"I'm going to build my home here." Alz reaffirmed his decision again.

Maya gave Alz a dumbfounded look as she said in a hysterical voice, "B-But there's nothing here! Why would you want to live here!?"

Upon hearing this, a smile formed on Alz's face as he replied in a light-hearted voice, "There's a lake and all sorts of plants and animals nearby. There's also this beautiful place here, what more do I need?"

Maya found herself at a loss for words, not knowing how to respond to his overly optimistic words. She had initially thought that he just wanted to find a secluded place to relax his mind, and this thought had never even crossed her mind.

"You're treating this too lightly! Do you really think it's so easy to live alone with nothing around?" after a short pause, Maya rebuked Alz's words in a voice that was seemingly filled with anger.

The smile on Alz's face deepened despite being scolded, hearing the deep concern that was hidden behind her words. He didn't hold it against her as he knew that she was just worried for him, instead feeling thankful to have met someone like her here.

However, she didn't know what he had been through, of the experiences that he had gained in the past five years. Had Alz been just any average elf his age, her worries would have been very real points which they may fail to consider, but that he was not.

He was an elf who managed to survive alone in the aggressive forests of the South. Living here in a forest that was contained within the barrier of the capital with only non-aggressive creatures living here was not something he needed to worry about.

"It'll be fine, don't worry about it." Alz dismissed her concerns casually, replying in an unconcerned tone. He didn't bother explaining further, but his voice was strong, expressing his confidence in the matter.

"You!! Don't come back crying when you learn how hard it is!" Maya flared up and stomped towards the way they entered the lake from.

As she was walking away, she abruptly halted her steps and turned back to Alz, asking in a soft voice, "You're really not coming?"

This time, there was no anger in her voice, only deep concern as she looked back at Alz with hesitation in her eyes.

"She's kind"

"Be careful when going back." Alz said as he waved to her with a warm smile on his face. Maya felt her anger rising up again, snapping her head back to the front before moving off with heavy steps.

Alz sighed as he looked in the direction of her disappearing back, feeling some regret at being unable to help her.

However, this quickly faded as he moved his attention back to the field with excitement brewing in his heart, at the first sense of freedom he felt since he left the archives.

He sent a quick glance to the location where he wanted to build his hut but shook his head lightly. He then took out his map and proceeded into the trees, heading deeper into the forest.

He had briefly thought of building a hut first, but he quickly dismissed the thought as it would take up too much time. Also, the hut's purpose would primarily be for drawing attention, which was something he didn't really need to consider now.

Living conditions weren't really an issue for him as he had long since gotten accustomed to falling asleep on the cold, hard floor of the archives while reading, and even sleeping on any part of the field was superior to that.

There were many more important things he needed to build now, with the first being his new workshop. Many of the tools he made in the past had been left behind at the archives, so he essentially needed to start everything from scratch and there was no time to lose.

Alz soon arrived at the area he had scouted out previously, the place where he had decided to build his workshop. The area was packed with trees, but there were small patches of empty space here and there.

He made a light nod as he looked around the area again, making a satisfied smile after. The spaces were not big, but they would suffice for what he was building. Being surrounded by trees also provided him with cover that would camouflage the place, another reason he chose this place.

"Time to get started!"

Alz first began by preparing the basic tools he needed, starting off with a hatchet so he could gather wood more efficiently. Rebuilding everything was a long and arduous process, and everything had to be done in steps.

Thankfully, he had the experience from last time, which would save him a lot of trouble in this process. He then proceeded on to make some wooden containers, so he could transport water over from the lake.

The reason he wanted a lake in the first place was not to quench his thirst, as the berries in the forests here were plentiful for his water needs. He needed it for other purposes such as creating mud and dousing fires in the case of accidents, something berries couldn't do.

Time flew by as Alz tirelessly laid the groundwork for his new workshop, with many of his facilities starting to take shape. Alz was chewing on a piece of jerky as he carried two buckets of water when he suddenly missed his footing and fell flat on the ground, spilling all the water.

"I might have overdid it again..."

Alz turned around and looked up at the sky with a dry laugh, noticing that the sky had already lit up at some point in time. A feeling of weakness began to overcome him, the familiar feeling of overworking his muscles that he had experienced countless time before.

"Can't rush it too much, I guess this will be it for now.”

He slowly crawled up started looking around to confirm the progress he had made. He had completed his charcoal mound and was about halfway through his smokehouse now, having intended to complete it today.

However, the trees in the central were harder than he was used to and the lack of bags to contain water took a greater toll on him in the round trips he had to make for water collection.

He staggered slightly when he took his first step but regained his footing quickly and started making his way back towards the field.

Upon reaching the field, he broke out into a smile as he was welcomed by the floral scent and the radiant garden before his eyes, feeling some of his exhaustion begin to leave him.

He moved unsteadily to the flowerbed and fell backwards onto it, spreading his arms widely as he prepared to rest for a new day of work.

"This is so nostalgic."

He lay down with his eyes closed, feeling as though he had returned back to the past. This was how he had done it in the past as well. Apart from the sweet floral scent that gently wafted into his nose and the soft flowerbed soil, everything else was the same.

It was tough and painful work, but he always enjoyed it as it brought about a strong sense of accomplishment. The strenuous physical exercise also helped keep his mind off the many things he didn't want to think about him, something that helped him much in the early days.

Alz's consciousness was beginning to fade away as he lay in the soothing embrace of nature when his eyes suddenly shot open and he instantly sat up, looking towards a direction with an alert expression, showing no traces of drowsiness from moments ago.

There were footsteps coming from there, and not just one set of them, but many. He ignored the weakness in his muscles stood up, placing his hand on his crossbow and preparing to draw it at any moment.

The footsteps slowly became louder and the figures were almost in sight, causing the tension in Alz's body to rise to the maximum. Just then, a familiar voice suddenly called out to him from the group.

"Alz, are you here?" Maya's voice rang out clearly from his front, bringing relief to Alz.

The relief the coursed through his mind began to affect his body, causing his muscles to relax all at once. The weakness started to take over again, resulting in Alz falling backwards onto the flowerbed.

The figures started to become clearer as they exited of the woods, revealing the faces of the visitors. They were the 25 warriors of the Calla tribe, led by Maya who was walking at the front.

Looking at this, Alz truly felt all the worry leave him, letting out a sigh of relief.