Chapter Forty-Four: Trust

                                    

                                          


                          
Elaine and I sat next to each other, each wrapped in a blanket and holding a cup of warm tea. I stared blankly at the small fire dancing in front of me, my mind stuck on the blurry image of what I had seen a few hours ago.  
                          
At the center of a small clearing in the forest stood a giant tree that was at least four stories tall. It's diameter was the size of a small house and it's roots were as thick as an oak tree's trunk. Though the size was impressive, what was even more shocking about the tree was the massive amount of life mana radiating from it. Had the tree not been plagued by a foreign and horrifying mana, I would have been drawn to it like a moth to a lamp. 
                          
"Are you feeling better?" Charles asked, taking a seat beside me. He had also exhausted himself in the forest after taking the lead with Ryland to keep all of the beasts away. Prince Philip and Caden did their best to help, but they were a bit preoccupied in making sure Elaine and I made it out of there in one piece. Luckily, I didn't pass out this time, but I was barely able to keep my head up as we made it just far enough so that Elaine and I were no longer affected by the mana. 
                          
"I'm okay," I said, my weak tone the least bit convincing.
                          
"Why hasn't anyone asked any questions?" I asked, looking at the rest of the guys who were busying themselves with preparing the camp sight for the night. 
                          
"We can talk about that later, right now you need to rest." Charles said, placing a hand on top of my head and flashing me one of his angelic smiles. I didn't argue, and once the tents were set up, Elaine and I went straight to bed, both our bodies and minds exhausted.
                          
The trek out of the forest was awful. While I was doing well enough to walk on my own, we often had to stop for breaks so I could regain my stamina. I did my best not to think about the horrifying mana as I walked because even the thought of it could send my mind into a panicked frenzy. How could barely coming into contact with such a mana make me so weak? Why did it affect my life mana so much, and what did it have to do with Rylan? Though my mind was itching to have these questions answered, I decided to wait until we made it back to the estate. 
                          
Once me made it back, we took a day of rest before meeting in one of the many lounge's within the Sylvester mansion. Elaine and I had spent the day reading novels to take our mind off of the strange mana, giving our brains some time to rest before we met to recount the recent events. 
                          
"Are you sure you're up to talking about it?" Caden asked, looking to Elaine with a worried expression. 
                          
"We can't put it off anymore, even if it's hard." I said, trying my best to look confident. There have been many times in both my current and past life that I have felt terrified, however, nothing up to this point could compare to the sensations I felt in the forest. It wasn't an emotion, but it wasn't a physical pain either. It was a strange mix of both physical and mental suffering that sent me into a daze as my mind and body shut down after being overwhelmed with the awful feeling. 
                          
"What did you mean when you said that the tree was dying?" Ryland asked with a shaky voice. Though he hadn't felt the mana like Elaine and I had, he was just as unnerved as we were. 

                          
"It was-" It was hard to finish the sentence as a the memories flooded back, sending a flash of pain through my skull. 
                          
"It was the mana. The mana was killing the tree, no that's not right. It was consuming it." I said, my voice shaky.
                          
"Consuming it?" Charles asked, leaning forward in his chair with furrowed brows.
                          
"Did it do the same to you guys?" Ryland panicked, his voice strained, each word weighed down with guilt.