Calanthir lay atop Romulus' broad back as they trodded through the forest at a brisk pace. The trees and foliage seemed to part for them, as if they were making way for a royal procession. Romulus was overjoyed to discover this phenomenon, radiating a sense of profound contentment that had lasted for days.

They journeyed eastward, and the terrain began to shift around them. The dense undergrowth gave way to rolling hills and expansive clearings. Calanthir couldn't help but notice the signs of civilization scattered throughout the landscape. He saw buried ruins, a hand-carved stone protruding from the ground, and sections of cobblestoned road that had been overtaken by nature. When he asked Romulus about it, the great stag was as clueless as he was.

As they continued their journey, winter drew closer, and Calanthir could feel it in his bones. On the third day, the first snow fell, blanketing the forest in a pristine white. To his surprise, he awoke the next morning to find that his skin had turned almost pure white with just a hint of grey mixed in, and his hair had transformed into a brilliant shade of white. As the days passed, the snowfall became more frequent until, on the fifth morning, Calanthir found himself buried in a thick layer of snow. Despite the frigid temperature, he was perfectly comfortable walking through the snow barefooted. In a fit of childlike joy, he made snow angels and threw snowballs at Romulus, who did not appreciate his antics.

As Calanthir and Romulus continued their journey, they heard a loud roar in the distance that made Romulus shiver. "What is it, friend?" Calanthir asked, noticing the great stag's unease. Romulus hesitated before answering, "Fanged ones... They are dangerous, even to me."

Calanthir jumped down from Romulus' back, determined to investigate. "I'll go take a look. If there's any danger, you run, Romulus. Don't wait for me; you can find me later." The great stag nodded reluctantly, and Calanthir flashed him a grin before sprinting off in the direction of the roars.

As he ran uphill through the snow, Calanthir's excitement grew. He had never encountered anything like this before. When he reached the top of the ridge, he saw a massive creature, the size of a van, digging furiously at a small cliff. Its growls were deeply menacing.

The creature resembled a bear, but with longer limbs and an elongated snout. Its large triangular ears twitched as it continued to dig, and its claws were like long knives. Calanthir expanded his senses and realized that two humanoids were huddled there, but he couldn't make out any details.

He crouched down and considered his options. The creature seemed extremely territorial, and he wasn't sure he could calm it down. But he was determined to help the two trapped individuals.

With a spring in his step, Calanthir approached the scene, mostly hidden by a few large rocks. He watched as the monster furiously hammered on the rocks, preparing his energy and gathering a big snowball.

With supernatural strength, he launched the snowball at the creature's eye, stunning it. The creature slowly turned its head towards Calanthir, who flashed it a grin and said, "Hey there!"

As Calanthir stood there facing the beast, he couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement mixed with trepidation. He had faced many creatures in his time, but this bear-like monster was unlike anything he had encountered before.

As the creature charged towards him, frothing at the mouth, Calanthir remained calm and focused. With a quick flick of his wrist, he summoned a few large roots to grow right in front of it, causing it to trip and stumble before crashing into a nearby rock.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

Chuckling to himself, Calanthir used a good chunk of his remaining mana to summon a swarm of roots that wrapped around the creature, pinning it to the ground and tying up its limbs. The creature growled and struggled, but Calanthir wasn't intimidated. He walked up to the creature's snout and slapped it hard, causing it to freeze and focus on him.

"Don't you start again! You lost, accept it. Now, I could help you fix that leg of yours, or I could leave you here to starve. What will it be?" Calanthir said, his voice filled with authority.

The creature stopped growling and Calanthir nodded in satisfaction. "Good, now will you attack me if I release you? Keep in mind I won't be merciful a second time." The creature still seemed angry, but it appeared to understand.

As Calanthir began to undo the bindings, he heard a voice shout in horror, "No! You can't release it, it will kill us all!" He turned to see two creatures running towards him at full speed.

The creatures before Calanthir were unlike any he had ever seen before. Their deep green skin, long pointy noses, and large oval eyes were both fascinating and a little unsettling.He was getting used to strange creatures at that point, but these ones seemed different somehow. Suspicious, even.

Despite the growling of the defeated creature, Calanthir stood his ground. "And why should I not release it? I defeated it, and I can release it if I choose." The larger of the two creatures shook his head vehemently. Calanthir was pretty sure it was a he at least. "It will kill us all, fool child! Don’t you know that…" He was cut off by a sharp slap from the other one, who looked apologetic.

"This one apologises," said the smaller creature. "We had heard rumors but… are you him?" Calanthir raised an eyebrow. "Him?" The larger one was about to say something, but got another slap for his troubles and yelped. "You are the dryad, yes? We had heard that one was living in the deepwoods."

It seemed like information had spread somehow, and Calanthir made a mental note to investigate how that had happened. "I am a dryad, yes. My name is Calanthir." The smaller creature pulled the larger one into a deep bow, and they stayed like that for a bit before glancing carefully at him. "We thank you for saving us. The Vanthump would have eaten us whole!"

Calanthir tilted his head questioningly, keeping a neutral expression. "And what did you do to anger it?" The little creatures looked guiltily at each other before saying, "We… might have… um… hunted a bit in its territory." Calanthir sighed. "And you knew what you were doing at the time?" Both of them reluctantly nodded. "Then you are at fault. I will release the Vanthump, and you will leave the territory alone."

The little one was quick to nod in agreement, but its larger companion was more vocal about their predicament. "We need food! We will starve if we can't hunt," it pleaded with Calanthir, who raised an eyebrow in response. "Hunt somewhere else then," he suggested.

"But we can't! Between the dark evil stuff and the elves, we don't have anywhere to go!" the larger one protested, while the little one tried to shush it. Calanthir pondered their words for a moment before nodding thoughtfully. "I am visiting the elves. As for the evil stuff, I plan to deal with it in the near future," he assured them.

Their eyes widened in surprise. "Really!?" the little one exclaimed in excitement. Calanthir simply nodded, and they whooped for joy. "Thank you, honored Dryad! We will inform the others. They will be so relieved!" they exclaimed before taking off in a hurry.

As he turned his attention back to the Vanthump, Calanthir smiled and spoke gently, "I will release you now. Do not give chase and stay in your own territory." He sensed the creature's acceptance and released his hold on it. The roots slowly receded into the ground, and Calanthir felt relief wash over him as he released the magic. Holding the large creature for so long had given him a headache, and his energy was starting to wane.

The Vanthump stood up slowly and stared at Calanthir for a few moments, then it sniffed him with a great big surge of air. Calanthir knew he still needed to heal its leg, so he circled around to its hind leg and put a hand on it. The Vanthump growled a little, but he ignored it, focusing on his task. He spent the last of his mana, and before long, the leg was healed.

Calanthir slumped to the ground in exhaustion, but he managed to smile at the Vanthump. The creature was moving its leg experimentally, and then it slowly started to amble away. The dryad watched it go with a sense of accomplishment, knowing that he had made a difference in the lives of both the Vanthump and the little creatures.