Drigsburg faded behind them, disappearing behind the horizon as they entered another forest. This time, the forest was not that wet, though it was still as dense. Heavy rain seldom came, but that was mostly because the inevitable pour was light in comparison to the deluge they had to endure in the Wetwood Forest.

The final stretch of their journey to Casmont proved easier than expected, though they were moving farther away from civilized lands. The road they took was expectedly worse, proving more tiresome to walk over with the many potholes and poor construction, or lack thereof.

It was narrow, choked by grass and foliage, and was generally less of a road and more of a tight stretch of barren land weaving through the forest and occasional grassy clearing.

That said, Adam didn't need to carry the wagon with his psychic power. Mr. Mule was more than capable of pulling it now that the road was not drowning in mud, though he still minimized the weight with his telekinesis.

As he held onto the map that pointed them to their destination, Adam pondered. He held the wide piece of parchment with both hands, frowning as he reconciled the details of the map with the details of their surroundings. He did this through the use of his psychic powers, sending his telekinesis in all directions to map out the vicinity with relatively good accuracy.

That said, he was not amused to find that the map was far from the accuracy he had hoped it had when he first purchased it. Many of the landmarks it showed were nowhere near their supposed locations, and a lot of the information looked more like assumptions at best, and outright fabrications at worst.

He only realized the shoddy quality of the map after finding themselves in even more unfamiliar territory, which was less than ideal. However, Adam couldn't exactly blame the shopkeeper who sold the map to him. For all he knew, this was actually the best map they had. Given the obvious lack of modern equipment to help in properly mapping a region as big as the one they were in, he found himself understanding.

Though Adam understood, it didn't mean that he wasn't the slightest bit irritated, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. Complaining fixed nothing.

The Rukdam Duo eventually reached a dead end where the road, or what remained of the narrow stretch of barren land they were following, came to a sudden stop.

They beheld a wall of trees, shrubs, and foliage. With their only reasonable path blocked and any alternatives too risky or too long, Adam and Ruk found themselves in quite the frustrating predicament.

That said, both knew that the only way to their destination was forward.

Thus, with the aid of Adam's psychic senses and telekinesis, and Ruk's strong arm and long ax, the Rukdam Duo forged their own path through the forest.

Ruk swung wide and proud, cutting through trees with each powerful swing of his ax. Meanwhile, Adam used his telekinesis to clear the way of leftover stumps and fallen trees. He did this by uprooting the stumps and tossing them aside along with the rest of the trees, piling them up on the side of the path they were making.

Was it efficient? Definitely not, but as Adam uprooted stumps and threw away the rest as if he was doing no more than throwing pebbles, they made progress.

Adam felt bad for cutting down the trees to carve their path, but the alternative was to weave through the forest itself, following clearings of tall grass and shrubs to get to their destination.

They had little time to spare, for they had already been delayed enough.

After more than a month since they first left behind Port Silvershore, the Rukdam Duo neared their destination. And as expected, the environment around them changed.

Casmont was located farthest to west, farthest from all other towns and cities in the new world. It was surrounded by unexplored and wild lands, teeming with life that was both interesting and dangerous.

There were magical beasts to worry about and mundane predators to urge away, but there was something else lurking within the dense forests and murky bogs.

Foul creatures of the dark. Filthy, smelly, and full of greed and malice. And Adam knew to keep himself guarded, both in mind and body.

As the Rukdam Duo found themselves walking across bogs and through swamps, they were alert. Ruk had his ears perked up like a cat, a thing that Adam didn't expect his partner to be able to do. The orc was able to hear sounds both and far, with the ability to point at the direction where any sound came from.

Meanwhile, Adam was far from passive. His psychic powers flowed from his mind like a rushing waterfall, spreading around him in an ever-expanding ring that brought his surroundings under his senses.

Telekinesis and telepathy worked in tandem, dancing together in a choreographed display that could only be appreciated by Adam's mind.

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His telekinesis allowed him to feel every inch of the forest, from the bogs and swamps, to the fields of shrubs and tall grass. If he so wanted, the young man could easily uproot everything around him with his power through sheer brute force, but he wasn't about to. And he didn't yet know that he could.

His telepathy informed him of the many critters and creatures that lurked underneath logs and mounds, perched on tree branches, or hidden between the leaves and grass.

But there was something amiss. The creatures avoided them, making sure to hide themselves wherever possible. Birds ended their songs whenever they neared, insects crawled not wherever they stepped, and animals, both prey and predator, stood far away.

It was a difference that did not go unnoticed, and it unnerved Adam to see nature acting so strangely around them. He assumed that it was because of his powers filling the surrounding air with its weight, causing the atmosphere to grow thick and heavy as he sent out more and more of his power.

Adam hadn't exerted himself this much in such a wide radius ever since that fateful day when his parents were killed and his life ruined. But he knew that to do any less would be inviting danger. Not just to himself, but to Ruk and Mr. Mule.

Still, there was also something else. Adam sensed it. A foulness. A corruption that could only be sensed by his psychic powers. It was like a malignant force lurking in the air, a vileness that could only be appreciated by his telepathy.

It was a stream of thoughts and feelings, but unlike anything the young psychic had encountered before. Psychic streams were formed from psychic seas, and psychic seas were formed whenever groups of minds, either animal or human, gathered together or were concentrated within an area.

But Adam didn't appreciate this particular psychic stream in the slightest. It was foul. It reeked of disturbing thoughts and feelings, giving rise to a stream of reprehensible quality.

The existence of such a thing only went to show that the fate of Casmont was far from an isolated tragedy that could not have been prevented.

There was a force of malice nearby and it brought along a sea of dark thoughts. And Adam knew who was causing it. Or more correctly, what.

Goblins. They were near.

But there was still no reason for Adam to muster himself beyond what he was already doing. He was yet to detect any goblins within their immediate vicinity. With roughly ten square kilometers of their surroundings under his active surveillance, it was safe to say that the threat of a surprise attack or an ambush was low.

That said, Adam was uneasy. So was Ruk. But the same could not be said for Mr. Mule, for the pack animal couldn't care any less about what bothered the other two. The mule was more than content to just ignore the uneasiness of the Rukdam Duo and pull the wagon along.

Then, as the sun began to set over the horizon, they came across the first sign of human civilization in almost two weeks. Or at least what was left of it.

As they escaped another bog and found themselves walking on solid ground, the forest began to wane. However, a thick fog blanketed the air as they came upon clearing, which then gave way to a field. A field for crops. It was overgrown with weeds and shrubs, reclaimed by nature after months of neglect. Or rather, abandonment.

There was no neglect to be seen here, only tragedy. Beyond the overgrown fields and barely visible through the fog were a wall of rotting wooden palisades, surrounding a village that once relied on its protection.

Filled with despair yet determined to move forward, Adam and Ruk beheld their destination. The village of Casmont. Or what was left of it.

"Ya sure he's here?" Asked Ruk. The orc was frowning and had a firm hold around his ax. His eyes scanned around and his ears twitched.

"He is," said Adam

The Rukdam Duo proceeded to follow a beaten down path through the abandoned fields and came upon a withered gate. After further inspection, Adam came to the conclusion that it had been struck open by something heavy or torn open by an explosive. Either way, the gate was breached, leaving a gaping hole where reinforced doors once stood.

As they stepped through, Adam and Ruk came face-to-face with the goblins. Or at least what remained of some of them. Their skeletons were short and stout, almost similar in size to that of small children. But there was no mistaking what they truly were.

They were scattered all over the village, concentrated around the gate, roads, and surrounding even houses where they surely killed and plundered

The villagers had put up a good fight, killing more than dozens of the creatures who meant them more than mere harm. Yet the futility of their struggle was laid bare for Adam and Ruk to see.

Most of the huts had been burned, reduced to nothing but a pile of ash where a home once stood. Their barns had been destroyed, littered with the skeletons of farm animals. Their granaries had been looted, for the wooden buildings still stood, but with broken doors that led to their plundered interior.

Adam and Ruk walked in muted silence, the quietness of their pace broken only by the sound of the wagon wheels rolling over dirt, stone, and bone.

Adam knew where to go, but he wanted to see the full extent of what happened during that tragic day.

As they passed through the rotting and collapsing village, they came upon a well in the center. The roof had been smashed and several buckets were broken around it. Yet there was a rope rolled neatly on the corner of the wall, hanging on a wooden stick.

"Ha, the man really does live," Ruk said, "Where's his house?"

Adam turned around and pointed his hand. Beyond the fog was a lone hut standing far from the cluster of burnt and abandoned homes, dimly lit by a single torch.

A man resided within, still oblivious to the visitors that had come to knock on his door. As the Rukdam Duo walked over to the lone hut, they found that there was no door for them to knock on.

They stood outside, waiting for the man to either notice their presence and greet them, or walk out on his own and be surprised.

After a few minutes of waiting, Adam peered into the hut with his psychic powers and found the man sitting alone, his mind ridden by grief. Yet he did not cry, for it seemed like he had no more tears to shed.

"What's his name again?" Ruk asked just as Adam returned himself to his normal senses.

Adam then took a deep breath, and called.

"Mr. Caben. We are Adventurers from the Phoenix Guild. We're here to fulfill your quest."

The man sitting inside stumbled from his chair and met the ground with a thud. Afterwards, there was the sound of quick steps and out came the man they were looking for. The quest giver. The unfortunate husband and father.

Caben of Casmont.