Little Kids’ Gathering Experience – Rehearsal
Now, this weekend, the school is closed.
Last week, we went all out on gathering and earned both money and points, but this week is a little different.
With the kids’ gathering scissors finally ready, we’re going to have a trial gathering experience with Ren and his brothers, and Hachi and his brothers first.
If this goes well, tomorrow we’ll hold the little kids’ gathering experience in the village chief’s forest with the village children. So today is the rehearsal.
From morning, we did our routine stretches and got ready for gathering.
"Vio, darlin’, you’re all ready to go, ain’t ya?"
“Yep! If today goes well, tomorrow will be at the village chief’s forest, right?
Lots of little kids I haven’t met yet will come, right?”
I got a little over-prepared and did twice the usual amount of stretching, but I’m too excited to meet the fluffy little kids.
“Viiio~”
“Yesss! Dad, they’re here!”
I heard a voice outside that sounded like Ren, so I hurried out.
“Thank you for today, Alke. I’m watching properly, but I’m not great at gathering, so it helps to have you teach me.”
“Oh, you must be Vio. Nice to meet you, I’m Randa. I’m Run and his brother’s father.”
Behind Ren and the others were Lilium and a black-haired handsome man who introduced himself as their father. So the black cat traits came from him, and the name starting with “R” fits!
Mr. Randa is a clothing designer and also handles sewing, usually staying at home. Today, Mrs. Lilium pulled him out to participate.
Mr. Taki also took the day off from guild work to join. Their one-year-old little sister wasn’t participating, so their mother stayed home.
“When I become a gathering master, I’ll teach Kukie when she turns three.”
“Yeah, when Hachi can teach, I’ll be relieved too.”
Older brother Nachi praised Hachi while ruffling him, which makes me a little envious. So the little sister is named Kukie. I wonder what they’ll name the next one—“Tou” or “Juu”? I’m curious.
“All right, first-time Hachi, Ren, Ron, you must always move together with someone, don’t go near the river, and always check before cutting any herbs. Got it?”
“””Yes!”””
The youngest, Ron, has his cat tail wagging. Usually, he’s in full cat mode, but today he’s human-shaped. During the first introductions, he circled around sniffing a lot, which surprised me because no other beastkin had done that before. His parents apologized profusely; apparently, little kids sniff what they’re curious about, and by five years old they usually stop, though adults might do it to someone they like after drinking.
After safety instructions from Dad, everyone put on gloves, and we were ready to enter Dad’s forest.
“Wow, it’s really well maintained.”
“Easy to walk.”
“The mana essence is thick here too; now I understand why Vio brings such high-quality herbs.”
The adults were walking around the forest, checking the area and exclaiming in surprise, but the kids were giggling. The older brothers watched carefully to make sure the younger ones didn’t run off, so we moved slowly.
“Hachi, Ren, Ron, look, this is a Healing Herb.”
“How’s it different from this leaf?”
“Do we just pull this one out?”
I stopped them at a patch where the Healing Herb was clustered. Of course, normal weeds also grew, but if you look closely, you can see lots of Healing Herbs. Ron was about to pull a leaf as it was, so I stopped him.
“Look carefully, okay? See how this normal leaf is round? The Healing Herb is slightly pointed at the tip.
And this other pointed leaf… see how the underside is different?”
I showed them two leaves. The Healing Herb is oval with a slightly pointed tip, and both sides are solid green. The veins run straight.
“Huh, the back is a bit red? Is this a different type?”
“Yes, that’s different. Run, Nachi, can you tell what kind of leaf this is?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Yeah, that’s a Stomachache Herb. If you drink it by mistake, you’ll be stuck on the toilet for a while.”
Nachi answered correctly, and the little kids went “Ehh~~” in dismay. The official name may have been written somewhere, but as adventurers, they just call it Stomachache Herb. I remember it that way too. It would help someone constipated if boiled into a drink.
“It looks so similar, isn’t that dangerous?”
“Big brother, will your stomach hurt?”
Ren and Ron curled their tails; they’re definitely similar brothers.
“Exactly, so when gathering herbs, you must carefully check the characteristics to avoid mistakes.”
“But if you give it to the guild, won’t they notice the mistake?”
Ren asked, and Hachi looked puzzled. Maybe he thought that because Dad checks things at the guild. Run gave a glance to indicate the answer.
“Hachi, adventurers often gather materials for delivery, but sometimes not, right?
For example, if you’re hurt in a battle with a monster and try to use Healing Herb, what if it’s actually Stomachache Herb?”
“Ehh~! If you’re hurt, your stomach will hurt too? And outside? You’d die~”
“””Pfft.”””
The adults turned away laughing, but the kids were serious. Ron clutched Ren’s sleeve trembling, still in human form.
“Exactly. That’s why the herb guide is so detailed.”
Nachi must be reading the village chief’s guide.
“Nachi, you’re studying well. Hachi, do you understand why we check? Ron and Ren too?”
Mr. Taki made eye contact with the kids, and all three nodded vigorously. They clearly understood the importance of checking.
So today, we collected only Healing Herb. Mana Herb is slightly different, and having too many types at first would be confusing.
“For herbs with roots, sometimes the roots are needed, but for Healing Herb, just this stem part is enough. Insert the scissors at the part where the leaves grow.
Also, be careful not to crush the leaves while cutting.”
“First, check the leaves. Does the shape match? Did you look at the back?”
“Yes, yes, hold the stem near the cut so the leaves don’t get squashed.”
Ron was guided by Dad, Ren by Mr. Taki, and Hachi by me. I only had to monitor their gathering. Nachi and Run occasionally showed their leaves for confirmation.
Mr. Randa, the father, had no adventuring experience, so he was just making sure the kids didn’t do anything reckless.
Mrs. Lilium was a former adventurer, but mainly did monster hunting, so she wasn’t great with careful herb collection either; she too just monitored the kids.
Nachi and Run, having prior gathering experience, could gather without damaging herbs after a few tries. But sometimes they glanced and mixed in Stomachache Herb.
Hachi, with scissors, by the third leaf could gather without crushing them.
Each stem has 3–4 leaves, but we only take the healthy large ones at the top. The smaller leaves stay to grow. Only two leaves per stem, so moving to a new stem is necessary. Stomachache Herb was mixed in like a trap, making it trickier.
For this, Dad maintained the area. Healing Herbs are abundant, but Stomachache Herbs are just as common.
The Mana Herb area for when we level-up has the similar-looking Tear Herb, which is being propagated.
For first-time kids, avoiding the Stomachache Herb traps while gathering was mentally taxing. After 10 stems, even usually energetic Ren was tired.
Ron’s focus broke after five stems, and he slept on Mr. Randa’s back. Still human-shaped, but the first set of 10 stems meant Mrs. Lilium gathered the remaining five for guild delivery.
I thought they might get bored and switch to earth magic, but they stayed engaged and worked seriously.
Since Ron likely took a nap afterward, Mrs. Lilium, Ren, Run, Mr. Taki, Nachi, and Hachi went to deliver to the guild.
I didn’t gather myself, focusing on checking, but plan to gather and deliver in the afternoon.
What do you think about this chapter?
