Lucas stood observing the tall grasses surrounding the garden. He swung his cutlass in both hands, gave a loud hum, and clashed the blades together twice before placing them on his back.
"That should scare it off." He turned to see Loki with his fists clenched tight and Ken with his pistols ready. "Good, but settle down. It was a wild boar. I scared it off." He approached the ginseng garden.The garden stretched with different colors. A small stream divided the ginsengs by their hue. The air was warm and thick. Clouds covered the sun.
Loki relaxed his grip and sighed. He walked toward Lucas. "Purple ginseng." He touched a purple leaf.
"Hothead, don't uproot anything," Lucas said. He stood in the black ginseng field not far from Loki and Ken. "Like I mentioned, we are here to grab some black ginseng roots."
Lucas bent, circled his hand around a plant, rubbing it for a moment before, he pulled it with a grunt. The moment the root came up, the blue black root gave a squeak. Lucas held it away from his body. "In Redemption Valley, everything will try to take a bite off you." He tightened his grip on the root. It tried to entangle his arm. He squeezed hard and the root loosened. "See? This is how you unplug a black ginseng. Come give it a try."
Loki nodded at Ken and walked toward Lucas. He spread his arms to touch the leaves as he reached the black ginseng field. He bent down and pulled a leaf, but the plant didn't move. He tried a few more times, but the plant got shorter as it dug itself into the mud.
A grunt from Ken caught his attention. Ken was busy trying to pull his own plant, but it was sinking into the soil. "Come out, you little plant. Ahhh!" Ken's muscles tightened as he pulled harder.
"Hey, what were you watching when I pulled mine out?" Lucas asked as he approached another plant.
Loki wiped sweat off his face. As he watched the plant grow back up and swing left and right before him.
"Ahhh, it's still sinking!" Ken held the leaf and pulled upward.
"Fatty, Hothead, look here. Now!" Lucas said.
Ken let go of the leaf. The plant immediately sprang back up and swung left and right. Is it mocking me? He stared at Loki, who was grinning at him. Ken shook his head. They both looked at Lucas.
"Medicine plants are not weeds to pull like that." Lucas moved his fingers around a leaf softly. He bent to touch the stalk and rubbed it. The leaf tangled around his hand.
"You need to pet it. Show it love, because you need it out." He rubbed upward toward the leaf and moved his hand up. The plant followed, trying to reach his fingers above. Once it reached Lucas's fingers, he rubbed it once more before pulling it out.
The root gave a squeak and tried to fight back, but Lucas squeezed his hand and it went quiet. He held the plant up toward Ken and Loki. "You see? Done." He smiled and placed it into his jacket pocket.
"Do we really need to do all that before we can pull out a plant," Ken said, crossing his arms on his chest. Loki nodded also crossing his arms as they both stared at Lucas.
"This garden has life, these plants have not wronged us in anyway. I as a rank three evolver can just pull them out without all the petting" Lucas held two plants and rubbed them.
"We need them for their lighting boosting properties, so even if one day you have the strength as me, try to respect what gives you strength." He pulled a root and squeezed before it could fight back. "besides it also makes it easy for you to pull it out" He sighed. "You guys should try again."
Loki stretched his hand to touch a plant. He stopped, removed his glove, and held the leaf with his bare fingers.
"Good, Hothead." Lucas nodded as he observed them.
Loki played with the leaf. It felt warm in his hand. The leaf wrapped around his fingers. He rubbed around the stalk and moved his hand upward. The plant climbed toward him. He pulled with a grunt.
A root tentacle shot toward his face. He pulled the plant away as it tried to near him. It entangled around his hand and jacket. He felt intense pressure around his arm and squeezed hard.
"Squeeze harder, Hothead. And Fatty, don't pull yet. Rub it first," Lucas said.
Ken was grunting, trying to pull his plant as it sank deeper into the ground. Lucas's advice was hard for him to follow. He just wanted it out.
"Got it."
Lucas turned to see Loki beside him placing a root into his jacket pocket.
Lucas stared at him. "Hothead, good work. Ken, calm down. Breathe. You've got this." He patted Ken's shoulder. "Now try again. Don't rush it. It's a process."
Ken sighed. He knelt and rubbed a leaf until he felt a response. The plant tangled around his finger. He moved his hand up slowly. The plant followed. He pulled it out, squeezing before it could fight back. He opened his jacket and placed the root inside. "Thank you."
Lucas nodded at him, then looked at Loki. "You nearly got your eye removed by that root. Be more vigilant next time. When the win is coming, don't rush. You might get killed."
Loki nodded.
Lucas's watch beeped and he looked up at the sky. The clouds had grown darker, thick and gray. The air felt heavy. "It's going to rain soon. The beasts will look for shelter when the weather turns. That's when they get bold. We should move fast."
They crossed the green grass field they had passed earlier. The wind picked up. Loki smelled something strange and stopped. He bumped into Ken, who had also stopped and had his pistols out, pointing at a tall black tree in front of them. Lucas stood observing the tree.
"Seems we have company. The dark weather brought them out early. Prepare to engage."
Their watches beeped. Loki looked at his watch and read the alert.
"Rank one and two Thunder Echo Bats. Advice: Engage. Danger: Rank three Thunder Echo Leader Bat may be nearby. Mission: Hit and Run."