Chapter 105
Let's go look for tea.
It's not because I'm bored. Absolutely not.
It's because I want to drink tea.
I have companions with me.
Looks like it's Ai, Chaya, and Sasa.
Two squirrels and the young spiders from the treetops.
I suppose they're here to guard me.
Thank you.
We race through a forest I haven't explored yet.
There seem to be plenty of fruits I haven't seen before, too.
It's a color I don't want to touch, but... is it safe?
Huh? But... it's purple, thorny, and black in places.
So it is safe.
...Sorry, maybe not right now.
Once I work up a little more courage.
I find a fruit that looks incredibly delicious.
Huh, poison?
This one's poisonous.
Even though it has a peach-like surface and an incredibly sweet, pleasant smell.
It's poisonous?
It looked delicious. What a shame.
If my companions hadn't been here, I'd have tried it and died of poisoning. No question.
No, what about that one over there, the one that looks dangerous because of its color...? Should we take it home?
Got it.
Compared to the previous fruit... it has a reddish-black, marble-like pattern... Not much different.
If they say it's safe, I guess it's safe.
I worked hard harvesting.
I check the hand I used to harvest them with, but nothing has changed.
Looks like it's safe.
...No, I do trust you.
Time for a short break.
The hamburger-like things I brought are delicious.
Ai and the others... ten burgers with several times the usual amount of meat, huh.
The fruit water is delicious, too!
...The young spiders are each chomping down an eggplant-like thing whole... So it's tasty, huh?
The squirrels are eating fruit I just harvested. Is that okay?
Are you okay?
Thank goodness.
...Huh?
I've never actually seen a tea tree.
I've never brewed tea myself, either... Thank goodness for bottled tea!
...Maybe finding one is impossible.
What should I do?
Ai, I have a small favor to ask.
After drinking some fruit water, I point at a leaf.
Do you understand?
...Hahaha, of course not.
Hmm—I pluck a nearby leaf, make some water appear, put the leaf in it, and pretend to drink it.
I show Ai the leaf.
Please understand... No, I guess not.
This is harder than magic.
How can I get this across?
Hmm?
Ai?
Ai seems to be trying to go somewhere.
For now, I'll follow Ai.
I've been running for quite a while, but where are we going?
We arrive at... a red lake.
...Huh, blood?
So it isn't.
Even after casting Purification, nothing changes; it isn't a curse—this is simply its color...
Come to think of it, Earth had things like this, too... pink lakes and the like.
Ai points at a tree.
As I approach, I see it bearing fruit.
What is it?
I look at Ai, but Ai just stares back.
...I pick it and smell it; it has no scent.
Hmm—what could it be?
For now, I'll split it open... It's hard.
A stone knife... It looks like it would slip. I cut it cleanly in half with magic.
It's hollow inside, with only seeds.
There's no flesh.
Did Ai understand my gesture from earlier?
For now, I put the seeds into the water I've brought... No, is that wrong?
Is it the skin?
Um, I'll scrape some off... That takes some effort.
When I put it in the water, it turns faintly red.
Don't look at me so expectantly.
I take a sip.
It isn't tea, but it has an indescribably refreshing quality.
It's also faintly sweet and delicious.
It's a little weak, but with some processing, it might become even tastier.
I say thank you as I pat Ai on the head.
Thank you for understanding that gesture—really!
It isn't tea, but I've found something to replace it with.
Still, this refreshing feeling is addictive.
If I could make it a little stronger... I'll work on processing it.
I harvest until I'm satisfied.
...
All that's left is to go home.
On the way back, I explore a different route from the one we took out.
As expected, there are still tons of fruits I've never seen.
...I don't touch them.
I almost reached for another poisonous one.
I'll never decide on my own again. Absolutely not.
As I race through the forest, something falls right in front of me.
That scared me!
It fell from above all of a sudden... A caterpillar?
A huge caterpillar radiating incredible hostility...
Take the brown, hairy ones I saw in Japan and add fangs and horns... It looks far too vicious!
It fell from above, right?
I look up... I wish I hadn't.
There are countless caterpillars in the trees.
Then they all turn to face downward at once... This is bad.
Just as I panic, thinking they're going to fall, they stop in midair.
?
Ah, the young spiders have spun countless strands of web between the trees.
The caterpillars get caught in them.
Gross.
For now, I run.
Thanks, young spiders!
Buried in caterpillars... It was a dream.