kscans

Chapter 63 - The Last Forest and the Little Person

"This is it? Huh?"

The wall they had seen as a single line in the distance now loomed before them, and Kobito-san let out a dumbfounded voice.

After passing through the Kininaru Ki's multipurpose plaza, a farming village, and a town, the Little Person Squad had arrived at their destination, the Western Forest. Greenery began to mix with the desolate landscape, and from the edge of town onward, a rich natural world unfolded. It was clear that the presence or absence of magical power was reflected in the terrain. This was the current state of Frontier.

And so they reached the Western Forest.

Blocking their path was a solid wall. It stood about seven meters high, and its length stretched unbroken as far as the eye could see to the left and right. As the newly arrived party gazed up at the towering wall, a soldier who seemed to be guarding it approached with a knowing look.

He noticed the small child accompanying them and stopped for a moment, but he quickly composed himself and spoke to Dolphen.

"Are you the pilgrims from the royal capital?"

"We are. The pilgrimage of the Golden King. Is the master's forest beyond this wall?"

"Yes. I was instructed to guide you upon your arrival."

Offering Dolphen a knight's salute, the guard guided Kobito-san and the others toward a small gate visible in the distance.

There, they found a set of double doors. A glance at the thick metal bolt on the right side suggested that it was usually shut tight.

The guards, standing at crisp attention, saluted the young child with Dolphen. They must have understood, without needing an explanation, that the little girl escorted by a knight was the Golden King in question.

Glancing at the guards, Kobito-san looked up at the wall with a puzzled expression.

It was a feature she had not seen in the other forests.

As if sensing her thoughts, one of the guards answered her unspoken question. The reason, he explained, was simple. It was an outer wall built to block the monsters that emerged from the master's forest. The Western Forest, situated in a deep ravine, would occasionally have monsters climb out. It seemed these monsters would not return to the forest. The ravine was over two hundred meters deep. Having managed to climb out, a fall back in would not leave even a monster unscathed. Perhaps understanding this, the monsters that climbed out would simply wander the surrounding area. The outer wall was meant to keep them from getting any further.

I see. A feat possible only because this is a relatively small forest. The royal capital had an outer wall too. I guess they can do it if they put their minds to it.

The little girl nodded with a look of understanding.

Watching her with concern, the guards' faces twitched at the small number of people in Kobito-san's party and the large number of monsters they had in tow. There were more monsters than humans. What on earth was going on?

"There may be monsters inside. Please be careful."

Warning someone who commanded monsters about monsters felt a bit contradictory. Despite this thought, the guard carefully checked inside through a slight crack in the door, just in case.

They had removed the bolt and cleared the area around the door of monsters, but they could not risk an accident. After confirming it was safe inside, the guards pushed open the groaning doors, struggling against their weight. Four soldiers worked together to open the five-meter-tall metal doors and ushered Kobito-san's group inside. Once through, the party from Frontier stood a short distance away, gazing at the dense forest.

"Is that the Western Forest?"

The soldier who had guided them stared at the inquisitive child with astonishment and gave a small nod.

"There is a deep ravine beyond that point. The bottom is the master's territory."

"I see. Thank you. Shall we go?"

Pulling her hood down further over her eyes, Chihiro was lifted into Dolphen's arms. With Dolphen carrying the little girl at the head, the Little Person Squad, including Adoris, Sakura, and the knights, advanced into the forest without hesitation. They were surrounded by a great number of bees and frogs. Come to think of it, there was a snake wrapped around the little girl's left arm too.

The guards watched them go, dumbfounded.

"So that is the Golden King and her servants....."

She really does command monsters, each of them thought, exchanging complex looks filled with a mixture of confusion and astonishment. They had heard the stories, but hearing and seeing were two entirely different things. The sight of the carriage surrounded by monsters had been staggering. The countless bees flying about, the frogs perched on the carriage roof. It was obvious at a glance that these giant creatures were monsters.

The guards suppressed the chill running down their spines with sheer willpower, standing stock-still until Kobito-san's group disappeared from sight. The moment the party vanished into the forest, they all collapsed.

"Impossible. What was that mass of magical power?"

The guards muttered, cold sweat pouring down like a waterfall. They had been overwhelmed by the magical power emanating from the monsters. The guardian frogs, the escorting and scouting bees. The surge of magic they radiated in their state of alert, and the golden magic that unified it all. It may not have been a big deal for the Frontier party, who were accustomed to Kobito-san, but for humans without such immunity, the pressure was immense.

While the guards sat slumped on the ground, unable to stand, Kobito-san's party pushed deeper and deeper into the forest.

It was a forest so deep it concealed the sky.

This, too, was a unique forest. If Queen Merda's forest was a place of deep green and dense overgrowth, Molt's forest was an open expanse with abundant water and a wide lake. The forest of the sea, needless to say, was a beautiful coral reef. And this Western Forest was overrun with plants from different ecosystems, almost like a jungle. There were things like banyan trees, palms, and sago palms. Creeping vines crawled over the ground and trees, tangling together in every available space, their thickness ranging from that of a log to an adult's arm. The humidity was high, and combined with the midsummer heat, the temperature would surely have been maddening without the cooling breeze from the bees.

Like South America on Earth? The Amazon, or something like that. No, I feel like I've seen this somewhere else, too. Oh, that's it. It's the forest that covered the flying castle.

Kobito-san recalled a famous movie from a certain well-known studio, the one with the unforgettable line about a girl falling from the sky, and gave a wry smile.

Watching it in the movie, she had casually thought what a beautiful forest it was, but being there in person, this was what it felt like. The air was oppressively heavy and clinging. The sweat seemed to absorb the moisture directly, growing heavier and more voluminous.

I have to respect Sheeta and Pazu for running around in a place like this. The certain colonel, too.

Just being held was making her short of breath. Her breathing grew shallow, and soon a wheezing sound started in Kobito-san's throat.

Worried about the little girl's light cough, Dolphen stopped walking. His pale blue eyes narrowed with concern.

"The unfamiliar environment must be putting a strain on your mucous membranes. Let's take a short break."

Sakura and Adoris nodded willingly.

Ugh, I really hate this tiny body.

"It’s okay. This will....."

Chihiro took a small packet from her shoulder bag and popped it into her mouth. After chewing for a moment, her breathing settled, and the discord in her throat subsided.

"What is that?"

"Honey lemon."

It was something she had made by crushing dried lemon, mixing it with honey, and hardening it into cubes. She had developed them as a bite-sized portable food for a trial run, but because they were nutritious and highly effective for fatigue recovery, she had brought them along on this trip.

"Here, everyone have some."

Taking several more packets from her bag, Chihiro handed them all to Adoris. He took them and passed them around to the knights, taking one for himself as well.

His eyes widened in an instant.

A sweet and sour taste with a faint bitterness spread through his mouth. The sourness made saliva well up, and his throat, which had felt scratchy moments before, felt cleansed and refreshed all the way down.

"And this, too."

When Adoris turned at her words, he saw Kobito-san covering her mouth with a cloth. It was a small, sash-like piece of fabric that covered everything from just below her eyes to her chin, tied behind her head.

That thing. The kind you use to avoid inhaling dust when cleaning. But why?

"There are probably all sorts of vaporized plant components floating around here. They might be harmful to the human body. It's just a precaution, but everyone should put one on."

With a sucha, Kobito-san produced cloths in both hands and waved them around.

Vaporized, I get. Components floating around? Might be harmful? Huh? Wouldn't wearing something like that make it harder to breathe?

Adoris and the others took the cloths and exchanged confused glances. Dolphen, however, showed no sign of doubt and covered his nose and mouth with the cloth as instructed.

"Hmm. I see. It certainly feels easier to breathe. The scratchy feeling in my throat from before is gone."

Dolphen took a deep breath and narrowed his eyes. Seeing this, Adoris and the other knights put on the cloths as well.

Oh? He's right.

The strange, clinging sensation in the air lessened. The honey lemon from before had probably soothed their throats, but it was suddenly much easier to breathe.

Glancing at the knights, whose eyes were wide with wonder, Kobito-san narrowed her own eyes dangerously and glared into the depths of the forest.

This is a forest that repels people. It's designed to make people feel uneasy and uncomfortable, so they unknowingly stay away.

She did not know if it was truly harmful to the human body, but a mechanism that clearly disliked people seemed to be at work. Something unseen was having an effect.

But the fact that a single mask was enough to mitigate it suggested it was not seriously trying to eliminate them.

A forest that dislikes people, huh.

Having regained their composure, the Little Person Squad proceeded deeper into the woods.

After a while, the view suddenly opened up, and a sheer cliff appeared before them. Chihiro had Dolphen put her down and looked over the precipice. The rock face was slightly overhanging, with no apparent place to climb down. A warm wind blew upwards, making the footing at the cliff's edge feel unstable. The footing was brittle and looked ready to crumble at any moment, and a sudden gust of wind blew through. Just as a startled Dolphen reached out for the staggering little girl.

A white object flew through the air with a hyu and wrapped around Kobito-san's arm.

"Huh?"

A pure white thread was wrapped around Chihiro's arm. The instant she registered it, the little girl's small body was airborne.

"Chihiro-sama?!"

"Uhyahhhh!"

The thread, extending from the deep forest at the bottom of the ravine, pulled Kobito-san toward it without a moment's delay, causing her small body to dive off the cliff. Dolphen and the others rushed forward in an instant, but they were half a second too late, their outstretched hands grasping only empty air. But Dolphen did not give up. He immediately placed his hands on the cliff, leaned over, and then kicked off the rock face, launching himself toward Kobito-san with a burst of speed.

"Dolphen!"

Leaping into the air, Dolphen caught up to Chihiro and held her tight.

"I will not be late a second time!"

Shielding Kobito-san within his own body, the two were pulled by the thread and disappeared into the forest far below. It all happened in less than the blink of an eye. Eyes wide, Adoris clung to the cliff's edge.

"Chihirooo! Dolphen!"

Pochiko-san and the bees plunged into the ravine, where the desperate cries of Adoris and the others echoed. A swarm of bees flew about, carrying the frogs.

"Pochiko-san! Can you carry us too?!"

Pochiko-san, who had been heading into the ravine, turned back at Adoris's shout. After circling with the other bees for a moment, another bee flew toward Adoris. It took a knight's sword, and two bees held it from either side.

"You mean, grab on?"

Grasping the center of the sword held by the bees, Adoris was lifted into the air, hanging like he was on a tree branch.

"Whoa, so this is how Chihiro flies all the time."

His feet left the ground, and the feeling was incredibly unnerving. But he had no other choice. Though frightened by the new sensation of floating, Adoris shouted to the bees.

"Go!"

Responding to his cry, the bees flew toward the ravine. The knights, who had been watching in a daze as Adoris descended, snapped back to their senses when they saw Sakura grab onto a spear in the same manner.

"Wait, Sakura-san! You should wait here! We will go!"

"What? Don't be ridiculous. You lot should be the ones to leave half your number here to wait. If we don't return by sunset, ask the Marquis for reinforcements."

With that, Sakura took a running start and launched herself into the ravine. Watching her leap off so calmly, the knights were left speechless, exchanging glances.

Now that she mentioned it, she was right. Some of them should stay behind, just in case.

But shouldn't Sakura be among those who stayed? Why was she taking the lead and jumping in?

And yet, the knights felt a strong sense of familiarity with this situation.

She's like Kobito-san.

That quick decisiveness, that boldness.

Was it just their imagination that she seemed to overlap with Kobito-san?

Despite such idle thoughts, the knights acted immediately. A third of them remained as the waiting party, while the rest descended into the ravine with the bees.

Whether a demon or a serpent would appear, they did not know.

The Little Person Squad, who knew the Forest Masters said to be the most terrifying beings in the world, had nothing to fear.

Swallowing a multitude of thoughts, the Western Forest remained eerily silent.