Brand New Life Online: Rise Of The Goddess Of Harvest Chapter 5 Meeting The Squirrel-Folk Alchemist

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Phew, that was quite close, we almost didn't make it. I had to use almost all my Mana to kill that thing! Plant Manipulations was not the spell that I can use consecutively, that was for sure… Maybe if I run out of Mana, I'll have to use other attacks.

For now, however, I had twenty Mana Potions and Health Potions inside my inventory,. When I checked them, they each indicated that they'd recover 200 HP and MP respectively, so I could drink one of these potions and get back all the Mana I lost…

But the thing was… I didn't know where I could even buy any more Mana Potions! I only got twenty and twenty of the Mana and Health Potions, but there didn't seem to be any shops around that sold them …Wait, could this village sell them?

Well, due to this scarcity, I didn't want to waste them for now until I was in a very dire situation. The guide spirit told that Mana regenerated every second by a little bit, depending on my INT and WIS stats, the natural regeneration increases.

"T-Thank you so much for killing that thing, Lady Dryad…" said the tiny squirrel-folk boy.

"Don't worry, it is my duty as the forest's spirit to help those inside the forest! …Or so said the Tree." I said. "Anyways, what's your na?"

"M-My na? Ah… My na's Acorn, nice to et you, Lady Dryad! What's your na?" he asked.

"Acorn?! Is that really your na? Oh my god, it really fits you!" I said. "My na is Elay- I an, Planta…"

"Oh, Lady Planta then! Were you really sent by the Tree of the Beginning? This is big news… A Dryad would certainly be able to help us recover from the disease…" said the boy.

"Yeah, I am here for that… So… What should I do?" I wondered. "Do I use my Green Magic?"

"G-Green Magic? I don't know if that would work… Anyways, let guide you to the Elder, he's still sohow hanging out, even after many of our people have already passed away… He said he knows sothing about how to cure it, but there is nobody to help us gather the materials…" sighed the boy.

"What about you? You seem healthy." I said.

"B-But I am weak…" he sighed.

"Ah… Well, very well then, guide there dear." I said.

"Understood!"

The little one-ter big squirrel led through the branches, as I slowly walked behind him. On the way, I made sure to check every little house I ca across, finding the squirrel-folk sleeping over their beds, many had strong fevers and were coughing a lot, they were all in terrible conditions.

Were they really NPC? Because I really felt bad for them now… Why did developers make their creations suffer so much?

"They all seem sick, many of them might be on the verge of dying… We really need to do sothing urgent…" said the guide spirit.

"Geez, maybe I won't be able to log out in a while…" I sighed. "Ah! H-How much ti has passed?"

"This is not like those weird fictional stories about VR gas, the sa ti happens from both the ga and inside, so an hour outside is an hour inside of here, and you've been playing for… around three hours and twenty minutes." Said the guide spirit.

"Oh no! T-That's a long ti! I began playing around 2 PM so it's around 5 PM now? Geez… I guess I ended up skipping lunch." I sighed.

"Hm, well, it is not good that you play too much, maybe you should log out, grab sothing to eat, and log in again." Said the guide. "It is bad to overexert yourself."

"Okay… I will after I talk with the Elder then, thank you for worrying about , I thought you were just a an guide, but you're very nice." I said, as I petted the little light bulb.

"T-That's… Well, it is my duty…" he said shyly.

"Here, Lady Dryad!"

Acorn led to a larger than usual house, as I entered, I found small stairs that led up. It was sothing which Acorn began to climb dexterously while I had to slowly climb because they were too small for .

When I reached the second floor, I found a very old-looking squirrel man dressed in a long blue hat over a bed, most of his hair was gray, and his eyes seed weakened, his breathing was slow.

"Hmm… Ah… A-Acorn?"

The squirrel grandpa looked at Acorn with a weak gaze, he seed to be barely able to see by now. Was this because he's old or because of the disease?

"E-Elder! The Tree of the Beginning sent a Forest Spirit, a Dryad! She said she was sent here to help us recover…" said Acorn.

The Elder's eyes opened wide and I was able to see that they were completely white, he had no pupils… Was he blind? He wasn't able to see anything, nor .

"Ah! R-Really? Lady… Lady Dryad… where are you?" he asked. He grabbed a stick and moved it around, hitting Acorn in the head accidentally.

​ "Ouch! Elder, don't use that old stick, she's right here!" said Acorn, as he pointed at .

I moved towards the Elder and held his small squirrel hand covered in gray fur.

"I am here, Elder… Don't worry." I said. "Please, tell what I must do to help your folk."

"Ah… Such a soothing voice, my Lady Dryad… I… I really thought that Goddess Gaia had forgotten us… To think that she sent one of her daughters here… I am so happy… Please, help us…" he cried.

"I will… Don't cry, cheer up, I will do anything I can," I said. "Acorn told that you know sothing that could heal the disease… Is that right?"

"Y-Yes… Hahhh… I had figured out the recipe so ti ago, but I was not able to make the potion because I fell ill…" he sighed. "My body has no strength…"

"What recipe is it?" I asked.

"I-It is in the small table over there… A potion nad "Miasma Cleansing Potion"…" he said. "Grab that recipe and collect the materials, after that, using an Alchemy Pot down there on the first floor, rge the ingredients and make a potion."

"T-That's easier than I thought!" I said. "So Green Magic won't do?"

"Green Magic is certainly good at healing, but the thing is…" he sighed. "The thing is, the miasma disease is not sothing that can be cleansed with Green Magic, the forces of nature are rejected by the miasma, only a special toxin produced from the very beasts that form from the miasma can cancel out the effects of the disease… I had researched this for a long ti, please, trust ."

"I will, very well then, leave things to ." I said.

"Thank you…. I am very grateful…" he sighed.

I moved towards the table as I left Acorn holding the Elder's hand.

"Grandpa… We'll do everything we can to heal you and the people…" he cried. "So make sure to not die until then, okay?"

"O-Okay… My dear Acorn… I-I won't kick the bucket yet! I-I still have so ti before… I'm going to et your grandma…" he sighed.

"I miss her…" cried Acorn.

"I do… too…" sighed the Elder.

It seems that Acorn was the Grandson of the village's elder, and his grandma that died was actually the Elder's wife… Damn, that's harsh.

I looked at the paper, and it even showed drawings of the materials I needed…

For this particular recipe, required the following:

[Dark Essence] x10

[Black Core] x10

[Morning Flower Dew] x5

[Spiky Purple Mushroom] x5

[Leaf of Youth] x5

And… [Golden Sap] x5

These items look complicated to find! How do I even get them?

Ah! I got the first two ingredients necessary andI got one of each by defeating a Dark Beast.

Wait… I needed to defeat nine more to complete the recipe?!

Ugh… They were already strong. I'm not even sure if my battle against one without it being at a disadvantage would be easy.

"Hmm… I can guide you to those items, if you check their descriptions, you can see where they're located and from where they co from." Said the Spirit Guide. "This entire forest is separated into many sections, each one with their own na and special monsters… We have to go in order and pick each item from all around the forest, it's not going to be a short journey…"

"I-I see… Let's go then, we don't have any ti to waste, any second lost is a second these people have to endure this…" I said.

"Wait! Hold on, weren't you going to eat lunch? Co on Planta, this is a ga at the end, so go eat first." Said the guide.

"B-But…"

"No buts!"

"Okay…"

I ended up being reprimanded by the guide spirit, but before I could log off, Acorn ca rushing to my side.

"I-I will help! Even if I am weak… Lady Dryad can protect … I have other skills that can be useful, so please bring with you, I know the places where there are Dark Beasts roaming," he said. "And also the places where there are the other ingredients…"

"Ah… But Acorn, dear, you're too young…" I said. "I cannot really… put you in danger…"

"P-Please! I want to help…" he cried. "I… I've always been a burden to everyone… I just want to help…"

"Sigh… Okay… But make sure to stay stuck to all the ti!" I said. "I will do everything I can to protect you, but don't get yourself in trouble either… Alright?"

"O-Okay…" said the little squirrel-folk.

And suddenly, so system windows showed up.

Ding!

[You have befriended the NPC: [Acorn, the Timid Squirrel-folk Boy]!]

[Your Bond Level between you and Acorn have increased]

[You can now bring Acorn with you as a Party mber]

Eh? I added him as my friend? Oh right… there was the possibility of befriending NPCs! I had almost forgotten… So he had his own Skills that can help? He said sothing like that…

I looked into the boy who stood there.

"S-So we are going?" he asked.

"Erm… Let's wait a tiny bit before that…" I said.

"Okay…"

Acorn sat down while reading the recipe, as I saw his Status. Oh, he actually had one!

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[NPC Na]: [Acorn]

[Race]: [Squirrel Folk: Lv3/30]

[Race EXP]: [230/3000]

[Job Class]: [Apothecary: Lv6/20]

[Job Class EXP]: [172/6000]

[Satiation]: [74/100]

[HP]: [60/60]

[MP]: [330/330]

[STR]: [26]

[VIT]: [35]

[DEX]: [45]

[AGI]: [55]

[INT]: [30]

[WIS]: [30]

[LUC]: [40]

[Race Skills: 4/10]

[Beast-folk: Squirrel-kin: Lv2], [Acrobatics: Lv3], [Fur Production: Lv3], [Acorn Shooting: Lv2]

[Job Class Skills: 6/10]

[Alchemy: Lv4], [Synthesis: Lv3], [Appraisal: Lv3], [DEX UP: Lv2], [AGI UP: Lv2], [Crafting: Lv3]

[Equipnt]

[Squirrel-folk Tribal Clothes]

[Wood Bracelet]

[Wooden Staff]

[Item Bag]

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He really had a nice status for being so small and cute… I even think that he's stronger than physically, even though I am taller… He even has more HP than ! And he has so peculiar Skills… So Squirrel-kin can even shoot acorns? That's interesting.

"Acorn I will log out for a little bit… So can you wait until I co back? I promise I won't take too long." I said.

"Log… out? What's that?" wondered the squirrel.

"Erm… Ah… It is like… How co an NPC doesn't know that?" I asked.

"NPC?" asked the squirrel as it tilted his head.

"Wait, guide, these people…" I asked and turned to the orb.

"NPC are not aware they're NPC, so please just don't bring it up, they'll always don't know what you're talking about… Just tell him you're going back ho for a bit, he'll understand." Said the guide while whispering to my ears.

"O-Okay, I am going ho for a bit, so I might end up disappearing, I will co back quickly after I get sothing done with," I said.

"Okay then. Please take care, Lady Dryad." said the squirrel.

"Aw, you're so cute…" I said. I petted Acorn in the head and gave him a little kiss on the forehead.

"Take care as well," I said.

"A-Are all Dryads this expressive?" he asked a bit embarrassedly.

"Perhaps," I said.

I quickly clicked the "Log Out" button and disappeared from there.

I opened my eyes, and I was once more back to reality.

Phew… That really felt like sothing else.

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