Rosanne crashed at Markus's dorm room early in the morning, rolling in his bed with Nagini, playfully slithering across her body.
"Rosey, tell Granduncle Vance we're heading over today. He'll be extremely happy to see you. It's been a while," Markus shouted while showering.
"You're right, big bro! Let me send him a message now~" Rosanne tinkered with her digital watch, sending Alistair Vance an advance notice.
The group eventually arrived at the mission hall after meeting for lunch at the dining hall.
This was an external mission with an open area combat zone.
Within the forbidden forests, beasts are not the only predators around.
The forest itself is a predator lying dormant in wait.
The flora growth if left unchecked, could take over an entire developed settlement.
That was how the core regions of the North American continent got invaded by the flora and fauna of the apocalypse.
**
Markus decided to give them a thorough and detailed combat briefing before they departed.
First, investigation reports on the most recent tier 7 attack on Oakhaven Borough in the past decade.
"We can assume that the core region of the Forbidden Forest has tier 8 beasts that are forcing other tier 6 and 7 beasts out of their natural habitat."
"This is what we can call habitat displacement. Before the mana apocalypse, humans had destroyed animal habitats for the development of civilization."
"Now it feels like the inverse is happening."
"The forbidden forest throughout the years has been growing; it is reclaiming land once lost, gaining inches every month or two, expanding outwards."
"We can see that by the shrinking outer perimeter reported at Oakhaven Borough."
Second, the increase in density of poisonous or dangerous flora within the outer regions of the Forbidden Forest.
"In the past 5 years, harvesting missions within the outer regions of the Forbidden Forest have reported that there was an increased amount of tier 2 and 3 herbs spotted."
"Usually, students were able to comfortably complete their tier 1 tasks within the outer regions."
"However, now with higher grade flora growing amongst the tier 1 herbs, these tasks have been handed down to the military or second/third year students of the academies."
Lastly, Markus hinted at a theory that he had developed over the past few nights.
"This is the most important point I have to make: there is a chance, another tier 6 or 7 beast could emerge from the depths of the forest into its outer region, and I would even speculate that it might attack border regions as a means to reclaim more land for habitation."
The girls sat still in silence, absorbing the dense amount of information Markus just relayed to them.
"Okay, any questions?" Markus asked, hands folded.
The girls shook their heads, eyes still dazed at the difficulty of the mission they had agreed to.
"I will be spearheading this team for the mission. Donna and Jessica will be our mid-range dealer, and lastly, Mika and Rosanne will be our rear support. Mika, your Ice Shield will be Rosanne's primary source of defense. Do not hesitate if you sense a threat."
"Alright, briefing is over, check your storage rings. If you need to make any last-minute purchases, stop by the exchange counter to get what you need," Markus reminded them.
**
The band of five boarded the academy's plane and took off for Oakhaven Borough, anxious about the combat task, but also excited about exploring the unknown.
The jet landed silently on the tarmac, as Colonel Vance stood by a fleet of jeeps to escort his guests from the Royal Valerian Academy.
"GRANDPA!!!! Rosanne sprinted and jumped onto Colonel Vance, having not seen him for months; she greatly missed him.
"My baby Rosey, how has school been?" Alistair held her tightly, running his hands through her hair.
"It's been fun, but the lessons are so boring, I'd rather go to the mission hall to take tasks and earn contribution points," Rosanne pouted, arms wrapping around Alistair's neck in a tight embrace.
Alistair sat Rosanne down, greeting the group of students who arrived with her.
"Good afternoon, everyone. I'm the commander in charge of this humble border town, Colonel Alistair Vance."
"Thank you all for taking care of my granddaughter the past few weeks," Alistair bowed slightly towards them, "I hope you guys can continue taking care of this troublemaker."
Alistair ruffled Rosanne's hair into a mess.
"Grandpa! I'm taking care of them okay!! I heal them whenever they get injured!" Rosanne grumbled in defiance.
"Alright, let's head to the command center. There is much to discuss with the other combat teams," Alistair boarded the jeep as they drove off into the central command building.
**
"This will be our largest combat mission to date. We have a total of 10 combat teams, each with tier 2-3 combat-capable personnel," Alistair started his briefing in the mini auditorium.
3 Academy teams were participating in this Forbidden Forest Raid: The Royal Valerian Academy, Boston Academy, and the Penn State Academy.
The remaining teams were headed by the military, consisting of tier 3-5 awakeners.
Markus's team oversaw the western zone; they were tasked with scouting while the military reclaimed land lost to the Forbidden Forest.
"Alright, let's head out. This task should last for an entire day; we'll take a break before the sun sets."
Markus took the initiative to deploy his spatial perception 50 meters from his position, with too many variables around him; his mind would be overloaded with information if he stretched his senses further.
Markus unsheathed his Black steel sword, cutting through the dense vegetation, slaying beasts while paving his way deeper into the forest.
While traversing the dense forest, Markus harvested rare herbs that could not be found within the cities, teaching his team signs to look for.
"Here, look at this patch of weed, it has crisscross patterns that's unlike other weeds you can find on the ground, this is called Stich-weed, it's a natural herb used for speeding up the closing of minor cuts," Markus explained, "In the wild, before alchemy existed, awakeners and adventurers often used these natural herbs in place of modern medicine."
They soon reached a clearing, where a cliff formation stood towering.
A small cave had been dug open at its base, with signs of beast markings.
Markus held his fist up, signaling the group to stay in position while he analyzed the situation.
An elderly man stepped out of the cave, smiling at Markus when he spotted him.
The girls knelt, their minds suppressed by the gaze of the old man looking towards Markus.
"Boy, come in, let's have a chat," The old man turned back into the cave, hands behind his back.
"What happened? Why did you guys kneel when the old man looked over?" Markus asked the group.
"We couldn't control our bodies; it felt like we were in the presence of a higher being, our mind and body were suppressed by his gaze," Donna explained.
"Alright, you guys wait here, the old man invited me in, since he didn't harm us, I can assume he's at least not a direct threat," Markus unsheathed his sword and struck a nearby tree, "You guys wait by this tree, I left a spatial imprint to deter nearby beasts, in any emergencies, head back to town and ask for reinforcements."
Markus ran after the old man, curious why someone would live in the forest surrounded by predators.
Within the cave, a simple table and chair were carved out of rocks. The old man sat with a calm demeanor, waiting for Markus to arrive.
"Boy, sheathe your sword, I mean no harm, you would be dead if I wanted to kill you." The old man released a whiff of his tier 8 aura onto Markus, causing him to break out in cold sweat.
Markus scanned the old man with his fate's eyes, confirming that he posed no hostility towards him, a mild blue color surrounding him.
"This cave was where you originated from, and I was your guardian for decades," The old man explained, "When I headed back to the core for a meeting with the elder beasts, a human found you and picked you up."
"I am a tier 8, level 87, Wind Demigod Falcon. When beasts ascend past tier 7, they gain the ability to polymorph into a human form."
"The beasts within are growing restless. Within years, they may wage war against humankind, their population grows steadily, their strength empowered by the black portal in the core region grows consistently."
"As your former guardian, I need to warn you of this impending calamity."
"You should know by now you aren't human, you're the son of gods, Chronos and Nyx, a primordial pureblood."
"You need to grow stronger, faster. The Australian calamity will fall upon North America soon."
"Why tell me all this? Why help me?" Markus asked.
"You are the fated child of prophecies. We are trapped in this bubble until you can free us from the shackles of destiny," the old man smiled warmly.
He went into the cave and took out a tier 7 blue baboon carcass, "Take this, feed it to that mythical beast around your neck, you will need its strength for what's coming."
"Consider this a meeting gift, see you around, child."
The old man switched back into his beast form and flew out of the cave, taking to the skies after his message was sent.