The daily tasks at the farmstead are relentless. Even if someone who was once a neighbor disappears for unknown reasons while returning to their hometown, the fruits that need harvesting, the fields that need weeding, and the animals that need feeding and watering await the hands of the farmstead workers.
Still, those with a bit of leeway to postpone their tasks to tomorrow—people accustomed to the forest, like lumberjacks or hunters—divided the area around the spot where Warren's wagon was found and set out to search for him.
For the others at the farmstead, only after the day's work is done can they set aside their postponed worries and sadness about their missing colleague, sharing their thoughts with others. Sometimes, the familiar routine brings comfort, but at times like these, the busy life and scheduled duties of a farmstead worker become burdensome.
As time passes, the sun in the sky gives way to two moons, and night falls once again on the farmstead. Near the lake, a short distance from the longhouse where everyone naturally gathers after sunset, Gravel sat with his eyes closed.
"Ugh… it's starting to get tough."
Mana training had become part of his daily routine. In front of him, a page from a book lay open, depicting the location of a Mana Veins. Gravel was in the midst of his training.
The amplified mana within Gravel's body surged fiercely, as if trying to break free from his control, radiating its energy around him.
"Just a little more… just a little more…"
The ferocious mana poured out from Gravel's body. The mana that burst forth stretched outward like waves on a stormy sea, only to curve back toward him.
As he struggled to contain and control the erupting mana, the space around where Gravel sat seemed to bend and twist.
"To the limit…!"
The mana surged even more intensely from Gravel's body.
Thousands, tens of thousands of unrefined mana threads appeared, and as Gravel drew them back toward himself, they intertwined like complex knots, enveloping his body.
"Gravel, was it? The one who came with Diara…"
A voice, unfamiliar and unnoticed due to his focus on training, reached him. Realizing someone had approached without him noticing, Gravel quickly reined in the mana radiating from his body, stood up, and turned toward the voice.
"Yes, that's right."
Under the moonlight, a woman with flowing silver hair that shimmered like fine silk approached slowly. Lisia, with a captivating smile and narrowed eyes, exuded an enchanting aura.
Her violet eyes gleamed, and the corners of her mouth curved slightly upward in a gentle smile.
As a soft breeze from the lake brushed past Lisia's forehead, she lifted a slender hand to tidy her disheveled hair.
"The wind's getting chilly already. Being a farmstead at the foot of the mountain, it feels like the cold arrives earlier than other seasons."
Lisia, now close enough for their voices to carry clearly, turned toward the lake, gazing at the moon reflected on its surface.
"Yes, it does feel colder than when I was in Froikton not long ago." Gravel replied.
"Oh, you met Diara in Froikton, didn't you?"
"Yes. My companion and I were on our way to Tollu when we encountered a group led by someone named Gulick. We helped Diara, and afterward, we agreed to assist in transporting the statue to Ves-Dinas."
"Then I must thank you again. Thanks to you, Diara and the statue made it safely to the farmstead. I hope your journey to Ves-Dinas is a safe one."
Lisia clasped her hands to her chest, closed her eyes gently, and offered Gravel her gratitude.
"It wasn't that big of a deal to warrant such thanks."
"Hehe, but I've already thanked you."
"Oh… well, then…"
Gravel scratched his head awkwardly at Lisia's words, and she took a few steps closer to him.
"You're not very good at playful banter, are you, Gravel?"
"Haha… I suppose not."
Gravel squinted and smiled, while Lisia, seeing his flustered expression, gave a bright smile in return.
Their conversation continued for a while.
"It's getting cold… The conversation's been enjoyable, but as you said, Lisia, the wind is too chilly to keep talking out here."
"Oh? I could stay and talk with you all night, Gravel, and be just fine… You're not using the wind as an excuse to send me away because you're bored of our conversation, are you?"
Lisia asked playfully, her lips curved in a smile but her brow furrowed in mock suspicion.
"No, no, that's not it… Haha…"
"I know, I'm just teasing. I was about to head back anyway since I remembered something I need to do before the night gets too late."
Lisia brushed back her hair, tousled by the lake's breeze, and spoke. Gravel gave a slight nod in farewell, and Lisia returned a smile and a wave before turning to walk back toward the farmstead.
*****
Rustle. Rustle. The sound of the wind passing through low shrubs echoed. The night's sentinels, owls and nightjars, awakened from their light-avoiding slumber, hooted warnings at unfamiliar intruders in their territory.
"This should be far enough… right?"
Gravel stopped under the shadow of a tree, untouched by moonlight, and surveyed his surroundings.
During his mana circulation training, a sudden thought had crossed his mind. Inspired by the principles of detection magic, he wanted to test a new method of exploration by emitting mana. This idea had led him not back to the farmstead but deeper into the forest.
"Sitting might help me focus better. I'll get used to doing it while moving eventually…"
Gravel sat beneath the tree, leaning against its trunk, assuming a relaxed posture as he did during mana circulation training.
"Phew…"
Gravel exhaled deeply, gathering his breath from deep within. Then, he began circulating his mana.
He extended the interconnected mana veins, harmonizing them. Thanks to countless hours of training, he could now activate and circulate fewer than twenty mana veins in a relatively short time.
In a fleeting moment, the air around Gravel rippled, surging outward with fierce intensity before being drawn back toward him.
"…"
With breaths so quiet they were barely audible, Gravel envisioned countless thin, elongated threads—dozens, hundreds, thousands of mana threads—spreading out.
The mana threads touched the surrounding trees, rocks, and an owl perched on a thick branch, hooting loudly. As they did, the forest around Gravel, previously shrouded as if in fog, became vivid and clear in his mind.
"Hm… no matter how many threads I send out, there are still gaps between them…"
Gravel closed his eyes again and focused his mind.
"Spread the mana threads thinly… widely… unfold them!"
The surroundings became even clearer in his mind. Tiny leaves falling between the trees in the breeze appeared as if right before his eyes. Everything the widely spread mana touched became visible. An indescribable sensation began to wash over Gravel, as if he were simultaneously perceiving everything in the surrounding forest.
As he adjusted to this newly acquired sense, feeling the shapes and movements of everything around him…
"Hm? What's this…?"
His brief joy at this new application of mana was interrupted. At the farthest reach of his mana threads, deep in the forest, he detected an alien presence, utterly out of place with the forest's natural harmony.
"What is this? I've never encountered an aura like this before."
Gravel tilted his head, eyes still closed, then furrowed his brow, focusing his mana threads toward the strange presence.
It was a menacing, dark aura. He sifted through words in his mind—malice, anger, hostility—but none fit the sensation.
Then, within the dark aura, he noticed something he hadn't seen before.
A gaunt arm and leg beneath a tattered cloak, disheveled hair sticking out wildly, surrounded by a sinister aura. Yet, Gravel recognized it instantly.
"It's Gallad!"
Gravel moved. 'Why is Gallad lying on the forest floor like that? Why is he enveloped in that unknown dark aura?' Without time to ponder, Gravel vanished from his spot, moving toward the depths of the forest with such speed he seemed to blur.
His movements were so swift that an ordinary person might take a single step while Gravel passed dozens of trees. A strong gust followed him, breaking the stillness of the late-night forest.
"Gallad!"
Gravel shouted as he reached Gallad, who lay sprawled on the short grass. But despite his urgent call, Gallad showed no signs of life.
"These marks… a beast? Too large for a wolf…"
Gallad's body was in a horrific state. His arms and legs bore scratches and tears from sharp claws or talons. His torso showed a chunk missing from one shoulder, as if bitten off, and a large gash marked his side.
Marks of being torn and bitten by something with a massive maw covered his body.
"Could the rabbit at his waist have attracted a beast? But a beast capable of leaving such marks… it could be a Screecher, like the one I saw at the grand market."
Gravel recalled the monster with a massive mouth on its torso, seen at the grand market's arena.
"But was the Screecher's aura this grotesque?"
The aura emanating from Gallad's wounds felt entirely different from the Screecher he had encountered, even from a distance.
"It could be a similar species… or a kind of monster I don't know."
His thoughts raced. An unfortunate accident? But then there was Warren, who had also vanished in the forest, though under different circumstances.
Warren's disappearance, Gallad's death… and the traces of an eerie, dark aura. Beneath the shadowed trees, untouched by moonlight, Gravel stood. He lowered his head, gazing at Gallad's body for a moment.
"I can only imagine how much pain you were in. We knew each other only briefly, exchanging greetings just yesterday… It saddens me that we can no longer spend time together. But I can't grieve just yet. I'll find out what happened. And for the pain you endured, Gallad, I'll make sure it's repaid."
Muttering quietly to himself, Gravel extended a hand toward Gallad's body, conjuring a magic circle. A bright light flared from it.
The ground beneath the fading light of the magic circle rippled, and a wall of earth rose, enveloping Gallad's body.
He cast the spell to protect Gallad's remains from being desecrated by wild animals.
"I can faintly sense the trail of the beast's aura that attacked Gallad. It might fade soon, so I need to hurry."
Gravel released his mana again, following the faint fragments of malice scattered on the forest floor, heading deeper into the forest.