Twenty-four hours had passed by smoothly, thanks to Henry. With his effective medicines, Thea only experienced hunger for a few times and for only a split second. Asuren had also recovered. His wounded leg was as good as new.
"Thea, are you okay? Twenty-four hours had already passed. Did your curse fade away just like what Henry had said?" Riz had suddenly spoken through their mind communication line.
"It did," Thea answered after stuffing her mouth with rice and grilled fish. After eating fruits for twenty-fours hours, she craved for warm dishes. Asuren and Henry cooked for her and they were having a delicious meal when Riz suddenly barged inside her mind. "We will join you later."
"That's good to hear," Riz breathed with relief. "You and Asuren should head to the Barren Forest. Sel and Calix are already there. Gia and Juliann are checking the western region. Ayhan and I returned here to Foliage Forest. The traces of the boar seal are strong in these areas but we cannot find that monster, his disciple, or even a single flesh eater."
"We will be there soon," Thea ate faster.
"Don't forget to ask for backup as soon as you see that monster."
"I will," Thea promised before cutting the communication line.
^##########^
"What happened here?" Thea was astounded when they entered Barren Forest. "This area is supposed to be… barren…"
"Thea! You're here!" Sel suddenly appeared from the behind the bushes. "I know that look," she smiled and walked deeper into the forest. "Before you entered the chrysanthemum bud, all the trees in this forest had already withered. Even grasses failed to sprout in this dry land. I've been in this area just a few weeks ago. This place is as barren as it used to be. When I returned here yesterday, leaves were starting to sprout from the dead branches and grasses began to fill this dry land.
"Are you sure there are traces of the boar seal in this area?" Thea carefully touched one of the sprouting leaves. "Did that monster… do this?"
"We haven't seen anything like this in Nightfall Realm," Calix bolted upright from the bushes. "As far as I know, that monster only gives curses. This could be an illusion. A powerful one. We need to be extra careful."
Asuren followed them in silence. He was looking around with vigilance. He even summoned wind blades in case some enemies popped out of nowhere.
As they walked deeper into the forest, they saw more trees brimming with life. The shrubberies and grasses were growing more abundantly. They dwelled further into the heart of that woodland and saw flowering shrubs, thick vines, and fruit-bearing trees. In the middle of it all was a young male fairy munching on fruits.
"Sel!" he glanced at Sel and the excited smile on his face had been replaced with caution. "Who are those fairies? Did you bring them here to steal all my food?" his stood protectively in front of the fruit-bearing trees and angrily bellowed, "I will not let you!!!" he raised his right hand and manifested a vine whip.
Before he could wave it, Thea quickly summoned wind gusts and paralyzed the young fairy. Asuren raised his wind daggers but refrained from attacking.
"These are my friends," Sel tried to calm the young fairy. "We came because you said something strange is happening here."
"You're lying!" the young fairy struggled harder against the wind gusts instead of calming down. "You brought them here to take all these fruits away!!!"
"We are neither liars nor thieves, Greyleaf!" Sel dashed swiftly towards the child. "I told you to wait for us in Blue Vine Ville!"
"Have you visited Blue Vine Ville? I don't think so! You went straight here! You want all these fruits to yourselves!" the young fairy retorted. He struggled more violently against the wind gusts, causing his skin to get wounded.
"I'm sorry," Asuren hit the nape of the young fairy with the hilt of his wind blades, instantly knocking the child unconscious. "Let's take him back to his home."
Thea nodded and willed the wind gusts to vanish. Calix caught and carried Greyleaf in his arms.
"Are you trying to tame another stubborn fairy?" Thea teased Sel.
"Tame another stubborn fairy?" Calix raised an eyebrow at Sel. "Is this your hobby?"
"Greyleaf is still young," Sel glanced tenderly at the unconscious fairy. "He can still learn how to behave well."
"This one is not that young. He is older than Henry by a few decades."
"He will change," Sel glared at Calix who only rolled his eyes and then sighed.
"Seeing stubborn young fairies in this land reminds me of my little sister. I never left her side for this long. What if, like this lad, she is poking her nose on something dangerous?" he let out another sigh. "I am starting to worry about her," he shook his head and seemed torn. "I cannot return to her empty-handed. I promised her that this time, we will destroy a seal."
"Fiera will take care of her," Asuren reassured him. "She always has."
"I know," Calix agreed but he was still anxious. "We need to find the boar seal as soon as possible. I want to return home and check on my sister."
Asuren only nodded. He was also worried about the safety of the fairies in their realm but destroying a seal was not an easy task. It could take them months or even centuries.
^###########^
"Thank you for saving my son," Mrs. Plum, mother of Greyleaf, shed tears when Thea, Asuren, Sel, and Calix arrived at her doorstep with her unconscious child. "I'm sorry," she motioned for them to enter the house. "I'm a bad mother. I failed to raise my son well."
"There's no need to apologize," Sel comforted the crying woman. She looked so thin and frail. "Greyleaf is still a young fairy. We just need to be more patient for him to learn better."
"I told you–"
"We need to go, Mrs. Plum," Sel had quickly interrupted Calix.
"I know how busy you are, Lady Sel, Princess Thea," Greyleaf's mother lowered her head in front of the two fairies. "I'm sorry for bothering you again."
"You are not bothering me or anything," Sel sincerely answered. "I want to help Greyleaf. If he gets in trouble, don't hesitate to call us. I will never get tired of helping him."
"Thank you, Lady Sel," Mrs. Plum lowered her head more. "Thank you very much."
Sel dragged Calix out of the village and back to the Barren Fields. Thea and Asuren followed them in silence.
"Stop talking about Greyleaf!" Sel shouted at Calix.
"Fine, Lady Sel. Let's focus on finding the boar seal before some stubborn fairy awakens and caused another trouble for us."
"Did Gia already examine this place?" Thea asked before Sel could shout at Calix.
"She is busy in the eastern region. She promised to check this place later," Sel had forgotten about Calix and resumed investigation of their surroundings.
"Riz and Ayhan already returned to Foliage Forest. Why will they leave Gia and Juliann if they are still in trouble?" Thea was confused and was about to ask their friends through their communication line but Sel had stopped her.
"They are probably investigating something as bizarre as this. We need to figure this out on our own. Greyleaf will keep returning here to forage. If fairies in Blue Vine Ville start believing his words, they will all come to this place. Before that happens, we need to make sure that this area is safe. Let's split up and cover more ground. "Calix and I will search the western and northern section of this forest. Thea, you go with Asuren and search the areas in the east and the south."
^##################^