The Mushroom-Picking Girl

The drizzling rain that had persisted for two days finally came to an end.

A new day dawned, with the morning light piercing through the forest canopy and crisp birdsong echoing across the mountains.

Pushing open the window, Sylutia gazed toward the distant fields and the sky, feeling a rare sense of clarity and freshness.

She wanted to go out for a walk today; she no longer wished to stay indoors reading.

Compared to her, some of the other students were even more impatient, rushing into the wild fields to run and breathe in the air with excitement.

After breakfast, Scholar Heide finally managed to gather everyone together.

"I imagine none of you are in the mood for lessons today, so I might as well let you go out for a stroll. However, it would be best to move in groups to avoid any accidents." After giving a few more instructions, he waved his hand, dismissing the crowd.

Once granted permission, many students sprang into action. Some noble students saddled their horses and bolted out of the village, presumably off for a joyride.

As for the remaining commoner students, many agreed to head into the mountains to walk around and try their hand at hunting.

"During the Rising Wind Season, the mountain forests are teeming with all sorts of animals—common rabbits, deer, forest wolves, birds in the trees, as well as foxes and wild boars," Solin said, walking in the lead to brief his classmates.

A group of commoner students followed behind him, including Sylutia and her friends.

"The teacher said we shouldn't stray too far, so let's just stick to activities in the mountains ahead. If anything happens, shout loudly; we won't be far apart, so everyone should be able to hear."

"No problem," Ray replied in a muffled voice. Today, he was carrying a thick wooden club, the tip of which was even thicker than Sylutia's thigh.

Besides him, many other students also carried weapons—some had iron swords, others longbows, and the least prepared held simple wooden spears.

Having trained in swordsmanship and combat techniques for so long, everyone was itching to test their strength. Although they had sparred a few days ago, a spar was always just a spar; they couldn't draw blood or strike vital points, which felt restrictive.

Today, being a rare chance to relax, many wanted to find prey to practice on. If they could run into a Ti Wolf roaming the mountains, that would be even better—not only could they test their mettle, but they could also secure some fine fur as a trophy.

Sylutia and her two companions were currently walking through the post-rain mountains, occasionally steadying themselves on tree branches while navigating the wet, leaf-strewn slopes.

"Comia, do you see that mushroom over there?" Sylutia raised a hand, pointing toward the grass beneath a large tree.

"There? A mushroom?" Comia and Karen turned their gazes toward it.

Sylutia carefully stepped on the moss-covered stones to reach the base of the large tree on the slope, pushing aside the damp grass to reveal a mushroom with a gradient of pale blue.

She continued to use her fingers to brush away the soft soil, carefully plucking the mushroom with the pale blue cap.

[Blue Rain Mushroom](Quality: Excellent): A rare mushroom found after rain. It has a certain level of toxicity. Consuming it directly can slightly dissolve the influence brought by the "Blazing Sun" Aspect Power. Can be used to refine potions.

She had seen this plant in books, but she hadn't expected to actually find one in the forest today. She recalled the book describing it as worth 1 silver coin apiece.

"Wow, is it poisonous? The color is so unique," Comia and Karen gathered around.

"Yes, it's poisonous, but it's also very useful," Sylutia nodded.

"If we take it to the Alchemist Guild, they will pay to buy it."

"Doesn't that mean we can earn a lot?" Comia said excitedly.

"Mm, I'll look around a bit more; there might be others nearby." Sylutia thought of her dwindling savings; she really needed to find a way to build up some funds.

She circled the area again. Although she didn't find a second Blue Rain Mushroom, she did find other useful herbs.

"This is Gravel Grass, this is Chicken Neck Flower, and this is Sickle-Thorn Vine." While these herbs hadn't reached the First Order of Aspect Power, they were essential auxiliary ingredients for refining many potions.

"I don't understand all that, Sylutia. Why don't you just tell us how much money we can sell them for?" Comia carefully stored them in the basket she had brought.

"These three types can probably sell for 30 copper," the young girl said, holding up three fingers.

"That's more than my dad earns in a day of work!" Comia's interest was fully piqued.

"Let's look together, and the three of us can split the harvest," Sylutia suggested, knowing she couldn't carry much on her own.

"Okay!" Comia raised her hand.

Although Karen felt a bit embarrassed, her family situation wasn't great either, and a flicker of anticipation rose in her eyes.

From then on, the three of them lost all interest in hunting. Instead, they followed Sylutia through the post-rain forest, stopping and starting as they searched for useful herbs and mushrooms.

Under the shrubs between large trees, in the corners of hidden rock crevices, inside small depressions, or beneath the cover of tree branches—the young girl always managed to easily spot those hidden treasures.

Once more, Sylutia crouched among the fallen leaves on a slope, carefully digging up a tiny seedling and cupping it in her hands.

"What's this, Sylutia?" The two girls looked on with curiosity.

"This is a seedling of a Bubble Flower," Sylutia recalled the guide she had read earlier.

"Bubble Flowers are very fragile, especially when they bloom. But once they fully open, their petals wrap into a spherical shape. As soon as there's a breeze, they float lightly and fly to great heights."

"This type of plant possesses the rare "Vaulted Sky" Aspect Power. If cultivated properly, it can yield very valuable raw materials." Holding it in her hand, Sylutia examined it carefully.

There were no other Bubble Flowers around, so it was likely that a seed had drifted down from the sky from somewhere else.

It seemed to have landed in these mountains quite suddenly, she thought, recalling the moment she first woke up in the forest.

Carefully wrapping it in the cotton cloth from her pocket, Sylutia tucked the Bubble Flower seedling away.

Seeing her harvest such a rare plant, the other two felt a surge of joy.

"So, is Sylutia planning to take it back and cultivate it carefully?" Karen asked curiously.

"Mm, though I don't know much about the cultivation conditions for Bubble Flowers, I'll probably have to figure it out as I go." Now that she had the Emerald Pupil Potion, she could solve many of those problems.

For the next two days, the three of them spent their time traversing the mountains, riversides, and valleys, searching for useful herbs, which they carefully preserved and brought back to the village.

On the third day, Scholar Heide resumed his lectures, bringing their herb-gathering journey to an end.

"You all must have had quite a harvest from your hunting these past few days." Scholar Heide heard the students excitedly discussing their catches almost every day.

Compared to ordinary people, these students had all mastered a Breathing Technique, granting them significantly greater stamina, endurance, and combat prowess. They were able to pursue animals that many villagers could not catch or dared not approach.

"Of course, I managed to hunt two Ti Wolves." Baron proudly displayed the orange-yellow wolf pelt in his hands.

"Solin caught two as well," someone muttered.

"I harvested four Ti Wolves, three deer, twelve rabbits, and one Night Falcon," Mick said slowly, as if this were a perfectly ordinary matter.

"Ah, that's so many! You didn't cheat, did you?"

"How could one cheat at this? Are you suggesting he went out and bought them?" someone retorted.

Everyone was astonished by Mick's haul. Only now did many of them truly notice the youth with the triangular eyes; he looked somewhat fierce, but no one had expected him to be such a skilled hunter.

"Mick, you grew up in the mountains, didn't you?" Scholar Heide asked, stroking his beard.

"Yes," he nodded, his slightly fierce gaze sweeping over the person who had just questioned him.

"Very good. Everyone has their own strengths; there is no need to compare yourselves to others on this point." Scholar Heide shook his head slightly, then turned his gaze toward the black-haired girl with glasses standing to the side.

"Sylutia, why don't you tell everyone about your harvest from the last two days?"

Sigh, do I have to say it? Sylutia had originally intended to continue living a low-profile life of development and was somewhat surprised. However, since Scholar Heide had spoken, it would be difficult for her to keep hiding it.

"I didn't go hunting; instead, I went with my companions to gather herbs and mushrooms," she explained simply before continuing her report.

"I gathered about 321 herbs, 181 of which are relatively rare, along with 58 rare mushrooms and 17 vine-type medicinal plants." As she spoke, she took some from her pocket and laid them out in front of her.

"There are that many?" Many students were shocked and surprised.

Even a renowned herb gatherer from the Alchemist Guild couldn't possibly have such a harvest in just two days. Furthermore, Luan Tree Village was not exactly a place rich in herbs or untouched by human presence; if there really were that many valuable herbs, they would have been picked long ago.

Seeing that many students were skeptical, Scholar Heide clapped his hands to quiet the crowd.

"I have already inspected the herbs Sylutia gathered; the count is correct, and some of them are of excellent quality," he nodded in approval.

"As I said before, everyone has their own strengths. Sylutia possesses immense talent and ability as a Gardener."

"Not everyone has to follow the same path, and what the masses promote is not necessarily suitable for everyone. Therefore, I am very happy to see you truly find what you love and walk that path with determination."

I've been made an example of by the teacher. This feeling made Sylutia inexplicably think of her middle school days in her previous life, and she shook her head slightly.

In truth, her swordsmanship and combat ability were not bad either; she wasn't as lopsided as the teacher made her out to be.

However, since everyone misunderstood, it seemed like a good outcome. At the very least, it avoided a lot of trouble; otherwise, she would have had to find a way to explain why she was better at actual combat than her peers despite having no famous mentors and not practicing the sword every day.

Explaining those reasons would be too much of a hassle, and she was someone who feared trouble.

Throughout the day, Scholar Heide continued to teach them about various matters regarding the mountains, such as the habits and activity cycles of many animals, common mountain herbs, and so on. However, due to limited time, he only covered the most practical parts.

"That concludes today's lecture. You will have one more day of free activity tomorrow, and we will begin our return journey the day after."

"Oh!" The students cheered with excitement once again.