Brunner was looking at the young group wide eyed, mouth opening and closing, until he grabbed on to Harold to steady himself, before turning his face to Livia again.
"That includes seeds, right? Tell me it includes seeds!" The imploring question stumped Livia, but if she had to guess: "yes, sure but,"
She got no further. Brunner started explaining in a blubbering mess interspersed with frantic laughter, but he quickly realized Livia had never even seen the kauri tree.
He nearly picked her up and ran rather than explain, but he shakily stayed himself. This could change everything.
The others knew what he was speaking of, so in spite of his tongue-twisting excitement they swiftly had Livia layered back up for the cold and underway to the hidden tree.
The sight was stunning for the first timers; Brunner did not show it to just anybody. Well… Alright, he did, but he asked everybody not to spread it around, so if you were always staying put in Salcret you could very well not even be aware of such a magnificent things existence.
Even Hyde was affected by the clearing’s energy and suddenly in the mood to howl, to celebrate the glorious thing.
[This might explain a few things actually, we lost Salcret and the other southbound villages. Some of them gone since hundreds of years in my day, but the reason remained unknown.]
A kauri tree had two different cones, one who released pollen and one who contained seeds awaiting fertilization which then ripened and released in turn.
Brunner started speaking of the Spell again, once he had given Livia ample time to be impressed with his project. "If you mean to tell me that I can replenish the whole seasonal yield, it may well mean my project truly has a chance; will you explain how it works?"
Livia still didn't understand why the kauri tree was special, besides the size; but she knew Brunner was sincerely on the lookout for Salcret and really humans in general. So elping out was a given, and it might even mean he ended up owing her some proper answers. "I imagine you have a Skill that lets you sense your lands in a sense?" Brunner closed his eyes and nodded. "So focus on your Spell, focus on your holdings, and focus on your yields, and who has been harvesting them. Each in turn, and then use the Spell like you would a Skill, whole-heartedly. Once the Spell is underway you will recognise the same intuitive sense of the process you are used to from Skills, then you just hold on for the ride, deplete your pool and pray your affinity pulls through,"
She made it sound like more luck than skill, although experience was clearly a factor.
Someone without a Caster Class getting a Spell at level 40 was akin to a very sudden change of vocation; despite handling the same subject matter he was used to, this was a much more direct way of using it.
When Brunner had been focusing with his eyes closed for 20 minutes–the world contained in the clearing suddenly started shaking–Hyde reflexively thought it was an earthquake and embarrassingly let out a surprised yelp before he could help himself. But soon the watching group realized that it was the snow on the giant tree that was shaking off from the growing pines and cones beneath.
The process was over within minutes despite the slow start, and there amidst the cold weather the tree stood proudly, looking just as flush with a ripe yield as it had back in the autumn.
"Yes, yes, it frickin' worked!" Brunner was looking drained, but he still unleashed his boisterous laugh with a boom even greater than usual, the lads all clapped and Livia joined in once she was able to uncover her ears after Brunner's supernaturally loud reaction. He started high-fiving everybody and then as he got to Livia she finally got her chance to speak up.
"Brunner, I don't get it, why would this be the thing you want so much, won't it take years and years to grow a tree like this from scratch, are the seeds really that valuable to you?"
Brunner's beaming face with its red beard and rosy cheeks was almost answer enough, but luckily there was no need to settle for that–as Brunner was the kind of man who shared his successes–with everyone who had pitched in, whenever it was possible.
"How about we get out of this cold, and I'll explain myself over some apple brew, body cakes and lingonberry jam?"
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
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The fire was lighting back up, and the drying herbs in the ceiling gave off a faint aroma that the burning bark mixed with. They jostled and all sat down to hear what had gotten Brunner so excited in the first place.
"I take it I don't need to explain about Elderwood’s volcanoes? Good, good; you see my travels were long, but what I learned from observing the [Druids] on that dreaded continent of Zisle where I ended up, and what convinced me to take on this risk–and bring my baby back home to Salcret, despite the mortal danger–was how this type of giant tree interacts with the environment if you let it grow uncontested for long enough, and with the proper guidance," He coughed and went to bring everybody their drink before continuing. "The continent of Zisle had its volcano on the western side, and the eastern side towards Elderwood had long been starved of energy in comparison. But among other wonders there were a lot of [Druid] there–of a very special and ancient kind, as they told it. Those Casters had long ago come to realize how these trees, if their purpose was guided from beginning to end, were capable of digging their roots so far beneath the earth that eventually they hit pay-dirt, the magic hidden in our planet's core,”
It was a hard thing to picture, but with the size of the still rather young kauri… It became slightly more imaginable.
Brunner was explaining calmly, his energy spent from the great Spell he unleashed earlier. The cooldown was likely to be in the weeks, if not months. “Those roots grew exponentially, and released far more magic than the tree alone needed back on the surface." His audience were mesmerized by the implication. "I got separated from friends I had earned there, then found myself doomed for a cruel death if discovered. But I also realized that if I could steal one of their sacred seeds, and make it back to Elderwood, and even bring it back home, then I could see to it that she survived here in Doc Forrest, maybe even thrived due to being uncontested, it would mean I could help to over time make our lands as rich and as beautiful as the Cloven's."
Hyde didn't catch all that, but he had felt the special atmosphere in that mighty tree's glade. He vowed that he’d be returning regularly from now on.
Kalle spoke up. "Won't that attract attention though, are you ready for that, is Salcret?" The question made Sten nod in appreciation.
But Brunner had clearly considered it. "That is why these seeds are so important Kalle, what I have proven is that a kauri can survive and thrive here, but even with my boosting it, it still only produces 100-120 fertile seeds each of its seasons, of those maybe 30 settle properly and start to grow, and despite my only giving them to fellow [Arborists] I trust, of those 30 only ten might survive past the sapling stage. And they still need many years to actually get the effects we are hoping for; so the dangers are many, but spreading the responsibility ensures some will make it across the finish line, if we remain dedicated and do not falter over time." Brunner nodded confidently at his own speech.
The effects sounded too good to be true, but if the trees came from outside of Elderwood even…Then who was to say what they could and could not do, except possibly its long-time caretakers.
Livia had been nodding along. She knew most of all how little time remained to humanity, and the fact that weakness would not be enough to keep them safe for long. Elderwood was not the kind of place for civilizations who wanted to hide.
She decided to shoot her shot.
"Brunner, would you be willing to donate a seed or two to Roldy, for safekeeping with the [Guild], once we travel for the north of Dormata?"
The [Hatchet Arborist] smiled and patted his beard at the question. "Towards Cloven lands? That is risky... But then again, we got attacked here by the Mantis bastards just the other month, so who's to say where is safe… Hah. You know what, you’ve got it little sister!”
She couldn’t help but do a victory pose at that.
Brunner suddenly looked at Harold like he would need to step up his carving the shape of the man. “But you take good care of her, Roldy. Okay? Come by later this week when my magic pool has recovered and I will try and show you how to get an [Arborist]-adjacent Skill for your 10th level capstone; for that tree to survive you're going to need it."
They decided to stay the night since the day's events had taken longer than expected, in the morning the usual lads all had a friendly spar, and Sten participated for the first time.