The protagonist sat in Elara's cottage, listening intently as she told him about her brother's disappearance. She explained that Thorne had been acting strangely in the days leading up to his disappearance, talking about finding a rare herb in the forest that would bring a high price at market.
"I didn't think much of it at the time," Elara said, "but now I wonder if he was in over his head. He was always getting into trouble, chasing after get-rich-quick schemes and whatnot."
The protagonist nodded sympathetically, making a mental note to investigate the forest and see if he could find any clues about Thorne's disappearance.
After thanking Elara for her time, the protagonist set off towards the forest, following the path that Elara had described. As he walked, he noticed that the trees seemed to grow taller and the underbrush thicker, making it difficult to navigate.
After about 20 minutes of walking, the protagonist came across a small clearing. In the center of the clearing was a patch of herbs, and the protagonist recognized them as the rare herb that Thorne had been searching for.
But as he approached the herbs, he noticed something else - a shoe, lying on the ground. It was a sturdy-looking shoe, the kind that would be worn by someone who spent a lot of time outdoors.
The protagonist's instincts told him that this was more than just a coincidence. He decided to use his Maintainer's Eye skill to see if he could gather more information.
As he focused his eyes, the scene before him changed. He saw traces of Thorne's presence, as well as signs of a struggle. He also saw the presence of monsters, and it looked like Thorne had been dragged away from the clearing.
The protagonist's eyes narrowed as he took in the information. It looked like Thorne had indeed found the herbs he was looking for, but something had gone terribly wrong. The protagonist made a mental note to investigate further, to see if he could find out what had happened to Thorne and where he had been taken.