This Heroine's Friend Has the Power of Botany

Chapter 227

The Three-Colored Monkey Troop

That evening’s meal ended with all 30 people enjoying simple grilled meat. The initially planned meal preparations didn’t go as well as expected. However, sitting together and eating grilled meat, grilled and boiled vegetables sparked conversations that brought everyone in the camp closer together.

The only exception was the prince. After returning from hunting numerous beasts, he isolated himself in his tent and didn’t join the group. Ryker had to bring meat and food to his tent. It seemed Ellie’s words had hurt his heart so much that he couldn’t recover his composure in a short time.

Aman, seeing the prince so off-balance, was in an exceptionally good mood. He stopped scowling at others and laughing throughout the conversations, partly thanks to the effects of alcohol, which helped him relax significantly.

Although Aman didn’t talk much with the others, his playful demeanor with Ellie allowed everyone to see a new side of him. Initially, they called him the "Demon of the Setter family" because he acted mature beyond his years. Even fourth-year senior students didn’t dare approach him. However, after seeing him enjoying simple things and conversing with Ellie like any other third-year student, everyone realized Aman wasn’t as unapproachable as they thought. He wasn’t the Demon they couldn’t look in the eye anymore.

Koross had now become a young man many women wanted to talk to. Even the haughty Nadia showed interest in him. Well... Koross didn’t speak much but wasn’t so dull that he couldn’t say anything like Young Lord Owen. He only spoke about useful topics and sometimes stopped Second Young Lord Aman from teasing Ellie too much. His image now was like that of a warm father. It was no wonder that all the beautiful women liked looking at him.

However, Koross wasn’t interested in romantic pursuits. He dedicated his life to the Setter family, with a strong ambition to achieve strength and earn Young Lord Owen’s approval. He focused solely on doing his tasks well. Nonetheless, Koross could converse well with Lady Nadia, who had extensive knowledge of stratagems. She proposed various kind of stratagems, which Koross thought would be useful in protecting Ellie.

In just one night, everyone grew quite familiar with each other. Despite this...Ellie remained cautious. She didn’t allow anyone to get too close. With the experience from her past life, she knew that the more accessible she made herself, the less respect she would receive.

Some might think she was easy to talk to and take advantage of, or they might disregard her feelings. So, before it could get to that point, even though Ellie knew many people wanted to talk to her privately, she didn’t give them the chance. At most...she only spoke with Aman, Koross, Wint, and Zoey, leaving the others to just watch her group from afar.

Not long after the late-night meal, Ellie went back to training in her tent and continued spreading her spores. While others might be preparing to rest, Ellie did no such thing.

She didn’t have much time to rest; part of her focus was on accelerating the spread of the spores while also monitoring the general situation. Another part of her focus was on reading books about creating stratagems. If it weren’t for the 3 companions who had recently evolved in her secret dimension, she would have had to spend time inside watering plants and preparing potions for Professor Medik and for her own reserves.

Though the appearance of the 3 wasn’t her intention, Ellie was grateful that they had awakened.

The next morning, which was only the 2nd day of the hunt, Ellie emerged from her tent to see many people excited by what they saw. It turned out that the reckless prince hadn’t slept all night. Last night, he had challenged Aman to a beast-hunting competition, and they had already completed the hunting quota for 1 week. They might even have extra for the next week. However, Aman said it was enough to fulfill the mission requirements because they also needed beast meat for their camp.

"Duchess Ellie, I’ll take you to deliver the mission." Koross approached with Wint and Zoey behind him. The 3 hadn’t participated in last night’s fight, so they were still energetic, unlike Aman and the prince, who were now passed out.

Ryker was unsure of his duties afterward, but Koross had told him to stay and guard the camp. If an unexpected event like a beast attack occurred, it would be his job to help fend it off. This task didn’t require much effort because the stratagems around the camp ensured its safety, but complacency was unwise.

Therefore, Ryker was left sitting idly on a makeshift watchtower, built by stacking logs to increase height. He watched the 4 converse happily, feeling somewhat out of place in the camp. If it weren’t for the prince’s confused state last night...he might have integrated well into the group of 30.

But anyway, after the prince’s fight with Aman last night and knowing the outcome, it seemed he felt much better. Although he lost, the difference in their abilities and the reality check must have taught the prince a lot...

Riker could only hope that everything would improve from here on.

After knowing that the 1-week mission was complete and that she had to deliver the beast meat to the royal city, Ellie went to store the beasts in her dimensional ring. Her duty was merely to travel with them.

Zoey seemed more excited than anyone else. She knew that this journey would allow her to fulfill her role as a "knight" and protect Duchess Ellie. It was like a chance to showcase her abilities.

Previously, with the prince, Ryker, and Lord Aman around, all highly skilled, she couldn’t fully display her capabilities. But now, with only 4 people including Duchess Ellie on this mission, Lord Koross mentioned he’d guard the rear, meaning she and Mentor Wint would lead the way and fend off any beasts. Thus...this time, she would show the results of her training to the fullest!!

"Everyone, do not let your guard down, understood? When we traveled here, the beasts didn’t know there was much prey around, so it isn’t strange that their numbers were fewer than usual. But now that we’ve set up camp, we will be an excellent lure, drawing more beasts around us. If we let our guard down even for a moment, it could mean death!" Koross warned. Delivering the mission could be seen as an easy task, but from another perspective, it could be equally challenging.

Ellie spread her spores around, sensing the locations of any nearby beasts. So, she wasn’t too alarmed. If there were beasts ahead, they would simply deal with them. If there was a group of beasts that they calculated it was too large to handle, they would avoid that route.

Her abilities allowed her to know Koross was right; after the beasts caught the scent of humans, they started to gather around the camp. She didn’t know if Aman intended this, as there was powder to mask their scent, but he didn’t use it, letting the beasts catch the scent and approach instead.

Unlike this time, the 4 of them sprinkled scent-masking powder, making the journey smoother. However...they still encountered some beasts.

The first group of beasts they faced were wild boar beasts. With Wint’s and Zoey’s strength, they handled the 3 boars easily. Koross didn’t even need to intervene, letting the mentor and disciple fight while he gathered the meat of the 3 boars they killed.

"Senior, ah, I mean Duchess Ellie, did I do well?" Zoey wiped her sweat as she dragged the boars over. Ellie quickly stored them in her dimensional ring, and Zoey never ceased to marvel at the ring’s convenience.

The young girl’s eyes sparkled, waiting for a response. Ellie nodded once.

“Well done.” Just those words made Zoey feel like she was floating in the air. The determination to train and protect someone truly bore fruit when she could demonstrate that ability in front of that person and receive their approval! Zoey, having received praise, felt extremely happy.

"Even so, you’re still inexperienced. Your physical strength is insufficient, relying only on the use of magic power. On a day when your magic power runs out first, you’ll become nothing but a burden," Wint didn’t let Zoey bask in her happiness too long and become complacent. He also reminded her of an important fact. His words wiped the smile off Zoey’s face, and she responded seriously.

"Mentor, I’ll train harder."

"Great." Seeing the exchange between the two, Ellie glanced at Koross, feeling that she was surrounded by more and more troublemakers. Koross said nothing, merely giving her a simple smile.

If it were Aman, he might have laughed at Ellie, as they understood each other well. But if it were Koross...was he had any different from the two in front of her?

The young man who was more dedicated to protecting her than anyone else was Koross. If Wint and Zoey were troublemakers, then Koross was the chief troublemaker!!

Ellie withdrew her gaze before detecting something. A small smile appeared on her lips, which made Koross feel that Ellie had a hidden, frightening thought. Like the second young lord...Koross knew that the duchess and the second young lord weren’t very different in nature. So...when thinking of anything, always think negatively first.

And it was indeed true!!

- Three-Colored Monkeys, Level 0: Attributes - They are a type of beast that resembles monkeys. They have 3 legs and 2 arms. Each leg can attack in 3 different ways. One leg can pierce through an enemy’s body due to its sharp spear-like shape. Another leg can scratch and create deep wounds due to its claw-like shape, similar to a tiger’s paw. The third leg can immobilize enemies with an impact force greater than 50 kilograms per strike. If not careful and struck at a vital point, it could cause unconsciousness.

Action Panel

Option One: Use the rooting of the purple mushroom spores to mark the locations.

Option Two: Use the rooting of the purple mushroom spores to decompose internal organs.

Option Three: Use the rooting of the purple mushrooms for decomposition. -

"Three-Colored Monkey beasts! Be careful, they’ve spotted us. These beasts are never alone, so be cautious. Don’t underestimate them because they’re small low-level beasts. They have speed and varied attacks. Most importantly, they prefer to attack in unison!"

Koross had extensive knowledge, even though the Three-Colored Monkey beasts were found only in the forests under royal jurisdiction. He had learned a lot about different types of beasts. However, he wasn’t confident at all. Despite their small size, about half his height, he had never fought them before. Nonetheless, he had heard plenty about their reputation!

"I’ve heard they exist in only a few spots in the Green Forest. Didn’t expect to encounter them today," Wint scoffed, but his expression showed considerable concern. Though Zoey had good defensive capabilities, compared to the all-around attacks of the Three-Colored Monkeys, maybe...Zoey might not be able to withstand it.

In Wint’s mind, facing numerous enemies while their group had Ellie and Zoey, who were not combat experts, was highly dangerous. Koross shared this thought, he was concerned about the battle after this. However, his objective was clearer than Wint’s confusion.

If anything happened...his sole focus would be on protecting Ellie. Wint and Zoey’s safety would no longer be his responsibility!

Seeing everyone worried, the person who had been walking bored all along now had a spark of excitement. At least she encountered beasts she could finally join in the fight against.

The Three-Colored Monkeys didn’t hesitate. Once they saw enemies entering their territory, they quickly dispersed in an instant. They knew their advantage lay in specific situations, and with only 4 enemies, it would be easy.

A large monkey leaped through the branches ahead, then switched to zigzagging on the ground, creating confusion and drawing Wint’s attention well. He was already poised with his shield, but the real attack from the Three-Colored Monkey beasts wouldn’t be just that. While one drew attention from the front, 2 more dropped from above. Luckily, Zoey was already alert and summoned an earthen wall for defense, but this left the sides exposed.

“Ah!!” Zoey’s scream made Wint turn to assist. He diverted his eyes from the ground attacker and used his shield to fend off the monkey attacking from the side, leaving the front exposed. This meant Ellie’s front was unguarded!

“My lady! Tch!” Koross realized Ellie was facing with danger from the front. However, he also knew there were more than 4 monkeys waiting to ambush from behind. If he moved, he would fall into their trap. Letting them attack from behind would be disastrous!

“Just focus on the back...I’ll handle the front.” Ellie smirked slightly, her face full of amusement. If it weren’t such a chaotic situation, Koross might have unwittingly smacked her small forehead a couple of times.

Who told her to look so smug! He knew from the start something was off but didn’t expect that what Ellie had been waiting for was precisely this kind of chaos!

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