Chapter Twenty-Seven

Nia peeled her dress up and over her head. It felt so good to finally be out of it. It was filthy. She had been traveling through the forest for weeks before this , and she had only brought along a few other dresses, which she could only wash in streams they found along the way. It was so caked in sweat and gunk that she thought the dress would remain standing if left alone.

She decided to burn it once she was finished.

A bucket of warm water was next to her, a clean rag draped over its lip. The tangy scent of citrus wafted from the water, along with wispy ribbons of steam rising from its surface. She wet the rag and started the relaxing task of cleaning herself, enjoying the roughness of the rag as she scrubbed her skin clean.

“Miss,” a soft and probing voice pierced through the thin barrier provided by the changing screen, causing Nia to pause her self-care. “I have brought you some new clothes. When you are finished, I can help you dress.”

“Thanks,” Nia said as she started scrubbing herself again. “But I’m fine; I can dress myself.”

“As you wish.”

Nia heard the attendant's soft footsteps pad out of her large canvas tent. Lady Bucholz had lent her a place to stay for the night, an entire tent to herself, and all the amenities that came with it. Frankly, she was a little overwhelmed. There was a cot on one side. It was only canvas stretched between a wooden frame, but it came with a thick quilt to keep away the cold and a pillow filled with down feathers so soft she imagined it was what clouds would feel like, making up for any discomfort.

A spongy, circular rug separated her bare feet from the cold ground. It was a pretty, deep blue in color, with geometric designs zigzagging all over it in splashes of gold and silver. She could only imagine how long it took to weave something so intricate. Finally, a small potbelly stove stood in the center of the tent on four narrow feet. It had a long metal chimney that stuck straight up through the top of the tent, and it gave off plenty of warmth as it ate up the little logs she was given to feed it.

Nia slipped the simple white dress over her head, smoothing out the few ruffles with her hands and cinching the black ribbon that served as a belt. It was comfortable and felt good on her skin, although no designs were decorating it like she usually liked on her clothing; she thought it went well with the black belt and was cute in its own way. But none of that would matter as she put a heavy overcoat over everything and stepped outside into the cold.

The long caravan of wagons and carriages had stopped just before sunset, claiming a large clearing that had obviously been used several times before. They used what little light remained to set up a few tents for the more affluent members of their entourage, mainly Sir Bucholz and his wife, Marina, along with her attendants. A few guard captains also claimed their own canvas shelters, but they were nowhere near as extravagant as even the one she was given. Nia had told Marina that she didn’t need a tent and was used to sleeping out in the wilds but was expertly ignored.

Secretly, she was happy that Marina forced her to take up a tent. It was so much better than sleeping on the ground.

Little one.

Nia nearly jumped out of her skin when Mister Greeny’s creaking voice assaulted her from behind. She spun around with her hand on her heaving chest and a glare ready to skewer the sneaky forest spirit. “You scared me half to death!”

The stag stood there silently, looking down at her with pools of swirling emerald light. It always amazed her how he could move around without making any sound whatsoever. Do you wish for me to accompany you?

Nia shook her head. It wasn’t any surprise that he would know that she was going to have dinner with Marina and her husband; Mister Greeny always kept a close eye on her. “I think I’ll be all right. She might be a little… eccentric, but I don’t think she’s dangerous.”

Mister Greeny didn’t say anything momentarily, debating whether he should tell her about the slight manipulation she was under. He decided not to. Very well. I will go out into the surroundings and root out any dangers.

“What about Mister Long?” Nia asked him. The snake-like golem had been tasked with weeding out any monsters that might endanger them, and she couldn’t see why he wasn’t doing the same now.

I have tasked him with protecting the other villages inside the forest. He looked up and turned his head toward the Endless Forest. With the ‘success’ of the previous raid and the coming of spring, I fear it is only a matter of time before they, too, are taken.

Nia covered her mouth with her hands, muffling the small gasp that escaped her lips. “I didn’t even think about that.” She had never visited the other villages closest to hers but knew they were there. They traded with them regularly. “Why can’t they just leave them alone? What good do they get out of taking them?”

I believe there is some merit in what the innkeeper had told you. The elves within the forest do hold more mana within their cores and thus suffer the benefits of longer lives and less disease. He shook his rack to chase a bird away that had decided to perch itself within it. I do not know if their benefits can be transferred to another, but that does not mean it has not been done.

“If the elves in the villages have so much magic within them, then why don’t they know how to use it?” That was one thing that had been bothering her for some time. Since she learned to use the mana within herself, she couldn’t understand how no one else in her village had also unlocked their ability to use it. She knew some villagers were very old and would have had decades to learn. “One of them with magic could have stopped this from happening.”

One cannot learn what they know nothing about.

“So, they didn’t know magic existed? I find that hard to believe,” Nia stated after a moment of thought. They worshipped the forest and the spirits within, magical beings protecting it. To be utterly ignorant of magic just didn’t make sense to her.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

They knew of magic. He assured her. But without someone to guide them, they would have remained locked in a cage of ignorance, much like many of the people we have met since leaving the forest. Knowledge is power, and it looks as if much of the population is powerless.

“Yeah, it looks that way.” Nia agreed as she reflected on how the people reacted to her in Bolin. However, much of their fear was from the mages that had visited before her and what they had done to the townsfolk. Still, they were powerless to stop the mages from punishing a few of them because they knew how to use their magic, and the townspeople did not.

I will leave you now. Night is nearly upon us. Mister Greeny groaned, interrupting her musings. Be careful, little one.

Nia patted the leafy stag and gave him an affectionate smile. “I will be, and you do the same.”

The camp reminded him of the first human group he had ever encountered, but it was only a passing resemblance. This group was much better organized and completely lacked the careless violence. Of course, that first group consisted of bandits and thieves, so comparing these humans to them wouldn’t be fair.

Mister Greeny stopped in the middle of the camp and swung his head toward the most prominent tent where his little one was. Thinking back on the bandit’s camp brought back many memories and a few regrets. He wasn’t sorry that he had allowed the bandits to be killed by those monsters; he didn’t know it then, but those men deserved their fate. But he wondered how his little one’s life would have been if he had saved her mother.

He should have saved her.

Perhaps that was why he saved the child. Guilt. No, that wasn’t entirely true. Guilt might have urged him to protect the mewling infant that night, but compassion and a deep bond drove him to care for her even to this day. Feelings were difficult for him to process; it was best for him to focus on what was in front of him and not ruminate on the past.

He made his way out of the camp , under the apprehensive gazes of the many guards and few attendants, seeing to their needs. He watched them just as intently but saw nothing that would suggest they meant him and his little one any harm. It wouldn’t do any good to be overly paranoid, but the same could be said for being complacent. One had to find a happy medium.

The outside of the camp was much darker than the inside without the flickering torches. Only the stars were out, providing just enough light for someone to find their way without tripping over rocks and other avoidable obstacles. Of course, he had no issues navigating the darkness. His eyes could see everything happening around him, no matter the darkness.

The grass surrounding the camp was tall, even though winter snow had pressed it down over the previous months. The umber sea rippled with the breeze , and he could hear the mice and other nocturnal creatures scurrying between the thin stalks. Their activity was a good indication that nothing too dangerous was nearby. The smaller creatures possessed a keen sense of their surroundings.

He waded out into the grass with no clear goal in mind. He doubted that any beast would dare come near so many people. From observing the villages deep within the forest, he had learned that even the most vicious of monsters would prefer to attack lone hunters or those that wandered too far from the safety of others. Only the most rabid of beasts would think of assaulting a camp such as this.

He soon found himself staring into the slow-moving waters of a small brook about half a mile from the camp. The water was thick with silt, making it impossible to see the bottom of the little river. It wasn’t something that would occur naturally; something was happening upriver. Whatever the disturbance was, it was far enough away from the camp not to pose too much of a threat, but he would be remiss if he did not at least see what it was.

He followed the curve of the brook at a sedate pace, enjoying the night air that rustled the foliage that covered his body. A soft whistling noise followed him as he walked, the wind using his branching antlers to play a discordant, mournful song. The brook led him further away from the camp for quite some time, and after another mile, Mister Greeny finally came upon something strange.

The stream simply ended. Muddy water was pouring from a small crevice in the side of a large outcropping of rocks, which was, in turn, embedded in the side of a large hill. It was a natural spring of some kind; that much was obvious to see, but he could not figure out what was causing the water to come out so filthy.

It was a mystery, to be sure.

Mister Greeny poked around the outcropping of rocks with much curiosity. He didn’t find anything visibly out of the ordinary, but deep below the earth, he felt something that piqued his interest further. Faint traces of mana pulsed from the gap between the rocks, a rhythm that ebbed and flowed and was entirely unnatural.

He looked at the crevice and the dirty water spilling from it, and then he looked back to the camp where his little one was. He had time. He could dig down into the earth and see what was causing this oddity. Of course, he didn’t need to, but he was curious, and the night had only just begun.