"Huh?" Cipher's constantly wagging tail froze mid-swing.
The Paladin elder spoke. "The winds of the forest have already told me what you discussed earlier. You might have deceived that young Druid, but you can't fool me. There's no such plant as the 'Blue Spider Lily' here."
"However..." The elder's demeanor shifted. His gaze swept over everyone before finally resting on Aria. "A Paladin, wielding a Divine Artifact, arriving here at such a time... I can think of no other possibility. If you truly came for that, there's no need to hide it. The forest desperately needs your help right now."
With the truth laid bare, Feidric stepped forward. "Alright, you're right. We did come for that reason. We're not ordinary adventurers. We hail from the Eternal Holy City of Okhema, sent here under the orders of Holy Maiden Tribios to investigate a potential crisis related to the Outer Gods."
The elder picked up the scroll he had been examining and handed it to Feidric. "I've been troubled by this matter as well," he said. "A corruption of unknown origin has caused many animals in the forest to mutate. These creatures have become unusually ferocious and aggressive, attacking any other living being on sight."
Feidric lowered his gaze to study the scroll in his hands. Just then, Cipher asked with confusion, "When you mentioned the 'forest winds'... did you mean actual wind, the surrounding vegetation, or a squirrel?"
"The trees," the elder replied. "I personally planted every tree around this tribe. They are all my eyes."
Douglas overheard this and asked, "In that case, what about the squirrel that was following us for so long? Wasn't it one of your Druids?"
"A squirrel?" The elder's expression turned to surprise. "None of the Druids in our tribe can transform into a squirrel. Are you certain a squirrel was following you?"
Douglas nodded firmly. "I'm sure of it!"
Although he hadn't seen the squirrel himself, all three of his teammates had, so it must be true.
The elder frowned. "Then it's most likely those people from the Moon Circle..."
Just as other professions have subclasses, Druids naturally have many of their own. The most famous are the Earth Circle and the Moon Circle. The former primarily practices Nature Magic. While Earth Circle Druids can also transform into animals, their forms are limited to a few specific types.
Moon Circle Druids, however, specialize in the Way of Transformation. They can shapeshift into a vast array of creatures, from rats and sparrows to owlbears and even dragons.
The elder's tribe belonged to the Earth Circle. They weren't exactly enemies with the Moon Circle Druids, but they kept to themselves, each walking their own path without interference.
After hearing this explanation, Douglas felt a jolt of unease. "Wait, the Moon Circle? But the Moon has long been corrupted! Can anything associated with it possibly end well!?"
The elder's expression remained unchanged. "Are you suggesting that the members of the Moon Circle might all be tainted by Outer God Corruption?"
"The possibility is very high!" Douglas exclaimed.
"If that's the case," Cipher said, "then the situation inside the Great Forest is far more troublesome than we imagined. Do you know roughly how many Moon Circle Druids there are? And where do they typically operate?"
The elder shook his head. As he had just explained, the two circles kept to themselves. How would he know such details? "I'll send someone to investigate later," he said.
At that moment, Feidric finished reading the scroll and returned to the original topic. "Do you have any other information about the animal mutations?"
The elder thought for a moment. "The corpses of all attacked creatures vanish. They aren't eaten, but seem to be dragged away, leaving behind significant bloodstains and drag marks."
"Then why not follow those tracks?" Aria asked.
"I did send trackers," the elder replied. "But even the tribe's best hunters found that the tracks vanished into thin air after a certain distance. They searched the area around where the tracks disappeared but found nothing unusual."
Feidric looked puzzled. "Where exactly is it? Could you take us there to see for ourselves?"
As a wizard, his first thought upon hearing about things vanishing into thin air was some kind of spatial anomaly. Druids excelled at Natural Magic, and hunters were skilled trackers, but neither specialized in Spatial Magic. If he went to see the site himself, he might discover something.
"No problem," the elder agreed readily. "Wait here a moment. I'll gather my things, and then I'll personally guide you."
A short while later, the elder emerged, clad in simple leather armor with a greatsword strapped to his back. He led Cipher and her companions out of the hut. It was only when the elder stood up that Douglas realized the man was nearly as tall as he was. The elder's muscular arms, combined with his slightly dark complexion, looked as hard as granite.
Cipher glanced at the elder's arms, noting they were almost as thick as her waist. She didn't need to imagine it to know that a Divine Smite from him would be excruciatingly painful.
The elder wasn't leading them alone. He had summoned two druids and two rangers, bringing their total to nine as they officially set out from the tribe.
Cipher observed the two druids and two rangers. Both druids were Wood Elves, with their race's characteristic dark skin and pointed ears. The rangers consisted of one Wood Elf and a young Catfolk girl. Finally, Cipher turned her gaze to the Paladin elder. He had no distinct features, suggesting he was human.
As Cipher sized them up, the Catfolk ranger kept glancing back at her, her tail wagging rapidly behind her. Her eyes sparkled with curiosity. After all, the primary races in the Great Forest were elves and humans; all other races were relatively rare.
The group of nine journeyed onward. With the locals guiding them, the path became much easier to traverse. Even when dense vegetation blocked their way, there was no need to hack it down. The two druids simply waved their hands, and the plants parted on their own, clearing a path.