The principality of Miniac, despite being governed by a foolish and incompetent prince, was a prosperous nation. This was not because of competent people under the prince, nor did it have any special export; it did not have any precious metals.
The only thing it had was that it was a sacred land, a holy land. It was said that Beast God, after his defeat at the hands of Dragon God, fell to the farthest edge of the continent of Alapur, giving rise to the infamous Heli Mountain Range, a name derived from the Beast God himself.
And the endless forest of the beast God, a forest that did not shrink, no matter what. It always maintained the same number of trees and did not grow anymore. Any tree that was cut would always grow back the next day.
And what was more, these were no ordinary trees. It was as if pillars of steel were imitating trees; anyone who could cut them deserved them. The only issue is that the wood lost all special value when it was at a certain distance from the rest of the Beast God. It was also considered sacrilegious to do so.
The borders of the principality were decided based on that. The Land was sacred, religious to the Demi-Humans, and most came for pilgrimage here.
Members of the Beastly Aris often retired to the Principality of Miniac, proud warriors of the beast god chose to live the remainder of their lives as simply as possible, close to their God.
And in the heart of this sacred land, lay a malicious darkness that terrorized the villages near the forest. A darkness that Ethan was going to hunt down, no matter what, and get his revenge.
The morning in this land was cold, freezing. Even with layers upon layers of clothing, Ethan had to expend some Ki to keep himself warm. He stood apart from the rest of the youth of the Village, eager to explore the forest and hunt down the spirit dirtying the land of their God.
If he was being honest, Ethan didn't believe the story Igimo had told him about these lands. A forest that always grew back? Even if it did exist, why did no one exploit it? Sure, the trees were as hard as steel according to Igimo, and lost their properties after exiting the principality of Miniac, but was it still not infinite wood?
'Just get a few Knights and chop a lot of trees down... If they even have Knights here. Repeat this and boom, infinite wood.'
Although the land was considered sacred, he could understand why this hadn't been done yet. It was similar to the Iron Wood forest back on his own continent, only one existed, and it was in the Rakaru Territory as well.
The only difference was that the wood there was so hard to grow back...
'...'
Ethan sighed and glanced at his own sword. He had a good weapon at the very least. He would have preferred venturing off alone, but he didn't know the way at all. He had to wait for his guide. Igimo was to the side, talking with Ian, the chief of the village.
The only man Igimo considered to be useful on this expedition, the many young Demi-humans, were just a useless lot, according to Igimo.
Ethan learned quite a few words when Igimo talked about them... He was still very surprised to see a priest who cursed so much.
'He really is strong.'
Ian was a tall and overpowering Wolfman, a former member of the Beastly Aris who retired after a grave injury and spent his days in the village closest to his God. And Ethan had to admit, even retired, the man was a threat.
Overflowing with Ki and wielding a halberd taller than Ethan himself, made entirely of steel. It was so big, Ethan wondered if he could swing it a few times without draining his reserves. It was seriously that big.
He shrugged his shoulders and turned to the bear-like man running towards him, waving his big hand.
'... So powerful.'
Ravu was everything Ethan dreamed he was, and everything he was not. According to Igimo, despite such a stature, Ravu was a gentle giant who was even scared of mice. A giant like him couldn't even hurt a fly, and Ethan was so, so disappointed.
He had such a great body and reserves of dormant, powerful Ki that Ethan was envious of, but he was too much of a coward to use it properly.
Nevertheless, Ethan bowed to the approaching Bearman. Ravu was the one who saved his life, so he had to respect him.
But the man merely grabbed Ethan and pulled him into a hug. Ethan was struggling to breathe and barely managed to pull himself away.
"I'm so glad you're okay, friend! I was really worried."
He could understand the language of these fellows now, not through his own efforts, but rather an artifact that Igimo had 'loaned' to him. A magical artifact in the form of earrings, able to make him understand the languages on the continent of Alapur.
However, he could not speak the languages yet, only understand them. No matter how much of a genius Ethan was, it would still take him some time to learn the languages of the continent of Alapur, provided Igimo would teach him.
Ethan bowed once more to show his thanks, but he was unsure if Ravu received the message well. Anything to not make the man hug him once again. It appeared as if Ravu had something he wanted to say, but before he could convey it. Ian and Igimo appeared.
"Ravu, after we enter the forest, you're going to lead this one to where you found him. I'll search for the spirit."
Ian ordered, Igimo shook his head in dismay, and Ethan knew he was being looked at with contempt by the village chief. He didn't even try to hide it.
Except for Ravu and Igimo, everyone held their suspicions about him, and Ethan had to admit, they were valid. His appearance had brought the spirit to them, which was what most of them thought.
"We are going now, and you. I'm watching you."
Ian let out a growl, Ethan rolled his eyes and dismissed it, watching the Wolfman depart with the rest of the excited youth. Ravu gulped and said.
"Well then... friend, let's go."
Ethan followed Ravu, who, out of consideration for Ethan, maintained a good distance from the rest of the group.
Igimo watched them depart with heavy eyes and a cautious demeanor, waiting for any news, hopefully good news.