486 Asking Around
[BONUS]
Ren went next to Aimon's Cabin.
He had a guess that Aimon's disappearance was somehow connected to what's been going on, and he decided to visit his hut.
The door was locked, of course. It couldn't be opened without the necessary STR. However, it didn't say anything about magical damage, and Ren just blasted through it using a [Fire] spell.
He didn't cause a ruckus, though. It was just a simple fire that melted the knob and opened the door. Though he had the [Crystal Keys], he didn't want to waste them on something simple like this.
If there was a thief in the group, then they could open the door with their skill [Sleight of Hand] or their Thieves' tools that could be bought in any item shop.
After the door opened and Ren entered, he noticed that the cabin was small and messy. Pieces of clothing littered the floor, bed, and on the plush chair in the corner. Dirty dishes half-covered in mold were stacked on a small table. The only objects that seemed to have been placed with any care were a [Yew Longbow], a quiver with a dozen white-feathered arrows, and a large [Hunter's Knife] hanging on hooks by the door.
That's odd . . . Ren thought.
Amilia said that Aimon disappeared during a hunting trip, which was weird when his hunting equipment was here.
Ren searched the house at his leisure and found a pouch and a handful of small notes with elven words scribbled on them tucked underneath Aimon's mattress.
The notes in Aimon's bed were Elvish poems from El'athal. Ren couldn't understand it because it was written in the Elven language, but with his skill [Appraisal], the words turned into common language as he read.
The letter describes Aimon's loving nature, bright soul, and gentle spirit, among other things. Each letter was signed with El'athal's name.
El'athal? Ren wondered who she was. Based on her letters, he had a feeling that she liked Aimon. And based on the latter's action of hiding the letters under his bed, Aimon seemed to like her too.
Ren hid the letters while the pouch he got contained 2 500 gil.
Ren also went to steal the [Yew Longbow] and [Large Hunter's Knife] before he went out of the house, shifting left and right to see if someone saw him entering the house. He had a feeling that no one should see him inside this cabin if it was lock like this.
When the cost was clear, Ren quickly closed the broken door as if nothing had happened. He then thought for a while about where he should go next, and he decided to go to the witch's hut last.
Ren went to an NPC in town that offered rides on the known areas in Verdant Forest. It was a mile walk westward if he was going to walk to Hilde's Farmstead, and he didn't want to waste time traversing that distance.
Paying the Hog Rider to take him to Hilde's Farmstead, Ren arrived within fifteen minutes in the area. After getting off, the Hog Rider trotted back into Eldermill.
Ren noticed the dense woods on his right and a fenced field on his left as a lone farmstead came into view a few hundred feet ahead.
As he came closer, Ren heard the growling and howling of angry animals mixing with a woman's angry shouts.
Ren continued on the farm's courtyard. He found Hilde, a tall human woman (an armed NPC) waving an axe around while four [Cursed Wolves] surrounded her. Bleeding from several scratches and with wolves between her and the Farmstead's door, it's clear that Hilde could use Ren's help.
Ren could surprise the wolves if he had the skill [Stealth] as he approached, but since he didn't have that skill, he opted for the direct approach and just burned them all with a series of fire attacks.
In combat, it was clear that the wolves didn't fight like ordinary beasts. They fought on until only one was left.
Though if a party had the evolve Animist class Tamer or higher like the advance Beast Keeper, they could cast [Animal Handling], [Speak with Animals], or [Intimidation] to make the wolves back off, though only if they hadn't attacked it yet.
Though the wolves weren't regular wolves and were cursed, their stat was low, so simple flame spells were enough to turn them to ashes.
Once the wolves had been dealt with, a grateful but distressed Hilde thanked Ren.
"It's lucky you showed up when you did – damn, beasts been attacking my livestock for days now. This time when I went out to scare them off, they weren't in a scaring mood, I suppose. Well, thanks for saving my dumb hide!"
"It's no problem. My name's Ren."
"Hilde. Come on in, and let me offer you some drinks as a small token of my appreciation for saving me."
Inside, Hilde serves hot tea and rye soup to Ren. These simple dishes recovered all of Ren's HP and MP. And thanks to his Alchemist passive skill, he learned the recipe for [Hot Tea] and [Rye Soup] upon drinking them.
"What going on around here?" Ren started when he took his first sip of the food.
Hilde paused before she released a big sigh. "My westernmost crops started rotting first, but it slowly crept eastward. My sheep and cows went mad or turned up dead and gray in the morning. The handful I've got left I keep in the stables at night and make sure to keep lanterns lit. Seems to keep the maladies away."
"What's in the west?" Ren asked since he seemed to hear about that direction the most from the NPCs mouth.
Hilde shrugged. "Ain't nothing much out west except the Timber Gully. Old stones and stuff. The rocky terrain is bad for farmlands and logging, so the only people who go out there are the occasional hunters. And Aimon, before he disappeared."
"What happened to him anyway?" Ren inquired further.
Hilde answered, "I saw him the day he disappeared, or so I think, anyway. Looked in a foul mood – not as much as a nod when I said hi. He headed out to the Gully. Saw his sister, too, not long after. She was . . . well, looking for him, I reckon."
[The Quest, SAVE ELDERMILL has been updated!]
