MARCH 12, 2025 - 14:00 HOURS (2:00 PM)

The Misty Woods, Nibel, Gensokyo

"The haze of the Misty Woods deceived all"

"Those lost within were never found"

And yep, the Spirit Tree's words nailed it. Traversing through the Misty Woods caused Marisa's head to spin with every mistook path. The fog didn't help either. Oddly enough, Ori felt like he knew the way, so Marisa had to resort to walking again instead of flying around. Every time they reached a dead end, a new path would confusingly open up behind them. There were also countless amounts of spikes and traps, thankfully avoidable, but annoying either way. Some places Marisa had to stay behind to have Ori progress later due to their height difference. Wherever the trio could fly together though, Ori had recently acquired a feather dropped from Kuro, allowing him to glide over large gaps in the terrain. There were also Decayed enemies that were straight-up annihilated by Marisa's magic. Sein added more firepower to it.

At last, the trio managed to light the Shrouded Lantern, dissipating the remaining fog in the Misty Woods. By doing so, they have acquired the key to the Forlorn Ruins, otherwise known as the Gumon Seal.

Sein congratulated Marisa and Ori, "The Gumon Seal has been revealed! The Element of Winds is deep within the Forlorn Ruins, south of this place. It's not too far from here, I can show you the way."

Marisa said to Sein, "First Ori leads, guess you are next. When can I do that?"

Sein assured, "Maybe after the last Element is restored, then maybe."

Marisa was a little frustrated, "What? But that's like near the end of our quest!"

Ori could tell from Marisa that she was frustrated. Ori then lifted both his arms together towards Marisa, indicating he wanted to hold the human's arm. To seeing this, Marisa sighed, calmed a bit, kneeled down, and extended her left hand to Ori, while holding her broom on her right hand. Ori would then lightly clasp her arm. The spirit then climbed onto Marisa's shoulder, unexpectedly to Marisa's surprise.

Marisa said to Ori, "Ah- alright take it easy Ori! Sure, let's follow Sein now."

15:00 HOURS (3:00 PM)

Forlorn Ruins

"Once lush and green, now covered in ice"

"Those who did not escape paid with their lives"

South of the Misty Woods was not that far, but it sure was difficult due to the terrain. Marisa, Ori, and Sein have arrived at the Forlorn Ruins, finding its atmosphere almost exclusively snow and ice. Once they reached the door to the ruins, they used the Gumon Seal to open the doors, leading to the inside of the ruins.

Marisa once again was in awe by her surroundings albeit shivering from the air, "...Wh- Wh- Whoa... Fascinating..."

Sein would educate the spirit and the human, "The Forlorn Ruins are where the Gumon live. They build miraculous structures and infuse them with the light of the Spirit Tree, which keeps them safe."

Marisa was looking around to see those akin to Gumo from earlier, frozen in ice. Then she looked at the structures of stone building blocks with bits of glowing orange lines making distinct patterns on the stones.

Sein continued, "Oh no... These Gumon were frozen, unable to escape! When the Element of Winds lost its light, these ruins must have turned into their grave..."

Marisa looked at a frozen Gumon in front of her, feeling a bit of emptiness and sadness. She extended her hand to place her palm on a corpse, but quickly recoiled due to the sheer frost of the surface of the ice. The chilly air around her didn't help much either.

Marisa exclaimed, "C- Cold! Too cold! Sein, we need to restore this Element, and fast!"

Sein then floated deeper in the ruins with Marisa and Ori following. The wisps guided them to another orb-looking artifact, known as a 'Light Vessel'.

Sein said, "The Gumon were crafty inventors. They had forseen a bright future that never came. Look, this Light Vessel, they were able to store some of the light of the Spirit Tree within this! We need it on our journey."

Marisa nodded and took hold of the Light Vessel orb under her arm. The path to find the Element of Winds was treacherous. Not only were the Ruins feeling cramped for Marisa, although she could still float around her broom, but the hazards were not spikes this time. They were burning hot surfaces that probably had temperatures high enough to roast a chicken in seconds. That would not go well with either spirit or human skin, so Ori and Marisa had to be careful. Enemies of the Decay were also present within the Ruins, and surprisingly some rogue youkai. How youkai got themselves in the ruins is a question better worried about later.

Continuing with the mission, they stopped at a shrine with what appeared to be a socket for a round object. Perhaps this was what the Light Vessel was for, so Marisa placed it in the socket.

Meanwhile, outside the entrance, Gumo had made his way to the Forlorn Ruins. Upon entering, he saw his fallen kin, frozen, deceased. He mourned for the loss of his kin.

Back to the trio, they would come across another frozen corpse of a Gumon.

Sein pondered, "I wonder if Gumo knows of their fate. I hope he can forgive us, that we live and they are gone."

Marisa responded, "Didn't he help get us back to Alice's house? His heart must have changed after this previous act of theivery. How did that happen?"

Sein informed, "Ori saved Gumo, who was trying to kill him with rocks back in the Moon Grotto. Some rubble fell on Gumo himself, and Ori showed him kindness when he freed Gumo from the rubble, which led to the change of heart."

Marisa concluded, "So there might be hope for him!"

Sein would agree with this, however the trio continued on the path. They finally reached the Heart of the Forlorn Ruins, where the Element of Winds is stored.

Sein would speak on this, "The Element of Winds lies before us, stored in the heart of this place. These ruins are all that is left of the Gumon, reminding us of their fate. Losing the ones that he loved, Gumo is the last of his kind."

Unknown to the trio, Gumo made his way just a few meters from their position, eavesdropping on what Sein was saying. He only felt heartbroken of the truth Sein said.

Sein continued, "Ori, Marisa, we shall bring back the light! For Nibel and the memory of the Gumon, let us restore the Element of Winds."

Marisa nodded, but then stalled, "So... Wait, you activate that thing, we're gonna run again?!"