Chapter 13: Lost her way

Having found a smooth stone to grind the herbs, Kanae heaved a sigh of relief. She held the familiar stalks in her hand and sniffed one of them. 

The herb with square stems, stalked, smooth, dark green leaves, and blunt oblong clusters of pinkish lavender flowers was none other than Peppermint! 

The very ingredients that were commonly made into candies. 

Kanae breathed in the scent in delight. The spicy yet cool whiff of air was simply a pleasure to her nostrils. These plants were of 10x better quality compared to what she had on Earth. Her body even felt less warm than before. 

Along with Peppermint, she had picked up more herbs that could help reduce fever and inflammation in general. 

Elderflower, dense, tiny white flowers that send out an alluring sweet smell. Kanae loved to put these to use and make them into a wine. 

Yarrow, a natural diaphoretic, which causes immense sweating and reduces fever. Kanae definitely used this to prank people before. 

Catnip, the famous bait Kanae put out for the street cats everytime she felt too lonely and wanted to pet animals. 

Kanae smiled as the memories of her medicine studies kept popping up.

Having rubbed her skin against the peppermint and tasting it a bit, she was satisfied to know she wasn't allergic to it. 

Ed and Miao looked at her fascinated. They had held back the screams of horror and to their surprise, Kanae was right. 

Perhaps encouraged by her actions, Ed inched forward to pick up a bit of the peppermint powder and licked his finger. Before Kanae could stop him, he had already tasted the peppermint. 

Almost immediately, his tongue started to swell up and he choked. Horrified, he started to cry and panic which just made his choking worse. 

"Ed!! What happened to you?!?" Miao screamed, holding his back. 

Kanae's eyes widened and she instantly pulled out another herb. Her experienced hands grinded it quickly on another smooth stone. Without wasting more time, her pale thin hands shoved the powder down his throat. 

Ed forced back the gagging reaction threatening to come out and swallowed the herb. Tears poured down his tired eyes. 

Miao cried as she watched his pitiful state. 

Kanae sighed internally. This pair of crybabies was somewhat getting on her nerves. 

'Like an idiot, this guy truly has no patience.' 

Since the quality of herbs were good here, the potential of allergies being severe increased on its own. Ed probably had an allergy and didn't realise it. He never had a reason to test for allergies before. Moreover, he had never seen Peppermint. The delicious smell and Kanae's fearlessness along with her reaction, tempted him to try it out. 

Without waiting for her permission, he reached out and tried it, like an idiot. Now he had an allergic reaction and was paying the price for it. 

The powder Kanae had given him was made from nettle leaves. When Ed's reaction lessened a bit, Kanae waved to Miao and ushered her near. 

"Listen, go boil some water real quick. I'll make him a medicinal tea to drink. He'll be fine in no time. This was just a reaction to the plant I picked up. It's not poisonous, just that his body doesn't like it. Do you understand?" Kanae explained patiently. 

Nettle leaves were a very common medicine in the past, a natural antihistamine that could help reduce allergic reactions. It could also be brewed into tea or taken as a supplement. 

Kanae thought tea would warm them all up and at the same time, Ed's allergic reaction would end as well. 

With Miao's help Kanae carefully let Ed's body lean against the cave's slightly moist walls. Ed took a large breath, his face still a bit pale. His eyes had a thankful look as he stared at Kanae. 

Miao saw the look and squeezed his hand. Ed intertwined their fingers for a moment. 

Miao then followed Kanae. They made a makeshift bowl using the hardened leaves they found near the big tree. Kanae deemed them to be clean. Eitherway the boiling would get rid of the germs. 

A sigh left her pink lips. She felt tired all of a sudden. The urge to go back home was too much. She missed her cute panda teddies, her 'I'm a motherf*cking superstar' cup, her favourite chocolate brownies with ice cream combo, and most importantly, her super mega soft blanket. 

A longing look appeared on her dainty face. 

Miao couldn't help but ask, "What are you thinking about, Honoured Miss?" 

Kanae snapped out of her thoughts and gave a rueful smile. 

"Something I can't have again."

"Something you can't have? Why? Did you lose it?" Miao's pretty face scrunched up in doubt. 

Kanae nodded, looking outside. 

"Yeah. I don't think I can ever get it back. It's a matter of the past. It's… something I should let go of. Even if it seems very hard."

"That sounds tough… Why are you even here though, Honoured Miss?" Miao finally blurted out the question she had been holding back for so long. 

"Here? In this world?" 

"No, no! Of course not. Why would I ask that? haha… I mean in this forest."

"Oh that… I don't know. I lost my way…" 

"...."

"...."

Kanae mirrored Miao's blank expression. 

Ed, who was resting, was completely oblivious to this conversation. 

Miao's lips twitched. 

'Is she being serious right now? She got lost? In the worst place possible? WAIT they were following a person who's lost?!?!' 

"I have had a bad sense of direction since I was born. Truly a pity considering I'm smart and beautiful, haaah."

Kanae struck a pitiful pose, her fingers resting below her chin. 

For once, Miao had a violent tendency that made her want to smack Kanae so hard—

But seeing her tiny, cute little form, she wouldn't be able to even pinch her. Even if those chubby cheeks were begging to be pinched. 

Slightly distracted by the fleshy bits on her cheeks, Miao stirred the water in their makeshift pot. Kanae added the nettle leaf after grinding them a bit. The familiar smell of nettle filled the tree and they all sighed a bit. The herbs here were truly quite strong. 

Kanae was thinking in anticipation of what more herbs she could find in this world. If there were higher quality herbs, there would definitely be some very rare ones! 

If so, she was in luck… Her dreams of being rich were going to be fulfilled!!! 

A maniacal laugh escaped her mouth. 

Ed and Miao gaped at her, creeped out. 

This Honoured Miss of theirs was really scary sometimes.