"Peace isn't the absence of war. It's the presence of a choice not to join one."
—Kazuto Aoi
Dawn – Unfamiliar Bells
The birdsong didn't come that morning.
Instead, Kazuto woke to the faint sound of a bell. Not the sharp clang of danger—but something softer. Hollow. Repetitive.
Ting. Ting. Ting.
He sat up slowly, Mira still curled beside the fire in her thick moss-lined bedroll. Rook snored like an old bear near the oven, while Lyla—half-awake—was sharpening her knife with eyes still closed.
The bell chimed again.
Kazuto stood, pulled on his cloak, and followed the sound through the early mist.
He found the man standing near the outer marker stones—where Kazuto had placed a small woven charm made from pine needles to signify "peaceful land." The stranger held no weapons. Only a long staff of polished yew, capped with an iron ring where a simple bell swayed.
He was older—mid-forties perhaps—with a shaved head and crimson robes patched with mud and leaves.
He bowed deeply the moment he saw Kazuto.
"May I enter?" the monk asked.
Kazuto hesitated.
Then nodded.
"Only if you want warmth and tea."
[Camp Codex – Visitor Detected]
A traveler has entered the aura of your camp.
Visitor Disposition: Neutral
Risk Level: Low
▸ New camp effect unlocked: "Neutral Ground" – Camp zone will suppress hostility from most humanoid NPCs unless provoked.
Morning – Fire Between Strangers
The monk introduced himself simply as "Dharun."
He accepted tea with a nod of thanks, then sat beside the fire without ceremony. Mira remained half-hidden behind Kazuto, eyes cautious but unafraid.
Dharun's staff rested across his lap, the bell quiet now.
"You live here?" Dharun asked.
"I do."
"With… children?" he nodded gently toward Mira.
"Not mine," Kazuto replied. "But yes. They live here now, too."
Dharun smiled, but his eyes held something distant. "Strange. A peaceful place. No walls. No swords."
Kazuto stirred the pot, adding crushed dandelion and pine syrup.
"That's the point."
Midday – The War Outside the Woods
They ate together—herb rice, toasted root, slices of wild melon. Dharun barely touched his bowl.
Instead, he spoke.
"There is a city two weeks north. Or what's left of it," he began. "Fire. Rot. The old king has fallen. A usurper wears gold armor and calls himself Emperor of Flame. The temples burn. The old gods are chased from their shrines."
Kazuto said nothing.
Dharun looked at him. "I tell you this not to alarm you—but because your camp will not stay hidden forever. Rumors already stir of a 'hearth in the greenwood.' Of a place where no blades are drawn."
Kazuto glanced at Mira. Then at the trees beyond the clearing.
"I didn't build this to be part of a war," he said.
"No one does," Dharun replied. "But peace, once known, draws those who've never tasted it."
[System Update – World Awareness Unlocked]
Due to your growing camp presence and first external contact, World Tier I information is now available.
▸ Region: Wyrmwood Expanse
▸ Factional Conflict Detected: Flame Court vs. Free Orders
▸ Current Threat Radius: None (camp remains undetected by major powers)
▸ Rumor Level: Mild – your camp is known in traveler tales as "The Kind Fire."_
Afternoon – The Monk's Offer
"I am returning to the south," Dharun said as he repacked his satchel. "But I leave this with you."
He handed Kazuto a scroll sealed with wax and twine.
It bore no crest. Only a symbol: a tree split down the middle.
"It's a map of hidden shrines," Dharun explained. "Not all gods have fled. Some merely wait. And some protect, not destroy."
Kazuto accepted the scroll but said nothing.
"You are not a fighter," Dharun said quietly. "But you are dangerous in your own way. Keep the fire alive. That's harder than any sword."
Dusk – Echoes After Departure
Dharun left at sunset.
Kazuto watched him vanish into the blue shadow of the trees.
Later, while Rook tended the oven and Lyla practiced throwing knives at a log target, Kazuto sat by the fire with the map unrolled.
Mira peeked at it, then pointed at a symbol drawn near their current area—an old mountain with the word "sleeping flame" marked beneath it.
"Want to go?" Kazuto asked.
She shook her head.
Then pointed at the camp.
Then made a square in the dirt again—this time bigger, with more windows.
Kazuto smiled.
"Right. We've still got building to do."
[Camp Codex – Milestone Achieved]
End of Volume I: The Star in the Forest
▸ Camp Morale: High
▸ Companions: 3
▸ Camp Traits: Gentle Hearth, Builder of Refuge, Neutral Ground
▸ Next Upgrade Goal: Woodcraft Tier II
You've built a home, but the world has begun to notice. The fire you started may soon guide more than just the lost.