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For reasons not shared to the expedition members, the operation had been delayed for a good number of days. The countess of Baxtorian did not hesitate to provide compensation however and each member received the week's allotted wage.

Countess Telemmaitë penned the report to the king herself. The details were sketchy at best but the mining expedition did not receive orders to proceed as they lack a map into the dense woodlands. A group of Baxtorian rangers, commonly called Wardens, were tasked to clear a suitable path to the sacred mountains. Not only did they fail to produce a map but the entire Warden team disappeared completely. Lord Kaito Calderon personally led a team to investigate. He employed the aid of the Baxtorian countess, her trusted handmaiden Sarah, and a mage volunteer by the name of Ren.

The journey was uneventful but the situation complicated itself upon arrival. The forest, largely untouched and undisturbed had varying effects on each member especially on the elves. The countess was most affected seemingly entranced by the essence of the woods itself even after they were set upon by the Wardens or what was left of them. The group battled more of the former Wardens now cursed by some nature-based power until they finally tracked down the source of the curse but not before being separated from the countess. Inside the cavern, they came upon a mummified being who refers to herself as the Mother. She had been siphoning the forest's power and the souls of the elves lured there through the ages through an obelisk that had shattered just before their arrival.

A battle ensued with the Mother displaying proficiency in elven and nature magics but seemed oddly weakened. The group only managed to defeat her through overloading her own energy and breaking her vessel. They narrowly escaped the blast and are now being tended to in Baxtorian.