Go for a hike.

I wonder how long it'll take Laira to craft that suit of armour, and how awesome it'll be. I've never really worn armour at all before. With my class, I've felt naturally drawn to dressing as light as possible. I'm more of a dextrous based fighter than strength, though it feels like all of my stats have increased since first arriving in this world. And I think I do still improve, even without official level-ups. It isn't like my muscles just stop developing or something like that. It's kinda like I've reached level-cap in an MMO, and now I'm doing extra content to gain other types of increases. Loot, weird boons from demigods... You know, normal stuff.

And then there's Peony. She's an interesting creature. She's a gorgeous woman, though it's like her body is made of a unique leaf-flesh only existing on the body of dryads. She doesn't have naughty bits either. Almost does, like there's a tease of them existing, but it's more like a girl wearing full-body spandex or something. She just has the shape of a naked woman without anything actually erotic being present. Yet when I watch her walk in front of me, I'm still looking at a bare back, and a bum swinging left and right along with her feminine hips.

That being said, in my state, it's probably best that I go on a date with the only girl in Castle Phoenix without reproductive organs. I could use a rest... Though I guess that hasn't exactly stopped Peony before. Such a weird concept. Does she even get horny? She couldn't actually satisfy any kind of need, unless it's done differently. I should read more books.

"We're heading off the trail now," Peony says. The gates are behind you now, and your dryad guide has taken a step off the main road towards the forest ahead. She stops, however, and gestures you closer. "Don't wander too far away from me. It isn't all that dangerous, but we're in the mountains, so there are hills and cliffs all over the place. That's why I'm going to take you on the nicest, safest path through these Pecho Peaks."

"You've got it," you reply, now standing quite close to her. "Though my footing is quite good. You know in the Erotrain, I landed on a dragon's face more than once. Well, it was an illidrake or something, but still."

Peony opens her mouth wide. "Wow! You're so impressive, m'lord."

"All right. Maybe I shouldn't have my ego stroked too much."

She giggles. "It's okay. Nobody else is out here but us. You can do and say anything you'd like and only I would know. I think this will be nice for you after everything. Everybody needs time away from the crowd, even if the crowd is their friends."

"That's actually pretty wise, Peony."

She smiles and leads you deeper into the woods. It isn't long before you've gone up and down enough slopes and thread through animal traits between enough trees that you don't even see a hint of Castle Phoenix no matter which direction you look. It's lucky that Peony is with you, because you might actually get lost. Your Arcane Eye was left back home, so you're not completely disconnected from help, but it still makes you feel safe to have this dryad by your side.

The dense foliage opens up beside you. The view catches you by surprise. You gaze off a cliff that oversees a gorgeous valley filled with trees, and a cloud of birds rises up from the canopy below. While the sun is shining down to illuminate the verdant sea of green, you still feel a chill in the air of the oncoming season. It feels nice to be hit by the light directly. Flowers bloom all around your feet, and as you turn around, you see a squirrel climb to the branches of a tree nearby. The only sounds you hear are those of animals in the distance, and a gentle breeze wafting through leaves. Peony doesn't talk, as if she knows the meditative feeling quite well. She watches your reaction with a silent smile--adorable face, eyes shimmering with pride at how well things are going, which is the last thing you turn to see before finally speaking.

You take a deep breath and a long exhale. "This really is something I needed, Peony."

"Let's keep walking then, unless your feet are getting tired."

"I'm doing fine. Lead the way."

While you're not exactly certain how long it's been since leaving Castle Phoenix, but it must be over an hour--possibly up to two, or almost there. The trees become more distant as the mountainous region opens up to becoming more rocky. It flattens out thankfully, which is easier on your legs, though it seems like such terrain doesn't hinder Peony in the slightest.

"Hey, Peony?" you speak up.

She stops and turns. "What is it, m'lord?"

"What exactly is a dryad?"

"Uhm... I'm not sure how to answer that. What is a human?"

"Okay fair enough. I guess you don't usually think too much about what you are exactly, especially in a world like this one."

"I suppose dryads are children of nature. We're creatures born of the forest. Many of us go our entire lives without ever leaving, eventually just becoming one with a tree when we grow too old. Nature is a beautiful cycle. Don't you think so?"

"Yeah for sure. So does that flower in your hair like... grow there? It's been there since we met."

"Oh!" She giggles. "If I put any flower there, it'll stay alive as if it were planted in the ground. So that means the one you gave me today will be there forever."

"That's actually really neat. So here's a weird question. Why do dryads have such feminine bodies if they don't reproduce like most races do?"

She looks down at herself. Cupping one of her breasts, she pulls it up, and then allows it to bounce back down. They do seem to act in every way like actual tits despite being functionless. "I don't know." Her eyes return to you. "This is just my body. Is it strange or something?"

"No, no. Not at all. It's just that like... you know. Breasts on humans exist to nurse their young. That's why they have them."

"That's pretty funny. Well maybe we were the first to have them, and it's humans that developed a use. Dryads are an ancient race after all."

You chuckle. "Maybe. It's not out of the question for this world."

"Can I ask you a question, m'lord?"

"Of course you can."

"Dryads don't exist in your world, do they?"

"Definitely not, no. Nothing magical like that. Nothing but humans. Though they're pretty prominent in fiction, like in books and RPGs and stuff. Same with elves, dwarves, and all that."

"That's pretty romantic... People like me only exist in stories from your point of view, but here I am. Imagine if we had books that were about stuff in your world! That would be really silly."

"The exciting tale of Dave the office worker, yeah. Really thrilling books."

"You make it sound like your world was dull, but I don't think that's true, Kyle. I know I've never seen it, but I bet it has amazing sights, just like the ones we saw today. I wish I could see it."

"I mostly just wish you weren't stuck living only nearby trees. You can't even come inside the castle."

"That's really sweet, but I don't mind. You must understand that as I said, I'm a child of nature. The concept of the exterior of a build actually makes me quite uncomfortable. I prefer the outdoors. Though if I could come inside just one, I'd love to lay in the same bed as you."

It doesn't matter how many crazy erotic encounters I have. Hearing things like that still makes my heart skip a beat.

You open your mouth to reply, but you notice Peony suddenly distracted. She's staring off into space, though when you look that way, you see nothing but more rocks and trees. She remains that way for a lengthy moment, so eventually you do speak up. "Are you all right?" you ask.

"Did you hear that?" she whispers.

"No I didn't hear anything."

"In that direction," she says and points her finger forwards. "The birds flew away in an odd manner, in the distance there. And I heard something in the wind. I feel... uncomfortable, like the forest is telling me something isn't quite right. Nothing terrible, but it's like a natural alarm. Does that make sense?"

"A little bit."

"Can we investigate, m'lord?"

"Yeah of course. Where is it?"