Chapter 44: The Guardian of Forgotten Places.
The guild hall was warm, the late afternoon sun filtering through the windows and settling on the worn wooden floor. The five of us stood at the counter, our boots heavy with the dust of the road, our clothes still carrying the faint smell of the forest.
The receptionist examined our report with practiced efficiency. "Quest completed." She stamped the paper and placed a pouch on the counter. "Reward as stated."
Albruna grabbed the pouch before anyone else could, weighing it in her hand. "Not bad for a first attempt."
Adelgund grinned. "We worked well together."
Averhilda nodded. "Better than I expected."
I looked at the others, at Kaede, who was already planning the next mission; at Albruna, who was counting the Drax; at Adelgund, who was testing the weight of her sword; at Averhilda, who was adjusting the strap on her spear.
We had fought together. We had won together.
And for the first time since becoming an adventurer, I felt like I belonged.
Albruna suggested celebrating, and the others agreed.
We found a tavern near the guild, the kind of place that smelled of roasted meat and old wood, where adventurers gathered at the end of a long day. We ordered food and drinks, and the conversation flowed as easily as the ale.
Averhilda teased me about how I had known where the monsters were coming from. "She touched the ground and just knew," she said, shaking her head. "What kind of magic is that?"
I shrugged, not quite sure how to explain. "I'm still learning."
Adelgund turned to Albruna. "And you, frozen when the monster came at you. If it weren't for the doll…"
Albruna protested, her cheeks flushing. "I wasn't frozen! I was... assessing."
"Assessing," Averhilda repeated, her voice dry. "Is that what we're calling it?"
Everyone laughed. Even Albruna, after a moment, joined in.
I watched them, realizing something.
I was enjoying myself.
Not thinking about training, or magic, or the Fairy Realm. Not worrying about what I was or what I was becoming. Just sitting at a table with people who had fought beside me, sharing food and laughter.
I thought of the Fairy King's words: The world is a better teacher than I am.
I was beginning to understand what he meant.
***
The next morning, I woke early.
Kaede was already dressed, her pack ready. I rose without speaking, gathering my things. We walked through the quiet streets toward the guild.
The others were already there.
Albruna stood near the quest board, her expression bright. "Ready for another one?"
I nodded.
We gathered around the board, scanning the papers. Adelgund pointed to one, then Averhilda dismissed it. Albruna found another, and we discussed its merits.
We had become a party without planning to.
The receptionist called us over.
"Elsbeth! Kaede!" Her voice was urgent. "A Cu rank request has arrived. We need adventurers immediately."
She held out a paper.
Urgent Request
Escort & Protection
Noble Daughter
The receptionist's voice was low, serious. "If you complete this, you will be eligible for promotion from Cu to Fe."
The others exchanged glances. Promotion. A chance to advance beyond the beginner rank.
For the others, it was a step forward in their careers.
For me, it was something else, a chance to prove myself as an adventurer, to show that I could do more than just survive.
I looked at the paper. At the others. At the doll standing beside me.
"We'll take it," I said.
The receptionist nodded.
"We leave at midday," Kaede said.
We moved toward the door, the paper in my hand, the weight of the new quest settling over us.
***
The road stretched ahead, wide and dusty, flanked by fields that had long since been harvested. The morning sun was warm, the sky clear, and the conversation had settled into the comfortable rhythm of companions who had grown used to each other's presence.
Then something flew overhead.
It was small about the size of my fist and spherical, covered in feathers that shimmered in the light. It did not flap its wings. It simply hovered, suspended in the air as if held by invisible strings.
I looked up. "What is that?"
Averhilda followed my gaze. "A Ptēnila."
The creature rotated in place, its feathers shifting, catching the light. It moved sideways without changing direction, then reversed course smoothly, then accelerated rapidly, disappearing into a patch of shadow before reappearing a moment later.
"They're Wind-affinity creatures," Averhilda continued. "Their feathers rotate in different directions. It lets them hover, move sideways, reverse direction, turn almost instantly." She paused. "They're not dangerous. Just the forest's equivalent of birds."
One of the Ptēnila suddenly rotated all its feathers at once.
HMMMMMMMM…
It shot away, a blur of feathers and motion, disappearing into the distance.
I watched it go. "It's cute."
Averhilda laughed. "Don't let it hear you."
I smiled. The Ptēnila was gone, but the moment stayed with me, the warmth of the sun, the easy company, the simple pleasure of walking a road with people who felt like friends.
***
We arrived at the designated location.
It was a small estate on the outskirts of the village, modest by noble standards, but still larger than anything I had grown up around. The stone walls were clean, the gardens well-tended, and the servants moved with the quiet efficiency of people who had been trained to be unseen.
The mission was explained to us by a steward, his voice clipped and formal. We were to escort a nobleman's daughter to the city of Silverbrook. She would travel with us under guild protection. The journey would take approximately three days.
Simple enough.
"There is a problem," the steward said.
I tensed.
"The lady was seen earlier this morning," he continued. "She was preparing to leave. But when we went to retrieve her... she had disappeared."
Albruna frowned. "Disappeared?"
"Her belongings are still here. Her attendants have not seen her since dawn." The steward's composure cracked slightly. "We do not know where she has gone."
Kaede immediately took command. "We'll search the grounds. Adelgund, check the road. Averhilda, look for tracks. Albruna, search the buildings."
I stood still.
Something felt wrong. Not dangerous, just wrong. The kind of wrong that sits in the back of your mind, nagging at you.
"Elsbeth?" Kaede's voice broke through my thoughts. "Can you help?"
I nodded slowly. "I'll try."
I walked to the edge of the garden, where the grass met the stone path. I closed my eyes.
Echoes Vibration.
Nothing. No movement nearby. No hidden presence.
Then I opened myself to Echoes Sight.
I touched the ground, the air, the lingering presence of the girl who had been here earlier.
Her emotions surfaced.
Fear. Excitement. Curiosity.
She had not been taken.
She had gone willingly.
I opened my eyes and began to walk.
I followed the trail of emotions. The fear, the excitement, the curiosity, they led me away from the estate, toward a narrow path I had not noticed before. I touched a bush, felt the impression of her passage.
Anticipation. Nervousness.
She had looked back once.
Then continued.
I led the others away from the main road, into the surrounding area. I paused occasionally, reaching out to feel for the next echo.
Finally, I pointed toward a secluded area. "She's there."
Averhilda stared at me. "How do you know?"
I hesitated. I did not know how to explain it. "I... felt her."
Albruna looked at Kaede.
Kaede simply said, "Trust her."
We pushed through the undergrowth and found her.
She was sitting on a fallen log near a small stream. Her dress was fine, her hands folded in her lap. She was not hiding. She was not afraid.
She looked up as we approached. "Oh. You found me."
Kaede stepped forward. "We were sent to escort you. The servants are worried. Your father…"
"I don't want to go."
The words were quiet, but definite.
She stood, brushing leaves from her skirt.
"There's nothing for me there. A marriage I don't want. A life I never chose." She looked at us. "I came here to find a new one."
I watched her for a moment. Then I said, "You're not running from us. You're running from something else."
She looked at me, her eyes tired. "Yes."
I understood her. Not fully, but enough.
"We can't leave you out here alone," Kaede said. "But we can talk about this."
The girl hesitated. Then she nodded.
The others began to speak, to plan the journey back to the road. But I stayed where I was.
I had found her.
Not through tracking. Not through magic. Through something else. Something I did not fully understand.
But it had worked.
And for the first time, I felt a little less uncertain about what I could become.
I stopped.
The others kept moving for a moment, then paused, turning to look at me.
Albruna asked, "What's wrong?"
I didn't answer. I was listening. Not with my ears, with something deeper. The shift in the air. The sudden absence of sound.
The Ptēnila that had been hovering nearby scattered. The forest became unnaturally quiet, the kind of quiet that came before something.
"Something is coming," I said.
Kaede drew her weapon without hesitation. The others followed, their movements quick and practiced.
Adelgund's sword flared with fire. Averhilda gripped her spear, her stance shifting. Albruna's hands began to glow as water magic gathered in her palms. Kaede summoned a gust of wind around her.
I summoned the G-Pen.
The monsters emerged from the forest.
They moved fast, their forms low to the ground, their eyes gleaming with predatory focus. I counted four. Five. More emerged from the shadows, their bodies blending with the dark.
The doll moved before I could think.
Its lion pauldrons trembled, the stone eyes igniting with molten gold. The heads detached, floating, unfolding with a metallic precision that had become familiar.
CLACK.
The helmet formed around its head.
It stepped forward, its form shifting, growing.
It positioned itself between me and the noble girl.
I watched it, the G-Pen already in my hand.
I had not commanded it. I had not needed to. It already knew its purpose.
The ink well appeared, and the ink flowed, smooth, dark, threaded with starlit blue. It spiraled around my body, settling into the familiar weight of armour.
I was ready.
I stood beside the doll, my ink armour gleaming in the dim light.
The monsters attacked.
The battle began.
I raised my G-Pen. The doll lowered its stance. We moved together, our rhythm unspoken but precise.
And then…
The ground shook.
THOOM.
Everyone stopped. The monsters, who had been pressing forward, suddenly retreated. The forest fell into a silence that was deeper than fear.
THOOM.
Another step. Closer.
I looked toward the trees. The smaller monsters were gone. Whatever was approaching had cleared the path.
"They're afraid," I whispered.
Kaede's grip tightened on her sword. She looked toward the forest.
"Of what?"
The forest answered.
The trees at the edge of the clearing swayed, then parted.
A shape emerged from the dark.
Something enormous stepped from the forest. Six legs, each foot sinking into the earth with enough force to shake the ground beneath us. Its body was massive, its hide dark and ancient, covered in patterns that seemed to shift as I watched. Twisted branches extended from its rear like the remnants of a dead tree, their gnarled forms reaching toward the sky like grasping hands.
Averhilda tightened her grip on her spear. "What... is that?"
Albruna's face had gone pale. "I don't know."
The creature took another step.
THOOM.
I felt the vibration through my feet, deep and resonant. My Echoes Vibration reacted instinctively, and I felt something that made my blood run cold.
Something about this creature was wrong. Not evil. Not hostile. But wrong in a way I could not name. The way a chord sounds when a single note is slightly off, the way a familiar room feels different in the dark.
Kaede slowly raised her weapon, her voice steady. "Everyone. Stay together."
Averhilda stared at the creature. Her face shifted as recognition dawned.
"...Melanorus."
I looked at her. "Melanorus?"
She did not answer immediately. Her eyes were fixed on the creature, her grip tight on her spear. The creature's six eyes, each one glowing with a faint, internal light, fixed upon us.
The doll's golden eyes brightened. Its stance shifted, lowering, ready. Ink began crawling across my armor, thickening at the joints, hardening without my command.
I raised the G-Pen.
The creature watched us with its six glowing eyes. It did not attack. It did not charge. It simply stood there, massive and ancient, as if waiting for something.
Averhilda finally spoke, her voice low. "Melanorus are guardians. They're said to protect old places, ruins, forgotten temples. I've never seen one. I thought they were only stories."
"Then why is it here?" Albruna asked, her voice barely a whisper.
Kaede spoke, her eyes not leaving the creature. "Because whatever we're standing near, it's old. And it wants to keep us out."
The creature took another step. THOOM. It was closer now, close enough that I could see the patterns on its hide moving, shifting like clouds across a dark sky.
I could feel its attention on me.
Specifically, on me.
The doll stepped forward, its golden eyes blazing.
I did not command it. It knew what it needed to do.
Melanorus had arrived.
The question was what it wanted.
How will Elsbeth overcome such a monster...
Next week, same time, same place.
Also, I have uploaded a story from Elsbeth's father Heinrich's POV in my POV chapter section.
As always, thank you for reading.
