Read with BonusRead with Bonus

The Birds, The Bees, And The Apples

“Alright. Do tell what kind of fruits you have tried, Chrysus… and, in your opinion, what's the best in terms of flavor, texture, and convenience of growing conditions?” Ryan asked.

“Hmm… there’s a lot of fruit trees, I think, in another part of the mountain. I prefer the red apples there the best! They’re juicy, sweet, and refreshing. I can have my Kobolds lead the way,” Chrysus said. “I don’t know about the other things though.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll figure it out when we get there.”

Chrysus called for a Kobold to come to them, and he began to speak in another tongue.

‘This must be the draconic language I’ve heard so much about,’ Ryan thought as he observed the two.

The Kobold was subservient and reverent to the baby dragon, but there was also an expression of worry and concern on its face as it pointed in a direction and shook its head.

It began to mimic something.

“Ryan!” Chrysus turned to him with a wide-eyed look.

“My Kobold said that it might be dangerous to go there. There’s a bunch of scary birds and a hive of honey bees.”

“Birds?” Spike said.

“Bees?” Doran said.

“Well, it’s natural that there are fruit-eating birds and bees who’d come there to consume the nectar and the fruits, but we can’t let it stop us,” Ryan said. “If your Kobolds were able to gather the apples before, then it means that it can be repeated. If we can also acquire seeds, then we won’t need to go back since we can grow them on our own.”

“Okay, I’ll ask them to lead the way for us.” Chrysus said.

“Alright.” Ryan smiled and nodded.

With the number of Kobolds coming with Ryan and his group, the thought of any birds and bees being a major problem didn’t seem possible.

The Kobold followed Chrysus’s orders and led the way for them, and along the way, Ryan spoke to the people and addressed them.

“Now the reason why we have to do this instead of going home right away is simple. We need spice in our life, eating the same thing over and over again can be nice, but an increase of options can also increase the morale of people,” Ryan said.

“I thought we were looking for fruits?” Spike scratched his head.

Doran shook his head in dismay while Joan held herself back from making a sigh. Only Ryan had a smile on his face as they traveled through the mountain.

‘The oats were already a godsend. I can probably make Stonefall Village rich if we grew them in huge amounts regularly, but still, it’s better to have a little more variety,’ Ryan thought.

It took them some time, but they soon arrived at their destination. The trees on the forested mountain that Ryan and his group passed through were mostly non-fruit bearing trees, but now the aromatic and tantalizing scent of fruits covered the air.

“Now where exactly are the dangerous birds—”

“You’re ugly!” a voice suddenly screeched.

Joan’s eyes widened and she immediately located the source of the voice.

“That must be the bird, Ryan.” Joan pointed to one of the trees. A trio of small birds hung around the branches.

“Go away!”

“Eat dirt!”

The birds were unremarkable in looks. Their feathers were plain and simple, but their mastery of mimicking a human voice was on the spot.

Kobolds couldn’t even speak their language, but the birds mastered it all the same.

“I wonder where they learned that…” Ryan muttered but then shook his head. The birds didn’t seem dangerous. Instead, it was almost like a background to the sudden noise that filled the air.

Bzzz.

Bzzz.

“Ah, the bees.” Ryan saw them come out of the hive. Each of them was about as long as his finger, and their stingers looked deadly.

About hundreds of them left the hive and started circling around the fruit tree in a threatening manner.

“…They’re scary.” Spike gulped as he grabbed an arrow and notched it on his bow. “But they probably have a queen inside of that hive right? We can easily kill it in one go. There'd be honey too. If we kill the leader, then they’ll be powerless.”

“Don’t even think of doing that. You’ll agitate the entire colony of bees.” Ryan quickly grabbed the man’s wrist and shook his head. “Slow movements are all that we need... in theory. But there’s also one way to make it a little harder for them.”

“Huh?”

“Start a fire, not to burn the forest, but to discourage the bees from approaching.” Ryan said.

It was an order that could easily be followed by the Kobolds. About a fourth of them started a small fire, and the rest carefully made their way to the fruit trees and gathered fruits.

“Smoke… protects us from bees?” Spike said in confusion.

“We weren’t in much danger in the first place,” Ryan explained. ‘With this many people, all we need to do is stay in the back, but it’s better to avoid injuries as much as possible.’

Finally, the Kobolds brought the fruits to Ryan to inspect. Some of them were simple fruits without any special properties.

“Here.” Ryan passed the fruit back to the Kobold who gave it to him, until his eyes fell on the red apple.

“That’s it!” Chrysus said excitedly.

“If you like it so much, then it must be something special,” Ryan chuckled and asked the Grimoire to inspect it.

— — — — — — —

Bewitching Ruby Apple:

These mesmerizing red apples, reminiscent of sparkling rubies, captivate the senses with their sweetness, succulence, and exquisite flavor. They are highly sought after by both birds and bees, enticed by their alluring allure.

Average Time to Bear Fruit: 2 years

Fruit Yield Per Tree: 500 apples

— — — — — — —

“Is it a good apple, Ryan?” Chrysus asked excitedly.

“Hmm… it’s good. I can see why you like it.” Ryan grinned as he took a bite of the apple and chewed thoughtfully. “We can grow them, but from what I remember, we need more than onr apple tree. It’s called cross pollination. One can’t grow without the other. So we need another one…”

Previous Chapter
Next Chapter