Master Of None

Chapter 324: 324. Goblins, Spiders, and Slimes. Oh My!

Midnight was glaring at a patch of trees ahead of them. There was the scent of rot and decay in the air causing all of them to want to cover their noses. The worst part was that they could see the black rot on the trees in front of them. It looked like Midnight had gone around using decaying breath flames for hours and hours.

”Somerhing tells me this is the work of the slimes we are after.” Gil was slow to approach the area since the smell of rot was so bad. He prodded that the bark of the tree with an arrow and found that it just flaked off existing in the inside of the rotting wood. The black decay had eaten in to the very core of the tree.

”I can see why people are unhappy with this. These slimes are doing a lot of damage to the very lifeblood of the forest. The elven kingdom must be furious. They literally have lived here forever.” One look at Remey told all of them that she was just as unhappy to see this. In her mind she could only imagine how many life saving herbs could have been killed or brought to extinction by this decay.

”I might jot be an expert, but from my friends at the cathedral, I have learned some things about purification magic. I do not believe that it would be able to deal with this level of decay. The only solution would be to let the infected trees die or to cut off the decaying part.”

Su knew that purification magic was rare to begin with. She had heard that it was usually used to cleanse something of a curse or a living creature from poisons or even to enhance the quality of materials by removing disruptive mana.

”I think so too, this is very advanced and powerful. Remey, what are your thoughts? Could those antidote potions resist this in any way?” Walker was worried that the potions Remey and the old master alchemist had made might be too weak to protect them if they toughed the slime or had a head on collision in battle.

”Pfft, who do you think we are? We used some of the pure water and even some other special herbs to make sure they were of the highest quality. It may take multiple treatments but if you get that decay on you and wrap soaked bandages on it, then it just might protect you from the decay damage and cure you.” She thought for a moment. ”The worst case I would say go to the cathedral for healing anyways.

Midnight looked to be suffering in the scene of the decay. Her nose was much stronger than theirs and she could not deal with the smell. Come on letʼs see if we can follow the path of decay.” Now that Walker had seen the full extent of the purple limes decay quality he wanted to formulate so,e new pans.

He was happy that the slime obviously did not just decay and break things down in an instant. Instead it took time, meaning that the party would be able to safely reach other if they were hurt. The sooner they would use the antidote potion the less damage, if any, there would be. Walker made sure it was always on his mind to pull one out.

”Just stay vigilant, some slimes have been known to shoot acid or other fluids from their bodies. These might not since it looks like they had to be in long term contact to cause this decay. But I would rather be safe than sorry.” Walkerʼs final warning was one he said a few times and the party knew he was worrying over it.

With that, the party started to follow the trail of decay. They could still find the tracks of goblins and even some of the grey haired spider silk here and there. This area seemed to be heavily traveled by many monsters. Remey was stopping to look at the remains of the young growth, her grimace getting worse and worse with every minute.

Gil was mirroring her unhappiness, he had been hunting in forests many times with his father and he had been taught to respect nature. His goal as a hunter had always been to take what they needed to survive and prosper. If he had tried to take too much his father was always there explaining why it could hurt the forest and that it was or was not necessary.

Su did not have the same experiences and understanding of the forest that her party members did, however, she had started to learn through gardening that a lot of effort could go in to one single seedling. For a forest to grow it was a massive accomplishment for nature.

The way a single tree was cut could change how the entire forest grew, even the smallest detail could make a life or death difference.