Ashen and seemingly spectral, the Dark Forest invited a foreboding silence in everyone's heart.
One's mental world was inevitably shaken, and the lurking unknowns poked the mind's curiosity. But the resolve of the one leading them was etched into their souls.
The Lugh of Eshu appeared to be a tenebrous figure, distant yet inexplicably close—a decisive individual who forged the discipline and established unusual rules in the dying territory.
Because of him, amidst the fear of the unknown, the horses raged with their hoofs, and everybody's gaze was solely focused on the very person leading the front.
Without looking back.
Without looking at whatever's hiding in this forest with dead trees.
Only the determination to find and finish their purpose was trampling over the existential dread that could befall them at any second.
What was this place?
How could such an eerie world exist?
How... could such a land be far from heaven's reach?
Demon God.
The epitome of the opposite of goodness.
The great enemy of the Orthodox Deities.
The source of an evil power that occasionally anointed a [Demon King] to unite all of the demonkind.
That was the only answer everyone had in their minds as they traversed and observed the Dark Forest that looked to be the ultimate manifestation of corruption.
"Halt~!"
I raised my clenched fist, gesturing for the others to halt simultaneously.
Gazing at the brown-hued map, I analyzed and pinpointed the force's current location whilst also signaling the others to make a few traces for those who would arrive a little earlier.
Looking around, it resembled that of a truly ordinary and unusually vast forest. If not for the fact that every tree lacked any signs of life and that their branches and trunks were blackened.
In addition, it felt like we were being monitored by something we could not fathom.
Of course, those who did not experience being holed in this place would think so—I am not that different.
...but as someone who read the story, I was completely aware of the hidden dangers, something that could be learned in the Hero Academy.
'Since the White Princess Labyrinth isn't in the red zone of the forest, it gives me a sense of relief, at the very least.'
But it didn't mean that danger wasn't lurking in the first few kilometers of this corrupted land from near the border of light.
'Reading genuinely has its perks, but I couldn't imagine it would be this way.'
"Brother, is something wrong?" Kaya, who was sitting behind me, asked. Her voice carried a hint of nervousness.
I didn't admit that something was wrong. Instead, I raised my fist for the second time and formed a certain gesture that was part of the [Warbody Program].
—It meant 'Be ready for battle.'
"Beatrice, Yusbel, Azrabel... and you, Yena, pass my order to everybody..."
I commanded everyone to light a lamp, one of the few things that were brought from the village a week ago.
Since there were 30 to 40 homes in that place, meaning that every soldier would not be able to carry one, I also added in my command to create a makeshift torch using the dead branches nearby to be tied up with fabric and lit up by the four mages the Golden Crown delivered as part of the previous slave deal.
After an indefinite amount of time, being loomed over with the blurring light from the grey heaven and a heavenly body that depicted a blurring moon that quietly watched over everything, we began to move forward to reach our destination.
"Hup! Let's go!"
Leading the way, as the surroundings were being consumed by shadowy mist, distracting our visibility, I eventually sensed it on the ground.
"Halt!"
With my order, everybody stopped their pace.
Neigh!
Then, as these hiding monsters never expected that there would be one prey prepared against them, I released the lamp in my grasp, prompting it to land on the nearest unusually-shaped dark tree.
"Krieeek—!"
'Iris Ents, ushers of the Dark Forest.'
*
[Iris Ent]
Description: [A demonkind that quietly settles closest to the border of the Abyss Lands, specifically in the Dark Forest. Nobody knows when it began, but maybe even if they were born in the darkness, they wished to witness the sun outside—that's why they were eternally waiting at the nearest corners of the veil.]
Monster Tier: 1 (Common)
Danger Level: F (?)
Talents: [Thick Coated Body (Common)], [Piercing Vines (Common)].
[Thick Coated Body (Common)]
- High resistance against raw physical attacks.
Talent Uniqueness:
- In exchange for physical resistance, this entity will be highly vulnerable against [Fire].
...
[Piercing Vines]
- Allows this entity to stretch out its branches (hands) to pierce its target.
Talent Uniqueness:
- In exchange for its additional destructive power, this entity will be rendered immobile whenever it uses this [skill].
*
'These Talent Uniqueness, it sucks, isn't it?' I mumbled as I read the serenely-sounding description shown by the [Eye That Witnesses Heaven and Hell].
However, even if they were known to possess the lowest danger rating, if someone was caught off-guard by its attacks, they would undoubtedly be skewered or torn apart to death.
That's why in this situation, discipline was the key factor.
And discipline was the one thing I engraved in everyone's body and soul throughout the [Warbody Program].
In addition, this battle of life and death was the final test of that very training regimen to refine everyone's resolve to protect what they had back home.
"Formation V!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, my voice unwavering.
As my voice echoed to their being, the soldiers immediately sprung into action, creating the practiced formation solely focused on defending before attacking. In some ways, it was used to anticipate any form of surprise attacks coming from different directions.
"Fifth group, throw the lamps away!"
The [Raid Force] of a hundred people was divided into five different groups, with each group consisting of 20 personnel.
With my word, the twenty soldiers located at the tip of Formation V, ten on each side, released the lamps in their grasp.
"Krieeek—!"
"Screech—!"
Crackle!
Sizzle~!
They burned down from a distance without being able to do anything because their vines could not reach where we were positioned.
However, even if that were true, it didn't mean we would not experience the power of their vines.
After all, one of their Talent Uniqueness said they could not move when using their vines to attack...
But what if they were not attacking?
Rumble~!
Tens of Iris Ents caused the earth to tremble as they uprooted themselves to launch an attack from three directions, besides the path we safely traversed.
The feeling was pulsating.
It was as though the entire forest was deforesting itself to settle into another habitat.
But it had to get rid of the virus first.
"Raise your shields!"
Low-quality weapons brought by the Golden Crown as part of the 5,000 gold that nearly drained the funds of the territory were again put to good use.
Added to that, some considerably quality weapons looted from the previous soldiers of Othenwald cut through the frailing branches of the Iris Ents.
Their thick body was useless when they were doused with fire, and the presence of water in this place was located in the danger zones—too far from them to wash themselves dry.
Bang!
Bang!
The vines brutally slammed on the shields, causing shockwaves to reverberate.
"Hold your positions! Aim at their lower body!"
My voice, filled with conviction, reached everybody as their morale was evident in the way they were handling things.
"RAH—!"
"Fucking disgusting trees!"
"Come on! Come at me, you frail dark branches!"
Slash!
Slash!
No time to fear.
Hesitation means death.
Iris Ents were seven to eight meters, lofty figures of nature that significantly dwarfed the average human height. But due to them having two trunks that served as their feet, they could also lose their balance if one of them was cut off or burned down.
"Fourth Group! Throw your torches!"
Shields, swords, torches, spears... It was a grueling multitask that if someone slipped, it could entirely affect the flow of the defensive formation.
Being all-rounders, learning to switch positions as commanded, the soldiers moved with frightening efficiency that they looked like they were experienced veterans.
However, the truth was different from the surface.
'Their stamina is being drained rapidly because of the heat. We need to finish this quickly.'
"Beatrice, come with me!"
"B-brother, wait! Where-!?"
I immediately cut Kaya's concern as I said, "Kaya, provide support to the rear. And you, Azrabel and Yena..."
I quickly imposed new commands as Beatrice landed at the back of my horse. Without wasting any second, the two of us rushed through the gaps of the screeching and agonizing Iris Ents in flames.
'It's time to hunt the Iris Ents' Queen.'