Phantasia: The Princess Knight

Brown Village was a day out and currently Alicia, Starla, and Rose were halfway there. They had hitched a ride on the back of a food supplies cart that was headed towards the town to give some aid to the villagers. From the reports due to the constant attacks of the earth wolves, the villagers have had their fields destroyed over and over every night. This has made it hard for them to sustain their daily lives. 

Luckily the kingdom has been sending them food aid until the earth wolves have been taken care of. But since the village is situated on the outskirts of the Lost Forest. A place where the inner rings of the forest are shrouded in a thick layer of fog that is easy to get lost in. Many adventurers and even knights have gone missing while trying to explore the inner region. Hence the name Lost Forest.

"You ladies sure are young to be going to Brown Village. I have been making a trip there every week for the past month to give out supplies. You are the fifth group of adventurers to be heading out to the village. Not a single one of those groups of adventurers have been able to figure out where the wolves are hiding. Although they have killed quite a few it seems their numbers are inexhaustible." The old man named Clifford said. He was the one driving the carriage. 

"Hopefully we will be able to find their hideout. I have a few ideas on what to do even if we need to enter the fog." Alicia had already learned about the dense fog of the woods. She had Rose purchased a large amount of rope in order to enter the fog so that they would not get lost. This rope was a little special since it was imbued with protection magic and would not break unless a rank eight demonic beast chomped down on it. Alicia had no idea who Rose bought the rope from but it seemed she got a good price. 

"Little lady, I suggest that you do not enter the fog. I have heard many rumors about those woods." Clifford said, his voice was filled with worry.

"Oh? What kind of rumors?" Alicia knew not to take all rumors as true but it was still good to use as a basis for their investigation. Sometimes certain rumors or myths have a bit of truth to them.

"Well, one of the rumors says that the fog in the Lost Forest is due to an ancient curse. Those who enter will never come out. It's like a living entity that feeds off the living. Another one says that there is a base for the high ranking demonic beasts. You know the ones who were able to turn into humans." Clifford explained.

"Hmm, the first one is highly unlikely because not everyone who enters the fog goes missing. The other rumor though might have some truth to it. Mr. Clifford, are there any witnesses that have seen any of these humanoid demonic beasts?" Alicia asked. If it was true that there was a humanoid demonic beast then this mission was not an F rank mission but an A rank mission. Alicia could only hope that this was not the case.

"That's just it. No one knows who started this rumor but there has never been any sign of humanoid demonic beasts. Not even a single witness. This is probably why the mission you ladies took was so low. There is no solid proof of any of the claims." Clifford answered.

Alicia took this all in before looking at Rose and Starla. "What do you two think? Do you think it's a possibility that the earth wolves are sent out to attack the village every night by a higher ranked demonic beast?" 

"It is a possibility. But we will need to tread lightly just in case. If there is really a humanoid demonic beast that is occupying the Lost Forest we will need to report back to the guild immediately. But we would need solid evidence first. It could also be a wolf king as well. They have a high intelligence and are able to control their pack very well." Starla herself was leaning more towards the wolf king scenario.

"Miss Wymane is right. I would think this is more of a case of a wolf king than a humanoid demonic beast. But we will still keep our guard up just in case." Rose gave her opinion as well. But the last part of her sentence was not just for Starla and Alicia but for the guards that were secretly following them, Blake included. This also included the few guards that were following Starla as well. It seems the Wymane family wanted to make sure their young miss was safe as well.

"Then we will investigate both. I would rather it be the wolf king over a humanoid demonic beast. In any case, I want the two of you to be extra careful. I don't want anyone getting hurt." Alicia said. This was her first mission and her first outing with her new friends. She did not want any of them to get hurt. Alicia made a small silent vow to herself that she would make sure they all stayed safe. 

A few hours later, night had descended and it was time to set up camp. Alicia lay on the soft grass and looked up at the sky. She had a sense of calmness looking up at the star filled sky. 'I wonder how many times this sky will change as the years go by. How many people will I meet and say goodbye to? Will I meet a man that I will fall in love with and start a family?' Her last words caused the image of a young man to pop into her mind. Alicia's face blushed as she realized she started to picture Blake in her head. She sat up and shook her head before slapping her cheeks. "Why did I think of him!?" She groaned.  "I'm going to bed!" Red in the face, Alicia headed back to where everyone else was.

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