The Red Wizard Lady Awaits Rescue

The half-elf rogue, guided by instincts honed through life on the streets, felt that something was off about the priestess.

Marvin, meanwhile, had noticed the incongruity surrounding the priestess through his proficient [Investigation] skill and specialized [Arcana] skill.

When the priestess had bowed earlier, Marvin had deliberately observed her chainmail gloves and discovered faint magical array patterns on them, typically used for stealth and illusion spells.

If she had been a Trickery Domain cleric who worshipped Shar, the goddess of the night, wearing such gloves would have made sense.

But Torm's clerics usually chose the War Domain subclass, pursuing courage and sacrifice.

That did not add up.

After Marvin shared his suspicions with his companions, the group discussed the matter and unanimously decided to quicken their pace and reach the Druid Herb Garden as soon as possible.

After gathering the alchemical plants they needed, they would not return by the same route, lest they run into the increasingly suspicious Sacred Eternal Sun Squad.

Instead, they would continue onward, make a wide detour east, and then return to Friendly Arm.

Since Eruien had been injured by bearded devils, the Sacred Eternal Sun Squad's strength was clearly far inferior to theirs, so there was no need to be overly wary of them.

Still, given the strange behavior displayed by that priestess, it was best to remain cautious, keep their distance, and stay as far away as possible.

Whether it was his earlier assessment of the quest to save the female knight or the foresight he had shown throughout this journey, Marvin had earned the trust of the Goddess Body Fragrance Squad's members.

As long as his proposals were not too outrageous, they would be approved.

Even the squad's overall style of operation was gradually becoming more cautious and careful.

They set out once more and traveled without incident, reaching the Druid Herb Garden at noon.

The terrain here was quite treacherous. Though the mountains on both sides were not very tall, they were extremely steep, hemming the scattered herb fields within the valley.

Because there was so little usable flat ground, the druids had used magic to carve out a large space in the eastern mountainside as a camp, establishing a temple to Silvanus, the god of nature, along with an infirmary, alchemy room, warehouse, dormitories, dining hall, kitchen, and other facilities.

After making do with dry rations for lunch, the squad split up.

The half-elf rogue took his light crossbow and stood watch from high ground.

The human cleric and dwarf warrior went to gather the alchemical plants they needed.

Marvin began investigating the area, hoping to uncover some useful information.

He first grabbed a handful of peanuts from the Packhorse Sack and scattered two of them at the edge of the woods, hoping to find a "local resident" to ask for information.

Before long, a little squirrel appeared, drawn by the scent of the peanuts.

Marvin immediately cast [Speak with Animals] on himself.

As the little squirrel picked up the peanuts from the ground and stuffed them into its mouth, Marvin showed it the many more delicious nuts in his hand.

When the squirrel was lured closer bit by bit, Marvin began the conversation.

These little animals had limited intelligence and could not understand overly complicated matters, so Marvin could only simplify his questions as much as possible.

In the end, for the payment of a handful of peanuts, the little squirrel gave Marvin two highly valuable pieces of information.

No devils had appeared in the Druid Herb Garden for the time being.

Around sunrise, a "monkey with a bald head, bright red fur all over its body, and a great deal of fat piled on its chest" had descended from the sky, then limped into the cave.

Translated from squirrel-speak, it should have been a bald woman dressed in red.

Descending from the sky meant she was a spellcaster who knew [Fly] or possessed a similar ability.

The image of Miss Wuke immediately surfaced in Marvin's mind.

After all, among the people he knew, only she met those conditions.

"Could it really be such a coincidence?"

Marvin decided to take a look.

When he reached the cave entrance, he found several drops of blood on the ground.

Marvin took out a dagger, picked up a little of the thick bloodstain that was beginning to congeal, and held it beneath his nose for a sniff.

He was certain that it was human blood, most likely left behind by the injured human.

He continued onward.

The Emerald Enclave druids must have expended tremendous effort to carve out a camp of this scale within the mountain.

The moment Marvin entered the cave and stepped into Silvanus's temple, he felt the dense, chaotic ambient magic of the Blue Creek Valley suddenly become stable and pure, no different from anywhere else in Faerûn.

This was the effect of the four enormous stone pillars in the temple hall, carved with natural runes and Silvanus's holy symbol.

Marvin carefully examined the four stone pillars and discovered that the magical array the druids had installed in the camp not only stabilized the environment, but also protected against evil.

That allowed Marvin to lower his guard.

With an array protecting against evil safeguarding the druid camp, it was still safe inside. At the very least, he would not have a monster suddenly leap at his face from around a corner while exploring.

"This druid camp is an ideal location for setting a teleportation anchor, but now isn't the time." After weighing it over, Marvin decided to continue investigating and get a full grasp of the situation first.

As he went deeper, he found all kinds of items scattered throughout the camp, while the kitchen still contained a great deal of rotten food.

It seemed the druids had left in quite a hurry.

He had no idea what had happened at the Emerald Grove in Sharp Tooth Forest that had made the druids withdraw from this place.

In the deepest hall, a heavy stone door roughly thirty feet tall and twenty feet wide appeared before Marvin.

He walked closer and inspected it from bottom to top, immediately spotting several drops of dried blood on the door.

"The bald woman the little squirrel mentioned must have hidden behind this door."

Marvin continued examining it and saw numerous natural runes forming a magical array across the stone door before him, which was tangled with gnarled tree roots.

"Forest, earth, defense, protection..."

Marvin tried to decipher the meaning of these runes, but the complexity of the magic on the stone door exceeded the understanding of a level 2 wizard like him.

"If my [Arcana] skill reaches master level, I should be able to break the magical array on this stone door and find a way to open it."

Just then, a familiar voice sounded in Marvin's mind. "Mr. Rodhart? I never expected to meet you in a place like this. This is wonderful. I need your help."

It really was Miss Wuke!

Marvin did not know why she was on the other side of the door, but he could tell from the [Message] she had sent that her voice was weak. Her condition was probably not good.

"Miss Zorana, can you tell me what happened?"

Marvin also sent a reply using [Message].

"Nine days ago, I left Friendly Arm and headed for the druid grove in Sharp Tooth Forest, intending to prepare an ointment... After staying there for seven days, I set out to return to Friendly Arm.

"Before I left, Master Halsin asked me to stop by the camp in Blue Creek Valley and take a look.

"Who would have thought that I would encounter devils blocking my path along the way..."

The enemies Miss Wuke had faced were two cambions, four bearded devils, and ten imps.

Cambions were the product of mortal blood mixed with fiendish power. They came in many varieties, and their strength varied.

The two cambions Miss Wuke had encountered this time not only possessed the various special abilities of fiends, but also had combat power comparable to level 5 warriors.

After a fierce battle, she had won, but she had also suffered serious injuries.

She came to the Druid Herb Garden, hoping to find a safe place to treat her wounds.

This warehouse had originally been used to store various precious magical items, but it was now completely empty.

However, for some unknown reason, some defensive mechanism had been triggered. After Miss Wuke hid in the warehouse and closed the stone door, she had been unable to open it again.

If the delay continued, she feared she would be trapped inside and die without a sound.

Fortunately, at the last moment before the stone door closed, she had cast the fourth-circle divination spell [Arcane Eye] outside the door in time, allowing her to observe what was happening outside.

When she saw Marvin appear, Miss Wuke was especially excited and hurriedly sent him a message asking for help.

After hearing of Miss Wuke's ordeal, Marvin did not immediately agree to her request for help. Instead, he asked a seemingly unrelated question. "Miss Zorana, do you remember what pastries you ate and what tea you drank when you visited my room at the Whispering Creek Inn last time?"