While walking in the forests of Amarino, the trio noticed some growls and noise emanating from the forest. Hearing those noise, Morgana got excited, giddy to jump into the forest to fight some beasts. However, every time that Morgana tries to jump into the forest, Lance is either blocking the path towards the forest or would simply pull Morgana back into the road.

During their walks, Ulgar would tell some tales of how he manages his gang, and how he tries to discipline them from time to time. Sometimes, he rambles on and on, without even stopping. However, despite this, Musa listens to his tales due to curiosity and how he handles being the older person in the group.

After walking for way, the trio realized on why a guide is needed for the trip. The roads can be misleading, and there are thick fogs that can block the roads. Furthermore, the growls and the noise are tempting for a would-be traveler. Although there are signs in the road, some of them are worn out and some have been damaged by nature.

During their walks, the four of them found their first obstacle. There lies a sleeping lion in the road. Morgana raring to fight, raised her staff towards the lion, waiting for it to wake up. On the other hand, Lance exercised caution, unwilling to take a risk on whether the lion is alone or has companions, wanted to wait for some time. However, he drew his mace, ready to strike the lion as quietly as possible. Musa drew his sword with the intent to kill the lion as soon as possible.

Seeing the motions of the trio, Ulgar prevented them from attacking the lion.

“Guys don’t attack them. The villagers in the forest value the large beasts here as sacred and would only hunt them during rituals.”, said Ulgar.

“Damn it.”, said the three of them.

Tiptoeing in silence, the three passed by the lion. Upon finishing their first obstacle, they reached a seemingly calm river. Once again, the three prepared to swim across the river to go to the other side, but again, they were stopped by Ulgar.

“Don’t that river is very deep. Although the surface is calm, the waves underneath it would lead you to a very deep grave. It is better to walk towards the waterfall on one end of the river. There is a strong pathway underneath that.”

The four of them continued their journey towards the waterfall. Not losing the sight of the river, they continued walking until they saw a large hollow tree. Inside the hollow tree were noises of crying people. With the wish to rescue the seemingly trapped people, Morgana dashed towards the tree, but was stopped by a loud yell.

“Stop. That is another trap.”, said Ulgar.

“What do you mean, trap?”, asked Morgana

“Those aren’t voices of people. Those are voices of ravenous beasts.”, said Ulgar.

“Ravenous beasts, I’m going after them.”, said Morgana.

“Alright, I’m going with you.”, said Lance.

“Don’t hog all the fun.”, said Musa.

The three headed towards the hollowed tree and drew their respective weapons. Wondering if his companions are either stupid or courageous, Ulgar simply stayed behind, curious on what will happen. Loud explosions and clashes of metal were heard outside the tree. Suddenly, there was silence. Before he could assume the worst, Ulgar saw the three covered in blood. Each of them carrying the ravenous beasts inside the hollow tree.

As it turns out, the beasts were giant rodents with large poisonous fangs. The blood covering the three were not their own but were the rodent’s. The bodies of the giant rodents were then thrown to the ground. With the rodents killed, Ulgar got impressed with his companions, nodding in approval for their actions.

Upon reaching the waterfall, the four of them encountered a large path underneath. Ulgar went first, to guide his companions on the right path. Upon reaching the other side, the forest seemed more quiet and less wild.

“Welcome to the calm side of the Amarino forest. We are getting near the village of Caltron. Just simply follow me.”, said Ulgar.

Unlike the loud noises of the earlier portions of the forest, the quietness of this one is unnerving in a different way. Total silence is prevalent in this portion, enough to drive a normal person mad from the experience. Wanting to break the silence, Morgana spoke up.

“So, Mr. Ulgar, just how deep does this forest go?”

“I really don’t know, I mostly simply follow the pathway.”, said Ulgar

“How do you the way to the village anyway, Mr. Ulgar?”, asked Mrogana.

“My mentor taught me the way. She taught me how to avoid traps and look for the correct signs in the area.”, said Ulgar.

“So, where is she right now?”, asked Morgana.

“She currently lives at Caltron. Currently, she leads the villagers.”, said Ulgar.

“I’m just curious about one thing.”, said Musa

“Speak ahead.”, said Ulgar.

“Well, considering that this forest is very deceiving and dangerous, I wonder why a village was constructed right inside this forest.”, said Musa.

“Druids created the town a long time ago to better commune with nature. However, the village serves another purpose.”, said Ulgar.

“What purpose?”, asked Musa.

“A place for the people who got lost in the forest through whatever means.”, said Ulgar.

“Interesting.”, said Musa.

They continued their journey until they reached an old rickety village. Remembering the traps that awaited the three during their journey, they took caution on the presence of the town. Upon seeing an old woman, Morgana and her guildmates were wary, unable to know if the old woman is a resident or if she is an actual resident.

“Oh, hello Mrs. Hellas.”, said Ulgar.

“Welcome back Ulgar, so who are your new companions?”, asked Mrs. Hellas.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“They are travelers, and are members of a new adventurer’s guild, looking for a healer.”, said Ulgar.

“Healer, huh? There are healers in this village, but I don’t know if there are healers who would join an adventuring guild.”, said Mrs. Hellas.

“Maybe they can find more luck inside the town.”, said Mrs. Hellas.

“Hopefully, they will.”, said Ulgar.

The three finally reached the village. It was unlike any town that Morgana has reached so far. There are virtually no large concrete buildings, and most of the houses in the area are made of bamboo. Some of the houses are also situated on the top of the large trees.

“How do people trade here, and where do they get their food?”, asked a curious Lance.

“Most people grow plants in this area. Furthermore, the forest provides enough sources of food for the people living here. As for meat, most of the villagers here have herds of animals precisely for meat consumption.”, said Ulgar.

“Hmmmm.. A self-sustaining village. Very very interesting.”, said Lance.

Looking around, most of the people living in the forest were living their lives. Most of them appear to be happy and content with their lives. However, even in the blissful atmosphere of the village of Caltron, there appears to be some people who are down and appear to carry heavy burdens.

Like other towns, this village has a Wizard Outpost. But unlike other towns, the outpost is not inside a large building. Instead, it is located inside a hollow tree. Upon reaching the Outpost, Morgana showed the mark on her right hand and was recognized as a sorcerer under the guild FULL POTENTIAL.

When the three placed their items and materials inside the Outpost, Ulgar approached them, and asked,

“So do you guys want a Second Trip?”, asked Ulgar.

“Nah, I think we’re fine.”, said Morgana.

“Alright. But the offer will stand for the next 3 days.”, said Ulgar.

“Alright then.”, said Morgana.

An old sorcerer emerged from the Outpost. Upon seeing Ulgar, the sorcerer embraced the guide.

“Master.”, said Ulgar.

“Hahahaha. Come on Ulgar, I’m not your master anymore. You can call me, Gobren.”, said the old sorcerer

“Hahahaha. Alright Master Gobren.”, said Ulgar.

“Let’s go inside, we have a lot of catching up to do.”, said Gobren.

“Alright. Guys, you can look around the town on who would want to join your group.”, said Ulgar.

The three decided to look around the village to look for a healer. But whenever they tried to approach a villager, they cannot find someone who would join them in adventuring. Most of them appear to be content to stay in the village and be one with nature.

While they were looking at the villagers, Morgana saw a young woman in the corner, who would simply be by her lonesome. Although the woman does not appear to sad in the surface, Morgana felt the loneliness on the woman. Approaching her, Morgana offered to play a game with the woman. Angry at being pitied, she slapped Morgana’s hand and walked away.

“What’s with her?”, asked Lance.

“There is something within her.”, said Morgana.

“Perhaps anger, or it is loneliness.”, said Lance.

“I don’t know, but I wish I can help her.”, said Morgana.

“Let me guess, you will try to help her, am I right?”, said Lance.

“Of course, I will.”, said Morgana.

Suddenly, a villager approached them. It was an older man. Talking to them, he said,

“My name is Brayno. I am currently the head guard of Caltron. The woman you were talking to is Vivien.”

“So, her name is Vivien…”, said Morgana

“She used to be a bright kid who dreams of being someone who can cure everything. She wants to heal every pain. But in a cruel irony, she can’t heal her own.”, said Brayno.

“I know that pain. Losing someone is not easy on a person.”, said Lance.

“Agreed.”, said Musa.

“So, what happened?”, asked Morgana

“At her young age, she was orphaned. Without knowing who her parents are, we raised her to be a druid. One of us took her in and taught her druidic magic. She became Vivien’s closest companion and would never leave her side. For Vivien, she was not just a teacher, she was her older sister.”, said Brayno.

Before he could finish his story, a villager ran towards Brayno, yelling.

“Another attack by the wild animals.”, said the villager.

“I’ll finish the tale later.”, said Brayno.

Brayno called some of the villagers to help him and disappeared towards the edge of the village. With the knowledge on Vivien’s life, Morgana became even more determined to help her. Remembering the times when she lost her mother, Morgana is grateful that her grandfather, her sister Glindya and Lilith were there to cheer her up.

With that in mind, Morgana decided to look for Vivien. While their leader is busy trying to cheer up a lonely person, Musa and Lance continued with their search for a healer. Throughout the day, they have asked villager after villager if they were interested in joining an adventuring guild. All of them declined the offer, preferring to stay in the village.

After that venture, the two of them met up with Morgana. Upon seeing the sorcerer, they saw that she is in a state of panic. Frantic, she told them,

“Guys, we need to look for Vivien. The villagers have not seen her in a while.”, said Morgana.

“Let’s go”, said Musa and Lance.

The three of them raced outside the village but were restrained by the guards.

“Vivien’s missing.”, said Morgana

“She always does this after the death of her guardian. Follow me.”, said one of the guards.

The guard then led them through the forest until they reach a quiet grove. There, the three of them saw Vivien practicing her nature magic. There, she healed a wounded gazelle and restored its broken leg.

“Whenever the villagers report that she is missing, we usually find her here.”, said the guard.

Upon a closer look, Morgana saw tears emanating from Vivien’s eyes. She felt sorrow and grief from the young druid.

“What happened?”, asked Lance.

“She is still grieving from her loss.”, said the guard.

Without hesitation, Morgana went towards the grove and approached the crying Vivien. Without saying anything, Morgana simply pat the head of the young druid. Nodding and comforting her. After a while, she left the grove and told her companions,

“Let’s go back and stay in the village for a while.”

“Alright”, said Musa.

“Agreed”, said Lance.

The three, led by the guard went back to the village of Caltron. They then asked the guard if there are training grounds where they can hone their skills. The guards then led them towards an empty lot just outside the village. The lot is fully of training dummies, and certain contraptions which would launch missiles and ballistics to help one increase their speed or to strengthen one’s defense. Furthermore, the lot is full of pits and large stones, for different types of training for an adventurer.

Morgana went to an area with a large pit, training her aim and attempting to improve her magical prowess. She practiced her fire magic and attempted to use the magic of other elements but to no avail. Although she can use a weaker version of water magic, Morgana still is not proficient in using that type of magic.

Lance on the other hand went to a strength training. Seeing the huge stones, Lance attempted to lift those but is unable to do so. Upon realizing that the stones are larger than they seemed, Lance decided to push the stones. Wanting to improve her leg strength and arm strength, Lance continued to push on his limits so that he could be a better guardian for the guild.

Lastly, Musa went to the area full of training dummies. He realized that he needs to be faster and have more precise strikes against his opponents. In his fight against Barone, Musa realized that he is neglecting his speed and agility. His defense is also not at part, and so, Musa decided to increase the speed of his attacks and to increase his reaction time.

After a hard day of training, the trio went back to the Wizarding Outpost. There they saw Ulgar still talking with his old master, Gobren. Upon seeing their tired state, Ulgar told them that food was already prepared in the dining room. Seeing the moon, Ulgar told his master that he also needs to eat. The two then joined the trio at the dining hall.

There, Gobren told them that the hesitation of the villages from leaving the village comes from their magic. She told them,

“The strength of a druid comes within the vicinity of nature or on the presence of trees. This power also includes healing magic. Most of the druids who left this village returned as soon as possible since their guilds do not value this information and only want healers.”

“Don’t worry, I will find a way for our healer to always be in the presence of a tree.”, said Morgana.

“What if we are in a snowy place?”, asked Lance.

“I will find a way.”, said a determined Morgana.

Gobren is amused at the sorcerer. Chuckling she thought,

I hope you find a healer from this village.

After finishing their meals, the three felt pain from their heavy training. Due to their exhaustion and with a need to rest, they went to their rooms and slept throughout the night.