot of problems with dungeons. While it made little sense for wild animals to roam close to that area, he wouldn’t question it. The deer he had met were of varying intelligence, and it was hard to tell if they were working under some beast-driven instinct to avoid others.

“There we are,” Rud said, whispering to himself in squirrel-talk.

“Nuts!?” a nearby squirrel squeaked.

“No nuts here, buddy,” Rud said, shaking his head.

“Weird squirrel!” the squirrel shouted back.

Rud sighed. His flying squirrel form was slightly different from the local red squirrels. Most didn’t care, but there was that one in one-hundred squirrel who just wouldn’t shut up about it. Of course this spooked the deer, sending the deer running toward the edge of the grove. The druid threw a nut at the squirrel who ruined it.

“You stink, buddy.”

“Weird squirrel!” the squirrel shouted again.

Rud tracked the herd for a whole, but they didn’t enter the grove again. Instead, they angled south, finally leaving the range he was comfortable following at. He had recently become more attached to the grove, and wouldn’t leave it without an escort. Perhaps that was because every upgrade he had been selecting for his classes involved something tied to the grove. Whatever. The grove was awesome and large enough for him to run around without ever feeling cooped up.

Abandoning the idea of the first herd, Rud flew off to find another group. With the upgrade on the Barn, it wasn’t hard to find another group. This one was straight south of the clearing. They were bedding down near his path running from the south to the north, some dozed off while others kept their heads up in alert. Rud actually got his first cast of Nature’s Banishment off without them noticing. His mouth fell open when he saw the mana cost reduction.

Nature’s Banishment had a base cost of 50, which had been reduced to 45 thanks to his skill level. But as long as he was standing within the grove, that cost plummeted to 20. He could now cast the spell five times before he ran out of mana and had to rest. That was almost half the herd currently below him! And they didn’t even run. Rud resisted the urge to dance in the tree. He was barely holding onto the branch, using his tail to stabilize himself against the tree itself.

Thanks to the upgrade on both the Barn and his skill, Rud cleared away most of the errant deer before night even came close to falling. While he was at it, he cleared away any stagnant ponds he found. With the low mana cost on his healing spells, the task was simple.

“Hmmm… I think I should have cast Nature’s Banishment on Barrow and Oak…”

“They haven’t left the grove yet. At their speed, they’ll make it through in about a day.”

“A day!?” Rud shouted, spooking the squirrels around him. “What are they doing? Running?”

“They are. I’ve sent you their position.”

Rud felt the information flood into his mind. Ban was tracking the group of adventurers as they darted through the grove. Finding the nearest branch to soar through, the druid appeared over the dashing adventurers. They were far faster than he had expected, forcing him to pick a spot further along the way to intercept them. He stood on the road, holding his arms wide with his staff in hand. As the group of adventurers slowed to a trot, he realized how much magic was soaked through their bodies. They skidded to a stop and he realized there was some movement enhancement magic going on there.

“Rud,” Barrow said. The guy wasn’t even out of breath. “Is everything okay?”

“Of course!” Rud bellowed. He cleared his throat. “I’m just a silly little guy. Forgot I had some new healing magic.”

Oak laughed, trotting over to kneel before the druid. “You are a silly little guy. I’m a Priestess of Ayn.”

Rud thrust his arms wide, casting Nature’s Banishment on her.

[Nature’s Banishment]

Creeping Infection removed from Trinein Oaken.

Oak’s brow furrowed. “What? How could I have an infection?”

Barrow snorted, slapping his hand over his mouth. Oak turned, staring daggers at him.

“Don’t be jealous of my awesome power,” Rud said, holding his pose. “My spells are empowered by the grove, so maybe you just missed it.”

“Do me next,” Barrow said. Oak punched him in the arm, only hurting her hand by slugging his armor.

“Is that movement-enhancement magic?” Rud asked, watching the way the adventurers moved. He was almost certain all their motions were faster than normal.

“Haste,” a mage from the back of the group said. He smiled, bowing his head at Rud. “Very useful spell.”

“I want it.”

“Uh… Perhaps I could teach you,” the mage offered.

“Don’t get distracted by the silly little druid,” Barrow said, bowing to Rud. “We have a pace to keep, Sacred Spirit.”

“Understandable. I can’t learn mage spells anyway,” Rud said.

After casting nature’s banishment on each party member while exchanging a few more pleasantries, the group was off again. Rud watched as they darted away with impossible speeds. Even the people without combat classes were moving faster, so it wasn’t a matter of just having more attributes. That spell was awesome, and he wanted everything like it. The druid waited on the road, holding his arms out for a while. He expected someone to give him a cool spell, but nothing happened.

He would take a page out of Taz’s book and do his best to prove himself to the spirits. He was worthy of enhancement magic. They just had to learn that. Rud suspected River wouldn’t give him new spells anytime soon. That spirit had invested a lot in him in recent weeks.

“Oh well!” Rud said, turning to face the forest. “Time to do… wait what was I doing? Argh! Leveling skills! Stop getting distracted, Rud!”