Babysitting

Hera helped everyone to set up camp. The Naga didn't use the same style of camps that she was used to. First, they didn't use any fire. Instead, they had several thin metal plates connected by some copper wires. They could be placed side by side or in a circle, but the important part was the bowling ball-sized crystal they carried here. When they were going to sleep, Darni would enchant the crystal to let out heat. That way, the Naga could sleep in warm beds. Casks noticed how confused Hera was about this situation and gave a small biology lesson to the newbie.

"I'm sure you have wondered at some point why the other races don't have to worry so much about sleeping in heated areas. According to what I know, that's because they have warm blood. I mean that quite literally. Unlike us, they can heat up their bodies on their own without having to resort to the heat in the environment. That also means they consume much more food and water to keep that up, but they are less vulnerable to strong weather conditions. Although that might sound nice, it does make them prone to overlook obvious risks. Most of the other races have tales about how someone went to a desert and died because of the heat or about someone who went to a frozen plain and, well, froze to death. All because they were confident that their own bodies could withstand the elements. I also noticed something about them that is very different from us. We can wake up and already be ready to face the day. Even if we are attacked in the middle of the night, we are always in peak condition. I mean if we are not exhausted or something. Warm-blooded races seem to need some time to… well, heat up. They are a bit lethargic and slow when they wake. That's not the case for all of them, but it seems like the ability to wake up ready for anything is something they have to practice to achieve," Casks spoke as they set up the metal beds.

Hera would have her own too, but sleeping on a heated metal plate wasn't exactly her idea of rest. Casks noticed a worried expression and leaned close to Hera, "I know some of us have skills that can help us to keep our blood warm as we sleep. Naph, for instance, has something like that. If you don't want to be heated during the night, you can either sleep out of the bed or just disconnect this cable, and you won't have any issues with the temperature," Casks showed the areas where Hera could detach the bed from the contraption.

It was kind of amazing the ingenuity that the Naga had. Looking at this, it was almost like a battery. Hera had to admit that if the Naga people were still around, they should be much more advanced than humans or even the other races. This also made her start to question. If the Naga were this advanced, what happened for them to die off?

"OK, we are all done. The cave is secure and hidden from anything. We can go upstairs to finish everything up," Naph came from the edge of the alcove.

"We are done here too. The beds are all set. Hera, would you mind carrying our bag with food for the day? You can cook, right? It would help a lot if you did," Casks asked.

"I can, but I need to see the ingredients first," Hera replied.

"That's great. Also, be careful with that bag. If you let her, Chika will eat everything on her own," Darni petted the snake, who closed its one silver eye. Hera didn't notice before, but Chika seemed to be missing one eye, and she had a small scar on the side of her face. Darni noticed the stare and gave her a soft smile, "This little one had a rough childhood. I found her just after her family was attacked by an eagle. In the end, she was fighting by herself against the bird, trying to protect her younger siblings, who were still in the egg. It's a shame, but all the eggs were already dead. She was the only one alive in the clutch. Still, she fought against the eagle and won. The eye and her scar are wounds from that battle, but if things go well, that might change soon."

"Don't spoil it. Let the new blood see it for themselves. It would be a fun experience for them," Asher cut Darni off.

"Alright, alright," the Naga hero chuckled and guided the group towards the tunnel. They traveled in this long cave heading up for about half an hour. Hera had many questions about everything, but she had to focus on completing the quest. After all, she could always come back here to probe for more information, but getting the extra level and the bonus rewards was something she could only get this time. That's why she was trying to learn more about their food and eating habits. Failing the quest because she was used to using a specific spice or because she made them sick with a soup would make her feel awful.

Their diet wasn't that different from what Hera expected, but it seemed like they didn't use spices. Food had to be bland, or it would mess with their sense of smell. The only thing she could put was a small amount of salt, so she would have to enjoy foods by themselves for however long she would stay here. While walking and asking about the food to everyone, Hera kept writing down some notes on her tablet. Oddly enough, the Nagas didn't acknowledge the existence of the device. Probably because they were just creatures from the dungeon and not actual people. By the time she had written down everything she wanted, the group had arrived at the surface. The same valley where Hera found Darni's statue and his temple.

Chika jumped from her partner's shoulder and started to run around. Darni didn't say anything and kept moving towards the south, where the chasm should be. After another ten minutes, they arrived at a point where the temple was being built. Most of the structure was already there. The only things missing were the rooms of each Naga and the statues in the front.

"Now. We will be going inside. Your task is to keep Chika company for now. There are some monsters around, but they shouldn't be much of a problem. Even Chika can kill them on her own as long as it is just one or two," Darni picked a rock from the ground and cast a spell on it, "We should return when this rock stops floating. The enchantment will lose strength as the day progresses, so you can use it as a way to measure time. If you can have our meal ready when we get back, that would be great. If not, we can wait for you to make it later, but that might make us take longer to finish everything."

When the Naga finished speaking, he let go of the rock which just stayed there, floating in the air. Hera understood that this was the way Darni and the other tracked time. It was hard to tell if they had hourglasses and this was a common thing or if only the hero and his party had the concept of timekeeping. After that, the group walked inside the temple, closing the doors behind them. Hera looked at Chika, who tried to follow them but was stopped before reaching the entrance. Getting close, the explorer realized that both the floating stone and the building itself were locked inside an invisible wall. Hera petted Chika, who looked like a puppy in a time-out.

"It's OK. They will be back soon, I promise."

Chika looked at her and climbed up her shoulder. The snake was so small that it could be curled up by Hera's neck. Since they were alone, Hera tried to explore some of the area. She ended up going all the way back to the narrow path where she made her stand with her party the first time she got here, but oddly enough, the tombs of the emperors weren't around. This could be because the dungeon wasn't going to replicate those crypts or because the temple was created before any of the tombs. Somehow, she didn't think this would be the case. When she saw the tombs, they seemed to progress from the oldest to the newest, starting from the one close to the narrow path.

At this time, Chika climbed down from Hera, making the explorer squeal because of the unexpected snake moving around her body. Chika seemed to find that reaction funny and kept moving around, trying to see what kind of noises her new caretaker would make.

Her squeal was just out of surprise. Having a cold, scaly creature moving around wasn't something Hera was used to. But then came the tickling. Chika was surprisingly soft and slippery, and the way she moved rubbed against her armor in a way that the explorer couldn't control herself. The snake even found a few of the places where the armor was damaged and went inside, only increasing the tickling while Hera desperately tried to take the sacred beast out of her clothes. The problem was that her armor had too many complicated parts to be taken off quickly. Even getting the lock on the zipper out proved to be a struggle as Hera kept feeling Chika slithering around her body.

It took ten minutes for Chika to stop running around and jump out of the armor. Hera took off most of her armor with only one boot and her pants remaining when she left. At least the snake didn't stay too long under her shirt. The last thing she wanted was to get naked in the middle of a dungeon. But the worst part of it all was the smug look on Chika's face as she decided to leave. It was almost like a kid trying to tell Hera that she had lost. Despite that, the snake was 'mature' enough to let Hera put on her armor again before going off on her own. The sacred snake could still be a kid, but it was a kid that didn't want to put herself in danger just for kicks.

Hera put on her armor back quickly. She could be in a dungeon with the Naga hero, but right now, she was alone. If any monster decided to come after her, she wanted to feel protected even if the monsters who would show up were the same ones she was more or less used to fighting. After she got ready, Chika started walking back to the temple, and Hera followed. The snake was fast but not enough to outrun the human. They went back to the temple, and the snake poked Hera's feet before trying to run away. Hera didn't understand it at first, but after a couple of tries, she noticed that Chika seemed to be wanting to be chased by the human.

With a chuckle, Hera obliged and started chasing the snake. They played tag for a while. Hera had to pretend not to be faster than the snake and let it run for some time before catching it and then being the one to run. However, she always made sure to be caught quicker than it took to catch Chika. The game lasted for a while, but Hera stopped playing when she noticed that the rock was very close to the ground.

"Hey, let's stop? Darni and the others should be coming back soon. How about we make something really tasty for them?" Hera asked. In response, Chika looked at the temple and then nodded to Hera.

Hera looked around, searching for the supplies, only to realize that she had dropped them right after the Nagas entered the temple. Luckily for her, the bag was still in the same place, and nothing seemed to have touched the food. She pulled the small crystal that would work to heat up the food and the rest of the items with a smile. There was some chicken, some vegetables, but no spice. After checking everything, Hera realized that the food here was all on the dry side of the spectrum. There weren't any tomatoes or juicy vegetables. It was possible that even something with more liquid would be enough to mess up their sense of smell. In the end, Hera stayed with a basic idea. Just some grilled chicken and salad.

She started preparing everything, and when she was halfway through making the chicken in a metal bow they had in the bag, Darni and the others emerged from the temple. Chika hurried over to Darni, who picked her up. They snuggled for a moment and then came towards Hera.

"Hey, new blood. Is lunch ready?" Rris asked.

"Almost. I'm just finishing up the chicken, and there is a side salad," Hera replied.

"Perfect. That will give us some time to finish everything up," Darni pulled another rock and made it float, "We can eat and relax for about one hour before heading back inside.

"Really? You are going to be less of a monster this time?" Asher asked.

"I'm not that bad," Darni crossed his arms.

"My love, sorry, but when you are in charge of our work, you are more of a bastard than the apothecary," Casks added.

"So this is how our relationship ends?" Darni shook his head.

Everyone laughed, and Naph turned back to Hera, "So, new blood. Since you made this meal for us, is there a story you want to hear while we eat?"