CH 118

Episode 118 – Destination in Nava Forest

So what am I supposed to be doing here?

Even though I was here to fight demons, perhaps because we were still near the entrance of the forest, there simply weren’t as many monsters around as there were on Mount Cornello. Just as [Iron Gear] had said before, the danger level could potentially be high considering there was a chance you could encounter a Brutal Kong, but at the same time the monsters were weaker and the encounter rate was lower. As we walked along, I got a feeling for what they had meant when they said that.

“So what should I do?” (Lewin)

“If we proceed further into the forest, we’ll arrive at a certain place as planned. For now, if any monsters show up in our path, you’ll deal with them while protecting me.” (Kirty)

“…A certain place? Well for now, all I need to do is defeat monsters on the way, right? I got it!” (Lewin)

Just like that, Kirty and I proceeded deeper into Nava Forest. The forest was dark, and the visibility was so poor that it was hard to believe that it was still morning. The wind howled as it swept through the branches, rustling the leaves of the countless trees, which made it incredibly difficult to listen for the sounds of monsters.

I had to strain my eyes and ears as I walked, so I always had my steel sword at the ready, bracing myself for an attack at any moment. But even under these conditions, Kirty was strolling along as if she was taking a stroll in the park. I guess it made sense that someone as strong as Kirty wouldn’t feel any danger from the monsters around here.

“Hey, Lewin. Seems like some monsters are approaching,” Kirty cautioned me, but I still hadn’t noticed the presence of any monster whatsoever. I stopped, looking around restlessly, when a pack of Kobolds jumped out from the shadow of a nearby tree just a few moments after Kirty’s warning.

Oh, good. Kobolds.

There were four Kobolds in this pack, but as long as I wasn’t caught off guard, I could handle them with ease.

I calmly dealt with the first Kobold that lunged at me with a diagonal slash and quickly followed up with a reverse slash aimed at the second Kobold that came charging in right afterwards. Continuing the onslaught, I stepped forward with a sweeping slash towards the third Kobold. Every one of them was killed with a single blow as they rushed in.

The final remaining Kobold, seeing the fate of its comrades, turned tail and began to flee. Wasting no time, I chased after it and ended it with an overhead slash.

“……Phew.” (Lewin)

Even though Kobolds were famous for being the weakest monsters, being able to defeat them so easily made me realize just how much I had grown. Even before I started learning swordsmanship from Kirty, I was able to defeat a pack of Kobolds, but it would have taken me way longer. But now, I could read their movements in addition to the flow of the battle and choose the right swing to use to decide the fight. Since my opponent was normally Kirty, there was no way I could lose to a sluggish Kobold with so many openings in its movements.

“Fufu. Those were some good moves, Lewin. It seems that the movements I taught you have become firmly ingrained in your body.” (Kirty)

“Yes! I think I was able to move my body exactly how I wanted!” (Lewin)

“Let’s keep going like this. From the looks of that battle just now, I probably won’t be needing this rapier that I brought just in case.” (Kirty)

After hearing Kirty’s praise, my mood was uplifted. Come to think of it… I wondered how Kirty was able to sense the presence of the Kobolds. All I could sense was the poor visibility of the forest on top of the loud rustling of the trees.

Let’s ask her about that later.

After that, by the time we arrived at our destination, I had already fought a variety of Kobolds, Goblins, Killer Bees, and Paralyze Flies. The monsters’ strengths really weren’t that great, so I was able to handle it on my own without any danger whatsoever. After this series of fights, the extent of my growth had really begun to sink in.

…Rather, it was probably because everyone I normally fought against, like Kirty and [Iron Gear] in the mock battles, was too strong, and it just made me feel super weak in comparison. Especially when it came to Kirty, when I sparred against her every morning, she would always tell me exactly where she was attacking and how she would be attacking. Even then I could just barely keep up with her.

“Alright. We’ve finally reached the destination. Lewin, thanks for protecting me so far.” (Kirty)

“Not at all. You would always tell me in advance when the monsters were coming after all, so I was able to manage without any problems. So… what in the world is this place?” (Lewin)

When Kirty said we arrived, I looked around and found that we had arrived at some sort of small cave. I had not the slightest clue what was in this cave, though.

“This is what’s known as an abandoned Dungeon.” (Kirty)

“That’s right. Do you know what a Dungeon is, Lewin?” (Kirty)

“Not really. I’ve only heard of the name before, but I don’t know much about it.” (Kirty)

“I see. I’ll give a brief explanation then… A Dungeon is a place where, at the innermost part of the cave, there is something called a ‘Magic Aggregate’ which continually spawns a large number of monsters.” (Kirty)

“Continually spawns monsters…? Sounds dangerous.” (Lewin)

“Dungeons are indeed dangerous places. Well, aside from the monsters, you could find rare ores or plants in the vicinity of the Magic Aggregate. Plus, they could even spawn a treasure chest, so it wouldn’t be right to call them purely disadvantageous.” (Kirty)

“A treasure chest? A treasure chest can be… spawned?” (Lewin)

“Yeah, that’s right. I don’t know exactly how it works, but you can definitely find treasure chests in Dungeons. Anyway, back to what I was saying… In this Dungeon, the Magic Aggregate has long since decayed, which is why it’s known as an abandoned Dungeon.” (Kirty)