Of Royal Blood - The Legend Of Zelda

[X] Is there some treasure nearby?

The Korok jumps up and down, rattling and waving its arms. "Uhuh! Right under that pile of bricks! It's a box with pretty things in it!"

Sheik smiles and gives the Korok a pat on the head, "Thank you little one, we'll be sure to put it to good use."

The Korok looks away shyly, kicking a foot back and forth, "Aw shucks..."

You tap Sheik on the shoulder, "Better start clearing off those bricks now."

Sheik nods, and follows you as the Korok waves, "Bye-bye!"

When you look back it had vanished, only a few leaves floating down from where it had stood.

Moving the bricks was a quick affair, whoever had hidden it ages ago obviously had simply intended to cover it and sure enough, you find a small lockbox hidden under it. It was rusted, worn down from years but a quick test indicates it's still locked tight.

Sheik stands up, inspecting it with her hand on her chin, "Hmmm, given the wear on the lockbox we might be able to carefully dislodge the mechanism with carefully directed kinetic impacts. I'll need to use your medical tools to-"

You kick the lockbox, causing it to snap open.

"...That works too."

You both peer inside, Sheik summoning a light to shine on the lockbox's contents. Inside was an uncut piece of Amber tied to a string as a makeshift necklace and a single silver Rupee.

You pocket both, looking over to Sheik who seems contemplative. When she see's your curious expression she waves a hand and shakes her head.

"Sorry, I was just thinking.... why would someone leave this buried under the bricks here?"

You shrug, "Probably a merchant or bandit storing their valuables and for whatever reason, they were unable to return. "

Sheik makes a non-commental sound, before wandering back over to the horses. You return to the well to take your bucket of water, as well as fill up the empty water skins. When you return Ganondorf had evidently already returned, as he had gotten a fire going.

"Heh, you two look pretty disheveled," He says with a grin, glancing at both your and Sheik's states as you were both filthy from digging up the lockbox and cleaning out the well, "You could have just asked for a few hours alone, didn't have to send me off to get firewood."

"Huh?"

His eye roll indicates you had missed something, but he doesn't offer to explain as you set down the water bucket and fill up a pot then set it on a stand to boil. Sheik chooses that moment to return with some of the willow bark, bread, and cheese, still clutching her side. She quickly tosses the bark in the pot, before handing you and Ganondorf the bread and cheese.

The three of you take a moment to relax, enjoying your dinner before Ganondorf finally claps a hand against his thigh and says "Alright, what were you two actually up too while I was gone?"

"We found a Korok in the well, remarkable creature." Sheik happily explains, "It pointed us to some treasure then vanished into thin air."

You pull out and hold up the piece of amber, and Ganondorf nods while stroking his beard, "Hmmm, I've never seen a Korok before but I've heard tales of them. Fascinating. That amber looks like it might catch a fair price with some merchants. You might be able to sell it to anyone looking to buy something for their sweetheart. Amber isn't prohibitively expensive like other gems, but is still sought after for its unique qualities."

You nod, finding an ancient insect in some amber made it all the more valuable and often a favourite for scholars. Why, amber might be the only gem that was more valuable uncut.

You all finish your dinners just as the water was brought to boil, and you use a cloth to help shield your hands as you tip the coloured water into a mug. With the water still boiling hot Ganondorf and Sheik got out their bedrolls as you went to dump out the pot and set it to the side. When you returned Sheik was typing on her Sheikah Slate as Ganondorf simply laid back and looked up at the constellations weaving through the air above you. You look up as well, enjoying the spectacle above you. Hyrule's night skies always seemed active, and shooting stars and comets were a common occurrence. Some claimed it was the goddesses way of bringing beauty to the world even in the dark of night. All you really knew was that on clear nights it made it really easy to navigate.

Eventually after a few minutes you tapped Sheik on the shoulder, telling her the tea was likely cool by now.

Sheik nodded, then picked up the mug. She gave it a curious sniff then took a sip.

Then promptly spat it out, retching.

"BLECH!! It tastes like wood!!"

"Well yeah," You say from your bedroll, having climbed in after letting Sheik know, "What did you expect?"

Ganondorf was sniggering, his back turned to the two of you.

"Not wood."

"Drink it fast, you want to be able to sleep without being in pain all night, right?"

Sheik huffs, "Fine... buying some honey when we get to a market..."

She then chuggs it down, finishing with a cough and a sputter. Sheik scrambles out of her bedroll for one of the water skins you had filled, before chugging that as well.

"Never drinking that unsweetened again!" Sheik hisses as she crawls back into her bedroll.

"You get used to it," You say, "Lived off that stuff after I broke a rib two years ago."

"I almost prefer the pain..." Sheik mumbles into her blankets.

"That reminds me, almost forgot hearty lizards don't live up here. You'll need to buy them in bulk when you get to castle town, unless you plan to detour to Necluda or the Gerudo desert," Ganondorf adds, turning over in his bed and you make a mental note of it. It was true, you could only purchase hearty lizards from merchants. On the road, you'll have to pick and choose your battles, as one bit of bad luck could spell disaster.

Soon though you drift off to sleep, dreaming of dancing Korok's...