Tale Weaver

Neto sat in front of Hitoshi and Ume, in an impossibly enormous cavern, trying desperately not to think about the army of dryads behind him. There must've been over two-thousand. Tightly packed behind massive tables, ears eager to hear what Neto had to say. Charlotte curled beside him, dozing off her thorough massage.

"Ahem... So, are we still waiting for the cooks?" Neto decided to break the ice. His voice crackled like thunder, even though he hardly raised it. This cavern had some strange acoustics and was located under the cliff where he entered this leaf. Far enough from their trees to make their threads of connection invisible.

'What happens when a dryad gets too far from their tree?'

Hitoshi chuckled, which grew into a belly-laugh. This was loud enough for all to hear, even without amplification.

"Ah! It's been so long I forgot to explain. Forgive me, honored guest. For every story you provide, we will provide one course. Don't worry about raising your voice, your seat grants you this cavern's blessing, so that all will hear your tales."

Neto grimaced.

'They'll definitely be angry if I try to back out now. This is troublesome, I didn't want to spend too much time here.'

He couldn't bore them with a dull story, and he wasn't sure if he could lie. Their abilities were still a complete mystery as well.

"hmm." Neto mumbled. "Ah! Would you like to hear about the time I met a certain dwarf?"

Neto decided to test the waters here. He would embellish the truth a bit, and if they called him out for lying, he would apologise and tell them his best story immediately afterword.

"No need to ask permission," Hitoshi nodded, "we are waiting anxiously."

From his side, Ume shot Neto a pleading glance. Her thick eyelashes curled above those wondrous eyes, and her arms folded under her breasts.

'How can I say no to those eyes? You give Charlotte a run for her money.'

"Let's see..." Neto started, looking away from Ume's piercing stare. "...It began with betrayal."

He told them about his first day in this world, patching up details such as Rakshasa saving him, or that three goblins almost killed him. He vaguely referred to them as 'Nimble beasts'.

As his story progressed, he embellished more and more details. Hitoshi grew excited, as if a fire were lit in his chest, and he heard faint roars behind him from cheering dryads. Even Ume was moved. Neto sensed tenderness in her aura, and her gaze became seductive.

'If you keep looking at me like that, I won't be able to help myself...' he admitted.

By the end of his story, he'd slain mercenaries, escaped rampaging behemoths, and saved the Forge Demon from an army of direwolves.

When Neto finished, a faint silence broke out across the cavern. His heart was beating fast, and the adrenaline coursing through his veins made him realize he'd lost himself in that fabrication. He'd even stood at one point, gesturing wildly with his arms.

Sitting back in his chair, Neto folded his arms on his personal table. He sensed Charlotte's amusement and realized she'd been listening as well.

Neto gave Ume a smile and a wink in return. 'I never learned how to flirt, huh?'

Sticky embarrassment filled his chest.

That must've snapped Ume from her trance because their was palpable confusion, and she dabbed a finger against her father's shoulder.

As if her touch infused life into that Hitoshi statue, he bellowed from the bottom of his belly, standing tall and beating his chest. His downstairs friend had raised a half-mast, which sent more molten blood into Neto's cheeks. That guy was a weirdo... No wonder Ume wanted to escape this place.

Neto still hadn't turned to face the dryad army, but their bellows in return were just as powerful. The cavern rocked for an eternal minute.

When everything settled down, Hitoshi sank into his chair with a satisfied grin, and gestured towards the crowd. Ume took a square-glass bottle filled with amber fluid from somewhere and began filling his cup.

'Hard liquor?!!' Neto smiled inside. 'If I can get that guy drunk, then I have a way out of this place!! As for finding that exit portal...'

Ume shot Neto a brief glance, and he realized he hit the nail on the head.

'She's cunning. Maybe taking her with me wouldn't be a bad thing after all...'

He knew this was a selfish thought, but that didn't bother him. He was a selfish person, after all.

'I'll have to ask Rakshasa about separating dryads from their tree...'

"Well then." Hitoshi bellowed, drinking deeply from the freshly poured liquor. "I'm Sure I speak for every dryad here here. That story...'

The king narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing the radish sitting in front of him.

'Gulp.'

"...Was among the best we've ever heard!! Begin the first course!"

// // //

Flashes of aqua-marine light morphed the cavern into a jungle.

Neto turned to face this spectacle, which was unfolding behind him. Volunteer Dryads stood from their tables, and unleashed tendrils of unbound mana, which coalesced into vines, swelling and bubbling with fruit.

"Redbulbs..." Neto drooled, forgetting this cavern would amplify even a whisper.

Hitoshi clapped from his vantage point.

"You are familiar with this succulent treat? I'm impressed!"

Neto pretended not to hear, enthralled by the displays of unimaginable magic.

'One dryad can fill ten tables with enough food for hundreds of people... Their combat magic must be incredible as well.'

A pretty young lady with freckles and pink eyes waltzed towards him from the crowd. She avoided looking directly at him, something only Ume and Hitoshi were comfortable with. Speaking of Ume...

Neto could feel a jealous glare pierce the back of his neck. The poor girl in front of him looked to be the focus of this beam, shrinking and fidgeting under its potency.

"H-Here you are, honored guest!" She burbled, creating a red bulb vine on his table. He marveled at her magic, which lifted her hair and sent ripples through her skin.

"Its beautiful." He praised. "What's your name?"

Of course, this amplified as well, and Neto almost thought his heart would stop under Ume's unrelenting glare. The dryad formed bulbs of sweat on her forehead.

"F-Fumiko"

She turned towards Charlotte and opened what looked like a small dungeon portal in the palm of her hand. From this portal, Fumiko pulled an incredible bone. Dried meat dotted the ivory log.

'That has to be two meters at least, and as thick as a telephone pole!' he admired. 'This delicate-looking dryad can lift such a thing?'

Charlotte interrupted her daze to gnaw on the grizzly end of her new toy.

After Fumiko left to enjoy her part of this meal, Neto dug in to the redbulbs. The skin was delicate enough for him to break with a nibble. He perforated the juice-filled sack and drank its cool, sweet tincture.

"Marvelous technique!" Hitoshi observed.

They'd never know about Neto's blunder on his first attempt.

Even though redbulbs held a rich flavor, they were easy to eat, so Neto indulged in many before the strain of the dryad's expectation-filled stares wore him down. He felt invigorated enough to tell his next tale.

"Alright, Alright." Neto began, "This second story involves a certain dragon..."