Chapter 122
Chapter 122
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 122
Chapter Title: The Fairy Forest
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“Wait, what did you say?”
I asked, my expression one of utter disbelief.
The Head's legacy, out of nowhere?
My father, who was ambushed, wouldn't have had time to leave something like that.
The White Elder nodded and continued.
“As I thought, you haven't heard anything. Of course, the Head would never have passed down the secret sword arts to a Young Lord who was such a scoundrel.”
“Why the sudden verbal assault? A kid can go a little wild, you know.”
“You were a bit old to be called a kid…”
“Are you going to keep this up? You want to start spilling secrets?”
When I gestured toward Derrick, the White Elder's face went pale.
I mean, people make mistakes in life.
*‘Though my case was a bit extreme.’*
In any case, the White Elder wasn't wrong.
Indeed, my father in my past life, the Demonic Sword Emperor Lukas, had not passed down the ultimate sword arts of the Riverune family.
Not even to me, his only direct descendant and appointed Young Lord.
That’s how unprepared he judged me to be, given how recklessly I lived.
Well, I didn't have any complaints about my father's decision.
Even I knew I wasn't qualified back then.
But things were different now.
If I could master the ultimate sword arts of Riverune, I would be one giant leap closer to my goals of revenge and rebuilding the family.
“The way you bring it up, I take it my father’s legacy actually exists?”
“To be precise, it's a provision passed down through generations. The Founding Head, Deinox, created it.”
“That name again. What a coincidence.”
“He was a truly remarkable man. To think he made so many preparations for the future…”
The summoning circle I had attempted felt more like a lucky fluke.
Honestly, what kind of madman would bet his life on such a preposterous tale?
Unless they were on the verge of death, like I was.
*‘Looking at it from another perspective, it does make some sense. The moment one draws a summoning circle would certainly be a moment of crisis.’*
I gave a slight nod and looked at the Black and White Twin Elders.
It was my way of telling them to stop beating around the bush and get to the point.
Finally, the Black Elder lowered his voice and whispered in my ear.
“...!”
The moment I heard the story, my head snapped up.
***
*Whoooosh!*
A desolate plain where a bleak wind blew.
I was racing across the border between Railharshe and Corinth.
This place, much like the area around Illece, was a region rarely touched by human feet.
It was the undeveloped western part of the continent, known as the Monster Lands.
*‘Of course, the situation here is a bit different.’*
Thanks to Liberta's efforts over more than a decade, Illece was at least a habitable place.
But this plain was simply called the Forbidden Zone, with no trace of human presence to be found.
Nevertheless, I had to push through this treacherous path and continue westward.
Suddenly, Alkheim’s voice echoed in my mind.
*—How utterly desolate. I was rather enjoying watching the humans.*
“I didn't know you had a hobby like that.”
*—Other worlds always seem more interesting. Just as you don't know about the paradise within me.*
“Dream on. I'm not falling for such a cheap trick.”
*—Suit yourself. In any case, where are we going? I can't even see any monsters now.*
*Vrrrr!*
Alkheim vibrated Calipe to express his dissatisfaction.
As someone who had taken a liking to observing the human world, he was clearly not fond of such a remote place.
I smirked and murmured softly.
“Just wait. Something interesting might happen soon.”
*—And what might that be?*
“We're going to the Fairy Forest. Does that answer your question?”
*—Oh! You're going to meet them?*
Upon revealing our destination, Alkheim showed interest.
Moreover, he seemed to know the fairies quite well.
“Sounds like you know something about them.”
*—Was it about a thousand years ago? We fought constantly. They were rather annoying… But are you expecting an explanation from me? Hmph! Not a chance.*
“You pretty much told me everything already.”
Alkheim clamped his mouth shut mid-sentence, but I didn't pay it much mind.
I didn't need to get any information from him anyway.
*‘What a coincidence. To think I'd end up using the friend fee from Raul like this.’*
I took an ancient map from my coat.
It was a gift from Raul, the third prince of Railharshe.
I had always intended to visit the Fairy Forest at some point.
It was a place like a dungeon, hiding some great secret.
Now that I knew an easy way to get there, there was no reason to skip it.
It wasn't like I lacked the power.
I had just been too busy to find the time.
But to think the Head's legacy was there.
If I had known, I would have visited much sooner.
“Anyway, it should be about time for the ‘Fairy's Prank’ to start.”
To enter the Fairy Forest, one had to pass through a special place.
Connoisseurs called it a place where a rift in space-time occurred.
But no one could properly explain what the inside of the Fairy's Prank was like.
Though there were a few survivors, they couldn't remember anything that had happened there.
*‘Then who drew this map? Was it made by the previous heads of the Riverune family?’*
The thought crossed my mind, but I quickly shook my head.
It was a pointless question.
Soon, I felt the surroundings become eerily quiet.
From the roars of monsters to the chirping of insects that were everywhere, absolutely nothing could be heard.
*Crunch! Crunch!*
Only the sound of my own footsteps on the grass remained.
“Looks like it's begun.”
Sensing the change in atmosphere, I sharpened my senses and surveyed my surroundings.
But aside from the extreme reduction in noise, there was nothing out of the ordinary.
Just a quiet plain stretching on and on.
But the moment I took another step forward in that state.
*Fwoosh—!*
“Huh?”
The surrounding scenery changed in an instant.
The endless grasslands vanished, and a dense forest suddenly appeared.
I tried stepping back, but it didn't return to normal.
*‘An illusion like this is nothing.’*
From Esmeranta's Tower in the southern Forest of the Dead to the illusion magic of the Gray Tower Master, I had experienced attempts to deceive the five senses several times.
Besides, I now had the map from Raul.
There was no reason I couldn't break through it.
Then, a small inscription at the bottom of the map caught my eye.
Do not believe anything you see.
This was, more or less, the basic mindset for dealing with illusions.
I dismissed it as something I already knew and paid it no mind.
I strolled leisurely through the Fairy Forest.
Of course, I followed the directions marked on the map.
But after some time had passed, I felt a strange sense of unease.
“Haven't I been here before?”
As I moved along the branching forest paths, a place I had seen before appeared.
I furrowed my brow and scanned my surroundings with sharp eyes.
I had definitely touched things here and there to confirm their reality as I walked…
*‘Damn it, there's the mark.’*
Sure enough, the sword mark I had carved into a tree was still there.
If I had followed the map correctly, there was no way I should have returned to my starting point.
I examined the map of the Fairy Forest once more.
Then, I realized a crucial fact.
“The map... has changed?”
To my surprise, the intricately intertwined arrows were pointing in a completely different direction.
Furthermore, the positions of large objects that could serve as landmarks had also changed.
*‘So that's what it meant by not trusting the map.’*
I let out a hollow laugh and put the map back in my coat.
Then I looked all around me.
Tall, slender trees and chaotically grown groves.
The scenery was similar everywhere.
But now, it didn't matter what I saw.
“Because I won't believe any of it.”
I closed my eyes tightly, stretched out my arms, and swept them around me.
But I felt no sensation.
The dense forest was all an illusion.
I took a step forward in that state, and as expected, there were no obstacles.
*‘Right. I'm still in the same place I started.’*
A flat grassland with nothing but sparsely scattered rocks.
A place that seemed livable at first glance, but was a forbidden region that rejected all life.
No matter which way I went, I should be able to escape the illusion.
Imagining the Fairy Forest to the west, I quickened my pace.
*Thud!*
If I just kept running straight, I should be able to break free of the illusion…
*Craaash!*
“Ughhh!”
I felt a sharp impact on my forehead and stumbled backward.
The intense pain forced my eyes open.
Glancing ahead, I saw a large rock blocking my path.
“Damn it, why isn't this an illusion?”
*—Tsk, tsk! To think I must accompany such a pathetic fool. It's almost shameful.*
“Ugh! I'm dying of pain here, and what's this guy babbling about? Who asked you to follow me?”
*—It is not my will, but Calipe's that follows.*
“Is that so? Even while you're hell-bent on stealing my body.”
*—Ahem!*
My ruthless, factual counterattack finally silenced Alkheim's nagging.
In any case, I now knew for sure how to break through.
It seemed this illusion first disrupted one's vision, then deceived the other senses to match.
It was a much more advanced technique than illusions based on the victim's memories.
*‘To make something like this possible, it would have to be the work of fairies.’*
Fairies were a type of spirit residing in the natural world, possessing immense power.
The thought of meeting such beings made my heart pound with a strange excitement.
I closed my eyes again and began to walk, feeling the blowing wind.
*Step. Step.*
How long did I walk like that?
Sensing the unease had diminished, I slowly opened my eyes.
The dense forest had vanished, and a bleak-looking wood had appeared.
Dry-looking tree branches and short, sparse bushes.
“This is... the Fairy Forest?”
When I glanced back, the endless plain stretched out behind me.
I had finally passed through the illusion and entered the Fairy Forest.
But the scene was so different from what I had imagined that I was momentarily taken aback.
*‘I thought it would be a more vibrant and mystical place.’*
Everyone has a certain image when they think of a fairy forest.
A beautiful wood with sparkling, winged fairies fluttering about…
“So what if it looks a little strange? That doesn't change what it is.”
I closed my eyes and touched the gaunt trees and bushes.
This was no illusion.
As I ventured deeper inside, I eventually discovered an artificial structure.
Two large stone monuments.
They were objects that seemed completely out of place in the Fairy Forest.
Standing before the crude monuments, I read the inscription at the top.
“My dear friend rests here. Deinox... Deinox Riverune?”