Sneaking into the Fungallands

"Are we almost there? I'm getting tired of walking... and of a certain someone." Erika said.

She was currently taking her turn pulling the cart. The roads weren't paved out here, so it was much more difficult traversing through dirt and mud.

"We're almost there, it's only a little bit further." Cal said.

"Please don't speak to me. That question was for Mr. Arno."

Erika was still holding a grudge against Cal.

"Come on, don't be like that, Erika. I'll give you the antidote... Eventually."

"..."

Erika refused to respond. She just shot him dirty looks.

"Are you acting this way because deep down, you have a crush on me?" Cal asked.

That was an incredibly bold question. Erika coldly responded without hesitation,

"No, not even in the slightest. To be honest with you Cal, since you poisoned me, I've been staring at that dagger on Mr. Arno's belt and thinking about ‘things’."

"Uh... what kind of ‘things’?" Cal said.

"Stabbing you."

"Oh... I see."

He put some distance between himself and Erika. Their bickering was getting tiresome. I just wanted to finish getting these mushrooms, so we could get this job done and get that antidote.

"You said we were getting close. What exactly is our plan?" I said.

Cal got serious for a moment.

"Once we get to a certain point, I'm going to need both of you to follow my lead. Soldiers patrol this whole area, so one screw up and you'll get captured."

Knowing that I had to rely on this guy doesn't particularly give me confidence. I guess I was about to see if he actually was as great a smuggler as he claims to be.

✨✨✨

"Stop here and cover up the cart in the bushes. Up ahead is where the militarized zone starts."

I did as he said and hid the cart in some thick brush.

"We're going to need this too."

He pulled out a rucksack from a compartment and put it on his back.

"What now?" I asked.

"There is a particular path we're going to have to follow. We have to be a bit stealthy, so try to be as quiet as possible. Oh also, you can both swim, right?" He said.

I looked at Erika.

"Uh... well not exactly." She responded.

"We'll have to figure something out then. The only way in is through a stream that goes under an opening in the wall." Cal said.

"Here take this, girl."

I hand Erika a log I found laying on the ground.

"What am I supposed to do with this, Mr. Arno?"

"Logs float, so when we get to the stream hang onto it so you don't drown."

"Are you sure I'll be okay?"

"You'll be fine... I'm also going to need you to wear this."

I pulled out a piece of fabric and tied it around her mouth.

"We can't take any chances. The last thing we need is to end up in prison."

Erika, who was now unable to speak, made some muffled noises and just nodded her head in agreement.

"Alright, if you're ready, follow me. Make sure you stay low. We're going to move from bush to bush."

Erika and I did as Cal said and crouched. We trailed behind him, slowly making our way into the militarized zone.

After a bit Cal abruptly stopped. He whispered to us.

"Get down. Try not to move."

Each of us layed in the nearest bush to us. Suddenly the sound of footsteps and a horse's hooves could be heard.

"...and then we had to figure out what we were going to have to do with all the cheese." Said a nearby voice.

A group of three soldiers walked directly in front of where we were hiding. They were wearing chainmail and metal helms. All of them were equipped with a sword and a shield, which had the royal family's crest on it. Two were on foot while the other rode a horse.

"Mmmmm!"

Erika suddenly made a muffled noise. I looked over. She was starting to tear up. She pointed at her left arm. There was a small green gardener snake biting it.

"What's that noise!?" The one soldier said.

"I think it came from those bushes," said another.

All of us didn't dare move as the soldier approached. He was just about to look in Erika's bush when a squirrel ran out.

"It was just an animal."

The group proceeded to move on. I had no doubt that stroke of luck was because of Erika's special stat.

"I can't believe how close that was."

Cal looked as if he was going to have a heart attack.

I quickly reached over and grabbed the snake biting Erika and tossed it away. She rubbed where it bit. There were two tiny puncture wounds per each fang.

"I can't believe you nearly got us caught over something that little."

I scolded Erika a bit. She mumbled something to me, but I couldn't make it out.

"Let's keep moving," Cal said.

We continued on. Luckily, there weren't any other encounters.

We soon made it to the stream. Cal jumped right in, but Erika was hesitant. She hugged her log, looking a bit intimidated.

*Splash*

I gave her a bit of a "helpful nudge" (push).

I got in behind her.

"Mmmmm"

"Just don't let go."

She held onto the log for dear life, as the current carried her down stream.

"That's the wall up ahead. This current goes through a loose grate under it. We'll have to duck under to get inside."

Cal led us up to the wall. He held himself off to the side and held open the grate for us.

"Okay, go on." He said.

Erika shook her head, refusing to go under the water. I huffed, then proceeded to submerge her head and shove her through the grate. I followed directly behind her. Cal came through last.

We all crawled to shore. Erika threw off her gag and proceeded to pout on the ground.

"That was horrible. I never want to do that again!" She said.

What she didn't realize was that we would have to do it all over again to get out of here, but I'd tell her that later though.