“Why are there foreign agents attacking The Woods, anyway?” Theo asked.

Eva scoffed, and looked in Sparrow’s direction. They cleared their throat. “Well, The Woods help maintain Union City’s neutrality by being a deterrent. So it is the first line of defense for Union City as a whole. It is also a point of interest itself, being a magical forest, of which not many exist. There are pilgrims, as well as those looking to either steal a piece to experiment on or to gather information. So there’s a lot of reasons why foreign agents could come here, and they do regularly.”

Eva nodded. “There are also disputes between us and neighbouring kingdoms, like Etol. We grow and expand, and they accuse us of encroaching on their borders, an act of aggression on behalf of Union City. If we do not, they encroach on ours, claiming that the ground on which we grow was theirs to begin with, and we are too weak to defend it. So, we grow and fight them anyway, and that way we can mostly preserve our land.”

Theo’s brow furrowed, as he thought that through. “So, if you go on the offensive, they claim you’re in the wrong and justify their actions. If you don’t act, they still say you’re wrong and justify their actions. You’re both too strong and too weak. Isn’t that a bit contradictory?”

Sparrow had a gentle chuckle, while Eva just looked amused, lip quirked upwards. “Not everyone understands that. You assume consistency is their aim, not victory. They wield politics to justify what they wanted to do in the first place. So it’s perfectly fine if we’re strong and thus must be defeated, at the same time as being too weak and thus being an easy target.”

A thought came to Theo. “Wait, so where are the boundaries actually?” He wondered aloud.

“Your student is rather sharp.” Eva commented, quietly to Sparrow.

“Yeah, smarter than I thought at first.” Sparrow replied, muttering under his breath.

“Hey! I heard that!” Theo wasn’t sure if he was cursing or thankful for Bat’s Ears, but either way, he heard it.

Eva and Sparrow shared a look, smiling, before ignoring his comment. “Boundaries change as wars are fought and rulers rise and fall. If there were ever clear boundaries, agreed on by all parties, then those have been lost to time.” Eva explained.

Theo paused. “Wait, so there are no-“

“We’re here.” Eva interrupted Theo.

They had arrived in a clearing. It was one they knew – it was where they found the chest in the first place (as well as where everything went wrong, and where things began).

Sitting on the ground cross-legged, eyes closed and hands sunk into the ground, was a young man in an earthy robe. Laid across his lap, was a flowering branch, twined with green vines in intricate, curling patterns. He was in the centre of the clearing, and winds seemed to dance, grass twisting in a wave that ended with him in the centre, brown hair fluttering gently as butterflies circled overhead.

Theo stood there, entranced for a moment. He swore he could see the mana following the same meandering spiral. Eva walked up to the man, and waited there patiently. Sparrow just looked around, observing the space, and what changes had happened since they’d been there last. They narrowed their eyes, as they looked at a tree.

The man cracked open his eyes, glanced at Eva, and nodded. He drew his hands out of the earth, stained brown with the dirt. Bracing his hands on his knees, he stood up slowly, and looked at both Theo and Sparrow.

“Greetings, I am Francis.” He bowed, hands clasped behind his back. Something in the back of Theo’s head itched at that name, but before he could figure it out Sparrow had replied.

“So you’re the Natureborn that Kevin was talking about. I am The Dancing Wind, but you can just call me Sparrow. This is Theo, my student.” Theo waved awkwardly with a weak smile, as Sparrow introduced him. Francis nodded in his direction.

“Yes, Mercy of Death asked me if I would be interested in helping to preserve those herbs.”

“Francis arrived a little while ago, but we had to wait for Theo to get here to open the chest, so now we can get started.” Eva said, as Francis cocked his head to the side.

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“You mean that chest?” He pointed to the chest, which was sitting in the same tree trunk…open. “I decided to have a look at what we have while I waited.” Realisation flashed across Sparrow’s face.

There was a pause, as Eva, Sparrow, and Theo all shared a look. Eva rushed over to look at the chest (with the frantic energy of someone who forgot to lock their door).

“…I’d opened it already, so maybe there was no problem with opening it again?” Theo suggested.

Sparrow shrugged their shoulders.

After inspecting the contents, and finding it as they expected, Eva walked back to everyone and pretended nothing had happened.

“As Francis has looked at the contents already, we can begin. Theo will infuse mana into The Woods, while Francis finds a way to preserve the power inside the herbs for future use.” Theo nodded, walking next to Francis.

“I think I can grow them, with enough mana support.” Theo’s head whipped over to look at Francis, who didn’t look like someone who had suggested something absurd.

“…These are dried herbs who knows how old, and potent ones at that. How certain are you that you can do this?” Eva questioned, (justifiably) incredulous (but without shooting down the idea immediately).

Francis did some mental arithmetic. “I would like to try with a handful of the powder currently in the chest. We should be able to see if it works by the end of today, with Theo’s help.” Eva and Sparrow looked at him, and Theo swallowed.

“S-sure, happy to give it a shot.”

What followed was Sparrow giving Theo a crash course on how to infuse his mana into something outside of his body, while Francis examined the powder further with Eva.

“You know how to guide mana through your body like internal magic. You know how to gather it outside of your body like focus magic. What you want to do is to draw the mana through your body, and guide the mana out of your body, into the ground.”

“…is that why you wanted me to do the focus magic audit?” Theo asked, tangentially. Sparrow shrugged.

“It’s all magic. They’re all related, and who says you can’t apply what you learned about one to another? But that’s not the point. Focus.”

And focus Theo did. He sat cross-legged, hands in the earth just like Francis had been earlier. He felt the mana leave his system, flowing into the ground. It felt…natural. Like, this was a way to use mana. It felt good, and then he froze up.

An entire network of mana opened up to Theo, one that extended from him into the earth, flowing through criss-crossing pathways, into trees…and Eva.

“Sparrow?” Theo asked, voice an octave higher than it normally was. “Mana came back.” Sparrow smiled.

Francis’ head perked up, and he looked at Theo, then Sparrow. “Did you teach him how Natureborn cultivate?”

“I did.” Sparrow responded simply, before falling back into the grass, arms behind their head. They closed their eyes. Softly humming to themselves. “Now my job’s done here, it’s up to do you.”

Theo turned to Francis. “What do you mean cultivate?” His attention changed to Eva. “I-is that okay? I thought I was supposed to infuse mana, not get it back.”

Francis assuaged his worries. “The way we honour nature is to take care of it as it has taken care of us. This can be through growing and tending to plants, as well as infusing mana into it. This is what we refer to as cultivation, as we cycle mana through plants and the earth as an extension of ourselves. It strengthens both nature and ourselves, increasing the potency and health of plants, as well as strengthening our bodies and giving us a deeper connection with nature. Mana does come back, but it is absorbed in the process, so you are still infusing mana into the ground. It’s also more efficient than simply increasing the ambient mana, so I’m sure Eva doesn’t mind?” Francis looked at Eva, who nodded. Satisfied with her answer, he continued.

“The Woods are so popular with my people because it is a shining example of mana and nature working in harmony. Pilgrimages to places like these are popular, especially since the more mana is entrenched into the surrounding area, the more potent it becomes to the Natureborn to cultivate. As such, it is often considered a privilege to be able to do what you are doing right now.”

Theo’s eyes opened wide, cheeks flushing, before Eva interjected. “Most Natureborn are only able to infuse a limited amount of mana into the earth, and thus they benefit more relatively than nature does. It is more a ceremonial and religious action for most, including Francis here.”

Francis nodded in agreement. “We normally tend to an area without mana and cultivate it throughout our lives, as to benefit all involved as much as possible.”

Eva continued. “I know the amount that you have just infused into The Woods is more than enough for our agreement if you continue to do so for a few hours each week. We would welcome it if you wish to take advantage of this opportunity and infuse more than required.”

“In other words, don’t worry. You’re good, so enjoy it.” Sparrow got back up, cracking their neck, and brushing off their sleeves. Their red suit didn’t have a single grass or dirt stain on its surface.

Theo sputtered, (more than) a bit overwhelmed. “Where did you even learn how to do that?”

Sparrow winked at Theo, as they waltzed around the clearing, footsteps light (if not borderline non-existent). “A bard uses all the tools at their disposal, regardless what they are.” They span around, arms outstretched.

A terrifying thought struck Theo. “…is Gilth going to be mad at me?” Images of being followed by lightning clouds made him quickly retract his hands from the ground and look up.

Sparrow stopped and waited, amusement on their face as they looked at Theo, who had turned a concerning shade of white. The sky remained clear, without a cloud in sight. A lopsided grin graced their face.

“I have a feeling they don’t mind.”