Chapter 45

After getting off the raft, I decided to take a leisurely walk through the woods with Alru.

The density of the trees wasn't too high, and the visibility was decent.

This way, if any dangerous monsters appeared, someone would notice.

I wonder if we'll find anything new.

I discovered a mushroom with a garish pattern of fluorescent purple and green at the base of a tree.

"Lord Joshua?"

"That color. It seems a bit off, doesn't it?"

"It's cute, maybe."

"No, no. Let's check it out just in case."

I grabbed Alru's arm as she was about to reach out and touch the mushroom.

There might be poison on the surface, so it's better not to touch it carelessly.

"I'll appraise it, so wait a moment."

"Okay!"

I knelt next to Alru and held my hand over the mushroom.

*Name: Purple Boletus

*Overview: Causes numbness when eaten. Can also be extracted as a dye.

*Growing Method: Difficult to cultivate by human hands.

*Note: Be cautious of the paralyzing toxin. Touching it is not a problem.

"Alru, it's safe to touch. Let's take it back, since we're here."

"Okay!"

Alru flicked her fingertips, and the mushroom cleanly separated from its base.

I remember she did something similar when cutting reeds. I wonder how she does it?

"Can I take it?"

"Yeah. Are you doing that with your nails?"

"Ah, u, um, yeah?"

"Do your nails come out and retract like a cat's?"

"U, um, yeah?"

Alru quickly put the mushroom into a small bag she had.

I didn't see her nails, but from her behavior, it seems she extended them and cut the mushroom.

Her cat ears were twitching, probably from nervousness.

"Hey, Alru. I didn't come here just to play."

"I picked the mushroom."

I tried to change the subject to cheer her up, but she was still focused on the mushroom.

However, her cat ears seemed to calm down after I spoke to her.

"I came here to look for materials that could make life easier. If there's food, I'll take it as a sample, but that's secondary."

Alru nodded in agreement.

She stood up, extended her index finger in front of her face, and smiled.

"Let's look for them!"

"I don't know if we'll find them. But by coming here myself, I can identify plants. It would be nice if we found something."

I want to find useful materials like Stuka.

Stuka is not only an insulator but also an excellent shrub that can be used as raw material for paper.

For example, I've been looking for a rubber-like material to replace the frog skin used by Torre, or plant-based oils like palm oil.

"Hmm. Ah, let's start with the ones that have a higher probability of being useful."

I clapped my hands and began appraising the trees growing around us.

There it is. There it is.

I also discovered something I hadn't expected.

First, I picked up a pine cone from the ground and tossed it to Alru.

She caught it with one hand and threw it back to me.

It rolled around.

I couldn't catch it. Well, that's fine.

"Alru, this is a pine tree. The resin from this tree—pine resin—can be distilled to produce turpentine oil."

"Turpentine?"

"Not 'turpentine,' but 'turpentine.' It can be processed into varnish and is useful for making wooden products."

Someone among the villagers will likely collect pine resin and produce turpentine oil eventually.

I might also find lacquer.

Lacquer has various uses. If I search the surrounding areas thoroughly, I might find it.

However, it might be difficult to discover without my plant appraisal skill.

On to the second one.

I took a knife from my pocket and made a quick cut on the trunk of a tree with a grayish light brown bark.

Good, good. As the plant appraisal indicated, sap is oozing from the cut.

I scooped up some sap with my finger and tried to bring it to my mouth... Alru was staring intently at my fingertip without looking away.

"Want to try it first? I've already appraised it, so it's safe."

"Really!?"

"Yeah. Since we're here, why don't you try it first, Alru?"

"Okay."

"Whoa."

As expected, Alru stretched up and licked my fingertip.

Her tongue was rough, unlike a human's.

Anyway, her cheeks turned a rosy pink, and her eyes drooped dramatically after tasting the sap.

"It's sweet!"

"I'll try it too. Oh, it is. Yeah."

I never thought such a tree existed.

This tree, with its grayish bark and fine, multi-branching leaves, is called a Cumberland Maple.

From the plant appraisal description, I learned it's similar to the sugar maple on Earth.

In other words, it produces a sweet sap similar to maple syrup.

"Lord Joshua, does this tree have a name?"

"Yeah. Let's call the sap Cumberland Syrup. I'll tell them about the tree's characteristics and instruct them to collect sap from natural Cumberland Maples while they're planting and growing them."

"Okay! I'm looking forward to it!"

"Alright, let's see if we can find anything else."

We both raised our fists and started exploring again.

However, after taking a step, we encountered a slowly moving giant snail.

I remember this area is home to giant snails. Rumburg reported seeing them a few times.

The fact that they have such large shells suggests there might be something calcareous nearby.

Lime is always useful, and we can crush the snail shells for use.

"It's big."

"Yeah. The last time, I saw a penguin that squished a snail, but it's not here."

"A penguin?"

"It's gray and has a beak like a bird, but its skin is smooth and it can't fly."

"Lord Joshua, did you draw it on the blackboard?"

"Yeah, that's it."

Alru clapped her hands and her ears twitched, as if she understood.

After that, we repeated the appraisal process, discovering several edible mushrooms and wild herbs.

However, we didn't find any materials like rubber.

After a few hours of searching, it's not surprising we didn't find anything...

Just as the glass sand delivery was finishing, we got back on the raft and returned to the front of the blacksmith's shop.

Since we were there, I thought we'd say hello to the blacksmith and then head back to the mansion. I peeked through a window that didn't have glass.

Inside were Garam, Torre, their two apprentices, and Sequoia.

However, their eyes were bloodshot. All of them.

It's better not to get involved...

Pretending I didn't see anything, I returned home with Alru.