First, it’s not easy to find your way around.
This is true even for the best hunters and foresters.
In the pitch-black darkness and contrasting white fog, even the most skilled guides can get lost.
“Especially in this forest, there’s not a single thing to eat, and they’re all poisonous, so eating them will only shorten your life.
That’s why most newcomers die on their first day.
It’s literally the sound of dying.
Many children die here, especially young ones, and it’s called the Forest of the Lost. It’s just as dangerous for adults.
The second danger is the demons that appear here.
The beast-type demons are very agile and fast, so if you don’t have good skills and control, you won’t survive.
Furthermore, because this is Mia’s Forest, adults don’t get artifacts when they enter.At best, you can kill all of the dungeon’s demons and go home with nothing.
Furthermore, if you enter the forest as an adult, the difficulty increases exponentially, making it impossible to complete.
There’s a reason why it’s called Mia’s Forest.
“When I first played it, that was the most frustrating part. I’d beat up every monster I could find, and then I’d go back empty-handed because I couldn’t get anything…….’
So if you want to get items, adults. In other words, you must visit this place before you turn 15 to get the item.[1]
This means that you can’t get artifacts without tackling this forest early in the game.
In that sense, the difficulty of Mia’s Forest is at least…
“Two and a half stars.”
I nodded and muttered that.
Of course, five stars is a perfect score.
I mean, this is a forest after all the shitty dungeons behind it. To me, it’s just one of those dungeons that can be easily cleared.[2]
…Well, it is what it is, so I’m not sure how it will turn out.
“As long as you’re careful, it shouldn’t be too much trouble.”
For some reason, seeing the place I’d seen in the game made me feel at ease.
Had I just realized, deep down, that this was now my reality?
Damn.
It doesn’t make sense, but I can’t help it.
The sooner I adapt, the better for my survival. For now, I just need to rely on my primal instincts and senses a little more.
“That’s a shame, by the way.”
In truth, I wasn’t too worried when I cleared this area several times as a non-Nox playable character.
Bringing in another helper made the difficulty easier.
Back then, of course, I had to set my age to 14, and I didn’t feel like the items I found here were worth much… but not anymore.
There are a few items you’ll need to overcome the Time Limit trait, but nothing you’ll use as often as what you’re about to get.
“……I can’t help it. Well, I couldn’t bring Carl, and I don’t trust anyone else….”
No one to trust.
The only people in Inner Lunatic who can be trusted to give you love are characters who have joined your faction.
They all have different requirements, but generally speaking, it’s a deep affinity thing.
You’ll need to have at least 60 to be trustworthy.
… In the case of Rona, of course, she couldn’t be on my side.
‘By the way, favorability is a system that is unlocked once you enter the Eldain Academy.
“Okay, then.”
I muttered a familiar mantra to myself and lit a flame.
Boom!
The bright red flames of the torch caught the oil, making it crackle dizzily.
Then I stare at the direction the smoke is headed.
The first thing I must do to take on this forest of Mia is find my way.
For that is what the flames and smoke are for.
Whoosh…
I hear the wind pick up, and the smoke slowly begins to tilt in one direction.
You think it might be heading towards the passageway… but you’d be wrong.
Ahead, the inky darkness lifts slightly to reveal two paths. I knew better than anyone what this meant.
The key to finding your way here is the direction the smoke is blowing.
“Specifically, in the direction of the smoke. Moving in the opposite direction is the key to attacking this place.”
In terms of common sense, this puzzle is unreasonable.
Usually, in fantasy games, the direction the smoke is blowing is often the key.
After all, that’s where the wind blows, so you’d assume that’s where the exit is.
But alas, Inner Lunatic is different.
It’s the opposite of where the smoke is headed.
And not without reason.
It’s something I realized as I bumped into it over the course of my long, dirty Inner Lunatic playthrough, but it’s probably because of Mia’s Forest.
It’s a maze, and as a concept, I could only assume that I was supposed to do the exact opposite of conventional wisdom.
Well, as it turned out, it worked.
“I was surprised at first, too.”
I was surprised at first, too, that the maze cleared by simply reversing the conventional wisdom like a bullfrog.
At the time, I thought.
There’s an easy honey dungeon?
Of course, Inner Lunatic had fields and dungeons of extreme difficulty, as well as towers and fearsome beasts.
Fighting enemies in a 100-degree[3] heat wave or slaying a bear in a glacial tundra doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of complex dungeon challenges. ɽἈŊốβĘṩ
Heck, even a forest encounter like this is nothing.
But.
‘That doesn’t mean I should let our guard down.’
There’s one problem that’s more important than the forest.
“After…….”
I exhale lightly and place my hand on my hilt.
I grin, drawing the sword I’d secretly stashed away in the training center at the very beginning.
“Now that you’re quiet, why don’t you reveal your identity?”
I knew.
That there was someone after me now.
And that, in all likelihood, he had no good feelings for me.
‘That rustling sound I heard the first time, I didn’t hear it wrong.’
If it had been a one-time scattering, I wouldn’t have continued to hear it. But it wasn’t.
The sound continued to follow me in a steady stream, matching my steps.
That is, after all, the same thing.
‘Someone is walking behind me.’
But it wouldn’t mean much.
Nox isn’t a character who’s going to die at this point, and he’s not a big enough deal to send a skilled assassin to hurt me.
I’m just a bastardized younger son of a bastardized family.
I don’t know that I should be too worried.
“You mean you’re not going to show up until the end?”
He grinned.
Well, here we are.
I tightened my grip on my sword, intent on giving him a good, hard beating[4].
The next thing I knew, I heard a girl’s scream from behind me.
* * *
“Why the hell didn’t you tell me!”
Talia von Steiner.
A girl with chivalry in her heart, longing for their story. Now shuffling her feet, she stole a glance at a boy.
A boy with gray hair and lavender eyes who had been bothering her for days. It was Nox.
Nox had recently fought his siblings for the right to attend Eldain Academy, and he had won.
He had been called a disgrace to the family, the weakest of the weak, and he had accomplished this in only a month.
It impressed Talia deeply.
Nox had simultaneously defeated his two brothers, both a year older than him.
He did it through sheer willpower, despite having no talent and no physical strength of his own.
He didn’t let his underwhelming abilities stop him.
‘That’s not something you can do easily.’
She knows this. She’s been there, done that.
Her sister, Chel, is overwhelmingly talented.
She was always treated as the most talented, consistently above herself.
She’d always had to live in her shadow, even though they were only a few years apart in age.
It made one side of Talia’s chest feel like it was always on top of her. It was painful, and she could even feel her breath tighten.
Her family’s expectations.
Her inability to live up to them made her feel like a reject.
So when House Reinhafer asked if anyone was available for knighting lessons, she raised her hand immediately.
If only she could prove herself to another family.
If she could do that, she could return to House Steiner with a golden ticket.
They’d see her again.
You, not your sister.
And she was almost certain that the method existed in Nox.
It couldn’t be a coincidence that the family’s youngest son, the one who had been labeled a reject like herself, had risen to prominence so quickly.
“I don’t know what that technique is, but if I had it, I could be just like you!”
The thought made Talia’s heart skip a beat.
The problem was.
-There’s no such thing as a special secret.
-Come on. I apologize for my earlier misunderstanding.
-No, it’s not that, it’s that there’s no real method.
Mr. Nox had been keeping his growth method a secret!
This was very troubling for her. She couldn’t wait to be stronger than her sister and return to her family.
She wanted to get into Elidane and become the best knight there.
But she was stuck at the first step.
“My beauty isn’t working. What a shame…….”
“…Miss? Please, can you stop following Master Nox around? It’s getting me in trouble with him, too…….”
“It’s okay, Emma; you’re not going to get me disowned by our family!”
“No, that’s not it….”
Maid Emma looked at the slender girl in front of her in frustration.
Even though she’s taking knighting lessons, she’s still young and petite.
Who the hell could tell her how to grow up fast?
In the first place, Nox’s growth had been strangely steep, and she was also growing very fast.
If it weren’t for her sister Chel, she’d already be a talent to be revered as the next head of the family.
So why is she so impatient with her sister, feeling so inferior to her. Emma sighed and shook her head in frustration.
‘Also, and most importantly.
“You don’t have the authority to appoint maids…!”
She doesn’t have the power to appoint maids.
Heads of households or high-ranking vassals had that authority, and even their daughters couldn’t do much.
So, right now, Talia is dangling a carrot of power she doesn’t have!
“Young Lady…?”
Just as she was about to argue with her, a sudden chill ran down the nape of Emma’s neck.
“……?”
Ah, she realized.
Talia had suddenly disappeared!
Emma was stunned. Her ability to escape from nagging thoughts was an uncanny skill…….
But even so, this is House Reinhafer, after all.
Emma never thought they’d use it this far.
“I let my guard down…!”
Emma jumped to her feet.
What if something happened to Lady Talia?
She would be the one dying.
Of course, she was still a child, so she couldn’t have gotten that far…….
When her eyes fell on the clock so casually. Emma realized once again that something was solidly wrong.
“It’s two in the morning……!”
A fourteen-year-old had run away at two in the morning.
“We’re in trouble!”
Emma scrambled to her feet, her mind racing. We don’t know where she slipped away to, but…
Anyway, we need to get her back now!
* * *
Moments ago.
It was only by chance that Talia had spotted Nox as he slipped out of the house without a sound.
Quite by chance, while ignoring Emma’s nagging, Talia looked out the window and saw Nox leave the mansion.
In that moment, she was certain.
‘To go out at this hour… he must be going to some special secret training that will make him stronger!
Talia felt her heart leap into her throat… and while Emma was distracted, she quickly made her escape through the window.
She’d done it all the time, and it was a miracle she didn’t even make a sound.
Perhaps the news would never spread through the family.
All it would mean was that Emma couldn’t take care of her own, which would mean she’d take a pay cut!
And from what he’d seen so far, Emma was, sadly, a maid who had thoroughly succumbed to capitalism.
“Hoohoo….”
Thalia grinned like a little devil, then kept her eyes on Nox as he walked away. Suddenly, she saw him stop in front of a forest.
“That’s… a forest? What’s he doing?
There was some sort of sign up ahead, but she couldn’t be bothered to read it, so she just followed Nox.
I made some rustling footsteps, but Nox didn’t seem to mind.
Then something happened.
All of a sudden, there was a white mist up ahead, and I realized that Nox had turned on his torch.
I followed him, and I saw…….
“……I’m lost.”
On second thought, this was ridiculous.
How in the world can you get lost when you’re walking alongside a person?
Especially when I was following him so closely?
The problem didn’t end there.
Crrr…….
I started to hear what sounded like a wolf howl from somewhere.
“…….”
Thalia cringed instinctively and drew her dagger from its sheath. She hadn’t brought her longsword with her since her knighting lessons were over.
All she had were a few daggers.
Besides, the one I’m holding now is nothing more than a dagger used to slaughter hunted animals.
A three-year-old could tell you that it’s not suitable for self-defense.
Gulp.
Saliva drips from his mouth, and her red eyes flutter as she scans her surroundings.
Ouch…….
The sound of wolves grew closer, and Talia despaired deeply that she was missing Emma’s nagging now.
Farthrack!
With that came the sound of a branch breaking above, and Talia sheathed her blade and squeezed her eyes shut.
It was then.
Paat!
Pow!
From somewhere, a swooping longsword cut through the air, slicing through the moonlight and slashing at the wolf’s throat.
Pow!
Blood spurted high into the air.
The crimson beast’s body collapsed. Talia cautiously opened her eyes and saw the familiar figure of a boy.
“……I thought you were my brothers. Why are you here?”
Talia watched with trepidation as the boy approached her.
A dirty, handsome face, with hair as white as the moon and eyes the color of mysterious lavender.
It was Nox von Reinhafer, the man she’d been chasing.
“Oh… is that…… night walk?”
He tried to play it off as natural, but Nox was seasoned.
“Cut the crap and tell me the truth. Or I’m leaving you here.”
With that, Talia grabbed Nox by the sleeve of his shirt and began to confess.
It was no secret that she was a little teary-eyed.
Next Chapter[1] 그러니 아이템을 얻고 싶다면, 성인.
[2] Not sure what the intended meaning is here
[3] I’ll leave these blank and assume Celcius
[4] Originally it’s a “hard fucking” but that’s kinda sus here
TN Notes: To say the least this chapter was syntax hell
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