Wizard: Starting with Dealing with Magical Plants

Chapter 278 Awakening, A New Destination

Despite her exhaustion and hunger, Ellie picked up Rowling's folded water bag and glanced at the two Rainbow Finch sparrows, who were also exhausted and collapsed at the crevice, and Baha, who was perched on the rock top.

"I'm going to find water."

"You—look at Mr. Rowling."

She spoke to Duan Yu and Baha, her voice still hoarse.

Duan Yu struggled to lift his head, looked at her, and then nodded gently.

Baha also let out a soft cry, indicating that he understood.

Ellie took a deep breath, picked up her water bag, and stepped out of the crevice.

Outside was a cold night wind and boundless darkness.

She felt a surge of fear, but when she looked back at the unconscious figure in the crevice, the fear was overwhelmed by an even stronger sense of responsibility.

She remembered hearing the faint sound of flowing water on her way here, in a direction not far away.

With a faint sense of natural energy and a vague memory, Ellie groped her way through the darkness, her steps uneven.

After walking for about ten minutes, just when she was about to despair, she finally heard the clear sound of flowing water!

Following the sound, they found a very small spring seeping from a crack in the rock at the foot of a rock wall. The water was only the thickness of a finger and formed a shallow pit the size of a washbasin below.

The water was clear, but Ellie dared not be careless near this polluted area.

She imitated Rowling and took out the silver probe to test it.

The silver light remained stable, with no abnormal reactions.

She breathed a sigh of relief and carefully used a folded water bag to collect the spring water.

She filled the bag and eagerly took several large gulps of water. The cool, sweet spring water soothed her parched throat and body, giving her a little bit of strength.

After filling both bags with water, Ellie immediately rushed back.

In the darkness, she almost got lost, but luckily Baha seemed worried and flew over to help her, circling above her head to guide her.

Back in the crevice, Ellie first fed Rowling some water.

Despite being unconscious, Rolin seemed to still have the instinct to swallow and managed to drink some.

Then, she began to treat the wound.

Use clean cloths dampened with water to carefully wash those terrible wounds.

Every touch filled her with dread. Even while unconscious, Luo Lin's body would twitch slightly from the pain.

After cleaning, she took out ointment and bandages for treating external injuries from Rowling's package.

The ointment was formulated by Luo Lin himself, and it works very well.

She carefully applied the ointment to every wound, especially the deepest one on her right arm, applying it particularly thickly.

Then carefully bandage it with a clean bandage.

After doing all this, Ellie was so exhausted that she was almost collapsing.

She leaned against the cold rock wall, looking at the still unconscious Rolin, then at Duan Yu and Lan Yu huddled together for warmth in the crevice, and at Baha quietly guarding the top of the rock.

My heart was filled with helplessness and worry.

When will Mr. Rowling wake up?

Will his injury worsen?

Will those terrifying mechanical monsters come after us again?

What should we do next?

Countless questions swirled in her mind, but there were no answers.

Only the cold night wind of the wilderness blows silently.

She took out the last bit of dry food, broke it into small pieces, ate some herself, and fed some to the two rainbow finches.

They ate very slowly, clearly having reached their limit.

After eating, drowsiness washed over her like a tide. Ellie forced herself to stay awake; she knew she couldn't sleep and needed someone to watch over her.

"Baha, you should rest."

"I'll keep watch for the first half of the night."

Ellie whispered to Baha on the rocky summit. Baha had been flying for a long time and was very tired.

Baha let out a low cry, did not persist, landed, huddled in a corner at the mouth of the rock crevice, and closed his eyes.

Ellie sat next to Rowling, hugging her knees, her eyes wide open, staring into the darkness outside the crack.

Ears pricked up, catching any subtle sound.

Time passed slowly in silence and worry.

After an unknown amount of time, just as Ellie's eyelids were getting so heavy that she could barely keep them open, Rolin, who was beside her, suddenly let out a very faint groan.

Ellie was startled, her drowsiness vanishing instantly. She quickly leaned closer and whispered, "Mr. Rowling? Mr. Rowling?"

"You're awake?"

Luo Lin's eyelids twitched a few times, and he slowly opened them a crack.

At first, his gaze was unfocused and blank, but after a while, it gradually focused, and he saw clearly Ellie's face, which was filled with worry and exhaustion.

"—Ellie?" Rowling's voice was so hoarse it was almost inaudible, and his lips were chapped.

"It's me! Mr. Rowling! You're finally awake!"

Ellie's tears welled up again, but this time they were tears of joy.

She quickly picked up the water bag and carefully fed Luo Lin a few more sips of water.

The cool water soothed his throat, and Luo Lin seemed to regain some of his senses.

He tried to move his body, which immediately aggravated all the wounds on his body, causing him to gasp in pain and his face to turn even paler.

"Don't move! Your injuries are serious!" Ellie quickly pressed him down.

Roland stopped what he was doing, took a few quick breaths, and then managed to speak with difficulty: "Where are we? Those—the Arbiters—"

"We escaped, we found ourselves in a crevice in the rocks."

"Those monsters—it seems they flew away." Ellie quickly recounted what happened next, how she found this place, and how she treated her wounds.

Luo Lin listened quietly, his eyes gleaming as if he were thinking and analyzing rapidly.

"Thank you for your hard work, Ellie."

After listening, Rowling looked at Ellie's bloodshot eyes and the grime on her face. Although his voice was weak, it carried a clear hint of approval and gentleness.

"You did a great job, exceeding my expectations."

Ellie felt a little embarrassed by the praise, but her heart was warmed, as if all her fatigue and fear had lessened.

"What about Broken Feather and Blue Feather?" Roland asked.

"They were outside and got a little hurt, but they're all fine," Ellie quickly said.

Luo Lin nodded slightly, seemingly relieved.

He tried to mobilize the remaining star power in his body, but found that his body was like a dried-up riverbed, with waves of stinging pain. His mental power was also chaotic. Only the [Quiet Dust Star] was still instinctively and extremely slowly operating, maintaining his most basic vitality.

The injuries were more serious than he had imagined.

Not only were there external injuries, but the internal organs were also subjected to energy shocks and explosive vibrations, and the stellar energy circulation was almost completely disrupted.

Without ten days to two weeks of rest and a large amount of medication, it would be difficult to recover.

More importantly, although those secondary arbiters have temporarily retreated, the retrieval process has clearly been activated and has locked onto him and Yue Yinhua.

They are only temporarily withdrawing due to environmental threats and damage, and they may return at any time once the environment stabilizes or they receive support.

We must leave this area as soon as possible and enter a more complex and harder-to-track place, such as—the Forgotten Swamp ahead.

"We—can't stay here any longer," Rowling said breathlessly. "It's not safe here."

"My injury needs time, but I can't wait here."

"Then—where are we going?" Ellie asked.

Roland's gaze turned to the northwest beyond the crack.

"The Forgotten Swamp! Its unique environment and chaotic energy can interfere with most detection and tracking methods."

"Moreover, the terrain is complex, making it suitable for hiding and recuperating." He paused, looking at Ellie, "but it's also more dangerous there, with poisonous fog, miasma, strange creatures, and the risk of getting lost—every step could be fatal."

Ellie answered without hesitation, "Wherever you go, I'll go."

"I will take care of your injury and try my best not to hold you back."

Looking into the girl's determined eyes, Luo Lin said nothing more, but simply nodded slowly.

"Tomorrow—we'll leave at daybreak."

"Tonight—you rest, I'll keep an eye on things." Rowling struggled to sit up straighter.

"No! Your injury—" Ellie cried out anxiously.

"My injury—doesn't affect my senses." Roland interrupted her, his tone weak but firm. "You need to rest and recover your strength."

"Tomorrow—I need your support, and I need you—to stay awake. Listen to me."

Ellie looked into Rowling's weak yet unusually determined eyes and knew she couldn't persuade him otherwise.

She nodded silently, spread out a blanket next to Rowling, and lay down.

Exhaustion overwhelmed her instantly, and she fell into a deep sleep almost the moment she lay down.

Rowling leaned against the rock wall, listening to Ellie's even breathing, and then looked at the two rainbow finches nestled in the crevice and Baha in the corner, his heart filled with mixed feelings.

This time, it was truly a narrow escape from death. It was all thanks to Ellie's quick thinking and perseverance, and the two birds with whom she unexpectedly became friends.