Master Of None

"If it is a solitary slime and we can manage it I want to try and gather more of the slime cores for research. That is one of our main goals for coming here." Walker was still trying to stick to the quest for the kingdom. Especially since they had not received another quest to actually defeat the massive slime with the elves. It was something he didn't understand from the system. 

"I am not opposed to that. As long as we are in a safe position. The slimes are too slow to usually get someone unless they are surprised or surrounded. Well, and if they are just fooling around." Wade said this more of a precaution, the forest was no stranger to the mud slimes that ate rotting vegetation. 

They were also common in the nearby swamps. Many young elves thought them good training partners, unfortunately, there were too many that would relax and try out new moves on the mud slimes. The result could be injuries or the slime swallowing the foolish elf whole. Just because they usually ate the rotting vegetation of the forest or swamp floor, did not mean that they would not attack something living. 

"Calen, if we run in to a giant slime can you distract it with your speed? They can't really see you, but they will feel your mana around so it will still try and attack you. Especially if you are running around it and appearing in different positions. It might think it is surrounded by food." 

"Annoy the giant slimes if we find one, got it." She held a thumbs up and smiled. She loved annoying people with her speed, it was like this job was made for her. 

"Didn't Wade say there are only small slimes reported ahead? Do you think the report was wrong?" Remey was curious why Walker seemed to doubt the elves scouting.

"Not that they are wrong, that the small slimes might have merged together." Alma frowned hearing Walker's reasoning. If the slimes were forming together they could have another massive slime before they knew it. Her thoughts on the matter were becoming much more negative, especially since this problem could be dealt with if they had more enforcers present. 

"I will be happy to have them as research materials for your kingdom as long as more information is shared with our kingdom," Alma spoke up, she wanted to make sure that there were bonds being formed. The last few months she had felt that the elves were letting themselves become weak by folding in on themselves when other kingdoms were involved. 

"I would be more than happy to negotiate that when I return to our kingdom." Walker saw that this could be an available step in the future. Start now with an agreement to share information and in time it might become something more. He could only hope that it would lead to a more trusting relationship.

With their planned formation decided the group headed deeper in to the forest. They were seeing the untouched greenery that the first should be. When the party was walking and following the path of decay they had missed out on the beauty of the forest. There were vines that hung from treetops and small plants pushing toward the light of the sun. countless small flowers or insects were moving around exploring their own little world. 

"That's going to be a problem." Wade was the first to stop and look farther away in to the forest. 

Gil and Su were able to lock on to the thing he was looking at. "That's a large spot of decay." 

"And a lot of mushrooms...all with purple caps." The two of them knew from talking with Walker that these were definitely going to be monstrous mushrooms. 

"Usually I would say I can run and deal with them then run back. But by the time the first one bursts I wouldn't even be stabbing the fifth." Calen looked disappointed that she couldn't just run up and deal with the problem before anyone was able to get in range. 

"How many can you count?" Walker was already putting a plan in to action. His frost whip skill was already being created. 

I can see seven from here, but who knows what is behind some of the trees." Wade had an arrow in his hand ready to fire at the signal. 

"You and Gil can snipe them. I will use this to deal with the spores." Walker flexed the frost whip in his hand while another started to form in his opposite hand. 

"How is the ice going to stop the spores? They will be in the air, the ice will be too big to catch them." Alma could not believe that ice was somehow going to just solve a problem the elves always had with this monster.

"I will just turn the ice in to a fine mist of water. That should make the spores sink back t the ground so you don't breathe them in. Actually, can you influence mushrooms and fungus with your system? Or just plants?" This question had come to his mind while he was speaking. If Alma could manipulate mushrooms then what about the monstrous mushroom species. 

"If they were normal mushrooms I do have a skill that makes them grow in different shapes. But I haven't unlocked many of the skills like that, I am too low level, the queen said that one day I would be able to whisper to any of the creatures in the forest that weren't monsters too." She looked a little sad saying this because she knew that she was not as helpful in the current situation. 

"I won't send you vines over there wither. They have purple caps, so they will just kill the ivy vines." Walker was interested in the possibilities of Alma's system but realized that it was useless to harp on what she could do if she was more experienced. "Just try and get the area around them pruned. You're still the best person for that role." 

Hearing that she was the best for the tole made Alma happier. She did not want to deal with the purple cap monstrous mushrooms in the first place. "Remey, Su, Midnight. Keep an eye for the spores escaping us. If they do I will use some wind to push them away. 

Walker didn't want to use wind magic, but if he had to he would try and make a little wind tornado to capture the spores and attempt to deal with them. If things really looked to be going poorly he could burn them, but that was not his desired option. The forest may be wet from the rains, but if a single spark caught then it could be a huge problem. 

"Let's go." Walker gave Gil and Wade the approval to start their arrows firing while he moved forward toward the purple cap mushrooms. 

When the first arrow hit the nearest mushroom Walker saw that the other mushrooms started to tremble. They had been still at first but that was their desired hunting strategy. They would stay still like real mushrooms then jump out and latch on to anything that let down its guard around them. 

The arrow that hit the mushroom went clean through it and the mushroom looked like it had started to deflate. The defense of the monstrous mushrooms was notoriously low and even a baby could defeat one. If this was all they and then it would be much safer. Unfortunately, Walker could already see the body starting to release little purple fog. 

He started to swing the whips out and use his grand elemental manipulation to make more water gather. The water that was pooled together flowed down the whip and made it much longer. It wrapped around the hit mushroom and started t freeze it. The other whip was still in motion towards the other purple cap mushrooms that had started to rise from the ground and move towards the defeated mushroom. 

There were small beady eyes that had blended in with the stalk of the mushrooms until they had sprung to life. Walker was sure that if he looked close enough he would find a mouth but decided that this idea was not a good one at all. 

The second arrow tore through another mushroom and Walker was already in action to start freezing it too. The water he had moved to the first mushroom to freeze it was slowly melting and soaking the purple cap mushroom body. Steam started to flow around it and any of the purple spores drifting from the purple cap started to be saturated and fall to the ground. Walker broke off the first frost whip and created another while he froze the second mushroom. 

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