Inside a hall full of people—a grand and luxurious one—there were many seats occupied by finely dressed individuals. In the corners of the hall stood several knights, clad in armor with swords hanging from their waists. Away from the seated crowd stood an old man in elegant clothing. His beard was white, clearly showing his age.
The old man stood in front of everyone as if he were some kind of criminal. Directly before him stood a knight in heavy armor, with brown hair, a stern face, and a long scar stretching from his forehead to the top of his lip, leaving him staring at the old man with only one eye. Near the old man—and seemingly the only person by his side—was a short man with a long mustache and thinning hair.
"With this, we conclude the trial, Mr. Vinnel," said the mustached man to the knight standing before him.
At that, Vinnel clenched his teeth, clearly annoyed by the situation. Behind him, everyone sat quietly, waiting for his response. He was one of the commanders of Yarum Kingdom's knights. The knight couldn't speak. He kept staring at the old man and the one standing beside him. After a while, he finally muttered: "Avilat… you have been acquitted…"
Suddenly, the old man—Avilat, or rather the Guild Master—hugged his mustached partner, who appeared to be his lawyer. Avilat was so happy that he began waving to the audience in the hall. And just like that, the trial of Avilat ended, and he was officially cleared of all involvement with the Dark Eye case. After that, Avilat and his lawyer walked out of the hall wearing... strange smiles.
"What will you do now, Vinnel? We gained nothing from this trial, and the Dark Eye is still killing adventurers," one of the attendees said.
Then the whole hall began chanting in unison, demanding that Vinnel do something—since he was the only commander appointed by the king to handle this case. The case that crushed him. That shattered his pride. The feeling of weakness after an era of strength… it's a feeling only the strong truly understand. And here was Vinnel, tasting a bit of defeat—served by an unknown killer on a massive platter full of obvious possibilities that you just couldn't see.
Damn it! What the hell am I supposed to do now? How pathetic… I've lost my last hope of solving this damn case. What a huge shame I carry… I have to catch him. I have to put an end to this case. Everyone is counting on me. I feel so damn weak, and it's a terrible feeling. I'm starting to resemble the kind of people I hate—the weak ones! But I won't stop here. I can still squeeze my brain for new plans… Just you wait, Dark Eye. I'll kill you.
◆ ◆ ◆
Far from that hall, in the vast forests of Yavan, the village of Bloomy was thriving with children and residents of the dryad race. There were many houses and a long valley that stretched to another part of Yavan. Some played, others picked flowers, and many chatted among each other amidst the trees and uniquely shaped homes with roofs resembling mushroom caps. Then, amid this peace, a group of armed dryads approached, accompanied by adventurers of two different races—a foxen and a human.
"Welcome to our village. Please follow me to our leader's house. She'll be happy to see you. She's a kind woman," said one of the dryads, a well-built man.
And here we were, heading toward their leader's house. Looks like we're getting some fancy gifts… Really? What would it be? Flowers? A basket of strawberries? We kept walking, and the villagers didn't really pay us much attention—it seemed they were used to adventurers. After a while, we arrived at a house that was slightly bigger than the others. It had the same round design but was larger. The dryad with the spear asked us to wait, then went inside.
"I think I know who the leader is," Thalesa suddenly said.
"Really? You found out while you were with Gaziel?" I asked.
"Not exactly. Back then, the leader of Bloomy was a man, but now they say it's a woman. So, maybe it's his daughter—Rose."
Then the man returned to us, bowed slowly, and said: "I am Nhor, the deputy of our kind leader Lady Rose. She has asked that you two come in. Would you please follow me?"
He stepped aside to let us in. Ponier went first, followed by me. Only the two of us entered. The first thing I saw was a spacious room like a hall. A long carpet covered the floor, with lots of books and vases around. I won't forget the soft sunlight streaming through the windows, lighting up the room beautifully. What a wonderful place. It had a unique charm. I wouldn't mind sleeping here forever.
"Welcome."
Directly in front of us, sitting on a wooden chair, was a dryad girl. She was beautiful, with long green hair adorned with blooming pink flowers. She had pointed ears like an elf, and glowing golden eyes. And I won't forget her perfect, round boobs, or her skin, which wasn't as greenish as the other dryads—more like regular human skin. She wore a green robe decorated with pink flowers—a robe that perfectly matched her hair.
Suddenly, a small dryad girl walked up to me and hugged my leg. It was the same child we had saved. The leader began smiling and looking at me, which made me a bit embarrassed. Then the girl let go of my leg and said: "Sister, these are the adventurers who saved me."
"I am Rose, the leader of this humble village. Thank you both. You truly saved my sister's life. I'm deeply grateful. Not just me—the entire village is. And I'm sorry for the trouble caused by my neglect in letting her wander out of the village," she said with a slightly sad expression.
"It's fine. It wasn't a hard battle," said Ponier. Not a hard battle? Bro thinks he's tuff.
"Oh, looks like you're injured," she murmured, standing up and walking toward me.
She reached out toward the wound on my shoulder and said, "Purial." A stream of green light mixed with some yellow rays flowed out. I felt the wound vanish. The pain faded, and a wave of comfort spread through my shoulder—a wonderful relief that made me smile involuntarily. This was the first time I'd felt such peace from a healing midspell. It was way better than Heallisial.
"How do you feel?" she asked, her voice cool and emotional, more like a touch than a sound.
"Good. That's a good spell," I said.
"This spell doesn't just heal wounds—it purifies them too," she added.
"Thank you."
"No, I should be the one thanking you. And you too, Feefy."
Oh my god, have I fallen in love or what? She's really amazing—absolutely stunning. The way she talks… her eyes… she's gotten into my heart. But damn it, you idiot, you're a married man… though, is there anything wrong with having another wife? No, no—be loyal. How dare you think like that? Don't let any woman distract you, and try to act tough, because I'm in my aura farming arc.
"Well, you're welcome. So, can you point us to a nearby tavern? We'd like to spend the night here before heading back to Flut," said Ponier.
"Ah, yes… but…" muttered Rose.
"What?" I asked.
"I know I have no right to ask anything, but… can you two listen to me?" she said with a sad face—gosh, she's beautiful.
"Of course, what is it?" I replied, trying to sound as brave as possible.
"As you know, Yavan suffers from the number of wyverns, and our village suffers too. There's a nest nearby, and sometimes they attack us. We asked other adventurers before, but no one accepted. Can you help us? We'll provide warriors if needed!" she said, trying to convince us, raising her voice and speaking with a mix of sad and hopeful expressions—expressions filled with hope.
"A wyvern nest... how many are there?" asked Ponier.
"I don't know, but there are a lot of them, especially in the nest. And most of them are still young."
"Alright, we'll think about it," Ponier replied as he stepped back.
That's when a wide smile appeared on her face. She looked so happy, even though we hadn't agreed yet. Killing wyverns? Sure, that's going to be hard, especially with a boss that difficult. But I didn't die—and I didn't even feel my usual post-battle fear. Maybe because of the dryads who thanked me. Anyway, I need more power, so killing wyverns might just be the right move.
"You can stay here for the night," Rose suddenly said.
"Really?! Yay! Slumber party!" shouted Feefy as she jumped with joy. Am I really going to sleep in the same house as this beauty?!
"No need, we can just stay at an inn, don't worry," said Ponier. You idiot, just say yes.
"Please," she insisted.
"Alright, no problem. We'll sleep here if you insist," I replied.
She then led us to a small room, clearly very happy. It was a small room, but beautiful. There were no windows, and the light came from glowing bugs trapped inside glass jars, which added a kind of charm to the room. Honestly, it wasn't bad at all—on par with the room I share with Maris.
"I'll go bring some tea and be right back," said Rose as she stepped out.
"What do you think of her? She's beautiful, isn't she?" Ponier whispered.
"I should be the one asking you that, you idiot. I'm married," I replied, while thinking about Rose's perfect ass.
"Hahaha... So, what do you think—should we destroy that nest?" Ponier asked.
"What tier are the wyverns?"
"Tier 6."
"Hmm… That's going to be hard then. But I've got no problem with it. Still, taking down a whole nest sounds like a death mission," I said, lying down on one of the makeshift beds made of stacked blankets.
"Yeah, it's going to be tough. So, yes or no?"
"Hmm..."
"Thalesa, what do you think?"
"Wyverns are tier 6 beasts. You'll struggle to take down even one. And you want to wipe out a whole nest?!"
"Then how about we lure just one out and kill it?" I asked, thinking of a way to avoid fighting too many at once.
"Not like that, you idiot. Didn't you hear her? They attack the village. If four come, are you going to fight one and ignore the others?"
"You're right… but I still want to go for it. So what's the death rate?"
"High."
"Thalesa, I haven't tried the new form or abilities yet, so it shouldn't be that hard."
"No, it will be hard. Don't be so optimistic."
"But... you'll get a ton of energy after we kill the wyverns, right?"
"Yes, I know. If we pull this off, I'll level up a lot. But that doesn't make it any less dangerous."
"…"
"Ponier, let's do it!" I said with enthusiasm.
"Alright," muttered Ponier.
If achieving your goals was easy, they wouldn't be called goals in the first place. There's no victory without risk. That's a truth you only learn in crucial moments, not through long thought. Sometimes, improvisation is half the battle. So this is my decision—I'll kill these wyverns and keep evolving Thalesa until I get the power I want. The power that will raise me to the top of adventurers. The power that will bring me money. The power that will bring me happiness!
◆ ◆ ◆
Morning lit up the village of Bloomy—it was Laos and Ponier's first morning here. The place was stunning, especially with the mushroom-like houses and their unique creative shapes. Looking closely at the villagers, you'd see some holding sickles, fighting off mushroom monsters, which apparently are the same ones fleeing from the dragon sleeping deep in Yavan.
"Really?!" shouted Rose—the village chief—as she stared at Laos and Ponier.
"Yeah, we'll do it. But we need more info," Laos replied to the dryad standing in front of him.
"Of course! Oh my Goddess, I don't know how to thank you—thank you so much, Sir Laos, Sir Ponier!"
"No need to thank us," said Laos coolly.
"Nhor, come here!"
Then a dryad man stepped forward—his body was well-built, with exposed chest and abs, wearing a minimal outfit that highlighted his muscles. He held a spear and wore a helmet that covered his nose and head, a green helmet decorated with plants. He stood before Rose and said, "Yes, chief?"
"Nhor, guide them to the wyvern nest nearby. Show them the place and explain the best way to raid it," said Rose.
"Right away!"
Then they left the village, with Rose watching them with a wide smile. The three of them moved deeper into the forest, until they reached a quiet place where only the sound of a flowing stream could be heard. It was filled with rocks and trees, and not too far away, there were many sleeping wyverns. A terrifying sight that made Laos realize how reckless his decision had been.
"There they are… they're sleeping, so don't make a sound," Nhor whispered.
"Oh my God… there are so many," muttered Laos.
Laos kept staring at them—their scales were clear, their crimson color, their massive wings—everything was terrifying. They were all sleeping in the same spot, and even in sleep, they were horrifying. Just one look at their nest made Laos reflect on every moment he had spent in this forest. Fear and regret—are those emotions even possible for an NPC?
Unlike previous times, seeing the wyverns didn't fill Laos with excitement. Instead, it seemed to scare him. Creatures that powerful would be far too much for a teenager like him. They were almost like dragons—terrifying even in their sleep. And on top of that, there were many of them. But beyond the fear and regret that should have come with such a sight, there were people who could...
"So, what do you think? Still sure about this?" Ponier whispered to the shocked Laos.
"Of course!" Laos replied with a fierce smile—like a true villain.
Turning fear into hype!