Chapter 80 Entrance Exam ② Entrance Exam Part Two, Searching...
Beyond the misty forest, where sunflowers bloom on the cliffs, one can see the emerald-green river flowing silently and alone. The sounds of birdsong and falling flowers cannot be heard; only the sudden sound of fallen leaves underfoot when they step in can be heard.
The forest remained excessively quiet after the sound, as if everything there had died. Barbara turned to look at Enid, her emerald eyes conveying sorrow. She seemed to sense something, even stepping forward to continue stomping on the fallen leaves, but the continuous sound failed to awaken the slumbering forest.
They were still sleeping in the dim light of the setting sun, even though the moon had already woken up.
Enid could only remain silent, halting what seemed like an overly impulsive action. She knew she had just acted inappropriately, making a sound in such an unusually quiet place. She turned her head as if to explain, but Tim simply finished his observation and spoke calmly.
"There are no signs of life here, right?"
"Yes."
Based on their understanding of Enid, she was not someone who spoke without reason. The moment Enid deliberately crushed the fallen leaves, they prepared for battle, while also observing their surroundings. But just like before, the place was eerily silent.
Enid zoomed in on the projected map, circled the cliffs in the distance, and compared them to their destination. Enid then subtly lit up the nearby forest.
“Sunflowers need vitality to grow, or rather, this place should have originally been full of animals. I guess it's not that the caravans stopped selling, but that they couldn't produce real sunflowers.” Enid's guess was too simplistic; a forest without life couldn't nurture sunflowers. But suitable growing locations were few and far between. She hesitated for a moment, “Shall we still go and take a look?”
Barbara shook her head, rejecting Enid's decision: "If you think it won't be there anywhere else, then we can go somewhere else. Don't worry about Fia, trust your judgment."
Enid nodded vigorously after hearing Barbara's words, and then highlighted two other locations on the map, perking up a bit. Tim took a closer look at these two locations and, combining the information from the drone and the high-definition map provided by Lyra, they were on a different road.
“Great, this route will take us past these two locations, and then we can come back directly along this route.”
“Okay,” Enid said, following the route Tim had set out, “we’ll continue onward. You know why sunflowers grow in places with lots of life, right?”
Upon hearing Enid's words, Barbara suddenly remembered the lame joke she had told in the Sacred Grove, and cooperatively asked for the reason, "So why is that?"
"Because they need the right to give to the flowers! (flower power)①"
Tim and Barbara couldn't help but laugh. For some reason, they both thought of some of the puns and corny jokes that Dick usually told. Tim tried his best to suppress his laughter before speaking.
"It seems you and Dick have learned more than just how to play video games; you've also learned corny jokes."
"Hmm, I'm trying my best to explain."
“Great, we all laughed. You’re more talented than Dick, maybe?” Barbara said with a smile.
Although she knew perfectly well that Barbara and Tim were lying with good intentions—well, Enid certainly knew she didn't have a talent for telling jokes—she was still quite pleased with herself and subtly hinted that the cameras had recorded everything, deliberately winking at Barbara.
"That's great, but I'm just a Barbara. You'll need to bribe me so I won't tell Dick that you said his jokes aren't as good as mine. Of course, I'm not asking for much, just treat me to a meal!"
"Don't forget the recording equipment is with me. You need to bring me with you for this meal. Can I ask for an extra bottle of Coke?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Barbara took out an ice-cold can of cola from her spatial storage and tossed it to Tim. Tim glanced at the cola, then chose the right angle and force to prevent the gas from gushing out and splashing onto his face. Good, Barbara realized her scheme had been foiled.
"Okay, I'll treat you when we get back. What would you like to eat?"
"I don't know, I just want to eat something delicious."
Seeing Enid's serious expression, Tim tightened the remaining Coke and put it in his backpack. He had almost finished his own, but it was clear that Alfred was very farsighted, as he had piled up a lot of Coke for Barbara and Enid, most of which Tim had actually drunk.
"That's a wide range of choices. After all, you can even praise boiled vegetables. It looks like Barbara is going to save money this time."
"I agree."
This time, Enid couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal. After all, for someone who had eaten boiled vegetables and boiled meat with only salt since childhood, any dish tasted delicious. Anyone in the Bat Family could say something about this, given how long they had lived together.
So Enid had to quickly change the subject, and soon she noticed that they were almost at their destination.
"Great, we're almost there! I think we'll be able to find sunflowers this time, and hopefully there will be enough of them!"
Barbara ignored Enid's clumsy attempt to change the subject, and instead checked her own equipment. Great, there were no problems. Climbing was a piece of cake for them, after all, they often traversed rooftops, right? Tim and Barbara had both checked their equipment.
"The equipment has been checked. You lead the way. Once we reach the designated location, Barbara and I will go up together, and you will provide support from below."
They were naturally worried about Enid, who hadn't learned how to use the equipment, going up against the wall. Enid nodded, admitting she had no talent for rock climbing. Instead, she used her abilities to explore. The blue-green light was like the wings of an elf, and in the brief moment it flew through the gaps in the leaves, layers of life energy surged forth.
“It’s been marked. It’s probably around here,” Enid explained as she led the way. As she passed by, she seemed to notice something and picked two light blue leaves. When they reached the bottom of the cliff, she said, “Although there’s a gentle slope on the other side, I don’t recommend it. Go straight up from here. The sunflowers don’t have any fragrance, but they will smell like oranges when they come into contact with the elf leaves. There are orange trees on the other side.”
After speaking, Enid handed over the light blue elf leaf she had just picked. Tim and Barbara took it and put the leaf in a suitable pocket on their clothes. They nodded to Enid and then began to climb at a speed that was hard for ordinary people to imagine. They did not use conventional rock climbing methods, but instead used the equipment they usually used for night patrols.
Following the increasingly strong scent of oranges, they soon saw blooming light orange flowers, quite different from sunflowers, and somewhat resembling orchids and lotus flowers.
However, the tricky thing was that there were only 6 flowers here, which was 4 short of the required number. The moon was gradually rising higher and higher, so they stopped searching and landed lightly. As soon as they landed, they met Enid's anxious and worried eyes.
"It's okay, but it's a pity that Tim and I checked and we're still 4 flowers short."
"Let's hurry to our next destination. We should be able to pick enough tonight. Obviously, we'll need to climb this place twice."
Hearing Barbara and Tim's words, Enid glanced at the moon, though she was still a little worried: "Tomorrow is fine too. We've traveled so late tonight and it'll be too tiring to continue. It's a pity we can't use magic here, otherwise Lyra and I could help."
They could certainly sense that Enid was worried, and they appreciated her concern. However, Tim and Barbara didn't feel tired. In fact, they often encountered more difficult and persistent situations during their night patrols. Tim simply reached out and patted her head.
"Don't worry about me and Barbara, it's easy."
"Tim is right. Let's hurry up and get the materials ready so we can rest after we've finished collecting them."
There was nothing Enid could do but agree. After quickly packing up, they hurried to their next destination. On the way, Enid thought about the forest they had just left, and then about her test: "Finding sunflowers is probably the most common potion-making question. There are three places where sunflowers can grow here, but sunflowers can only grow in places with life, so it looks like we've passed another test!"
She was a little proud, because she had passed the test herself! Barbara and Tim also showed approving looks, but Tim was slightly reminded of Enid's behavior of stepping on fallen leaves.
"So, in the first forest, was the sound of falling leaves a wake-up call?"
"That's right. There are many sleeping forests in the world. If the sound of falling leaves breaking cannot awaken the forest, then it means that the forest is dead and may wither soon. Sunflowers cannot grow in such places."
In that instant, Tim suddenly thought of the legend—to awaken the sleeping tree with a hymn.
"Are there other ways to save the sleeping forest?"
"I haven't tried it, I'm not sure..."
"Let's go pick sunflowers first. The elf will start the awakening ceremony the day after tomorrow. Let's try to awaken him tomorrow."
Tim is a very meticulous planner. Perhaps the Mother Tree is, but what if the Sleeping Forest is? Would the answer be so obvious? Not necessarily, so everything must be prepared thoroughly. Enid only realized what was going on after Tim said that—it was a legend.
“I think we need to see Fia’s opinion. Sometimes we can’t rely on logic and reasoning. After all, I agree with Fia’s intuition.” Barbara understood Tim’s meaning, but she had a slightly different opinion. Only Enid’s choice of this path is the best one.
“I understand…” Enid thought calmly for a moment, “I think it would be best if both could be awakened.”
“Then let’s all go.” Barbara’s gentle voice rang in her ear again.
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Author's Note: ①: "Flower power" refers to a counterculture movement that emerged in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s, characterized by passive resistance and nonviolent ideology. At the same time, this phrase means both the power of flowers and the need for power in flowers—a somewhat punly and ironic twist. I tried my best. (Eyes wander)
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