Magic Mania Online

Chapter 32: Arfoyd Caves (Part 1)

Silhouettes of men arose from the horizon as they marched towards the border of where the land ends and the rich, wondrous forest starts. The figures getting larger and larger in every step they took, their shadows covering large areas of the grassy plains, warning and showing any hostile entities to stay way from them. They were led by six men whom they followed since they started their long march, covering approximately over than 100 miles since their leave in Kelgar. Yes, these men were the Expedition Force that came all the way back from Hedia in order to search something worthy and something important to gain information and knowledge from this alien world.

Once the forest had appeared in their view, they felt a feeling of relief and achievement. They knew that when they touched the forest grounds, they were only two steps away from their first set goal. With their newfound feelings of excitement and relief they locked their eyes onto their next step, venturing the forest of Galhaneim.

"I didn't trust that old man at first but, it seems that his words were true." Varix chuckled, reminiscing Fiveratto's words when they first met him "so this is Galheneim, the Forest of Wonders eh? no question about its name. Everything about it really makes one wonder about it."

"If i'm correct, this forest is our ticket to the 'Living Cave' which Fiv-san told us. All he said are starting to make sense now, the forest's name is already telling us the clues." spoke Sigrun as she checked her map and remembering all the information she could remember of regarding the forest.

"Still, its beauty is something to take notice of. I know that its weird for a forest to have these unusual color theme but it fits so perfectly that it looks like its not weird at all." Mischa opined, gazing around and taking her time to indulge her eyes with the forest's natural allure.

"I agree with that, words are not enough to describe it," Jouzu admitted, "there's this unexplainable radiance that this forest emits that makes one to admire it." he paused then sighed, "Sadly, we can't stay here for long. We can always come back here though."

"Yeah, regrettably. But first things first, we need to find that cave before everything starts to go dark."

And so, with Varix's signal their feets began to march again.

Since it was a forest they split up again to Raids, making it easier for them to move around and to efficiently perform searching, which plays an important role since their time is running out. They divided directions in which they would search in hope to find the cave and told everyone to contact them using the private chat system or should one say telepathy when they found something out. The Division leaders were also spread to make an even stable communication connection, reducing the probability of people getting lost while they do their respective searches.

The adventurers ventured through the thickness of the forest until one had reported that they found their goal for the day. The relay was immediately sent to the Division leaders then to the Raid leaders, making sure to follow their chain of communication to effectively give off information to the others who were associated with the force. Once they were all gathered in place, the elites (Jouzu's party and Varix) went in first to confirm if the message is true or not. Adventurers who were left behind would then sit and rest until they come back to validate the place. They would stay like this for the next two hours until the Exodus Knights and Varix would show up and verify that they are in the right spot.

The order to enter was given afterwards and in just a few minutes, they were all gone from the forest's surface.

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Arfoyd Caves, Galheneim Forest

Unlike the forest, the cave was bland and ordinary. There were no special features or any eye-catching things that were present inside. But then again, they were in the Forest of Wonders, anything's possible to happen.