When Serena got back inside the hut, a new system notification popped up in front of her.
[First Tea Potion Successfully Made - Sleepy Tea Recipe Unlocked]
[Reward: 25 Coins]
[Herbalist Level 1]
Serena stopped in her tracks for a second, processing the words in front of her. She was happy to learn that she could now gain coins from making different things with plants.
Getting that field guide had been quite useful and worth the coins she spent. Not to mention by now she had made her money back with a few coins of profit.
If this continued, she could easily gain enough coins to quickly get back home. Of course, that was if she was able to complete missions by the system.
Serena wasn't quite sure what they were or how they worked, but she had been told by the system they were a method to gain coins. Thus she was surprised she hadn't received any.
She'd been in this world for a few days now and had expected something by now. However, all she had gotten from the system was notifications about unlocking levels and gaining coins.
Perhaps, I need to do something to trigger it. Serena mused as she carefully walked over to her sleeping spot. Like that hidden mission I completed on the first day.
She hoped it wasn't the case or that she'd trigger the first mission soon enough. That way she could achieve her goal quicker.
Chugging down her tea which had a slightly bitter taste to it, Serena sat down and shifted Kiro into her other arm. The cub fussed in her arm, but Serena needed to move him.
Her arm had long gone numb and her muscles were aching from holding him for so long. Honestly, if not for her training on being resisted to one arm, Serena likely would've had a harder time moving around.
I need to train this body some more and better figure out how this system works. Serena thought to herself, laying down on the fur.
Since her time alone was pretty limited to bathroom breaks and the occasional chance she got to bathe, Serena hadn't had much time to further investigate the system.
It did annoy her a little, but there wasn't much she could do. She just had to keep moving with everyone until they finally got to the Forest City. She'd get better privacy once there.
Speaking of which, she did truly hope that Theo did agree to her proposal. It was done in the spur of the moment, but Serena wanted to grab the opportunity because she was unlikely to find another one.
All the single beastmen within the group were clearly interested in some kind of real relationship. At least that was what she picked up from them when they hit on the other two beastwomen.
A few had tried to make moves on her, but she quickly shut down the idea that she was interested in any kind of romance. They all mostly left after that.
Serena sighed, closing her eyes as her mind began to feel a bit mushy. She guessed it was the tea doing its job and soon enough she was drifting off to sleep.
***
The next day as they were making their way back to the campsite of the caravan, Serena got pulled to the side by Theo. She didn't need him to say a word to know this was about last night.
"I thought about what you said and have two questions." Theo stated, glancing over at Kiro who had run off. "How will this fake mate thing work and can you prove this isn't some strange ploy to trap me into a relationship?"
"Well, that depends on the conditions we set, but I just want the status of having a mate. I don't need anything else from you. I don't expect any type of relationship, but a respectful one between us." Serena replied. "As for trusting me, well, I guess we can do a Beast Vow."
A Beast Vow was a special kind of oath where two or more beastmen would make a type of promise or declare something to be true with their life put on the line. If there were any falsehoods or the vow was broken, the person that broke it would die.
Most normally lasted a lifetime, but you were able to put a time limit on the vow as long as you stated the time. Any and all conditions had to be stated when creating the vow in fact.
The only thing was they needed a priest, a beastman blessed with divine power, to perform the vow. However, since priests were rare, you only ever found them in cities or large tribes and villages making it rare for anyone to use the vow.
Which meant, Serena declaring she would take one was a serious matter. And she could see Theo was a bit shocked that she was willingly to go so far that it seemed almost unreal.
"That being said, what would be the reason for me tricking you." Serena continued, wanting to fully dispel any doubts Theo had. "I could easily take one of the beastmen here to be my mate. Why go through all the trouble of tricking you when there are eager beastmen around me. It's not like you're the only strong beastman here that doesn't have a mate…"
"I suppose that's true…" Theo mused, going quiet.
Just then Kiro appeared, clinging to Serena. He looked up to her and asked, "What are you talking about Sister?"
"Nothing much. Just casually chatting." Serena gave him a small smile, patting his head. "Have you finished doing your business?"
Kiro nodded his head. "Yip all done. I even washed my hands!"
Serena grinned, secretly thankfully he was quickly picking up on the habit to be clean. Certain things were hard to do because of the limitations of this world, but Serena was finding ways.
Because she'd be damned if she was going to have to be dirty in this world. It was one of the few things that she hated more than anything else.
"That's good." Serena praised him, knowing it was worth the time teaching him to be tidy.
"Ahem." Theo coughed, bringing her attention back to him. "I guess I'm fine with that then… We can discuss more later."
Serena nodded her head in understanding. "Sure thing."