Chapter 345
Chapter 345 Forest Journey
The long line of caravans rattled as they trudged through the dark woods.
The trees on both sides of the road towered over the travelers. All the trees were above thirty meters and were thick enough that four people were needed to circle a tree. The tree foliage was extremely dense as well. The giant canopy completely covered the sky, only leaving thin strands of light shining upon the road.
Even though it was daytime, the merchants had to light up torches to have a clear view of the path.
It was almost as if the caravan line had moved into a silent and enclosed corridor. There were no other sounds apart from the rattling carts and the hooves of the horses.
Silence!
Unusual silence!
One couldn’t hear the chirping of ordinary forests or the pattering feet of leaping rabbits and foxes.
“Why?” Greem couldn’t help but ask.
“Because there was a witch that once caught a hellhound for a pet. She obtained the ability ‘Spell Lock’ from doing so. Moreover, a hellhound can provide Spirit bonuses to its master. It is most definitely the best magical pet there is.” Alice’s eyes instantly started glowing when they raised the topic. She went on and on about her favorite abyssal creature.
“But don’t you think a hellhound is a little ugly and hideous? Also, from what I know, they all stink terribly. They have a pungent stench unique to the abyssal creatures from the lower realms!”
“Do they really smell that bad?” Alice’s face turned as she cautiously asked Greem. When Greem confirmed his answer, Alice rested her little face in her hands and frowned, “Then if I skin the hellhound and smear him with spices, it should be enough to mask the smell, right?”
Greem drew a cold breath. He couldn’t help but start worrying about Alice’s future pet.
…………
The caravan line slowly proceeded through the Black Forest.
They could already start to make out the silhouettes of small animals in the dim forest when they were fifteen kilometers away from Ibis City.
However, with the mercenaries intimidating the beasts, none of them dared to draw close to the caravans. They growled from a distance before retreating to the depths of the woods.
This road might not have been very populated or crowded, but the frequent passage of a dozen merchant groups had already cleared the path of most of the more threatening magical creatures. The remaining ordinary beasts would be turned into the mercenaries’ dinner if they came too close.
The scouts of the apprentice witches were the busiest of the group.
The beat their wings and wove through the dense forest that was hard for humans to navigate. They avoided the dangerous beasts and birds of prey as they searched for rare plants and herbs.
The moment they found something valuable, two or three apprentice witches would charge into the forest with a dozen mercenaries at their sides. They would retrieve the plant as quickly as possible. This was undoubtedly a lucrative income for them as well.
Of course, there were times when powerful creatures guarded the rare plants. In these moments, it was up to the witches in the group to take care of the beasts.
They didn’t include the yields during the trip in the accounts of the merchant company. They were private possessions and spoils of war for the witches. Thus, after an entire journey of doing so, every accompanying witch would find their collection exceeding even the pay that the merchant company paid out. It was why every one of them was so excited and passionate about doing this treasure hunt.
That said, the company couldn’t possibly stop for their treasure hunting. They could only explore a small area within five to ten kilometers of the road. Any further and they wouldn’t have time to harvest the goods even if they found anything.
Moreover, areas like these, which were close to the road, had already been exhausted from repeated searches by traveling witches over the years. Anything that was of value had already been scoured and taken from the place. Thus, the witches of the group decisively gave up on such a game that was only a waste of Spirit and passed the chance on to the training apprentices.
For these poor apprentices, that had no right to enjoy the resources of the clan, even morsels that the witches didn’t want were enough to keep them full. Consequently, they too were glad to busy themselves with the task of searching for plants.
And so, the caravan progressed in such a seemingly slow, yet truthfully quick manner, and soon arrived at the first camp of their long journey.
It was barely noon at this point!