Ashcroft

After the night passed, the arranged ride arrived. Maki and Rina thanked the council and the fairies for their kindness and set off on their journey. They traveled west, through forests, asking for directions from merchants they saw while going west. As they journeyed, they encountered many wild beasts, but they managed to continue their adventure. They also encountered many caves and monster dens, so they proceeded carefully. After many days of travel, they finally reached the outskirts of a crowded and big city. They looked to their map and thought that this was the city of Ashcroft. Excited and nervous, they made their way into the city. As they explored the streets, they noticed that the people here were different from those in the other villages they had visited. Everyone looked like they were from nobility. Maki and Rina decided to find a less noble-looking part of the city. They eventually made their way to the center of the city, where they found a large restaurant and went inside. "Welcome," the waiter said, with a smile.

 As Maki and Rina sat down at a table in the restaurant, they couldn't help but feel out of place. They had always been used to the simple life in their small village, and the sounds of the crowded city were overwhelming. The waiter, a friendly man with a smile, asked Maki and Rina what they wanted. "We're new here. Can you recommend something for us?" Maki asked. The waiter's eyebrows raised in surprise. "Oh, you're new here. Where did the two of you come from?" Maki hesitated to answer, but Rina stepped in. "We're traveling across cities and villages," she said. The waiter asked, "What are the two of you searching for?" Maki didn't answer, so Rina leaned in closer and whispered to him about their journey to the village of witches. The man looked surprised and asked,"Why do two kids want to go to that village?" Maki was surprised and couldn't control the volume of her voice as she asked, "Do you know about that village?" She immediately realized she had spoken too loudly and apologized, feeling embarrassed. The waiter laughed and said, "Don't worry about it. I don't know anything about the village. I just heard its name." Maki and Rina looked at each other, disappointed. The waiter asked, "Weren't you two hungry?." Maki and Rina nodded and said, "Oh right, and our names are Maki and Rina." The waiter, whose name was Marcel, said "I can recommend the Wild Mushroom Soup. It's considered the best soup in Ashcroft". Maki and Rina thanked Marcel for his recommendation and decided to try the Wild Mushroom Soup. As they waited for their food, they couldn't help but wonder if they would ever find the village of witches. Maki had been so sure that they would find some information or a clue in Ashcroft, but it seemed like they were no closer to their goal. Rina noticed the look of disappointment on Maki's face and said. "Don't worry, Maki. We'll find the village eventually. We just have to keep searching and asking around. And in the meantime, we can still enjoy our journey and all the new places we get to see," Rina said, trying to cheer Maki up. Maki nodded, feeling a little better.

Marcel returned with their soup, and Maki and Rina dug in eagerly. As they ate, they asked Marcel if he knew of any other places they could try to find information about the village of witches. Marcel thought for a moment and then said, "There's a library in the city that might have some information about it. It's not far from here. You could try asking the librarian there." Maki and Rina's eyes lit up. A library was the perfect place to find information! They thanked Marcel and finished their soup before setting off towards the library.

The library was a large, impressive building with lots of bookshelfs. Maki and Rina approached the librarian's desk and asked if she had any information about the witches librarian, a kind-looking woman with glasses, thought for a moment before saying, "I'm not sure. But I do have a book about the history of magicians It might have some information about the witch information you're looking for, It's on the top shelf, third row from the left." Maki and Rina thanked the librarian and made their way to the indicated shelf. They searched for the book and finally found it. They pulled it down and sat at a nearby table to start reading.

 As they read, they learned about the history of magicians in the region and about the different villages and communities that existed. And finally, they found a mention of a popular witch called Celestia who was known for saving people's lives from diseases. Maki began to wonder why witches were hated in modern times and whispered to Rina, "I wonder why they treated us like that. Let's check other pages, maybe we can find some answers." So, they searched all the pages, but couldn't find any answers. They decided to ask the librarian why witches were hated. The librarian said, "Because there was an evil witch called Zara who used her powers for bad. Maki and Rina were sad to hear that all witches were hated because of Zara. They thanked the librarian again and left the library.