Garnet and Riley left the town and the two headed down the other side of the mountain. Compared to going up from Antium's side, the road winded around much more, but it also meant that it was not as dangerous. As they headed down the mountain, the fog began to lift. Yet, there was no one in sight. People seemed to avoid the mountains altogether. "Is it because of the bandits?" Garnet thought to herself. There was always the likelihood that there was something scary.
Antium and Anzio were relatively safe in comparison. There was rarely an organized group that attacked travelers because guards patrolled the roads to keep people safe. The Bandits of Dolomite were barely organized, but still organized. On the other side of the mountains, it was practically empty. Nonetheless, Garnet laid a Teleportation Summoning Circle so she could return to this spot more quickly if she needed to. Now, she needed to head East and find a road.
Without knowing what was ahead, Garnet decided to play it safe and avoid flying while keeping her Cerberus close. "I guess the best thing to do is find a city," said Garnet.
"Do you even know if there is a city near us?" asked Riley.
"No, but I'm sure there is if there's people who live in the remote mountains like that," said Garnet.
"Are you just going to pick a direction and walk?" Riley asked. "That does not seem to be a very good idea."
"It's the only thing we can do," said Garnet as she looked at the map. There were several small villages and a few big cities along the way. Garnet took one last look at the mountain and just walked away from it in the opposite direction. Having a guide would have helped a lot, but the likelihood there was even someone who could do it was very low since few people journey to Constantinople.
"That's a fence!" shouted Riley.
Garnet squinted her eyes and saw something sticking out of the ground far away. She could barely notice the outline of it yet Riley could see it. Garnet walked up to it and saw it. It was a fence made of several sticks tied together with wire of some kind. Several of them fenced off a small farm of radishes. There should be people who lived here. "Let's ask for directions," said Garnet.
"Alright," said Riley. "Just be careful."
New Quest: Investigate the Farm
There is a farm nearby. Find out what is going on.
Reward: Experience, Fame
Garnet looked around and only saw a mound in the distance. It did not resemble a traditional house and was more like a hut made of mud. As she approached it, she saw that it was bigger than it seemed from the distance. The outside of the house was not mud, it was more like ceramic that had been baked. It was pieced together by wire, sand, and mud. She knocked on the door. "Is anyone here?" she asked.
There was no reply. "Is it empty?" asked Riley.
"I don't think so," said Garnet. "This farm looks pretty well maintained. Maybe they're out?"
"That could be it," said Riley. "But that seems unlikely."
Garnet's Cerberus did not howl. That meant that there was no signs of danger around. If there was, they would have howled to alert Garnet. "Maybe this farm was abandoned for some reason," said Garnet.
"What would have scared away these people then?" asked Riley. "It doesn't look like monsters or bandits attacked."
"That's a good question," said Garnet. "I'm going to wait a bit and see if anyone returns first."
"Alright," said Riley. "Just don't waste too much time here."
"I won't waste time," said Garnet. "I hate waiting too."
After waiting a short while, there was still no one. "Was this farm abandoned?" Garnet thought. "If it is, why was it abandoned?" That was a mystery. If it was abandoned, then there had to be a reason why.
Quest Update: Investigate the Farm
Find out why people left the farm.
Reward: Experience, Fame
"Recall!" The Cerberus all appeared before Garnet. "Find anything strange nearby," she ordered.
To completely abandon a farm was unusual, especially one that was doing well. If it was not an attack or an immediate threat, it was probably some kind of unseen threat. Suddenly, there was an unusual smell of some kind. It smelled a little like something died. "Oh no," said Garnet.
"What is it?" asked Riley.
"I think there might be some kind of airborne sickness," said Garnet. "That's a good reason to leave a place like this isn't it?"
"We don't know for certain," said Riley.
HOWL. That was the sound of the Cerberus. They found something. Garnet and Riley hurried to where the sound originated from. There was nothing there, but something smelled. The Cerberus moved its paws. "Is it from under?" Garnet asked.
The Cerberus nodded. "Can you dig it up?" Garnet asked.
The Cerberus began to dig, moving the dirt onto a large pile behind it. Garnet saw some kind of bone. The Cerberus continued to dig eventually revealing an entire skeleton of a cow. There was something wrong with it. There was little flesh that had been discovered, it was mostly bone, and some parts of the bone had turned black. This was clearly the source of the disease. "Call: Nuria!"
This was the only way Garnet knew how to deal with something on such a large scale. "Burn it," said Garnet.
Nuria released powerful flames that scorched the skeleton. Even if the skeleton does not die, the fires will at least be enough to kill whatever is causing the sickness. "There might be more around here," said Riley.
"Yeah," said Garnet. "If they bury their dead animals like that, there's certain more."
There was in fact three more. A total of four buried cattle skeletons that were partially black.
Quest Update: Investigate the Farm (II)
Go to the nearby town and help them cure the disease.
Reward: Experience, Fame
"There's a town somewhere nearby where the disease is spreading as well," said Garnet.
"How do you know?" asked Riley.
"Quest update," said Garnet.
"I remember those," said Riley. "I can't see them anymore though."
"Are you okay?" asked Garnet.
"I feel okay," said Riley. "It probably only affects physical bodies, not ones made of mana."
Garnet heated her clothes and her body to be safe. Even if her Enhanced Body protected her from the illness, she could still be a carrier. If it really was a sickness though, she would need to make enough Remedy for the people, which could be difficult. The problem now was finding out where that town was. "Where's the nearest town?" Garnet asked her Cerberus.
The Cerberus all pointed their head in a single direction. "I guess that's the way," said Riley.
"They haven't been wrong just yet," said Garnet. The two headed in the direction that the Cerberus pointed to. There was almost no people around. It was strange. Even the roads that were nearly abandoned in Antium and Anzio at least had a few people once in a while, but here, there was zero. Not a single person or living animal as far as the eyes could see. It was probably safe to fly.
"Flight!" Garnet flew up high into the sky. There was nothing in the air around either. The animals probably knew there was something wrong in the area and avoided it, but the people did not, which is why the whole town nearby was affected by the disease.
Riley followed Garnet into the air. "Are we going to fly to the town?" she asked
"Yes," said Garnet. "But we're landing outside and walking in."
After flying for a while, Garnet saw some houses below. The town consisted of probably a hundred buildings or so. It was not as big as Antium, but it was definitely bigger than the village in the mountains. It was strange though, there was no movement at all. At least Antium, Anzio, and the village in the mountains all at least had people moving that she could see. It was as if this town was abandoned as well.
Garnet landed outside, laid a Teleportation Summoning Circle down and proceeded to walk into the town. She stopped right outside the village entrance. There was no one either, but she could feel that someone was watching them. "There's people inside the houses," said Riley.
"They must be staying inside to avoid the sickness," said Garnet.
"This town will not last like this," said Riley. "These people have to come out some time."
"Let's just see what we can find," said Garnet. She entered into the town and began to look around. The entrance of the town seemed to be like a marketplace, but it was devoid of people or things for sale. There were just a couple of empty crates and some rotten meat of some kind. Garnet took a close look at the piece of meat. It was rotting, but she had to be safe.
"Fire Ball!" BOOM. She incinerated the meat. If it was some kind of sickness, that should have destroyed it. It also drew attention to them.
"There's more people looking at us," said Riley.
"I know," said Garnet. "I just used magic, that will draw some kind of attention. I was hoping someone would come out to talk to us at least." She looked around to see if she could find anything else that could potentially carry the disease, but none was in sight. In the worst case scenario, someone preserved and stored the meat, which could then also infect someone if the process did not kill whatever was causing the illness.
As Garnet passed the marketplace, she entered the town square, which was also empty. It was well built with a stone foundation. The road was even paved here. There were signs that there was some deterioration already with decomposing trash in some spots. Mold could form and cause disease as well, so she burned it as well. At the center was a fountain, one with clean water that went through it. The water itself was clear, there were no signs of anything like coloration in the water. There was always the chance that the water had problems that she could not see. She put her finger in the water and tasted it. The water was bitter. There was something strange with it.
"Is there anything that you can do?" asked Riley.
"We're going to make some Remedy," said Garnet. She took out her cauldron. "Call: Nuria! Call: Mazu! Call: Sino! Call: Meliae!"
With her spirits, Garnet could create a very potent remedy and dilute it into the town's water supply. It should cleanse it of any problems and help spread the cure. Even if people did not drink it, it would at least be absorbed into the ground where it will prevent the illness from taking root. Garnet did not know how much of the Remedy needed to be made, so she made as much as she could, using all the Flower Nectar that she had just acquired from the village in the mountain.
Level Up: Magicraft (Level 8)
She poured in a few drops and let it mix into the water. After a few minutes, she tasted the water. It was no longer bitter.
"It worked," said Garnet. She refilled her stored water.
"Someone is coming," said Riley.
A pale old lady walked towards Garnet. "How are you okay?" she asked.
Name: Belle
Level: 10
Class: Mayor
Sub-class: Seamstress
Stats: High Vitality
"I cleaned the water," said Garnet. "Your water was bad, so I fixed it."
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"How?" asked Belle.
"This," said Garnet. She showed Belle a bottle of Remedy.
"This looks like medicine," said Belle.
"It is," said Garnet. "I made it."
"Can I have some?" asked Belle.
Garnet handed Belle the remains of the bottle that she had just used on the fountain. "Just this is for free," said Garnet.
Belle took a few drops of it in her mouth. Garnet watched as the paleness disappeared and was replaced with a little color to her cheeks and her fingers. "I feel better," said Belle. "How is that possible?"
"We're you sick with the illness too?" Garnet asked.
"Yes," said Belle. "They said I would die in a week, but it's already been five days."
"How long ago did the illness begin?" asked Garnet.
"About a year ago, there was the first case," said Belle. "One of the farmers came into town with a cow that did not look quite right, but he was selling it for cheap, so the butcher bought it and sold it. The meat looked normal and there were no problems at first. However, people started getting sick about two months later and no one knew why. We believed it to be from that cow and it spread to other things."
"Do you have other sources of water in town?" Garnet asked.
"A few wells," said Belle. "Why?"
"How many?" asked Garnet.
"Eight more," said Belle.
Garnet handed Belle eight more vials of Remedy. "In exchange for this, I want a place to sleep and a hot meal. Can you do that?" she asked.
"Yes," said Belle.
"Talk a bottle of each and pour them inside your water," said Garnet. "Do not drink the water until at least half an hour has passed okay?"
"Yes," said Belle. "Thank you for this."
"You're welcome," said Garnet.
Quest Complete: Investigate the Farm (II)
Go to the nearby town and help them cure the disease.
Reward: Experience, Fame+50
You have leveled up!
"Only about 2000 more mana to go," Garnet thought. Ten thousand mana was the breaking point for some of the most powerful spells. She was getting closer.
Garnet sat at the fountain and waited to see if anyone would come out. No one did. They were still scared. A while later, Belle returned. "Come with me," said Belle.
Garnet and Riley followed Belle to a large two story building. Inside was an office of some kind, but it was empty. "Is this your house?" Garnet asked.
"It's the mayor's office," said Belle. "But when people got sick, everyone chose to stay home and did not want to risk going outside."
"How many people died from the illness?" Garnet asked.
"About 40 so far," said Belle. "We burned their bodies to make sure, but I think that may have spread it even more."
Burning the bodies was the safer choice. It would actually kill whatever was killing people. The problem was that they were already infected, making it do little else. "Did you spread the Remedy across all the water sources?" Garnet asked.
"Yes," said Belle.
For now, Garnet needed information. "Isn't there a noble who oversees your lands to help with this kind of problem?" Garnet asked.
"There are no more nobles here," said Belle. "So when we run into trouble, we have to take care of the problem ourselves."
"Isn't there a doctor?" Garnet asked.
"He was one of the first to die trying to help all the sick people," Belle explained. "Without him, the disease spread even faster."
A single problem was all it took to bring this village to its knees. It would crumble soon if something was not done. They really needed help. "Do you have any uninfected food?" Garnet asked.
"Just some preserved meats and vegetables," said Belle. "But it won't last long."
"There was an abandoned farm to the West," said Garnet. "I think someone can go take care of it afterwards if they treat everything with the medicine."
"Thank you," said Belle as she shook Garnet's hands.
Garnet spent a few days at the village. She observed the town's wells with Riley, watching people. The people only took the water when they were desperate because the water was also making them sick. She watched as the people who drank the water improved. The Remedy had cured them and allowed them to recover their strength. Slowly, the people who recovered began to return outside and continue with their lives instead of hiding at home.
"Can you stay here?" Belle asked.
"Sorry, but I cannot," asked Garnet.
"We'll give you food and a place to stay," said Belle.
"Sorry, but I must go to Constantinople," said Garnet.
"The ruined city?" asked Belle. "Why would you want to go to such a place?"
"I'm looking for something that might only be found there," said Garnet.
"Is there anything I can do to convince you to stay?" asked Belle. "We need a new doctor and you can help us."
"I'm afraid I cannot," said Garnet. "The water should keep your people healthy for a while. That's all I can do."
"I understand," said Belle. "Thank you so much. I'm afraid I have nothing to give you."
"All I wanted was food and a place to stay for a while," said Garnet. "That's enough for me." "
"But you two took so little," said Belle. "Surely that not is enough to eat."
Belle was suspicious because the little food Garnet took could not have fed both Garnet and Riley. "It's enough," said Garnet. "I'll be going now."
"Please visit us again on your way back," said Belle.
Garnet learned that the villages East of Anzio were relatively disconnected from one another. It was important information and there was no system of nobles to manage or oversee all the lands. The people took care of the lands themselves and when a major problem came up, there would be no one they could turn to for help. Isolation also prevented trade from benefiting the region. However, with a problem that affected an entire village, it was unlikely that even a King could do anything to help other than to burn the place to the ground so that the disease would not spread. It was also likely that a town like that would not expand very much. But, the fact that Constantinople existed meant that there were large towns and cities. They were just further apart.
With that in mind, Garnet and Riley continued East towards Constantinople.
Spoiler :
Name: Garnet
Level: 32
Class: Chaos Mage / Queen Consort / Hero
Sub-class: Temptress of the Night
Stats:
HP: 2450/2450
MP: 8160/8160
Fame: 220
Strength: 57 (+5)
Dexterity: 52 (+7)
Intelligence: 221 (+22)
Vitality: 70 (+5)
Agility: 64 (+7)
Charisma: 37 (+20)
PROFICIENCY:Weapon:
- One Handed Sword – 7
- Hand to Hand – 3
- Staff - 1
Magic:
- Fire – 7
- Lightning – 13
- Wind – 4
- Water - 0
- Summoning – 12
- Blood – 6
- Spatial - 0
SKILLS:Weapon (One Handed Sword):
- Horizontal Slash (Level 3)
- Double Slash (Level 3)
- Crescent Slash (Level 1)
- Triple Slash (Level 1)
- Delta Attack (Level 1)
- Spiral (Level 1)
Weapon (Hand to Hand):
- Palm Strike (Level 1)
- Wind Palm (Level 1)
- Explosive Palm (Level 3)
- Lightning Palm (Level 1)
- Sweeping Kick (Level 1)
- Horizontal Kick (Level 1)
- Uppercut (Level 1)
- Ki Burst (Level 1)
- Demsey Roll (Level 1)
Weapon (Staff):
- Thrust (Level 2)
- Swinging Smash (Level 1)
- Double Strike (Level 1)
- Triple Strike (Level 1)
- Quadruple Strike (Level 1)
- Vertical Smash (Level 1)
Class (Dark Mage):
- Fire Bolt (Level 5)
- Fire Ball (Level 1)
- Lightning Bolt (Level 8)
- Chain Lightning (Level 4)
- Lightning Ray (Level 3)
- Light (Level 1)
- Air Bullet (Level 4)
- Wind Blade (Level 1)
- Aqua Strike (Level 1)
- Jet Stream (Level 1)
- Heat Wave (Level 1)
- Lightning Fire Bolt (Level 1)
- Crimson Lotus: Blade of Lightning (Level 2)
- Mana Armor (Level 2)
- Call: Cerberus (Level 1)
- Call: Revenant (Level 1)
- Call: Death Knight (Level 1)
- Call: Romulus, Knight of Blood (Level 1)
- Call: Sylvia, Priestess of Blood (Level 1)
- Call: Lilith (Level 1)
- Call: Nuria (Level 1)
- Call: Mazu (Level 1)
- Call: Sino (Level 1)
- Call: Meliae (Level 1)
- Recall
- Dismiss
- Enhanced Mana Regeneration (Level 4)
- Lightning Fire (Passive)
- Blood Absorption (Level 7)
- Blood Bind (Level 1)
- Blood Scythe (Level 2)
- Blood Sacrifice (Level 1)
- Blood Bullet (Level 1)
- Transformation: Blood Reaper (Level 1)
- Transformation: Elementalist (Level 1)
- Dance of Blood (Level 1)
- Teleportation (Level 1)
- Teleportation Summoning Circle (Level 1)
Sub-class (Temptress of the Night):
- Enhanced Body (Level 3)
- Captivation: (Level 3)
- Mind Read: (Level 1)
- Pleasure Inducement (Level 3)
- Sexy Walk (Level 1)
- Stealth (Level 2)
- Shadow Walk (Level 2)
- Sonic Scream (Level 1)
- Illusion (Level 2)
- Alluring Song (Level 1)
- Flight (Level 1)
- Aura of Fear (Level 2)
- Scale Armor (Level 2, Passive)
- Transformation (Level 1)
- Partial Transformation (Level 1)
- Transformation: Temptress of the Night (Level 1)
Tradeskills:
- Hunting (Level 5) - Hunter
- Cooking (Level 9) - Cook
- Inspection (Level 5)
- Sewing (Level 4) – Tailor
- Magicraft (Level 8) – Alchemist
- Item Enhancement (Level 9)
- Disassemble (Level 1)
- Inventory Expansion (Level 4)
Passives:
- Hand to Hand (Level 1)
- One Handed Sword (Level 1)
- Staff (Level 1)
- Reflex (Level 5)
- Haste (Level 2)
- Scale Armor (Level 1)
- Aura of Leadership (Level 1)
- Aura of the Hero (Level 1)
- Summoning Commander (Level 1)
- Queen's Presence (Level 1)
- Fire Mastery (Level 1)
Unique:
- Hero System (Level 3, Passive)
- Otherworldly Knowledge (Passive)
- Golden Tongue (Passive)
- Mana Compatibility (Passive)
- Quick Learner (Passive)
- Channeling (Passive)
- Charging (Passive)
- Night Vision (Passive)