112
112 ― Like Moonlight
The snake's name was said to be Akram. A snake born from a torch. What had initially been a small spirit consumed immeasurable years and came to possess its current power and form.
"Time is the power that transforms even mere creatures into divine beings. I too was once a creature, but through the blessing of the Goddess of Time, I became what I am now."
"Is there truly such an existence as the Goddess of Time?"
"It's just a figurative expression."
"Ah, this is only my second time in the Spirit Realm, so I thought there might be such a spirit separately."
"That's understandable. I get it."
Evening. In front of a warm campfire, Jin-woo was having a conversation with Akram. In this world so full of fire, and within a cave that was like a furnace even hotter than the rest, they were lighting yet another campfire. It was somewhat strange, yet the atmosphere wasn't bad. Particularly, Akram, who had seemed only prickly, was unexpectedly talkative, allowing Jin-woo to hear many interesting stories.
"You're unexpectedly chatty."
"Unlike that dragon head over there, you seem to be someone I can communicate with."
"What!? What did you say?"
"Hmph."
However, the relationship with Kalesian remained poor. Just seeing each other's faces made them growl, sneer, and exchange sharp words without hesitation. Still, it was fortunate that there was no hitting and fighting like at first. Just bickering with words didn't pose any problem. It felt like watching two stubborn old men fighting.
"Jin-woo, I've found things that humans can eat."
Just then, Rachel, who had gone outside, returned carrying an armful of something. She poured them out in front of Jin-woo, and seeing what had spilled out, Jin-woo's expression became subtle.
Blazing fruits. They were full of oil scent, but not the appetizing smell of meat oil—rather a nauseating smell similar to petroleum. Flower buds that had hardened while charred black. Instead of fragrant flower scents, they only emitted musty smells like charcoal. The fish looked relatively intact, but even that was charred like lumps of coal, hardly looking edible.
"Here! Don't be modest and eat plenty."
"Oh yes, thank you."
Still, she was smiling so brightly that he couldn't outright refuse. More than anything, he was curious.
'The foods in the Spirit Realm all had amazing tastes.'
Perhaps the things here might also taste fine when eaten. They might even raise his mana.
'Hmm......'
The result was not very good. He tried eating a bite of various things, but they all tasted exactly as they appeared. It felt like placing finely chopped charcoal lumps on his tongue. Unable to eat it all, Jin-woo stuffed them into a corner of his inventory. Having eaten about a bite should be fine.......
"Excuse me, Jin-woo."
"What."
"If it's alright with you, could you help us?"
Rachel spoke with a slightly thinned voice. She knew it was a shameless request, but she couldn't not make it. That's why her voice had thinned. Jin-woo looked back at Akram. He had lowered his head to the ground and was closing his eyes. When Jin-woo was about to give some answer, it was Kalesian who answered first.
"Sorry, but we have no such obligation. We're busy with our own journey."
"I, I see."
Rachel answered with a flinch and trembling. Kalesian still seemed to be a frightening existence to her. Though his tone was cold, Jin-woo thought that was the right answer. There was no need to stick their necks into dangerous business. And if they were going to refuse anyway, it was right to refuse sharply like a knife without leaving any room for hope.
"We'll leave tomorrow morning. It would be terrible if we stayed here and got marked by that fellow called Silvern."
At Kalesian's declaration, Rachel's ears drooped. Even so, it couldn't be helped. To help out of sympathy alone was too dangerous when it meant opposing a dragon.
"Hmph, leaving is fine, but where to?"
Akram, who hadn't participated in this conversation from the beginning, spoke with a snicker. Kalesian answered irritably.
"Anywhere. First, we just need to get away from this Forest of Fire."
"I don't mind you leaving my territory. I have no intention of holding back guests who want to leave. But can you escape from the forest?"
"What's the problem? We just need to avoid the boundary where they're fighting each other and go the opposite way."
"Well, this place is already surrounded by forest."
At those words, Kalesian went outside the cave and soared high into the sky. He flew up for quite a while until he was no longer visible, going even higher. Kalesian, who had raised his altitude enough to pierce through clouds, surveyed the surroundings once and came back down.
"Damn."
His voice as he returned and spat curses was somewhat deflated.
***
Three days passed. During that time, Jin-woo and Kalesian tried to find a way to escape the forest, but ultimately failed.
"The attacks are too persistent."
"It's certain that they have their eyes on us. Especially on me."
After three days of struggle, what they learned was that Jin-woo and Kalesian were being targeted by the forest, especially Kalesian even more so. Akram laughed with a snicker as if to say 'I told you so'.
"This is a fellow who would spread such a forest just to devour a mere spirit like me, so there's no way he'd let go of a delicious meal like a hatchling. Whatever the circumstances, from the moment you entered the forest, you were caught in his web."
"......Keuk."
Be careful not to be carelessly caught while passing through the forest and become nothing more than a meal's worth of tonic for Silvern. That's what Akram said.
"Was falling into this place the problem from the beginning......"
"It can't be helped. There are often cases where you fall into dangerous places from Gates."
Usually, when entering a Gate, the first place you fall is random. Taking the Primordial Forest as an example, it means no one knows which part of the forest you'll fall into. There were once many researchers who delved into whether there might be some pattern or algorithm, but ultimately they couldn't reveal anything. When Jin-woo first fell into the Spirit Realm, Fermue's Tower was nearby, so he wondered if one falls into places where the World Tree's influence reaches, but seeing this case, that doesn't seem to be it either.
"Random...... Could it be that I fell into a dragon's territory because I'm a dragon?"
"Well, Kalesian is the only dragon entering Gates from Earth, so I'm not sure."
There might be such an undiscovered attraction. Or there might not be. In the end, it was useless to worry about it now. What was important was finding a way to break through the forest in front of them and escape Silvern's territory.
'If I find a blue portal, temporary retreat is also an option.'
There was also the method of returning to Earth once and then re-entering. That way, they could at least escape this forest. Of course, there was also the possibility of falling into an even more dangerous place, so they couldn't let their guard down.
'But there isn't any. No blue portal.'
However, no blue portal was visible in this vicinity. There definitely wasn't one within Akram's Fire Territory. The only remaining possibility was to look for one in Silvern's Forest Territory.......
"For now, we have no choice but to look for a blue portal in the forest."
Kalesian seemed to have reached the same conclusion as he said so. Since Jin-woo had been thinking the same thing, he nodded in agreement.
"Good luck. I'll help with matters inside the fire, but handle the forest side yourselves."
Akram spoke as if it was none of his business. Since it really had nothing to do with him, there wasn't much to be disappointed about.
***
They advanced through the forest. Dragon soldiers attacked from all directions, and thick roots shot up from the ground trying to create cages to trap the two. Cutting down and burning all of those, Jin-woo and Kalesian advanced.
"This is troublesome. If they keep rushing at us like this, there's no way out."
Kalesian clicked his tongue at the endlessly pouring attacks. Though his stamina and mana were vast, Silvern's mana spread throughout this forest was also vast to the point of being nearly infinite. In a war of attrition, the side that would tire first would naturally be theirs.
"Moreover, there's no guarantee these guys are the end. For now, only easy ones are coming, but......"
Jin-woo replied with a click of his tongue. The dragon soldiers and roots currently rushing at them were at a level that could be handled with a simple slash of the sword. Even so, their numbers were considerable, requiring quite a bit of attention, and if stronger enemies appeared, the stamina consumption would become even more severe.
"Let's keep going like this for now. We need to explore somehow."
"Right."
The two continued forward using an alternating method. When one fought, the other rested. However, even when resting, they couldn't truly rest peacefully. Since attacks fell indiscriminately, even the person resting had to handle their own defense. As a result, only the intensity of work varied, but being unable to rest with peace of mind was the same.
"I've had many experiences entering enemy territory or being surrounded, but this is the first time facing such a burdensome enemy."
"That makes sense. Until now, it was affairs in the Lower Realm, but this is the Spirit Realm."
The lords that Jin-woo had opposed until now. However, the lords cannot exercise their power perfectly in the Lower Realm. Therefore, what Jin-woo had experienced was only a part of their power. But this place is the Spirit Realm. A place where powerful beings called spirits exist everywhere and exercise their influence. Confronting that power, he could feel a dull, throbbing impact in the hand gripping his sword.
"Most of all, not knowing the exit is the biggest problem. Is this direction right?"
"I don't know. No matter how much I looked, there was only an endless forest."
This was also one of the reasons the two couldn't exert their full strength. If at least the direction were certain, they would concentrate all their power to break through, but that wasn't the case. They didn't know where the exit was, and they didn't know if the direction they were going was the right direction. So they had to advance while preserving as much strength as possible, and that was what made things even more troublesome for the two.
"It might be a completely different direction from the exit, or perhaps we might even be heading into that guy's mouth."
"You mean we might be heading to Silvern's lair?"
"Yes."
That was the worst possibility. Here they were struggling like this to somehow escape the forest, only to find out they were heading into the enemy's den. They could only pray that wasn't the case and advance, but ultimately they couldn't know anything. There was nothing to serve as a basis for judgment. They were only falling deeper into the forest's maze.
"......Let's end this exploration here. It would be better to return for now."
In the end, though they had come as far as possible, they found neither the forest's exit nor a blue portal. The surroundings were still densely covered forest.
'Isn't there some method?'
Jin-woo asked the glass orb. Since the opponent was a forest, he wondered if there might be some good method. But no answer came back. Communication with her still didn't work in the Spirit Realm.
'It was like this before too.'
It was the same when he first came to the Spirit Realm. He had tried calling out to the God of Moonlit Forest several times in panic, but there was no answer. Perhaps there was no separate way to communicate. It might be that he could only have conversations after finding the World Tree's main body.
However.
'......It's shining.'
The glass orb emitted a small light. Though it wasn't enough to convey her will, it was quietly shining on its own. Jin-woo took out one of the divine objects he had stored in his inventory. The divine object of Moonlit Forest. A small tree sapling that formed a pair with the glass orb.
"What's that?"
"It's the divine object of Moonlit Forest."
That sapling was emitting a small light. As if asserting something. After brief contemplation, Jin-woo tried planting it at the subtle boundary where fire and forest touched, right outside Akram's territory that they had returned to. The glass orb's light gently illuminated the sapling.
Like moonlight.