It had been a month since I made the decision to leave the small dungeon stall in Ella and Elvie's capable hands. The business was running fine—water bottles, coffee, cup noodles, deodorant, and my country's mamon selling better than I could've imagined. Honestly, I missed it a little, especially how Ella would greet customers with a chirpy smile and Elvie would deadpan her sarcasm when someone tried to haggle over a sachet of coffee mix. But I needed to push forward.
Felix and I had spent those weeks grinding inside the dungeon, floor after floor. Now we were just shy of clearing level 10. We had a decent haul of mana stones, a few near-death encounters, and an even deeper bond forged through shared injuries and insane goblin ambushes. I started to feel a little stronger—though the damn Guardian screen still wouldn't show my actual level.
That morning though, as I sat down to tie my boots, a glowing blue screen popped up in front of my face without warning.
New Quest: Find the Divine Tree
Reward: Magical Ancient Powerful Pet
"What the hell..." I muttered, rubbing my eyes. "A pet now?"
Felix leaned over my shoulder, wiping his mouth after breakfast as I talked to myself. "A pet? Like a dog?"
I raised an eyebrow. I mentioned to them that I had yet another dream last night. It's not that I can tell them that I have a magical screen that tells me what to do. "More like... maybe a dragon? Or a spirit wolf? It says 'ancient and powerful.'"
Felix chuckled. "You've been blessed with a weird dream, Dirk. Might as well lean into it."
I grinned, but deep inside, I knew this wasn't just a side mission. This Divine Tree had already been mentioned before. That map—hidden in my backpack, kept close and guarded—was finally starting to make sense.
"I'm heading back to town," I told him. "I need Elvie and Ella for this one."
Felix nodded seriously. "The baron would want me to go with you anyway. He's still suspicious about that tree's location. Forbidden Forest is off-limits for a reason."
"Fair," I replied. "The more, the merrier. Let's not die."
Just yesterday, I asked the baron about the map, and he told me that that location was probably in the rumoured forbidden forest.
*****
The next day came faster than expected. Ella was the first to greet me with a hug so tight I almost dropped my backpack.
"You finally came back, boss!" she chirped. "Elvie said you'd probably fall into a monster nest and get married to a goblin queen."
"Tempting," I said with a chuckle, "but I'm saving myself for someone with better teeth."
Elvie raised an eyebrow at that. "What's it about the Divine Tree? You're finally taking that dusty map seriously?"
I pulled the map from the hidden flap in my bag. "Got a dream again. Real deal. It's in the Forbidden Forest. And I have a reward if I complete this quest. A pet."
Elvie stared at me for a long second. "And what if it's a cursed pet that drains your soul?"
"Then it's still better than that one goat from dungeon level 7," I replied.
We all laughed—Felix included—and just like that, we began to prepare.
*****
The journey started the next morning, early and quiet.
The road to the Forbidden Forest was less of a road and more like a trail overgrown with vines and glowing blue moss. The air grew heavier the deeper we traveled, magic thickening around us like mist.
As we followed the twists and turns of the ancient map, I couldn't help but feel the tingle of something waiting, something watching.
Ella walked beside me, clutching her staff. "You think it's really still alive? The Divine Tree?"
"If it is," I murmured, "it could change everything."
Elvie, a few steps ahead, added without turning, "Or destroy everything. Either way, we'll find out."
And with that, our journey into the heart of the Forbidden Forest truly began—guided by an old map, strange fate, and the promise of something ancient... something powerful.
The deeper we went into the Forbidden Forest, the more the world began to shift around us. Trees stood taller than city towers, their trunks wide enough to house a family. The sunlight filtered through the thick canopy in pale, shifting rays, and the air smelled of earth, magic, and something sweet—like fruit ripening in secret.
I held the map tightly in one hand, brushing aside vines with the other. Elvie walked a few steps ahead, ever-alert, her third eye flickering now and then beneath her fringe. Ella hummed softly under her breath, a calming tune that oddly kept the silence from growing too heavy. Felix went up the rear, his sword resting casually on his shoulder, eyes scanning every movement in the underbrush.
"Do you feel that?" Felix muttered after a while. "The mana here... it's stronger than in any dungeon we've been to."
"Mm," Elvie replied. "This forest is ancient. Older than the Kingdoms. It's one of the few places left untouched by wars or human greed. That's why it's dangerous."
Suddenly, a shrill screech tore through the forest, followed by a rumbling of heavy footsteps. Birds took off in a panic, scattering into the trees above us.
"What was that?" Ella gasped, clutching her staff.
"Stay close," I ordered, unfolding the Guardian Screen just in case. No quest pop-up. Nothing.
But the map pulsed softly in my pack. A faint glow.
We crouched behind a thick tree root just in time to see it—a Forest Golem lumbered across the clearing ahead, moss growing along its back like armor, its eyes glowing with deep emerald fire. Easily ten feet tall.
"Should we fight it?" Felix whispered, gripping his sword.
"No," Elvie said flatly. "That thing isn't just big. It's fused with ancient mana. If we fight it here, we die."
"I vote we don't die today," I agreed quickly.
We waited, holding our breath, until the golem moved on, vanishing deeper into the forest.
Later that evening, we found a small clearing near a shallow stream. The trees bowed inward, forming a natural canopy overhead. Ella conjured a protective barrier, and Felix helped me set up a campfire while Elvie prepared dried meat and rations.
I stared into the flames, the heat warming my face, thinking about the quest again.
Find the Divine Tree.
But where was it? The map was pointing us closer, sure—but the forest was full of illusions and misleading paths. Not to mention creatures that could end us in a heartbeat.
"Dirk," Elvie said suddenly, handing me a cup of tea. "Have you noticed something strange about this forest?"
I took a sip and blinked. "Aside from the golem, the fact the mana feels like honey, and that I keep thinking the trees are watching us?"
She didn't smile. "The magic here is old. It reacts to you."
Ella looked up. "It's true. The forest quiets when you step ahead of us. It hums. You don't notice it?"
I glanced around, now hyper-aware. The fire crackled. The leaves swayed faintly—even without wind.
"Great," I muttered. "Maybe it likes my shampoo."
Later that night, I couldn't sleep. I stepped away from camp and pulled out the map again. The glow pulsed faintly, more vibrant now, pointing further east. Just then, the Guardian Screen popped up on its own.
Side Quest: Touch the Heartroot Stone.
Reward: Location of the Divine Tree updated.
I blinked. "Heartroot Stone?" I turned—and there it was, not twenty feet away, half-buried in vines and moss. A glowing stone, carved with ancient runes. It pulsed with mana, warm and soft like a heartbeat. I approached it cautiously and placed my hand on it.
Everything shifted. The forest grew still. The air held its breath. And in the distance, far beyond the trees, I saw it in my mind: a clearing bathed in golden light, a towering tree with glowing fruits, white bark, and shimmering leaves that sang in the wind. The Divine Tree.
Then it was gone. The Guardian screen blinked again.
Quest Updated. Location marked. Proceed with caution.
My heart raced. I turned back toward the camp, map in hand, and a grin on my face. "We're close," I whispered to myself. "We're really close." The jungle air grew thick, charged with the kind of silence that only happens before something terrible arrives. Birds had gone quiet. Even the insects that had been buzzing nonstop since morning had suddenly vanished.
And then—it came.
Crashing through the foliage like a storm unbound, a three-headed lion burst from the tree line, each of its snarling maws snapping with wild hunger. Its eyes—six in total—glowed an unnatural red, a magical fury burning behind them. Its fur shimmered like molten bronze under the sunlight, muscles rippling with each earth-shaking step.
"Elvie, shields!" I barked, already raising my hand toward the Guardian Screen, hoping for guidance, hoping for anything.
Felix charged forward before anyone could stop him, sword raised, war-cry tearing from his throat. "RAAAAH!" The lion's middle head swiped at him with such force he was sent flying into a thick tree trunk. He slumped to the ground, groaning but alive—barely.
Ella shouted a prayer and raised her hands, casting a barrier just in time to deflect a blast of the lion's hot, putrid breath. The smell of rotting meat filled the air. The other two heads flared with magic, one forming a bolt of flame, the other a gust of wind that nearly knocked us off our feet. Elvie retaliated with her signature spell, a crackling spear of blue lightning, which slammed into one of the heads with enough force to burn away a chunk of fur—but it only seemed to anger the beast.
"Dirk! Behind you!" Ella shouted.