"Alright, let's set up a temporary camp first. We'll be staying here for the next few days," Caius said with a smile.

  "Temporary camp?" Hilda looked a bit puzzled and curious.

  "What, you've never built one before?" Caius asked.

  "No," Hilda replied.

  "Then how did you rest before?" Caius pressed.

  Hilda looked a little embarrassed. She pointed at a large tree in the distance and said, "I usually find a tall tree and sleep right on the branches."

  Caius stared at her, wide-eyed. Hilda’s cheeks turned slightly red as she puffed them out. "I... I’ve always operated alone. It’s more convenient this way, and I can react immediately if anything happens."

  "Fair enough," Caius chuckled and nodded. "But it must be uncomfortable to sleep like that."

  "Yeah, it is... but this is a forest, not home. No point in being picky," Hilda said. Then, noticing the way Caius raised an eyebrow, she couldn’t help but add, "Hey, don’t think I’m being overly delicate! I can handle hardship!"

  "Really?" Caius asked.

  "Of course!" Hilda responded, a little offended.

  She felt Caius was seriously underestimating her. He probably thought all noble children were pampered and delicate—greenhouse flowers. Well, she wasn’t like that at all.

  "Then try this," Caius said, tossing her a small green fruit. He’d picked it along the way.

  "What is this?" Hilda asked, confused. Though she had studied a lot, she didn’t recognize this olive-sized green fruit.

  "A sweetberry," Caius said with a mischievous grin. "Tastes great. Try it."

  Hilda stared at him, highly suspicious—especially after catching that wicked smile. "It must taste awful. No way I’m eating it."

  "Oh? Not going to eat it just because it might be gross? Didn't you just say you could handle hardship?" Caius said, mockingly.

  Hilda: "..."

  "Handling hardship doesn’t mean I have to eat gross stuff! If I can eat something sweet, why should I eat something bitter?" she reasoned.

  Caius tilted his chin slightly. "But what if I told you this fruit is actually good for you? Would you eat it then?"

  Hilda paused, curious. "Good how?"

  "You’ll know once you eat it," Caius said, refusing to elaborate, with an expression that basically said let’s see if you dare.

  Hilda’s cheeks puffed again. She was almost certain Caius just wanted to laugh at her. That fruit definitely tasted horrible.

  But she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction.

  She lifted her chin defiantly. "Fine! I’ll eat it!"

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  She braced herself—prepared for an onslaught of bitterness, sourness, or both. No matter how awful it was, she was determined to endure it and then enjoy Caius’s stunned expression.

  But the moment she bit into the olive-like green fruit, her eyes widened.

  Then her tongue shot out, and she quickly spit the fruit onto the ground.

  It was terrible—bitter and astringent. But that wasn’t the worst part. The instant the juice touched her tongue, it went numb, as if she’d been electrocuted.

  Which meant—the fruit was poisonous!

  "So numb... my tongue... I can’t feel anything!" Hilda scrunched up her face, exhaling sharply in an attempt to ease the tingling sensation.

  But the numbness only intensified. It even crept into her nasal cavity, making her nose feel oddly congested.

  Even her words started to slur.

  "It’sh poshon... and you made me eat it!" she slurred angrily.

  But before she could keep complaining, Caius tossed another fruit to her.

  She caught it—this one she recognized. It was an acid persimmon, a very sour variety that ripened around this season.

  "Try this one," he said.

  "No way!" Hilda puffed out her cheeks again, fuming. She was sure he was just messing with her.

  But Caius only smiled. "Try it. You’ll be surprised."

  Hilda sniffled a little. That last fruit had made her nose feel stuffy. She stared at the acid persimmon in her hand and hesitated. After a moment, she decided to give him one last chance. She took a bite.

  Instantly, her eyes widened again.

  In her memory, acid persimmons were nearly as sour as lemons—usually used as seasoning. Nobody just ate them raw.

  But this—this one exploded with sweetness in her mouth. It was like biting into pure honey.

  Even more miraculously, the numbness in her tongue rapidly faded, until all that was left was a lingering, almost addictive sweetness.

  "So sweet... how can an acid persimmon be this sweet?" Hilda was stunned. She took another couple bites, then suddenly turned to the green fruit she had spat out.

  "It was because of that?"

  "Mm-hmm." Caius nodded, grinning.

  "That fruit is called a sweetberry. I named it myself."

  "It grows low in grassy patches, and its plant looks almost identical to common sweetgrass. Even the fruit resembles sweetgrass berries, so it’s often mistaken for them. Most records don’t mention it—at least none I’ve seen."

  "I found it when I was little, picking sweetgrass berries. Ended up eating one by accident."

  "The strange thing about this fruit is, it’s mildly toxic—not dangerous, but enough to numb the tongue."

  "But that is the key. The toxin alters your taste perception. Makes everything taste different."

  "For the next half day or so, anything bitter or sour will taste sweet."

  "And the more bitter or sour it is—the sweeter it becomes."

  "Even your saliva tastes sweet after eating it."

  "That’s why I call it the sweetberry."

  "Amazing..." Hilda murmured in awe, eyes gleaming as she happily finished off her acid persimmon.

  Kiki, who had been listening intently, came bouncing over. "I want to try it too, meow!"

  Naturally, Caius obliged. He’d collected quite a few sweetberries along the way.

  "My tongue... can’t feel a thing, meow..." Sure enough, Kiki made the same scrunched-up face, which made both Caius and Hilda burst into laughter.

  Then, after nibbling an acid persimmon, Kiki lit up with delight once again.

  "So tasty, meow!"

  "So magical, meow!"

  Hilda nodded excitedly, her eyes shining as she looked at Caius. "What else do you know that’s interesting?"

  "Oh, lots of things," Caius said with a grin. "But first, we need to set up our camp. Otherwise, we’ll be sleeping out in the open on grass tonight."

  "Kiki, go gather some dry firewood."

  "Got it, meow!" Kiki darted off without hesitation.

  "What about me?" Hilda asked, munching on a second acid persimmon.

  She was definitely getting hooked. Even though acid persimmons were still quite tart, their texture was peach-like, and now—thanks to the sweetberry—they tasted like nature’s candy.

  "Here's the watering spot. We can't set up camp too close—too easy to run into Magic Beasts. Do a sweep around the area and find a good place to set up,"

  said the voice.

  "Don’t stray too far. Just find a flat spot with open visibility—that’ll do."

  "Got it!" Hilda nodded sharply, then shot off into the forest as a streak of golden light, brimming with enthusiasm.

  And Caius...

  He was skipping stones.

  The lakeshore was littered with smooth river rocks, many of them flat and perfect for skipping. It would be a shame not to make use of them.

  As for the temporary camp—well, once Hilda found a good spot and Kiki brought back enough firewood, then he’d get to work.

  No rush.

  Might as well have a little fun first. Hehe.