Chapter 17:
The Rootbound Lodge was bustling, its old walls humming with torchlight and energy. Leo stood before the wide wooden quest board, heart thudding, cloak pulled tight over his gear. He felt Tarra at his side—silent, unreadable beneath her hooded cloak, only her smooth ceramic faceplate visible, pale in the warm light. The board shimmered faintly, responding to the aether-infused air and the flicker of adventurer badges.
He'd only just registered. Less than an hour ago, he was a nameless drifter with ancient secrets in his hands. Now, he was **Sprout-Ranked Adventurer 0146-M**, his alias class marked down as "Golemanser." Even that word felt strange on his tongue.
But the Guild had accepted it. More importantly, no one asked questions.
He stepped forward, eyes scanning the list of available quests. Most were mundane: fungus collection, night patrol, minor escort. But one caught his eye:
> **Quest: Scout Mission — Fog-Side Movement**
> *Track fog-creature activity northeast of Rootwake's barrier. Observe, sketch, and avoid engagement if possible.*
> *Reward: 30 silver-leafs + bonus for accurate reporting.*
Leo touched the slip, and the board chimed softly as the quest synced to his badge.
> \[Quest Accepted: Scout Mission — Fog-Side Movement]
He turned to Tarra. "Let's prep. Then we move."
"Acknowledged," she said.
---
**The Inventory**
They returned briefly to the inn. In their rented upper chamber of the **Sleeping Sapling**, Leo closed the door, locked it, and drew the curtains.
He knelt beside his travel bag—a tough cloth satchel reinforced with stitched bark straps. With a whispered command, he let the **inventory window** shimmer into his vision, visible only to him.
It flickered into being:
> **\[Inventory - Leo Makjin]**
> **Goldleaf Coins (x57)**
> **Silverleaf Coins (x88)**
> **Glowing Fruits (x2)**
> **Elias' Journal** (Bound in cracked leather, humming faintly with forgotten magic)
> **Fragment of the Colossal Bear Titan's Antler** (Partially sealed in crystal, veins of raw aether pulsing across its bone)
> **Pipkin's Trade Items:**
>
> * Quick-Hardening Golem Resin (x2 vials)
> * Refined Silver Thread Coil
> * Warding Chalks (x1 pouch)
> **Aetherflare Chalk (x1)**
> **Bound Bark Bandage (x1)**
> **Ember Motes (x2)**
> **Scrap Golem Parts** (basic tier)
> **Monster Claws and Hide** (assorted)
Leo sighed. Most of his valuables were unknown to others. Too dangerous to flaunt, especially in a town this close to the fog.
He reached in physically this time. The inventory shimmered as he drew forth the **pouch of warding chalks** and **two Ember Motes** from Pipkin. He rolled the motes in his palm—small orbs of condensed fire-essence, warm to the touch.
Tarra watched. "Low-yield incendiary deterrents. Radius 3.2 meters. Effective against lesser foglings."
"Perfect," Leo murmured. He packed them into a side pouch.
He considered the **Journal** for a moment. The Elias Journal. He still hadn't unlocked its secrets. The pages were written in shifting ink, protected by some kind of code or enchantment. Pipkin had said nothing about it, but the goblin's eyes lingered when it had been mentioned.
And the **antler fragment**... that was another matter.
Leo pulled it partially into the physical world. The room dimmed as it appeared, heavy and long, lined with unnatural fruit buds and strange glowing sap veins. Tarra took a step back, sensors clicking faintly.
"Its energy signature remains unstable. We should not expose it for long," she warned.
Leo nodded, returning it into the inventory with a thought.
All of these items tied to something deeper—Adamuz, the ancient wars, and the Primordial Beasts. But for now, he needed coin. And stability. And quests.
---
**The Edge of the Barrier**
Twilight fell like a velvet cloth across Rootwake.
Leo moved swiftly through the moss-carpeted paths, Tarra following in silence. As they passed the edge of town, glowing ward posts crackled gently with residual energy.
The world beyond the barrier was different. Quieter. Muted. The very air buzzed wrong, like a distant hum beneath the skin.
He crouched near a ridge and raised his rifle. Through the scope, he caught flickers of movement. Small, hunched creatures—foglings, bulbous and twisted—skittering through the shadows.
Tarra whispered: "Distance: 90 meters. Cluster of four. Recommend observation."
He took careful notes, pulling out his sketch-slate. He tracked their movement. Recorded their behaviors. The motes of corruption around them drifted unnaturally, like static-laced snow.
Suddenly, a shrill chittering cry split the trees.
Another shape emerged. Taller. Loping.
Leo's breath hitched.
**A Fog Hound.**
Tarra stepped protectively in front of him.
But the creature didn't notice them. It was sniffing the air, trailing something else. After a long minute, it disappeared into the mist.
Leo exhaled.
"Let's head back."
---
**Submission and Unease**
Back at the Rootbound Lodge, Velmorra eyed his notes with raised brows.
"Not bad, Sprout. Good detail. And you got a fog hound track? That's a tier-two predator."
She slid a coin pouch across the counter. "33 silvers. And a bonus mark. One down, two to go."
Leo nodded and took the pouch. But as he turned to leave, she called out again.
"Careful out there. These things? They're not just beasts anymore. They're changing."
He paused.
Tarra, silent as ever, turned her head.
"Changing how?" Leo asked.
Velmorra leaned in.
"Some are mimicking us. I saw one last Red Moon wearing a tattered cloak. Like it remembered what a person looked like."
Leo left in silence.
---
**New Quest: Fog Nest Extermination**
The next morning, Leo returned to the board with Tarra. A new slip had appeared, written in deep red ink.
> **Urgent Quest: Fog Nest Extermination**
> *A clutch of foglings and a maturing fog hound have been detected near the abandoned vineworks.*
> *Clear the nest before it fully spawns. Reward: 80 silver-leafs. Risk: Tier 2 threat.*
Leo grabbed the paper without hesitation.
"This one," he said. "We can't let them multiply."
As they prepared, a voice called out from nearby.
"You taking that solo?"
A tall woman approached. She was half-beastkin, her ears sharp like a lynx, her amber eyes gleaming with interest. She wore a mix of leather and scale armor, two curved daggers on her hips.
"Name's Nyra. I scouted the vineworks last night. I saw the nest. Been waiting for someone stupid or brave enough to go back. I'll tag along."
Leo assessed her. Her badge marked her as a Bloom-rank, one tier above him.
"Fine by me," he said. "Leo. This is Tarra."
"I figured. I don't usually partner with Sprouts," Nyra said, smirking. "But you don't smell like one. Let's move."
---
**The Nest Burns**
The fight was quick but brutal. Tarra fought like a storm, her fists crashing through beast-flesh. Leo supported with precision shots from his rifle, burning foglings down. Nyra danced between shadows, blades flashing with green flame.
At the end, the nest was ash. Fog hound slain. Fruit of corruption crushed.
Leo's pulse slowed.
> \[System Notification: You have gained 1,450 EXP.]
> \[Level Up!]
> **Leo Makjin is now Level 9.**
He let the warmth of the surge settle through him.
---
**Night Thoughts**
In his room again, Leo sat on the floor.
The room was lit only by a single fungus lamp. Tarra stood near the door, unmoving.
He opened his inventory again.
The Journal. The Antler. The glowing fruit.
Pieces of a puzzle he hadn't begun to solve.
He clenched the pendant badge in his hand.
"I used to dream of this," he said aloud.
"And now?" Tarra asked.
He looked out the window. The Red Moon had begun to rise.
"Now I dream about surviving it."