"I ran into Abb a few days ago," Bikao said, resting his arms on the table. "He was standing near Bérénice, an old woman from the village. I wanted to intervene, but she begged me not to. She said he still recognized her face… so I stayed."
He paused.
"Eight days. Eight days watching him without moving. Until that evening when I heard his screams… and your voice, Briana."
"You could've at least given us a sign you were alive," Briana replied, crossing her arms.
"Abb stayed around Bérénice's house for eight days," Bikao answered calmly. "I couldn't leave her alone—it was too risky. He only moved north the day before, but I didn't see him leave. He disappeared during the night. So I started looking for him at dawn. And after several hours, I heard his screams… and your voice."
Briana, Bikao, and the four bearded men were gathered around the living room table. Aria and I sat on the couch, slightly apart, listening in silence.
Since the fight, something had changed between us. A bond had formed without warning—strong and fragile at the same time. We had known each other for less than three days, and yet I felt a strange familiarity, as if years had slipped into those few shared hours.
Aria, sitting beside me, kept her eyes on the fireplace flames. She didn't try to get closer. Nor to move away. Just… present, within that distance she always seemed to carefully maintain between herself and the rest of the world.
"Casimir… are we leaving tomorrow?" she asked softly.
I looked at her for a few seconds before answering.
"That would be best. We have two gates ahead of us, and we can't forget our objective. We can't afford to stay here too long."
"Yeah, you're right… The western one leads to Point A, right?"
I nodded, my eyes fixed on the watch projecting the map in a faint glow.
"I think there's another place to cross first. Look—over there… to the left of Mistshroom, there's a passage, and south of it we reach Point A. I think it's another territory."
"I hope it's not as rough as this one," she sighed with a slight smile.
I kept exploring the watch's features when a new tab caught my attention.
"Aria… this tab wasn't here before, was it?"
She leaned in slightly.
"'Quests'? What's that?"
A list appeared before our eyes. I scanned it, confused.
"Wait… it says we've almost completed everything?"
"Already?!"
"Look, there's even a congratulatory message. Feels like something straight out of an old video game…"
Mistshroom: Quests 2/3
Obtain a weapon: Completed Find the enemy Parazampi: Completed Build your home: Not completed
Reward: Achievement "Mistshroom Cleansed"
Rewards:
Currency ×40 Shroom Heal ×10 (instant regeneration against parasites or viruses, also heals minor pain) Stem Ore (unique material to forge a poisoned weapon by the Mistshroom artisan)
Info: Each territory is ranked by difficulty. You have unlocked this option in the Map tab.
Aria looked up at me.
"So Parazampi was the parasite controlling Abb?"
I turned toward Briana.
"Abb was infected about fifteen years ago, right?"
"Yes, why?" she replied, intrigued.
"We only got here two days ago. Doesn't it seem strange that he survived that long without being defeated?"
Aria frowned.
"Fifteen years is a lot. Someone else could've taken care of it by now, right?"
"Exactly. And our weapons… they were borrowed, not given. They don't really belong to us."
"Probably because we used them against Abb, I guess."
"Most likely."
Our voices had risen without us noticing, like the tension of the past few days was looking for a way out.
"What have you been talking about this whole time?" Briana asked impatiently.
Might as well ask her directly.
"You wouldn't happen to know an artisan around here, would you?"
She smiled proudly.
"What kind of question is that? It's me."
Aria's eyes widened.
"Wait—that means the weapons at the entrance were made by you? Even my bow?"
"Come on, kids," Brad said with a deep laugh. "I told you—Briana makes tools. I mentioned it when I brought you to her."
Right… with everything that happened, I had completely forgotten. If she was the artisan, she might know something about the ore.
"I asked because… I got some 'stem ore.' And apparently only a Mistshroom artisan can—"
"Stem ore?"
Her voice nearly broke. Briana stepped back, eyes shining.
"That's… impossible. This material has been lost for generations."
Even Bikao froze, mouth slightly open.
"Uh…"
"Where did you find it? This ore resists any infection of its wielder. It's incredibly rare."
Aria raised her hand slightly.
"Briana… I have one too."
"Excuse me?!" Briana gasped.
Even Bikao was speechless.
After explaining how the watch worked, we tried to materialize the items. About twenty minutes later, Aria figured it out—you had to hold your finger on the item icon. A golden light escaped from the screen, and the ore appeared, solid and real, in her hands. It worked for the other rewards too.
Briana was stunned.
"Normally, I'd charge for this kind of work… but since you helped defeat Abb, and you're giving me the chance to forge with this unique ore… I'll do it for free."
"Thank you so much, Briana," Aria said sincerely.
"I'll start tomorrow. It's late—go get some rest. You've earned it."
Once everyone left, Aria and I stayed alone in the living room. The faint glow of the hanging mushrooms bathed the room in a soft, almost unreal light. The fire crackled steadily, like a reminder that—for once—we could breathe.
"About the watch… do you think that 'Info' is useful?" Aria asked, sitting closer to me.
I stared at the still-lit screen.
"I thought it was just a guide. But now… it feels more like a warning. The more dangerous a territory is, the more important it seems. It could help us anticipate things… and understand what this world is really hiding."
"So… the more dangerous it is, the more important it is?"
"Or the more likely we are to die, yeah."
She nodded slowly.
"Too bad it only shows places we've already visited. Mistshroom and Point A are both one star. What do you think the max is?"
"No idea," I sighed. "But if a one-star territory was already this hard… I don't even want to imagine what's next."
She looked away, thoughtful, then smiled faintly.
"By the way… I checked my rewards. I got the same as you… plus one extra."
"Oh yeah? What is it?"
"'Clan Creation.' It says it unlocks if you land the final blow on a territory boss, or complete a rare quest."
I looked at her.
"The Founder mentioned that, remember? The ability to create a clan. That must be it."
"Yeah… probably," she murmured, stretching. "We'll deal with that later. I just can't wait to get my weapon."
I smiled.
"Same. We'll stay here a few days until then."
A peaceful silence settled. Then she broke it softly, hesitantly—something I had never heard from her before.
"Hey… can I hold your hand?"
I looked at her, slightly caught off guard. She wasn't the same Aria from the first night—the one who clung to a stranger out of fear. This time, she was asking. Like she knew exactly what she was doing.
"Yeah… if you want."
She took my arm and gently pulled it close, curling up against me, her calm breathing brushing my skin.
"I still see his face," she whispered. "Every time I close my eyes… I see him charging… and me standing still. I'll sleep better knowing you're here."
I placed my hand on her shoulder, pulling her closer.
"Don't worry. I plan on staying… with you."
She smiled faintly before falling asleep against me.
And I stayed there, staring at the now-dark watch, wondering how many peaceful nights we had left before the next storm.
Day 5.
Two days had passed since Parazampi fell. When dawn finally pierced through the mist, it felt like waking up in another world.
"Looks like it's time," Brad said in a deep voice.
I stood up, adjusting my new weapon.
"I hope everything goes well for you."
Briana placed a hand on my shoulder.
"It was very generous of you to give us half your ore, Casimir. Thanks to you, we no longer have to fear the infection."
"It's the least I could do. My weapon didn't need that much."
"You'll have plenty of chances to test it," she said with a smile. "And you, Aria—you already seem perfectly comfortable with a bow."
Aria puffed her chest slightly.
"My choice was obvious: a bow and poisoned arrows. But… are you sure you're giving it to me?"
"In my opinion," Bikao added, "you'll need it more than we do. And if you run out of arrows, you'll know how to make more. The core of the ore is in that bow—each arrow will inherit its effects."
As for me, I chose a dagger. Not the most impressive weapon, nor the one I handled best. But it didn't require all the ore. I wanted to leave some for the village. If my blade inflicted a cut, it would poison and neutralize the infection—a power I preferred to use to protect, not destroy.
"We'll head west," I announced.
"So you're going to Argemira?" Brad asked.
"Argemira?" I repeated.
Bikao nodded.
"You didn't know? To the west lies Argemira—a former mine swallowed by darkness. A tragedy happened there when the gate was sealed."
Briana continued:
"And to the east, there's the Frost Jail. The Snowfolk live there. The cold is deadly, and the snow never stops. Going there now would be a terrible idea—you have nothing to fight the cold."
Bucodu, silent until now, stepped forward holding two torches.
"I prepared these for you."
"Thank you so much, Bucodu," Aria said warmly.
"If you need fire," he explained, "rub this mushroom against a pine cone. It will ignite it."
I took the bag he handed me.
"Thank you. Really."
Briana stepped forward, a bit emotional.
"Good luck, you two. I hope we'll see each other again soon… and thank you for everything."
A little aside, Bikao whispered to Briana:
"His strength… it stands out."
"That boy must have a past."
"A stranger with a past? You're sure?"
"We'll know soon. The Dolmari will spot it instantly."
Briana glanced at her bandaged arm, then back at Casimir's silhouette walking away.
"I'm counting on you… I don't think we've heard the last of you."
After saying our goodbyes, Aria and I headed west. The wind still carried the damp scent of Mistshroom. Ahead of us stood Argemira's dark gate.
"Look," Aria said, pointing. "The gate is right there!"
I stared at the opening, black mist pouring out.
"Argemira… I hope we can reach Point A through here."
Beyond the gate, only darkness. A cave swallowed by shadows.
"Light the torch."
As it ignited, an orange glow revealed a long rocky corridor. We moved carefully, our footsteps echoing through the mine. The silence was so thick it felt unreal.
"I feel like we've been walking in a straight line for hours," I muttered.
Further ahead, we spotted an opening on the left. A small abandoned camp. The fire was still warm.
Someone was here recently.
"Did you hear that?"
A sound. Faint. Like a strangled breath behind stone.
Aria rushed forward before I could stop her. We ran toward a collapsed tunnel. Through a gap in the rocks—three faces. Pale. Exhausted.
"People?"
The closest one lifted his head.
"Help us… please…"
Aria started removing stones with her bare hands. I joined her.
"Th-thank you… so much…" a weak voice said. "My two companions are unconscious… they didn't survive the collapse well."
I cleared a passage large enough for the conscious one. The other two lay motionless.
"How long have you been stuck here?"
"No idea," the stranger replied. "Long enough to lose track of time. The watch doesn't show anything anymore."
"Aria, take him to the camp we saw earlier. I'll handle the others."
"You sure?"
"Yeah. If anything happens, shout."
She nodded and led him away.
As I dragged one of the unconscious bodies, the stranger whispered:
"By the way… the collapse wasn't natural."
Aria stopped instantly.
"What do you mean?"
He swallowed.
"Someone caused it… someone who knew exactly what they were doing."