The situation at the lake was calm; everyone was sitting and talking. Adriel was holding the two books they had obtained earlier and was carefully reading their contents.
'Many—if not all—of the plants in this book exist in our world.' Adriel glanced at two plants in the flora and fauna book. 'Here's the red dahlia, and this one is the white forsythia.'
Adriel leaned back against the oak tree and looked up at the beautiful blue sky. 'For the first time, I'm grateful for those weird novels that used rare plants of all kinds just to seem more interesting.'
The hunter checked the ingredients needed for his healing ritual in the grimoire and found two plants marked with the same symbol in the flora and fauna book. 'Two whole dandelions and five brugmansias.'
The boy looked at his friends and opened his mouth wide. "I'm going to look for two plants!"
Kael approached him and spoke quietly. "Don't even think about it. You know you're injured. Right now, we need you here." He placed his hand around Adriel's neck.
"Don't worry, I'm fast enough to run away. I'll just get the plants; it's not like I have to fight anyone." Adriel removed Kael's hand and began heading into the forest. "You already know I'm going no matter how much you try to stop me."
The protector sighed and let him go, knowing he couldn't stop the madman.
Before passing the bushes, Adriel threw the books at Kael. "I already know what the flowers look like. Keep researching while I'm gone."
Adriel headed southeast, aiming to discover new limits as he searched for those beautiful flowers.
The soft variety of scents mixed in Adriel's nose made him feel calmer and more relaxed. He inspected every corner of the place, inhaling and exhaling deeply to enjoy those precious smells.
Soon, he found two dandelions, but only one brugmansia. 'The species differ a lot here. Dandelions are common, but brugmansias are pretty rare.' Adriel looked at the oaks, turning over his thoughts about the flowers, until he remembered the dandelions needed to be whole.
He held the fuzzy plants carefully and examined them. Both had many missing seeds. 'I guess I should leave the dandelions for last.' Adriel sighed in defeat as he blew on the plants, at least helping them reproduce after killing two.
He kept walking until he noticed some bushes moving, though nothing big was visible. 'Just because something isn't big doesn't mean it's not deadly, but I feel like I can catch it by surprise.'
Adriel carefully circled the bushes and soon found himself behind the "beast." It was small, about the size of a 13-year-old's back. The hunter was about to draw his katana to stab his target, but something hard hit his chin.
When he looked down, he saw a woman around twenty-one beneath him, staring directly into his eyes. Her neck was fully extended backward so she could look up at him.
"Hello." Her voice was sweet, her hair a beautiful brown, and her eyes a bright emerald green.
Adriel felt as if an arrow pierced his chest; he had no idea how to react.
He felt the woman accidentally lean against him. 'Shit. This looks like a sexual pose! I feel dirty. No, no, no—this was a perfect position for stabbing an enemy from behind. I think Elena's making me perverted. Damn it! What's better—should I tell her I was about to kill her or let her think I was going to assault her? No! Better tell her she looked like prey! Idiot!'
Adriel instinctively used his skill to step back and nervously brushed the dust off his clothes. "I'm Adriel… Sorry about what just happened. I thought you were a monster and… Sorry!" He was so nervous it seemed like he'd sprint away at any moment.
"Ah… That makes sense, considering how this place is and what I've been through… I suppose." Even knowing what Adriel almost did, her voice remained soothing enough to lull a grown man to sleep.
The woman turned and looked Adriel in the eyes, making him feel something in his chest. "I'm Azucena. Pleasure to meet you, Adriel." Her voice was gentle and relaxed as she extended her hand.
The boy stood frozen, staring at her. Azucena's dress was dark green, a single-piece outfit. She wore sandals instead of shoes and held a straw hat with a green ribbon in her left hand.
He soon remembered he needed to take her hand, so he did. "Thanks for being so hospitable, even if my intentions weren't the best."
"Don't worry. Based on your behavior, I'm sure you were a teenager before coming to this world. So it makes sense." She gave Adriel a warm, comforting smile.
"How old were you before you came here?" Adriel asked instinctively, immediately regretting it.
Azucena giggled. "I'm 41. Well, this body looks more like when I was 35."
Adriel dropped his katana upon hearing her answer. 'I mean… I'm just saying… It'd be fine as long as she doesn't have a husband.'
"Heh, I guess you regret talking to an adult woman—one who likes boring plants, on top of that." Her calm tone and smile carried a hint of deep self-disdain.
The boy scratched the back of his neck frantically. "I… uh…" He ran out of things to say, but remembered he knew a lot about plants—something he didn't love, but still found interesting. "I think plants are great—the scents they produce and the shapes they grow into are beautiful."
Something throbbed persistently in his chest; for some reason, his heart wouldn't stop pounding. 'I've never had a girlfriend, and I've been unable to recognize most of my emotions for a while… but I feel like she—she might be the key to understanding myself.'
He couldn't stop thinking about deciphering his own feelings as he looked at the beautiful woman.
Azucena, meanwhile, was delighted; a gentle, tender glow filled her eyes as she moved closer and held his hands. "Then let's go look at some plants. And if you don't know something, I can teach you."
'She's really cute.' That single thought embedded itself in the boy's mind as he leaned closer. 'She's crushing my left hand. It hurts a lot, but I don't want to ruin this moment. I guess the ritual can wait.'
Adriel crouched beside Azucena. They were looking at plants together, but he felt strange, so he turned to see her beautiful face and speak. "Do you have a husband or boyfriend?"
Azucena froze for a moment, then composed herself. "No, but I still love him."
"Did he die?" The word was meant to stay in his head, but came out loud by accident.
"No." Azucena fell silent for a few seconds, then walked to the foot of a tree overlooking the entire place—an area that looked like a beautiful garden full of stunning plants. "If you want to hear the story, you'll have to sit here beside me." She tapped the ground twice, and Adriel immediately moved to sit on her left.
Azucena smiled, then looked at the trees' plants. "I had—or have—a husband who came to this world with me, but he ended up sleeping with a local. Then he said he fell in love with her and no longer loved me romantically. But I stayed with them because I chose the botanical master class, so I can't fight—unlike the two of them."
Adriel knew people had different tastes, but he couldn't help feeling the husband was a complete idiot. From the boy's perspective, she was perfect—her personality, her voice, her looks. Her face was one he could only dream of kissing all day; her breasts were round and perfect to him; her skin was soft and radiated warmth, and her legs, hips, waist, and stomach were all perfect. Only a total imbecile would cheat on her.
"Is it just the three of you?"
"No, there are about twelve others. Our group keeps growing…" She stared at Adriel for a few seconds, then seemed to make a decision. "How about you join us?"
"No, I already have a team." Adriel looked at the path he came from, then back at her. 'Besides, if I ever meet your husband, I'd beat him to death for being so stupid.'
"What if you come to our group?" Adriel stood and extended his right hand, letting his left hang at his side.
Azucena was puzzled by the proposal, but remembering her husband, she made an immediate decision. "I'll go with your group for a week, but then you have to spend a week with mine. Deal?" She placed her hand near his, only for him to grab it and pull her toward him.
"Deal." Adriel pulled hard, making her fall on top of him. She instinctively grabbed his left arm, but her weight jerked it sharply, causing him immense pain—enough to make him scream as if dying.
Between gasps, Adriel managed to speak, the pain relentless. "I broke it not long ago."
"S-sorry," Azucena said, bowing deeply.
"Don't worry, I never mentioned it." Adriel's expression was still twisted in pain, but he kept walking toward the lake, bringing Azucena with him.