The white forest is not just her godmother's domain.

The forest's shoreline that was bordered with large aquatic trees acted as fencing wires against trespassers.

Long before Xenia Verdant came to the Daryan town, the white mangrove forest was notorious for decaying odors.

The barks of the mangrove trees may be white but if looked more closely, the trunk looked as if it has splotches of blood.

There was even a redder mangrove tree in the midst of the whitest trees which looked like a mangled person.

And adding to the creepy vibe of the habitat, the white mangrove's green leaves were so dark and shady that anyone would exclaim that the leaves are as black as smog.

Thus, the people of Darya called it the Bloody Forest because the stench of death was widespread in the area.

Although the forest was known for its grotesque qualities, Alist's father and godmother made great use of the forest.

Xenia wanted to live secluded from the rest of the residents so when she told Kyan about living within the forest, he was shocked that the old lady would consider living in that area.

Both of them where positive about the forest's magical properties as well as the trees being actually alive.

In her days of youth, Alist's godmother devoted her eidetic memory on botanical research and became the most knowledgeable Earth Specialist when it came not just to Eudaria's plant kingdom but all of Deo's as well.

Xenia was used to the uniqueness of these trees, or the Crimson Widow Mangles (A/N: C-rank Mana Creature).

In its whitish state, the mangle remains in its dormant state and with its pungent corpse odor due to the peculiar decomposition process it undergoes.

The white mangroves' trunks become crimson red when mana is consumed satisfactorily or heavily invested them.

The crimson mangles, also known as Red Widows, expand larger and stronger compared to its initial form.

Their tentacle-like roots pack offensive strength and power as they are able to strangle any living creature that crosses their territory and suck out all their mana.

Such plants do not get taken care of due to its finicky nature which was why these were unknown to most.

The Red Widows may be wild  and greedy mana covetors but these can also be obedient to anyone that generously lent them mana.

Whether one likes it or not, the mangrove's roots will try to follow their benefactors with their sneaky crawling roots.

The gratuity of the mangles can be exchanged for a subordinate bond contract.

Therefore, Xenia and Kyan Glassheart were the only ones with a bond contract over the entire mangrove forest.

They planned on having the reddish species as town patrollers so that the town will be more secure and safer.

As for the white and undeveloped mangles, Alist's godmother and father did their best to supply the saplings with their own mana or mana augmenters (A/N: mana items that fills up the mana plate) .

This is done so that the plants would not grow up to be greedy leechers and vicious slaughterers.

Although there was no one else in the Glassheart family that they knew who made a bond between the mangrove trees, Alist was an exception.

She may have given off some of her magic energy to the young saplings every time she passes by and curried all of the forest mangles' affections, but she wasn't able to because of her godmother's well-cherished birthday gift: the Dafevrys circlet.

As the magical plant that was shaped into a valuable artifact, the Dafevrys is a majestic S-rank species that rules with a higher rank in the plant kingdom.

There are three types of dafevrys treasures that are known to the Specialists of Deo: Ardor (fire type), Icelynn (ice type), and Vermeil (earth type).

The two other dafevrys were mentioned in the novel as one of the main magic objects used by the hero and heroine while the Vermeil one is different.

It could not easily be obtained by human Specialists as the item's origins can only be found in elven woods and only elven craftsmen have the method of making one.

The Vermeil Dafevrys' first appearance is in its golden color but when wearer's affinity for earth or nature is enhanced, the dafevrys will shed its gilted skin and reveal fresh evergreen laurel leaves.

The green dafevrys has two main cheats: Botanical Link and Veiled Mercy.

Able to disguise or blend in any environment, Alist's Dafevrys looked like one of the embroidered black laurel patterns on her sleeves.

However, the mangrove trees were familiar with the aura shown by the majestic plant so there was no problem with having them follow Alist's small requests despite not having a familiar contract.

Alist was able to eavesdrop on every plant's conversations that she didn't need an Earth Specialist to do so but even if she can hear them, she avoided talking them as she did not like disrupting the interactions of the silent kingdom.

She only approaches the mangrove trees with the intention of copying the kind example shown by her godmother and father towards the town's covert benefactors.

Her sense of respect and gratitude was acknowledged by the whole forest that the mangles believed she was worthy of owning the kingly Dafevrys.

Aside from Botanical Link, the circlet is capable of becoming a life-saving shield.

Unlike any magical item, the Dafevrys has a life and mind of its own so this was also classified as a growth type artifact.

Hewn from the branch of the resplendent tree, the circlet served as the rightful clone that follows Alist everywhere.

The main entity can shift its original point of view from branch to branch, from scattered leaves to leaves, and from artifact to artifact.

In its ornamented state, it cannot transmit its thoughts via the cheat because of the inadequate mana it currently has.

Mana was also needed by the Dafevrys in order to generate the second cheat called Veiled Mercy.

This ability is due to the nature of it being a growth type wherein with larger mana content, the artifact can produce a bush of greenish laurel leaves that acted as a veil that deflects an extremely fatal attack.

Veiled Mercy can never be activated at times when Alist accidentally trips on a rock, gets playfully hit by her sister, or was caught up in a tight situation where she can handle the combat match herself because the main body is capable of discerning the situation especially after twelve years of accompanying its keeper in her childhood.

A cloak of leaves is thrown over her in cases of unsuspectingly lethal surprise attacks, times when she is off her guard, and being in a distressing position where she needs someone to save her.

When the circlet's mana is drained staggeringly, its protection is worn off.

The cheat's duration exceeds depending on the mana contained in the magical item.

Currently, the blue haired girl was strolling by the coast line filled with thorny stems of sapling mangles.

She heard the cries of the little plants that beg for her mana but she did not do so because they were fed just yesterday.

Adding to that, the Dafevrys' authority was in play.

Seeing no one else in sight, Alist treaded with her light-blue hair and eyes shining under the afternoon sun.

Growing up, her parents watched over their daughter transform into her chameleon-like facade.

They noticed their daughter's normal cerulean hair change to its sky-bluish color which was similar to Andrina's.

Alist's eyes would even change from hues of black glint to navy blue to kyanite blue to aquamarine blue.

After observing these features, the Glassheart couple concluded that their daughter has hair photobleaching and sectoral heterochromia (an eye condition where its colors change depending on light exposure).

Alist's appearance was that unique to the point her parents treated her as the family's walking sundial or time clock due to her day-to-night look.

It may seem laughable to see her hair and eye color chameleonize from time to time but out of concern, Andrina and Kyan made their daughter mask her opalescent blue bleach with Xenia's hair dye concoction so that it will be useful for protective disguising.

On this day, Alist removed her daily colorant as she planned on disguising herself this time.

She boarded a wagon by the waterfront station, heading towards the Daryan Harbor.

Amidst the cries of seagulls and the loquacious fishermen her ride passed by, the harbor was lively and booming of aquatic trade including commercial fish, bartered clams, and drift glass jewelry.

It was also teemed with newly-arrived visitors and tourists, flocking every shop and inn available to them.

Alist could even catch a glimpse of her go-to seafood restaurant situated by the quay side.

When the wagon was finally left with one passenger, only then did the elderly coach spoke in a respectful tone.

"Anything to declare, Distinguished Miss?"

Alist raised an eyebrow and observed the coach for a while.

She pulled out a black drift crystal card.

The coach's expression remained unchanged as if he was used to the sight of the flat sea glass.

Or rather, more used to the sight of the frequent passenger.

Convinced of what he was shown, he remained silent and swiftly but steadily directed the horse to the passively agreed destination.

The horse's clip-clops and the wagon's creaking sound resonated along the way until Alist probed with an unrecognizable condescending voice that was deeper than her usual intonation.

"What's the situation in the port, Frane?"

The coachman named Frane paused for a moment before giving a brief description. "Currently, the formerly empty lagoon was filled with a variety of Crystal Abalones due to yesterday's whirlpool. A few red ones were spotted in the area so today's Covetor Sea Game will be undoubtedly anticipated. Even the strongest Covetors from last year's competition are back. Twisted Trapper is one of them. Is there anything else you need to know, Miss Victory?"

Alist kept staring at the distance. "None so far. It's gonna be my win again anyways."

Victory is Alist's alias whenever she joins Covetor games.

Becoming a full-fledged Covetor is her third preparation against the shade followers because of the job's perks.

Being a Covetor allows one to gain access to the occupation's services such as rare goods, swappable mana items, trade secrets, information exchange, and a lot more.

Covetors are valued based on the types of mana vessels they have expertise on.

These mana vessels can be mana creatures, Specialists themselves, mana objects, and terrains.

Alist spent three years as a Crystal Abalone Covetor.

When she showed Frane her black drift glass card, it verified her identity as a VIP in the area.