I Became a Druid in Another World

A few days had passed.

"Well then, have a safe trip, Cal."

"Yes, Sir Theodore."

"Ah, wait a moment."

I called out to Callisto who was just about to leave and handed him a pouch I had prepared in advance.

"This is…"

"They're cookies. I tried to replicate Rlembe cookies. They're not perfect, but they should be edible."

The recipe for the elves' Rlembe cookies and Rlembe bread was a closely guarded secret, so it was impossible to recreate them exactly. However, it was possible to roughly guess the ingredients and the method, so I made a modest attempt at replicating them. I had Callisto in mind, knowing he had to go on an orc hunt he didn't particularly enjoy.

"Sir Theodore…!"

As expected, Callisto looked at me and the pouch with a deeply moved expression, as if he were a Korean who had just found gochujang (red chili paste) after being away from home for a long time.

"Don't expect too much."

I waved my hand dismissively, but Callisto continued to look at me with sparkling eyes.

"I tried making them myself, but getting the ingredients was impossible. How did you…?"

"I had some seeds I got from Lysette. I used those."

"That's really amazing."

"No, it's really not that impressive. The taste will be different anyway."

"I'll be sure to savor them, thank you."

"Alright, alright. Now, get going. You'll be late."

Callisto carefully tucked the pouch into his chest and left. By now, mercenaries for the orc hunt should have already volunteered, so Callisto was likely the only one joining at this point. Naturally, this would draw attention. After that… well, he'd manage just fine. As Callisto said, no one was more skilled at killing orcs than the elves.

"Finally, that elf is gone."

Hmph. El spoke in her usual disgruntled tone while glaring at Callisto's figure as it shrank in the distance. Despite spending all that time together, El and Callisto had never gotten along. It was an unfortunate thing, especially considering we didn't know how long we'd be staying in Corin.

"I would have done well if you sent me instead. Probably much better."

"Of course, El. I know how skilled you are. But in your case, there's the risk of your identity being exposed, so we need to be cautious."

The Reinhardt family had long since been wiped out, and although El had changed beyond recognition, there was always the possibility that someone might recognize her somewhere, especially in a large city like this.

It never hurts to be cautious.

Moreover, even though Callisto had taken some work off our hands, we still had plenty to do. Tonight, when Lloyd returned, we had to meet with Louis.

El and I headed to the bustling shopping district to check her weapons and gather materials for making a totem. We stopped by the blacksmith shop first. El's armor had gotten scuffed here and there from all the recent events, so we had it polished up, and I bought her a few new throwing knives.

"..."

While waiting, I casually glanced at the row of arrows lined up on one side of the blacksmith shop and ran my gloved hand over them. Normally, I would have felt a burning pain, but thanks to the starfish leather gloves, there was nothing.

Still, I don't feel like using these.

As expected, it felt much more comfortable to use arrows I had made myself. Carving wood or bone wasn't that difficult, and somehow it put me at ease… I turned my eyes away from the blacksmith shop's arrows.

The blacksmith shop looked rather empty, probably because all the good weapons had been snatched up by mercenaries preparing for tomorrow's hunt. Even the blacksmith working on El's equipment looked rather tired. To make sure we could come back if we needed to, I paid him generously before I left.

"What kind of totem are you making this time?"

El, who had seen firsthand the effects of the totems I'd made so far, asked in an expectant voice. I thought for a moment, then shrugged as I answered.

"Well, it'd be nice if we could get some pure white wool… but the mercenaries probably snatched it all up because of the orc hunt."

"Pure white wool?"

"Yeah. There's a superstition that orcs hate the smell of it. Actually, it's not just a superstition; it's true… Either way, it works, so it's probably all gone by now."

"Then, what should we do?"

"We'll have to use a different method."

El and I entered the monster materials shop. Unlike the blacksmith shop, this place was overflowing with goods; this was likely because mercenaries from other regions had sold off all their materials here.

"Hello."

"Welcome."

After scanning the shop, I turned to the owner and asked.

"I need some iron hedgehog's quills. How many do you have?"

"We've got two bundles."

"Give me both. And do you have any snow bat wings?"

"Let me see… We've got three pairs."

"Give me two of those as well. And I'll take a small horn from a mud rhino too."

"Do you not need the large horn?"

"No, it has to be a small one."

"The condition isn't great, though."

"That's fine."

"If you say so."

The shopkeeper began pulling out the items I ordered and wrapping them in coarse cloth. The iron hedgehog's quills were so sharp that they pierced through the fabric, so after the first layer, he had to wrap them again for extra protection.

"Thank you."

Because the small horn from the mud rhino was in poor condition, I got it for nearly nothing. That was fortunate. Afterward, El and I grabbed a quick snack; we got some meat skewers grilled with shallot seasoning before heading back to the inn.

"Alright, let's finish this before evening."

I opened the window of the small bathroom wide; brought a small pot inside, and lit a fire.

"El, wait outside."

"Okay."

"Whatever you do, don't open the bathroom door by accident. The smell will be unbearable."

"Okay. I'll be careful."

Once the door was shut, I began boiling the red honey stalks in water. Soon, the water turned a deep red. I added the snow bat wings into the pot and stoked the fire.

-Bubble, bubble! 

-Blub, blub! 

As the pot began to boil, a foul stench spread through the air. Even with my nose plugged with a cotton ball soaked in mint water, I could still catch whiffs of the nauseating smell.

"Ugh!"

The snow bat wings melted, and the water inside the pot thickened before turning into a pinkish sludge. I fished out the wing bones with tongs and then added the small horn of the mud rhino to the thick mixture.

From this point on, it would be a battle against time…and my stomach.

Mud rhinos have two horns. One was the large horn on the lower part, and the other was a much smaller horn above it. The large horn was used for attacking; it was extremely hard and durable, strong enough to rival steel. Because of its toughness, it was often used as a material for sword hilts.

The small horn, however, was very different. Unlike the large horn, it wasn't meant for attack. Its interior was hollow, and inside that hollow space were the magical "cores" of the mud rhinos. These rough, pearl-like cores were once highly sought after for their supposed benefits to one's vitality, but at some point, their popularity plummeted when people began to believe the opposite.

Well, it worked out for me.

Clang, clang. The small horn of the mud rhino rattled noisily against the pot. I stirred for a long time while waiting for the noise to stop. How much time had passed?

-Clink~!

-Rattle, rattle~!

At some point, a clear, crystalline sound rang through the air. It was a sign that the horn had fully melted and the "cores" inside had been revealed. I eagerly stirred the pot and fished out the cores, which gleamed like pearls, then took care of the remaining liquid…

-Pop!

I opened my dimensional garden and handed it to the Phews.

"Use this as fertilizer for the silver tree."

-Phew phew~!

Since the liquid was infused with magical power, it was technically safe for consumption by people….but the taste was so disgusting that no one in their right mind would try it. So, fertilizer it was.

"Ahh…"

I waited for the smell to dissipate from the bathroom while counting the number of cores. One, two… three. Only three? Usually, there were about four. Still, one of them was unusually large and had a brilliant shine. I had been worried because of the horn's poor condition, but this was high quality after all.

I set the cores aside and started on the next task. I laid out the iron hedgehog's quills on the floor…

"Legion."

[Ugh, Theo. It smells.]

"Just bear with it a little longer. The smell will clear out soon."

[Theo. Me. Hate. The smell.]

"I'll block your nose for you."

I held Legion's head, which was barely peeking out from my arms, and plugged his tiny nostrils with a cotton ball soaked in mint water. It was a funny sight. If I had a phone, I would've taken a hundred pictures.

[Theo. Ugh. It tickles. My nose. It tickles.]

Legion whined with a nasal voice for a while, but once he got used to the cotton, he slipped out of my arms and looked around.

"Good boy, my Legion. Can you help me out a little?"

After gently coaxing him, I placed Legion on a wooden chair and picked up the iron hedgehog's quill with a pair of tongs.

"Now, blow fire on this. Not too much, just a little."

[Theo. Me. A little?]

"Yes, just a little."

Legion bobbed his head up and down for a moment before opening his tiny mouth and quickly blowing out a puff of black flames. The quill of the iron hedgehog, which was notorious for being impossible to heat even with the best forge fires, turned red-hot. I didn't miss the chance and bent it into a circle. The sharp quill that looked like iron chopsticks bent as easily as wire.

"Perfect, Legion."

[Theo. Me. Perfect?]

"Perfect. Shall we try one more time?"

[Theo. Me. One more time.]

Whoosh! Legion inhaled deeply and blew out black flames. Once again, I quickly bent the heated iron hedgehog's quill. After repeating this process for quite some time, a pile of circular rings had stacked up on the floor.

"Phew…"

Thanks to Legion's flames, the bathroom felt like a sauna and the air was thick with heat. I wiped the sweat from my drenched forehead and began threading the rings made from the iron hedgehog's quills onto the golden silkworm's thread. I carefully added a core here and there. The rings clinked together to make a clear ringing sound.

[Totem: The best defense is complete through offense.]

"It's done!"