"First things first. The base of the potion. We'll need to combine the elder tree sap and blood of the goblins into one. That should serve as a very simple source of magic essence."
Nifily adds into the cauldron all the sap she had gathered the day before. They start mixing it with the gallons of boiling goblin blood.
"Eww, Veyne that stinks!"
"Well we're not exactly working with the cream of the crop materials. A Realmforger must work to the best of their ability with whatever they have on hand."
Nifily quickly stops blocking her nose and puts her hands on her hips.
"In that case it's nothing my nose can't handle."
Veyne cracks a smile and continues to stir the liquid. Some time passes and the bubbling brown and orange viscous is nearly ready.
"The last thing we need to add is a catalyst. Something to give our potion a bit of a kick."
"Is there anything you've already collected that's here in the lab?"
"Unfortunately nothing in here would give us the effect we're looking for. We need something much more potent."
…
Three kilometres away in the marshlands just before Mudbree, Veyne and Nif stand at the edge of the bog.
"Wait, you want me to do what?"
"Our best chance for finding the kick our potion needs is going to be in here!"
"The bog? I've lived around here my whole life and I've never seen anything that exciting or valuable enough to add to a potion."
"That's because you never looked in the right places."
Veyne bends down and sticks his hand into the mud. He stands back up and lets the mud slip between his fingers, inspecting it closely as it falls.
"Say Nif, your village is less than one hundred years old right?"
"Yeah how'd you know that just by looking at the mud?!"
"Not only is this all new mud but I'm guessing that there's no longer a guardian beast of the forest anymore, is there?"
"Wait wait wait! How do you know all of this?"
"So what is a monster that is strong enough to be a guardian, died less than a century ago and can cause the ground to erode into mud when it dies?! The answer… a Basilisk!"
"It's like I'm not even here… wait what's a basilisk?"
Veyne explains that a basilisk is a giant snake-like monster with powerful venom that is very corrosive. He continues saying that when it died, all of its venom would have leaked out turning the hard ground into soft mud.
"Like I was saying before. Retrieving that basilisk is where you come in."
"Right so you somehow want me find that thing. How do you even know it would still be there?"
Veyne puts his muddy hand on her head and points out into the marsh.
"Oh he's out there. The bog would have preserved its bones perfectly."
Pushing his hand off, Nifily says back in a sarcastic tone.
"And what, you just want me to swim around in here until I find it?"
…
As per Veynes instruction, Nifily finds herself trudging at the bottom of the bog. Using her wand and magic to push away the surrounding mud, making a moving circle around her as she searches.
"How did I end up in here while he gets to be out there talking to Monk Kiastu and learning his magic affinity. I sincerely hope Kiastu tells him that his aptitude is for mud magic! Then he can be down here instead of me!"
Over by the entrance bridge leading into Mudree, Veyne stands cautiously. Unsure as to how he'll be welcomed in this village. Regardless, he needs to know his affinity in order to rebuild his strength.
Before he can come up with a calculated plan, Veyne hears a commotion in the village. He uses this opportunity to sneak across the rope bridge.
Just above him, on a platform connecting two houses, a guard pushes a man to the floor. The guard is wearing light armor and brown robes with an emblem Veyne is unfamiliar with.
"I'll need to be hypervigilant here and pick the best moment to help out."
Veyne clenches his boney fist, thinking that he doesn't have much magic left and that if he's not careful, he could end up getting hurt or end up pissing off the villagers. Listening in he hears the guard say.
"No hard feelings right Mika. I mean, it's not like you guys pay any taxes around here. You really make me come all the way out here and you can't spare a little food for me?!"
"Please Dylan, you know I can't just give you my food for free. If we did w-"
The guard unsheathes his short sword and points it at Mika.
"Just had this thing sharpened yesterday. Wanna see how sharp it is?"
"You know we don't feel good about being unable to pay your taxes but you are the ones who took over and imposed these rules onto us! Please have a heart"
Dylan's eye twitches.
"Have a heart? Have a heart! I think I will have a heart… I might even have yours"
He pushes the blade up to Mika's chest.
"Alright that's enough. Don't you think the old man has had his fill of your empty threats."
Veyne says as he leans on the door frame of the old man's house.
"E-empty threats!? W-who are you to interrupt me!"
Veyne walks up to Mika, ignoring the guard, and bends down next to him.
"Hey if I get this guy off you, will you introduce me to the village monk?"
Mika looks at the strange man before him with utter confusion. He looks back at Dylan who is equally confused and stunned. Prior to Dylan snapping out of it, Mika quickly nods his head to Veyne's proposition.
"Excellent."
Both him and the guard stand up at the same time, leaving Mika to crawl away on the ground. The guard now pointing the sword at Veyne, clearly beginning to feel the tension.
"Get back whoever you are! I have full rights to treat these people however I please. You can't interfere with a member of Gildom's external guards!"
"Gildom huh, never heard of it. But I doubt they'll miss a spineless brat like you."
Veyne slowly unravels the bandages on his arm revealing it to everyone. Some of the onlookers gasp and run away at the sight of it. He spreads his finger and points his hand at Dylan.
"Now I'm going to give you one chance to run before I turn your whole body to bone, just like this arm."
The short sword shivering in his hand and beads of sweat run down his face.
"H-how dare y-you threaten me. I-I'll kill you and everyone else in this shit hole of a villlage!"
Damn this is getting further out of hand that I anticipated, Veyne thinks to himself. That was the best bluff I could think of at the time. If he starts swinging I'll have to leave and save myself, ruining my chances to talk to that monk. What should I do now?
Before Veyne can think of another way out, a frail voice shouts out to both of them.
"That is quite enough!"
Adjacent to them on another rope bridge, a hooded old man with a cain stands there. Once Dylan sees the man he yells back.
"Ugh, Kiastu! Get out of here. We've told you not to interfere with our business."
"So that's Kiastu. Good, another step closer."
As Dylan shouts at the old man, he lets his guard down for a second. Veyne seizes the opportunity and dashes in. Panicked at seeing him running in, he swings wide and Veyne ducks below the blade and counters with an uppercut.
Dylan takes a step back and rubs his chin.
"Ha, that actually didn't hurt much at all. Looks like you're just a weakling after all!"
"Weak you say. Looks like you can use magic otherwise you would see just how much trouble you're really in. You see, I just passed my curse onto you. Soon your body will wither away and become bone and ash."
Dylan starts to hyperventilate and violently scratches at his chin.
"Huh what?! You bastard, how do I get rid of this thing!"
"The only way is to get a priest to bless you, but you will have to be quick."
Dylan desperately looks around before remembering where he is and that there is no hope of finding one in this village. He runs off, down the main bridge screaming all the way back to Gildom.
…
Veyne hears a slow clapping sound. He turns to see Monk Kiatsu smiling and applauding.
"There was no magic curse on that young man. You are a shifty chartarter aren't you stranger… But still, I must thank you for assisting these citizens. Come with me and let's talk in private."