As they made their way up the river's current, Raven began to explain more about the river that was called Mistfen river.
For the first hour of the journey, Kai couldn't understand the reasoning behind the na. But as the boat drifted farther, a strange, swirling mist began to envelop them, thick and dense, obscuring everything around. They couldn't see past what was at an arm's distance.
Kai looked around, trying to gauge the surroundings, but the atmosphere felt unnatural. The mist seed alive, constantly shifting, and a peculiar mana current interfered with his senses. It was as though the very air around them was charged with an unseen force, making it difficult to discern anything beyond the haze. He instinctively reached for his magic, but just as he began to weave a spell, Raven placed a gentle hand on his arm.
"You should save your spells, Lord Arzan," she said.
"Why?" Kai asked, his voice filled with confusion. "I believe there's sothing mixed in the mist... so sort of magic interfering with my senses."
Raven nodded, her gaze steady as she looked into the dense fog. "It's just a spell formation, made by the Elders of the Five Tribes. It confuses one's perception and leads travellers astray, guiding them away from our lands."
Kai considered her words for a mont. "Is this how Sylvastra has remained untouched by foreign forces?" It would make sense if that was the case.
"Partly," she replied. "But you'll see the rest of it soon enough. For now, Jata—my spirit will help us reach our destination. It's better to save your spells."
Before Kai could ask what exactly she ant , a strange croaking sound echoed through the mist, sending a chill down his spine. He turned his head toward Gareth, who was at the bow of the boat, looking around warily.
"Who was that? What's going on?" Kai asked in just above a whisper.
Gareth's eyes narrowed as he stared into the mist. "Lord Arzan, we heard a croaking noise from sowhere nearby, but the mist is too thick to see anything."
Kai, feeling his curiosity rise, made a quick decision. He conjured a wind spell, [Gust], shaping a gust of air to blow so of the mist away from around them. The fog parted slightly, revealing a large, jagged rock rising out of the water.
On top of the rock sat a group of disproportionate toads, their bulbous bodies covered in slick, poisonous mucus. With the mucus, they shimred, looking extrely out of place.
Toads? Kai wondered if he could call them that for how big they were. Their skin was mottled, an awful green, with deep, white eyes that glead unnaturally. Their long, slimy tongues flicked in and out, tasting the air hungrily. The toads' bodies were swollen as if overfed on sothing that shouldn't have been consud. A strange, putrid odour emanated from them, and Kai just knew it was from the thick mucus that coated their bloated forms.
He watched as their tongues lashed out, snapping at the air with unnerving speed.
Raven gave a soft sigh, her voice almost wistful. "Croakclaws—grade 2 beasts. They like to hang around the Mistfen River. They're territorial and venomous."
Kai's eyes never left the toads. He knew better than to underestimate a river beast knowing they were in their territory right now.
"Should we do sothing about them?" Gareth asked, his hand already resting on the hilt of his sword.
Raven shook her head lightly. "Not unless they attack. They're part of the balance here. We have no need to disturb them. Jata will guide us safely past them."
With that, she called upon her spirit once again. The green spirit twinkled as the mist swirled, and the toads, after a mont of staring at the group, gave a low croak before retreating further into the fog.
Kai, still intrigued by the interaction, returned his attention to the water ahead. The mist seed to part just a little more as they continued their journey, and with it, his anticipation grew. He kept looking for any more beast that might sprang up, moving onto stand right in the middle of the twins that roared the boat.
"I thought they'd be harmful," Gareth spoke up, rethinking the toads they left behind.
"Well—" Before Raven could respond, a loud croak ca from behind.
They all turned back to see one of the toads leapt up from the rock, its massive, slimy body soaring through the air like a big rock. It swung its thick, muscular tail toward the boat. The strike was wide, missing them entirely but sending a loud crack through the air as it slamd into the side of the boat. The boat groaned under the force, the wood splintering slightly.
So, they gave up on letting us pass by peacefully.
Kai let out a low grunt. "I believe that's enough of a signal to know that they don't like us here. Weapons up. Get ready in case they decide to attack again." His eyes locked on the toads, his hands already beginning to form spell structures. "I'll deal with them with my spells."
As he finished speaking, more of the toads jumped from their rocky perches, launching themselves at the boat with alarming speed. Kai's hands moved instinctively, weaving a wind spell to slice through the air, but the toads' thick mucus-covered skin acted as defence against any attack. His wind blades only managed to create small cuts on their tough hides, not enough to stop them.
"The mucus is both poisonous and a natural defence," Raven called out. "Be cautious. Don't let them touch you."
Kai nodded. A whip-like tongue flashed through the air in front of him, and he quickly jumped back to avoid it. In that instant, Gareth lunged forward, taking the opportunity to cleave the tongue in two. The toad let out a deafening shriek of pain, thrashing violently as it reeled back.
More toads joined, leaping toward the boat in a chaotic ss. Kai took a deep breath, deciding to go out as he used dual casting. Two complex spell formations began to spin in his palms—one a spiralling tornado of wind, the other a swirling inferno of flas.
Within a few seconds, he finished with the spell structure and released both spells simultaneously. The tornado spun rapidly, sucking the air around them into a tight, furious vortex, while the flas within it blazed with fierce intensity. The swirling crimson vortex swept through the air, its tendrils lashing out at the toads, burning the toxic mucus off their bodies. The wind threw the creatures violently across the river, so crashing into the boat.
Gorak and Gareth were quick to react, their weapons flashing as they defended the boat, cutting down any toads that got too close. anwhile, Raven began losing arrows with deadly accuracy. Each one striked down the toads that managed to escape the flas and wind.
As the last of the toads were dispatched, Kai stood, watching the calm that followed the storm. His breathing was steady, and he looked toward Raven, his curiosity piqued.
"Are there any other dangerous beasts in these waters?" he asked.
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Raven glanced around, her face unreadable. "There are a few," she replied. "Most of them are no worse than Grade 2, like the croakclaws, and they won't pose much of a challenge. But there's one creature you should be aware of: a Grade 5 kraken that resides in the river, sowhere beneath a subrged dungeon."
Kai's brow furrowed at her words. "A kraken? You're telling there's a kraken living under this river?"
He was more than familiar with the beast, having read about it in the Sorcerer's Tower. From what he recalled, it was written as an extinct beast called the"Reaper of the River".
Raven nodded. "Yes, but it's been in a slumber for centuries, deep beneath the river. We don't need to worry about it. It's not active, and it's unlikely to surface any ti soon."
Kai's eyes narrowed, rethinking what she had just spoken. "What do you an by a subrged dungeon? Are you sure of it?"
"Yes," she said. "The elves have records of it, but I don't know the exact location. No one's dared to explore it in ages. It's buried deep below the surface, and unless soone has a powerful water spirit, they wouldn't be able to access it. Those types of spirits are incredibly rare, even among our kind."
Kai nodded, rembering what Raven had ntioned about the elves' connection to wind and earth spirits. Most elves would form contracts with those elental spirits, and while there might be rare exceptions, spirits of fire or water were unlikely choices. He felt a flicker of curiosity about the subrged dungeon and the kraken, but there wasn't ti to dwell on it. They had a mission to focus on.
The group continued down the river without delay. Raven and Jata led the way, and along their journey, more beasts appeared to challenge them. So were like the croakclaws, different creatures leaping from the riverbanks, while others were stranger and more dangerous
First ca shocker eels, their sleek, blue bodies winding through the water. Sparks flickered along their jagged fins as they surged toward the boats, but Kai quickly dealt with them. Using a mix of wind and fire spells, he kept the eels at a safe distance, their speed no match for his sharp, and focused attacks.
Then ca a school of piranlines, their shimring scales and whipping tail catching the light as they lunged from below the surface. Their razor-sharp teeth snapped with terrifying speed to chew away at the boat, but before it could get close, Kai unleashed an ice spell, freezing them and Raven's arrow took care of the rest.
These attacks, though dangerous, weren't enough to slow them down. Kai took care of most of the threats, keeping the group safe and on course.
Soon, the scenery around them began to change—the river deepened, the air grew thicker with mana, and the creatures they encountered beca… stranger.
After hours of travel, just as Kai was about to ask how much farther they had to go, he felt sothing unusual.
A faint wave of mana brushed against him, subtle but distinct, like crossing an invisible threshold. He turned to Raven, curiosity written on his face as he waited for an explanation.
"We've just crossed into the barrier that protects Sylvastra from the outside world," she explained, her voice sounding relieved. "We'll be there in five minutes."
Kai nodded. In his hours of travel, he had gotten a good idea of how the elves had hidden their ho from foreign forces. With a mix of the fog, the river beast and the barrier, it was no wonder King Sullivan hadn't been able to conquer Sylvastra. It also gave him a good idea on the power levels of the Elders.
He had already guessed that they were strong. Any seer would be a force to reckon with, but if the Elders of the other tribes were similarly strong, then his decision to co here was feeling more and more right. He could only imagine the amount of mana required to sustain such an enchantnt, but it made sense. The elves clearly knew how to maintain their isolation.
They continued forward, the boat cutting through the water until, soon enough, a shoreline began to materialize.
However, calling it a shore didn't seem quite right. What lay before them was a vast, sprawling forest, the trees towering higher than anything Kai had ever seen before. Their trunks were thick, their branches stretching up towards the sky, and the canopy above was alive with movent. Glowing butterflies flitted between the leaves, their soft light illuminating the darkened spaces of the forest. Strange plants with bioluminescent flowers blood at the edges of the river— soft, pulsing light covering the water.
For a mont, Kai stood in stunned silence, his gaze sweeping over the alien beauty of the place.
As he took his first step onto the land, he felt an overwhelming surge of mana in the air. It pressed down on him, not with weight, but with a tangible force that seed to fill every inch of his being. Each breath he took was filled with energy, and his senses seed heightened, sharper, as if the very air was alive with the power of the land.
His eyes narrowed, absorbing the dense mana, and he knew, without a doubt, that he was stepping into a place unlike any he had ever experienced. Sylvastra was not just a city or a forest—it was a living, breathing entity, one that thrived in ways Kai could barely comprehend.
He briefly recalled the overwhelming sensation he had experienced when he first arrived in this world—the pure mana had been bliss to him after years of limited mana in the air. It had been a shock to his senses, unlike anything he'd ever encountered. But this? This was sothing different. The mana here seed alive, flowing through the very air and earth, and Kai could feel it, almost as if it were reaching out to touch him, filling him with an energy he'd never known before.
He could have stayed there, rooted to the spot, basking in the overwhelming mana, but just then, Gareth's voice broke through his reverie.
"Lord Arzan, see! Elves! So many of them!"
Kai's attention snapped back to the present, and he turned his gaze toward the group Gareth was pointing at.
Before him, a gathering of elves stood, moving through the forest like wisps of smoke. There were elves of all ages, from children to elders, dressed in clothing that was different from anything Kai had seen before—flowing robes, leaf-stitched patterns, and beautiful, but unique pieces of jewellery that shimred with the glow of natural materials. Their attire was ethereal, almost as if their very clothing was made from the forest itself.
Their faces were a mixture of curiosity as they whispered amongst themselves in a language that Kai couldn't understand, though the tone of their speech felt soft, lodic, and ancient.
Just as he was about to ask Raven about them, she waved enthusiastically and called out, "I've returned!"
With that, she moved forward towards the crowd, her presence clearly recognized and welcod by the elves, many of them nodding in greeting as she passed.
Kai let her take the lead, noticing a small group moving through the crowd—A man, a woman, and a younger boy, their features unmistakably resembling Raven's. He watched quietly as the family enveloped her in a warm, tight hug, their faces softening with relief and joy.
"Lira ená tael farín, venar síal nael'vian!" the tallest among the group, the man yelled.
"Elen na, fael," Raven squealed with a bright smile on her face. That was rare, considering she had been the mostly reserved, silent type. But it made sense.
Ho does make one more relaxed.
It was a touching mont, and Kai allowed them their privacy, stepping back and letting them have their ti together.
But as Raven reunited with her family, sothing else caught his attention.
Whispers passed through the crowd, a wave of gasps that stirred the air, and then the large group of elves parted.
From the midst of the gathering erged five older elves. The air around them seed to shift as if the forest itself bowed in respect. They moved gracefully and got closer.
From what Raven had told him, Kai guessed that they were the five tribe elders, the rulers of Sylvastra, and the very heart of elven governance. Their eyes, wise and ancient, turned to Kai as they approached. But as their gazes swept over him, it was the woman in the centre who caught his attention most sharply.
V'aleirith, the one who had given him the vision, the one who had seen his past. Kai's breath caught for a mont as his eyes locked with hers. There was an undeniable recognition, and as she looked at him, her lips curled into a smile that seed both knowing and pleased.
"You've arrived, Fatebreaker," she said, her small eyes smiling at him. "I'm glad." She spoke in common language for Kai to understand, and Kai nodded. Before he could respond, with a surprising speed, she stepped forward and took his hands in her own, her gaze sparkling as she held them.
Kai hesitated for a mont, the instinct to break free almost overwhelming, but he held still, intrigued by her sudden closeness. The other elders seed to stiffen at her actions, their expressions unreadable, but V'aleirith's eyes never left his, her smile widening ever so slightly.
Kai looked down at her, eting her gaze, and asked, "You called here for a reason. I have questions."
Her smile never faltered as she spoke. "Who doesn't have questions?" She tilted her head slightly, her eyes glimring. "But co, I will answer so of them. Others… you will have to ask soone else. Soone who had been waiting to speak to you."
Kai raised an eyebrow. "Who?"
"The Elder Tree," she replied simply.
***
A/N - You can read 30 chapters (15 Magus Reborn and 15 Dao of money) on my patreon. Annual subscription is now on too.
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