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Disregarding the fact that Edwarg was almost ready to jump to the water and now facepalming, Linea actually witnessed the whole ordeal all while still maintaining attention to her notebook. Still no sign.

"Apparently our missing agents are not in that fish's belly."

Book closed and she looked at them. Her expression was deadpan, but sure as hell her golden eyes radiated a lingering frustration and anger.

"A gentle reminder, if you are done scaring away potential informants and killing each other, I suggest we should retreat from this lakeside and find firmer ground. One more thing, I wish not to see any more disturbance after this... tomfoolery. If you insist to do so, then make sure to throw yourself in next time and rid us of your stupidity, thank you."

"Edwarg, where are those natives going?"

"Did you see them? Those dancing figures. What are they doing?"

Linea squinted, exerting more mana to assist her flawed vision to see what Edwarg was pointing. "Dancing? What are they? Some goddamn hilichurls?

"Natives? I don't sense any hostility right now, but..."

Dixie flicks her Dagger of Destiny into existence onto her right hand and takes a stance, ready to power-throw. The dagger starts to produce small sparks, as if about to catch fire. "You never know."

She wasn't smiling.

"True.."

Linea opened her notebook to scan the surroundings. Although her name of the game was always 'prepare for the worst', this time her mind was preoccupied with something more important. Then again, they were outnumbering those natives, so it wouldn't hurt to entrust the fight to her peers should some hell break loose.

"Hohoho, and I here I thought we will go another day without action!"

Dixie's ice magic seemed to have managed to curb the beast's movements. Good, aiming from this distance should be a piece of cake.
No longer hiding her enthusiasm, Linea drew her bow and aimed at the first Troll's eyes, arrows flaming red and released!

Dixie smiles at Linea, "I'm fine.”

"Right you are," she said without returning the smile and looked at the young woman with an expression that basically questioning her intelligence.

"Anyway, you should ask Edwarg if you need fixing up."

The orc in question was picking up a knocked kettle and pour whatever was left into his tankard. While leaning against the tree, his left hand fished for his pocket watch, wincing not because of the undesirable timetable but because his tankard was full of coffee dregs.

"They were running away from the lake. Any idea why is that?"

"Beats me... I know animals run away from mountains to escape eruption but that lake ain't one. Besides..."

"Besides what?"

"Come to think of it, we have a friendly giant spider roaming around. That fella alone might not enough to shake the whole forest awake, but what if five... or seven?

"And emerged from the lake to run amok, like Nisseag?"

"Who knows? Or if we tone down the mythology part, it was just  mandibeast, and wendigos teaming up to scour the forest."

Linea gripped her bow tightly, both notions obviously didn't sound like good news.

"The fact that we know very little of what we are up against is upsetting."

"I know, right? And since we are here for a rescue mission, and no thanks to the villagers being uncooperative, it feels like we are constantly in the dark."

Both CSA operatives decided to spend the rest of the night sitting in front of a rekindled campfire, with weapons loaded and/or within the reach. One could definitely say it was a pitiful, boring, and pointless duty but both agreed to not take any chance.

As the time passed, the situation became less and less tense, Linea tried to avoid boredom by scribing her journal, which after a while, she fell asleep anyway.

Linea and Edwarg had spent a few hours surveying the area and found nothing until they reached the time when they must call it a day. It was both strange, or their coverage was not wide enough. Either way, she was tired, so do Edwarg, but she nonchalantly shoo away the poor orc to fetch water. It was his duty after all, no compromise will be given.

Another day wasted just like that, and they returned to the camping routine. Disappointments overcome both CSA operatives and they said nothing to each other. Linea was too exhausted she won't bother giving any mental commentaries, not even about the small, stupid accidents a while ago. In that state of devoid of emotions and aspiration, Linea hanged a kettle and expected her afternoon coffee to be ready in twenty minutes.

In a meantime, Linea had claimed her spot in a U-shaped buttress roots sprawling around like twisted planks growing from a trunk of an old, big tree, thinking it was something like a perfectly snug seat, courtesy of nature itself...


"The old man is building something." Said Edwarg, looking at the newly built shelter not too far from their place.

"Good for him."

"Want to check it out?"

Linea sipped her coffee before glaring at him; the first emotion she displayed since this morning. It wasn't the happiest one.

"Yeah while we at it, why not wrap up a present? Housewarming cards? A party perhaps? And then can we borrow a cup of sugar after we are done with common courtesy? ...We are camping, not setting up a neighborhood. Beat it, Snewden!"

"I am just thinking that you'd like the idea of having a roof above your head..."

"That shelter is barely enough for him and his wife bear." She concluded, turning away from Edwarg as she rummaged her backpack and busying herself writing something in her journal.

"Howdy!" he announced jovially. "Ya kids hungry?"

Being offered a pancake in the middle of the night was totally not something she would expect, especially if it coming from a lone wanderer who just spent the last few hours doing god-knows-what in the woods. She was expecting information, whatever it is, be it from the pixie, or about the general landscape of the surrounding area. Something that worth keeping her awake a little bit longer.

But she recognized the neighborly gesture and tried not to be a prick this time.

 "Not really, but we surely wouldn't say no for some snacks. Right Edwarg?" 

If all it took to bring down that gate was more than just a simple act of vandalism, then it was not worth it at all. Linea concluded, gazing at the higher part of the tower, she pondered how unneighbourly the master of this tower was for letting her sleep in such a cold night without a roof above her head.

"I am too tired for this." she said, returning to Dixie. "Can you get out? I suck at reading magic but I know you used that artifact to teleport inside, can you use it again?"

"Or... well unless if you fancy sleeping behind the bars, I will settle with the grass and starry sky. Gonna make a campfire real big to make myself at home."