Deep Roots

"It has!?" Nina couldn't believe it. If the poison had been here for some time now then how had she not noticed it before? She lived here and she didn't even realize that some of the plants had been poisoned. How was that even possible?

"It may be a slow-acting poison," the elf suggested an answer that aligned with why she didn't notice it until now. "Or, it could be magic..."

Magic? Was there magic that can poison things? Actually, yes. If there is magic that can heal and bring life (like her magic), then there was definitely some kind of magic that could do the opposite.

The elf crossed her arms and looked around the surrounding area like she was deep in thought about something. After a minute of doing this, she turned to Nina and asked her a question. "Can you show me your magic?"

"Do you think I did it?"

"Sorry, but you have to understand. Anyone can be the perpetrator." To show Nina that she wasn't being biased or anything, the elf went ahead and demonstrated her magic to Nina. The grass underneath her shivered and started growing taller. "This is my magic. It accelerates the growth of plants. Not very useful, but it is what it is," the elf explained to Nina how her magic worked. "Now, show me yours."

The elf proved that it couldn't be her and it was Nina's turn to prove the same. Left with no other choice, Nina showed the elf her water magic to prove that it wasn't her either. She created a ball of water for the elf to see.

"I don't sense any impurities... So it's not you either. That helps... We narrowed it down by two people..."

Nina couldn't tell if the elf was being sarcastic or not since getting rid of two from the equation wasn't much. So, they know that it wasn't them two and that it had something to do with the sky according to the spirit. This wasn't much to work with...

The elf also knew this and so she suggested something that the two of them could do right now. "Instead of worrying over this, let's get rid of this dirt first," she pointed at the patch of soil that was contaminated. Leaving it there may cause it to spread to the other plants in the area and it was a good idea for them to remove it so that it didn't happen.

"Yeah, let's do that," Nina agreed. They can stand here trying to figure out what the spirit meant when it pointed at the sky for the next hour and still not figure it out or they can dig up the dirt and dispose of it. It is fair to say that the latter will be more productive.

Nina fetched a bucket and two shovels, one small and one big that she used for gardening, and handed one of them to the elf. The two of them then started to shovel up the bad dirt and dumped it in the bucket. Luckily, it was easy to tell which parts of the dirt were poisoned since it was almost black compared to the normal earthy brown it was supposed to be. After filling the bucket to the brim, Nina carried it to the edge of the grove where the barrier ended and dumped it outside. They repeated this process a couple of times until they were completely done.

"Phew, that was tough. By the way, I haven't introduced myself yet, but I'm Solona. It's kind of late, but I'm happy to be of your acquaintance," the elf held out her hand for Nina to shake. Nina took it and started to introduce herself to the elf as well, but she was stopped by her before she could. "No need. I already know your name. Everyone in this forest does."

"Everyone does?"

"Yes. I mean, why wouldn't we know? Especially when you are an out- Erm, sorry, I mean, not from this place."

"Did you mean to say outsider?"

"Sorry," the elf bowed her head and apologized. She changed the word last second but still bowed her head in case she offended Nina in any way.

"No, no, you don't need to do that. I'm used to it."

"Please accept my apology anyway," Solona insisted.

"Okay, yes, I accept it," Nina sighed. It looked like doing this was the only way that she would be able to get the elf to be at ease. It was only after Solona heard this from Nina that she stood back up. She needs to be more careful about what she says in the future. Nina kept forgetting that all the elves were like this.

"Anyway, I don't think you should be going around telling people about this. You should let the Sylvs handle this," Solona advised her.

"Elder Gildor said the same thing. But isn't it better to let people know so that they can help?"

"No, it'll just create distrust and panic. It's better if you don't."

"Aren't elves very close to each other?"

"Just because our villages are small, it doesn't mean we trust each other. We know everyone's names and what they do, but even then, we mostly keep to ourselves. Telling people will just create chaos."

"Okay..." Since this came from an elf, Nina should probably trust it. After all, who knows more about elves than an actual elf? From Nina's perspective, it didn't seem like any of the things that Solona said were true, but she knew more than her.

"I'll keep quiet then."

"Good."

"But I'll continue my investigation on my own," she told the elf.

"I'm against that idea, but since it's your will and not mine, I cannot stop you. I can only insist that you reconsider."

"Sorry, but I have to do this."

The poisoning of the forest concerned her because she was aiming to become a Sylv. She may not be able to fight well, but she could still help in other ways. Who knows? Maybe if she could find something useful, like say the identity of the person or people responsible, then she would be in a better spot when being considered as a potential member for the Sylvs.

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