Call of Nature

Remember what the fox said when you freed him?  Something about talking to the Dryad about breaking the curse on the Baron's daughter?  That will be our main goal today.  But first, head to the castle.  Go back to the Healer's house and then go one screen north.  You'll be at the castle gates, with Karl, the gatekeeper, pacing back and forth above the portcullis.  Talk to him (this is one of the NPCs who won't give you points for asking about his name--ask about the Baron or something else of his interest instead) (5) and then ask him to open the gate.  When he does, head north through the gate into the courtyard (1).

The courtyard is probably empty, so go east to the stables.  As you approach the stable, the Stable Master will ask if you're looking for work.  Answer yes--he'll give you a rake and you'll start cleaning up (5).  After you finish, he'll give you five silver.  Not bad for a few hours of honest work.

It should be mid-morning by now, and when you go back to the courtyard, you might see the Weapon Master practicing his swordplay (you can leave and return to this screen repeatedly until he appears).  If you approach him, he'll stop (so he doesn't risk hitting you) and you can ask about whatever you wish (1).  Fighters (or anybody who has the Parry ability) can buy a lesson (F3) from him for a gold to practice combat skills until you run out of SP.  You can do this once per day, and it's an excellent way to work on the skills you need to work on, without worrying about dying.  Just be sure to rest afterwards, or to have a Vigor Potion handy, since your SP will be either 0 or 1 when you're finished.

There isn't much else worth noting here.  The guard at the barracks to the west of the courtyard will only tell you to go away, and the guards at the castle door to the north will also turn you away.  So you can just leave the castle grounds.  From the Healer's house, go west and you'll find a centaur (Hilde's father, Heinrich) working on the small farm.  Ask about whatever you like (1), and you may hear him mention something about the Brigand Leader.  Ask about the leader (3) and he'll tell you something rather interesting about the seemingly ruthless leader.  When you're done talking to him, continue west for two screens, then go south three screens.

Note:  While traveling through the generic forest screens, you may encounter a monster.  You can fight it or continue to run--you'll be able to outrun anything except a Red Saurus (though EGA users can press F4 to make the Hero run even faster, and VGA users can adjust the game speed).

You'll find a white stag grazing in the forest, and he'll run west when you arrive.  Follow him for two screens until you reach the Dryad's corner.  Approach the tree, and the Dryad will emerge from it and ask if you are one with the woods.  Tell her that you are (1) and she'll ask for a seed from the Spore-Spitting Spirea (try saying that five times fast) of the north.  Go east to the place where you first saw the stag, and then north until you reach a corner.  From here, go east one screen and then north one more screen, and you'll find the Spirea growing on the cliff face, tossing a seed back and forth to each other.  You aren't one of them, so they won't toss it to you--you'll have to find another way to get it.

• Fighters:  Just like with the Healer's ring, you'll need to throw rocks at the seed (VGA users:  click the rock from your inventory just above the plant that is holding the seed).  A moving target is harder to hit than a stationary one, so it will probably take you some time before you get it (unless you've done a bit of practicing), but eventually you'll knock the seed out of the air and onto the ground.
  
• Magic Users:  Again, Fetch will be your best friend here.  It'll be more difficult to get the seed than it was to get the nest, but you'll succeed soon enough.
• Thieves:  You can climb the cliff and catch the seed (click the Hand icon just above the plant), or throw rocks until you hit it.  It's up to you.
  

When you have the seed (8), go back to the Dryad.  Running south and a little west, you'll find the stag again, so you can follow it to the Dryad's corner once more.  Approach the tree and the Dryad will appear, asking if you have the seed.  Say yes, and you'll give it to her (7).  She will then tell you how to break the curse that the fox talked about, and give you a shopping list of ingredients to take to the Healer.  Jot those down if you like, but since you're using the walkthrough, it's not necessary.

After the Dryad has gone back into her tree, an acorn will fall from one of her branches.  Get the acorn (1) and you have the first ingredient for the Dispel Potion!

Click here to visit yesterday.  Click here to find the rest of those ingredients.