Ch: 113.2 (Patreon)

“Anything dangerous I should be made aware of?” Tabitha asks me as we run through the forest.

“Not that I could pick up. Nothing in the area up ahead had any significant amount of mana. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t anything there,” I remind her.

“Glad to see you’re not letting your guard down anymore,” Tabitha smiles in approval at me.

“Not if I can help it,” I lightly joke back.

The two of us were running quite fast, but even then, we could converse while still moving in unison. As usual, I was in the lead, with Tabitha trailing just a few feet behind me to my right.

Together, we circumvent rocks, hop over fallen branches the size of regular tree trunks, and crest the rolling hills that make up the forest floor. Thanks to Sense Mana, I can read the mana currents around us, making me aware of any roadblocks, even if they're out of sight.

Glancing over my shoulder, I try to sneak a look at Tabitha without her noticing. I wanted to compare my footwork to hers, but my plan immediately goes awry when I don't see her, and I hear Tabitha’s mocking voice from my left. “Maybe I spoke too soon.”

Tabitha really was amazing; if I didn't see what she did through Sense Mana, I might have thought she teleported into my blind spot. But that wasn’t what happened. In truth, as soon as I thought to look over my shoulder to steal a quick glance, Tabitha sensed my intent and shifted to my left. It happened so quickly I was already looking over my shoulder before I could react to what I was sensing. And when I turned my head, it formed the perfect blind spot for Tabitha to take advantage of.

Fine, if she wants to play, I can play. So, huffing superiorly, I springboard off a boulder in front of me and twist in the air upside down like a gymnast while Tabitha runs around the large rock. Of course, I'm only in the air for a second, but for people like Tabitha and me, it's more than enough time for us to lock eyes with one another.

"For your information," I finish my twist/frontflip and land gracefully on the other side without losing momentum. "I saw how you did that."

"Then maybe next time you'll be able to react,” Tabitha taunts, to which I only chuckle.

If it was a week ago, I might’ve gotten angry at a comment like that, but now I smile, having long acknowledged Tabitha’s superior skill. At least for now, I'd reach her level one day, and then we'll see who has the upper hand.

Of course, I say that with no malice in my heart; the two of us have grown closer this past week, after all. This wasn't the first time we've tried to one-up each other in a friendly manner, and it won’t be the last. Tabitha pushes me to do better, and I like to think I keep her on her toes.

Sadly, our tomfoolery has to come to an end. “I sense the small body of water on the other side of this hill," I inform Tabitha. But the water isn't the only thing I sensed. As we get closer, I can pick out dozens of lifeforms in and around the water using Sense Mana. Of course, the signatures have little mana, but it's better to tread carefully until we know what we're dealing with.

As we near the top of the hill, I raise a fist to indicate we need to stop and that we should move silently from here on out.

Tabitha reads me loud and clear. She silently moves next to me, and we crest the hill side by side to get our first look at the pond below us. Whatever was down there, we could handle it.

I take that back.

“No,” I hiss disappointingly through my teeth, seeing the state of the water below us. Tabitha wrinkles her nose in disgust, proving we were of one mind.

You couldn’t call the cesspool in front of us a pond. The entire area was one immense spawning ground for an army of toads. The amphibians were a mix of shades of green and brown, much like most animals we’ve come across in the forest, and ranged in size from a single foot to one massive bastard that was the size of a wild boar. And the sound!

I wanted to raise my hands to my ears so badly that my training with Tabitha was the only thing that kept my hands at the ready should we suddenly be attacked. The sheer amount of croaking produced by the colony could give blood bats a run for their money.

Worst of all was the water. The only thing I could see that was close to liquid was located at the center of the mud pit, where a giant pile of toad eggs was being guarded by the most prominent members present.

“Well, fuck,” I curse with all of the elegance of a sailor. "What do we do now?"

“It depends, “Tabitha tells me, staring intently at the army of toads in front of us.

“On what?” I ask curiously. Tabitha has improved since our heart-to-heart, but I've learned that I should just ask if I want to know something.

“On whether or not they’re poisonous,” she explains. “If they’re not, we could collect some water along with their eggs.”

I visibly recoil at the thought. I was open to trying a lot of things, but the idea of eating toad eggs sounded disgusting. “Have you ever tried them?" I ask, wondering if I even want an answer.

To my horror, Tabitha nods. “They aren’t my favorite, but I’ve tried them before. They're quite slimy on the tongue,"

I pantomime barfing. “They aren’t a delicacy in Scholl, are they?”

Tabitha rolls her eyes as if I asked her a stupid question, but as always, she diligently answers my question anyways. "No, they aren't. I've only had them once, and it was during survival training under Master Pacore. Besides, we need the water,” she reminds me.

My hand slides down to my waterskin hanging off my belt. A few taps reveal that I’m almost out, and if I remember correctly when Tabitha gave me some of her water, she wasn’t much better.

Letting out a reluctant sigh, I steel myself for what’s to come. “So how do we tell if they’re poisonous? I only know to look out for brightly colored animals. What do we do in this case?”

“Most toads are poisonous to some degree,” Tabitha educates me. “The trick is, how poisonous? It's hard to tell. If there were dead animals around the clearing, that would be a good indication, but I can't see any. So I think there's only one thing we can do."

“I’m not going to like this, am I?”

Tabitha ignores my question, which isn't a good sign and points down the hill. "Your Mana Skin can stop liquids, so you won't be affected if they cover themselves in poison. I need you to run down there and grab one of the smaller toads without killing it."

“Is that all?” I reply sarcastically.

“It is,” Tabitha counters drily.

“Fine,” I agree to do Tabitha’s bidding, knowing I’m faster than she is. Taking off my bag, I think about how I should best go about this. I want to avoid approaching from this side and giving away our position. Instead, I should circle them and approach them from another side before I make my move. But first…...

“Give me a minute to scan the area,” I tell Tabitha. I don’t wait for a reply before entering a meditative state, having asked her the same question a dozen times over the last few days.

First, I check for goblins. A quick scan of the greater area reveals nothing; the scouting group wasn't even in range yet. They probably couldn’t keep up with Tabitha and me. But they would eventually catch up; they always do.

Once I can rule out goblin attacks, I look for other dangerous animals. With how deep we are in the forest, I always get a few hits, but thankfully nothing in our immediate surroundings.

That leaves the last thing; I drop Meditation and Sense Mana and instead activate Sense Soul to get an idea of the toads' levels. “47, 39, 42, 33…..., nothing too dangerous," I mumble. “Any tips?” I ask Tabitha right before I leave.

Tabitha takes a second to hum in thought. "They're probably more agile than you think, so stay away from them," she cautions. "Also, watch out for their tongues. I've never run into this species before, but amphibious magic beasts have been known to shoot out their tongues at speeds that can rival an arrow in flight.”

“So, superhuman frog stuff. Got it, thanks,” I wave to Tabitha before running back down the way we came.

I circle the mud pit and climb to the opposite peak. It isn’t as tall as the other one, but I can still see Tabitha from my new position.

Scanning the muddy valley below me, I search for a toad close enough for me to grab quickly and not in a group, a task that is harder than one would think.

I stay perched atop the hill for a few minutes watching the toads hop around, and in that time, I get to see how aggressive they are. The little toads fight in front of the larger ones by slamming and biting into their opponents. I don't know which god gave these little slimeballs teeth, but it was a mistake.

I was curious as to why they were fighting so violently until I watched one of the little winners hop onto the back of the enormous toad and precede to…... fertilize her. I’m cool with nature, but it loses some of its magic when you realize you’re watching a frog fight pit/orgy.

Thankfully, I don’t have to wait that long until I see my opening. Two of the smaller male frogs were squaring up to fight it out near the edge of the mud pit closest to me. Oddly enough, watching the toads throw down is exhilarating, and I find myself rooting for the little guy. Well, the smaller little guy.

Too bad for him, though; the larger toad wins, and once the battle is decided, I just have to wait for the winner and female to hop away before I make my move. While the little toad is still disoriented from losing its fight, I book it down the hill and grab the amphibian with both hands before it even lets out a croak of surprise.

I move so fast that it isn't until I'm halfway out of the valley that the other toads realize one of their own was taken. The croaking of the toads rises in pitch, and I consider the possibility that an army of toads might chase after me. As funny as that sounds, I wasn't interested in being hunted down by an army of angry kermits.

I use Double Step to flee the valley faster, and within seconds I’m on top of one of the neighboring hills. Glancing over my shoulder, I’m prepared to see a wave of toads hopping after me, only to pause when I don't see a single one behind me. Almost all the toads were staring angrily at me at this point, especially the larger females, but not a single one was chasing after me.

“Well, that was easy,” I smile to myself. The toad in my hands was struggling to break free from my grasp, but the little guy didn’t have the strength to pull off a daring escape.

I move to start heading back to where Tabitha is when I see movement out of my peripheral vision. Glancing back at the mud pit one more time, my eyes widened seeing the alpha female of the group nearly three times larger than she was. She was gathering mana in her mouth for an attack; too bad for her, it gave away what she was doing.

I could Flash Step out of sight at this point, but I wanted to see what the level 47 toad could do.

She doesn’t make me wait long. The giant toad opens her mouth and launches a ball of brown water at me. There’s enough mana in the water to keep it together as it rockets towards me, but not enough to be life-threatening.

It’s child’s play to dodge the water missile, and I watch as it impacts where I originally stood. That was some pretty good aiming for her part. The magic attack tears up the ground a bit, but that's all. Even if I were to take her attack head-on, Mana Skin would block most of the damage.

Seeing all that I needed to, I start my trek back to Tabitha, who I know is patiently waiting for me.

On my way back, I think about how easily I handled my task. Since Tabitha started instructing me on how to deal with magic beasts, I'm not as worried as I once was

when confronted with something new.

As Tabitha explained it to me, magic beasts were their most dangerous when encountering them for the first time. However, once you know their physical capabilities and what skills they possess, dealing with them could be almost trivial.

Take the chameleon spiders as an example. They were scary ambush predators, but once you knew how they acted and could spot them, it was easy for Del, Ronald, and I to hunt them to extinction. Of course, you still had to be careful of outliers, but those were rare and far between.

If this toad isn't that poisonous, then collecting those eggs will be a breeze.

*********

2,300 words.

I hope you enjoyed it, and as always, stay safe.