Chương 22: Strange Enough

The sun had already set but Alexandra was still outside, leaning on the fence near the aetherveil fields. She was gazing at the moon. Close to full, it looked strikingly similar to earth's. So much so that she hadn't noticed until now. White, glowing, about the same size, if not for the different patterns marring its surface, one could mistake it as the same astral body. She found it funny. Not the moon itself, but her mild disappointment at the realization that it was just that: a moon. Why not two? Three?

One so large it would be visible during the day. A blue moon? A red moon? That would be cool. Perhaps one that granted magical powers to those who prayed to it. So many possibilities. Yet, the moon was mundane.

"This is the moon," a voice called next to her, "in case you don't remember." Alexandra flinched. Marick. She hadn't heard him coming. The man could be oddly silent for his size. He leaned on the fence next to her.

"I remember the moon." Marick shook his head.

"Of course you do." His gaze landed on her. Her hood was down. She'd even removed the glove hiding her missing finger. The absence still stung. He already knows.

"You're a strange person, Alexandra," Marick continued.

"I can't quite wrap my head around why you're here, or what I should do with you." Alexandra met his gaze.

"I wish I knew how I ended up here. As for the rest, I will manage."

"Tell that tale to someone else. Lanterne is my village, my rules."

"Have I broken a law?" Marick chuckled.

"Not quite. But in small communities like ours, laws come after feelings. And my people are not feeling too happy with you." Alexandra nodded.

"So I've heard. No, I lived through it." A pause.

"I… I know I'm not the easiest of guests, but I will do my best." Marick shifted his body on the fence, the wood creaked under his weight. Alexandra looked up at him. How did someone grow so large?

"What do you want to do?" He asked, breaking the silence. She hesitated.

"As in? Now?"

"In general. You can't be content living like that. No real place to call home, no family. What are your goals, Alexandra?" She paused. That was a question she hadn't really asked herself. She wanted to grow her streak. That was the closest thing she had to a goal. Marick wouldn't understand. Furthermore, while she was determined to bring it as high as possible, it wasn't really what the village's chief was asking for.

"I'm not sure," she answered.

"Short term, I want to grow stronger."

"Why?" She shrugged.

"Why not?"

"The drive to grow in power is only as strong as the thing driving you. Without a reason, you will eventually falter." She smiled. She had her streak.

"I don't think it will be a problem for me." Marick shook his head.

"Suit yourself." His eyes lingered on her hair.

"You know your appearance is a problem, right?" She shifted, leaned away from him.

"I'm aware. Bamir explained."

"I thought so. It's a good thing you've decided to hide your hair and hand. That said, the improvement between a gray haired young woman with facial scars and a missing finger and a hooded woman who's obviously hiding something is marginal." He paused.

"If Bamir hadn't assured me you weren't a demonic follower, I would have already arrested you." Alexandra froze.

"I am not."

"Yet, Bamir is but the lowest echelon of priests. He could be mistaken, or deceived." Marick leaned toward her. She pulled back.

"How coincidental that you show up right in the middle of a pretty bad floral infestation."

"That has nothing to do with me!" She raised her hands.

"I'm not that strong." He pressed.

"Valudipan has his ways. Who knows what a demonic blessing can achieve?"

"Valudipan?" Alexandra latched onto the name. It was the same as in her skill quest for Summon Lesser Fiend. Marick leaned back, pulling away from her. He let out a low chuckle.

"Right. The amnesia. I too would forget the name of my patron, if I were in your situation." Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Alexandra's face contorted. She had nothing to do with this! He smiled.

"Just kidding. For now, I'll trust Bamir's intuition." He jumped down from the fence.

"Valudipan, Demon of Tides. All over Laika, we tend to attribute monster infestations to him. As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter. Such considerations are too far removed from my station. All I care about is ending the threat to Lanterne."

"A noble goal," she answered, her throat tight.

"I like to think so too. Unfortunately, I am not strong enough to kill the beast responsible for it."

"You?" Alexandra gasped. The man was clearly stronger than her, and he was telling he could do nothing to the very same beast she was targeting. That quest wasn't going to be easy.

"Is that why you want to call the Wardens over?" Marick stretched his arms, and put them behind his head.

"Interesting the pieces of information you remember, and those you don't. Yes, that's exactly right. Sadly, Bamir doesn't want me to."

"Bamir? Why not?"

"You tell me. All I know is that it's because of you."

"Me?" Marick nodded.

"You."

"How so?"

"I wish I knew, but that damned priest refuses to tell me." Alexandra scratched her chin. Could it be that the healer guessed that she wanted to deal with the infestation herself? It was a stretch, but she couldn't see how else the situation would relate to her.

"I don't know either. But I'm willing to help."

"He told me you'd say that. Bamir really has the knack for reading people." He sighed.

"You've killed a Mimethys and a Perub. Not the strongests, but verdant beasts are powerful for their grades. Your help is welcomed." Alexandra smiled.

"So, what's up with that infestation exactly? What's the source?" Marick's eyes narrowed.

"How do you know there's a source?"

"I… Isn't that obvious? I thought…"

"I'm playing with you. It's an Yshant."

"You're going to have to give me more than that. What's an Yshant?" Alexandra asked. Marick looked at her for a moment.

"Right. The amnesia. Or perhaps you're not from the plains." He turned back to the moon.

"A plant monster. It produces pollen that activates other floral monsters in its vicinity and bless them, making them stronger and more aggressive. The Mimethys, the Perubs, the rest; those beasts lurk in the plain all year round, but they rarely target humans under normal circumstances."

"So if you kill it, the others stop?"

"They don't disappear. Without the pollen driving them, they revert to their base behavior. Manageable." He paused.

"The problem is killing it. The Yshant takes a portion of the lifeforce and experience of the monsters it blesses, making it a formidable foe." Alexandra thought about the two plant monsters she'd already fought. The Mimethys had nearly drowned her in sweet pollen before she could reach its flowers. The Perub had buried her under roots. Both had nearly killed her.

"How does it compare to a Perub?" Marick glanced at her.

"You killed a Perub."

"I did." He was quiet for a moment.

"A Perub isn't a weak monster. But most warriors can kill one, though we don't have many such men in Lanterne." He picked up a loose splinter from the fence post and turned it over in his fingers.

"An Yshant is something a village chief cannot handle alone." He dropped the splinter.

"That should give you a sense of the gap." Alexandra looked back at the moon. She'd fought the Perub half-drugged, trapped under its roots, with one functional hand and a sickle. She'd barely won.

"Right," she said.

"Still willing to help?"

"Of course." She had a quest to complete. He stepped away. Paused.

"One more thing." Alexandra looked up at him.

"Don't go after it tomorrow." He held her gaze.

"Or the day after. You've been here less than a week and you've already lost a finger and turned your hair white. Whatever you are, you're not ready." She opened her mouth.

"I'm not finished." He crossed his arms.

"Train. Get stronger. Figure out what you're doing before you walk into something that even I can't beat." He paused to let that land.

"The Yshant isn't going anywhere, unfortunately." Alexandra nodded slowly.

"And while you're at it." He gestured vaguely toward the village behind them.

"For the love of the Seven, make an effort. Buy something from the market. Learn a name or two. Help someone carry something heavy." He picked up his axe from where he'd rested it against the fence.

"You killed two plant monsters that most people here couldn't handle. That counts for something. But it won't count for long if you keep walking through the village like a ghost." He left without waiting for a response. Alexandra watched him go. He was strange. Not in the way she was strange. Strange in the way of someone who had thought carefully about what they were willing to tolerate and why. He'd probed her, half-accused her, tested her from every angle he could manage without tipping his hand.

Then he handed her a problem he couldn't solve himself. Whether she succeeded or not, he would get rid of a problem plaguing his village. The Yshant, or her. She smiled. It didn't matter, because she wasn't planning on failing. She summoned her journal, flipped to the event quest page, and read the instruction again. Event Quests: Floral Uprising: Destroy the Yshant behind the floral infestation in the plains of Baleria (0/1). Kill three monsters blessed by the Yshant (0/3).

Reward: rare skill and two random attribute points. Failure condition: the Yshant dies without your intervention. She blinked. It had changed. Why? The Yshant's name had been updated, likely because she was now aware of it. But the extra mission? And the extra reward? She tapped her fingers on the fence. It had to be related to Marick asking her to do it. It wasn't much. Two attribute points were nothing compared to a rare skill. But if people's wishes had an influence on her quests…

She had to keep an eye out for it. This could change how she approached her progress. Shutting her journal close, she walked toward the house. Bamir had gained her some time. But if she didn't hurry, she was under no illusion that Marick would call upon the Wardens. She wasn't going to let them steal her kill. From tomorrow onward, she was going to train like her life depended on it.