Excerpt from The Mad Scholar's Wall—

The human parent of the half-bloods could not take care of their own child.

It was a fact many screamed and raged at, but in the end, none could deny it.

Many a parent could be found looking at their child with fear and shame.

It was to be expected.

The elves told us the children could feel emotions. And the strongest could even read minds. In the early days, the cries of children never stopped. How could they? The infants could feel their parent's fear and self-loathing mutating into hatred.

We mundanes can do very little to prevent our emotions from being felt. And the mental focus and force of will it takes to practice such a technique is not common, as it requires constant dedication and practice.

I have reached some degree of achievement in that regard, as I can now block even an active attempt to read my mind, but I am the exception. An exception at the end of decades of effort. Most could not even take the first step on the path.

More than the reading of minds — and the ruined relationships as the children grew in age — the real tragedy was the children who killed their parents.

They were thrown into a corner where they broke their necks, or random nicknacks and furniture smashed into their chests and heads as they were tossed around a room.

We of the first generation had no way to deal with such things.

So again, we relied on the elves. Those who could control and teach our children in our stead.

**********

I wanted to sleep. To fall back into the dark embrace of oblivion and dreams.

Sleep called me, but the distant throbbing pain pulling me to wakefulness was unyielding. Even as I yearned to sink deeper into slumber, I could feel myself leaving its embrace.

I could feel something was nagging at me. An annoyance was scratching at my mind until the only choice was to open my eyes. Even then, I still fought to rejoin the darkness.

As I gradually became more aware of my surroundings, I picked out what was bothering me.

My body felt like it was burning, though I could ignore that. What really got to me was the inconsistent hitching wheezing interspersed by blessed silence.

"Eehhh~. Haaa~." The noise was annoying and sounded like someone was dying as they struggled to take a breath.

Opening my eyes, I was surprised that they only opened to a hazy slit before I couldn't widen them further.

I started scrunching up my face and wiggling my eyebrows around as I strained to pull my eyelids apart. Nothing happened.

Finally, I had to accept that I was not getting my eyes open without using another part of my body. Which was a real problem because everything hurt. And the realization was one of the saddest moments of my life.

Objectively, it might not be, but it sure felt that way right now.

“Argh…" I groaned as I lifted up my right arm. It was the one that hurt less. Huh, the wheezing hiss went away after I… Oh. Shit.

Rubbing at my eyes, I became more awake, letting me feel the full spectrum of pain ravaging me.

The entire front of my body, from the tops of my feet to my scalp, felt like one giant bruise, with patches of bruises on my backside as well. My left arm ached. Pretty sure my right ankle was sprained at some point during my flight. My throat felt like… calling it sunburned wouldn't be wrong. Though, to be more accurate, my throat was raw, and swallowing felt like flexing my stomach while having a thousand half-healed cuts in it. And as I opened my eyes, it felt like two knives were shoved through them and into my head.

"Ahh!" I screamed, covering my eyes from the blue-green light with my hands and clamping my eyelids shut. "By the Ancestor, that hurt!"

Gradually, I opened my eyes and pulled back my hands slightly, slowly revealing them to the constant dull light all around me.

My eyes still hurt, and if I moved them around too much, I would get dizzy and feel a sharp jab of pain, but I could bear it.

Letting my arms fall to my side, I took in the ceiling of the room I was in. Or I assumed I was, but I couldn't be sure with everything being one blur.

I frowned in mild discomfort as my vision slowly resolved the different shades and blobs. There was no piercing pain in my eyes like when I was running through the forest, just a dull one. Which was probably the best I could ask for, given the situation.

The ceiling was covered in a dense carpet of blue-green glowing moss.

It was something I had never seen, not that I was an expert on tunnels and the deep reaches of the world. It was interesting, though.

Flopping my head to my right, I could see that the walls were also covered in the glowing moss, if to a lesser degree.

I couldn't even determine if the wall was made of stone or dirt underneath the moss, though I would assume stone because that was what was underneath the thick dust I was lying on.

Trying to get up, I grunted in effort, only to fall back to the ground in a coughing fit that made my ribs loudly complain.

Discarding the idea of standing up, I came up with a new idea.

Slowly scooting across the ground, I got within arm's reach of the glowing moss.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Until this point in my life, I was unaware of a fact about myself. I had never encountered the situation before, so it was reasonable. And in my opinion, it was a logical mistrust.

I did not trust mysterious glowing plants. I know it was quite a flaw, but it is something I can't help.

Squinting my eyes at the moss, I hesitantly reached out before swatting the mass.

At the impact of my hand, a cloud of tiny specks was flung into the air.

I watched the specks with mistrust for long moments until they faded. Searching the air for several more seconds, I saw that the specks were still there. It was just they had stopped glowing.

For whatever reason, I was fine with the specks so long as they didn't glow.

Carefully, I smacked the moss another time, going through the same process of watching the moss and floating specks until they dimmed. It was a rather beautiful sight.

Shrugging, I started flailing my hand at the moss wall, creating large clouds of floating specks. During my movements, I accidentally tore off a section of moss, revealing a stone wall. I was right!

Eventually, the moss I was hitting stopped sending out specks, and the area of the glowing moss dimmed before it completely stopped.

My annoying wheezing breaths turned into multiple coughing and hacking fits as I breathed in the floating… whatever the specks were.

Once the glowing was gone, I turned and slowly lifted up my body, leaning back against the moss. It was surprisingly comfortable.

As I sat up, I felt my breathing become easier, but it might have all been in my head. It could have been less annoying now that I wasn't lying on the ground and could look around properly.

To my left was an archway with a wall blocking it off a foot in. To the side of the arch was a lever I vaguely remembered pulling down. On the stone ground below the lever and next to my feet was what was once a large pool of dark liquid.

I say once a liquid because the dust on the ground absorbed everything, making a dark slurry. In the light, it could have been anything. Or, if I was being honest, any liquid that could come out of my body, as I didn't see any other sources of liquid down here.

My flailing around cleared off some stone and smeared a clump of slurry across a patch of semi-cleared ground.

Even with the blue-green light, I thought I could make out a red tint, but that could have been me seeing what I expected.

I did find lines of dried and crusted blood coming from my nose and ears. It wasn't that big of a clue, but it was enough for me to make a guess that blood was smeared across the ground. I could be wrong, though. You never knew.

Fumbling with the pouches on my belt, I opened some of them and started eating the jerky and cheese I pulled out, along with a few swallows from my canteen. It was the most painful meal I had ever eaten, but I needed the fuel.

Once I was done eating, I looked down the hallway to the right.

I had looked in that direction before, and it was the same then as it was now. A long hallway that receded into the distance, lined on three sides by the blue-green moss.

Putting my canteen away and collecting my spear and the four arrows I had left — I lost my bow and most of my arrows in one of my tumbles — I mentally gathered myself to stand.

With many groans and curses, I made it to my feet.

Limping over to the archway, I gave the lever a look, then put my hand against the door. Or gate. It was one of them.

I came through something, after all.

With my hand pressed against the wooden wall, I felt a slight warmth coming off it.

There was a forest fire raging above, but for it to have eaten away at the tree to the point it was heating up the wood down here didn't seem normal. But then again, what would I know about stairwell trees?

The fire might even make it down here, filling the tunnel with smoke. I thought in concern.

It was only a brief moment. If the fire was going to make it down here, it probably would have already. Though it felt like minutes, I had to have been asleep for over half a day.

Turning from the archway, I started limping down the long hallway.

At first, I kept one hand on the wall as my movements were stiff, and my balance wasn't great.

By the time I lost sight of the archway in the green-blue haze of the tunnel, all that signified the way I was going and where I came from was the line of moss I was tearing off the wall trailing out behind me. I had loosened up the bruises and sprains covering my body, letting me pick up the pace. Not that I could go at anything called fast.

I was moving at what could definitely be called a walk. But less generous people might call it a stroll. Like I was trying to spend more time in this tunnel.

The mysterious watcher would also have to comment on how it sounded like something was rattling around in my chest, and I might want to spend a moment to catch my breath.

Which would be impossible. Even standing still, I could not get what felt like a full breath of air. All I could do was move forward, hoping I didn't collapse from dizziness.

After what felt like hours, but was probably one… though it might be three — I really couldn't tell or care at this point — I spotted what I thought was another arch in the distance.

I was right. Stopping next to the lever, I studied it and the archway for a moment before shrugging, limping a step forward, and pulling the lever.

There was a click, and the wall began lowering in silence. Behind the lowering section was another wall that was also sinking, which revealed another section after a moment. The pattern repeated, every piece lowering in a cascade. Each section formed a step six inches high until there was a spiral staircase leading up, filling the archway.

Looking at the staircase in resignation, I started plodding up the stairs while pressing my hand against the outside wall for support.

The glow of the moss disappeared as I went up and around the tunnel, and for a while, I climbed up the stairs in darkness.

Suddenly, as I turned around the constant corner, I saw the first wisps of sunlight breaking through the darkness.

Stopping mid-step, I stood still for a few moments as my eyes adjusted. I could barely see the next step, but even with that little amount of light, my temples throbbed.

Walking through the darkness up the stairwell wasn't a trial for me. It was a blessing. For long, blessed minutes, I felt my eyes relax, and the constant tension they were under began to lessen.

I didn't realize how much the dim light of the tunnel was bothering me until it was no longer there.

Bracing myself, I started slowly taking steps forward. I could feel the pressure and pricks of pain mount as the level of light increased.

With my final few steps, I walked out of a hollow in a tree that looked strikingly similar to the tree I first entered.

As I stepped out onto the brush-covered ground, I looked around the area. I was at the edge of a hillside again, but this one was fairly gentle and led up to the valley's edge. This hill had significantly fewer trees than the rest of the valley, giving me a clear view of the sky.

Looking at the top of the hill, I saw the sun was halfway over its edge. Pulling out a compass, I checked it, confirming the direction was west. The sun was setting.

I was glad that I wouldn't have to deal with the light much longer, but then again, it was getting dark, and I needed to make it back to camp.

Sighing, I turned and started walking to the southeast. My path would take me along the valley and eventually over the far hill.

Which would be a real danger with proper light, so the sun setting became a good thing.

Leaning into the tree's hollow, I looked around until I found a crevasse similar to the other. Feeling down it, I found another lump down the hole and messed around with it until I found I could push it up, closing off the stairwell.

Taking one more look around, I started my way into the forest.

As I made my way down the valley and to the far hill, I tried to make as little disturbance as I could, but compared to my best, it was like I wasn't even trying.

Anyone chasing me would only have to use half of their attention to follow my trail. Which could make them think it's a false trail, I hopefully thought, but I was hardly ever that lucky.

I could only hope that no one would notice.

Eventually, I found a good spot to cross the eastern hill. Looking around, I found a comfortable-looking tree and leaned against it before sliding to the ground.

There was still light at the top of the opposite hill, and with the sparse number of trees on its slope, I was more likely to be spotted now than if I waited half an hour for the night to fully settle in.

Closing my eyes, I rubbed at my temples and tried to settle my stomach by taking deep, slow breaths.

The pain in my head was well past the point that I was starting to get nauseous. All I wanted was to find a dark room and lie down for a few hours.

Groaning into my hands, I said, "Ahh, fuck—

"Well, well," A cold, husky voice said into my ear as a cool blade pressed into my throat, "what do we have here?"