Episode 1: Bezelbebe Forest

"North of here is where the blue goblins are setting up camp. I've hunted a few with my group but got separated from them when I got discovered by those goblins. Looking at their camp I'd say we've dwindled their group down to twenty and my allies might've defeated some of them as well." The lady says while tying her hair back in a ponytail.

"My name's Mica, Mica Lexfort." She introduced herself before taking some green cube like berries from her bag and handing them to Tony.

"Cure Berries, yuck!" Veronica reacts.

"This should help with the pain and the bleeding. They taste bad but it should do the trick for now." Mica says with a smile before checking on her bow. She did routine maintenance adjusting the bowstring.

---

A while longer a message pinged in your heads.

HELP MICA: SUCCESS!
You Gain 7 Power Points and 3 Cards.

Power Points? Cards?

If you concentrate enough the message gets clearer as if information about power points and cards are being uploaded in your head. You'll understand that you can use 2 points to raise an ability, you can use 1 point to get 2 skill points you can use on any skill available to you to a maximum of 5, you can also use the points to raise your power ranks as well.

As for cards, you can use one card to gain a random power or advantage, two cards to alter a power, three cards to design a specific power you have an affinity for or to gain a specific advantage. You still need power points to raise them to 1, otherwise you'll just be unlocking them.

---

"What are your plans? Will you help me fight the Goblin Captain?" Mica asks the group.

Mica smiles, delighted by the prospect of four gentlemen helping her conquer her foe.

"I don't have a spare bow sorry, I don't even know if I have enough arrows for this." If you check her quiver, you can observe that she only has about 10 arrows left. That is including the arrows she took back from the enemies she shot earlier.

"If this goes well, I'll see to it that your group gets rewarded." Mica says.

---

You used up your power points, covertly if you did such precautions in trying not to giggle at the aspect of 'improving yourselves' or getting 'powers'. You felt the changes in your body and information about your powers got uploaded in your head.

Anthony can check that a new item was uploaded in his inventory. It's the 'Chrono Staff' and strangely it doesn't occupy any space in your inventory but you know it is there and you can summon it. Anthony's slippers changed to red shoes with an hour-glass like pattern painted on the sides.

Nel's armor got a slight upgrade when it comes to its appearance, the patterns in the armor now have some gold details.

Anthony

The wound's gonna get infected if you do not clean it, that's what your mind tells you. The die shaped berry you ate tasted like bitter medicine mixed with soil and some malic acid. Its gummy texture didn't help with its already horrendous taste. But somehow you understood that these berries are not called Cure berries for nothing. It helps with the production of antibodies that help prevent infection and also helps one recover from injuries faster. Its not a cure-all though, snacking on too much of these will lessen its effect.

Its your first time so it worked well. The bleeding somehow stopped and some of the pain went away.

---

Veronica ignores Dylans plea as she sat on a tree stem with legs crossed and arms folded.

"We can rest for a while before heading there." Mica tells Anthony.

"Just fly low and keep your distance from the camp." Mica responds to Nel's suggestion.

After some time flying northwards, Nel found the goblin camp where blue goblins flock. They built tents from sticks and animal hide and made a large bonfire. Flying towards where he is, Nel did not find any game but did find a few dead blue goblins here and there. Mica's hit and run strategy worked well.

There are no signs of an on going battle up ahead but the goblin count is fewer than what Mica predicted.

---

As Veronica and Anthony rests, Mica chats with the boys.

"You don't know anything about Bezelbebe forest? But this is a forest in a peninsula, did you come here by boat?" Mica kneels on one leg and draws a map using an arrow on the ground. She drew a peninsula and small house like boxes on the land that connects the peninsula to a larger land mass and drew triangles surrounding the Peninsula.

"Did you not pass Newtown Village before you enter this forest?" Mica asks as she point at the house like drawing on her map.

Mica stands then looks at Sho. "We separated on different directions. Two went east, Two went west, and I went south with..." She sighs and frowns.

"I'm sure the other can fend themselves. Maki's just unlucky to be caught by that blue goblin captain." Mica says. Whatever happened to Maki?

---

From the branch where he is, Nel can see a man in half plate armor knocked out cold tied up with vines on a tree.

Mica looked dumbfounded when you told her.

"I see. Well, Bezelbebe is a forest under the protection of Newtown. Lots of rare wild monsters live here but it shouldn't be dangerous as most of them are not hostile against humans." Mica tells you.

"The blue goblins are not native to this place, someone must've smuggled those here." She added.

"As for Maki, well I'm not sure if he's still alive."

---

"Newtown's around an hour away, northeast of here." Mica answers Dylan as she twirl an arrow with her fingers.

"We escaped towards different directions about half an hour ago." She replies to Sho as she observe, curious why the man suddenly went picking rocks.