Nico set his green mote afloat on his hand, picking up the loot sprawled all over the rocky ground as he held them one by one next to his mote.

7 Goblin Ears (F-) [Material]

Common loot from the goblins. Used as an ingredient mainly for potions and elixirs.

2 Monster Essence (F-) [Consumable]

Can be consumed to increase the strength, mind, and spirit stats of the user.

Revered Goblin Axe (F+) [Artifact]

This axe has been passed down from one generation of goblins to the next. When used as a weapon it can increase the user's agility.

"That's pretty nifty." Nico said, staring at the pixie screen brought about by his green mote as he set it afloat on one hand and the loot on another hand.

"Do monsters always do that?" Saira said as she crouched beside Nico, giving him a nudge.

"Do what?"

Saira waved her hands erratically in the air like she was performing a magic trick. "You know, that weird thing where they all disappear into thin air."

"All monsters turn to white mist when killed." Hena said, sitting behind the two on top of a fallen trunk of a tree. "When they die here- in this tower, their soul goes back to the Forest of Beginnings. That's the world where they originally come from."

"Hold on, they're not from here?" Kai said, overhearing the conversation.

"No. Instead they are lost souls who are given life and body upon entering this tower. But there's a catch: the tower drives them crazy. They endanger people once they wander outside the dungeons."

"Crazy?" Nico murmured, staring at the goblin ear on his hand.

"And what are these dungeons?" Jason said, a mild curiosity drawn on his face. The group huddled up around the pool of loot, with the green canopy above shading them from the harsh heat of the sun.

"They're fragments of places from the Forest of Beginnings that broke off."

"So in a way, by killing them, we return their souls back to where they came from- this so-called Forest of Beginnings." Kai said.

"You can think of it like that." Hena said, although a frown crept onto her face. "But at the end of the day, killing is killing. Nothing can change that."

The group stared in silence at the pool of loot sprawled on the ground, reminding them that they had to kill goblins in order to get what they have in front of them.

"Anyways," Jason broke the silence. "I think that would be enough adventuring for today. We're all tired, and we need to sell the loot we got back to the marketplace. We worked hard today, good job."

. . .

"Fourteen coppers?" Jason said, wide-eyed as he presented the goblin ears to the fairy merchant. They were not in Lelselone- the capital city of the fairies, but instead out in a small fairy town called Selsine. The town was like Lelselone- being high up in the trees, however there was no central giant tree nor golden magic orbs. Instead there were dim red orbs that flickered like torches on wooden stands, unlike the bright gold orbs shimmering brightly in Lelselone.

"How much is fourteen coppers again?" Kai whispered to Jason from behind. The day was just starting to set, with the warm tint of the sun now seeping behind the leaves and branches of the trees, showering the fairy town with orange streaks of light.

"Just enough to buy a couple of bread and water." Jason frowned. "And with the six of us here, it'll all run out in one sitting."

"For real!?" Kristine gasped.

The money they got from Mathis in Lelselone was used up entirely for renting a cheap lodging in Selsine, and so they ended up having to rely on their first hunt for food to fill their stomachs.

"Day one's not off to a great start." Kai said, his stomach grumbling.

Jason turned to Nico, who then gave Jason a reluctant nod. Jason took out the two essences and the goblin axe from the leather bag behind him, offering them to the merchant.

"I was planning on saving this, but money's our first issue. Getting stronger comes second."

Jason handed them to the fairy who then conjured his own brown mote, holding the loot close to it to examine them.

"Fifty coppers. Thirty for the axe and twenty for the two essences." The fairy said, his face showing sympathy for the group. "Sorry, that's as high as I can go."

"No, that's alright." Jason frowned. He had hoped that the essences and axe would fetch a higher value.

"How much food would that give us?" Saira asked, popping her head behind Nico as she rested her chin on his shoulder.

"Probably three to four meals each, and that's if we eat the bare minimum."

"And that would be?" Kristine said, crossing her arms.

"Just bread and water."

"Oh my god."

They traded in the loot for a measly sixty-four copper coins, bidding the merchant farewell as they turned and headed on their way to the treehouse inn they were staying with disappointed looks drawn all over their faces.

. . .

"Nico, I'm itching all over." Kai said from above Nico who were both sharing a creaky bunk bed. The bedding itself was composed of straws and dried leaves, with the usual fly or two buzzing around and biting at their skin. "And I'm hungry."

"Me too." Nico said as his eyes fell to Jason who was snoring on the cold wooden floor. "But we can't complain, Jason's doing his best as it is."

"I know, but my mind keeps wandering to the rooms back in Lelselone." Kai said, with sounds of wood creaking as he moved his body. "It feels like yesterday when I was just sleeping on a bed made of clouds."

"It was yesterday." Nico said. "But I get you. We didn't realize it back then because of all the comfort and care the fairies had given us, but living on our own in this world is hard. Very hard."

"I'm very angry right now."

Nico paused, not knowing how to respond.

"I was able to hold it in back when we were at Lelselone, but I just can't take it anymore." Kai said, a hint of annoyance in his tone. "Don't you find it funny that we were suddenly brought into this world with no real explanation- instead sending us on this shitty quest to reach the top of the tower? Doesn't it seem very odd? Even I'm starting to think Mathis-"

"You know she wasn't the cause of all this."

"I know," Kai said unconvincingly. "But my blood's boiling and I don't have anything to blow that steam off. I didn't ask to be sent into this damn fantasy world. Sometimes I wonder how you can say that you want to stay here with a disregard for your entire past twenty years back on Earth."

Streaks of moonlight seeped through an open window by the wall, showering the room with a faint glow as the silence between the two festered.

"Sorry, I'm starting to take it out on you now."