I Just Realized Something
Now that Brother Chris's three school friends have joined us, we headed for the dragon and have arrived at the World Tree.
When the Alraune asked, “Weren’t you supposed to come three months later?”
I replied, “We’re going to the dragon now, but I got a message from a God saying we could reach it in about two days if we head out from the World Tree.”
“Oh, that’s certainly faster from here. But be careful—there are more and more monsters going berserk lately.”
We've never encountered any berserk monsters in the Great Forest until now, so I asked about it. Apparently, the direction we're heading in is completely opposite from where we previously fought the Skeleton Flower.
In this area, the power of the World Tree blocks the berserk monsters, it seems.
“You know, we’ve always reached the World Tree in less than a day, but the truth is, it’s actually pretty deep inside the Great Forest.”
“You only just realized that? There’s no way the World Tree would be so close to human settlements,” she said bluntly.
Could it be that we’ve been unknowingly warping through some location thanks to the World Tree’s power?
Maybe the reason we’ve been arriving faster each time is that the World Tree’s power has been gradually recovering. If that’s the case, it’s no wonder the knights’ landmarks weren’t helping.
I feel so frustrated with myself for not realizing this, even though we’ve been coming here so often.
… Wait a second. If I had realized the warp, maybe I could’ve chosen Bonus A—"A one-time communication with the reincarnated beastkin noble girl"—after my mana hit 10,000.
Maybe the god intended Bonus A to be the real reward, and Bonus B—“shortening the route to the dragon by five days”—was just a backup option in case I didn’t figure it out?
Am I overthinking things?
“Oh, looks like we have more guests,” said the Alraune.
“Huh?” I turned in the direction she was looking and saw Raul and six other beastkin.
“Raul, what’s going on? Did something happen in Helios Village?” I asked as I approached them.
“No, we heard you were heading out to subjugate the dragon, so we’d like to assist. Everyone who came today is blessed by the Martial God, and since we’ve crossed the Great Forest into this country, we believe we can also help in fighting the monsters.”
“I really appreciate that, but shouldn’t you prioritize the development of your village? If all the blessed members come, won’t the village be in danger?” I said, but apparently, all the Helios villagers, including Saphid, insisted that they go.
“That’s reassuring. Just accept their help this time. We never know what might happen,” said Brother Gerald.
“None of us, including Captain Kyle’s unit, have any experience with the deeper parts of the Great Forest. We have no idea what kind of beasts we’ll face, so it’s a big help,” added Brother Chris.
Then, Ripka’s parents and Bianca’s family also said they would come along.
They know the location of the dragon and offered to guide us. Apparently, they want to settle things properly because the Great Forest has been thrown off balance by the dragon lingering there for so long (according to Atre).
So, we ended up forming a large group: Captain Kyle’s squad, Brother Chris’s three school friends, the three of us brothers, Raul and his six fellow beastkin, Atre, Ripka and her parents, Bianca and her family, and Ciel.
Ciel started flying around us the moment we entered the Great Forest, so that’s when I realized he’d been tagging along.
When I asked if Father knew, he said he told him he’d be playing in the Great Forest and wouldn’t be back for a while, so it was fine.
But… did he declare that before getting his permission? Well, it’s too late to worry about it now.
“Alraune, could you share some World Tree leaves with us?”
“Why?” she asked, so I explained that according to a book I read about the World Tree, its leaves can ease pain, wounds, and curses, and I wanted some for that reason.
Then, leaves began gently falling from the sky.
“Looks like the World Tree has given its approval.”
“Thank you, World Tree,” I said as I picked up the leaves and stored them in my magic bag.
The next day, we got Alraune’s permission to stop by again on our way back and left the World Tree.
Guided by Bianca’s family, we started walking, and about 30 minutes in, we gradually began to encounter monsters.
But with Atre, Ripka, Bianca, and Ciel taking down over half of them, we’ve been progressing pretty smoothly so far.
We walked for about three hours before taking a lunch break. Two magicians cast barrier magic to surround our group.
“We can’t let our guard down, but having a barrier makes it easier to rest, even mentally,” said Brother Gerald.
After the break, we resumed our journey through the Great Forest and encountered creatures like minotaurs, ice spiders, and black snakes.
Their attack power seems to be about 1.5 times stronger than normal. Looks like we’ve started running into berserk monsters.
Will we really be okay during breaks and at night from now on?
What do you think about this chapter?
