"This is stupid, this is a stupid plan."
"Ho...? Did we really need to bring these other muppets with us? I can smell their balls sweating from all the way here — and believe me, if I could smell your fear, the monsters can too."
"Because it's a bad idea!"
"Ssh!"
As a matter of course, Olga did not really bring all the Nobles to infiltrate the Golden Tree — after all, if the worst-case scenario happened, they needed people to pull them out... or at least try their best to fend off the monsters that would want to once again roam around the country of Nihon.
And right now, their infiltration team consists of 7 people, 2 demi-humans, and a nymph.
Commander Olga, Ayesha, Rhys, Dr. Dhani, Rukawa, Sorokin, and Remy, a Noble from Frankia that has the ability to hide himself and others from the monsters. The only problem was, however, was that Remy was quite the nervous individual.
"I've... I've never tried to hide from these many monsters before," Remy's breaths stuttered as they just passed by a group of Wingless Gryphon... one of which was only just a foot away from him.
"Zeus... If you don't shut your trap, we won't need to hide soon," Ayesha's eyes twitched as she glanced at Remy, "Where did you even find this guy, Recruit?"
"Maria gave me information about all the Nobles who answered Nihon's call for help," Rhys also glanced at Remy, whose glowing red hair was slightly flickering due to his nerves, "He's useful, that's all we need to know about him."
"You run background check on us, Amerkan?" Sorokin let out a small grunt; his accent, a lot thicker than Olga's but still very much fluent.
"Yes," Rhys did not really hesitate to answer, "I'm sorry if you feel a little wronged with it."
"No, not at all," a smirk crawled on Sorokin's face, "I would have done the same if I was in your position. But these demi-humans of yours, I think they are more useful than the French — look at them instinctively avoiding areas with monsters."
The path to the Golden Tree was riddled with all sorts of obstacles — ranging from the thick groves and the roots of the colossal tree itself, to the monsters that were just resting everywhere. And instinctively, Edissa was able to avoid all of them — and Malenia was able to find them the best path as she actually had the ability to feel vibrations on the ground using her snake-like lower body.
And with Angela sitting on Edissa's shoulder, they were able to navigate easily as they headed toward the nymph who could supposedly be able to control the Verdant Python.
"I believe even if the French deactivates his skill, the monsters...
...they will not attack us at all."
"Sorokin!? Stay in formation!"" Olga's eyes widened as Sorokin just stepped out of their formation and approached a Giant Shadow Kameleon latched onto the walls of the giant root. And without even any hesitation at all, everyone watched as Sorokin placed his palm on the Kameleon's head and started caressing it.
Giant Shadow Kameleons are the size of a small truck — considered to be Threat Level 7 due to their ability to disappear into the darkness. They were nocturnal monsters that were capable of wiping out an entire city, and not be seen even once; their tongues that could extend up to 20 meters long could shoot out as fast as the speed of sound... and without making any noise at all.
They are solitary monsters, but right now, there are more than a dozen of them just resting on the roots. None of them, however, heeded Sorokin any mind at all.
"Being this close to them and not having to kill them..." Sorokin breathed out and smiled as he continued to caress the Kameleon's head, "...It truly gives you a different perspective, does it not?"
"Watch... my back?" Rukawa squinted his already small eyes, "...Why do you think so?"
"Nothing at all," Dr. Dhani shrugged, "Just call it an old man's intuition."
"Are you saying that—"
"We're here."
Everyone's conversations came to a halt as Rhys raised his fist and moved ahead of the group, approaching Edissa and Malenia who also stopped moving when Aengela looked back at Rhys.
"Here...?" Remy looked around, and aside from the path being blocked by a giant wall of root, there was absolutely nothing there—even monsters were nowhere to be seen in the sudden glade, "There's... nothing here. Wait, you said... there's also this Orpheus dude, right? Shouldn't... we also be on the lookout for him?"
"Orpheus is inside the Golden Tree," Rhys then said as Aengela flew to his shoulder, "Aengela believes that all of this... is just to keep him from running away with Eurydice."
"I don't really get it," Remy started gesturing with his hand as he talked, "You said that this Eurydice is Orpheus's mon coeur — why can't they just let them be? Love, after all, should know no boundaries."
"Their so-called love is going to cost me my country," Rukawa grunted as he glared at Remy, "Our mission's clear. We find the nymph that controls these monsters and forces her to make them return to the Underworld — and if what Ms. Aengela is saying is true, then that means this Orpheus guy will surely show himself as soon as the Verdant Python is gone...
...we kill him then and secure the nymph and return her to her kind."
"But from what I heard, the nymph also wants to stay with the human," Dr. Raj placed his hand on his chin, "She might not want to return to her own kind at all."
"...Then we kill them both," Rhys breathed out as he looked at Aengela, "If Aengela could convince the other nymphs that Eurydice does not want to come back to them, then we will have that option. But first...
...I think we need to do something about that."
"What... the fuck is that?" Remy's eyes widened as a human emerged from the ground—no, not exactly.
It was shaped like a human, but it seemed more akin to an ant standing on two legs if anything. Its face, however, looked similar to that of a nymph's.
"...A Nymph's Nightmare," Rhys said as Aengela whispered to him,
"It protects a slumbering nymph that thinks it is vulnerable. And... I think Aengela is saying that it's a physical representation of their... powers?"
"What does that even—"
"Duck!" Rhys let out a roar as he just suddenly crouched, and when he did so, everyone else also pulled themselves down to the ground...
...except Remy.
"Huh...?"