533 The Berry Grove
Was he going to share the night with the Princess under one roof?
Definitely not!
If he didn't have Evie, he might have reconsider. Still, his love for her and his responsibility as his partner wouldn't allow him to act or even think of jeopardizing her relationship with her.
Even in a fictional world.
"What's wrong?" Elena asked Ren when the latter went quiet.
"Nothing," Ren answered, too sudden for his liking. "Let's go and clear this quest." So we don't have to spend the night here. Ren wanted to add but restrained himself.
Talking to the villagers eventually led them to the directions of the berry grove nearby.
As they went that way, the sound of the waves crashing against the sand filled Ren's ears. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, letting the salty sea air fill his lungs.
As he exhaled, memories flooded his mind.
He remembered Evie, his love, and the countless happy moments they had shared on a beach once. He could almost feel her hand in his as they walked along the shoreline, the sand between their toes and the sun on their skin.
They had laughed and talked, enjoying each other's company as they watched the waves dance.
Ren's eyes opened, and he looked out at the ocean, feeling that familiar heaviness in his heart once again. He missed her every day, and the sight kept reminding him of her.
With a heavy heart, Ren took one last look out at sea and proceeded to The Berry Grove.
The trip to the berry grove took little more than half an hour. As Elena and Ren traveled, they saw an array of colorful vegetation but no sign of any living creatures.
The berry grove was in a large, open field in the midst of the woods.
"I heard whispers nearby," Elena stated, voice hushed.
But when they investigated, nothing turned up. After five minutes passed, Elena heard voices again, and it was only a few meters away.
"Right here."
They heard a small voice, and when they looked down, they saw two awakened shrubs that approached them.
"Wait a minute . . . you're not children from the village," one of them said.
And the others asked, "Why are you in the grove?"
Ren and Elena looked at each other, and the latter asked the shrubs, "Are you behind the kidnapping of children in Hopten Beach?"
"Yes." They both said in unison, too innocent for their own good.
"Why are you doing it?" Ren had to ask because it was almost too cruel to just kill the shrubs without hearing their side first.
"We are awakened by a botanist named Vandolin," one shrub started with its tiny little voice sounding almost like a kid.
"Vandolin lives in a large greenhouse within an hour's walk from the grove," another chimed in. "Vandolin has always been kind to us, but she is overcome by grief over the death of her companion."
"Vandolin is obsessed with getting revenge on the frogfolk for killing her friend. We're tasked with by Vandolin to snatch any of the children from the village that come to the grove and bring them to her."
The shrubs were in a state of stress, their voice cracking like a little child. "We have no interest in doing this task, but we feel obligated to the woman that granted us sentience."
Since they were only tasked with capturing children, the shrubs didn't attack Ren and Elena.
[The Quest, SAVE HOPTEN VILLAGE has been updated!]
[Vandolin, a fey botanist that makes her home nearby, viewed the giant shark as her ward after raising it since birth. Furious that her companion was killed, Vandolin has quietly begun waging war against the village. The wily fey decided that there is only one fitting punishment for the loss of her "child," which is repaying that pain in kind.
She then set in motion a plan to steal the children of the village. Using her skills as an arcane botanist, she sent awakened shrubs to hide among the berry bushes in an effort to ambush the villagers seeking food. With those efforts so far unsuccessful, Vandolin moved on to the next phase of her plan: a direct assault against the village.]
"Where's this greenhouse you spoke of?" Elena questioned.
"The one where Vandolin resides," finished Ren.
The shrubs innocently pointed the way, eager and pleased with themselves to help Ren and Elena.
"I almost feel guilty," Elena told Ren when there was only two of them.
"Because they had pointed the location of their master, and we're going to slaughter her?"
Elena threw Ren a pair of dead-set eyes. "You don't have to put it that way. Now I'm feeling all the more guilty about this."
"Maybe we can draw some kind of peace between sides here."
"I hope so."
Vandolin's Greenhouse was located at the top of a small hill in the middle of the forest. The large glass structure stood out among the greenery, but little was visible from the outside other than lush vegetation.
The front of the building had two large glass doors that were unlocked. The Greenhouse was full of colorful and strange plant life that was unlike anything on the material plane.
As Ren and Elena made their way through the Greenhouse, they heard murmuring voices expressing dismay that there were uninvited guests, but an investigation would not turn up the source for these voices.
At the back of the Greenhouse was an enormous plant with a single large flower. When Ren and Elena approached it, the plant pulled its roots from the ground and attacked.
Ren was quick to dodge while Elena put out her knife and cut the vines and petals to dozens of pieces. The [Petal Monsters] were resistant to magic, so a direct physical approach was their best option.
The Petal Monsters weren't that hard of an opponent, and Elena made quick work of them using her knives alone. Ren didn't have to do a thing, and the fight was over within seconds.
When the Petal Monsters were defeated, Vandolin appeared before them.
