Shadow Forest (1)
I stepped out again for the weekend. Freshmen were technically only allowed to leave campus with permission from an upperclassman, so this time I’d asked Warren. He stayed behind in the village to help the blacksmith uncle, and after we parted ways I headed off alone for my own business.
The place I’d just arrived at was the entrance to a forest.
Shadow Forest.
Once you went deeper in, the dense canopy turned even midday into something like night. There was only one reason I’d come here.
To hunt the boss monster that dropped a useful skill.
Originally you were supposed to reach this place through a later optional quest. In the center of the forest was a zone permanently shrouded in thick fog, and that fog was caused by the boss monster itself. As the creature grew stronger, the misty area would expand until it swallowed the entire forest. That led to frequent disappearances among lumberjacks and adventurers, which in turn generated official requests.
The standard approach was to wait for a request to be posted, then clear the quest and pocket a fat monetary reward. But considering my pathetic mana reserves, searching for a path by feel inside an expanded fog zone would be nearly impossible. So I decided to give up on the money and strike now, while the boss was still young and weak.
There were plenty of other ways to earn cash anyway.
With that in mind, I walked deeper into the woods. The outer area wasn’t that dark yet, and there were no monsters, so it was quiet. The only thing I noticed was the faint presence of someone not far away.
So they followed me all the way here.
A breeze stirred, and a flash of bright red hair peeked out from behind a tree.
I’d felt something off ever since I first left campus and stopped by the village. The fact that this person had tailed me even after a carriage ride and all the way into the forest made it hard to dismiss as coincidence.
“Magic Missile.”
I fired a single Magic Missile straight ahead, as if I’d spotted a monster. There was no monster, of course. It was purely to draw the stalker’s attention.
The moment the spell left my hand I spun in the opposite direction and moved quickly. Circling around behind a thicket, I checked the spot where the follower should be.
Sure enough, the person who’d lost sight of me was poking their head out, looking around in confusion.
“Why are you following me?”
I spoke from behind a tree to the red-haired girl who was still searching in the wrong direction.
Startled by my voice, she jumped in place. Then she slowly turned her head toward me.
“Eh? Ah… I got caught.”
When our eyes met, she scratched the back of her head and let out a sheepish “ehehe” laugh. She didn’t even try to hide the fact that she’d been tailing me; she just brushed it off with a smile.
Her name was Haley. Her flaming red hair was striking. Caught sneaking after me, she looked a little embarrassed, smiling awkwardly like a child who’d been caught playing a prank and glancing at me to read my mood.
I’d suspected when I saw the red hair, but it really was that Haley from the original story. She was an elite ice mage in the upper class, exceptionally talented. She had a curious personality and hated leaving questions unanswered. Once something caught her interest, she pursued it obsessively. That was probably why she’d followed me all the way here.
The real problem, though, was why she’d become interested in me.
This is the first time we’ve even met.
As far as I knew, I’d had zero contact with Haley until now. We were in different classes, and we’d never done anything together inside the academy. I’d only seen her a few times from a distance while passing by. So the fact that she’d suddenly started following me into a forest like this was baffling.
Wait… maybe…
One possibility occurred to me.
The original owner of this body, Kael. I still had no idea how much of an extra he was, or whether he even appeared anywhere in the original story. Maybe he’d had some connection to Haley? Since both of them were commoners, it wasn’t completely impossible.
Even so, the timing of her sudden appearance was suspicious, but I couldn’t think of any other reason.
“Have we met before?”
Curious people usually ask first. I figured I might as well just ask outright.
“Yep!”
Haley answered with a bright, beaming smile. Her innocent expression combined with her small stature made her look even more like a little kid. But I was slightly taken aback by how naturally she answered.
So she really did know the original Kael?
“I saw you on Bingryong Mountain.”
…What?
The completely unexpected answer hit me like a slap to the head. I’d guessed entirely wrong.
Haley didn’t know anything about the original Kael. Bingryong Mountain. That was where I’d obtained the staff that let me stack spells. The very staff I was holding right now. Hearing that she’d seen me there made me uneasy. I’d thought no one else was around.
Wait, no. Even if she’d seen me on Bingryong Mountain, that didn’t necessarily mean she’d witnessed me blowing up the wild boar with an explosion. I’d climbed that mountain almost every day back then. Maybe she’d just happened to spot me once by chance.
Yeah. It had to be that.
“I saw you completely erase a thorn boar without a trace.”
Haley’s eyes sparkled as she spoke cheerfully, without the slightest hesitation.
“…What did you just say?”
I was so shocked the words slipped out before I could think.
Damn it…
I should have played dumb and denied everything. But I couldn’t take the words back, and insisting it wasn’t true now would sound forced. My head started to throb.
Of all people, why did it have to be Haley?
There was a reason I was reacting so sensitively. Under normal circumstances, even if someone witnessed my explosive Magic Missile, I wouldn’t have to worry this much. Most people wouldn’t even understand what they’d seen.
But Haley had an exceptionally sharp eye for magic.
And most importantly—
Haley was someone who would later join the Cult.
The Cult. The main villains of the game. When they eventually extended their claws toward the academy in earnest, she would join them without hesitation. The reason was ridiculously simple: because their schemes looked more interesting and fun than anything else.
It was absurd, but regardless of the reason, the fact that someone who would eventually side with the Cult had seen my stacked magic was a serious problem. The whole reason I avoided using my cannon-like missiles recklessly was to keep from catching their attention this early.
No. Calm down. Nothing’s happened yet.
The one silver lining was that Haley wasn’t a villain from the start. She was an outstanding student in the upper class, but right now she was still an innocent freshman who didn’t even know the Cult existed. No matter what happened later, for now she was just a curious girl with a slightly unusual personality.
There were two things I needed to confirm.
First, whether she’d told anyone else what she saw on Bingryong Mountain. If there was anyone who needed to be silenced immediately, I’d have to take care of it.
Second, making sure she wouldn’t go around talking about me for the time being. Later, when Haley joined the Cult, I wouldn’t be able to stay hidden forever, but right now I needed to keep her mouth shut.
“So you saw that and still followed me all the way here.”
I narrowed my eyes and glared at her. The approach I chose was intimidation. Since she’d already seen my explosive Magic Missile, scaring her shouldn’t be too difficult.
“All the way to a place like this where no one would notice if a person disappeared.”
It sounded cheesy, but I muttered it in a low voice and took slow steps toward her.
“Umm… is that not allowed…?”
When I made a scary face, she started to back away hesitantly. But a large tree stood right behind her. She couldn’t retreat any farther. Her shoulders hunched and the tension was clear on her face. It looked like the intimidation was working.
Thud!
I slammed my left hand against the tree she was leaning on. With my right hand, I pointed the staff at the base of her throat. Startled, she looked like a cornered squirrel.
“Who else knows?”
I kept my voice low and growled. Haley seemed genuinely frightened. She couldn’t even meet my eyes, and her shoulders were trembling. I caught a faint glimmer of tears in her eyes.
Even though she would become a future villain, right now she was just a girl smaller than me. I felt a twinge of guilt, like I was doing something terrible. Still, I had to find out whether she’d told anyone else.
I stepped even closer, pressing her harder. We were now so close our faces were almost touching. I could clearly hear her unsteady breathing.
“Can’t you hear me? Who did you blab to?”
“Haa…”
Haley, who looked completely terrified, let out a shaky breath. Her eyes were wet with tears and both cheeks were flushed bright red.
But I couldn’t stop. I needed an answer.
“You’re not going to answer?”
At my ultimatum, Haley’s lips finally began to move. And when she gave her answer, I froze in stunned silence.