On the sea of sand, a few oases dotted the landscape like emeralds on a crown, bringing life to this desolate land.
Greater Lord Rukkhadevata took out a set of green clothes. Green shirt, green pants, green shoes, and... a green hat.
Rowan stared at the all-green outfit, unsure of what to say.
Greater Lord Rukkhadevata was like a little girl meticulously dressing up her Barbie doll, fixing up Rowan. Rowan looked at the beautiful woman, a doting, motherly smile on her face, and a feeling of shyness welled up in his heart.
"Bu... Mom, what are you doing?"
"Why are you shy?
Why are you blushing?
Let me see..."
Seeing that no one was around, none of her followers in sight, her usual wisdom and majesty vanished. She was like a bratty kid playing with a toy. It was her first time (in her tree-life) being a mom, and she needed to study this 'baby' properly.
...
"Greetings, Your Highness!
!
!" two dark-skinned farmers shouted at Rowan in rough, thick voices.
Rowan, dressed in his green shirt, green pants, and green shoes, arrived at a wheat field. The green wheat ears swayed on their thin stalks in the wind. Rowan crouched down.
"The wheat says it's thirsty."
"Understood, Your Highness!
We'll go water it right away!"
"Wait. Thirsty so you water it? You'll spoil it. I can hear the emotions of this wheat field; it's very proud, and that annoys me. Water it tomorrow night. Don't worry, it won't die," Rowan said with a gloomy face.
Since Rowan was born, his first skill was... farming!
Rowan didn't know why, but he had a natural passion for farming, and the countless fragments of agricultural knowledge in his head allowed Sumeru's agricultural output to skyrocket. Greater Lord Rukkhadevata was extremely pleased by this.
Every demon god has their own authority, but Greater Lord Rukkhadevata was very puzzled by Rowan's. She had studied him for ages without figuring it out. Rowan was very good at agriculture, could understand the voice of nature (i.e., talk to plants), and was incredibly strong.
These were his characteristics, but as for a distinct authority, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata hadn't found it yet. And he hadn't inherited any of her authority at all. He couldn't do anything she could. Mind-reading?
No. Dreams?
No. Irminsul?
No. Knowledge?
...
How to put it?
He had it, but it was strange.
He doesn't know about the movement of Ley Lines, but he knows how to double grain yields. He doesn't know how to use elemental energy, but he knows the weather patterns for the year, even when the bugs underground will wake up.
"Prince-brother!"
A small boy ran over, holding a bunch of mushrooms.
"Which of these mushrooms are poisonous and which aren't?" the boy asked sincerely.
Rowan saw this and fell into deep thought. *What do I do?*
*I have no idea.*
Just then, Rowan spotted a chicken coop nearby.
"Feed the mushrooms to a chicken first. If the chicken dies, it's poisonous, so don't eat it."
"What if the chicken doesn't die?
Didn't I just waste them on the chicken?"
"Then stew the chicken and the mushrooms together. Chicken stewed with mushrooms."
The little boy, slightly dazed, nodded.
Rowan made up his mind. He would figure out the effects of all the mushrooms. A demon god's body should be pretty durable.
Short Story: A thousand years later...
"Traveler, when eating mushrooms in Sumeru, you must follow the 'Three Familiarities'," Tighnari said to Lumine.
"What do you mean?" The blonde girl was confused.
"The mushrooms must be *familiar* (cooked), you must be *familiar* with the mushroom species, and most importantly, you must be *familiar* with the road to the doctor."
"Huh?" The small, white, flying, unidentified creature scratched its head.
"Here's a 'Sumeru Mushroom Encyclopedia'."
Paimon took the book and opened it. The blonde girl leaned in to look.
"Red Umbrella (image included), extremely delicious, a delicacy when grilled, and needs no seasoning. Normal humans die two to three hours after consumption. Vision holders may attempt."
"Doubler Mushroom (image included), after eating, you will see surrounding objects multiply, from one to two, two to four, as if you've learned to clone yourself. Not fatal, mild taste, but excellent texture. Suitable for stewing. Remember to find a doctor after eating."
"Color-Shift Mushroom (image included), after consumption, you will find the world has changed colors—black becomes white, green becomes red. But the taste is extremely, *extremely* delicious (Strongly Recommend). For a taste this good, just seeing different colors is worth it. A visit to the doctor for some medicine will fix it."
"Happy Mushroom, after eating you will feel very happy, like little angels are circling your head. Requires a doctor."
"Dream Mushroom (image included), as the name implies, a dream-like taste. After consumption, words may appear when people speak, or you might see little red people. Remember to find a doctor."
Paimon looked through the rest. Almost all of them were poisonous, but many, despite their toxicity, were still recommended for consumption.
"Who wrote this book? Did they eat every single mushroom?" Paimon exclaimed, checking the author: *Overlord of the Forest.*
"The Overlord did indeed eat every single mushroom, then used an equivalence formula to calculate the phenomena for normal humans and wrote this book. That's why Sumeru people are so fanatical about eating mushrooms now. Some of the more amazing scholars can even identify what mushroom they ate based on the hallucinations they experience."
"Tighnari, you must be really busy in Sumeru City."
"Not just me. The Amurta Darshan is the liveliest of all the Darshans because there's always work to do. And we don't just treat the public; sometimes we have to treat our classmates."
"Are they really *that* good?
Good enough for Sumeru's people to risk their lives for?" Paimon and the Traveler's jaws dropped.
"Their flavor is truly a delicacy of the mortal world. But as a doctor, I still advise you not to try them," Tighnari said.