Hunter Gatherer [Herb/Animal Search]

[Jack]

Black Rose
Rank: Very Rare, Medium
Type: Herb, All Regions, Spring/Summer, Poison Cure
Effect: An herb that is used to remove Very Rare poisons from wounds
Special: Preparation: --- ; Duration: ---
Drawback: ---
Description: Found on Rose bushes. This rare rose is easily identified by its black, velvety flower and long white thorns. The thorns are hollow and absorb liquids at a rate of a pint every 5 minutes. The liquid is stored in the plant's fibrous roots. The black rose's roots are often used to draw Very Rare poisons from wounds, or placed under the tongue to absorb alcohol and prevent intoxication. Sometimes victims are tied down and pierced with the thorns to cause prolonged and painful exsanguinations. Drawing poisons out takes 1d4 rounds. Herb consists 8 doses.
Limit: Must know Herbal Knowledge for a Region. 5% chance of finding.
Cost: 59,000 Ryo per herb. 5,900 Ryo per Dosage.

This is the herb I'll be searching for. Since it's Spring and next is Summer, it is definitely in full bloom. It can be found in All Regions, so it will be here somewhere. Alright. Let's get this party started, I suppose.

[Jack]

The sun was high in the sky, her new Fullblade was on her back and her backpack was prepared. Today she was going to find some herbs and make some money, and out here in the wilderness was the place to do it. Firstly, nothing ever grows on the beaten path, so she made her way to the east, heading for a river that was a little better known than most, her Regional Map in her hands and compass hanging around her neck to help her out. She kept her eyes peeled, looking to and fro, hoping that maybe her search wouldn’t take too long and she could really get the money flowing right away. There weren’t too many trees in Taki no Kuni, but the few she did see, she eyeballed the base of them, wearing her goggles so that she could zoom in to get a good luck. Nothing was gonna slip by her.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

She checked the sun again, just to make sure it was as high as she thought it was, and found it was actually only around nine in the morning, which was good because that gave her all day. So, since she had all day, she made her way over to that tree she had spotted. It was about three hundred meters out and all by its lonesome up against a boulder. That would be a decent spot for a Black Rose bush to grow, or so she thought, and as she came up to the base of the tree she had a look around. Some of the roots poked out of the ground and the grass was tall where the boulder rested, at least on this side of its face, which faced West. She gave it a thorough look though just to make sure it wasn’t hiding before she decided to make her way to the other side.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

The other side of the boulder and tree was covered in shadow, the tall tree casting its elongated shadow over the grass for the morning, while the boulder cast a much shorter shadow. Still, it wasn’t so dark that she couldn’t find a rose bush, no matter how black the petals might be, and so she gave it a good searching. Once again she was at the base of the tree, looking at the roots and around the trunk, making sure she didn’t miss a single nook or cranny. Then she was at the boulder, searching it all over, in case Black Rose really liked it in the shadows or could hide under rocks, which was probably unlikely but not impossible.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

After all that, she gave the field around a good sweep with a critical eye, making sure she didn’t miss anything in her hurry to get to the tree and check. She did not use her goggles for this, taking them off and searching with her own eyes instead, eyeballing the tallish grass that hadn’t been eaten yet by the wildlife. She patted her way through a few tufts of grass, checking to make sure there wasn’t a tiny Black Rose bush in any of them, although if grass up to her knees equaled a tiny bush, that would be something. Checking her map once again, she returned to her current plot thanks to her compass, and began heading toward the river while looking around her for the bush.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

Before she could reach the river, she had to pass through a meadow with a small creek running through it, and a bunch of colorful butterflies dancing around the flowers and normal rose bushes. Well, she thought, if I was a rose bush, I would definitely be here if I could. Putting her map away for the time being, Jack began to search the area, making her way up to the first of seven gatherings of flowered bushes. Here she searched around the bush itself, just in case the one she sought was just right next to it. Then she parted some of the branches and looked inside and all around, checking to see if these normal rose bushes grew over the Black Rose bush.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

Satisfied that the rose bushes of the red variety weren’t cannibalistic in nature, she made her way toward the next bundle of bushes that was next to the creek. This bundle of bushes had overgrown, slurping up just a little too much water, but that was okay because hopefully it held the Black Rose bush she was looking for. She made her way around the large bundle, searching the exterior first, looking for signs of the Black Rose bush. Next she began to part the branches, searching inside in hopes of finding it among the Red Rose bushes that rested in the leafy green shelter.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

She made her way through the overgrown bush, goggles on her face so that she didn’t get poked in the eye, and continued her search for the bush. Finally she came to a light at the end, having a final look around her, and then stepped out onto what she thought was going to be solid ground. She didn’t move anywhere and was snagged on a branch, yanking a few times, it finally snapped and she stumbled forward. Falling out of the bundle of bushes, she landed in the creek, a frog landing on her rear end with her panties out for the world to see. Luckily there was nobody…oh god…people were riding by and saw. Leaping out of the water, she hurried off to the next bush, looking all around her with a beat red face, checking for the Black Rose bush and trying to get out of sight.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

Finally behind some reliable cover, another of the bush bundles, Jack could take a breather and let her face cooldown. It was hotter than her forge! After the moment passed, she began to look around once more, walking around this bundle of bushes in the same fashion as she had done the others, checking the outer area for any signs of the Black Rose bush she was seeking. After she had finished her round, as well as finished searching the immediate surrounding area, she parted the branches and had a look inside. Once again she could see the Red Rose bushes, but she hoped that she would spot one of those Black Rose bushes having a pow wow with its cousins, because cousins should definitely stick together.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Father 'Suke]

Rolling

You found 1 Black Rose

[Jack]

Making her way from that cluster, keeping an eye out on the stray bush or two that she could see along the way, she headed over to the next bundle. That would make this the fourth of the seven bundles of bushes. Peeking around this bush, she kept her eyes peeled for those Black Rose bushes, probably named as such because the roses were black, or at least a very very dark red that looked black. In either case, the name was all the description she really needed, but she knew all of the herbs of the River Region regardless, just in case. Finally completing her search circuit of the outer parameter, she parted the branches and had a look inside, looking all over to check if the bush was hiding from her in there.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

She had found one bush already a while back, forgetting that she had grabbed hold of it when she fell, and put it in her backpack for safe keeping. However, that wasn’t nearly enough, so she had to keep searching, and so she made her way to the next bush bundle. During the walk, she kept a sharp eye out for more of these Black Rose bushes, because it seemed that this area had one, which means it could have more. Once she reached the next bush bundle, she searched the immediate area instead of the bundle first, making sure she didn’t miss anything before she got started.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

With that done, she began the next search, that of the bundle of bushes that normal held the roses inside, or at least somewhere reasonably close. Jack began the same way she had to all of the previous bushes, by walking around the parameter and searching to see if anything was there, that anything being a Black Rose bush. After that was done, she parted the branches of the bundle and had herself a look inside, checking all over to see if she could find the elusive Black Rose bush that she had come looking for. Satisfied in her search, she backed away and checked the sun, noting that it was about ten in the morning now. Time sure was flying. With another look around the area, she made her way to the sixth bundle of bushes.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

Now that she thought about it, the landscape of Taki no Kuni was pretty easy going, at least for now. So long as she didn’t come up to any waterfalls, she would be good, because climbing those is a real hassle. Checking the bushes as she went, thinking about climbing waterfalls, she finally made it to the sixth bundle of bushes. Like always, she began by walking the parameter of the bush in question, or bundle rather, and checking for that ever hidden Black Rose bush. After a thorough investigation of the outer regions, she would part the branches, peeking inside the depths of the bundle in hopes of finding her prize. She needed more of these if she was going to be rich enough to get what she wanted.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

Jack made her way from that bundle of bushes and headed toward the final bundle, sitting there at the edge of the meadow all alone, where the creek ran off through the normal grasslands and headed for the river. As she made her way over, she made sure to check the scattered amount of rose bushes there were out here, which was a surprising amount, all things considered. She got close, examined them, and looked around them to make sure there were no Black Rose bushes entangled in them that she needed. Finally, after searching through several of the standalone bushes, she arrived at the bundle she was seeking, prepared to frisk it until it gave up its spoils.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

She checked the immediate surroundings first, eyeballing the ground all around her, and the few bushes that she wasn’t able to check on the way over. She even went so far as to walk over to a few, pace around them really quickly, giving them a critical eye to make sure they weren’t hiding anything from her. These rose bushes could be a tricky lot. Returning to the bundle of bushes, she made her rounds, keeping her eyes open for any signs of her quarry. After a good check of the area, she parted the branches with a hand and peeked inside, looking to see if there was anyone home this time. Anyone being the Black Rose bush, that is.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

Stepping away from the bundle of bushes, she decided to do a full survey of the meadow, making absolutely sure that she didn’t miss out on anything. If she even saw a Black Rose bush’s shadow, she was gonna run over there and grab it, and put it in her back for safe keeping of course. Putting on her goggles, she activated the zoom feature, having a look around the meadow and checking everything twice to see if there was a Black Rose bush. She saw something back the other way, but she wasn’t sure if it was the bush or not, so she began to make her way over, still scanning the meadow to make sure she would find these sneaky bushes.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Jack]

Once she arrived, she took her goggles off, standing before a much smaller bundle of bushes, not nearly as tangled as the others. She grimaced at the red rose bushes, making her way around the bundle, checking it all over for signs of the Black Rose bush she thought she saw. Several black bees flew out of the flowers and into the sky and it was possible that those were what she had spotted, bees on the pedals, making them appear black from a distance. Quite annoyed with the situation, she looked around her for a moment, hoping that it wasn’t a trick of her eyes. Turning from the bundle of bushes, she made her way out of the meadow, using her map and compass to help her get back on track toward the river.

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%

[Father 'Suke]

rolling

No roses for you

SPOILER: Click to show

[Jack]

It wouldn’t be long now until she reached the river, maybe another half hour, but there was this rock outcropping in the way. It wasn’t really a major obstacle, just a few of the boulders that always seemed to be near lots of water, but it was a good place to start searching. She made her way to the first boulder, looking around and under it, as far under as she could look in either case. Not too bad of a boulder either, nice smooth surface, none of the usual rock sand or pebbles. Around the sides were worn the same way, suggesting that it had been underwater before, possibly in a river that got diverted long ago. She checked the tall grass around the boulder, making sure the Black Rose bush hadn’t fallen down or anything, just in case. It could be sleeping? Do plants sleep? Hmmm…

SPOILER: Click to show

Black Rose: 5%