The monster slowly removed all its vines around Daniel while looking down with a pained expression, with Daniel watching curiously then hugging it gently. The fluugher looked over his shoulder with a silent gasp as the boy smiled and closed his eyes.

“Thank you, for being so nice,” he said kindly. The monster held him with a saddened smile, seeming to cherish the embrace while her vines slowly slinked about on the ground. After a moment he backed up and wiped a tear away from its cheek, the monster then looking down timidly in response. Daniel then walked over to his friends; all of them watching as the flower monster picked up one of its severed petals and whined softly as it held it gently in its hands.

“I don’t believe it, it let him go, just like that,” Alyssa said with wonder. Squeak tilted her head with a curious expression and squeaked a few times while Specca nodded with a calm smile at the fluugher.

“We were lucky this was one of the peaceful ones,” Specca agreed with, and then looked to Triska with a glare.

“Because there are those that don’t like being attacked, Triska. If the petals are red and green, that type of fluugher will constrict all its vines on reflex of being injured, strangling and crushing its victim to death,” she snapped, with Triska jumping a bit with a nervous expression from hearing that. Specca then looked to the book and read along another line for the monster’s entry.

“And worse yet, if the petals were red and blue, that type of fluugher would release a deadly poison on reflex of being attacked, killing its victim nearly instantly while inflicting any others who may be near it, namely all of us,” she added before closing the book with a huff and giving Triska a stern glare.

“All Daniel would have had to do, no matter what type of fluugher would have gotten him, was either talk to it peacefully and get it to let him go, or just wait until the thing got bored and let him go on its own. That’s it!” she yelled out.

“But… but… how was I supposed to know that?” Triska defended with while shaking her head.

“I was trying to tell you! Squeak stopped when I called out to you two, but you just kept on going! All you do is try to hack anything that moves funny in front of you, this monster was as peaceful as a bovinette, and you just cut it apart without thinking!” Specca scolded. Triska cringed a bit then looked to seeing the fluugher picking up its petals while crying, having a heartbroken expression as the others looked to it with sympathy.

“It may be a feral monster, Triska, but it would have been kind in return to Daniel. Had that monster been a sentient creature, then you would have ruined any chances of Daniel talking about coexistence with it,” Specca pointed out.

“Always knew Triska would be the one screwing up our chances out here,” Alyssa mentioned flatly.

“Hey! I was trying to save Daniel!” Triska yelled out at her.

“He wasn’t in any danger, he could have been if that was a different type of fluugher you cut apart, but otherwise he would have been just fine,” Alyssa argued.

“I saw him get pulled underground by a monster, why wouldn’t I have tried to save him?” Triska shot back.

“Because your guide told you not to!” Specca cried out. The group looked to her as she shook her head with a flustered huff.

“You wanted my help out here, remember? You wanted me to tell you about the monsters we meet and how to approach them; you wanted me to help you out here in the outerlands, didn’t you? Well I can’t do that if you don’t listen to me!” she cried out. Triska opened her mouth to speak before Specca threw the monster book at her, the human catching it with surprise as the nixie looked at her with a teary-eyed glare.

“You could have killed Daniel! If that was a poisonous or constricting fluugher you would have killed him the second you cut the first petal!” she shouted out. Triska looked at her with a stunned expression then to Daniel, the boy watching as the fluugher was weeping while holding her severed petals. Specca whimpered and looked to the boy with worried eyes.

“I’m trying to keep him alive, I’m trying to keep all of you alive out here, but you didn’t listen. He even said himself to stop, but you just wouldn’t listen to him,” she said before turning to Triska with an accusing glare. Triska struggled to say anything back for a moment before Specca shook her head with a grunt.

“I get you’re a strong swordswoman, we all know you can fight, but the next time Daniel or I tell you not to attack a monster, don’t attack it!” she yelled out. Triska opened her mouth to say something then looked to the fluugher as it whimpered while holding her severed petals. The monster looked over to Triska with watery eyes, the human feeling guilt building inside for hurting the harmless monster like that.

“I… I’m sorry…” Triska said softly. The fluugher whimpered then receded back down into her nest below her flower, the remaining petals closing up while vines and weeds sprouted and entangled over the opening.

“Way to go, Triska, had that been an elf this trip would have gone to hell really fast,” Alyssa commented while shaking her head.

“I’m sorry, alright? I saw it pull Daniel under the ground; it was staring at him like it wanted to… I was worried, I had to try to save him,” Triska reasoned nervously. Specca shook her head and looked towards the flower bud of the fluugher with concern.

“Listen to me the next time we encounter a monster, otherwise your actions may very well kill Daniel just as easily as the monster could,” she warned before walking back towards the caravan. Triska watched her go then looked to seeing Alyssa and Squeak shaking their heads at her.

“You and that dumb sword of yours,” Alyssa said before walking off as well. Triska looked to her blade then to Squeak while shaking her head.

“Squeak, I… you get why I… you understand, don’t you?” she asked. Squeak looked to the fluugher then to Triska, squeaking a few times before walking off after the others. Triska slowly sheathed her blade behind her then looked to the monster guidebook in her hands, her eyes then glancing to Daniel as the boy was watching the flower bud with concern.

“Daniel, I just wanted to help you,” Triska said softly.

“I know, I can’t get mad at you for that. But Specca’s right, she’s our guide out here, our monster expert. If she says to halt, then you need to halt,” Daniel reasoned.

“But you were pulled underground by a monster, I thought it was going to rape you, kill you even,” Triska said worriedly. Daniel nodded slowly then looked to her with a solemn expression.

“I trust Specca with my life in these cases, you need to as well. Alyssa and I know our fair share of monsters in this world, but we all know Specca knows the most. If she says stop, then you need to stop,” he said before walking towards the caravan.