Alright I'm just gonna go on for a bit since Menen is still busy...
So yeah, Soren was running through the forest alchemizing everything into gold...

Or at least you wish you were. That's against the alchemist rules. Only someone like Menen would do something so silly.
You continue towards the mines. You reach the entrance, but hear somebody yelling nearby.

You should probably go check that out before getting lost in a cave. Yeah, that seems like good priority...