Chapter 25 Work

Chapter 25: Work

The sword cut only air.

Damn it! The ambusher's target wasn't Sirius!

But it was too late. Sirius had already sidestepped, creating an opening.

A figure swathed in black robes leaped down from the tree, tumbled sideways, and snatched the crow away.

Sirius only managed to thrust his sword at the robe's hem, unable to stop a grappling hook from shooting out from beneath it.

The robed figure swiftly escaped into the treetops.

Xavier had clearly seen it too, but he had moved some distance away and was too late to intervene.

"Xavier!" Sirius could only hope Xavier would shoot down this sneak attacker with a single arrow.

Xavier nocked an arrow and let it fly, but it was caught by a hand that reached out.

"Hey now! Show some respect to the Lawkeeper!" a hoarse voice said from under the hood.

"What's a Lawkeeper? All I see is a thief stealing our prize!" Sirius was not happy at all.

"You two are pretty lucky," the robed figure replied, ignoring the question. "Want to know what a Lawkeeper of this forest is? Then follow me."

"Shoot him down," Sirius said flatly.

"Yes." Xavier drew his bow, nocking three arrows this time.

"Save your strength," the robed figure chuckled, tossing the arrows back at them.

Then, his figure began leaping through the trees at a blinding speed. If they didn't follow immediately, he would vanish.

"Let's follow and see what that annoying guy is up to!" Sirius was furious. He had never let prey be snatched right out of his hands before!

He and Xavier gave chase. The robed figure, who had been on the verge of disappearing, deliberately slowed his pace so they could keep up.

After what felt like an eternity, when Sirius felt every muscle in his body aching and his lungs were on fire, they finally stopped.

They were still in the forest. This part looked no different from any other, except for a stone altar.

On the altar lay the crow, still tightly bound.

The robed figure sat at the base of the altar, his hood now lowered, revealing the surprisingly elven face of a dark elf.

Golden eyes, pointed ears, white hair cropped at the ears, and dark skin—this was a dark elf.

"You two are a bit too slow," the dark elf gave a whistle at them.

"What is your purpose in bringing us here?" Xavier asked warily, positioning himself in front of Sirius.

"That look is really hurtful. We are, after all, of the same race, even if we're different branches," the dark elf shrugged helplessly. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Victor, a Lawkeeper of this forest."

"What does a Lawkeeper do? This crow is a swindler. We were taking him back to the victim for judgment," Sirius peeked out from behind Xavier.

"We arrest criminals. As you said, this fellow is a swindler, so my duty was to bring him here," Victor spread his hands.

"You talk too much, Victor," a woman's voice sounded behind him.

"And who are you?" Sirius looked towards the source of the voice.

"I am a mage responsible for correcting all mistakes. Melissa," the woman stepped out from behind the bushes.

She appeared human, but a pair of goat horns grew from her forehead.

"Are you human?" Sirius asked.

"So, what is the purpose of bringing us here?" Xavier inquired. "While I don't know the laws of this forest, I'm certain we haven't broken any."

"We need more Lawkeepers. Relying on Victor alone is clearly insufficient. Races with long lifespans like elves and Liches are perfectly suited to join the ranks of the Lawkeepers," Melissa said.

"A Lich? Me?" Sirius was deeply puzzled.

The elf, of course, referred to Xavier, so the other one must be him.

"Yes, precisely, you. Now, we shouldn't waste any more time. It's rare to encounter two normal individuals. It's time for you to join us," Melissa walked towards the altar.

Sirius and Xavier exchanged a glance, seeing considerable confusion mirrored on each other's faces.

Knowing too much was not a good thing. They should leave immediately, but a sliver of curiosity compelled them to stay.

Sirius couldn't help but think of the parchment he had found in the secret chamber yesterday. Could this be the secret of this forest?

Melissa produced a bone knife and cut the ropes binding the crow.

Once freed, the crow struggled, flapping its wings, ready to fly off the altar immediately.

But Melissa merely pressed it down with one hand. The bone knife sliced deeply across the crow's neck.

Blood stained a small portion of the altar. Melissa gripped the dagger with both hands, closed her eyes, and began chanting a long, intricate spell.

Sirius could clearly see more and more blood welling up from the altar, far exceeding the amount that could possibly come from the crow's body.

This blood was deliberately guided to envelop the crow entirely. Beneath Melissa's bone blade, a large sphere of blood began to form.

The chanting ceased, and the blood gradually calmed and receded, revealing what lay beneath.

It was a human body and a normal-sized crow.

"Is the new animal ready?" Melissa asked Victor.

"Do you prefer a deer or a rabbit?" Victor asked.

"You're creating beastfolk?" It was hard for Sirius not to understand what was about to happen.

"So, all the forest inhabitants we've met... they came about this way?" Xavier asked.

"The first generation did. Now, most forest residents are descendants of that first generation. We rarely engage in this process anymore. Those exiled to the Mist Forest usually die quite quickly," Melissa explained.

"For beastfolk created this way, is it the soul of the original human or the animal's soul?" Sirius asked.

"It's the animal's soul. The human souls are too tainted. So, we preserve the animal's soul, but it gains human-like thought," Victor said.

"What about that swindler crow?" Xavier asked.

"That was a minor accident. The human soul gained a slight upper hand. While the fusion of human and beast can wash away past memories, some of that malevolence wasn't completely cleansed," Melissa said.

"Are they alive now?" Sirius asked.

"It's alive." Melissa placed the crow under the altar.

Victor left for a moment and returned with a deer draped over his shoulders.

"Alright, we can try again. This time, let's hope nothing goes wrong."

"Quiet!" Melissa rolled her eyes at him.

She continued using the bone blade, making cuts on both the human corpse and the deer, allowing their blood to mix.

They had already seen the blood sphere envelop the two bodies. When it receded, they had merged. A deer-headed man now lay on the altar.

"So this is the secret of the Misty Forest," Sirius said. "Doesn't seem like much of a secret. Are you going to turn us into one of those too?"

"Of course not. We generally only fix scoundrels," Melissa said.

"We've lived in this forest for a long time. She's a second-generation mage, and I'm a third-generation enforcer. Every year, we have to deal with a few villains that make it through," Victor said.

"So what benefits do we get for becoming enforcers?" Sirius asked. "You know, we're quite busy ourselves. We have to hunt for food every day. If we have to spend extra time on work the forest needs, we won't have any time to ourselves."

"Of course it's not for free. You'll get paid," Melissa said.

"What kind of pay?" A flicker of anticipation stirred in Sirius's heart.

"The Forest's Blessing," Victor said.

"The Forest's Blessing?" Sirius repeated, confused. "What's it good for?"

"It doesn't sound like a tangible benefit," Xavier said. "Is it like forest affinity?"

"Hmm... from my personal experience, it's probably the forest's favor. It makes it easier to find forest products, animals take a liking to you, and you generally have better luck getting what you want?" Victor said.

"That doesn't sound too bad. How much work is involved?" Sirius asked.

"Not too much. Maybe just two or three patrols a month?" Melissa said. "The rest of the time is your own. You can come help at my ranch when you're free. I could really use the help."

"You have a ranch? What animals do you raise?" Sirius asked.

"All the livestock and poultry you can think of," Melissa said. "This guy here is my long-term hired hand."

"No one can resist free room and board," Victor said.

"Where do you live? We'll stop by when we have time," Sirius said.

"We live near the Sunset Waterfall," Melissa said.

"That location isn't marked on our map. Can you point it out?" Xavier asked.

"Your map is outdated. Here, this is the cliff. The cut-off river channel is right here," Melissa pointed on their map.

"We'll lend a hand sometime," Sirius nodded. "So when do we get the Forest's Blessing?"

"You need to pick a time. The Forest's Blessing must be received here, at the center of the Misty Forest. It's where everything began," Melissa pointed again at the map, which she still held.

"Sounds mysterious. So, there wasn't always mist here? Why did it become like this?" Sirius asked.

"I'm sorry, I don't know. Are you free tomorrow? You could come then, so we can get you started quickly," Melissa said.

"Probably not. We need to go to the Calamus Swamp," Sirius shook his head. "That was originally today's plan, but you guys interrupted us."

"Hmm... I can give you some compensation. Would you like to raise some chicks?" Melissa said, slightly embarrassed.

"Maybe in a month? We can't afford to raise chicks right now," Sirius said.

"If you had come earlier, you could have free room and board like me," Victor said, sounding both wistful and boastful.

"We're doing just fine as we are," Xavier said.

"Then let's meet the day after tomorrow. In the afternoon, at the forest center," Sirius said.

"Alright, around two in the afternoon the day after tomorrow," Melissa said.

"We don't have a clock, so we can't know the exact time. We might be late," Sirius said.

"Fine, we'll wait for you. Goodbye," Melissa said. "Let's go, Victor."

Victor walked over, picked her up in his arms, and with a few leaps, disappeared into the woods.

"Let's head back too," Xavier said, his eyes glancing at the stone altar.

"Why are you looking at that deer-headed man?" Sirius asked.

"I was wondering, will he know who he is or where he is?" Xavier said.

"Should we wait for him to wake up?" Sirius asked. "We'll know when he wakes up."

"Better not. Then we'd have to explain to him who he is," Xavier said. "And more importantly, we can't afford to feed a deer that big."

"You're right. Some curiosities aren't necessary. If Melissa and Victor left him here, it must be fine," Sirius said. "Let's hurry up and go."

After the little episode with the crow being intercepted, Sirius and Xavier decided to use the rest of the afternoon to visit Kruger.

Since this swindler could no longer be apprehended, they should inform the victim.

Omitting some unnecessary details, they kept vague about who the enforcers were, their new membership, and how exactly the crow was dealt with.

After hearing their abridged version of events, Kruger scratched his head, looking confused several times.

"So the forest enforcers really do exist. My great-grandfather didn't lie to me. So you really shouldn't do dishonest things in the forest, or the enforcers will arrest you."

"That's exactly right," Sirius said. "So if there's nothing else, we'll be going now. Goodbye."

Kruger bid them farewell absentmindedly.

Sirius still had a question: what was a Lich?

When Melissa called him a Lich, he only felt like an ordinary human.

He shared this doubt with Xavier.

Xavier said, "As far as I know, Liches are a deceased race. They are in a spectral state from birth. Some mages and wizards also use complex dark rituals to preserve their souls and resurrect in new bodies. But I don't think you seem much like a Lich. You seem more like a warm-blooded human."

Sirius was somewhat puzzled: "That's exactly what confuses me. Could I be a hybrid of human and Lich? With more human parts?"

They discussed it for a while but reached no conclusion.

Life had to go on.

The next day, Sirius and Xavier resumed their goal of finding the wizard Zart in the Calamus Swamp and set off in that direction.

The Calamus Swamp is the most distinctive part of the Misty Forest.

There aren't many trees here, mostly waist-high calamus leaves, with sparse, muddy ground that gives way underfoot.

Xavier yanked up a calamus plant.

"Are the roots of this edible?" Sirius asked, looking at the pulled-up plant.

"Some kinds you can't eat, but this one's fine," Xavier said.

"Then let's pick some more to take back with us." Sirius rolled up his sleeves to join in.

They foraged as they walked, gathering about half a basket's worth before stopping when they spotted a low, round hut in the distance.

That must be Wizard Zart's house.

The swamp's muck was really awful, so the sight of Zart's house made them pick up the pace.

The wizard's small hut was built on the only patch of solid ground in the area.

Sirius figured it was because the roots of a few half-dead old trees around the house kept the soil from shifting, making the ground solid underfoot.

It wouldn't be polite to track mud into someone's home, so Sirius and Xavier stopped. Using water from their canteens and handkerchiefs, they wiped the mud from their shoes.

Only then did they knock on the small hut's equally round door.

After knocking for a while, Sirius was starting to think no one was inside when the door finally creaked open a crack.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?"

A faint voice came from behind the door.

"I'm Sirius, and this is Xavier. We're here to ask about the magical teleportation arrays in the forest. Someone said you might know," Sirius said.

The voice behind the door went quiet for a moment, as if debating whether to let them in.

After a long pause, the narrow crack finally widened.

"Come in."

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Author's note: Good night, good night [Calico Cat]