Ch.1717. Dren Barony (1)

Just after leaving the forest while riding on Astra.

“…Ah.”

The scene before my eyes, one I hadn’t seen in 9 years—not exactly familiar, but one I had glimpsed a few times before. Yes, thinking about it carefully… this Aleinos Forest is where I was abandoned by my birth father in this life.

Which means… not far from this forest lies the village belonging to whatever barony, which could be considered my hometown.

“…”

To be honest, I don’t feel any particular emotion toward my birth parents from this life.

My father abandoned me in the Aleinos Forest when famine pushed them to the extreme. And he left me in Aleinos Forest, no less—a place known for housing many magical beasts, rich in mysteries to the point that druids specifically dwelled there.

Of course, a mere serf like my father wouldn’t know such details, but the fact that Aleinos Forest is dangerous is common knowledge.

So at that point, any affection from being raised by them had worn off, and what I feel toward them now is… just a slight uneasiness, perhaps.

Rather than wondering what happened to those who were once my family, I’m merely curious about what they’re doing now. Regardless of my complicated feelings, that’s the extent of my emotions toward those I defined as family.

[…Master? Is something wrong? You look troubled.]

[Are you alright, Gregory?]

But perhaps blood ties are still blood ties after all. As my two animal friends shared my complex emotions and spoke with concern, I smiled bitterly and said:

‘Well… I’m not sure myself. But it’s nothing serious, so don’t worry.’

To ordinary friends, it might sound like I’m just pretending to be fine, but between me and my animal friends, there exists a mental connection.

Thanks to this, they could feel through our connection that I genuinely wasn’t going to dwell on this matter, and they seemed to accept it. After collecting myself, I walked along the outskirts of the forest with Astra.

Then, after walking for about 10 minutes…

‘…A road.’

What caught my eye was a road. It wasn’t paved or anything, but it was a dirt path naturally formed by people passing through.

‘Corin, come back for a moment as we discussed.’

[Okay! Call me if anything happens!]

After recalling Corin to avoid any misunderstandings when encountering people, I straightened my attire and prepared to use magic at any moment, just in case.

Although this is technically within a domain and shouldn’t be complete chaos with magical beasts or bandits running rampant everywhere, it’s certainly not safe enough to let my guard down completely.

The world is vast, and there are many madmen out there. Having learned this lesson painfully, I believe preparing for contingencies is even more essential in a fantasy world already full of variables.

Anyway, after this brief readjustment, I slowly proceeded along the path.

Moving at a pace neither fast nor slow, recalling old memories as I took in the scenery, I continued forward, further and further, until…

‘…So they couldn’t hold out after all.’

What entered my vision were the ruins of what had once been a village. Traces of the former village remained, but now it was just a place of collapsed remnants.

Was it a monster attack, or human aggression? Whatever happened, the village was in a situation where anything could have occurred, and it was no longer human territory.

While tears of sadness would never flow from my eyes, I couldn’t help the bitter feeling seeping into my heart. Yes, I suppose these things happen.

After briefly focusing on the meadow where a village once stood, now without even corpses remaining, I signaled Astra and once again departed from my hometown along the path.

My mind, having reached an intermediate level of cultivation, was not so soft or fragile as to be bound by old memories that weren’t even particularly happy.

※※※

And so, how much time had passed since I began my journey?

I could physically understand why my master had said that druids don’t need much baggage for their adventures.

To put it bluntly, even a formal (intermediate) druid could easily solve all the necessities of travel using magic.

First, the issue of clothing isn’t a major concern.

A druid who can properly harmonize with the mysteries of nature undergoes physical changes due to this influence—they don’t secrete waste like sweat through their skin, and their bodies emit a refreshing fragrance like natural detergent.

Additionally, if necessary, extracting fibers from plants to make simple clothes is no trouble at all, and in the worst case, there’s always the option of transforming into an animal.

As for food, it’s one of the concerns druids need not worry about at all.

All druids fundamentally learn magic that accelerates plant growth, so they can instantly grow edible plants to supply as much food as needed.

However, I mainly use the food creation magic that my master… my mother developed herself.

By twisting the principles of nature magic, skipping the process and maximizing results, I can create fresh, high-quality fruits, vegetables, or grains. Using the same principle with beast magic, I can create meat as well.

Some might wonder if eating magically created food only gives a feeling of fullness without recovering magical power… But since internal mana is recovered by bringing in external mana through skin contact or breathing, there’s no issue.

Finally, the matter of lodging during travel is also not a concern at all.

Among the spells druids can learn is one called “Nature’s Hut.”

As the name suggests, this magic gathers surrounding natural materials to form a dwelling made of natural elements. Depending on the user’s proficiency, it can create anything from a simple hut to a grand mansion, making it a versatile spell.

The house where my mother and I lived was also made with this Nature’s Hut.

Despite appearances, Nature’s Hut is incredibly sturdy as a product of mystery, and it also possesses magical defenses, providing me with living conditions incomparable to sleeping outdoors.

Thanks to this, I was able to maintain a good standard of living without having to visit villages, and after continuing my journey… I arrived right in front of the lord’s castle where Baron Dren, the effective ruler of my homeland, resides.

In truth, there was no real need to stop by, but since this journey was meant to gain experience, it seemed a bit of a waste to only stay in Nature’s Hut.

So, still mounted on Astra, I walked a bit further until I reached a distance where I would be visible from the palisade.

The lord’s castle… though in reality, it was closer to a village surrounded by a palisade.

They had created an outer/inner structure with wooden fortifications and palisades, but in a world teeming with external threats, wooden fortifications are inevitably unreliable.

There would be no reason not to build stone walls if resources allowed, so this Dren Barony must not be very wealthy.

Anyway, as I approached on Astra, two soldiers guarding the entrance came into my view.

They wore cloth armor—garments with fibers like linen or wool stuffed inside—along with crude helmets. They also carried metal swords and shields, which were quite rare in this era, and one spear each.

I’m guessing they’re men-at-arms—professional soldiers employed by the lord, composed of wealthy citizens from the domain.

These somewhat soldier-like individuals had been slouching on guard duty, but upon seeing me approach, they suddenly straightened their posture and adjusted their disheveled clothing.

And when I approached right in front of the palisade entrance…

“Ex-excuse me! …Are you perhaps a druid?”

The words from the older, more experienced-looking man were enough to surprise me.

‘…He knows about druids?’

People of this era generally don’t know what druids are without special education, typically lumping them together with other magic users based on appearance.

Even in cities with excellent education levels, this would be the case, so how much information about magic would they have in a rural domain like this?

But his words… they suggest that this soldier knows exactly what a druid is.

“Yes, I am a druid. But why…?”

“I-I apologize for my rudeness! It’s just that… our lord said that if a druid were to come, he would like to meet with you and asked us to relay this message!”

‘The lord? Why?’

According to my mother, she made a contract with Baron Dren several hundred years ago, so it’s not strange that they know about druids.

But this raises a question: why would the lord want to meet a druid?

Does he have a favor to ask, or is he plotting something? As all sorts of thoughts chaotically raced through my mind… I made a decision.

In times like these, a direct approach is best. Seeing no need to be submissive, I straightened my back confidently and said:

“Very well. I’ll meet with him. So… what should I do?”

“…Yes! I will report to the lord! Could you please wait a moment?”

“Alright. I’ll wait for a bit.”

The moment he heard my answer, the senior-looking soldier who had spoken to me put down his heavy weapon and quickly ran toward the main castle.

…The atmosphere felt ominous. It seemed like something was about to happen at any moment.