I had the brilliant idea to simply leave the Magic Gaze permanently active. There must be other enchanted plants like this in the forest, maybe I would see some while I was walking through it. I already regretted not having done it the day before, there had been so many plants on the grassy plain, some of which were certainly magical!

A short time later, I started to have a headache that was getting worse. I had fits of dizziness, I felt nauseous, the forest blurred before my eyes. I missed a tree root and fell lengthwise onto the ground, so violently that my breath was taken away. I lay there with my eyes closed, thinking as much as the pounding headache would allow. Why did I suddenly feel so miserable? Was it because of the seaweed I ate? Or was it the Magic Gaze that I had perhaps used for too long? When I was a kid, I once put on my buddy’s strong glasses, and it had similar effects. I decided to give up the magic eye for the time being and use it in moderation in the future.

After a while, I felt a little better, got up, and continued my journey south. Again and again I was lost in thought and stumbled from one tree to the next. Every now and then I came across small forest streams, so at least thirst was not a big problem, but the feeling of hunger became stronger and stronger. Once I found a handful of wild strawberries in a small clearing (I convinced myself they had been), but they only intensified the hunger. On the way, I came across animal trails more often, there had to be a lot of animals in the forest, but the noise of me fighting my way through the bushes probably scared them all away. And even if not, with what should I hunt them with, Vaari’s dagger? When I was a teenager, I went deer hunting with my uncle, but they used rifles, not daggers. I ended up feeling more sorry for the deer I killed than happy about it. However, the deer medallions with cranberry sauce, which my aunt prepared from it, were... I suppressed the thought very quickly, it would only lead to more stomach grumbling. In any case, hunting was not an option. If that was a settlement whose smoke I thought I saw, there was hopefully an inn there where I could buy something to eat with the silver.

I had no desire at all for another hungry night in the forest. Unfortunately, there seemed to be no alternatives, because it was already dusk and there were no signs of a settlement nearby. Listlessly, I pushed my way through the next bush, had to walk down a small slope to avoid falling, and suddenly stood on a road. Yes! A proper road with two ruts and grass growing between them. Of course, there was no asphalt, not even gravel, but there were definitely vehicles on the road here. Well, if you could call horse-drawn carts vehicles. How did I know about the horses? Well, their droppings on the road were unmistakable.

The chances of dinner had just improved quite a bit. I followed the road in the direction that led more to the south. It was much easier to walk that way, and although I was already exhausted, the thought of nearby civilization gave me new strength, so I walked out quickly. My attention was focused on not stepping into the horse droppings in the advancing dusk, so that I noticed the figure that stood in my way much too late.

“Stop!” to give emphasis to his words, the man stretched his left arm imperiously towards me. In his right hand, he casually held a lumberjack’s axe.

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I stopped abruptly and stared at him in disbelief. A human being! I smiled tentatively. “Good evening!”

Behind me, someone laughed. I whirled around. There stood another man, beating the palm of his left hand with a club the size of a baseball bat. He grinned cheekily at me. “Oh yeah, the evening is good and about to get even better. Give me your wallet!”

Seriously? You walk through the forest for days looking for people and then you meet two bandits? I fumbled for my dagger.

“I’d rather not!” another voice sounded from somewhere above. At the same time, an arrow hissed through the air and struck into the ground between my feet. The feathered shaft trembled after the violent impact.

I searched with my eyes and found the third scoundrel sitting on a branch with a bow in his hands. A new arrow was already resting on the loosely strung string. My thoughts were racing. What should I do? The police advised not to play the hero in such situations. Better to lose some money than to risk injury or even death. But if I gave them my money, I would have nothing left. I cursed myself for not thinking about splitting the coins and hide them on the body. I looked around in a hurry. Neither escape nor fight was an option. The archer would finish me off before I even took two steps.

“Don’t even think about it!” the guy with the axe confirmed my decision. “Owl hits an apple from thirty paces away.” Sneering, the archer mimicked an owl’s hoot. The axeman took a step toward me. “Give me your weapon belt and your wallet!”

I had no choice. With shaky hands, I unbuckled my belt and tossed it to the ground between us. The bag of coins followed. Nimbly, Axe Guy grabbed it and dumped the coins into his hand. “Silver! Korf, you were right, it’s going to be a pleasant night!”

Korf must have been the guy with the club. I didn’t even notice how he had approached me from behind. He nudged me with the club. “Take off your clothes, too! And your shoes!” His breath reeked of onions.

I gritted my teeth. Should I try to negotiate? I had nothing to offer and I didn’t want to whine. Reluctantly, I took off my sweater and threw it in Korf’s face. He caught it loosely, put it around his neck, and waved the club to let me know to go ahead. I took off my shirt, which he ripped out of my hand. I looked at him angrily, whereupon he unexpectedly rammed the end of his club into my stomach. I doubled over in pain, unable to draw a breath.

“Hey!” shouted Owl cheerfully from above. “Don’t let him puke on my new shoes!” I was still struggling to catch my breath when I became aware of hoof stomping. There was a strange clicking sound, followed by a thud. Owl fell from the tree with a crash and landed at my feet. Its widened eyes were lifeless, a crossbow bolt stuck in its chest.

“Korf, run!” the guy with the axe yelled desperately. The two robbers disappeared into the bushes, unfortunately not without my things. The sounds of riding were getting closer. “Seize them!” a commanding voice rang out. I slowly straightened up.

On the road, three horsemen approached me. Two of them immediately left it, following the order, and rode into the forest. The leader made his horse approach me. He wore expensive-looking armor, with a long sword hanging at his side. In his hands, he had a compact crossbow. The death of Owl was probably on his account.

The horse stopped beside me. I looked up at the rider. “Thank you...” The heavy boot hit me in the face, knocking me to the ground. “More humility when you speak to the Lar Baron of Eichendall, good-for-nothing!” He spurred his mount again and rode past me, paying no further attention to me. His companions came out of the forest. “They got away, Lar! It’s too dark for a pursuit.” The baron stowed his crossbow at the saddle. “Forget the vermin!” He spurred his horse to a gallop, and the others followed. A short time later, they disappeared into the approaching darkness.