Kitsune in the Shadows

Chapter 107 – Not Quite Honest

[Cattleya POV]

The only way I could possibly describe this morning was absurd. Even just the way such an unassuming bed was able to claim my consciousness in its entirety was enough for me to feel a little off my rhythm, yet somehow that was only the start of it all.

First thing in the morning, both Ava and Kierra decided to simply walk into Volpe Rossa and ask to meet with Elenia as if it were no more than a casual outing. When I did the same, I was simply told to leave the building at the front desk. But for them, it worked out perfectly, with the receptionist at the front even leaving her position just to guide us through the building.

We were even allowed to sit in the guild master’s office without having a guild member present. Who knew just how many secrets were hidden in that small room with enough importance to bankrupt even a large town in no more than a matter of weeks?

Kierra and Ava just had to be very special people to be treated like this… they were even able to bring me along without anyone batting an eye or asking me for a name; well, at least until Elenia came in and greeted us.

…

Who are they really?

…

For some reason, of all things that my mind could have looked back on in that moment, it just had to recall the events that took place that morning in that small room. Almost immediately, a shiver ran up my spine… though one that was not… wholly uncomfortable.

…

I do not know.

…

I really do not know.

I blinked a few times to refocus my mind on the conversation at hand, just in time to hear Elenia put forward her offer, and it was to… go gather herbs in the forest just beyond the walls…

That is… it?

All that special treatment just to be told to go outside and pick a few plants?

…

Is it some kind of coded message?

Maybe the plants are something rare and unusual?

Something you would need a very specific set of skills to find?

…

But what skills do they have that would even help them find a plant? Are they not really plants?

…

The questions just floated around my mind until I was pulled away by Kierra agreeing to the job with a hint of eagerness in her voice.

…

“… Can I see the list?” I eventually asked, my curiosity getting the better of me.

Then, to my utter surprise, Elenia simply shared a quick look with Ava before handing the list over to me without any resistance at all.

Is it really a code?

I just could not see why else she would have so few reservations when it came to the sharing of this request, needing nothing more than a wayward glance of affirmation to hand it over. Someone with a family name carrying as much weight as my own was turned away at the door, so I could only imagine the importance of something like this.

Yet, as I read through the list… it just… seemed like a list of random herbs and plants that could be found nearby…

Dandelion, sea pea, ramson, burdock, alisander… nothing that jumped out at me. None of them were even particularly rare in the area. Some were even considered weeds by most people in the town, given how abundant they were at certain times of the year.

It did not make sense to go out of the way and hire external hands to harvest plants like this, especially given the manpower that Volpe Rossa has… and that was all without considering the inflated prices that were listed alongside them.

It just did not make any sense, no matter how I tried to look at it.

“Are you sure that this is what you are looking for?” I asked in my moment of confusion.

“Hmm? Show it to me again,” Elenia asked as she extended her hand out towards me.

Rather than taking the page from me, she just tilted it to face her and read through it quickly.

“No, that’s all correct. That is what I am willing to buy from the three of you,” She said as she let go, “It’s nothing too important or anything, just… let’s say it’s a whim of mine if that makes you feel any better.”

A whim?

“I think we’ll be able to pull something together,” Ava said as she stood up and stretched her arms, “When do you want us to come back?”

“Oh dear, I’d be happy for you to come back all the time,” Elenia playfully responded, “But for now let’s have the earliest as tomorrow. I’ll need the paperwork to go through the adventurer’s guild to make it all official… and I really should be running off again soon.”

It did not take long before Kierra followed Ava’s lead, leaving me lagging behind as I quickly jumped to my feet and followed the two of them out of the building.

…

Go gather plants?

Is there something I am missing here?

…

…

Maybe it was something she said while my mind was… distracted… Something cleverly hidden through her choice of words, or maybe even how she spoke…

…

“I have decided that I will go with you on this request,” I declared as we took our first few steps into the streets.

“You already were,” Ava replied without even looking back at me, “There’s no way I was just going to let you wander the streets again after what you pulled yesterday.”

“…”

The rest of the walk was done in silence as I struggled to come up with anything else to say.

Of course, I could probably have said something on the topic of the plants that were listed by Elenia, but if it was some kind of code, doing so would have no purpose at all other than to show that I was clueless as to the true meaning of the exchange we had.

It… left me in a rather uncomfortable position, all things considered.

Once we had arrived at the outer wall, Ava shed her cloak, letting her dark wings that almost seemed to shimmer in the sunlight stretch out, consuming the entirety of my vision for only a moment before lifting both herself and Kierra over the wall.

It took a second before I had registered what was happening and jumped over the wall behind them.

I… should probably try to conserve my mana…

…

I could practically taste the sweet crimson liquid on my tongue as the thought crossed my mind.

…

…

“Cattleya?!” Ava called out, having already walked some distance into the forest.

What is wrong with me?

For some reason, there was something about hearing my name that sent another shiver down my spine.

It is all because of this morning.

I need to find a way to wake up earlier.

Wait! When did I decide I was staying at that inn?

…

“O-oh, yes,” I eventually said as I picked up my own pace to join back up with them.

You cannot be doing this right now.

“Y’know, there was a thought that crossed my mind as we were walking over here. I was wondering if you’d be interested in hearing me out?

“… Tell me, and I will see.”

“Well, you have that Plant Magic,” Ava turned around to face me, continuing to walk backwards to keep up with Kierra, “Wouldn’t you be able to just grow the plants that Elenia asked us for? I know what most of them are already, though not all of them. So I just thought it’d be easier if you could wave your hand and it’d all show up, right?”

…

“I… I cannot. At least not how you described,” I did not want to, but I had to admit to my limits, “If we found some, I could easily grow more. But trying to grow a specific plant without anything to start with requires extensive study of the respective plant and an intuitive understanding of its underlying mana composition to even consider attempting.”

“And that means?” Ava asked, confused.

“… I do not know how… Although my mother probably could…”

…

Once again, an awkward moment of silence fell over us.

“You haven’t said much about your mom before,” Ava eventually said, catching me off guard, “All I know about her is her name that you seem all too eager to give out, yet nothing else.”

My mother…

“…” I could not bring myself to say anything, just being forced to leave Ava’s comment hanging over us as we continued to walk deeper into the forest.

…

What am I even supposed to say?

…

…

We continued to trek on, with Ava eventually turning back around to face the way she was walking instead of me, which took a weight off my shoulders that I had not even noticed.

“Keep your secrets then,” Ava said, “But know you can always talk to me if you ever feel like it.”

“… I will remember that,” I replied after some thought, just wanting to make sure that she knew I had heard her… nothing else.

Ava and Kierra started talking to each other after that, leaving me to my thoughts. They were simply talking about mundane things, like what would be for lunch and dinner or pointing out flowers that caught their attention, even if they were not what we were looking for.

It was… peaceful… at least that was the only word I could use to describe it; like there was nothing looming over us… It was a foreign sensation. The poor fitting clothes, the sloppy unplanned nature of the day, talking without a care in the world… I… did not dislike it… I think…

All my worries and concerns certainly had not magically gone away, even in that moment, I knew that I still had not secured that item yet, that I still had more to do… but it was more like a moment of realisation came over me, that no matter what I did right then, nothing important would change.

“Is it because of those two?” I accidentally whispered under my breath.

In a slight panic, I looked up at the two of them, doing my best not to make it obvious. Fortunately, neither of them looked back. Leaving only me to know of such an embarrassing slip-up on my part.

“Isn’t that a dandelion?” Ava asked, pulling me out of my thoughts, “It took longer to find than I thought. I swear they’re normally everywhere.”

She had knelt down in front of a few dandelions that already had their white seed heads on display, looking like little balls of fluff.

“It is but…” I replied, hesitating to finish my sentence.

“But?”

“You do not normally harvest a dandelion once it is showing its seed head; they are best picked young, after only just having flowered,” For some reason, I felt rather embarrassed as I knelt down next to Ava, explaining this.

“Oh, I didn’t know that…” Ava said, looking down at the puffball, “I guess that means we need to keep looking then.”

“N-no,” As I spoke, for some reason, my hand reached out and grabbed onto Ava’s wrist as she tried to stand up.

As soon as I realised my mistake, I quickly let go and instead tried to guide her focus back to the dandelion in front of us.

“I-I can just do this instead of having to look for more,” I plucked the dandelion from the ground, taking a brief moment to scatter the seeds by blowing on it, “Now, from the old roots more can grow.”

I waved my hand, letting a small amount of my mana seep into the roots, making a few new stems grow, stopping just as their little yellow petals came into view.

“And now we have dandelions ready for harvest.”

Ava did not waste a moment before gently plucking them and handing them over to Kierra.

“Can you just do this as much as you want?” She asked.

“Ye-” I stopped myself and thought for a moment, “No… If I force the plant to grow, it may strain the roots, or it may affect the quality and taste of the dandelions. I am sure Elenia would notice the difference.”

It was a lie, my magic could easily make the roots sprout as many times as I needed, but I needed to conserve my mana… or at least find a way to hide my resulting thirst from Ava.