After the last swallow of the herbal mixture, which almost made Bave throw up, he coughed deeply in the attempt to suppress the protest of his bowels.
The young hunter placed the mortar down and felt his moist forehead; he must have been sweating whilst pushing down the disgusting medicine. Or at least he hoped that was the medicine. He wouldn't want to go through another herbal hell.
His black pupils glanced at Soh Vah who was in deep thoughts.
"What's wrong, Granny Soh?", Bave couldn't miss her ruminative, mysterious look.
The old lady looked back at Bave and without hesitation shot her question, "Where did you get this scratch?"
Bave didn't have the time to explain it all, and besides, his job as a hunter taught him to be wary with what kind of information he was sharing, even more, if that involved relatives.
"Well…let's say that it was a surprise attack by an unknown group. Why?"
His granny looked from side to side, weighing his answer in her mind, "It's a very old recipe to keep the blood cells separated. It's not exactly a poison but one could say it can be classified as such.", granny Soh took a breath and continued her explanation.
"Balhkaran people use an imitation of the original recipe nowadays. However, the one which, for some reason, you were infected with was the original."
"The original? What are you trying to say?", Bave didn't speak herbalist language; he could only guess that it was either a group of bandits who got their hands on some rare recipe or they were a weird wizard group who knew how to cook up some weird recipes.
"When I was your age, Bave, this land held great knowledge. Unfortunately, after the late King's horrendous fate, much of that knowledge disappeared. This recipe was known back in your great-grandmother's time."
The young man blinked several times and looked to the empty mortar. It was that old? Somewhat his bowels felt even more nauseous.
"So, what would you think of a bunch of ambushers having access to it?", Bave had to ask the old lady for her opinion.
"Hmmm…I would say that they have someone who knows how to make it. It is impossible to master the art of medicine just from reading the ingredients needed."
Soh Vah did not disappoint. She made sense and Bave came to understand why she looked so conflicted and lost in thoughts.
"Actually…", he proceeded with the second objective in his mind, his hand patted his clothes and felt the small bag he received in the woodland.
The young man passed the item to Vah and shortly explained to her,
"This was given to me. Supposedly, I had to use it to counter the effect of the herbs."
The old woman reached her wrinkled hands and unwrapped carefully the bag. The content was pale, blue powder that glistened whenever her hands titled the dusty content towards a light source.
"Hmmmm…", she looked up and to the left, looking for another pair of mortar and pestle. However, this time she decided to use a wooden set. It was always wise to use wood when one did not know how other materials would react to the drug.
The old lady started grinding a portion from the powder into the wood. Her first experiment was to use an ordinary balsam which acted as a tester for most common poisons found in Balhkara. The powder did not react with the liquid, so old Soh Vah commented confidently.
"At least it is not poison.", her hand reached up and stroked her chin, "Or at least not from the common type."
Bave watched curiously so. So, the man did not give him poison? He still found it weird that he let him go. Moreover, they never engaged in a real fight. He gave it a thought on his way to the apothecary and reached the conclusion that whoever attacked him, somewhat, knew when his guild would be there and how to approach them.
Then again, how did they know Bave was heading for Luse to retrieve the Nominalia? Did that mean he wasn't the only one who received a mysterious letter?
The young hunter was lost in his own world and did not notice granny Soh was about to taste from the powder. Her coughing startled him and he jumped off the chair.
"Granny! What are you doing!!?", Bave reached his hands to gently touch the old woman's shoulders. Her face was slightly flushed from all the coughing. The hunter tapped lightly the woman's back to help her but she just waved a hand to cease his patting.
After a while she regained her normal breathing rate and sat on a chair. She tugged at the hem of her old tattered apron and wiped her teared-up eye from under her glasses. Although Bave looked worried, she seemed perfectly calm and even confident just like she knew what she was doing.
Bave did not know whether that medicine was meant to be swallowed or applied on the skin. He started wondering if it were harmful after all? The man just kept his eyes on the old woman, patiently waiting for her to speak.
"Khhmm", she cleared her throat, "Whoever gave you this couldn't have been an ambusher."
"What?", Bave blank-stared her. There were these times when he was quiet and left it all to the specialists – a herbalist, a blacksmith, a brewer, a fieldworker…However, when it came to the battlefield, he believed that his grandmother shouldn't state her opinion so easily.
He knew enough to be able to assess the enemy.
"With all due respect, Granny Soh…", the hunter softened his voice although he was displeased, "I was nearly killed. These people were skilled and knew what they wanted."
"And yet you are alive?", the old lady looked through her glasses with half teared-up eyes as the substance was still irritating her airways.
"I am alive…for now", Bave did not know why his grandmother wanted to convince him otherwise, "I am telling you; they are dangerous."
"Bave, I am not telling you that they are not dangerous. I am telling you this is a highly rare medicine. God, probably even the current King wouldn't be in possession of it!"
These words made Bave rethink and reflect on his hypothesis. Were they royal guards? From Balhkara? Or a foreign country?
The young hunter tried to remember that man's voice, specifically his accent. But he couldn't mark anything distinguishable. Moreover, if they were royal guards from Balhkara – did it mean that even the current King, Preda Teelh, wanted the Nominalia? Who was actually selling the book off?
Bave hurried and asked, "What is so special about it? Is it a foreign drug? Can it be easily made?"
His questions shot one after another, just as if he was about to tear down the veil that hid the identity of that man. He couldn't stand it – the unknow. He disliked the unknown, especially when he felt like he was being watched and preyed on.
The old lady shook head and answered to the best of her abilities,
"I don't know much about it. Not many would be able to recognize it. The only way to test the purity of the herb is to taste it. It forces the airways to contract. Similar to how the scorpion venom causes respiratory difficulties."
Bave frowned but listened to his grandmother carefully. He knew that answers would not come easy but having to add more to that man's mysteriousness annoyed him. Was it truly impossible to find who he was?
"You said that whoever gave me that was no ambusher, why?"
"Scorpion grass.", Soh Vah named the herb and looked straight into Bave's eyes, "This plant is extremely rare. Therefore, its second name is – "Forget me not"."
'Forget me not'? Bave was truly lost. Not only he had a dozen questions but now even the name itself made him think that it was an actual message. Did the man know that Bave would investigate the drug and would hear all that?
So wicked.
The young hunter rubbed his face and then sighed. He didn't have much time left as he had to meet Kal and Koh soon. However, he selected his last question carefully.
"Who would be in possession of such drug then?"
The old woman hesitated for a bit but then the seriousness in his eyes made it clear,
"Either a sorcerer or a high-ranked bandit."
There were many questions that could follow but Bave decided to leave it for next time; maybe on their way back to Udeos, they could pass again through Luse. If he left the drug at Soh Vah's herbal shop, she could study it and tell him more after that.
The young hunter made a few promises with the old herbalist and left it at that. It would take probably three-four days before he returned to Luse. Soh Vah could have enough of time to study it and tell him more.
Whatever it took, he was determined to find who that group was and catch them himself. It wasn't revenge or rage. He felt somewhat defeated without fighting. Did he lose to that man in the woodlands?
There was no battle but Bave felt like his steps were foreseen, and he disliked that.