Quest (1)
How many times in my life had I felt terror like this? That was the thought racing through my mind as we ran for our lives, heels kicking up dirt behind us.
In the past, that kind of overwhelming pressure would have frozen me to the spot like a nail driven into the earth. But after surviving day after day in the Forest of the Four Seasons, staring down horrors had become a regular occurrence. Survival instinct had long since overridden paralyzing fear, allowing my body to make snap decisions before panic could take root.
"Haaah... haah..."
"Wheeze... huff..."
Just how far had we sprinted? My legs trembled violently beneath me. My lungs burned as if filled with smoldering embers, making every single breath an agonizing chore. I had been diligently building up my muscular strength through daily workouts, but cardio was another beast entirely—there had never been an easy regimen for raw stamina out here. If I'd known this would happen, I would've spent more time jogging during our expeditions, I thought with a pang of regret.
Then again, who on earth could have predicted a monster like that popping out?
A pair of pupils so colossal they spanned the entire width of the lake. An arm thick and massive enough to rival a roaring waterfall. Even though I hadn't seen its face, its sheer scale defied comprehension. Just what kind of abomination had made that lake its home? My mind couldn't even begin to fathom it.
Did the mana leaking from the recording marble wake it up?
Wrestling with the thought, I glanced around to survey the party. Fortunately, no one had been left behind. But every single face among us was drained of color, pale as sheets—doubtless from the sight of that colossal horror. The crushing oppression radiating from a creature of that scale was impossible to put into words. If we hadn't already met the dragon Vanir before, we probably would have wet our pants on the spot.
Come to think of it, wasn't there something that managed to invade Vanir's lair...?
This forest was teeming with apex predators whose sheer might could rival an ancient dragon. The monstrosity we had just disturbed was almost certainly in that very same league.
Catching my breath, I examined our surroundings. To prevent the creature from pursuing us down the water, I had steered our flight deep into the dense woods rather than following the riverbank. I had no idea where we had ended up, but since the environment hadn't violently shifted into another biome, we were definitely still within the forest sector.
"Whew... Is everyone all right?"
[A bit dizzy, but otherwise unharmed,] Cain replied.
I had scooped him up in my palm right as we bolted. Looking at the others, they were panting heavily, but no one was injured. In fact, Ludwig looked the freshest of all of us, having ridden atop Largo the whole way.
"Ggobongi. What about the thread?"
"Still have."
"Good work."
Thanks to Ggobongi dutifully maintaining the line of World Tree Silk, there was no danger of losing our way. Despite the harrowing scare, our exploration could still proceed without major issue.
I called for a five-minute rest and checked the time through the Gallery interface.
We can explore a little further before heading back.
It was currently around 1:30 PM, leaving plenty of daylight before dusk. Even factoring in an hour for the return trek, we had roughly three hours left to explore. I hoped we might stumble upon something useful, though I quickly dismissed the thought so as not to jinx us.
"Mr. Cain."
[Speak.]
"Do you happen to know anything about the monster we just ran into? Ludwig didn't seem to recognize it."
Taking advantage of the break, I pressed Cain for answers. This forest was populated by mythical entities like the Sky Whale and ancient dragons. It seemed more than likely that the creature back at the lake was another creature straight out of myth.
[I cannot say for certain. Judging by the webbed fingers and the scales, it appears reptilian in nature.]
"So it's not some legendary beast from mythology?"
[It very well could be. However, underwater combat was never my forte, so I never participated in subjugating such creatures.]
"Could something like that even be killed?"
[Humanity prospered precisely because we hunted down every beast of that caliber.]
As expected, humanity really is the scariest monster on Earth. Seeing how they hunted down dragons with mere weapons made that abundantly clear.
I let out a sigh and scratched the back of my head. If we wanted to increase our chances of escaping this forest, even by a fraction, we might eventually have to subjugate that monster too.
"Even back in the Mythic Age, bringing down something like that must have been nearly impossible, right?"
[A Hero could have managed it.]
"And that Hero was you, Mr. Cain."
[Humble as I am, yes.]
"So what do I need to do to become strong like you?"
[Why not take this opportunity to place your faith in Lady Aris?]
At those words, Ludwig's interest visibly piqued, and he stared intently at me. Even beneath his usual stoic expression, his gaze practically screamed, Hurry up and accept Aris into your heart!
Not a chance in hell. Aris was the prime suspect responsible for dropping me into this living hell in the first place. Kidnapping someone who was quietly living a normal life after losing his parents—faith? Devotion? Don't make me laugh.
"Forget it. I'd rather find another way. The Chosen of Aris aside, people like Ash and the Heavenly Demon got strong without praying to gods."
There was no rule saying strength only came from religious devotion. I had no idea where the ceiling of my talent lay, but I planned to push it to the bitter end. Even if my build ended up looking utterly unhinged—like some of the commenters had joked—it didn't matter. Winning was all that counted.
"Anyway, break time's over. Everyone up! We're moving out!"
Five minutes had passed, so it was time to march. I called out to the group.
However, an unforeseen snag arose: Wonmo and Tyrano.
"Kyuuuu..."
"Ppiiii..."
"What's wrong? Sleepy?"
Perhaps because they were still babies, both Wonmo and Tyrano were blinking their heavy eyelids drowsily. Then again, cubs were known to spend over half the day sleeping, so it was only natural. I hoisted them onto Largo's back. Once this expedition was over, I would definitely need to reconsider who came along.
They usually take about an hour for an afternoon nap.
In the end, we had no choice but to take a forced one-hour halt. Heading back now was risky with that lake monster potentially lurking about. It made far more sense to use this clearing as a forward outpost and scout the immediate perimeter on foot.
"Ludwig, let's secure the area first."
Bugs and venomous snakes could easily crawl in, so we cleared out the camp. We raked aside fallen leaves and sprayed insect repellent across the boundary. That should do the trick. Once the perimeter was tidy, I smiled in satisfaction.
"I'm going to scout the area nearby. If anything happens, let me know with this."
"And this is...?"
"A marble that makes noise. It's normally a Security Alarm Marble, but it'll work as a flare."
I handed him the Security Alarm Marble to serve as an emergency signal. Without flares or radios, it was our best option.
With preparations complete, I set off to scout. Since I didn't have the World Tree Silk on me, I had no intention of wandering too far.
Doesn't look like there's anything special about this section of the woods.
No peculiar glowing flora, just an ordinary-looking forest. Still, I didn't drop my guard. If an ambush came, Ppareumbo clinging to my back would handle it. I carved notches into tree trunks along the way to ensure I wouldn't lose my bearings.
Flicker! Glimmer!
"Hm?"
A sudden glint caught my eye near the trunk of a tree. And it wasn't just that one tree—other trunks nearby exhibited the exact same faint glow, mostly centered at mid-height.
Is there some kind of phosphorescent mushroom growing there?
Wary of potential threats, I kept my guard up as I approached the nearest tree. Where the glimmer came from, there was a hollowed-out knothole situated right at eye level.
Flash!
Perhaps because the hollow was shrouded in shadow, my ocular lantern automatically engaged. It was genuinely baffling how useful a pair of glowing cybernetic eyes could be in the strangest situations. Peering inside, I checked to see what was causing the luminescence.
...Acorns?
They were acorns. A staggering, almost hoard-like cache of them. And nestled in the very center of the pile, a brilliant Golden Acorn gleamed like a polished jewel.
First a Golden Apple, and now a Golden Acorn? There was something uncanny about this. But a stockpile like this meant someone had collected and hoarded them intentionally.
When I think of acorns, the only thing that comes to mind is squirrels...
Tap. Tap.
Right on cue, Fast Tree Sloth patted my shoulder from behind. Turning around to see what was up, I found myself face-to-face with an adorable little creature.
"..."
"...A squirrel?"
It really was a squirrel. An overwhelmingly cute squirrel holding an acorn tightly between its tiny paws—wearing an expression of utter, soul-crushing shock, as if catching a burglar red-handed in its living room.
Plop.
The acorn slipped from its trembling paws and tumbled to the moss. A textbook depiction of pure disbelief.
Cute as it looked, I couldn't afford to let my guard down. In this forest, small and fluffy often equated to lethal and terrifying. While creatures like the raccoon family were genuinely harmless, you could never be too sure. I stepped backward, slowly retreating from the tree.
"Easy there. Calm down. I just came over out of curiosity."
I had no idea if it understood human speech. Even as I backed away inch by inch, the squirrel kept its beady eyes locked dead on me. Then, the moment I opened up some distance—
"Squeeeeeeeek!"
The squirrel flew into an absolute fury. Adorable as its tantrum looked, the murderous aura erupting from its tiny frame was anything but. I immediately sprang into action. Since I was technically the intruder trespassing on its hoard, I raised only my shield, committing to pure defense.
Patter, patter, patter!
The moment my shield came up, the squirrel shot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring. It was small enough already, but paired with that explosive speed, tracking it with my eyes was a nightmare. Had I not spent all that time training my dynamic visual acuity, I would have lost sight of it instantly.
Whoosh!
Reaching point-blank range, the squirrel vaulted high into the air. Then, shockingly, it tucked its slender shoulder forward. Wait... a shoulder tackle?!
Before I could even process the absurdity, instinct took over. I shoved the shield forward to meet the impact. And then—
BOOOOOM!
A monstrous shockwave blasted through the shield. Even with my legs braced firmly against the soil, the impact skidded me backward through the dirt. They said the smallest peppers were the spiciest, but what kind of steroid-pumped rodent packed this kind of raw kinetic force?! If that tackle had landed cleanly against my ribs, my bones would have shattered into dust.
Throb!
"Ugh!"
A dull ache radiated up my shield arm. Just one blow—a single tackle—and it had inflicted heavy, unmistakable concussive shock.
"Chitter! Squeak!"
Meanwhile, the squirrel landed cleanly on all fours, completely unscathed. Its bushy tail stood stiff and bristling as it glared at me, clearly assessing me as an unexpectedly sturdy opponent. Frankly, I felt wronged. Sure, I had stumbled onto its private pantry, but I had been fully intending to walk away!
Getting into a pointless brawl had nothing to offer me... except...
...That Golden Acorn?
Suddenly, the thought crossed my mind: Maybe this is worth fighting for.
I was genuinely curious about the properties of that Golden Acorn. Even if it didn't match the miraculous power of the Golden Apple, it had to boast comparable benefits. More than that, even a passing glance had revealed a potent aura of mana radiating from within the hollow—the whole interior seemed steeped in rich magical energy. There was no question it held tremendous value.
Killing the little guy feels wrong, so I'll just rob him.
Having resolved to play the bandit, I braced for combat. Sizing up my shifting demeanor, the squirrel hesitated, taking half a step back. Between my stance and Ppareumbo riding on my back, rushing in carelessly wasn't so appealing anymore.
Looks like Ppareumbo has never wandered into this territory before.
Beasts near our shelter would freeze or flee in blind panic at the mere sight of the sloth. Yet while this squirrel sensed danger, there wasn't a trace of genuine terror in its eyes.
Scuttle, scuttle!
Instead of attacking, the squirrel spun around and darted straight into the tree hollow. Was it retreating to mount a siege defense?
That turned out to be pure wishful thinking.
Tap, tap.
The split second the squirrel vanished into the trunk, Ppareumbo patted my shoulder. Glancing back, I saw the sloth slowly stretching out a clawed arm. He wasn't pointing at the tree the squirrel had entered—he was pointing toward another tree to my right.
"Why over the—"
"SQUEEEEEK!"
Before the question could leave my mouth, the squirrel erupted from the hollow of that very tree on my right!
Its offensive technique was the exact same shoulder tackle as before—a textbook Iron Mountain Lean.
Startled, I threw my shield up in the nick of time.
CRRRRAAASH!
"Kugh...!"
The force behind the blow was terrifying. Even circulating mana through my muscles, bracing against it took everything I had. While I struggled to regain my footing, the squirrel dove right into another tree hollow without missing a beat.
As suspicion began to dawn on me—
Tap, tap.
Once again, Ppareumbo signaled a direction. This time, right behind me.
The moment I felt the tap, I spun around on my heel—and sure enough, there it was. Only this time, it wasn't a shoulder tackle. The squirrel was mid-air, unleashing a vicious dropkick with both hind legs.
It was moving even faster than before. Just what kind of freakish creature was this?!
KABOOOM!
"Aargh!"
Unable to withstand the explosive momentum, I was sent tumbling head over heels across the grass. Ppareumbo hastily pulled me back onto my feet, but by then, the squirrel had already slipped back into another knothole.
I stared at the empty trunk, completely dumbfounded.
Don't tell me...
Just like the Deer that used teleportation, this squirrel was blinking across space. I had no idea what mechanism governed it, but those hollows seemed to function as network portals.
Swoooosh!
A sharp whistling cut through the air. Realizing something was hurtling straight for my face, I jerked my head aside in a panic.
Thwack!
A tiny projectile embedded itself into the bark where my head had been a microsecond prior. It was none other than an acorn. It looked like the squirrel was hurling acorns as thrown weapons—
Vvvvrrrrm!
"Wait, what—?"
Before my confusion could register, the acorn detonated.
KA-BOOOOOOOM!