Forbidden Region

by Michael Sisa

  “What a great idea!”

  “As expected of God Evander!”

  “Then, please ride on top of me next!”

  “No, I’m next!”

  The decision was unanimous. Everyone immediately agreed to Lark’s suggestion. Lark chuckled. Despite its scary appearance, he found the seven-headed monster quite cute and amusing—just like an overly eager puppy.

  Aren’t we starting to slow down?

  Lark noticed that the Scylla had reduced its speed considerably. Despite rigorously flapping its wings, it was now moving at almost half its previous speed.

  It was obviously stalling for time.

  Lark sighed lightly. He decided to let this pass. Even if the Scylla moved at half of its maximum speed, it was still a lot faster than horse-drawn carriages. With its ability to ignore the terrain, the three weeks of travel time from the Forbidden Region to Blackstone Town could be reduced to one day.

  True to his word, Lark alternated between the Scylla’s heads every hour, all the while maintaining the gravity spell he’d cast on the giant statue. After expanding his mana pool and obtaining the Sword of Morpheus, the amount of mana being consumed by the spell had become comparatively meager. It was almost negligible.

  Although he still hadn’t reached the same amount of mana he had in his previous life, being able to use high-ranking spells without worrying about running out of mana was such a great feeling. He no longer had to restrict his spells just to conserve his mana. His trip to the Forbidden Region had been truly fruitful.

  After almost a day, Lark finally saw the Aden Mountain Range. He also saw a large fortress inside a valley. Its towering walls were comparable to Yorkshaire City.

  “That’s the Valley of Witches, huh?” mumbled Lark.

  His assumptions should be correct, since there was only one fortress in this area. If Yorkshaire City was the stopper preventing the Empire’s forces from crossing over to the kingdom’s territory, the Valley of Witches was the stopper preventing the United Grakas Alliance from advancing into the kingdom. A fortress that held grave strategic importance.

  “Lizard, look over there. At the town below us,” said Lark. “That’s my Blackstone Town.”

  The Scylla looked at the town covered by snow below. Although there were several hundreds of houses, it was surprisingly small. All seven heads thought that it did not befit someone of Lark’s status.

  “Fly higher, make sure no one sees us.”

  “As you wish, My God.”

  The Scylla flew higher and went past Blackstone Town. It continued flying toward the east. Everything in front of it and below it had now become a sea of trees. Even when flying above the clouds, the end of the forest was nowhere in sight.

  “This forest is quite large, isn’t it?” mumbled the seventh head.

  “The Endless Forest,” said Lark. “This will be your new home. No one has managed to map the entire region before, but according to some people, this forest should be at least as large as the entire kingdom itself.”

  “Our new home. The Endless Forest. It doesn’t sound bad.”

  “We should look for a nice place to make a nest!”

  “That’s right! A nest! A proper one, unlike the hole we used to sleep in on the fourth floor of the labyrinth!”

  Although the Earth Scylla called it a nest, Lark knew that it meant something similar to a dragon’s lair. A protected territory where it could slumber peacefully.

  After flying for an hour, Lark decided that they were far enough from the town. Even Herbalist Mores wouldn’t delve this deep into the Endless Forest.

  “This should be good enough. Let’s leave the statue here,” said Lark. “Make a large clearing.”

  The Scylla hovered down and fired several wind spells toward the ground, destroying more than a hundred trees in an instant. Lark disabled the barrier surrounding him, jumped onto the ground, and pointed at the clearing.

  “Over here.”

  Using all seven heads, the Scylla carefully laid the statue on the ground.

  Although they were quite far from the town, there was always the possibility of someone wandering the Endless Forest seeing the giant statue. Its towering height and its golden luster made it conspicuous even from a distance.

  “It’s sticking out like a sore thumb, huh?” said Lark.

  The Scylla nodded its heads in agreement. “If you give us permission to build a nest, it’ll be possible for us to conceal the statue, God Evander.”

  “Hide it inside the nest of a Scylla,” said Lark. “Not a bad idea.”

  After Lark gave the Scylla permission, the seven-headed monster started casting several spells one after another. Even now, the spell-casting speed of the Scylla amazed Lark. The way it used seven heads to create several layers of runes at once greatly hastened the creation of magic formations.

  In mere seconds, the Scylla had cast several high-tier spells.

  The forest shook and the ground started to move. With the Scylla’s precise control of magic, the earth molded itself into a large shrine, with the statue at its center. There was a two hundred-meter empty space around the statue, which was probably meant for the Scylla’s nest.

  For almost an hour, the Scylla repeatedly molded and hardened the earth, until it was satisfied with the shrine’s appearance. In the end, a far more conspicuous sight than the giant statue had appeared in the Endless Forest.

  The Earth Scylla stopped for a moment to appreciate its creation.

  “I don’t like it,” said the first head.

  “We should make it larger. How about a castle?” replied the seventh head.

  “Definitely. Something this small does not befit God Evander.”

  “No, the size is good enough. What we’re lacking is gold.”

  “That’s right! Gold!”

  “I agree! We should cover the shrine with gold!”

  “But where can we get the gold?”

  “We should be able to get enough if we attack the capital of the nearest kingdom!”

  “Then let’s go right now!”

  The seemingly innocent ramblings of the Scylla started turning dangerous. They even started discussing how they’d break into the royal treasury without damaging the treasures within. Lark decided to interfere before things spiraled out of control.

  “Seriously.” Lark sighed. “Hey, lizard.”

  The chatters died down in an instant. The Scylla respectfully bowed all of its seven heads. “Yes, My God.”

  “You can roam around the Endless Forest—you’re even allowed to wander around the entire kingdom—but you absolutely must not attack any humans,” said Lark. “Do you understand?”

  The heads looked at each other. They must have been conflicted by Lark’s words. How could they gather the needed gold if they weren’t allowed to take it from the humans?

  “Understood, God Evander.”

  For some strange reason, Lark understood what was going on in the Scylla’s mind right now. He said, “There’s no need to coat the entire shrine in gold. What matters is that the statue remains hidden from other people. Is that clear?”

  “Yes.”

  The amount of treasure inside the golden statue was more than enough to support the entire kingdom for several decades. Lark couldn’t possibly take all of it with him to Blackstone Town. He decided to only take a handful—just enough to support all of his projects—and leave the rest in this forest.

  “Just to be sure, we should set up a barrier spell to prevent other people from reaching this place,” said Lark. “A mirage spell or an illusion spell. As for the treasure room, I’ll personally set up a defensive ward inside it.”

  “As you wish,” said the first head. “We’ll make sure anyone who approaches this shrine will be killed in an instant!”

  Lark creased his brows and rubbed his forehead. He said firmly, “No, there’s no need to go that far. I forbid all of you from killing any humans, even if they intrude into your nest. Just make sure that th
ey can’t get near it.”

  Although the chances were low, Lark didn’t like the idea of one of his subjects being killed by the barrier spell they’d set up in the forest.

  The third head said slowly, “Then, an illusion spell that messes with one’s sense of direction and vision should do the trick.”

  Lark was relieved that the third head was at least reasonable. He nodded. “Exactly.”

  “Please leave it to us,” said the third head.

  After the Scylla was done building the shrine, Lark entered the statue and placed several defensive wards inside. Unlike his disciple, he didn’t place an extremely dangerous spell like the Hand of God. He simply placed several barrier spells, which would prevent other people from taking the treasure out of the statue.

  Lark took several adamantite ores, pinnacle-grade potions, mithril ingots, gold coins, a bloodstone fragment, and two mandrake roots from the treasure room. The leather bag he bought from Daxton City could hardly contain all of the treasure.

  Lark smiled. It was such a great feeling.

  He now had more than enough money to hasten the development of Blackstone Town.

  After Lark left the statue, he said to the Scylla. “Lizard, did my idiotic disciple give you a name?”

  “Yes, God Evander. Master Kubarkava bestowed upon us the name, Blackie .”

  Lark’s face momentarily contorted. What a horrible name. But, amazingly, the Scylla seemed proud of it. It was apparent by the way its tail wagged after mentioning the name given to it by the Dragon Devourer.

  “Blackie,” repeated Lark.

  “Yes!” the Scylla replied enthusiastically.

  Lark sighed. The Scylla was very fond of the name it had been given. Although it sounded horrible, Lark decided to stick with it.

  “Then, Blackie,” said Lark.

  “Yes, God Evander!”

  “I’ll be going back to Blackstone Town for a while,” said Lark. “I’ve placed several defensive wards in the treasure room and the statue, so it should be fine, even if you leave the nest and wander the kingdom for a bit. Just make sure you’re not spotted by humans. Is that clear?”

  The Scylla eagerly responded with a yes and enthusiastically bobbed its heads.

  “Here, take it.” Lark tossed a gemstone toward the Scylla. The seven-headed monster caught it using wind magic.

  “A communication crystal?”

  It was similar to the item Lark had given to Zacharia during the previous war with the Empire.

  “It’s connected to the necklace I’m wearing,” said Lark. “Contact me should something happen here.”

  “Contact you? O-Of course!”

  The eyes of the Scylla grew wide and all seven heads looked at the gemstone as though it was the most precious thing in the world. They started a heated discussion about which head should keep the gemstone.

  VOLUME 6: CHAPTER 12

  Migrating to Blackstone Town was probably the best decision Hans had made in his life. Who would have thought that a former thief like him would become the apprentice of a well-known herbalist? Although he still had uncertainties, Hans had found a lead toward his path in life.

  “If you’re done shoveling the snow from the roof, come inside!” Herbalist Mores shouted from inside the timber house. “We got orders from the Central Market!”

  Hans, standing on the rooftop of the herbalist’s house, looked at the houses around them. The heatstones installed around the town a year ago, which were made of cheap but readily available materials, had lost their power several months ago. Although it had stopped snowing two days ago, everything was still covered in white. With his every breath, white steam would puff out.

  Hans immediately got down from the roof and entered Mores’ house. The familiar scent of dried herbs and medical concoctions assaulted his nose the moment he entered. Looking above, dozens of dried herbs hanged from the ceiling.

  “More ginger ecaruits?” said Hans.

  Herbalist Mores donned his cloak, scarf, boots, and gloves. “That’s right. Good thing we gathered a lot of ’em before winter arrived.”

  The herbalist pointed at a large sack sitting near the entrance. “The ecaruits are already inside. Carry them for me, will you?”

  “Of course, Master.”

  The herbalist and his apprentice traversed the snow-covered ground and went toward the Central Market. Surprisingly, despite the freezing winter, a lot of people were inside the Central Market. Due to the abundant harvest and the fixed price policy imposed by the lord of the territory, the price of wheat was incredibly cheap—it was affordable even for poor families.

  Hans had seen this scene in the Central Market several times before, but it still amazed him every time. The people of the slums in Lion City were probably struggling to survive right now, homeless, with hardly any food to eat this winter. But the residents of Blackstone Town were different. It was as though the God of Harvest smiled upon this territory this winter.

  Hans sighed inwardly. If only Lord Valcres was as benevolent and as competent as the Lord of Blackstone Town, then maybe things would have been different.

  Hans and his master made their way to the stall selling medicinal herbs on the second floor of the Central Market. The vendor immediately greeted them. “Ah, Mores! Just in time you’ve come! The dried ecaruits you made are flying off the shelves lately. We just sold the last bundle this morning.”

  This had never happened before. During the last winter, people were so desperate to survive that all of their money was spent solely on food. No one had enough money to spare for medicinal herbs, moreover a relatively expensive one like ecaruits.

  But now, things were different. After the lord regulated the prices of food and after the massive job recruitments, the residents of Blackstone Town were thriving. They even had enough money to spare for medicinal herbs and clothing.

  Mores nodded at Hans. On cue, the apprentice placed the large sack in front of the vendor and opened it, revealing several bundles of ginger ecaruits inside.

  “This is the last batch for this month,” said Mores. “We’ll need to wait for several more weeks before the rest of the herbs in my home fully dry.”

  “Last batch, eh?” The vendor clicked his tongue. “This won’t even last a week. You remember that shorty from the mines? Arturo? He’s been spoiling his sick daughter with ecaruit soup every day ever since winter started. Damn miners and their deep pockets. I heard he’s made it big after mining a very large kalrane a few months ago.”

  When Hans first came to Blackstone Town, he deliberated if he should apply for the position of a miner but eventually decided against it. Although the pay was almost comparable to that of a soldier’s, it was hard labor and he didn’t like the idea of delving deep into the cavern with nothing but a pickaxe and a small kalrane.

  “The kalrane worth two gold coins,” nodded Mores, “I remember. He went drinking at the tavern every night for an entire week after receiving his pay. How could I forget?’

  “W-What?” said Hans. “T-Two gold coins?”

  He hadn’t heard of this. That was enough money for a person to live comfortably for a year. Hans imagined the things he could do with such a large amount of money.

  “Wipe that greed off your face,” said Mores. “Gathering herbs is honest work. Arturo simply got lucky, that’s all. If you really want to become an herbalist one day, stand tall and take pride in your profession.”

  “Y-Yes!” Hans straightened his back and scratched his cheek in embarrassment.

  After leaving the Central Market, the herbalist and his apprentice went inside the Endless Forest to gather a certain herb which only grew during winter.

  “Master, are we really going to gather herbs at this hour?” said Hans as he looked at the frozen river next to them. “We should probably wait a few days, wait for the snow to melt a little more.”

  “Quiet, you damn amateur,” snapped Mores. “Just follow me quietly. You said you wanted to learn how to gather herbs
and make medicine, no? Frost moonlight lilies grow only during winter. We’re lucky that it grows in the Endless Forest. It’s one of the reasons why I chose to settle down in this town.”

  The herbalist led Hans deeper into the Endless Forest. After several hours of traversing the snow-covered ground, they finally arrived at a part of the forest which the herbalist called the ‘medicinal herb treasury.’

  Mores crouched and carefully pulled out an ordinary-looking plant. It wasn’t beautiful like Hans had expected. “Drill this into your brain. This thing here is a frost moonlight lily. A plant that blooms only during a full moon. Make sure not to damage the roots, understood?”

  “Yes, Master,” Hans half-heartedly replied. He also started digging the ground. He could not understand what was so special about this plant.

  Hearing his apprentice’s uninterested response, Mores said, “A bundle is worth six silvers in Lion City. If the roots are undamaged, eight silvers.”

  Hans froze. He stared at the ordinary-looking plant in his hand, at his master, then back. “Six silvers? This thing?”

  Mores grinned. “Pretty lucrative, isn’t it? I heard that it’s being sold for twice the price in the capital. An important ingredient in making several medicines, you see. The fact that it grows only during winter makes it so darn expensive.”

  Hans looked around him. Judging by the amount of frost moonlight lilies growing in this place, it should be possible to fill several baskets. Hans realized that his master was right in calling this a treasure trove.

  “I should have brought a bigger basket,” Hans said in regret. With renewed vigor, he started to carefully gather the lilies one after another. He no longer minded the cold. If a bundle was worth six to eight silvers, then a single plant was worth at least one silver coin.

  It felt as though he was plucking money from the ground. Who would have known that they could get so much money from gathering wild grass? The feeling was so exhilarating that he didn’t notice that a few hours had passed by.

  “That’s enough,” said Mores. “We’re heading back.”

  “But, Master, there’re still a lot of lilies growing over there. We can probably fit more of them inside our bask—”