Madam Justine, widower of Olex, stared into the eyes of the man across the table from her. A bead of sweat trickled down the man's forehead. His face was red as his muscles bulged as he tried to move her arm. Justine's arm was like steel as he tried to get her to move. The man gritted his teeth as he pushed as hard as he could but her arm didn't budge.

"Hey there handsome," Justine said.

The man looked at her, giving her a confused frown.

She winked and then slammed his hand against the table.

A mighty cheer went up around them as money exchanged hands. Justine grinned as she began sweeping up her own pile of coins, sliding them into a pouch.

"How?" The man said confused and his face red and painted with anger and suspicion. "Are you a Seedling?"

"Do I look like I'm on the payroll of some noble?" Justine shot back. She leaned forward and the cut of her shirt open up just enough to give a decent peek of a pair of her generous assets. "I'm just gifted in a lot of ways. If you're lucky I'll show how?"

The man's face grew even redder though this time it was for a different reason. He opened his mouth to speak but Justine leaned back and slapped her hand on the table.

"A round of ale for everyone!" She shouted out.

A roar filled the bar and she pushed away from her chair, making her way to the bar. She handed over a portion of her money to the barkeep while taking an ale for herself. She learned it was best to pass around a drink or two than deal with an angry sore loser later. In fact, she planned to finish her drink and then head out for the night.

She had only a sip of her victory drink when a man saddled up to her. He was a thin sort with a gaze too knowing for her likes. She pretended he wasn't staring at her and took another drink.

"What's your secret?"

Justine didn't say anything and just took another gulp of her ale.

"Are you really not a Seedling?"

She rolled her eyes. "I said I ain't. You see me buddying up with Lord Felis or the Order? Now, let me finish my drink in peace."

"There has to be a secret. No way a normal woman could beat that brute like you did. Was it a potion?" The thin man insisted

Justine sighed. "You really can't take a hint, can you? Do I need to knock your face in or something?"

The man held up his hands defensively. "Whoa. I'm not trying to pick a fight."

"You sure could've fooled me or did you think it's charming implying I'm a cheater?"

"Well, are you?" The thin man shot back.

Justine threw back her head, chugging down her ale in one long gulp. When she came up from air, she looked at the man who was staring at her with his mouth gaping open like the dumb oxen of the Meshur Plains.

"I ain't. Now fuck off." With that she hurled her tankard at the man.

With a swift movement, the man twisted out of the way. When he turned back to Justine, she was already halfway out the door. She sped up her step as she stepped into the darkness. She began walking down the road. She didn't get far when the thin man followed her out.

"Wait!"

Justine kept walking.

"Wait," the man shouted.

She sensed him get closer. Just as his hand reached out to grab her shoulder, Justine twisted and then swing her fist. The man dodged but Justine immediately followed it up with an uppercut. The thin man jerked back just she still clipped him and the man found himself knocked to the ground.

"Fuck! You hit hard."

"If you don't want more then I suggest you get lost," Justine said. "I'm not some easy mark."

"Look, that's not why I'm here."

Justine rolled her eyes. "Oh? Is that so?"

The man nodded his head. "I heard about you. My team could use some extra muscle."

"Your team?" Justine said and it clicked what was going on. "You're monster hunters."

The man nodded.

Justine sighed. "You came to the wrong side of the woods. It's better to enter through Beros. Here you won't get anything good."

"You seem to know a lot. You a hunter," the man asked, getting to his feet and rubbing his jaw.

She shook her head. "Nah. We get your sort through here from time-to-time. They think they can get some monsters on this side but come back disappointed. Nothing comes through this side because of the barrier."

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"I heard there was an attack by blood leeches so something came through."

Justine frowned. She couldn't refute that. She had been there after all. It was strange. She had been taken completely off-guard and without her night strength she had been helpless to a fucking slug. If that girl hadn't saved her, she would have been a dried-up husk. Well she had paid the lots of them back.

"Maybe some stragglers got through. It's rare but it happens," Justine said to the thin man and even as she said it felt like a flimsy excuse.

The man shook his head. "It's not just here but monsters have been showing up more often. The royal family has even sent out a kingdom wide order, giving extra coin to those that clear out monsters and bring back proof of it."

Justine's eyes sparked with interest. She hadn't heard about that. What was going on? For a moment, the familiar urge to dive head first into adventure took her but she tapped it down. Her adventuring days were long over. She had enough scars.

"Not interested," Justine said. "Besides, I'm not a Seedling."

The thin man looked at her doubtfully. "Then how are you so strong? You have to have at least altered strength."

She put her hands on her hips. "When are you going to get it through your thick head? I'm not a Seedling."

"Then what are you?" the man said, obviously getting frustrated at her continued denial.

"What is exactly the answer," Justine shot back.

The man frowned and then his eyes widened.

Justine didn't wait around for the man to recovered. Instead, she kept walking. This time the thin man didn't follow her.

Well, that was incredibly stupid of me. What if he spreads that around? There'll be questions.

A wave of panic went through her but she firmly quelled it. So, what if there was questions? it wasn't illegal to be living here and she was mostly human, at least a good 95 percent. Her family's connection with the Night Orcs were long diluted. Only the families in the old lands still had any connection and her family was far removed from them. She hadn't even met one and they sure hadn't been there when her family was hunted down.

Justine shook her head. There was no reason to dwell on that. She had long gotten past that and had time to make newer and deeper scars that she was still healing from. It was the whole reason she had settled in this dinky town. Time to heal, time to move on from a past that only left pain behind.

That's not right.

She sighed. She knew there was no place to be thinking like that. Priest Octorin would be right disappointed after all the progress she made. It was time to let go. She was fine now.

Justine took a step and then immediately stumbled. Her eyes widened as a glowing scroll hung in the air before her. It just appeared in front of her out of nowhere. She peered at it in confusion, looking around her. No one was there. Cautiously, she pulled out her knife and poked it. Her knife went right through the scroll as if it wasn't there.

"What in the hells is going on?"

The scroll hung there, waiting. Justine's curiosity got the better of her and she finally started to read the text scrawled across it.

---

Quest of the Akashic Tree

Follow the road to Felis Manor and look around.

Reward: A New Path

---

Justine stared at the quest. "Yeah, that told me absolutely nothing. Didn't even know the Akashic Tree gave out quests."

Justine frowned. She was talking to herself in the middle of the street. Maybe even hallucinating. Was the ale stronger than she thought.

Justine waved her hand over the scroll and this time it disappeared. But there was a strange sensation. Like the scroll was still there where she couldn't see, waiting for her to call it back.

"A new path? Why would I want that?"

She thought about the thin man and his offer and shook her head.

"I'm fine here."

She kept walking, determined to ignore what just happened. Whatever was going on, there was no point in getting involved. She had given up her adventuring days after losing Olex. She was fine in Goros, living her life, hanging at the bar, talking with Priest Octorin. It was a peaceful life. A life she had gotten used to.

She continued walking down the road and walking and walking until she found herself at the road leading up to Lord Felis's Manor. She stopped and frowned.

"What am I doing here? I'm fine. I don't need some messy quest in my life."

She looked down the road and then back to where Goros stood. The town was dark, the only lights coming from the bar.

"I should go home and sleep off the drink."

She didn't move. For a few minutes she looked down the road. Then she started to walk.

"I'll just take a look. See what it's all about. Then I'll head back home and think nothing else about it. A look won't hurt. It's no good to let curiosity eat at your mind. Bad for the mind, it is."

Her steps sped up as she hurried down the road. A horse would've made things faster but the Night Orc blood flowing through her veins kept her moving quickly. It was a good thing she got the message at night or she would have had a much harder time of it.

Eventually, she reached just before the treeline opened up to the field before the baron's manor. She stopped and looked towards the manor. Now that she was here she wasn't sure what to do. keep walking and just ask Lord Felis if he had a new path for her? It seemed pretty silly when she thought about it.

"I really must have been drunk," Justine said, running her hand through her hair only to stop. "Wait, what is that?"

She squinted and took a step forward as she saw flames raise up from the Felis manor. There were shouts from the guards. Whatever was going on, Justine was sure it was bad news.

"Curiosity sated. Time to go." She had no intention of being accused of being part of whatever mess was going on.

She started to turn to head back when she caught sight of a small figure rushing out of the gate. Justine slid off the road, stepping into the trees as she watched the small figure move closer to the trees, but before the figure could reach the trees they screamed and clutched at their eye. They dropped to the ground, rolling around as they continued to scream.

Before Justine could think better of it. She shot out of the field and towards the figure. By the time she reached them, they had stopped screaming and were laying limp on the ground.

"Son of a bitch," Justine whispered as she stared down at what she now saw was a girl.

She was a very familiar girl. Her curly brown hair surrounded her face like a halo and her eyes stared blankly back at Justine, her eyes open. It was the right eye that held Justine's attention. It was glowing.

"Damn it," Justine said, glancing at the girl then to the manor and back. "Ember. You alive? You look like you're breathing but got to admit the whole staring with glowing creepy eye is freaking me out."

The girl didn't response.

Justine swore to herself. She had to make a decision.

She sighed. The decision had long been made when she decided to follow that stupid quest. She bent down and scooped the girl up.

"A new path? Sounds more like new trouble." With a shake of her head, she carried Ember into the woods and began making her way home.