T0 Gaming Guild Saves the World.

Chapter 579, Section 578: Salted Orange Tea

Orange Tea climbed up the rough tree bark, its fingernails quickly becoming filled with moss and sawdust.

The tree was very tall; looking down at it would make most people's bodies go weak, but it wasn't a problem for her—she used to climb her family's fruit tree like this when she was a child.

As she climbed to the top of the branch, Orange Tea couldn't help but gasp.

Countless tree canopies spread out beneath my feet, like a pot of boiling, dark green soup.

When the wind sweeps by, the entire forest emits a low groan, and the swaying of the treetops forms waves that travel from nearby to the distant, undulating mountains.

A forest composed entirely of a single tree species is like a thick woolen blanket, covering every undulation.

There was no smoke from cooking fires, no roads, and no sign of human habitation.

As for the scenery, it was so beautiful that the freshly arrived orange tea felt genuinely refreshed and delighted.

But when it comes to her situation, "suffocation" is the first word that pops into her mind.

Before the arrival, the teacher listed the possible landing scenarios.

The optimal location is near a major city where the ruling center is located.

It is directly controlled by the core power of the Anna Empire and has a high security index.

Having decent clothes makes it easy for them to use their individual skills and gain a foothold.

The worst scenario is that it occurs on the borders of the empire in some city-states where monsters are active and there is intense friction with other species.

Orange Tea felt that her current situation was probably the second worst.

Mountains upon mountains, trees upon trees, a place untouched by human feet, devoid of any intelligent creatures; relying on one's own two feet, it's unknown when one will be able to leave.

Upon landing, he found a sturdy wooden stick, pondered for a long time, spun it around, and gently tossed it into the air.

Looking at the direction the stick and branches pointed after landing, she made up her mind.

With no reference points and no direction, Orange Tea decided to rely on luck to decide everything.

It was the height of summer, and the woodland had recently experienced a rain shower. The high temperatures caused the moisture in the vegetation to evaporate and rise.

After walking a few steps, Orange Tea felt as if she had returned to her hometown—humid, windless, and the earth like a steamer.

No wonder we walked for so long and didn't see a single animal except for birdsong.

The start was disastrous, but the weather gave her a considerable margin for error.

She had a day to look for a slightly safer place to stay.

The stick was tossed up and down repeatedly. Just as she was feeling a little dizzy from the hot orange tea, the sound of flowing water invigorated her.

Beside the stream that leaps through the mountains and forests, several deer stick out their tongues and lightly touch the water.

Orange Tea was relieved—there were animals drinking it, so the water was fine.

After taking a few sips, she suddenly noticed that the herd of deer were all craning their necks and looking towards the woodland behind them.

Seeing this, Orange Tea quickly lowered her head and gulped down a large mouthful.

It has moth wings, a horse's body, a deer's tail, antlers with lightning-struck patterns, V-shaped and pointing upwards, and a body as strong as an ox.

Seeing the visitors to the stream, the deer did not flee, but continued to drink with peace of mind.

Thinking a large monster was approaching, Orange Tea, who was preparing to run away, also stopped in her tracks.

Mint's mother's voice echoed.

"It's a winged deer."

Orange Tea was delighted; she hadn't forgotten the little story her mother, Mint, had shared about the magic potion for dealing with the embarrassing situation of deer droppings.

This is a lesson that all academic potion masters will go through.

Winged deer are gentle creatures that rarely attack other living beings and are well-known herbivorous monsters.

They live in groups in the wild, using their uniquely shaped horns to summon magic and defend against enemies.

Looking at the wooden stick in her hand, Orange Tea smiled and put it away.

She already knows what to do!

After drinking its fill of water, the winged deer nibbled on the soil and grass in the clearing in front of the woodland.

As it swayed, several familiar "figures" of Orange Tea appeared on the ground.

They're back, they're all back, just like when I was a kid and saw huge clumps of cow dung while walking around.

As soon as the winged deer defecated, the surrounding herd of deer and birds rushed forward to lick and peck at it.

The academic community in Anna doesn't yet understand why animals chase after deer dung.

One theory is that, under extremely coincidental circumstances, the dung of the winged deer can produce natural magical effects.

The first animal/monster to try it got hooked, and over time, all the creatures in the winged deer's habitat followed suit.

As a former veterinarian, Orange Tea feels quite lucky to have seen the Anna ecological landscape described in the book.

"It's a good thing the jailer isn't here, otherwise he'd probably say something weird and ruin the atmosphere."

After muttering a few words, Orange Tea followed the six winged deer.

The winged deer left, and she left too.

The deer stopped, and she stopped too.

The winged deer stuck out its tongue and picked up the berries by the roadside. She quickly took off her clothes and packed up all the berries she could see.

As she fiddled with it, the six winged deer slowed down their chewing.

During the journey, the lead winged deer stopped several times, turning its head to gaze at the orange tea with its bright yellow eyes, seemingly deep in thought...

Where did this pervert come from?
*Splat!*

The six winged deer, in perfect unison, dropped [the winged deer's crystallization].

This is the scientific name in Potions; in layman's terms, it's feces.

Orange Tea blinked and made eye contact with the winged deer.

Suddenly, she understood what the other person meant.

"This silly child must have lost to the other monsters, that's why he's following behind us waiting for extra food. How pitiful." The winged deer was also an intelligent monster, and its eyes couldn't hide its pity and sympathy.

It's as if it's saying, "Come and eat, it's fresh."

"I don't want your poop!"

Seeing that the winged deer was paying attention to her and did not show any obvious resistance or intimidation, Orange Tea tiptoed and cautiously approached within a step.

She took out the berries she had picked and fed them to the winged deer one by one, ensuring each one received a share.

"I don't want your poop, I just want to live with you for a while."

"I meant no harm. Look, I don't even have magic power..."

Orange Tea has figured it out.

This forest has no end in sight. Rather than gambling on our luck and risking our not-so-outstanding combat skills honed during our life-or-death struggles, it would be better to stick together with the Winged Deer.

They are docile, intelligent, act in groups, and provide a strong sense of security.

The winged deer with spectacular antlers resembling lightning strike patterns circled the orange tea several times, then sniffed it carefully.

"Whoo~~~"

It exhaled and gently flicked its tail onto the hand holding the orange tea.

Mint Mom's little class worked again; this is the standard greeting from Winged Deer.

After being accepted by the winged deer, Orange Tea was led around the woods for a long time.

She thought the winged deer would take her back to its nest, but instead, she ended up at the edge of a dark forest covered with fallen leaves and decaying plants.

The antlers of the winged deer emitted a soft, earthy yellow glow, and the earth surged like flowing water.

A dozen skeletons appeared in front of Orange Tea, leaving her dumbfounded.

The lightning-struck winged deer stepped forward, stomped on the ground that had become solid again, and gestured to Orange Tea not to be afraid and to come over boldly.

The mangled skeletons and battered armor testify to the ferocity of the battle.

The two sides fought to the very last moment, and both perished.

Many of their skeletons were incomplete, indicating that the carnivorous and scavenging monsters of this forest were very grateful for nature's bounty and enjoyed the feast immediately.

Orange Tea didn't quite understand what the winged deer was trying to do until the lightning-struck winged deer dropped a short knife in its mouth at her feet and then bit out a fairly intact suit of armor.

"You want... me to take it?"

The lightning-struck winged deer nodded.

The orange tea was both amused and exasperated.

Too weak, she appeared not only harmless but also pitiful in the eyes of the winged deer.

Unable to refuse their hospitality, Orange Tea began searching through the ancient burial pit.

A longsword, a tattered leather armor, and a dirty bag.

These few items are still usable even though they've been buried underground for too long.

The leather armor is made of a special material; even though the metal armor is rusted and worn out, its texture remains flexible and corrosion-resistant.

The sword is a battle-damaged tetanus-resistant limited edition; its advantage is that it didn't break, so it can be used for self-defense.

The bag was tattered and torn, but with a little trimming, it could still hold things.

Using her bag, she picked a lot of fruit along the way, and also raided a squirrel's food storage nest.

These industrious Tun Tun mice will start storing food for the winter as late summer turns to autumn.

I had a great time getting orange tea, and all kinds of nuts are an excellent source of energy.

"Since you're not going to eat it anyway, you might as well give it to me."

Squirrels are always silly, hiding here and there, often forgetting the location of their granaries and how much food they have stored.

Orange Tea silently noted the location of the squirrel's little warehouse, planning to come back and pet it again in a while.

As night fell, a dark cave appeared before Orange Tea's eyes.

Consistent with her observations, the lightning-struck winged deer is the leader of this group, commanding 30 deer.

Sensing its presence, the winged deer, which had returned to their dens early to rest on both sides of the cave, showed no wariness towards the unfamiliar scent of orange tea.

Upon entering the cave, the winged deer tilted their heads, sniffed around, or nudged Orange Tea's hand with their heads, completing the welcoming ceremony.

At that moment, Orange Tea felt a sense of assimilation, and had a strong urge to nudge the other person with its head...

The cave was deep, dry, and spacious enough. Orange Tea chose a spot and used his sword to carve a horizontal line on the rock wall as a marker for the "room" and the time.

Seeing the lightning-struck winged deer lying not far away, observing them with one eye, Orange Tea generously demonstrated how she modified the bag using her sword.

She disassembled the bag, used the resilient vines she had found as ropes to connect them, and after some cutting, she got a net bag.

It can be used to store berries and other miscellaneous items, and also for catching fish, killing two birds with one stone.

Knowing that the lightning-struck winged deer was highly intelligent, Orange Tea initiated a conversation.

"I don't know how long I'll be staying here... After awakening my magic, it will probably be safer to reach level 3."

"The only thing I can do for you... is to gather food, so that you can have an easier time getting through the winter."

"I can help bake dried fruit, which will help it last longer."

"Let's do it this way. I'll start working tomorrow as a way of returning the favor everyone has given me."

"However, I have no magic power, so I may have to ask you to start a fire."

“I’ve heard from a friend that you’re omnivorous, so if I can hunt some game, I can try to make some dried meat, cured meat… Oh, we don’t have any salt.”

Flames flickered between the antlers of the lightning-struck winged deer.

"That means there's fire, but what about salt?"

The lightning-struck stag stuck out its tongue and licked the back of Orange Tea's hand.

"This isn't the kind of salt!"

(End of this chapter)