As the sun rose above the horizon, Ingrid peered at the frantic movements happening outside the Church, with people running in and out, occasionally exclaiming at one another. Ingrid was a naturally curious young woman, but she felt that she also had a duty to investigate the happenings as part of her official role as a Rune Knight, enforcers of peace and the sword of justice, or so she thought.

Despite being a lowly Page, the lowest rank possible for a Rune Knight, Ingrid was able to convince others into believing that she was of higher stature and authority than she actually was, through her mannerism and simply the way she presented herself. As she calmly marched over to the front steps of the church, Ingrid noticed a younger, tall man wearing the outfit of a priest giving orders to the people pouring in and out of the building.

Once the commotion quieted down a bit, Ingrid walked over to directly in front of the priest and introduced herself. "Greetings, my name is Ingrid Freeland and I am a Rune Knight, sworn to defend the good and vanquish evil. May I offer my assistance in this matter, sir?"

The priest looked up and acknowledged Ingrid's presence and introduction with a polite nod. "Thank you for assistance, Ms Freeland, this is indeed a dire situation, one that is getting out of hand by the minute. People are filling ill and there simply isn't enough space in the hospital to accommodate them anymore, so the hospital workers are bringing the ill to the church."

Ingrid held her head high and responded to the priest's explanation of the situation, "I see, is there anything I can help with? Possibly tend to the sick? Gather supplies? I could possibly even go to another town to find a doctor if you think that might be worth pursuing."

The priest listened intently before opening his mouth to speak once again, "That would all be helpful, but I think I know how to deal with this illness if my memory proves to be accurate. I remember from a long time ago, there was an outbreak of illness much like this one, and I think that there is a herb that can cure the sickness right away. It grows under the Blessia Tree and it can be found in the East Forest. If you would not mind, I would greatly appreciate it if you could go out to the forest and pick as many as you can."

Ingrid nodded and spoke to the priest once more, "Certainly, I will be back as soon as I can". The priest muttered a thank you before tending to another overworked hospital worker who demanded his attention.

Ingrid bowed out of the way, walking in the other direction, towards the forest, hoping that she could do her part in resolving this crisis and that the priest was correct in his assumption that such herbs could truly cure the illness. Worrying thoughts jumped around in her head, particularly that the illness might prove to be a deadly and/or a contagious strain, but she kept dutifully marching on even with the worries on the back of her mind.

Wordcount: 553/1000

As Ingrid walked over to the forest, she was taken aback at the sheer size of the forest. It seemed like everything she could see was ancient and much larger than any human civilization that has propped up in the nearby area, both in the past and the future. Ingrid walked over to the edge of the forest, surveying the nearby area for the herbs and flower that the priest mentioned. As she thought back on the conversation she had with the priest, she remembered that she had never gotten the man's name, despite giving him her own name.

Ingrid paced around the outskirts of the forest, looking for a shrub or flower that matched the priest's description, before realizing that her search was going nowhere. Ingrid did not quite want to venture too far into the forest in case she got lost, after all, she had heard quite a few stories of people who had wandered into the forest and never came back. Despite these intrusive, negative thoughts of worry, Ingrid steeled herself, knowing that she had to go in and find the necessary herbs, as there were people counting on her back at the church.

Moving deeper into the forest, it was suddenly darker, which made it slightly more difficult to parse out the necessary foliage. As Ingrid walked inside the forest, with her face firmly tilted towards the ground, she noticed an unusual flower growing out of a shrub. It was slightly difficult to notice due to the shade provided by a large tree above the flower, but nonetheless, Ingrid thought that she had found what she was looking for.

Ingrid attempted to pick the flower but was pricked by a thorn. Ignoring the pain, she was able to successfully harvest it from the shrub. As she looked around, she noticed that there were similar flowers growing underneath large trees and she went from tree to tree, collecting as many flowers as she could carry, before deciding to return to the church.

As Ingrid returned to the church, she noticed that the priest was no longer outside. She entered the building but was quickly dazed by a rush of people that attempted to exit at approximately the same time. Thankfully, the priest noticed her quickly and rushed over, thanking Ingrid, "This is exactly what we're looking for. Thank you so much, Ingrid, your assistance is much appreciated. I must tend to the patients but I would love for you to join us for supper at the church tonight". Ingrid smiled and nodded, before handing over the flowers. Ingrid, feeling that her duty was fulfilled, decided to leave the church and search for any other people that she could help.

Wordcount = 1011/1000