The Forest of Lost Souls

"I don't know if you're in charge of leading the group or what, but this is really too much!"

When the contents of the first letter became known, Princess Lyla openly displayed her fury. "Chrome has already proven his abilities through countless achievements, and I, the empire's princess, can vouch for that. The Eastern Legion Commander himself acknowledged it and requested Chrome's help. Yet some mere instructor dares to interfere at will... I can't just sit back and do nothing."

Her presence was so menacing that most people would instinctively clear the path just from meeting her eyes, as if their hearts were under strain. She looked ready to storm straight into the professors' offices, but a single remark from behind stopped her in her tracks.

"What are you planning to do if you go?"

The voice was languid, as though its owner might yawn at any moment. Sensing a hint of impatience in it, Lyla replied, "Isn't it obvious? I have to overturn this unfair judgment."

"How amusing. The imperial family publicly declared there would be no discrimination based on status, yet here you are, a member of the royalty, trying to strong-arm a professor into changing the decision."

Lyla swallowed a sharp ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠retort, stung by the sarcasm in Ligret's words.

"If that kind of method would have worked, he would've done it himself first. The fact that he didn't means he sensed something too."

"So you're saying the professor is right?"

"It's not about right or wrong. It's whether that guy can do it or not. If you can't accept that, then do whatever you want."

Having said all she intended to say, Ligret flopped onto the sofa ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and closed her eyes. Lyla's lips twitched as if she had more to add, but in the end she left without another word.

Hidden near the stairs, a shadow watched the scene unfold. Fiore Midas recalled the conversation she had shared with Chrome not long ago.

'You're really going alone?'

'If I drag a whole entourage of guards along after being provoked like this, it'll just look pathetic.'

'Since when did Oraboni care about looking pathetic?'

'Keep that up and I'll cry. I'll really cry. Anyway, I'll handle it myself, so just focus on the request side. Those two will ruin everything if they start fighting each other in such a dangerous situation. Just keep an eye on things until I get back.'

Easy ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to say. Asking her to make those two get along when she herself struggled with it felt like a textbook case of a shady employer dumping impossible tasks on a subordinate. Wouldn't it be simpler to just found a plausible religion inside the Academy? Start with a Star God gathering, then gradually twist the doctrine and isolate them...

Ah, her thoughts had wandered again.

"Ah, Miss Ligret! Let's head to the shopping district! There'll be plenty of hard-to-find items once we enter the mountains, so we should stock up in advance!"

With a bright, cheerful smile plastered on her face, Fiore cheerfully pestered Ligret, who wore an expression that screamed she would rather be anywhere else. Still, since she had been entrusted with a request for once, she had no choice but to do her best.

No good—unpleasant memories from my past life were resurfacing. The first time it happened, I had been genuinely furious. Later I got my revenge by infiltrating the guild with a different account and blowing everything up, but still.

'Black' wasn't that much of a scumbag, yet after experiencing being cut from parties under the pretext of insufficient ability, all sorts of flashbacks kept hitting me...

Hoo, hoo. Deep breaths.

Honestly, it would be a lie to say the letter hadn't stung at all. Whether it was facing the 'Headhunter' in the Black Mountains or the incident with Dube in Mars Territory, it always felt like everyone else's combat power was riding an escalator while I was stuck climbing the stairs alone. I had been supplementing my strength in other ways to compensate, but the fact remained that if someone asked, "So how strong is your actual body?" I would be at a loss for words.

Still, what could I do? Every time I tried to progress an enhancement event, something would blow up. Thinking about the ruins I had voluntarily reported to the Academy because I simply couldn't find the time to clear them made me want to scream.

Of course, just because I had been told I couldn't participate didn't mean there were no ways to push back. I could have emphasized my importance by saying that if they didn't take me, they couldn't take Ligret or the others either. Or I could have forced my way in under the pretext of "my territory's temple near the Eastern Mountains, which has nothing to do with the Eastern Legion Commander's request."

But what would that actually achieve? This entire situation was half my fault to begin with, and some of the students had been more or less forced into the Eastern Mountains simply because their abilities were outstanding. After dragging unwilling kids into a mission, turning around and pulling out the ace members from that very mission? That wasn't praying for their deaths—what was I even doing?

The students who had been deployed probably had some level of resolve the moment they remained at the Academy as students, but that didn't erase my own sins. More importantly, doing it that way would only earn 'Black's' disapproval and resentment. In the long run, it was clearly a terrible move.

Ultimately, the best solution was to quickly finish the mission I had been given and join up with the others in the Eastern Mountains. Since the request involved scouring the entire mountain range, it wouldn't be something that could be wrapped up in a day or two, so there should be plenty of time.

However—

"...Even so, asking me to bring back a token from 'here' feels a bit excessive, doesn't it?"

Staring at the scenery spread out before me, I let out a sigh. At first, when I received the map, I hadn't recognized the location. But the closer I got to the destination, the more the landscape from my past life's memories surfaced vividly in my mind. The moment a certain object came into view, my memories solidified into certainty.

Trees that were pitch-black from roots to branches to leaves, completely devoid of any luster. Even that alone made them unusual enough to rarely be seen, yet there were three such trees. Moreover, their branches were intertwined, forming a massive dome—an entwined tree formation. If that was the case, there was only one place it could be.

The land where the power of the Star of Eternity resided.

The Forest of Lost Souls.

Following the Lake of Wisdom and the Shadow Mine, the third Star Land was opening its entrance as if inviting a new guest.

"But I've never cleared this one before...?"

It made sense. Compared to the War God's blessing that massively boosted physical combat power or the Demonic Jade's blessing that massively boosted magical combat power, the other star blessings naturally ranked lower in priority for players. Considering that the very reason for seeking out Star Lands was to acquire their blessings after the fact, the Eternity blessing—which only extended lifespan—honestly offered almost no merit. Unless someone was playing an extremely specialized build, a player character would never continue the game until their natural lifespan ran out. They would either see an ending or die midway through.

The only reason I recognized this place was because the CG from the strategy guide had left an impression. As for the actual contents—ah, that didn't matter. After all, the Star Lands themselves were completely different from anything I knew.

Well, I had no choice but to try. Since a professor had personally told me to go, it couldn't have been a blatant attempt to send me to my death. I had made thorough preparations in various ways, so escaping if things went south should be possible.

Resolved, I stood at the center of the dome formed by the black entwined trees and tossed the seed-like object that had come with the letter onto the ground. The moment the seed touched the earth, it sank rapidly. In response, the roots and branches of the entwined trees began to writhe and move.

What finally revealed itself was a massive gate.

Without hesitation, I stepped through it.

<><><>

The interior of the Star Land could be summed up in a single phrase: a graveyard. Like go stones densely packed across a board with no gaps. Aside from the bare minimum paths for people to walk, all that could be seen were graves and tombstones. The graves were all in pristine condition, as though someone meticulously maintained them, and not a single weed was in sight.

Despite the entrance being made of living trees, this was a world that felt eerily devoid of vitality or energy. Another peculiar point was that while the graves themselves were well-kept, the inscriptions on the tombstones were all worn away, as if eroded by countless years. Even the shapes of the tombstones and graves were all similar, making it an environment where one could easily lose their way.

Yet even in such conditions, I didn't wander or lose my path. There were two reasons. One was because the golden mist acted like a guiding signpost, beckoning me forward. The other was thanks to a certain item I possessed.

+

A portion of the ±∂}≧ divided into seven pieces. Currently, two fragments have been gathered. It contains the power of 『Clear Mirror』 and 『Demonic Jade』.

Even when examined with Dantalion's Monocle, it was a mysterious stone whose name couldn't be properly identified. The faint tremors emanating from the stone were gradually growing stronger, as though reacting to and detecting something nearby.

The identity of that 'something' was obvious.