It was late that night. Garrl should have woken his brother a long time ago for the shift change, but he was lost in his thoughts watching the stars, those same stars his brother explained were like their sun, but at inconceivable distances, which is why they seemed like mere bright dots; more knowledge of his brother's heritage, a human heritage; human like the essence of his brother.

  Garrl was thinking about what had happened today and how uncomfortable he felt, ever since he saw how much Breigon cared about that human and even spoke to him in the language of his previous life, a language he already knew and understood, thanks to his brother inheriting it to him; he hadn't thought about it, but Breigon had influenced him more than he had influenced his brother.

  He knew and understood, even though it was strange, that his brother had been a human in another life and in another world; he knew that he still missed that life, and he couldn't blame him. How could he!

  He had promised his brother not to kill humans, just for the sake of it, but only those who wanted to harm them and their people, and he fulfilled that promise today, even against his own heritage. He knew that this human was not the one who attacked his village or his great ancestors; he knew and understood all that, but even so, he couldn't stop hating him, even after it seemed that he had helped them by providing information, that the path they were following would lead them to his other kobold brothers, and despite the surprise of seeing how this human tried to help them, he couldn't stop hating him.

  Garrl understood that it would be very difficult for him to get along with humans, let alone forgive them, and he felt irony in that, since he didn't see or feel anything wrong with getting along with his brother, who was human, and they even thought about using and were using Breigon's inheritance to help their people, a human inheritance of which he already knew a lot because his brother had been passing it down to him. All of that was becoming confusing for him, he had never felt this way until today, and only because Breigon genuinely cared for a human.

  In the end, he looked up at the stars again, took a deep breath, and exhaled. He always did that to relax and calm himself, and he understood that today he wouldn't find answers to his worries and doubts, and he focused on the fact that tomorrow they would continue their journey to find his people, and when they succeeded, he would dedicate himself to helping them along with Breigon, and nothing else would matter.

  …………………………………………….

  Garrl woke me up to change shifts for the watch; I could feel from his mana that the feeling of discomfort was no longer there or was lessened. I'm glad that somehow, he relaxed; I still knew we would have to talk about it possibly tomorrow or at some other time.

  An incredibly starry night, and seeing those stars was just a reminder that I was in another world, as I didn't recognize any constellations, but that doesn't mean I couldn't enjoy the view.

  I remembered that it had only been hours since we had buried the human named Jul. If that was his name. I wish I had done more for him; I hope that not dying alone gave him some peace, and I appreciate the gesture of help he gave us. He gave me hope that maybe it is indeed possible to get along with humans. I understand that under the circumstances he was in, he had no choice, but that doesn't mean it's impossible that, under the right conditions, we could somehow communicate with humans.

  I know that Garrl is not interested in forming bonds of friendship with humanity, I think he made that clear to me today, and I don't blame him for thinking that way, I couldn't, but at some point, we will have to do it. If our dream is to create something akin to a kobold nation, we will have to dialogue with them and engage in some form of diplomatic conversations, and I believe that, for that, I am the best prepared for it.

  What a responsibility I'm taking on, but it's the least I can do for the terrible deeds I committed in the great caves. I know we were only defending ourselves, but that can't be an excuse; there has to be another way. Both species can find some way to get along, at the very least, not having to kill each other just for seeing one another. That is one of the commitments I imposed on myself and I am willing to carry it out, just like being with Garrl and helping his people in whatever way I can, although I didn't impose that one on myself, I do it gladly.

  The night continued and an unpleasant thought came to my mind: it was the thought that what happened to Jul might possibly be partly my fault, and God knows how many more people I might have hurt if that's true, all because I activated the magic seal, because yes, at the risk of being wrong, he was inside the caverns when it was activated and barely managed to get out. It's too much of a coincidence that he was only a few meters away from where the miasma field extended and near an entrance to the caves, and I know that if I explore that entrance tomorrow, I might find the answer to this question, and even though I'm afraid of confirming my suspicions, I'm even more afraid of what else I might find.

  Even so, I must do it, it is my responsibility and my burden, and no matter what I find, I do not have the right to give up trying to find a path that leads us to peace. But that single thought of what possibly happened to Jul kept me awake that night.

  …………………………………………………………….

  Kingdom of Jódecas, third expedition

  Merlan would be extremely excited to study such incredible magic, if it weren't for the fact that this magic was meant to harm and, ultimately, kill humans, and not to mention the reason they were here, which was to see how he would solve this; unfortunately, apart from realizing that this was a miasma field and all the implications of this truth, there was the fact that it only harmed humans, as no other animal or plant creature that came into contact with the field was affected. Even the animals they brought were not affected. There was no doubt, this was done by someone against humans, but who could create a field of such dimensions and stability? And how do you manage to create this?

  Merlan knew that he was not the best sorcerer in the world; however, he had always been very studious, and in no book, he studied did it mention how to create something so massive, because yes, it seems to cover not only the part of the mountain range of the kingdom of Jódecas but possibly extend to the rest of the mountain range that belonged to the other kingdoms. He still couldn't confirm it, but as far as he sent a group of soldiers, they reported that the field remained just as large and stable; and he didn't even want to think about the implications of that statement.

  As for a solution, there wasn't much to do, since they didn't know where the spell that created this field was, in order to destroy it and end this; and the problem was that not only did they not know where to look— the caves are immense!— but they also had the problem that they could only cover short distances due to the limited access time provided by their protective barriers, and it was obvious to expect that whoever did this wouldn't leave the spell in plain sight; but then, who? And how could he undo such a spell? Questions that Melan knew he wouldn't find answers to on this starry night, so he decided to leave it for today and join the soldiers who were telling stories around a campfire.

  - Tonight, many stories have been told, stories of great heroes and great battles; however, today I bring you one from a conflict centuries ago, and what happened to a group of those monsters who abhorred humanity and whose great pride was punished. And it begins like this, with a group of these monsters, heading to these very mountains where we are today.

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  “After the great war with those monsters, a group of them managed to survive and flee with their tails between their legs! Because humanity, along with the great spirits, made them pay for their atrocities!”

  “Now, these monsters were always very proud of their great power, and of course they had it. A single one of them could destroy entire villages, and they always saw humans as small and inferior beings, who needed their numbers to be strong. It was because of this way of thinking that the great spirits punished them, and when they were fleeing, right in the direction of these forests! They encountered the great spirits, and they gave them a chance to surrender and accept their defeat.”

  “But as I told you, those monsters were very proud; they mocked the great spirits! And they promised they would take revenge on the weak and insignificant humans. Their own words were their punishment: the GREAT SPIRITS took away their power! And they turned them into tiny creatures even smaller and weaker than humans, the very humans they so hated and mocked.”

  “Now they would have to live like them, strong only by their numbers. The only thing left was their hatred of humanity, and that's why they attack every man they find. And that's what those last arrogant and proud monsters ended up like, turned into simple kobolds. So be careful with your pride. Don't be like those monsters, or you'll end up becoming something worse than a kobold.”

  Merlan just listened to such a story. While it was known that kobolds were somehow related to those monsters, and that they certainly bore a resemblance to them, it did not mean that the kobolds were those monsters transformed. There is no magic that turns something into something else, much less turning a living being into another; the closest thing were the changes that some mana beasts underwent, and even those weren't major changes, as they remained the same beast, just bigger and with a few minor alterations.

  "Kobolds," Merlan knew that the only village that had been in the caves for a long time had been exterminated during the first expedition; he didn't approve of it, but he understood. The kobolds, as history mentioned, are very aggressive towards humans or at least that's what the books he had read and the reports of sightings with those creatures said. He heard rumors that in some very distant kingdoms they had domesticated and raised kobolds as pets and servants, as they are certainly intelligent creatures, but that's about it.

  Generally, they live in simple villages, nothing complex, along this mountain range; however, in recent years they have been gradually exterminated due to their own aggressiveness.

  However, there was something else that few knew; it was one of the reasons for the pact to not touch these mountain ranges, and it was that the kobolds should be left to live in peace, because otherwise, they could bring those monsters back, or at least that's what his teacher told him, although his own master didn't believe in those stories.

  Merlan thought that whoever forced them to sign the pact took advantage of the similar way kobolds have with those monsters to invent those stories, and that the only thing the pact really sought was to prevent humanity from accessing the resources of this forest and especially the caves.

  Kobolds, could they have created this miasma field? Kobolds, could they have created this miasma field? No! They don't have that magic and they are not fools, but simple kobolds couldn't have done it, however, what other non-human and intelligent creature lives in these mountains and shows hostility towards humans? Only they!

  However, the field was activated almost a year after exterminating the kobold village; it couldn't have been them. It would be more likely that those who made humanity sign the pact created this so that humans would leave the caves alone, and this is if they somehow realized the first and second expeditions and what happened. It would make more sense, however, even knowing it, they are not like that, they don't like to intervene; and finally, they don't have this kind of magic.

  Merlan was almost certain of that last thought; besides, why intervene now? The disrespect for the pact has been going on for decades, by all the human kingdoms. Melan was at a dead end; someone did this miasma field, but who? The only thing left for him was to ask them and see what happens, but if it wasn't them, that would only leave the kobolds, and combined with the legends, it left a terrible bad taste in Merlan's mouth on that starry night.

  ……………………………………………

  The days continued without any progress, and King Erick's messages weren't encouraging either. He had to find something that would help them regain access to the caverns, and the only clue came one day when a group of soldiers, while exploring, found the remains of a small camp far from the main entrance. At first, it was thought they were from the two previous expeditions, but this was ruled out because they were too far from where the camps had been set up; so, the logical conclusion was that they were illegal miners. The matter would have ended there, but Merlan decided to see the camp for himself; something told him he had to.

  When he arrived, there was very little left, only the remains of a campfire and animals; a soldier explained that it was strange. He would bet that whoever was here must have been here only a few months ago, but if so, the miasma field would have been active by then, and the tracks show that they entered and left a small entrance to the caverns, and that it was also located at a high altitude. The miners were known to be intrepid, but they wouldn't have come prepared with barrier spells or armor.

  Merlan ordered the mana-armored soldiers to search that entrance and the surrounding area. And in the end, in addition to demonstrating how difficult it was to climb to that entrance, scratch marks were found on the wall, proving that something with claws frequently scaled that wall. But the clearest proof was when they found only non-human footprints in this camp, and one soldier thought he recognized them without hesitation: "kobolds."

  Everything matched up; now, that it was a camp of these creatures would have been unimportant, possibly survivors of the extermination, although reports claimed none remained alive. But it was the only clue and chance of finding any answers, and Merlan knew it.

  - Let me see if I understand, Merlan. You want us to follow a trail that some kobolds possibly left months ago. What does that have to do with what happened here? And how would it help us?

  - I know it sounds strange, Sir Frédéric, but those creatures are my only clue to trying to understand what happened here. They must have been here at the very least when the miasma field was activated, and you know they hate humans. There's a chance they observed the second expedition group and know what happened to them. If not, at least they could help us get into the caverns, since we can't, and the miasma field shouldn't affect them.

  - And do you really think those lizards are collaborating with us? You said it yourself, they hate us and are very violent, and I remind you that, if they are survivors of the destroyed village, it was us who destroyed their village. Besides, how will we communicate? In the remote case that we find them.

  - I know a spell that will allow us to communicate, and although lies aren't my thing, they mustn't know it was our kingdom that destroyed their village.

  - But...................

  - General Frédéric! I repeat, they may be our only lead; they were here when everything happened, and if the legends have any truth to them, they may be the culprits or involved. Although it sounds unlikely, we must rule out any possibility.

  - Even if you're right, and I'm not saying you are, if they haven't already gone back into the caves, they must be very far away by now, and we'd never reach them, especially in this forest. You know how dangerous it is and how difficult it is to navigate. Besides, we're almost out of supplies; we must go back and report everything that happened here.

  - There's nothing further to report that we haven't already reported. You know this field is impenetrable to any human. It possibly covers all the mountain ranges, and you know what that means. And above all, it was created by someone, against not only our kingdom, but all of humanity. If we don't find something to change that, it'll be a matter of time before our kingdom ends up in a war it can't win. You know about our enemies and what they'll do when they realize what happened in these mountain ranges. Any information that helps us understand what happened, and above all, allows us to remove this spell, is worth seeking. Now, as for how to find them and reach them, as long as they're not inside the caverns, I have some spells that could help. They're dangerous, but they will help. So, General, it's your decision.

  - ………………… I hope we don't regret this, but tell me, what do you need?"