Yvlena left the apothecary with a new quest from Risel, but now she would need to go back to the Verdant Woods where she would fight the spiders, gather the herbs for Risel, and perhaps trade some of the animal parts she had gotten to Bavga the witch.

  “I just returned, and I already have so much to do. I suppose that’s my fault, actually.” Yvlena ughed, but compared to the troubles of her real life she would much rather be in Bloom Haven helping the NPCs as the Harvest Guardian.

  Yvlena started on her path toward the Rose Manor where she would cook a meal in preparation for her next set of tasks as she promised herself.

  “I’ll need to avoid exhaustion as a status ailment, I’m really lucky it’s never hit me in the middle of a fight.” She said.

  The next thing she would do was review the recipe for the Purifying Elixir before she would head to the Avaresh Swamp to finish the easy quest for Risel. To get the herbs from the Avaresh Swamp she would need to pass the Verdant Lake which held a creature corrupted by the Miasma.

  Not only would defeating it level her up but it would also weaken the Miasma blocking the path to the other town and help the Verdant Woods heal from the sickness.

  But she hadn’t brewed the Elixir she would need to purify the Verdant Lake and drive the creature out.

  “Not so easy now without the Carrot Sword.” She said dejectedly. "That's just a boss battle waiting to happen and I can't say I'm ready to fight another creature without a weapon as strong as the Carrot Sword was.” Yvlena said with a sigh.

  While the Moon Sickle was strong, she noticed it wasn't as strong as the previous weapon she had lucked into when she fought the secret boss of the Bloom Forest.

  The carrot sword had made a hard journey through the Bloom Forest and even the Verdant Woods more bearable than if she had simply gotten a weapon from Bernard’s shop.

  Heading into the Avaresh Swamp with it, it would definitely be a harder time even if it had dealt the final blow to Crocante, the previous Swamp Guardian.

  If she wanted a stronger weapon now, she would have to find a way to upgrade the Moon Sickle or find a stronger sword. But that would be tough, if only there was someone she could ask.

  Yvlena stopped and recalled there was indeed an NPC that she could pester about the information she needed. Soren the eccentric bcksmith within the Smithing Quarters of the Artisan District.

  An idea formed in her head, she could ask Soren if there was anything she could do about the Moon Sickle, if not, then she would test the spear she had gotten from the Field Mouse Sentry Boss, or look for a stronger sword.

  A stronger weapon might have been a big ask in a beginner town, but Bloom Haven had its own secrets and Yvlena wasn’t sure this was such a beginner town like she had initially thought.

  She had a feeling the Harvest Guardian was supposed to fight with the sickle, after all, it had transformed in her hands.

  So why then did Rael leave it behind?

  Yvlena shrugged and turned to head back into the Artisan District, it was a good time to see Soren anyway and tell him where she had been.

  "Here we go again.” she said in excitement. The thought of having so much to do thrilled her and filled her with glee. A little bit like having a purpose.

  ----------

  It didn't take long before Yvlena reached the artisan District Smithing Quarters. The smell of hot metal and smoke covered the air, filling her nostrils with its choking scent.

  It was a miracle anyone could work in these conditions and thanks to the Revista Mark-i, Yvlena could smell it all.

  She coughed as the smell began to scratch at her throat. It was so different to have the sensation of smell remind her she was in a different part of Bloom Haven.

  Previously, there had only been a hint that certain Districts smelled distinct from one another, now she could taste the smoke in the air.

  ‘Let me just search for Soren so I can leave.’

  She walked around, holding a hand to her nose, which made her receive odd looks from the Bcksmiths at work. Yvlena walked to the area she had seen Soren working at, but could not find him at his usual workstation, in fact, it was closed.

  "Have you seen Soren today?” Yvlena asked one of the other bcksmiths passing by, heaving a giant sb of metal.

  The muscled woman thought about it for a moment, then replied.

  "He's usually at the tea house by now, you know the pce that opened up in the Floral District." The woman replied, pcing the sb against the wall to what Yvlena assumed was her own workstation.

  "Oh, thank you." Yvlena said. Now she had a chance to visit both Iris and Soren at the same time for her questions.

  It was nice that the NPCs of Bloom Haven interacted with each other. She wondered if it was like that in the other beginner towns. The forums didn’t tell her much about NPCs, it seemed like not a lot of people were all that interested in their personal stories.

  Other pyers in the game reported NPCs being mean to them, but Yvlena had never had such a problem.

  The people within the town of Bloom Haven were quite sweet. Even Ricardo, when he had visited during his Mercantile Trials, was quite nice to her as well.

  The meanest person she had encountered so far was Bavga of the Avaresh swamp.

  The witch had only been mean because she had been so distrusting, and it was up to Yvlena to prove herself a capable Harvest Guardian.

  The witch eventually warmed up to her, which made Yvlena feel bad for the affliction caused by the Miasma, she wondered if it was better now after she had gotten the balm for the witch.

  ‘I wonder if I could sell that on the auction house. The game listed it as a quest item but I still have the recipe for it.’ Yvlena thought, maybe some of the other NPCs would be kind to the pyers if they had something to help their afflictions.

  The world outside Bloom Haven was one Yvlena was hesitant to venture into, sure her friends were there, but the world seemed harsher with more monsters and from what she had read online, there were all sorts of pyers she didn’t want to run into.

  ‘I can’t say that for sure, maybe those lore people Mars was telling me about would be nicer.’ Yvlena thought as she ran out of the Smithing Quarters.

  She shivered in fear. The thought of fighting more than just foxes and wolves made her hesitant to leave. But she needed to follow Rael and find out if he was able to concoct a cure, It was a shame Viseli died before he could return to her.

  "I need to find Twy too." She said.

  But first she needed to find Soren.