Chapter 45
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: The Forest Spirit
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"...Crying?"
Unfocused black eyes.
Tears streamed from the creature's grotesque eyes.
Demian stared at it, bewildered.
In that moment.
—Kill... me.
The voice echoed once more.
It was, without a doubt, the creature's voice.
His mind reeled.
He didn't know why this unknown creature was making such a request, but...
He gritted his teeth.
Demian bit down hard on his lip.
'I was going to do it anyway.'
But seeing that it seemed to have some kind of story,
"...I'll make it as painless as possible. One strike."
He didn't know what that story was.
But to maintain one's sanity while being poisoned by demonic energy...
'It must be no ordinary being.'
Demian drew upon his mana.
Whoooosh!
Drawing all the mana from his Mana Hall, Demian channeled it into his spear and lowered his stance.
The spear in his hand began to glow with a faint blue light, suffused with mana.
The power was immense.
"Th-That's...?"
"What is that...?"
Watching him, Dianal and Kyle gulped without realizing it.
It was the first time they had seen Demian go all out.
"Was he always that strong?"
"...To think we can feel our skin crawl from this far away."
Dianal and Kyle didn't know much about mana cultivation methods.
They only knew that such things existed.
But that didn't mean they couldn't feel it.
Despite watching from a considerable distance, they could clearly feel Demian's aura.
He looked up.
Demian faced the tree monster.
It seemed the demonic energy had consumed it again.
"Kieeeeeeeek!"
It formed long spears in both hands and began to charge at Demian.
It had felt threatened by the intense energy radiating from him.
Swoooosh!
Watching the charging monster, Demian calmly settled his mana.
And then.
Stomp.
Planting his foot firmly on the ground, Demian's eyes widened as he rushed toward it.
"Kieeeeeeeek!"
The tree monster thrusted straight forward.
Demian dodged the attack, lightly leaning his body to the side.
Thud!
He kicked hard off the ground.
"One strike."
He poured everything into this one blow.
For a moment, a memory from the past flashed through his mind.
It was just like when he killed that monstrous enemy knight...
'It's been a while.'
This feeling.
"Pierce."
It had no grand name.
His subordinates had only ever said that watching the technique was like seeing a dragon's breath unleashed.
The moment Demian's spear shot forward,
Crack!
a gaping hole was torn through the tree monster's chest.
Thump...
The tree monster staggered a few steps forward, its strength gone.
Slowly,
it stopped and turned its head toward Demian.
Its mouth formed words he couldn't hear.
Its eyes, once completely black, seemed to be slowly returning to their original color.
Paaah!
In an instant, the tree monster dissolved into a cloud of green smoke.
Seeing this, Dianal and Kyle cried out in surprise.
"Huh?"
"What the?!"
It was a mystical light, the likes of which they had never seen.
The green light soaring into the sky looked like the fluttering of a fairy's wings, or perhaps the scattering essence of the forest itself.
"...Ah."
Watching the light, Diel let out a soft gasp.
But soon, the green light rising into the sky coalesced, forming a small, round shape.
And that sphere of light flew slowly toward Demian.
—Thank you for freeing me from the demonic energy, boy.
"...What? Who are you?"
Demian asked the voice that echoed in his mind.
The green light twinkled as it replied.
—I am of the great Forest Folk. But this place... it was once corrupted by demonic energy, so I can no longer stay here.
A sorrowful voice.
It was steeped in a sadness like that of an exile who had lost their home.
—Boy with great strength, may I be so bold as to ask a favor of you?
"A favor? What is it?"
—Guide me to a forest brimming with essence. If you take me there, I will surely repay your kindness.
"A forest brimming with essence..."
Demian pressed his lips together.
He couldn't leave this place right now.
However.
'The Forest Folk...'
He felt like he'd heard of them before.
On the battlefields where Demian had been, all sorts of miscellaneous information had flowed in.
Among them were quite a few peculiar stories that sounded like they came from fairy tales.
The Forest Folk was one of them.
'If you think of the Forest Folk, elves are the first to come to mind, but...'
This thing didn't seem like an elf, so then...
"...Are you a Kloneirind?"
—You know of my kind?
"I've only heard of them."
Kloneirind.
He had heard it was an ancient term meaning 'those blessed by the forest'.
They had tree-like appearances and were a race that loved the forest more than any other, dedicated to its prosperity.
Perhaps they were the reason the Bronserian Forest was so rich with medicinal herbs and ingredients for elixirs.
They were mystical beings, almost like fairies... To think he'd meet one like this.
'I never thought remembering that guy's random stories would be this helpful.'
For a moment, the face of that chatterbox he always used to talk with flashed in his mind.
We'll meet again someday, I'm sure.
Recalling the memory, Demian looked at the Kloneirind before him and spoke.
"What's your name?"
—It is Bard.
"Alright, Bard. But I'm sorry, I can't grant your request right now."
—That is fine. As long as it is before your life ends, any time will do.
For beings whose lifespans were fundamentally different from humans, a year or two was likely no more than a few days to a Kloneirind.
Demian nodded.
"Then what should I do with you? You're too conspicuous right now."
—Do not worry. I shall reside within you. And...
"...?"
As it spoke, the being seeped into Demian's body.
Sssss...
And the moment Bard entered his body,
Thump!
his heart suddenly began to race, and Demian's expression stiffened.
He was speechless at the sudden change.
Fwaaah!
"Wh-What?!"
"What is it this time?!"
Kyle shouted.
A green light had erupted from Demian's body, and he was now floating in mid-air.
Crack! Popopopop!
As he floated, Demian's body twitched, making strange bone-cracking sounds.
Misaligned bones snapped back into place, and the impurities built up in his body were expelled.
Another physical reconstruction.
Demian's eyes widened at the sudden transformation.
'This is...?'
—This is but a small token of my sincerity, human. Later, when you go to a forest brimming with essence, call my name with intent. I have used much of my strength and am a bit weary now. I shall rest for a while.
Bard's voice echoed in his mind.
Soon, Demian's body slowly descended to the ground.
Demian lightly clenched and unclenched his fists.
He felt much lighter.
But what he felt more clearly was something else.
"...My mana."
The mana moving inside him began to flow with incredible freedom and ease.
As the mana moved exactly as he willed it,
'Could it be...?'
Whooooosh!
A long, blue spear began to form in Demian's hand.
A spear made of mana.
It soon blurred and vanished.
Demian's eyes trembled.
What he had just done.
"A Mana... Blade?"
No, in his case, it would be more accurate to call it a Mana Spear.
The sublime state of creating a weapon from pure mana.
If he could take one more step from here, he would reach the dream state he truly desired.
He could even use 'Aura'.
Aura, which only the chosen could wield.
He felt he had taken a step closer to that state.
"...Is this what they call a fortuitous encounter?"
"Demian!"
"Hey, kid!"
Dianal and Kyle ran toward Demian, who was muttering to himself.
When Diel also approached, Demian looked at the three of them and spoke.
"I think we have a big problem."
"Wh-What happened?"
"You don't look hurt."
"Wh-What do you mean by that?"
Dianal, Kyle, and Diel, in that order, couldn't hide their surprised expressions.
But Demian shook his head.
"I think I've gotten stronger."
"...What did you say?"
"Huh?"
"...Pardon?"
The three of them couldn't hide their astonishment.
But Demian simply grinned and looked at them.
***
Time passed rather quickly.
Before he knew it, Demian had turned fourteen.
Ten months had already passed since the Hamel Merchant Guild came to Erkal.
Quite a lot had happened during that time.
Of course, it wasn't related to the Neokalitz Unit.
The events had transpired...
"...Haaah. Another merchant guild is moving in."
"It doesn't matter."
"Aren't you worried, Lady Diel?"
Brent, the manager of the Hamel Merchant Guild, sighed at the news of another guild establishing itself in Erkal.
"Weren't we supposed to have a monopoly for a year?"
"It was a monopoly granted through the influence of a provincial baron. It was bound to crumble if another noble of higher rank intervened."
About six months in, the Bronserian Forest had gained tremendous fame throughout the kingdom.
This was because the elixirs created by the Hamel Merchant Guild had become incredibly popular among high-ranking nobles.
However, since they were limiting the supply, they couldn't satisfy everyone's demand.
"Still, I didn't expect them to interfere like this. In any case, that Red Dragon thing, or whatever it's called, must be quite exceptional."
"That was Demian's idea, too. I have no idea where he learns these things. Hup!"
Diel tied a bundle tightly and wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"But don't worry, Brent. Even if they establish themselves here, it will take them months just to find herbalists to gather herbs."
Diel had already anticipated a situation where their monopoly would fall through.
Therefore, she had signed contracts with all the herbalists not only in Erkal but also in the nearby cities and villages.
The signing bonus alone was 10 gold.
It was an amount they would normally have to work nearly half a year to earn, paid all at once.
To break the contract, they would have to pay a penalty ten times the signing bonus.
It was not an amount an ordinary herbalist could afford.
"And most of them have already extended their contracts for another year. So don't worry too much, and let's just focus on our work."
Diel gave Brent a bright smile and then walked off somewhere.
Today was the day he was coming.
"Oh, Lady Diel!"
"Demian!"
Diel waved back at Demian, who was approaching from a distance, waving his hand.
When Demian arrived, Diel spoke.
"This trade run was a huge success."
"You've worked hard. By the way, there are a lot of merchant guilds coming into Erkal these days, aren't there?"
"It can't be helped. I heard that count-level nobles have been applying a lot of pressure."
"I thought we'd be fine for at least a year, so it's a bit disappointing."
"Don't worry, we've already signed contracts with all the herbalists. It will take those guilds at least a few months to even start their operations."
"As expected. To be honest, I wasn't worried."
Diel smiled at Demian's sly grin.
"By the way... is that rumor true?"
"Actually, that's why I came today."
At Diel's question, Demian's expression hardened slightly.
After a moment, Demian spoke.
"It seems I'll be leaving Erkal soon."