Thalorien Forest. That was our destination.

This eerie woodland stretched along the border between the Redridge Range and the Northern Glades. Unlike ordinary forests, this one was shrouded in an unnatural, swirling purple mist that seemed to move like a living entity, shifting and twisting as if whispering secrets no mortal should hear. It wasn't just for show, either. The mist wasn't merely unsettling, it was downright dangerous.

It clouded vision, disoriented the senses, and, worst of all, inflicted random negative effects on anyone who entered. You could find yourself suddenly slowed, poisoned, or even exhausted, unable to use any skills. No wonder most adventurers avoided this place like the plague.

And frankly, we should've, too.

It wasn't like Thalorien Forest had any valuable loot worth risking our lives for. No rare materials, no suitable Soul Fragment, nothing that would justify stepping into this accursed land. And yet… here we were.

Because of my promise to Elena.

"Is everyone ready?" Darwyn asked, his voice steady.

We exchanged silent nods.

I exhaled softly, gripping my weapon tighter. If only we had a priest… But that was wishful thinking. Priests almost never entered the Tower, let alone joined a small, ragtag party like ours. We'd have to rely on our own skills to survive.

I let my eyes roam over our surroundings once more. The trees loomed ahead, their purple-tinged leaves rustling ominously in the wind. Shadows flickered between the trunks, monsters moving in the distance. Watching. Waiting.

Orin gulped audibly. "Th-there aren't any ghosts in there, right?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Muradin grinned mischievously. "Oh, plenty," he said, suddenly leaning in close behind her ear. "And they love fresh meat."

"Wha—?!"

Before she could react, he jabbed his fingers into her sides.

Orin shrieked and nearly jumped out of her boots.

Muradin roared with laughter, clutching his stomach. "Hah! I swear, you make it too easy!"

Orin shot him a furious glare, cheeks flushed. "Mister Bromir, you idiot! I almost died of a heart attack!"

I sighed, shaking my head. Great. If the monsters hadn't noticed us yet, they definitely had now.

"Alright, enough," I muttered. "We're going in. Stay sharp."

With that, we took our first steps into the cursed mist.

And the forest swallowed us whole.

***

The first thing we did was assess our condition.

I took a deep breath and braced myself. The mist was unpredictable, and the negative effects it inflicted were always random. But when I felt the result of mine, I nearly cursed out loud.

Shit! Of all the effects, why this one…?

My Mana flow was completely blocked. I could feel it, like an invisible hand gripping my core, choking the energy inside me. No spells, no abilities, not even a simple raw energy blast. I clenched my jaw in frustration and stowed my staff away. It was useless now.

"…I think I need to borrow your hammer," I muttered to Muradin, feeling defeated.

The dwarf let out a deep, hearty laugh. "Hah! You? Swinging a warhammer? Now that's something I'd pay to see!"

I shot him a glare, but he only grinned wider.

"Well, lucky for you," he continued, resting his hammer on his shoulder, "I don't need it right now. I've got bigger problems. My defense just dropped to hell."

I frowned. Our only tank… lost his defense? Muradin's usual tanned skin was noticeably paler, a telltale sign of the Frail debuff. That meant all his resistances had been reduced drastically. In the game, it would be set to minus ten. Not good. At all.

Thankfully, equipment bonuses weren't affected, so at least his armor still provided some protection. Even so, it was a massive disadvantage.

But just as I thought things couldn't get worse, I turned to Darwyn, and felt my stomach drop.

A dark haze hovered over his eyes.

"…No way," I whispered.

Darwyn scowled. "Yeah. Blind."

Darn it. That meant his accuracy dropped by 80%, and the worst part? It didn't just affect his basic attacks. His skills would miss too.

"Alright. That's just… great," I said through gritted teeth. "Our main damage dealer can't hit anything. This is going fantastic already."

"Hey," Orin spoke up, stretching her arms, "I don't feel any different."

I blinked at her. "You're fine?"

She nodded.

"Hmm… no visible effects on your body either," Elena added after examining her closely.

I could only stare in envy. There was a rare chance that someone wouldn't be affected by the mist at all. Even rarer than getting hit by Doom, an effect that forced the victim to leave the forest or die after a set period of time. Of course, it had to be Orin.

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Meanwhile, we were crippled. Darwyn, our strongest physical attacker, was practically useless with his vision obscured. Elena, who could have taken over, had her power cut in half by the Feeble debuff. Muradin, our tank, was as fragile as wet paper. And me? I was the worst off. Silence. No spells, no summon. I was practically useless.

Not even Gorgroth would answer my call.

I exhaled sharply. This was bad. We needed to adjust our strategy, and fast. Otherwise, we weren't making it out of this forest alive.

***

Besides inflicting random negative status effects, stepping into the Thalorien Forest immediately transports us to Sanctum of the Wayfarer, where the Altar of Purity stands. By offering Mana Stones at this altar, the sanctum briefly transforms into a Safe Zone. A place where monsters can't enter, and negative status effects are temporarily neutralized.

"Come on, Erynd! Try it, I can't wait to see this!" Muradin grinned as he handed me a custom-made suit of armor.

After struggling with my passive skill for so long, I finally gave in to Muradin's teasing and let him take a swing at me this morning. At first, he held back, but when Darwyn decided to join in, we all realized something surprising. My Vitality was insanely high for druids. In fact, it was the second-highest in the party, right after Muradin himself.

And thanks to my sudden Strength boost, I could actually wear heavy armor, the kind usually reserved for front-line fighters.

Muradin doubled over, laughing so hard that he was wiping away tears. "MUAHAHAHA! This is the funniest thing I've ever seen in my life!"

Darwyn and Orin burst out laughing too, nearly collapsing on each other, while Elena struggled to maintain a straight face. "Well… at least it suits you?" she said, clearly trying not to crack up.

Muradin wiped his eyes, still grinning. "I swear, if anyone finds out I lent my hammer and forged a full suit of plate armor for a druid, they'll call me insane!"

I couldn't blame him. I looked absolutely ridiculous. A druid, a race usually associated with flowing robes and nature magic, now clad in full plate armor, wielding an oversized war hammer.

It was the most absurd thing ever.

"Had your fun? If so, let's get moving." I shot Muradin a sarcastic glance.

Unlike before, this time I was walking at the front, side by side with Muradin. Our first destination was obvious. Aegros.

Druid Vanguard Mode.

Thud! My warhammer crashed into the skull of a Mirehowler, a dog-like beast with glowing purple eyes. It collapsed instantly, its body vanishing in a flash of light. Another Mirehowler lunged, sinking its fangs into my shoulder, but my armor absorbed the impact. I barely felt a thing.

Swoosh! An arrow whizzed through the air, striking the beast right in its eye. Muradin followed up immediately, slamming his shield into its head with a thunderous crack. The creature dropped lifelessly.

More monsters came at us. Veilstalkers, Duskspore Golems, even a Tormentshade, a cursed knight wreathed in shadow. But none of them could inflict any real damage on me.

That was when I noticed something else.

My health regeneration had increased slightly, but noticeably.

So that's it… The Horrogoth Soul Fragment had boosted my Strength and defensive stats.

Not bad.

With this power, our journey through the Thalorien Forest toward Aegros became much easier, despite the lingering negative effects that constantly weighed on us.

Suddenly, I felt an arrow hit me square in the back.

"Oops. My bad," Darwyn said, his voice flat, a dark haze hovering over his eyes.

"I told you to just stay put and follow us!" Orin scolded him sharply. Darwyn only grinned sheepishly.

Elena smirked, nudging him with her elbow. "Maybe you should leave the archery to me."

Before Darwyn could retort, Muradin abruptly raised his shield. Something was coming.

Emerging from the shadows of the twisted trees was a Corruptus Spriggan, a warped, corrupted creature. Thick, gnarled antlers protruded from its head, its wooden limbs crackling as it moved. This thing was strong. And exclusive to Thalorien Forest.

The monster swung its massive wooden fist that shaped like a warhammer, straight into Muradin, sending him sprawling to the ground.

Darn it!

I rushed forward, swinging my warhammer at the beast, but it dodged just in time. My attack missed completely.

Still not used to this… I cursed internally.

Before the creature could finish Muradin off, Elena fired a well-placed arrow, forcing it to shift its focus. Its glowing eyes narrowed.

Then, with a grotesque cracking sound, its other arm stretched and sharpened into a massive wooden spike, lancing straight toward Elena.

"Elena, move!"

At the last moment, she twisted out of the way, barely avoiding a fatal hit, but not unscathed. The spike grazed her arm, leaving a deep gash.

"You bastard!" Darwyn roared, loosing an arrow tipped with a Sticky Bomb.

BOOM…!

The explosion sent Muradin flying. He hit the ground hard, letting out a pained "ARGH! DAMN IT, DARWYN!"

Total chaos.

I clenched my jaw and swung my warhammer again. This time, it connected, slamming into the creature's shoulder with a sickening crack.

SPLASH!

A split second later, Orin launched a massive Mana Bomb, engulfing the beast in a brilliant blue explosion. The Corruptus Spriggan collapsed, stunned.

Not wasting the opportunity, I raised my warhammer and smashed it into the creature's skull, again and again, until it finally stopped moving.

A soft glow surrounded its body as it began to disintegrate, vanishing into the light.

We barely had time to catch our breath when more movement rustled through the twisted trees.

Then, four more Corruptus Spriggans emerged from the shadows.

"Oh, come on! Four of them?!" Darwyn groaned, already nocking another arrow, his face tense with focus.

And missed completely.

The arrow whizzed past the nearest Spriggan and disappeared into the dark forest.

There was a beat of silence.

"...I meant to do that," Darwyn muttered.

Muradin let out a low whistle. "Heh. Looks like the forest really doesn't like us being here."

Orin clicked her tongue. "No kidding. I want to get out soon." She looked frustrated.

"A-any plan?" mutter Elena.

I tightened my grip on my warhammer, feeling the weight of it settle in my hands. "Yeah. Don't die."

Muradin barked a laugh. "Solid plan. I like it."

The Spriggans wasted no time. Their gnarled limbs creaked and cracked as they moved, their glowing eyes locking onto us with eerie precision.

Then they attacked.

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