045~The Merchant’s Quest (2)

Yvlena and party stepped onto the path and began walking to the Bloom Haven outskirts. The road was much like the path in the Verdant Woods, a straight wide road that would be big enough to accommodate two carts passing side by side comfortably.

The wide forest roads did not wind or twist, it was just simply a path made for trade and it showed. A few trees grew beside it and on their branches, Yvlena could see the makings of nests and small animal homes. Squirrels ran up and down the sides, and birds pecked away the wood.

"Wow, the forest is healing with the miasma gone. It still amazes me that a servant of the gods did all that when they were corrupted, was Rael corrupted as well?"

The party stopped at the entrance to the Out Skirts and took a moment to observe the new area. Unlike the forest, the outskirts were clear and open.

There were almost no trees, just grass for miles and a few animals that scampered by, Yvlena didn't see any horned rabbits but who knew what was waiting for her in this new area?

"Well if anything, it looks just like the meadow so any enemies here we'll see them coming," Yvlena said assuaging her fears. She knew she was strong enough to take on this starter area but that didn't mean there weren't any surprises.

They walked for a bit, keeping their eye out for anything thing that looked like a shipment crate, something like what she had seen within Ricardo's Caravan. It wouldn't be too big just a sealed wooden box.

"Keep your eye out for anything that looks wooden," Yvlena said.

"Like that?" Sprite asked pointing her finger out at something in the distance. Yvlena squinted in the direction her summon pointed. From what she could make out, it looked like a simple treasure chest.

She ran toward it, and soon stopped in front of a medium sized treasure chest, it was brown with gold accents and was wrapped with a heavy chain.

[Sprite cast Sting (01 MP)]

Sprite's sting broke the lock on the chest, they watched the chains unwrap, falling into a heap on the floor and vanishing.

"I hope there's something good inside.

[Yvlena Acquired

***

Star Root (Herb) x2

Bloom Lilies (Herb) x2

Moon Points x1000]

"Oh, herbs!" Yvlena said, though she was a little disappointed, at least she could give some to Iris and if she recalled Bloom Lilies and Star Root were two herbs that were quite hard to find.

"Or I could try to use create the explosive potion recipe Risel gave me, Alchemy is a skill I've been ignoring," Yvlena said to herself as she dusted off her hands.

A spring breeze blew through the area, carrying the faint scent of freedom and flowers. Yvlena wondered if she would find anything of Twyla's the further she walked.

Through her deductions, she knew Twyla had come this way and from her estimations and Ricardo's words, the general areas where she was likely to find other players were this way as well.

"Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there, right now I just need to find the shipment," she rested her hands on her waist and scanned her surroundings.

A small blip in the distance appeared in her vision as she looked towards the horizon. The structure looked like a building long left to decay in the wilds.

It made sense that if the miasma was spreading rapidly through the area the place would have had to be decommissioned for the safety of the people.

"That must be the outpost from Ricardo's flashback," Yvlena said. She ran towards it, Sprite and Rabbit Knight followed loyally behind her.

They're stopped abruptly by an encounter, a hairy wild boar squealed and charged forward at Yvlena.

"A boar? Are you kidding me!"

A large brown boar with white stripes running down its back faced them. The animal grunted, stomping its foot into the ground then kicked up dirt as it sized them up.

The animal released a deafening squeal, charging forward without any sense for its own safety.

Yvlena braced herself for battle, firing off a Carrot Strike.

The boar squealed, deep and guttural, unlike the high pitched squeal of a domestic pig. Its tusks gleamed with a razor like edge and Yvlena instinctively knew that being hit head on would spell disaster for her.

"I'm not about to lose to a pig when I beat Viseli!" Yvlena said. The boar was already running toward her, Yvlena dodged what would have been a brutal hit and brought her sword down upon the Boar's back.

Rabbit Knight flipped forward rapidly jabbing the boar with his rapier.

[Yvlena Cast Carrot Strike (10MP)]

[Sprite cast Bind (03 MP)]

Vines grew around the boar, allowing them to get a better chance at rapidly attacking. The boar squealed again and with its tusks, tore and ripped the vines binding it to the ground.

It stuck Rabbit Knight hard, causing the little Rabbit to roll away from the party and land with a skid.

Yvlena saw through the status bar that his health had gone down to almost half!

"Rabbit Knight!" Yvlena and Sprite called in worry. The fairy flew over to him leaving Yvlena to face the boar who seemed to have grown three sizes.

"Uh..." She locked eyes with the creature's fierce gaze, the strange boar radiated a menacing aura that almost sent Yvlena into a panic.

[Wild Boar is Aggressive]

Yvlena glanced at the notification with a deadpan expression. The boar charged, grunting with each step it took and as it got closer and closer Yvlena attacked.

[Yvlena Cast Carrot Beam (20MP)]

It only stopped the boar only for a moment before the angry creature charged again. Yvlena braced herself for a hit, preparing to cast her ultimate when in a flash Sprite and Rabbit Knight hit the boar with a combo.

[Battle Skill: Rabbit Sting Combo]

The boar stopped, changing direction and chasing after the two summons. Yvlena leaped into the fray unlocking a new skill in the process.

[Battle Skill Unlocked: Orange Combo]

Yvlena and Rabbit Knight linked up. As Yvlena cast her Carrot Beam, Rabbit Knight released a volley of slashes. The Boar swayed, grunting weakly and collapsing onto the floor.

With one final attack, the creature fell giving Yvlena her reward.

[Yvlena Acquired

EXP: 550/1046

***

Pork x3

Boar Tusk x2

***

Moon Point x200]

"Wow that was harder than I thought," Yvlena said panting. She didn't expect the boar to be as tough as it was. It wasn't the level of Viseli but it was surprisingly difficult for a basic Mob.

[Rabbit Knight gained a level +1]

[Sprite gained a level +1]

[Class Skill: Summon Leveled Up]

[New Slot Unlocked]

"Eh? I got a new summon slot, wow! Soon I won't even need to lift a finger," Yvlena said. She placed her hands on her hips and wondered where she would find her next summon stone.

"Gosh, it's probably going to be another visit to the merchant so I better finish this quest!"

They begin their journey to the abandoned building again, keeping their eye out for any enemies that may have been lurking nearby.

"I can't imagine how hard it would have been to fight that pig if it was corrupted by the Miasma, it might have even given Viseli a run for money," Yvlena joked.

----------

After beating a wolf that seemed to spawn out of nowhere, Yvlena, Sprite, and Rabbit Knight finally laid their eyes on the back of the abandoned outpost.

A large wooden fence surrounded the area, within the outpost itself were two large houses and a guard tower with a straw roof.

From the looks of it, the outpost was a small one meant to house Bloom Haven guards. Bloom Haven didn't have many enemies, but there had to be a check point beyond the town for trade and to ensure the safety of the travelers.

Yvlena went in first, walking through the broken, termite eaten wooden gate, she began looking around until her foot stepped over something that gave a nasty crunch.

"Huh? She lifted her foot, and looking downward, her eyes fell on the broken skull of a human. Empty eye sockets and a displaced jaw gazed back at her in silence.

She screamed, jumping back in fright at the sight of the skull.

There must have been casualties, not everyone would have made it back when the Miasma was building up, and certainly not when it had blocked off the area.

Some of the guards must have stayed behind to make a noble sacrifice. Yvlena picked up the skull sadly, she stared into the dark space where eyes used to be, unflinchingly.

"I think we need to find some shovels," Yvlena said placing the skull on a lone wooden table left outside.

She picked the building on the right and began walking towards it to explore. Her feet moved through the overgrown grass and she wondered if she would be able to cut it with her scythe.

Equipping her scythe she charged up and released her magic, with a sweep of her scythe's blade the grass blocking the entrance to the building was cleared.

[Yvlena cast Wide Sweep]

[Yvlena Acquired

***

Wild Fiber x5

Wild Seeds x5]

"It worked?" she said in awe, putting her scythe away she walked through the now clear path, up to the door of the first guard house.

It was a large building, similar to a barrack of some kind, it must have been able to house at least a dozen or so men and women of the town guard.

One of the first things she noticed were the multiple holes in the walls, the guard houses were made of wood and due to the abandonment, the place was falling apart, much like the Rose Manor.

The door creaked loudly as she pushed it open, Yvlena stepped into the building, feeling the wood wobble under her weight. She and her summons found themselves in a large corridor once again with two wings, East and West.

Yvlena went left, walking cautiously through the L-shaped building. Anything could attack her at this moment and it wouldn't be good to be caught off guard.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

A strange sound resounded through the building as she walked, Yvlena began checking rooms on either side of the corridor. Maybe there was a survivor, she could feed him or her the Rabbit Meat Soup recipe she knew.

The sound grew closer and closer until Yvlena and her party came to a closed door. Three Faded Gold stars underneath a name plate let her know the room had once belonged to someone important.

A commander perhaps, it didn't matter now. The name was too faded to read, she could only make out part of it. 'Will'

Yvlena pushed open the creaky door, and stepped in, locating the source of the sound in the process.

She gasped at the sight.