"Ready for a day of work?" A voice said behind Norbert. The sun had risen in the sky, now creating light for him to see the world; Norbert spun around, looking at who was talking to him, the voice already narrowing it down to one person.
There stood Martitia, looking a little worn out but much better than the last time he had seen her. Getting to his feet, Norbert stood in front of her. "Well, that's what I'm paid for. I'm sure it isn’t to sit here looking pretty." Norbert replied.
"Good to hear your enthusiasm. Now, as it was given that you were not to do night duty, and by the villagers' request for the first few days, each scout will have a villager go with them. The jungle is a dangerous place for the uninitiated." Martitia said.
Norbert just nodded, interrupting before she could continue. "So, where is the meet-up point for this little party?"
"Back at the main tent where we saw the Brealk diagram, most will gather there after breakfast." She replied, starting to walk back. As Norbert stared at her, wiping sweat from his brow, he now remembered the question he wanted to ask someone.
"Hey Martitia, how does everyone else not sweat?" Norbert asked her.
Turning around, she just smiled as she pointed to her gear. "Need magic, constant upkeep. Not designed for crystals." She said as she continued to walk away. Norbert just stared at her. With what he had, there was no way for him to tap into that or change his clothes to fit him better. Looking down at his own, Norbert confirmed there was no marking for him to use anyway, wondering if the armourer knew he didn't have magic and just gave him regular clothes instead.
Accepting his hot, sweaty fate, Norbert reached down, picked up his bag, and followed Martitia to the meeting house.
***
Norbert stared at the single person left; everyone else had left, including Martitia. Staring back at him was a lithe man, nearly a head taller than himself. Like everyone else, the man had not a single drop of sweat on him. He wore loose-fitting pants with no top, showing the world his muscled body without a fat drop. Staring closer, he examined the scars around his body, showing a life of hardships and combat, risks taken and the result of miscalculation.
Staring up at the man, Norbert bowed to him, saying, "I place my trust in you to show me the way of the jungle."
Hearing a snort in reply, the man responded, "Looks like they leave the runt of the litter to me." Louder continued, "Come along, sweaty man; I've been tasked with showing you around Transnu." Walking out the tent, Norbert waved his thanks to Martitia before he followed the villager.
Having walked around the village up in the trees, his guide stopped at one of the ropes, going down onto the forest floor. Holding on, the villager quickly slid down, feet impacting with the ground as he stared back up at Norbert for a moment before walking away, leaving Norbert up there.
He shook his head, knowing that he might be sweaty, but showing off like that would not be tolerated. Following from above, Norbert made his way through the village. As his guide passed under one of the bridges, Norbert hopped over the rope railing and plummeted to the ground, aiming right behind the guide.
As he plummeted to the ground, Obsius flew above him, slowly gliding down. Pushing energy through his body, Norbert felt the ground impact from under him, squatting down to absorb the impact; standing up straight, he looked to his guide. "Well, are you going to show me around the place or just stand around here twiddling your thumbs?" Norbert asked him.
The villager stared at him, not saying a word as he silently turned around and ran into the village. Giving chase, the two of them quickly made their way out of the village, the houses no longer in the trees, the vines denser than before, and shrubs all around. The clearing around the trees was gone; only small paths meandering through the jungle could be found.
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Norbert continued forward; he wondered how the guide was supposed to show him around the place at this speed, the plants whizzing by and the rustling of the leaves enough to notify anything of their travels. As he continued going, the guide looked back at Norbert, thinking he would be alone each time, but Norbert was still following behind. Catching the grimace on his face, the guide sped up again, trying to leave Norbert in the dust.
Passing by plants that looked suspicious, the guide continued forward, Norbert now knowing the two of them wouldn't find any creatures, the amount of commotion the guide was making, no longer caring about being a guide, only wanting to prove a point. Norbert wondered what this was all about. It had long gone past being a game to push the weird sweaty person around.
Fed up, Norbert sprinted forward and leapt as fast as he could. The guide turned back in time to see Norbert flying towards him, eyes wide in surprise as the two crashed in a heap on the floor.
Turning around, Norbert slammed his back into a tree, the guide smashing into Norbert as he felt the air get pushed out of him. Focusing on his breathing, Norbert felt the pain in his stomach slowly release. Holding onto his knees, Norbert spat the bile coating his mouth. Looking to the side and staring at the guide, Norbert asked, "What is your deal?"
Sitting up and back against the tree, the guide just spat out some bile before explaining, "Nobody wants to show you around. I drew the short straw and was left to you. Didn't know you were that fast." He explained.
Norbert, standing up, just stared down at the man. Holding his hand out, the guide grasped on as he pulled the villager up. The two of them standing, Norbert not letting go of the villager's hand. Without showing effort, Norbert began squeezing down on his hand, staring at the villagers and the faces he was making.
First, Norbert felt the villager also squeeze back, Norbert copying the pressure on him; as Norbert exerted more force, the villager's face slowly morphed from a smile to surprise, then horror as he felt his bones start to bend his hand.
Holding the pressure, Norbert said, "And I'm fast, too. I'm Norbert; what can I call you?" Norbert asked.
The villager, gulping, responded, "Trinus."
Norbert nodded in response, unclasping Trinus's hand at hearing the name. Trinus breathed in relief as he clasped his hand, looking down and flexing his fingers, ensuring nothing was broken or in pain. A nod to himself that nothing was too severely damaged, just a bit sore, he walked to one of the bushes, pointing to a spotted flower.
Norbert stared at the flower, seeing the purple flower with its round petals, looking back at him, almost wanting to hug him. The white specks and lines throughout each petal formed a white centre where Norbert could see some pollen. He almost held his breath as he expected a bee to buzz around at the picturesque flowers.
"That's a Vanda Orchid, mostly harmless, but if prepared, the juice can provide a diluter for other ingredients in potions," Trinus said before walking to the next place.
Norbert just stared at the flower, something he would expect to see from Earth, and the name was appropriate. Continuing forward, Norbert continued listening to what Trinus would say; together, the three slowly made their way back to the village. Obsius has caught up to them and is making a racket in Norbert's ear.
***
Seeing the village past the next couple of trees just on the outside of the clearing and on the end of the winding path, Norbert saw Trinus start to look up at the sky. Following his lead, Norbert looked around, seeing the sky darkening. Wondering what was causing Trinus to be so jumpy, Norbert stopped when he could see the village ahead.
Trinus, seeing Norbert stopped, turned around, calling for him to follow. Norbert waved him away, shouting, "What’s out there you're so afraid of?"
Trinus did not give a response as he started sprinting. Norbert just turned back around, looking at the dark forest before him. Staring around, Norbert looked forward, wondering what would be coming from the forest. Reaching for his sword, Norbert slid it slightly out of its sheath, confirming it wouldn't get stuck and still at the appropriate angle after his day in the jungle.
Flicking his vision between the magic and night, Norbert watched as the forest turned from green and colourful to monotone grey. As he continued staring, he heard a voice shouting out from behind him. Focusing on it, he heard, "Norbert, get back here right now!"
Norbert momentarily turned around, shouting, "Just give me a second!"
As he turned around, Norbert felt the wind rush past him as he flew momentarily turned around, shouting. Clutching onto Obsius the two of them went high in the air. As he began to fall, he felt the air come up around him before he felt it billowing around him, the trees whipping past him.
Finally stopping on the wooden floor of the tent, Norbert stared up, seeing several mages around him in their blue. The three people in different clothes were Dousan, Martitia and the villager who explained the Brealk to him.
Resting his head back on the ground, Norbert groaned, wondering how much trouble he would now be in.