Dark Embrace [Hoseok FF] [SOF Prequel 0.2] ✔

Chapter 1

The sky was soothingly clear with the birds singing as they flew around, their chirping renting the sweet fragrance of the flowers a beautiful charm. In the lush green forest filled with the cicadas and the colourful bounty of plants, the bright day was as soothing to the eyes as it was to the soul.

Aaya smiled as she carefully walked in the terrain, the light woven wicker basket in her back still empty as she leisurely strolled through the wilderness.

She could hear the gurgling of the stream a little away from the place she was. The stream was down a steep edge and the way of reaching it safely was only via one passage.

Aaya hummed a little song as she made her way to that downslope, enjoying the merry gurgling of stream, the greenery surrounding her blooming with shades of pink, yellow, white, red flowers and the warmth of the sun.

Even through the long transparent white veil shrouding her up till her knees, she felt that cheerful vibrancy seeping in her skin, the serene and beautiful forest welcoming her in its bosom.

She was here again today to pick the medicinal herbs and roots which were richly abundant in this portion of the land. She loved her time of the day when she went foraging in the forest, her joy stemming from enjoying the nature in its prime beauty away from the bothersome interactions of her family.

A little blue bird chirped in front of her and perched on the low branch of the tree in front of her. it gave its little head a shake and then chirped at her again, jumping a little to get close to her.

Aaya stopped and smiled at the bird, "Hello little fellow."

As if in reply, the bird sang again, then jumped up to her shoulder. Aaya laughed at its antics, "You have no sense of preservation, do you?" and then used her sturdy walking stick to continue down the trail.

She reached the slopping edge but did not slow down, familiar to the uneven ground after going down the path countless times, she expertly walked down the slope with the aid of the stick.

As she reached the landing, the bird flew away.

Aaya took a deep breath of the clean fresh air then looked at the stream gushing down noisily, splashing over the rocks, the water sparkling in the sunlight, its clear colour reflecting the purity of the untouched nature.

The bed surrounding the streams was damp ground covered with pebbles of different shades of black, grey, white.

In this level, all the surrounding plants, trees and shrubs were of some medicinal value, ranging from common to rare variety.

For the thousandth time, Aaya was glad that the place where she lived, the temple and monastery where she served, was situated this close to this part of the region.

Even though the frequent attacks from the bandits was something that girls like her feared enough to not venture this far, her love for visiting this part of the forest, and the indulgence of the senior monk and the physician overruled the matter.

Aaya removed the wicker basket from her back and kept it on the ground. Then, she looked around and selected the medicinal herb that she had voluntarily left alone for a month. She wanted the plant to grow and prosper before she started taking from it. Today was the day she could start the harvest. That particular plant was good for healing of wounds faster than the conventional medicines.

With the war raging in the outskirts of their little town with the independent tribes terrorizing and attacking the rule of the King, they often received soldiers in need of treatment.

Even though the usual medicine from the physicians in attendance with the platoon of their armies were not the ones her temple physician used, the efficacy of the herbs from her temple was much higher than the normal ones.