I kept messing with the woman by flooding various parts of my little structure with mana, then moving it around. I could tell she was following the movement by the way her eyes moved to wherever I moved the mana. She kept tightening and adjusting her grip on her staff with her knuckles going white every time I concentrated the mana in one point. I wonder if it’s a magic user thing to be able to see mana moving, or if there’s a specific skill related to it.

As if on cue, I got a notification.

Through hard work and training... or playing around... you have unlocked the skill [Mana Sight (U)].

I laughed to myself as I read the notification and read the skill description.

Mana Sight (U): Allows the user to see mana. Clarity improves with practice.

Pretty sweet, though I don’t think I’ll.... Holy shit, these guys have some serious gear!

I took a look at the trio again, but this time, they all glowed with a serious aura. I assume it’s from enchantments, since Axel himself wasn’t glowing. Only his axe and pants were. But still, they had to be loaded to afford all this. I remember Lilly telling me how expensive good enchantments were when she was telling me about her dad’s store. Not even they could afford the really good stuff.

Okay... Maybe I shouldn’t mess with them too much... Maybe just a little bit more.

I dispersed the mana and had the whole floor settle with a slight glow to it. The lady didn’t seem to relax any, but I was done messing with her for now. I needed a way to figure out how to mess with Axel and the David Bowey over there.

After Lilly had taken a seat at the rocking chair I made, Axel and Mr. Bowey walked around the room, looking at the table I made, and the couch and other small things I had added through the night before they got here.

Lilly, being the good hostess she is, asked, “Do the three of you need anything at the moment? I can’t offer much food, but there is a room with a bed and I can get you some water if you need to refill your skins.”

Axel turned back to her and nodded. “We do need some water, but we’re good on food. I need to ask though. How have you stayed safe so long? There are no records of any buildings like this around here. And that tree on top of the hill... Did it grow through the building?”

Lilly smiled and replied, “No wolves should bother us here. There were some Goblins that came by the other day, but they were friendly enough. How was the road here?”

Axel looked confused as to why they were suddenly safe, but I wasn’t really paying attention to the conversation. While the four of them had their talk, I was focusing more on messing with the group.

I used pairs of my vines and started rubbing them together in a way that produced a creaking noise. The elf’s ears kept twitching every time there was a noise. It was a good start, but I wasn’t done messing with him just yet.

I unraveled my longest vine and snaked it around the top of the hill to right above where he was and started thumping the ground ever so slowly and quietly. This really got his attention as he quickly drew his bow and aimed at the ceiling.

Damn, that worked even better than I thought.

“There’s something above us,” he called out to his group.

I made a telepathic connection to Lilly and started laughing. IT seems she shared in my mirth, though did her best to keep it hidden. She did chastise me a bit before announcing, “That would be our host. He’s a bit of a prankster to newcomers. Please forgive him.”

Axel looked at her quizzically. “Host?” he asked. “Is that how you’ve managed to survive in these woods by yourself this last week?”

“Yes. He healed my injuries from the Orc attack, and he even killed one of the monsters himself,” Lilly replied aloud. Mentally she asked me if it were okay to tell them of my nature now.

Not yet, I answered. I’ll lay off on messing with them, but let’s save the identity conversation for later. You can invite them to stay the night though, if you want. Give the pack of wolves a chance to scatter.

“He’s offering to let you stay the night, if you so wish. There are two bedrooms available. The men can stay in one, us ladies,” she said looking at the woman,” can stay in the other. There is a bed in each of them for sleeping. It’s not a goose-feather mattress, but it’s still better than sleeping on the floor.”

Hey, I did my best! And I only made the one for you so far. I hadn’t made the rest of them yet! I complained. But I immediately went about making new beds.

I repurposed the one in my branches and brought that through a temporary hole in the wall I made to bring it in. I put that one in Lilly’s room, added a few things here and there to make it better suited for being on the ground, then moved to the other two.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

I made the third one identical to the other two, but I made the last a lot stronger. I made the supporting legs thicker, and the vines that were woven were made a lot tighter. I even added some Earth Magic to make some additional supports. Since this one went so well, I went ahead and added the strengthening support features to the rest as well.

I had just finished making the last of the adjustments when Lilly showed the trio to their rooms for the night. The boy's room was a lot emptier at the moment, since it just had the two beds pressed against either wall, but the ladies’ room had both beds and table in between them. I was pretty proud of my house building skills, to be honest. I did make it on short term notice after all.

“Rather bare accommodations, but at least the beds look sturdy,” the elf commented. I officially hated that guy.

I snaked a tendril of thought over to him and whispered as soft as I mentally could, “Rude.”

Archy (because why did I miss such an obvious nickname) jumped a solid foot off the ground. Axel and the robed lady -I still need something good for her... maybe Ivy? No, don’t want to rush it like with Archy. Whatever, no rush. I’ll get it eventually. They both brandished their weapons again, looking for what could have startled their companion. Archy looked around as well, but wisely just bowed his head and mumbled a half assed apology. The other two, seeing he was fine, hesitantly put their weapons away and looked around curiously.

The woman stared at one of the roots that was slightly visible through a small gap in the otherwise earthen wall, so I used some Earth Magic to shift the dirt around to cover it more completely. She definitely noticed that and squinted her eyes.

“So,” she said, “when will we be able to meet this patron of yours? I know you said he was a prankster, but I assume we should be able to meet him at this point, no? It would be rude of us not to make our proper introductions.”

Lilly hesitated before thinking at me, “What should I say?”

“Tell them this, exactly,” she nodded and prepared to repeat my words. “You can make your introductions whenever you wish. He knows everything that goes on in his domain.”

I feel like that was just the perfect amount of ominous for the situation.

Axel was the first to respond.

“I see. In that case, my name is Ragnar, barbarian build and defender of the Laughing Vipers. I am also the leader of our group. It would be a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Your home is a lovely one, and we thank you for your hospitality.”

Rather polite for a Barbarian.

Archy stepped up next. He was a lot more confident than I would be if I had just jumped 3 feet off of the ground.

“I am known as Taryn Long-Feather. I can’t say I am the biggest fan of... pranks, but I do appreciate you allowing us into your home. And forgive my rude comment. I meant no harm.”

He stepped back and we all waited as the last of the three made her introductions.

“I suppose I’m next. My name is Aspen, and I suppose I’m a caster build, leaning more towards the elements. I have to say, you have control over a lot of mana, more than I’ve ever seen before. I’d love to learn from you, if you’re willing to take an apprentice.”

Damn. Now I feel obligated to introduce myself.

I reached out with a thicker tendril than I normally used, and with great concentration, I split it into four ways, connecting to all of them. They all shivered as I made the connection, except Lilly, who was used to it by now.

“I am known as Willow. It is good to see new people. You are welcome to stay as long as you like, given you leave my home in a cleanly manner.”

I made my branches creak all ominous like as I separated my mind from them. I was extra careful not to connect too deeply with them, as I only wanted to make a brief introduction.

I did leave my mind connected to the caster for a moment to add a private message for her.

“I am not one to take on subordinates, but I might consider a trade in magical information. We can talk in the morning, if you so wish. But for now, enjoy your stay.”

With that, I let the group get comfortable and unload for the day. I decided I’d give them the rest of the day off of being messed with. They looked pretty damn tired to me.

When evening hours came, the trio brought out some food and shared it with Lilly. I decided to share some berries with them as well, since they had been so good to her so far.

I made a small bowl out of one of my vines to use as a delivery system and had a minor realization. I could simply make the connecting vine much smaller to make it easier to tear off when I was done with constructing the item. I felt a little embarrassed as to my previous struggles at realizing that, but I was glad to have that down for future references.

I loaded the bowl with 8 each of Stamina and Health Berries. I brought the bowl down to the front door and gave it a knock. Axel and Archy both jumped a bit, but Aspen (I still need a nickname for her) barely seemed to notice. She had wrapped herself in a thick looking blanket and was reading by a fire they had built and ignoring the world at the moment. I get it. Everyone needed some private time.

I informed Lilly what I had done, and she went over and opened the door. She grabbed the bowl, took 2 Stamina and 1 Health Berry then passed the bowl to Axel. He looked questioningly at the bowl, but popped a Stamina Berry in his mouth then jumped up.

“These are Resource Berries!” he exclaimed. That got the other two’s attention real quick.

“Imposible!” Archy shouted. “How on Vir could anyone have gotten these? As far as I know, these only grow in a specific grove, constantly protected by high level guardians.”

Oh right, this planet is called Vir. I keep forgetting that. And I guess I shouldn’t have shared the Berries. But that might also make them more valuable as a trading chip, if I so choose to go that route. Hmm... I’ll have to see how this plays out first.

“These are gifts from Willow. He has his... Resources for procuring these.” Lilly gave such a delightfully ominous answer. I’m so glad I’m rubbing off on her.

“If that’s so, then I see we’ve underestimated this host of ours. Thank you, Master Willow. We will treasure these.” Axel said as he started to take out a bag and put the Berries in.

I connected to him mentally and said, “Food is for eating. Eat now, before their effects wear off.”

I had no clue how long the Berries could be kept for, but I seriously didn’t want my Berries to be used outside of my purview. I have no problem sharing with friends, but I’m the only one who should be able to sell my literal life blood.

Axel winced at that, but nodded and agreed. He grabbed another Stamina Berry and two of the Health Berries and shared the rest with his group. There was an extra Health Berry that Lilly didn’t have, so I asked her to eat it so it wouldn’t go to waste. She obliged me and then settled back down.

As the Laughing Viper group began to settle down, they started telling the tale of their trip here. And I had to admit, it was impressive how well they handled themselves.