Elemental Cats

The birds flying around above the horizon were larger than they looked, and the ground filled with vitality was further away than the group first assumed. Toz was panting by the time he got close enough to touch the grass.

The area bordering the wasteland was a forest of tall trees. The trees, despite the thin mana in the air, looked vibrant. Several meters tall, with visible tree trunks and majestic crowns of leaves resembling flickers of fire.

The forest in front of Toz was untouched and had a more feral impression than the forest bordering the plains outside Yellow Sparks.

Although the cut-off between wasteland and forest had been just as abrupt as between the grassy plains and the wasteland, there were no signs of any rats nearby. It was something that Toz had barely noticed before, but with the clear division between wasteland and flourishing forest, he also noticed how lacking the mana had been. Since it had lessened gradually, he hadn't thought that deeply about it. The amount of mana in the air in a first level plane is low, to begin with.

It wasn't strange that there was so little mana in the wasteland since mana is an inherent part of nature, but if there is no nature to be a part of, there will not be any mana. Although it might just be a piece of barren land, there was no feeling of life in it. Even deserts have creatures, plants, and weather. The wasteland only had the occasional breeze and rats.

If the rats really were responsible for turning the wasteland barren and draining away the mana, they posed an even greater threat than Toz previously thought. A plane without mana is just a piece of uninhabitable junk floating through the void.

Instead of getting distracted by stray thoughts, Toz decided to put the rats on hold while he looked for water.

When he stepped into the forest, he noticed some glances pass over him. Although they seemed watchful, there was no ill intent, and it didn't seem the owners of those gazes would take action anytime soon as they ignored him after the first few moments.

There was no need to needlessly stir up trouble by finding fault with the watchers, especially when Toz desperately needed a bath, and he could understand the reason for this area being under surveillance. Most likely, the entire border between the desert and the forest was probably put under strict watch due to the rats.

The cats soon caught up to him and were happy to finally get out of that wasteland. They spread out and helped look for a source of water Toz could use to wash himself.

It only took a few hours until they found a small stream coursing through the forest. After refilling the pouches and containers they used for drinking water that had almost been emptied during their trip through the wasteland, Toz stripped and entered the stream. He brought with him his dirty clothes and a bar of soap.

Toz looked satisfied despite the cool temperature of the water as he stood there in the nude, scrubbing himself like a madman.

With the help of soap and water, the flaky dried blood was washed off his body and out of his hair.

Toz felt reborn after finally being clean again, after spending several days with a blood-stained body. Although Nil had managed to clean himself a bit as well, with the help of Toz and his soap, he got even cleaner.

Lucy and Mindle took the opportunity to get rid of accumulated dirt and take a bath with Toz and Nil. Although Mindle didn't need it since she could shake off physical matter with ease, she didn't want to be left out. Even considering water evaporated when it got past her fur and she didn't particularly enjoy being in the water, it was nice splashing Toz when he tried to wash his clothes.

After hanging up his wet clothes, Toz quickly took revenge, sending a large wave crashing down on Mindle. The wave ended up creating a cloud of hot steam that warmed Toz's cold body up.

The group played around in the water for a bit, after which they dried themselves, using Mindle and some small towels Toz had in his coat. Enjoying the refreshed feeling after their bath, they took a well-needed rest after marching for several days, sprinting for a few hours, and running around like headless chickens in the forest.

After a moment of united shut-eye, they started dinner preparations. Unsurprisingly Mindle had campfire duty while Lucy and Nil gathered firewood, and Toz readied the food. He asked the others to keep an eye out for berries and fruits when they looked for firewood. As usual, the main ingredient would be meat, but eating only meat all the time can get boring.

Toz selected a piece from the mammoth that was especially fatty that he cut into thin strips. He rolled some of the strips around vegetables, fruits, and berries, before putting them all on skewers that he placed around the fire.

Since the skewers weren't that large, he continued preparing more while the first batch roasted. Lucy, in his hunger, volunteered to watch over the skewers sitting by the fire, and ensure they get an even surface.

The smell of grilled meat and greens spread through the clearing they had chosen as a campsite and into the forest.

They were worried about being attacked, but neither Lucy nor Nil had found habitats belonging to strong beasts anywhere nearby. It was slightly suspicious, but at the same time, there was nothing around here that would attract a beast to settle down. The forest was pretty uniform, with no suitable caves or the like to make a nest, only a lot of trees. Any beast who found the trees suitable for making a home could easily find better places to use.

But it turned out that neither of those reasons was the cause for the surrounding forest being so calm. The scent their dinner had spread out had attracted guests. Based on the familiar feeling that appeared soon after they started cooking, it was the same beasts who had witnessed and accepted their entry into the forest.

The guests came down from the treetops in pairs. It didn't seem like every tree had beasts in them, and not every beast came down. But the group was still surprised at the number of beasts that had surrounded them, without them noticing anything. Thankfully the beasts didn't display any hostility and were only curious. They didn't seem to be too strong either, so after the initial shock, Toz and the others calmed down and figured they might as well welcome their guests.