kscans

Chapter 217 - In the Dark Forest

It emerged from the dark forest.

For a moment, I mistook it for a 'werewolf.' But I quickly realized my mistake.

The head was that of a black wolf, carved from wood. The human-like body below the neck was also made of wood.

It wore a simple linen shirt and trousers, with a light green jacket. It even had cloth shoes on, looking like something out of a picture book.

The doll, which resembled a werewolf and had ball joints peeking out from its sleeves, was nevertheless clearly imbued with mana.

And it wasn't a golem. This flow of mana was undoubtedly...

"GRAAAAAAHH!!"

...a monster.

A [Killing Doll].

I'd seen this type of doll-like monster before on the Dungeon Agency website. Its rank was 'C.'

They generally possessed enough intelligence to use tools, and their appearances varied, from those indistinguishable from humans to ones like this individual that were clearly inhuman at a glance.

The doll charged toward me with beast-like agility and leaped, thrusting both arms out to grapple me.

I slammed my left iron fist into its face.

The wooden head shattered with a single blow, and the impact sent the rest of its body flying backward. After tumbling for a bit, the body also turned to salt.

Keeping it in the corner of my eye, I drew my sword, my gaze fixed forward.

"There's quite a few of them... Mia-san, did you make the call?"

"The reception is a little spotty, so I contacted my sister and had her call for me."

"Thank you."

Fortunately, I had already put on the Ring of the Flame Horse, thinking I might use it to adjust the bath's temperature.

My earring was in my backpack, but I could retrieve that later.

Right now, it was time to deal with the trouble in front of me.

"I see six of them in my field of vision, and they're approaching. They should be visible soon."

"Understood."

With the lantern's light at my back, I readied my sword.

Just as the flow of mana indicated, the other dolls soon appeared.

Standing in the center was a picture-perfect clown doll. It had a round-cut red wig and a nose of the same bright red. Its jester-like clothing was clearly visible even in the dark of night.

Flanking it were various other clowns. Some had star and moon makeup, while others had excessive red paint around their eyes and mouths.

Upon spotting us, they all broke into a run. Holding knives and ropes, they charged at us with eerie smiles.

Before the thrown ropes could reach us, I swept them all away with a blast of wind. Immediately after, six lances of ice flew out, one spear, one kill... no, one spear, one break, shattering the dolls.

I watched the scattered wooden fragments turn white and then turned my gaze back into the forest.

"...I don't see any other dolls nearby. We should be safe for now."

"Roger. Sister, can you hear me?"

Mia-san, who had come up beside me, spoke into her hand mirror.

The familiar face of a silver-haired beauty appeared on its surface, letting out an exaggerated sigh at us.

"Are you two cursed or something?"

"Shut up."

This annoying college girl, bringing up things I'm slightly self-conscious about.

Aira-san propped her chin on her hand and gave us a weary look.

"Well, I suppose it's a blessing in disguise. Enemies of that rank are no match for you. I've called the police and the local government office, so just fight off any that approach while you wait for rescue. It'll take time since you're in the mountains and in the middle of nowhere, though."

"Roger. We'll do that."

"There are two types of Killing Dolls: one that is only active during the day, and another that only moves at night. The ones you've encountered are likely the latter. Rescue will be slow, but if you can hold out until dawn, that should be fine."

"Right."

"...Even if it takes a while, don't you dare have a 'nighttime sports festival' or anything, you hear? The smell will definitely give you away. It'll be awkward."

"What are you even talking about..."

Mia-san and I are not in that kind of relationship.

And why is Aira-san, the one who said it, blushing? Does she have a self-destruct habit, this one?

Normally, when this annoying college student says something like that, Mia-san transforms into Annoying Person #2, but...

I glanced sideways, wondering why she was so quiet.

There stood an elf with a beauty so breathtaking it could make you hold your breath, a serious expression on her face.

"...Sister. Have you been able to contact the nearest village or settlement to this campsite?"

"What? No... I don't know. But at this location..."

"The danger zone around a dungeon gate is approximately two kilometers. We don't know the gate's location, but the manager might have been caught up in this."

"Ah..."

I felt my brow furrow deeply under my helmet.

I stuck my sword into the ground and picked up the lantern from the table. I threaded its handle through my sword belt and let it hang there as usual.

"Hmph. I'll pass that information on to the police then. Good grief, what a pain."

"While you're at it, please tell them I'm heading into the woods."

"What?"

"I'm going too. We'll leave marks on the trees, so if they need to look for us, tell them to follow those."

"Now wait just a minute."

I confirmed that the campfire was completely out and started walking toward the truck.

It would be easier to regroup with Mia-san if we got separated if I put my earring on first.

I might as well activate Blanc while I'm at it. She seemed to be of the same opinion, as she started walking at the same time without a word.

"Hold on. Is this manager an acquaintance of yours?"

"Not particularly."

"Yes. Oh, Sister. Could you try calling this number? The reception around here has been pretty bad since a little while ago..."

"The radio worked during the day, though."

"That's not the point! Well, I'll make the call, but... you have no obligation to go save her. The forest is dangerous at night. And there are monsters. Just stay put."

"If we get lost, we'll just fly."

"You yourself said that C-Rank monsters are no match for us, Sister."

Yes, as Mia-san just said, the monsters currently appearing are 'C-Rank.'

If they were 'B-Rank,' I might have hesitated, but at this rank, doing nothing... feels like I'd be 'abandoning' someone, and that doesn't sit right with me.

I'm not willing to jump into a stormy sea to save someone, but I'd be ashamed to not help when the risk is just a few scratches.

"If I can help, I want to. Is that wrong?"

Although, it seems I'm the only one making such calculations.

A strong sense of duty was shining in Mia-san's eyes.

"...There's no guarantee that there's only one type of monster appearing, you know."

"If you start bringing up rare cases like that, the risk is the same whether we stay here or not."

"Amateurs entering the mountains... you're just asking for a second disaster. Stop immediately."

"If we just get lost, Kyouta-kun can fly, and we have your Telepathy, Sister."

I took the Boston bag containing Blanc from the truck bed and began assembling him from his parts.

"Don't worry. If we judge it to be even slightly dangerous, we'll retreat."

"...I've already reported that you two were caught in a stampede to Grandmother and Erina-kun. They are on their way there now in case of an emergency. I'll tell them about this unauthorized action later, so you can get a good scolding."

"Yessir."

"Yes!"

Just as I finished assembling Blanc, Mia-san poked my shoulder.

At some point, she had created an oval shield of stone and a club resembling a cricket bat, also of stone, from the ground at her feet.

I nodded in acknowledgment, sent my mana into Blanc to activate him, and had him take the weapons. Then, Mia-san, having deployed her [Arcane Gear], held the tip of her staff over the bat and shield.

In a flash of pale blue light, a row of icy blades, like teeth, appeared on the bat.

It resembled the Macuahuitl once used in South America. The shield was also reinforced with ice, and it looked like it had more durability than its appearance suggested.

I knew very well that her ice was far harder than steel.

As I put on my earring, I gave a small nod.

"Thank you. Shall we go?"

"Yes."

"Argh, fine! I wash my hands of this!"

"The fact that you say that but don't cut the Telepathy is one of the things I love about you, Sister!"

"Yessir. We respect you deeply."

"You two are such flatterers!"

Still, I probably should have brought Flügel with me.

Feeling a slight emptiness around my shoulders, I stepped into the night forest. As Aira-san said, this would normally be considered a suicide mission.

I think it's a foolish act of self-satisfaction, but we came here to camp.

I'll be damned if I bring home the unnecessary guilt of abandoning a life I could have easily saved.

"I'm sorry, Kyouta-kun. This is all because I brought you here."

"Not at all. It's unreasonable to expect anyone to have predicted this."

I answered Mia-san behind me while scanning my surroundings.

I was in the lead, with her next, and Blanc bringing up the rear.

There was hardly any undergrowth in the forest, and ancient, massive trees stretched high into the night sky. Their branches and leaves were so dense that almost no light from the moon or stars could get through.

Mia-san had brought a flashlight, but even with two light sources, it still felt dark.

This was more difficult to walk through than I had expected. I felt it when I was wandering through the mountains for Professor Yamadera's request, but a forest is different from a dungeon.

Moreover, this mountain probably hadn't been properly maintained. There were rotten, fallen trees and places with steep inclines.

If it weren't for my current body, I'm confident I would have slipped and fallen long ago, creating more work for the rescue team.

Well, there's a chance I'm causing trouble as we speak, but... for that, all I can say is I'm sorry.

"Mia-san, are we heading in the right direction?"

"Yes. According to the compass."

I moved forward cautiously, carving an X mark into a nearby tree with my sword.

"By the way. Why are you two going through the forest... if you're worried about the manager, you should just follow the road."

"It's a hunch."

"Hey!"

"No, it's not entirely baseless."

I glanced down at my feet.

In a forest where the trees grew so wild that barely any weeds could survive, there were fresh, out-of-place footprints.

I could see a faint residue of mana, so they were undoubtedly made by the Killing Dolls.

"I've been following their tracks, and it seems they came from inside the forest."

"...Hmm."

Her tone shifted from shouting to listening.

"I was looking outside the whole way to the campsite, and I didn't see any gates. If there is one, it's deep in the forest. And those Killing Dolls didn't have any 'immediate killing intent.'"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Even though they attacked in a group, they all threw ropes at us instead of splitting into capture and attack roles. They were probably trying to capture us and take us to their 'nest.'"

"...I see. So that's the part that's a hunch, is it?"

"Yes."

"You say that so bluntly. So? You're walking through a dark forest to rescue a damsel in distress, is that it?"

"Uh... well, she's a bit old to be a damsel..."

"Shut up. But what if the gate is near the village, and the dolls crossed the mountains and forest to get to you?"

"Then we'll have to give up. The village would have already been destroyed at a time and place we can't do anything about."

"Well, it's nearly a twenty-minute drive to the village by car, so that's true."

"Of course, there's always the possibility that no one has been captured at all," Mia-san added with a wry smile from behind me.

"The best case scenario is that we were their first targets. Then the number of victims is zero."

"Hmph. What a disgustingly goody-two-shoes thing to say. Was that always your style, Kyouta-chan?"

"Who knows."

"Kyouta-kun has always been a kind person."

Am I, though...?

I can't see this self-centered body of mine as a being worthy of such unconditional praise.

Not that I have any intention of changing my values. After all, the reason I became an adventurer in the first place was—

"Hm?"

I cut off my thoughts and looked up.

"...Isn't it a little bright in that direction?"

"Huh? Is it...?"

"I can't see a thing."

Mia-san held up her mirror and peered over my shoulder in the direction I was pointing.

Apparently, they couldn't see it, but I was sure I'd seen a light coming from that way.

"Let's pick up the pace. The enemy nest might be closer than we thought."

"Understood. I trust you."

I carved another mark into a nearby tree and strode forward.

I glanced down at my feet; the Killing Dolls' footprints also led in the same direction.

After walking for another fifteen minutes or so, the amount of light filtering through the gaps in the trees became visible even to Mia-san and the others.

And, as if to confirm that this was the right path, I detected numerous mana signatures.

"Looks like we hit the jackpot. Fifteen to twenty of them, approaching. From the front and both flanks... some are trying to circle around behind us."

"Got it. I'll watch our backs."

"I'm counting on you. Blanc, Mia-san... protect the woman with you."

The golem answered not with a nod, but by readying its weapon and shield.

Once again, I felt the difference between him and Byakuren.

Then, I turned my sword toward the cackling clown dolls and the howling wolf dolls.