Carbuncle

Carbuncles are elusive and playful celestial creatures. These small doglike critters dwell in the mountains, and are only seen when they choose to be. Encountering a carbuncle is widely believed to be an extremely fortuitous occurrence. They have been dubbed “guardian of metals” by miners for their association with gold, silver, or platinum deposits. People who manage to get on the good side of a carbuncle by appealing to its bizarre code of conduct might be cured of an ailment, find a magnificent gemstone, or discover a magical secret.
       Qisma, the god of fate, fortune, and precious metals, created carbuncles to guide lucky individuals to prosperity. Each carbuncle starts as  a lump of coal, uncut gemstone, or raw ore, and is forged upon Qisma’s anvil into a divine being with a unique fraction of Qisma’s protean personality. The fiery spark that gives carbuncles life also suffuses their magical abilities. Each is able to ignite the air, heat metal, or summon clouds of acrid smoke at will. Fortunately for mortals, these powers are rarely used for mischief. Any risk that a person faces when encountering a carbuncle is usually due to the peculiar process of befriending one. However, occasionally a carbuncle will feel the need to guard a treasure from intrusion and can hinder or harm those who pursue it.
       Despite the chaotic nature of their divine creator, carbuncles have a strong sense of right and wrong. Each carbuncle lives by a unique code of conduct that might seem arbitrary and nonsensical to outsiders, even to others of its kind. They use their code of conduct to decide whether or not an individual is deserving of their blessing, but those who play along are greatly rewarded. Locals that have successfully encountered a carbuncle might be willing to share their insight into its game. Here are some examples of the steps that a treasure-hunter must carefully follow after spotting a carbuncle:

1. If you spot the carbuncle at night, you must avoid sunlight for 7 days. At midnight on the seventh day, return to the spot where the carbuncle was found. Make a ring of stones and sit at its center. Then, you must sing a song until the dawn comes. When the sun first hits your eyes, the stones will become brilliant gemstones. If your song does not make the carbuncle weep with sadness, the stones will instead become an iron cage.
2. First, trap the carbuncle with a snare, net, or lasso and leave it. Then, return to the site just before dawn on the following day and search for the object, which will be completely buried except for a small part that sticks above the ground, often at the feet of a thorny bush. You must dig there with a new shovel and in the company of an old widow holding a black cat. With each 5 feet dug in depth, the cat has to be thrown into the hole. The cat will subsequently disappear, and reappear in the hands of the widow. Repeat this procedure until the treasure is encountered. If a step is done incorrectly, the treasure will turn to stone and a cloud of noxious vapor will emerge from the hole.
3. First, find the carbuncle’s cave. It will lead you to false caves. Each cave will have a flower growing in its depths. Only eat the flower of the cave that the carbuncle lives in, where its nest is hidden. Eating the wrong flower will poison you, but the right flower will send you into a deep slumber. When you awaken, you will be back in your home. At noon on the next winter solstice, you will smell the flower. Follow the scent, and it will lead you to treasure. If you fall asleep during the journey, your sense of smell will disappear forever.