"Looks like they've got their hands full too. Can we really make camp in a place like this?" Astarion frowned, watching the harried, worried-looking Tieflings rushing back and forth, and kept talking. "The Grove looks like the end of the world, just soaked in despair."
"Alright, Astarion, stop complaining," Ethemon shrugged, his expression nonchalant. "I'm just passing along a word while we go see Kahga. Nobody said I had to force Kahga to stop the ritual, and since he can't go see her himself, doing a favor costs nothing."
"Oh?" Astarion looked surprised, glancing around his party. Gale looked slightly troubled, but the others didn't care at all, as if they were meeting their companion for the first time. "Well, I thought... Never mind. So, are we going to see Kahga now?"
"If you're not tired, I don't mind you tagging along," Ethemon chuckled, earning an eye-roll from Astarion.
"We don't need that many people to see Kahga. Just Shadowheart and me. Gale, take Astarion and Lae'zel to find out if there are any merchants in the Grove, buy some supplies we can use later, and pick a spot to camp. Also," Ethemon said, feeling his empty stomach, "a hot, delicious dinner would be even better."
Accepting the pouch of coins Ethemon handed over without hesitation, Gale looked around and pointed to a haystack not far away. "We'll meet at the haystack later then."
Seeing Astarion and Lae'zel push ahead eagerly, Ethemon pulled Gale aside to give him some extra warning, telling him to keep an eye on those two. Although Astarion had mostly followed orders along the way, his love for chaos had never faded, and paired with a fearlessly reckless Lae'zel, Ethemon truly feared the pair would stir up some major trouble if left unmonitored.
Actually, he had originally intended to have Shadowheart stay behind, but leaving her with Lae'zel—and potentially instigating trouble with Astarion—would likely end in a brawl before long.
Although their earlier conversation had made it clear there was some friction between the Tieflings and the Druids, he hadn't expected it to have reached such a knife-edge state.
Walking through, most of the Tieflings had only set up makeshift tents on the outer edges. Most looked travel-worn and anxious; only the young Tieflang children still ran about, playing and laughing.
The further in they went, the fewer Tieflings there were, and the terrain sloped downward. Stone-paved stairs led to the densely wooded center, where stone pillars formed an arched gateway that separated the Tiefling and Druid domains.
A group of Tieflings blocked the way, noisy and seemingly bickering.
"Let my daughter go! Right now!" The female Tiefling in the middle looked anxious and furious, practically ready to shove past the guards at the entrance and force her way in.
"She is a thief! You hell-spawn!" the guard at the door barked unceremoniously. "Wait for Kahga's judgment!"
"Bah! Let me past, you idiot! Or I'll tear your throat out!" The Tiefling refused to yield, punctuating her threat with words in a language Ethemon didn't understand, presumably curses.
Seeing the Tiefling about to lunge forward, another male Druid directly transformed into a tall, sturdy brown bear, slamming its front paws heavily into the ground and emitting a warning roar!
That made even the Tieflings who had wanted to step forward hesitate. With another angry growl from the beast, the crowd scattered, and the female Tiefling was pulled back by her husband, her face full of fury.
Ignoring this minor interlude, Ethemon and Shadowheart walked straight past the group of Tieflings and up to the Druids. The brown bear probably assumed Ethemon and his companion were with the others and let out a warning low growl as well.
"Quiet, Malgran, they're not with them." A female Druid asked, "Outsiders aren't allowed inside. Do you need something?"
"I'm here to see your leader, Kahga. Can you let me pass?"
Originally she likely would have refused, but another Druid nearby seemed to remember something and chimed in immediately, "You're the ones who defeated the goblins outside, aren't you? Go on in, Kahga wants to see you. And don't go touching things inside, or the guards won't be merciful."
Unfazed by the threat, Ethemon and Shadowheart walked inside together. The interior resembled a circular altar. At the elevated center stood a statue of Silvanus, the deity these Druids worshiped, surrounded by a group of Druids casting spells. The green magical aura was filled with the fresh, peaceful scent of nature, making it look as though they were preparing for the very ritual Zevlor had mentioned.
The atmosphere here was completely different from the Tieflings outside. While the people out there still worried about the future, the ordinary-looking Druids inside leisurely dried their herbs. A brightly colored little bird inspected its nest, hesitatingly nudging a few twigs into place before chattering complaints that the key it had found wasn't bright enough—apparently a little creature with very high standards for its home.
Brown bears and boars wandered freely here, living in peaceful harmony with the nature-loving Druids. One brown bear even lay there fast asleep, completely unbothered by the sound of footsteps around it.
The other two tenets of the Druids: the natural order must be preserved at all costs, and all forces hostile to the natural order must be destroyed. Naturally, the animals loved dealing with them.
This place was practically a secluded paradise; the air wasn't hot at all, but rather quite cool.
As Ethemon and Shadowheart reached the stone door, the heavy slabs seemed to sense their presence and rose automatically.
Only candlelight illuminated the cavern, hardly very bright. Piled and fitted stone slabs served as rudimentary furniture, and thick vines wound and twisted everywhere—everything possessed a primordial feel.
The moment he stepped inside, Ethemon heard a girl sobbing in terror. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."
"This is going too far, Kahga, she's only a..."
Only a child? Ethemon raised an eyebrow, mentally finishing the man's unfinished sentence with a playful smile. It seemed their timing was exquisite—the death of a child, what a classic tragic trope.
"Is what, Rath? A thief, a poison, or a threat?!" A sharp voice immediately cut the man off. "Not only will I imprison this devil, but I will banish every stranger."
"Hiss~ Mistress, I obey your command~" A slick voice slid into his ears, feeling like a cold-blooded creature slithering over his skin and raising goosebumps of disgust. Ethemon stepped forward a few paces and finally saw the full picture: a triangular-headed venomous snake slithered agilely near the feet of the small Tiefling girl, darting its forked tongue out with a hiss.
Ethemon recognized the breed; he had harvested venom from them before. A single drop was enough to instantly kill this underage Tiefling.
Kahga and the male Druid named Rath were still arguing. "Please, Kahga, she's just a child, and besides, we've already recovered the idol..."
"A child?!" Kahga's expression was icy. "What kind of child eats our food and drinks our water, only to repay us by stealing our most sacred idol?"
With a sweeping gesture, she pointed straight at the girl, who looked on the verge of tears. "Don't move, you damned little thief, or if you anger Teela, you'll be bitten to death on the spot instead of having your life spared to cry in a cell. Rath, lock her away. That's an order!"
With that, the woman turned around, glaring coldly at Ethemon and Shadowheart. "Unfamiliar faces. It seems you're the ones helping out today."
"Greetings, First Druid. It looks like we've come at a bad time." Raising a hand to signal the struggling Tiefling girl to stay calm—the child truly didn't seem afraid that the viper might strike her right then—Ethemon pointed toward the entrance. "That crowd of Tieflings outside refuses to leave. Is this little girl's offense really that severe?"
"Tch, those devils from the Hells," Kahga sneered with ill intent, offering an explanation while simultaneously seeking to drive Ethemon and the others away. "This audacious little thief stole the idol we need for our ritual. Fortunately, we retrieved it. The ritual will resume, and in a few days the Grove will be completely sealed off. Although you chased off the goblins, I can only allow you to rest here for a few days; you must leave before the ritual begins."
"Of course, both my companions and I appreciate your mercy. However, Zevlor believes that if they leave in such a rush, his people will suffer heavy casualties, so—"
Before Ethemon could finish, he was interrupted. "If they don't leave!" Kahga's eyes flashed with murderous intent, "the goblins tracking their footsteps will turn on us, and we will suffer as well!"
Cut off mid-sentence, Ethemon touched the dagger at his waist, his mouth twitching slightly, but he maintained a smile. "If that's the case, why risk a fight with them over a child at the eleventh hour? Her mother has been lingering outside for a long time. Even if they're just ordinary Tieflings, a riot would cause you trouble, wouldn't it?"
Kahga hesitated slightly. Moreover, not everyone agreed with her hardline tactics; as the newly appointed First Druid, she had to consider everyone's opinions to maintain a stable rule.
Noticing Kahga wavering, Rath hurried to persuade her, "Indeed, Kahga. Since the idol has been recovered, there's no need to overcomplicate things. Let the child go back."
"Let her go. I'm sure she's learned her lesson. I'll keep an eye on her."
"Ha," Kahga glanced around at her kin, who pretended to mind their own business while clearly eavesdropping, and finally sighed in resignation. "Fine, she can go. But if she pulls anything like this again, my viper will devour her."
At her command, the viper coiled around the girl's feet slithered away rapidly. Realizing the threat was gone, the girl spun around, dashed toward the stone door, and vanished in a flash, terrified that Kahga might change her mind.
"Thank you, Kahga," Rath breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "If Master Halsin were here..."
Those words seemed to touch upon Kahga's sore spot. The previously calm Kahga instantly glared at him with knitted brows. "Halsin is not here! Do not speak his name, or Teela will pierce your tongue!"
Without another glance at the embarrassed Rath, she turned back to Ethemon and said, "It seems you didn't just come for yourself. Were you planning to intercede on Zevlor's behalf as well? So concerned about those Tieflings?"
"Don't misunderstand. I simply want a secure place to rest. As for Zevlor, if you truly refuse to stop the ritual for them, there's nothing to blame you for—after all, you're doing it for your people's safety."
Ethemon's words placated Kahga, and she nodded. "You should have already found a place to camp. I hope you can make thorough preparations for your travels during these final days of rest." That was her way of dismissing them.
"Oh, right," Ethemon recalled what Gale had said earlier. "I remember there's a healer named Nettie? Could you tell me where to find her?" Though Gale had claimed ordinary healers were powerless against the mind flayer tadpole, Nettie was a Druid after all; it was worth a visit.
Kahga looked Ethemon up and down, then pointed toward a room partitioned off by large boulders behind her. "She's inside. You may go find her. Don't touch anything else."
Ethemon nodded naturally. However, glancing at Shadowheart's somewhat pale face beside him, he asked curiously, "What's wrong? You've been awfully quiet this whole time."
He had originally expected some backup during the conversation with Kahga, but ever since they stepped inside, Shadowheart had acted as if she'd been forcibly muted—not a single word. He had carried the whole conversation himself until his throat was dry.
"What?" Startled as if jolted awake, Shadowheart instinctively gripped her wrist and forced a smile. "Nothing. Just drawn to the murals on the wall. Consider me an art lover."
Following her cue, Ethemon looked up. The mottled wall caught the shimmering, beautiful reflections of a circular pool below. An elfin maiden in a white gown wearing a flower crown was surrounded by beasts, conversing with someone else. It looked like a sequential story mural, but Ethemon's empty head couldn't make head or tail of it.
*My dear encyclopedia Professor Gale, I really should have brought you along.*
Ethemon sighed mentally, only to see Shadowheart stepping back to hide behind him. Following that, a sleek, slender adult gray wolf strolled past them unhurriedly.
It even glanced at Ethemon before turning its head to mutter in a low growl, "Strangers. Such annoying creatures."
Noticing the disgust on Shadowheart's face, Ethemon belatedly realized: Shadowheart, the woman who could blast an enemy's brains out with a single strike, was actually afraid of wolves?