Verbergen

Verbergen (フェアベルゲン) was the nation of beastmen located deep within the Sea of Trees of Tortus.

Layout
Verbergen was surrounded by a barrier of living trees, each one at least thirty meters tall. Its entrance was a massive gate with thick trunks interlocked together to form an arch, and the double doors enshrined within were also made of wood.

Numerous massive trees dotted the landscape, a dwelling carved into each one. Warm lamplight poured out of the windows that had been cut into the trunks. Thick branches, wide enough for dozens of people to walk across abreast, linked the treetops together into one big aerial highway. Vines served as pulleys, allowing for huge elevators big enough to pull up carts. There were even wooden aqueducts, carrying water from tree to tree.

Verbergen and the neighboring villages were surrounded by verdren crystals that were used to ward off the fog that was produced by the forest. They were also somewhat effective at warding off certain monsters.

Ideology
The citizens of Verbergen initially did not follow any religion. This was due to most religions imprinting the philosophy that beastmen were an inferior species to all other races. When Verbergen was restored by Kaori Shirasaki after it was destroyed by a demon invasion, the beastmen worshipped her as a goddess and began a new following unofficially known as "Kaorism".

All beastmen respected the circle of life and death. It was customary in Verbergen to bury the dead under the roots of trees. That way they could once again become one with nature. Having fulfilled their purpose in life, beastmen were returned to the forest in death, so that they could create new life and ensure the continued prosperity of the woods.

History
Verbergen was established long after one of the Liberators, Lyutillis Haltina, created her labyrinth in the Sea of Trees. She explained to a beastman elder that they should not oppose those that managed to have completed the Great Labyrinths.

Since then, Verbergen has held a vague law that simply stated if anyone bearing a crest belonging to one of the Great Labyrinths were to appear in the Sea of Trees, the beastmen were not to oppose that person regardless of who they were, and to guide them wherever they wished to go if they seemed nice.

The elders of Verbergen came into contact with Hajime Nagumo and Yue after they were guided by the exiled Haulia Tribe. They learned the truth about the Liberators and the gods of Tortus from Hajime and offered to guide him to the Grand Tree, but He refused since he already made a deal with the Haulia for their help.

Verbergen later came under attack by the demons after one of them conquered another of the labyrinths and used the magic he obtained from it to control monsters. Their objective was to get the beastmen to lead them to the labyrinth that resided in the Sea of Trees. Verbergen was destroyed and many of its people were killed, but the demons were defeated thanks to the efforts of the reborn Haulia Tribe.

Unfortunately, many of the surviving beastmen were captured by the Hoelscher Empire and turned into slaves. Verbergen was soon restored, however, thanks to Kaori Shirasaki using restoration magic, and the enslaved beastmen were able to return home thanks to the combined efforts of Hajime and the Haulia.

Elders

 * Ulfric Heipyst (Chief Elder)
 * Guze
 * Jin Vanton
 * Lua
 * Mao
 * Zel

Others

 * Altina Heipyst
 * Regin Vanton
 * Gil
 * Gouto (Deceased)
 * Zam