2 Through The Looking Glass (1/2)

Having failed in her hunt, Morgana was determined to find a new source of food and water. There would be a time to worry about the sorry state of her magic, but it was definitely not now.

For the moment, it was better just to consider her magic skills as temporarily useless and focusing on finding sustenance.

It took her two hours of search through the halls and passages of this great dungeon but she eventually found an underground waterfall whose surroundings were filled with plump brown mushrooms.

She was hungry and eager. Those succulent snacks were precisely what she needed at the moment. The previous struggle in Mozna Castle had greatly exhausted her. Those mushrooms were a welcome refreshment to soothe both her body and soul.

However, Morgana was no fool. Unlike poisonous bats, whose venom glans could be removed before being turned into a meal, if the mushrooms turned out to be poisonous, for starters, it would be more difficult to discover. Besides you couldn't simply remove the dangerous parts and eat the rest.

So Morgana devised an ingenious plan. First she would watch for a while and see if the bats considered this fungus as a source of food, then she would rub small fragments of the mushrooms in her skin. After all, maybe bats could eat it but it was still poisonous to humans. And at last, If the skin showed no allergic reactions, she would chew a piece and spit it out in order to wait for negative effects.

Only after all of this process was executed, Morgana finally felt confident enough to eat the mushrooms and drink the water that frequently splashed over them.

Risks weren't completely eliminated, but at the very least, the margin greatly decreased.

Morgana sat down to eat and drink near the waterfall, feeling very vexed.

Things weren't going well at all for her in these past few days. Her fortress near the great lake had been surrounded by an army, catching her by surprise. After all, a war wasn't expected anytime soon.

Despite a desperate standoff, the barriers were pierced through and the enemy poured in. By this time, she knew it was all over for the guild she had led for the past sixty years and decided to run away.

Of course, to stay and fight meant that all the bards in the land would shower her great courage with praise.

But that is the thing about the dead. They are not capable of listening to the praise of the living.

After all, what was there to fear? The invaders had gained the castle and all of its riches. Letting the enemy commander runway should have worked in their favor. There was no reason to pursue a powerful foe when you already had all of the desired loot.

But she was wrong.