Kal walked deeper into the forest until he found a cave, feeling a magical manifestation coming from inside. "Probably a natural mana spring, maybe this mana can help me," thought Kal. He entered the dark cave and walked for a while, feeling the mana getting stronger as he advanced. "The mana is stronger here, I must be getting close."
When Kal approached the location, he noticed a small injured kitten lying down. Immediately, Kal went to the small animal and, using some bandages he carried, cleaned and cared for the kitten's wound. Kal left some water and food for the animal. "Don't worry, you'll be alright. Eat and drink to get stronger. I have to keep looking for the source of mana I felt."
As Kal turned to leave, he heard a weak voice. "You already found the natural mana focus!" Kal looked back, not understanding where the voice was coming from. "Who's speaking?" shouted Kal. "Me, over here!" said the voice. When Kal looked, he realized it was the kitten itself speaking. At first, Kal got scared by the talking cat, but then, remembering all the strange things that had happened in his life up to that moment, he realized a talking cat wasn't the strangest thing. "You know what, this isn't the strangest thing I've seen in my life," said Kal, accepting the new situation.
"You're saying I'm strange?" said the cat. Kal, a little embarrassed, answered, "Of course not, I was just thinking out loud."
The kitten, recovering its strength, put itself on its paws and, still weak, said, "Anyway, in thanks for helping me, let me introduce myself!" Kal, hearing the cat speak, thought how strange this image was, where he was standing before a small kitten listening to what it had to say.
"Hey... hey... are you listening to me? I was introducing myself, be more polite..." shouted the cat. "Anyway, I'm Pudin, I'm a spiritual cat. The mana point you were feeling was me!"
Kal closed his eyes and really felt the natural mana source was coming from the small cat. "So the mana really comes from you. What are you?" Asked Kal. "How rude, 'what am I?' Don't speak to a maiden this way. I already said I'm Pudin," responded Pudin.
"Forgive me, Pudin. I was asking if you are a spiritual creature or a natural one," apologized Kal.
"Ahhh, why didn't you say so before? I'm Pudin, I'm a spiritual cat!" responded Pudin. "And why were you injured like this here?" asked Kal.
"This forest used to be wonderful, you know? We had many good spirits here. Lately, it's been infested with bad spirits. One of those spirits attacked me, and I had to hide in this cave," explained Pudin.
"This forest has many spirits?" asked Kal
"It depends on what time period you want to know about, but simply put, in the past yes, now not so many!" responded Pudin.
"What do you mean?" asked Kal.
"Where did you study? It seems you didn't learn anything about spirits!" retorted Pudin.
"We didn't have classes about nature spirits in school..." responded Kal, rolling his eyes.
"Then let me tell you something..." When Pudin began to tell about the history of nature spirits, a ferocious snarl echoed through the cave entrance. Quickly, Pudin stopped talking and, in an agile leap, flew behind Kal. "The bad spirits are back!" she said, trembling with fear.
Kal positioned himself to defend and protect Pudin. He saw mana wolves with red eyes, their jaws dirty with what seemed to be human blood, slowly walking towards him and Pudin. Their presence was frightening, and the air around them seemed heavy.
"Help me and I'll tell you everything you want to know...anything!" pleaded Pudin desperately, hiding further behind Kal's leg.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to let them hurt you," said Kal with determination. He held his sword firmly, ready to face the advancing mana wolves. The cave, once a place of silence and calm, was now the scene of an imminent confrontation between Kal and the ferocious spiritual wolves.
The three spiritual wolves advanced on Kal ferociously, their red eyes shining threateningly. Kal clenched his fist firmly, ready to face the enemies.
The first wolf leaped toward him, its jaws open to bite. Kal spun to the side, avoiding the attack, and used the steel prosthesis Aura made for him as a shield. The wolf hit the prosthesis with a loud metallic sound. Taking advantage of the opening, Kal landed a strong blow, hitting the wolf and throwing it back.
The other two wolves, seeing their companion fall, snarled even louder and attacked together. Kal blocked the attack of one of the wolves with his sword, while using the prosthesis to push the other. The fight was intense, but Kal kept his calm, focused on each movement.
With a skilled motion, Kal managed to evade an attack and swung his arm in a wide arc, hitting one of the wolves on its side. The wolf let out a howl of pain and retreated, limping. The last wolf, still ferocious, leaped at Kal, but he grabbed it by the neck with his prosthetic hand, using his strength to throw it against the cave wall.
The wolves, now injured and frightened, decided Kal was too great a threat for them. With one last snarl, they turned and ran away, disappearing into the darkness of the cave. Kal lowered his guard, breathing heavily but feeling victorious. He turned to Pudin, who came out from behind his leg.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
Pudin nodded her head, still trembling a little. "Yes, thank you. You're not so bad after all!"
Kal smiled, feeling relieved. "Let's get out of here. This place isn't safe."
Kal picked up the injured Pudin and carried her out of the cave. "I know a safe place, I'll guide you there!" said Pudin, clinging to Kal's head. He walked for some hours guided by Pudin. "Is this safe place in another country?" Kal asked sarcastically. "Patience, young man with an old face! We'll be there soon." Pudin responded also sarcastically to Kal. "You know my hair is silver and not white, right?" asked Kal. "And who said the old part is because of your hair?" said Pudin, apparently teasing Kal.
After that, they walked a little more until they reached a solitary mountain in the middle of the forest. "Don't tell me this is your safe place?" asked Kal. At that moment, Pudin jumped from Kal's head and, with some difficulty, walked to the large stone wall before them. Turning and laughing, she said: "Oh my...man of little faith!" Pudin continued walking and, as if by magic, before Kal's eyes, she passed through the stone wall as if it were an illusion.
Kal widened his eyes, trying to understand better what he was seeing. After all, the little cat Pudin had disappeared before his eyes by passing through the stone wall of the large mountain. He stood for a few seconds contemplating this when Pudin's head appeared between the wall saying: "Wake up, grandpa! Have you heard 'Those who sleep miss the train'? Come on!" Kal walked towards the wall and, extending his hand, realized the wall was intangible, as his hand had passed through. Continuing, he passed his whole body through.
On the other side, Kal found himself in a small paradise, a beautiful lake with many colored flowers, trees full of fruit surrounded the lake, and various animals like Pudin populated the place. "Hey grandpa, stop drooling and pay attention!" said Pudin. Kal, amazed, looked around, enchanted by the beauty of the place. "This is the most beautiful place I've ever seen," said Kal, impressed. "I know, that's why I said it's safe. Here, no evil spirit dares enter," explained Pudin, now more at ease.
Kal then sat by the lake shore, watching the animals and tranquility around him. "Thank you for bringing me here, Pudin. I think I can meditate and try to better understand my spiritual connection in this place," said Kal. Pudin, nodding, walked before Kal and said: "Ah, I was forgetting to say... Welcome to Astalah, the star refuge".
Pudin told Kal: "Here in Astalah, the star refuge, the good spirits that used to live in this great forest can live peacefully and without fear of the evil spirits!"
Kal, not understanding what had happened, asked: "Why do you have to hide now?"
Pudin then responded: "Many years ago, this forest was much larger. It stretched across all of the north of the Duchy, passed through the south of Volkaron and the east of Karastea, and many spiritual beings lived here. But since the spirits of the world were shaken, many evil spirits started appearing around these parts. They are stronger than they used to be and more dangerous too. We had to flee and hide so as not to end up dying!"
"Spirits of the world?" asked Kal.
"You don't even know that? Oh boy, it looks like I'll have to teach you everything, huh. From now on call me sensei!" retorted Pudin. "The spirits of the world are the four primordial spirits that sustain the whole world. They were created even before the great war of the gods, and all who live here in the sanctuary are, in some way, sons and daughters of them."
"And who are these spirits?" asked Kal again.
"They are: Lerikol, the great spirit who rules the skies"
"Suihal, the great spirit who rules the seas and oceans"
"Obatala, the great spirit who rules all the land"
"And my mother Yarveloth, the great spirit who rules nature. They are the pillars of the world and without them, your world would not exist," finished Pudin.
"You said the spirits of the world were shaken. Why did this happen?" asked Kal.
"Specifically, I don't know, but I heard that farther east, some evil force desecrated a sacred place, affected my mother Yarveloth, and caused all the imbalance we are experiencing here," responded Pudin.
"And was it one of these spirits that built this refuge for you all to hide?" asked Kal again.
"No, this home was created by Nin, but she has been gone for some years and we don't know where she is. They believe she must be dead, but I still believe she is alive!" said Pudin.
"Was this Nin also a spirit like you?" asked Kal.
"Yes and no!" responded Pudin.
"What do you mean?" said Kal.
"Nin is the daughter of Astaruin, the star dragon. Dragons are considered half spirit and half physical, so she is and isn't one of us, but she used her powers to build this place for all of us. She was the most amazing of us all!" Kal then imagined that by that point, this Nin had already been devoured by the evil spirits, but didn't want to say so, as he noticed Pudin held Nin in very high esteem and venerated her.
"Does this Astaruin also live in this forest?" asked Kal.
"We don't know. We just know she is sleeping somewhere on this continent. Maybe here, or leagues from here - who knows!" finished Pudin.
Meanwhile, Set returned to Hadon's house peacefully, acting as if nothing had happened. Yorin also kept silent about the events in the forest, and both entered the house in a casual manner. The other inhabitants, unaware of what had occurred, continued their normal activities and prepared for dinner.
At the dinner table, the atmosphere was welcoming and familiar, with everyone gathering for the meal. Markel and Sahara, who had prepared dinner, distributed the plates, and conversation flowed naturally. Set sat in his usual place and began eating as if it were just another common night.
Draka, Eron and Ninea talked about the day's events and expectations for Kal, Adonis and Arphaxad's return. Yorin, still a little pensive, maintained his usual smile and participated in conversations, hiding any sign of concern.
During dinner, Set shared some light stories and jokes to keep the mood cheerful, and everyone laughed and enjoyed the moment. Sahara, who felt a special connection with Set, observed him with an admiring gaze, while Draka and Ninea felt safe and comfortable in the presence of the elders.
So the dinner continued in a peaceful and harmonious way, with no one suspecting the dangers that had been faced and overcome in the forest. The night unfolded in a climate of peace and unity, typical of the nights in Hadon's house, where everyone felt like one big family.
While everyone lived that moment of joy in Hadon's house, a boy was quickly leaving the forest. He ran as fast as he could and, when he managed to get out of the dense forest, he stopped to drink water and remembered what had happened hours before. "Shit, shit, I have to remember what Kopa told me..."
A few hours earlier, Kopa and his men were entering the forest, following the tracks of the horses of the men they saw leave the forest. Kopa was followed by three more men and a boy. They proceeded along the path until they came upon a man with silver hair in the forest. Silently, they began following the man, but Kopa, who was very smart, noticed the man was heading in a direction opposite to the horse tracks. So he turned, put his hand on the boy's shoulder and said: "Hey Dash, he probably noticed our presence and is leading us somewhere. Follow the tracks of the horse hooves and if you find anything, come back immediately and tell Hwin, but be careful!"
While all followed the silver-haired man, Dash continued following the tracks until spotting in the distance a large house with lights on inside. He immediately ran back at full speed, following the same horse tracks towards the forest exit. Following Kopa's orders, he had the duty to inform the mercenary Hwin of what he had seen.
Dash then walked a little further until all the horses that were tied up. He got on his horse and, before leaving, looked at Kopa's horse and thought: "Come back safely, Uncle." And took off at full gallop back to Zoarlath to inform Hwin about what he had seen. Hadon's house, after many years, had finally been discovered.