Divine Oracle (Part 2)

By mid-October, the growth of plants had long since slowed. Aside from evergreens, all other vegetation had begun to show signs of withering.

Amid a sea of green, there would inevitably be patches of pale yellow-green. Looking closely at those blended hues, one would find that they came from dry yellow leaves mingled among the green.

This phenomenon could be seen almost everywhere. In the autumn wind, all kinds of plants slowly shrank back, preparing for winter's arrival. Trees, anticipating reduced rainfall and colder weather, would gradually shed their leaves in the days to come.

Ordinary annual plants would produce their own seeds in autumn—their own hope as well—then bury that new hope deep in the earth, waiting for the day when spring returned and flowers bloomed.

Yet this was not the case in the Edge Forest. The plants within the forest grew luxuriantly. Unlike the barren poverty of other regions, this place possessed fertile land and a rainforest-like natural environment.

Only after entering the woods did one discover that the plants beneath the towering trees had not grown slowly for lack of sunlight. On the contrary, in an exceptionally moist environment, they grew at astonishing speed, without even the slightest sign of decay.

Because of the Demon Calamity, the once bustling hunting expeditions had long since vanished without a trace. Most adventurers who had once lived by accepting jobs and hunting Magic Beasts were now serving in the army or in the households of nobles, enjoying better treatment and earning more coin. Naturally, few were willing to continue such backbreaking work for so little money, especially when it offered no path to bringing glory to one's ancestors. Those who could change professions had done so long ago.

Being a soldier allowed one to earn rewards by killing enemies and