The princess clapped her hands to her breast on hearing Aletta's confident declarations. Truth be told, she looked a little starstruck. Gloriana was also keeping her eyes on Amanda, albeit in a more suspicious way.<br/><br/>"Thank you! Truly, thank you! We have complete faith in you. We will pray for your success until such time as you return."<br/><br/><br/>......<br/><br/><br/><div align="center">(https://i.imgur.com/tQVoerf.jpg)</div><br/>The village of Borstown was quite hard to find. Not because it was small, and not because it sat in a secluded location near the bottom of the hills where the valley gave way into the great unbroken forest of the elves, which filled the valley in this direction as far as the eye could see....<br/><br/>No, it was hard to find because it was almost completely overgrown. WIthout Tula's knowledge of the wilderness, there was a good chance the party would have walked past it entirely. By all accounts, it had been a bustling little trade post, but the buildings here looked like they had been abandoned for decades, crumbling and coated in climbing plants. More greenery had covered gardens and paths to the point where few walls even remained untouched by the plants. There was no sign of anybody in the area.<br/><br/>The village appeared to be centered around a large tree that rose from the town square, a massive pillar of wood that appeared to spiral upwards, such that it was hard to tell where the roots ended and where all the other vegetation began. Strange lights hung in the branches, pulsing slowly.<br/><br/><div align="center">(https://i.imgur.com/Fn9nkX3.jpg)</div><br/>The quiet in the village might have been relaxing in other circumstances, but now it felt strange & oppressive, with a feeling of being watched that was impossible to shake. A faint scent hung in the air that was pleasant, but strange.