23

 *BANG*

*THUD*

*CRUNCH*

The earth shook with each of my punches.

*Wait, is it even appropriate to call this earth? Because, Earth... Right. My original home was called Earth. So what's this place called?*

I couldn't believe some minor technicality brought back one of my core memories.

Regardless...

*Hehe. This is fun.*

*BANG*

*THUD*

*RUMBLE*

Black shards flew everywhere.

The Obsidian Basilisk had stopped resisting. The thrill of the fight was gone.

At first I was impressed, but I couldn't see the thing in front of me as a living being anymore. It was a goddamn rock for heaven's sake. Punching it was just as entertaining as kicking a piece of gravel down the road.

No adrenaline, minimal dopamine. This was mindless amusement, but it was almost like doom scrolling - I didn't want to stop.

*Or maybe it's like popping bubble wrap? Kind of satisfying.*

*BANG*

*THUD*

*CRRRRACK*

"P ... P L E A S E ..."

"What the... you can talk?"

A low, rumbling timbre with a slow cadence... Its voice was as if the cave itself was speaking. Even though it spoke, in my mind, it was upgraded from a rock to a robot. It wasn't enough to get me to stop and contemplate its feelings. I lined up another punch, but the basilisk slammed its head to the ground in a frantic dogeza.

"S P A R E , M E ..."

"..."

Now, imagine a rock you were kicking down the sidewalk suddenly bowed and asked for forgiveness. How would you feel?

"Tch. What a buzzkill."

*CRACK*

I gave it one last smack for good measure and turned around to leave. I didn't have much time left, so I needed to locate some herbs ASAP.

"Hey, Blazel," I shouted. "Where's the Grimmia?"

...

No response.

I scaled the walls as quickly as I could to find Hazel Blaze at the top standing stock-still with her neck tilted at an odd angle.

I flicked her forehead, but she didn't respond.

*Ah, crap.*

I wasn't sure what was wrong with her, but she was obviously still alive. I princess-carried her and carefully hopped down the cliff, doing my best to preserve her HP.

*HP...? Well, it's not a video game, but you know what I mean.*

I lightly shook her and tried asking again, but she remained catatonic.

I sighed. Hazel Blaze couldn't respond, but fortunately there was someone else nearby who could.

I stared at the Obsidian Basilisk which hastily slinked away in fear. It tried curling up into a ball, but I gave it a firm kick.

"Answer me," I said. "Do you have any herbs down here?"

"..."

"If you won't answer me, I'll kill you."

"U- U N D E R S T O O D ... I , H A V E , S O M E ..."

The Obsidian Basilisk coughed. Or at least, I was pretty sure it had to be a cough, because that's the closest thing it sounded like. Several low-pitched gagging sounds came out of its throat, and it coughed up a hairball.

*Ugh, what are you, a cat?*

Though it did kind of look like a cat vomiting, the ball it spat out was rigid and completely dry. Unsurprisingly, it was a ball of obsidian.

*Ah, this is...*

It was much larger - its diameter was larger than my torso - but it was of the same composition as the projectiles it was hurling at me at the beginning of our fight. Naturally, there was only one thing to do.

I carefully laid down Hazel Blaze some distance away to make sure she wouldn't take shrapnel fire.

"Hyah-!"

With a karate chop, the ball of obsidian split in two, and out poured countless glittering gray leaves. It was almost as if the pulverized crystals of a geode were spilling out onto the ground in front of us.

I picked one up to examine it.

*>System Quest: Gather herbs - complete!*

*That's a relief...*

I was thankful I didn't have to bring it back to the Adventurer's Guild. I hadn't checked the time remaining, but we would've been really hard-pressed to bring those back on time.

*But...*

I thought this mysterious "Grimmia" would be more, well, mystical, but it just looked like sparkly gray basil.

I popped one in my mouth and chewed.

*Oh-!*

It was actually pretty damn good. It did have that acidic taste Hazel Blaze had mentioned before, and there was a tinge of bitterness and sourness that enhanced its leafy herb-like flavor.

*This would go will with pastas, soups, sandwiches... Maybe in a less concentrated form? It's kinda strong.*

Assuming they didn't already exist, I considered opening a restaurant serving these types of dishes.

Meanwhile... I didn't know how to cure Hazel Blaze, so the only thing I could do in the meantime was wait. I kept a finger on her pulse and listened for her continued breaths to make sure she was still with us.

*You better not leave yet.*