Chapter 199 - A Morning of Escapes
"Ophelia will drive the lead vehicle, Mira, Liliane, and I will be in it! I'll smooth the road, so Liliane, focus on removing obstacles! The young men should be in the armored vehicle behind us. The rest of you, take the rear Jeep and use magic to hold off the ants if you see them!"
"Hey, let's get moving!"
This might not be the path cleared by the Crimson Knights. If it's different, we might run into trouble soon. If that happens, we'll try to clear obstacles with magic, but if it comes to it, we'll have to fight.
While the members boarded the vehicles, Liliane and I climbed onto the roof of the Jeep. It's a cargo area, but it's spacious enough since there's nothing stored there right now.
However, it's an unstable path, and even clinging to the roof is quite dangerous. But this is the most efficient way for us, so we'll manage.
"This is getting fun, isn't it?"
Liliane's smile shows that her taste is still a bit odd. I find it quite unpleasant.
This time, I won't use the ultra-thin magical membrane. Being outside is best for maintaining visibility and casting magic. Last night, we had no choice because of the rain and poor visibility, but it was exhausting. During the day, when visibility is better, we need to conserve our energy. Yesterday's escape took hours, so we should expect the same today. I'm already feeling gloomy before we even start.
As Ophelia honked to signal, our escape began again.
We quickly realized that this path wasn't cleared by the Crimson Knights.
First, it wasn't a proper road. There were no signs of vehicle or human traffic.
It was a strange path, almost as if it didn't belong in the forest. There were no trees, not even grass, just a clear path. It was a mysterious sight, perhaps the result of some natural phenomenon or magical influence. The answer remains a mystery.
I couldn't help but wonder if we were passing through an unknown place that no one in modern times had ever seen. If not for the ants chasing us, I might have explored the surroundings.
"Hey, Yukarinowe-san! Can you help out a bit?"
Surprisingly, the path was quite clean, with few ruts or obstacles. Liliane was handling the larger obstacles, so I didn't have much to do. Driven by curiosity, I observed the strange path and looked around for anything interesting.
"Sorry, I'll handle the rocks. You deal with the rest."
"The distribution seems a bit off..."
"There's a rut over there! Busy, busy!"
The ants were still following us from behind, and it would take a while to shake them off.
Our escape, which began in the morning, continued until late afternoon. It was excessively persistent.
When it rained, it was especially difficult, but we managed to escape, which was a relief.
"If this happens often, it'll be unbearable."
"I'm really tired... Let's eat soon."
Even Liliane, who always keeps her smile, looked exhausted. She seemed quite worn out.
Although it wasn't the plan, our pace was quite fast. We decided to camp for the night to avoid encountering another monster swarm.
Everyone was tired from the continuous travel, and even the usually energetic members were quiet as they prepared the meal.
The surroundings had changed dramatically.
The path was still barren, but the scenery around us had changed significantly.
In the southeastern part of the small nation cluster, it was still a typical forest. But as we continued on the Abandoned Road, it began to resemble a jungle. Now, we could see several large plateaus in the distance. Given this, there might even be cracks and valleys.
Straying from the path in such a place would be extremely dangerous, even without monsters. I've heard about poisonous plants and carnivorous plants from the Adventurer Guild, though we haven't seen any yet. They could be anywhere, so it's best to stay on the path. It would be foolish to wander into a dark forest.
"By the way, how are our supplies? Do we have enough?"
"Well, we have enough for tomorrow. With conservation, we can stretch it a bit. We had to abandon some during the ant attack yesterday, so supplies are a bit low. We'll have to rely more on preserved food."
"That's good. If we have a chance to secure supplies, we should take it. We should also gather any wild fruits we can."
Kikyo Society members like Mira and Ophelia can identify toxic mushrooms and wild vegetables, so we avoid eating them unless absolutely necessary.
"Hey, there are fruits over there."
Timely, the young man had found potential food.
"Let's make sure they're edible. Bring some samples."
"Sure, I'll bring a few."
The fruit he brought back was covered in a hard, coconut-like shell.
"Does anyone recognize this?"
From the looks on everyone's faces, no one seemed to know. What should we do?
"Let's try cutting it open? If it looks or smells bad, we won't need to taste it."
He nodded and held the fruit in both hands, slamming them together.
The shell cracked easily, and juice splattered out, filling the air with a strong odor.
"Ugh! What is this?"
"What is this? It smells terrible!"
"It smells like dried fish. We should throw it away quickly."
The young man, with juice on his hands, wiped his eyes and threw it away. The purification engraving on his cloak didn't activate, indicating it wasn't poisonous. Maybe it's something like durian, which has a strong smell but isn't toxic. I wouldn't eat it, though, no matter how curious.
After the commotion, we finished our meal, feeling mentally drained. Everyone then went to sleep. Since there were no people around, we slept in the middle of the flat path. For night watch, the unlucky ones were Albert and Graylease. It was tough on them, but it was their turn.
I let Valeria sleep next to me, and we fell asleep without much conversation. The military-grade sleeping bag is incredibly functional, waterproof, temperature-regulating, breathable, lightweight, compact, and durable. Perfect for both soldiers and outdoor enthusiasts.
Thinking about it, going back to the original route is almost impossible. We've come too far, and even if we turned back, we'd likely encounter ants again. There's no choice but to push forward. Fortunately, we're heading west, so it should be fine.
Well, tomorrow won't be easy either. With a heavy heart, I drifted into a brief rest.
...It's noisy.
I tried to escape the noise subconsciously but suddenly woke up.
"Wake up, wake up! We're under attack!"
I recognized the words and sat up abruptly.
"Oh, give me a break."
"I'm so sleepy..."
It had only been an hour or two since we fell asleep. It was troublesome, but if they were waking us up, it must be a large group of enemies, not just a few.
A few weak monsters wouldn't bother the night watch, and weak, small numbers of monsters would be deterred by our magical devices.
"Mira, not ants again, right?"
"They're not detectable this time."
I confirmed while packing up my sleeping bag, and it seemed they weren't ants.
"It would be nice to know what we're up against. If it's an edible monster, that would be great."
"Graylease, who went to investigate, should be back soon. We need to pack up and prepare for the attack."
Graylease can handle the dark forest, so we'll wait for his return.
As we packed up the camp and checked our equipment, Graylease returned, looking desperate. It didn't look good.
"What's wrong!?"
"It's bad!"
For someone trained at the Intelligence Bureau, his report was surprisingly vague. He must have been shaken up.
"Just run! It's... centipedes! Large centipedes are coming!"
The air froze, and a chill ran down my spine.
Without hesitation, we rushed to the vehicles and started driving.
"No way. Large centipedes?"
I completely agreed, and a sense of disgust filled the vehicle. Ants would have been better. We didn't want to see, let alone fight, centipedes.
With limited visibility at night, we decided to use all our tricks from the start. I would ensure the road was safe, and Liliane, on the roof, would handle any obstacles or threats.
After a short while, the sound of destruction began to echo from behind.
"Yukarinowe-san! The centipedes are fast! If we keep this up, they'll catch up!"
"No way!"
We were probably going about fifty kilometers per hour. Even for a multi-legged insect, that was unusually fast.
We could increase our speed a bit, but keeping a safe distance from the centipedes and gradually increasing the distance might be more effective. However, it would be very taxing.
"The rear vehicle is using magic attacks, but if we keep this up, we might be overwhelmed..."
That was a terrifying thought.
"Do something, Yukari!"
"Alright, I'll go all out! Liliane, focus on obstacles ahead! Mira, support her! I'll speed up the road stabilization. Ophelia, full speed ahead!"
The path, though surprisingly clean, was far from well-maintained. Even small bumps could cause major accidents at high speeds. We couldn't afford to be careless in an unknown place.
The faster we moved, the more information we needed to process and the more mana we needed to use. But we had no choice!
"Alright, I'm counting on you!"
I synchronized my consciousness with the accelerating Jeep. This was the critical moment.
In what felt like an elongated time, I focused entirely on casting magic. I could vaguely sense Mira and Liliane clearing obstacles.
I couldn't tell how much time had passed. An hour? Two hours? How much longer would we need to keep this up?
The engine of the Jeep roared, and I worked methodically and accurately, turning the muddy ground into a flat stone path.
It was tiring, but the necessary procedures and mana consumption were gradually optimized, and I still had some stamina left.
Focus, focus. Although it's exhausting, it's much better than fighting centipedes. I've only defeated one before, and the weird fluid that splattered when I did was enough to make me scream. Seeing a mass of eggs spill from its abdomen took me three days to recover from. The mere thought of it gives me chills.
Focusing intensely on the magic, I almost forgot about the centipedes.
My sense of time became distorted. Just as I was about to get lost in thought, I was shaken awake.
"It's safe now, Onee-sama!"
My vision returned. The instruments in the vehicle were lit, and it was still dark outside.
"Yukari, we're slowing down. Something's not right outside."
The threat seemed to have passed, but another problem had arisen.
"If they're not following, let's stop and discuss it."
"Yeah, something's off."
We slowed down and stopped, and the following vehicles did the same. Everyone gathered.
I was mostly out of it, so my awareness was low. I needed to confirm the situation before discussing the centipedes.
"So, what happened to the centipedes?"
"Didn't you see? The lead vehicle accelerated and quickly outdistanced them. Since we kept going at high speed, they probably gave up."
"How long did we keep going? It's still dark, right?"
We were awakened by the attack in the middle of the night. With the current season, dawn comes quickly, so it was still a long way from morning. This must have been a three to four-hour journey.
However, everyone's reaction was strange.
"It's supposed to be morning by now."
"It's pitch black, but we've been running for over eight hours. It's unusual that it's still dark."
"Eight hours? I didn't notice at all."
Alright, fine. But indeed, it should be morning by now. Even with bad weather, it shouldn't be this dark. The sky is completely devoid of starlight, and the only light comes from the vehicles' headlights.
It's eerie. It's not just the darkness; there's a strange chill in the air.
"...It's so quiet."
Mira's whisper was unsettling. Something felt off. It was strange.
"This is a forest. There should be insects and the sound of the wind, but there's nothing. What's going on?"
No one had an answer. Everything felt wrong. Tension filled the group.
Then, we heard footsteps in the silent forest. We couldn't help but notice.
It sounded like someone walking. Slow, heavy footsteps, two-legged.
It was hard to believe someone would be here. If it was a monster, it would be less concerning. If it was a bipedal monster, it was probably harmless. But something felt different. It was a bad feeling.
A figure emerged from the light of the headlights.
This chapter marks the beginning of a new phase in our journey. The next chapter, 'Dark Forest Fantasy,' continues the story!