I am the Enchantress!

Chapter 50 Thunder in the Forest

The next morning, a few guests were scattered on the first floor of the Horse Colt Hotel.

Perhaps because business is so good at night, the breakfasts served here always have a smell of roasted meat and beer, which makes business in the mornings only so-so.

But Talia liked it quite a bit.

To prepare for today's gathering task, which would pay around ten silver coins, she ordered a luxurious breakfast worth two silver coins.

A bowl of wild fruit and oat porridge, a bowl of boiled bean paste, two slices of freshly baked dark bread, plus two firm strips of dried meat.

Based on Wilder's experience, she might add something else later.

Talia picked up a slice of bread, spread a layer of milky white mutton fat on it with a knife, and was about to put it in her mouth.

"Wait a minute," Wilder stopped her.

"Um?"

Talia glanced at the bread on his plate.

It's as if it's saying, "You have bread too, don't steal mine."

"I'll try, I won't steal it from you."

"oh."

Wilder then took the bread and began preparing a spell with his other hand.

When the white light appeared in his palm, he reached out and gently touched the burnt edge of the bread slice.

To Talia's surprise and delight, the bread slice quickly doubled in size, becoming a large slice of bread.

Yesterday, Wilder placed the silver coin on the bed to cast the spell. This time, when he held the bread slice in his hand, he felt that not only had its volume increased, but its weight had also changed.

It's not just twice as much, but about seven or eight times.

"Eat."

He handed the bread back to Talia and watched her eat it bite by bite.

"Do you eat more than you did before you grew bigger?" he asked.

"Hmm, very sturdy."

Talia nodded in satisfaction and then handed over the second slice of bread.

Next came oatmeal porridge, bean paste, and dried meat strips.

Talia ate to her heart's content.

"Wild, you truly deserve to be called a novice mage," she couldn't help but praise.

But just as the empty bowl that held the oatmeal porridge and bean paste slowly shrank back to its original size, Talia's expression paused.

"What's wrong?" Wilder asked.

"Hmm..." She touched her flat stomach, which remained perfectly flat no matter how much she ate, and said, "I suddenly don't feel so full."

After saying that, she got up and went to the front desk to get another bowl of porridge.

Does the food we eat regain its original volume and weight in the stomach?

Wilder speculated.

Can't you even manage to get a free breakfast?

He somewhat regretted choosing this spell.

……

After breakfast, the two went to the Adventurers' Guild together.

Cyrion and Gru haven't arrived yet.

Talia crouched in front of the bulletin board, selecting her favorite plants from the beginner-level quests at the bottom.

[Task ID]: R397

[Task Type]: Gathering

[Mission Location]: Outskirts of the Border Forest, coordinates A.4-A.7

[Task Description]: Collect Spring Gold Cups, which are mostly found in valleys.

[Task Reward]: 50 copper coins per bush

[Task Level]: Novice

[Task Eligibility]: Unrestricted

……

She took off the task list.

"Are you waiting for your friend?"

She overheard Wilder and Martha's conversation yesterday, so she asked.

"Hmm." Wilder glanced at his task list. "Have a safe trip."

"Yes, you did well too."

The two parted ways, and Talia registered for the mission at the counter before leaving the association.

Wilder, meanwhile, was looking for a suitable task on the bulletin board.

Joffrey isn't here today, and Cyril's brass badge is one step away from being promoted to silver, so they can only take on easy-level missions.

[Task ID]: S238

[Task Type]: Cleanup

[Mission Location]: Outskirts of the Border Forest, coordinates B.5

[Task Description]: Recently, several [Tree Monsters] have appeared in the designated area. They are highly aggressive, and several lumberjacks have been injured or killed as a result. The monsters urgently need to be eliminated.

[Quest Reward]: 5 silver coins for each tree monster hunted.

[Task Level]: Easy

[Task Qualification]: Possess an Adventurer's Guild badge of Bronze rank or higher.

……

"This is pretty good. Although it's an easy quest, the reward is quite high. Goblins only get three silver coins each."

Wilder muttered to himself.

Just then, two familiar voices came from behind.

"Because tree monsters are prone to encountering tree spirits in their habitat, this quest carries some risk, hence the higher price."

"What's there to be afraid of? Tree spirits are at most a difficult-level quest; it's not like we haven't done them before!"

Wilde turned his head and saw that it was indeed Cyrion and Gru.

"Wilde, I heard from Martha that you have successfully advanced to the level of a novice mage."

Cyrion patted him on the shoulder with his large hand. "Congratulations! I'll treat you to a drink after you finish this mission!"

"Congratulations, little guy!" Gru grinned. "I'll be there when Cyrion treats you to drinks to celebrate."

"You can ask me again," Cyrion glanced at him.

"I heard the little guy's out of money," Gru shrugged. "Me too, you know."

It's understandable that mages spend money quickly, but warriors...

If it were Gru, it would be understandable.

After all, his battlefield wasn't just in the forest, but also on that creaking wooden bed on the second floor of the tavern.

"Thanks."

Wilder scratched his head in his signature way, then asked, "So, shall we take this mission?"

"Take it!"

Cyrion glanced at the bulletin board, reached out and tore down the task list. "There aren't many tasks today, this is pretty good."

Afterwards, the group took the list and registered for the task at the counter.

It was still early, and area B.5 wasn't far from the town, so they decided to set off that day.

We'll be back just in time to catch Martha getting off work, and then we'll go to the tavern together to celebrate Wilder's promotion.

An hour later, they gathered at the town gate with their equipment and set off for their destination.

Considering that they were facing a flammable tree monster, Wilder charged a Burning Hand into his oak staff on the way.

Around noon, they arrived at their mission objective.

Springtime is almost over, and summer is just around the corner.

Even deep within the dense forest with its lush canopy, it still felt hot and humid, the thick air filled with the smell of sun-baked leaves.

The group slowed their pace.

After walking for a while, they found nothing unusual; the forest was so quiet that not even a bird could be heard.

"Did we come up empty-handed?"

Gru yawned, sat down on a wooden stump, but immediately lifted his buttocks up again.

"What kind of lousy skills do logging teams have these days?"

He reached out and touched the irregular notch in the tree stump, cursing, "Was this sawed?"

Cyrion frowned.

Looking around, several such rough, chipped tree stumps appeared in the nearby dense forest.

"They don't look like a logging team."

He slowly drew the one-handed sword from his waist and held it horizontally in front of him.

"It is said that tree monsters feed by eating trees, most of which were broken by them."

Just then, several muffled, thunderous sounds suddenly echoed through the quiet woods.

The dappled sunlight filtering through the tree trunks danced beneath their feet.

"Thump, thump, thump..."

The thunder grew closer and closer.