[Awakening failed, no soul core detected]
"What the hell? Soul Core? Isn't that something that was dropped when you kill the boss?"
Aurora was a little surprised when she read the prompt on the system. When she awakened the sword spirit before, the system never reminded her of the need for a soul core.
Could it be that the sleeping sword spirit in Flamberge Waltz was completely different from the demonic sword spirits she had before? Or was the way to awaken the sword spirit in this world fundamentally different from the setting in the game?
Aurora sighed, since she couldn't wake the spirit up, for now, there was no other way but to give up.
Losing the help of the sword spirit will not affect their chance of passing through the twilight forest that much, it just becomes a little more difficult... yes, just a little bit.
Aurora glanced around. Gard, Claudia, and the rest of the mercenary members made a total of four people. Including herself, it was just a made-up, low-profile team of five people.
As for the businessman, sorry but not sorry, he was not in Aurora's consideration at all. As far as she was concerned, as long as the businessman followed them obediently and didn't cause trouble, it was already thankworthy.
Although the Twilight Forest was no more troublesome than the woodrats to Aurora, it was still very perilous. First, the level of the creatures inhabiting it was relatively high for an early period, and the second was that the poisonous fog that lingered in it was particularly deadly; especially in the absence of adequate antitoxin, the fatality rate inside the fog was quite high.
She carefully deduced the route and precautions of the previous strategy in her mind, and after repeated simulations several times, she finally figured out the most suitable route map for them at the moment.
"Lady Aurora, this is your meal. Eat it first to replenish your strength! I will help you treat your wound later."
Aurora was aware of the change of attitude in Claudia. Although it felt a little bit lonely, it couldn't be helped. Just like in Gard's case, she decided to let it be.
A gust of fragrant wind aroused her appetite as Claudia grabbed the grilled horse kebabs and came to Aurora's side, slowly helping her adjust her sitting posture so that she could lean on her body at a comfortable angle.
Picking up the meat skewers, Claudia blew carefully and waited until the meat was not too hot before sending the meat to her mouth.
"It's delicious..."
With the warm touch and faint fragrance behind her, Aurora calmly ate the meat skewers delivered to her mouth by Claudia, causing her heart to flutter slightly. A warm smile spread across Claudia's rosy cheeks, making her look like a little wife serving her husband piously.
Such a scene was particularly heartwarming, especially for the men in the vicinity who had recently experienced death and life encounters.
She could perceive some envious gazes from those mercenaries, but it didn't bother her too much. It might just be the effect of the maverick [Dragon Empress' Soulmate] title, Aurora thought.
After eating and drinking enough, the group gathered around the campfire, closed their eyes, and fell asleep quickly. They did not arrange for personnel to watch the night in shifts. Gard had confirmed to Aurora earlier that as long as they did not enter the Twilight Forest, this place was absolutely safe.
After Aurora finished eating the skewers, Claudia carried her to the corner away from where the men were to treat her wounds. She carefully untied the bandage around her chest, revealing a pair of snow-white mounds that looked soft and squishy.
Her cheeks suddenly warmed up at the sight of such delicateness, and her heart pounded a little faster, and she felt a butterfly in her stomach.
Why did she have such a reaction?! They were both women, but why did she feel a strange emotion surge up in her heart when she saw Aurora?
Claudia shook her head hurriedly to dispel the strange thoughts in her mind and focus on observing the wound inside.
Claudia confirmed with certainty that Aurora's wound burst open during the retreat and that the astonishing amount of bleeding under the bandage was not her illusion. But after removing the bandage, she found that the wound on her chest seemed to have scabbed for several days.
What exactly was going on….
Claudia felt that Aurora's identity became more and more mysterious. She survived such terrible injuries, fought with unfamiliar methods, used strange weapons, and had an extraordinary understanding of monsters.
But the strange thing was that she still looked so young! Even the captain, who had rich experience, came forward to ask her for her opinion.
It's unbelievable…
"What's the matter, Miss Claudia? Is the wound in bad condition?"
Aurora inquired, seeing Claudia staring blankly at her wound, the expression in her eyes changing for a long time.
"Ah! It's okay, it's okay!"
Claudia quickly put away her little thoughts. She took out the medicine and carefully treated Aurora's wound, then rewrapped it with a clean bandage.
"Lady Aurora's wound is recovering well, and basically it won't affect normal activities tomorrow. Let's take a good rest tonight! Good night!"
Aurora saw Claudia leave in a little panic and shook her head helplessly.
Not to mention Claudia, even she didn't know what was going on with her current body.
Judging from the strength she had gained every time she leveled up, she could estimate that her attribute was at least twice that of other players of the same level.
According to this estimation, if she were to reach level 80, it was highly probable that she could easily win against a mid-stage BOSS alone, which even the mighty Auror would have had difficulty dealing with alone.
The question marks beside the race value came up in her mind.
Was it Elves? Or Beastkin?
As soon as this idea came to her, she immediately rejected it.
She had seen many high-level players from these two races. Even with top-tier magic items, their stats couldn't reach such a high level at all.
Could it be the Abyssal species or the Flügel species?
If she thought that way, Aurora herself wouldn't miss any dark or sacred aura surrounding her body.
It can't be a divine race, right?! Something similar to Dragon Empress?
Aurora shook her head violently, as she was afraid that she was thinking too much. The divine race was a being that couldn't be found easily, even in the high-stage area of Legend Online. Even including Dragon Empress Astrea, the number of divine races on the Sacred Lunar continent could be counted on one finger. What chance could it be for her to be one of them?
Although there was a nagging feeling in her heart that there was something more to her situation than the eyes met, especially after seeing the diabolical [Dragon Empress' Soulmate] title. She still found it hard to believe that would be the case.
Thinking of the end, Aurora didn't know when she fell asleep; she just felt a warm current wandering in her body, alleviating her physical discomfort.
When a ray of sunlight shone from the horizon in the morning, everyone opened their eyes.
Aurora slowly sat up, surprised to discover that her physical condition had improved so much that it no longer interfered with her normal activities, save for the occasional tingling sensation in her chest. There is nothing unusual anymore.
"Great."
Aurora clenched her fists, feeling the abundant strength in her body. She became more confident in her ability to pass through the Twilight Forest securely.
"Everyone, check your weapons. Those that can still be used should be repaired! If you can't use them, throw them away!"
Gard had assembled the remaining mercenaries, asking them to quickly check the weapons they are carrying now and make all preparations before entering the forest.
He lifted his sharpened long sword to a small puddle not far away, took out a palm-sized whetstone from his pocket, sprinkled some water on it, and squatted down to sharpen his long sword seriously.
Every mercenary who went out on an adventure would carry this small whetstone. After all, the wear and tear of weapons in battle was very common, so timely maintenance was also a necessary skill.
Claudia, who had just packed up her remaining medicine, looked up and found Aurora hooking her hand, motioning for her to come over.
"Milady, is there something?"
"Miss Claudia, I need you to help me complete a very important matter." Aurora brought a gray-leaved yellow flower in front of Claudia, "Can you help me pick some of these flowers at the edge of the forest?"
"Where is this flower?" Claudia was a little puzzled, why did she want to pick this strange flower now?
"With this flower, we could increase the chance to pass through the forest safely significantly. As for why... you will know when the time comes. Remember! Don't get too close to the forest."
What a strange person...
Claudia nodded. Although she was still curious about the function of this flower, Aurora's guidance along the way was not without reason, which meant that it must have a special use.
Claudia had never seen these little flowers in other places, but there were a lot of them around the forest, and the closer they were to the forest, the better and denser the growth of these little flowers.
Due to Aurora's reminder, she did not dare get too close to the forest to pick these flowers. During the picking process, Claudia looked up at the forest from time to time. For some reason, she always felt that there was something staring at her in the forest, making her feel hairy.
"That much should be enough, right?"
After her arms were full of these little flowers, Claudia stood up and walked back, but she didn't realize that after she turned around, black shadows emerged from the darkness of the forest behind her. Their scarlet eyes revealed a strong desire to predate.
When Claudia returned to Aurora, she found two piles of small flowers beside her, and she was sitting on the grass and grinding these small flowers with two stones to collect the juice from the grinding.
"Lady Aurora? What are you doing?"
"Miss Claudia, it's just in time for you to come back! Can I trouble you to help me grind these flowers together, we must try to finish it as soon as possible." Aurora blinked and motioned for her to hurry up and help.
Claudia, who couldn't refuse, could only accept her fate and become Aurora's helper, helping her deal with these little flowers.