Miracle Card Shop: All My Cards Can Be Actualize

694  Claudia

The group entered the woodland, walking deeper and deeper into its heart. As they progressed, the woodland grew increasingly strange. The trees, foliage, and bushes became abnormally thick.

The warriors didn't notice this strangeness, but Wiglaf did. He found it unsettling as someone who often scouted and hunted in these woods. Using his knife, he marked the trees periodically to avoid getting lost.

"It seems… we've been played by a witch or a druid residing in this woodland," Wiglaf muttered as he surveyed the surroundings. He recognized the place; they were back at the first tree he had marked.

"What makes you think that?" asked the leader of the warrior group.

Wiglaf pointed to the marked tree. "We've been walking in circles for quite some time. This is the first tree I marked when we entered the area near the heart of the woodland."

The warriors looked at the tree and swallowed nervously. The last thing they wanted to encounter was a druid who dwelled in the forest. Fighting a druid in their woodland domain would require at least a hundred seasoned warriors to stand a chance. Otherwise, surviving the druid's wrath would be far-fetched.

"We should retreat," Wiglaf suggested. "Before the druid grows irritated. If that happens, we won't have any chance of leaving," he solemnly warned.

"But we don't even know what's causing the phenomenon yet," one eager warrior objected. He clearly wanted to earn merit, as this warrior had yet to earn his.

"You need to choose between your life or your merit. And in this case, our chances of surviving a druid's wrath are far from optimistic," Wiglaf warned again.

The warrior leader let out a heavy sigh. "Shut up!" he growled at the eager warrior. "We retreat, now! We know enough to report. It's up to Theign whether he wants to pursue this or not; our role ends here."

"Smart…" Wiglaf commented, taking the lead to guide the group out of the woodland.

Unbeknownst to them, Daniel observed all of their conversations and actions. From atop a tower, he watched as the group wandered in circles around the Lake of Avalon for hours.

"I see… so they can't even see through the illusion surrounding this place," Daniel muttered, gaining further insight into the people of this era.

From the tomes and various records he had read, he understood that during this era, people were accustomed to a mana-rich atmosphere, far richer than in modern times. This difference made the people of this era more resilient and physically stronger than those in the modern day.

To put it bluntly, the physical prowess of an average person in this era could be compared to that of a professional athlete who had undergone strict training and diet, despite the fact that the common people here merely lived their normal lives of work, eat, and farming and returned home with much worse nutrition than the modern day due to their poor prosperity.

Yes, in the grand scheme of things, the difference wasn't overwhelming, and it didn't mean every person here was as strong as the reincarnation of Heracles. Still, the disparity was significant enough that Daniel needed to gauge it carefully. After all, he had no clear understanding of the upper limits of the people in this era.

— Village Hall —

Back at the village hall, Wiglaf and the warrior group returned to report to the Thegn everything they had encountered during the mission.

Seated on the wooden throne, the Thegn fidgeted, deep in thought. The report from his men disturbed him greatly. A druid in the eastern woodland? That was a problem far beyond his authority or ability to handle. Dealing with a druid was no small task, and his forces alone wouldn't suffice.

"You said you somehow fell into some kind of illusion that prevented you from reaching the heart of the woodland?" the Thegn asked Wiglaf.

"Yes, Thegn," Wiglaf confirmed.

The Thegn nodded. That was the key point. It seemed the druid didn't want to be disturbed. Whether this was because the druid truly desired peace or because they were cooking up something behind that illusion was a mystery, one only the gods could know.

Thegn Cuthred felt threatened by the mention of a druid. In his early days, as a simple warrior under the command of Earldorman Norman. In those days, a war had broken out between the druid community and the Ealdorman.

The Earldorman sought to incorporate the druids into his rule in a quest for power to overthrow the King. However, the druids' power was not easily subdued. The result of the war was devastating, ending with the destruction of the druid community the Ealdorman had sought to control.

It could be said that the Ealdorman paid a staggering price in that war. He lost nearly a third of his total forces to the druids' magic and tricks, gaining nothing in return.

Now, the presence of a druid so close to Thegn Cuthred's village was a dire omen. He didn't know if this druid had any connection to the druid community destroyed by the Ealdorman. Still, he prayed it wasn't the case.

Because if it was, both he and his village would be in grave danger.

"Wiglaf, take a horse and travel to Earldorman Norman's hold. Tell him what you've witnessed and ask for his advice. Should I relocate the village away from this druid, or should I simply forbid anyone from entering the druid's domain?" the Thegn ordered, with bath breath.

"Yes, Thegn. I'll act on it immediately!" Wiglaf responded, accepting the command.

He hurriedly strode out of the village hall and headed to the stables nearby.

— Half a day later - Ealdorman Norman Domain —

A messenger horse hurriedly galloped along the dirt path toward the large stone keep visible on the horizon. Surrounding the keep were villages protected by wooden ramparts. These villages were primarily inhabited by the Unfree, whose sweat and toil fueled Ealdorman Norman's ambitions.

(Author's Note: The Unfree, or Lathe, were similar to serfs during the feudal age. They were not entirely free but not considered slaves either. Bound to the land, they were obligated to work for a lord but had some legal rights and the potential to gain freedom.)

The rider of the horse was none other than Wiglaf. This was the second horse he had swapped out at a horse post along the way, and it was nearing its limit. Fortunately, he reached his destination before the horse collapsed.

Wiglaf rode through the ramparts, passing by a warrior training field. Warriors trained there with relentless intensity through their blood and sweat. They drilled the skills imparted by their trainers. Their battered and bruised bodies needed to remember the beating they received so that on the battlefield, they would avoid their early death.

The training had been intensified, and the new recruits were being pushed to their limits after the war with the druid community. The progress was promising for the Ealdorman's ambitions.

Wiglaf continued through the large gate leading into the keep, where a stableman approached to take the exhausted horse. Without delay, Wiglaf strode toward the inner keep, where Ealdorman Norman resided.

In the great stone hall, the Ealdorman sat on a massive stone throne adorned with animal hides and a bear fur rug. He ate fruit served to him on a platter by female servants.

"Wiglaf, speak! What news from the south?" the Ealdorman asked, wasting no time getting to the reason for Wiglaf's hurried arrival.

Wiglaf knelt on one knee and relayed everything he had witnessed in the woodland east of Thegn Cuthred's village.

As Wiglaf spoke, the Ealdorman's expression shifted to one of deep contemplation and concern. The news of this new druid unsettled him. It posed a potential threat to his plans and ambitions.

He could not confidently send his forces to eliminate the druid; it would be another costly war for him.

Likewise, he wasn't comfortable leaving the druid alone either and gambling on the hope that this druid had no connection to the druid community he had destroyed years ago.

His plans had reached a critical juncture. If this druid were connected to the destroyed community, they could become a threat, particularly if the Ealdorman diverted his forces to fulfill his ambition of becoming king. The druid will surely exploit his vulnerability during such a time.

"What did you just say, messenger? You mentioned this druid used illusions?"

A beautiful feminine voice echoed through the stone hall. From a corridor leading to the guest wing of the keep, a woman appeared, wearing a Roman-style toga indicative of her nobility.

She had light purple hair, a stunningly beautiful face akin to a goddess, and a well-endowed figure. If Daniel were present, he would immediately recognize her.

"Lady Claudia!" the Ealdorman exclaimed, blurting out her name.

He quickly rose from his throne, shooing away the female servants along with her fruit platter. It seemed he wanted to present himself in a better light to impress the elegant woman who had just entered the hall.