Chương 66: Searching for the Spring

I'm not entirely sure where I went wrong that caused Lealia to suddenly decide to ignore my recommendations, but it's too late to dwell on that now. Experience has taught me that chasing after someone's favor is one of the fastest ways to lose their respect. Now, I need to calculate how to help Lealia surpass Iris, even if she doesn't trust me as implicitly as she did at first. The only way I can think of is to resolve the crisis in Grasiva myself and then credit the entire achievement to Lealia.

To prevent Iris and the others from interfering or piggybacking off the reputation, it is best that I act alone. Taking the church soldier Lealia left with me, I headed into town to purchase a self-defense sword and some forest gear. I then asked a shopkeeper to recommend a guide. It wasn't difficult to find someone who knew the way to the contaminated spring. In town, there was a man named Thenos who was frequently hired to haul spring water for those who preferred it.

Miraculously, he had yet to fall ill despite being one of the people closest to the poison source.

"Oh, I've always felt the water there wasn't right. I only do it because I'm used to the work and people hire me, but I'd never dare drink it myself. It wasn't always like this, but ever since my grandmother got a stomach ache from drinking it, I've stayed clear. But I feel sorry for the others..." Thenos was incredibly talkative for his small, thin frame. During the hour-long hike up the mountain path, his mouth never stopped moving.

Nevertheless, I was able to confirm what I had sensed on the road to Grasiva: this forest was far too quiet. The path we took was an old trail dating back to when the people of Grasiva regularly fetched water here. The terrain was easy enough, neither too steep nor too rugged. Thenos claimed he could usually haul two large barrels down without much trouble. I cut through his rambling to ask the question on my mind: "Hey, are there no birds or animals around here?" Thenos replied, "There are.

People used to hunt rabbits and wild chickens around here often. But... lately, they've been scarce. It's not that we don't see them, it's just that we don't see them alive..."

"What do you mean, not alive?" If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"I mean we only find carcasses. Rotting corpses. Normally, if a wild animal dies, others eat it until only bones are left; they don't have time to rot. Oh, do you think the water is dirty because dead animals are falling into the stream?" The picture was becoming clear. The small wildlife around here had been poisoned by the Miasma-infected water. Usually, small animals cannot turn into magic beasts when exposed to Miasma; they simply die. Only larger animals or humans tend to manifest the "frenzy" state.

Trees take much longer to show signs of Miasma absorption. Usually, after a year or two, the trunks gradually turn black, followed by the leaves. Trees don't die easily from Miasma; they simply mutate into blackened, twisted forms. Sure enough, I soon spotted the carcass of a fox rotting near the path. The body reeked, yet there were no flies or maggots swarming it. The church soldier accompanying us grimaced and covered his nose. At the same time, I heard the faint sound of trickling water in the distance.

At the end of the trail was a steep section of the stream, only about two meters wide. The spring was smaller than I expected, and the flow wasn't very strong. Thenos explained, "It used to be much wider. My grandfather said it was three times this size back in his day. But as the water dwindled, the town had to dig wells." To the naked eye, the water looked crystal clear, with pebbles visible at the bottom. I attempted to activate the Halunar's Eye to see if I could perceive something else.

My left eye suddenly burned hot, that was a good sign. It meant there was something here that required the eye of a god to be seen. Enduring the discomfort in my eye, I continued to stare at the stream. Gradually, the transparent water shifted into a very pale purple hue. So, in addition to mana, I could now see the color of Miasma.

"Where does this stream end?"

"There used to be a large lake over there," Thenos pointed.

"But when I came two years ago, it had shrunk to a pond. Now, there might not even be a pond left; the water just soaks into the ground." I had no intention of going to the end of the stream; what I needed was its source. However, from this point upward, the terrain became increasingly steep. I turned to Thenos.

"Is there a path that leads to the headwaters?"

"... There is a trail higher up, usually used by hunters. But unless you're an experienced woodsman, you shouldn't go. From here on, it's steep and jagged. I'd have dared it when I was younger, but now..." Back in college, I had joined a trekking club and conquered quite a few mountains. Though I hadn't done it much recently, I still had some experience navigating forests and streams. I told Thenos, "Thank you for leading us this far. We can take it from here. You should head back."

"Eh? You two are going up the mountain?" The soldier also stared at me wide-eyed, clearly not having anticipated this. I looked at both of them and replied:"I came here to investigate the cause of the contamination. I won't know for sure until I reach the source, will I?"

"Well, be careful then. Make sure you're back before dark."

"I'll try. But if the sun sets and I'm not back, I might just camp in the woods until morning. If I haven't appeared by tomorrow morning, then you can come looking for me."