Chapter 54: Where Destiny Points
The fog lifted at some point. Visibility was secured, and the full scenery of the forest revealed itself. The Mountain Rabbits were still sprawled on the ground, unable to rise.
After helping Gregor up, Calix turned to look at Zahira and Basim, who were closest.
"Yor, my son. My poor son……."
"You can mock me, but you cannot insult my work!"
The desert woman was shedding tears, while the Dwarf was shouting at the top of his lungs.
The other mercenaries weren't much different.
They were swept away by waves of emotion, unable to break free.
"Don't, don't leave me behind! You said you'd be right back!"
"Stay just a little longer! Please!"
Affection and longing.
"We're going to die anyway."
"We can't escape……."
Despair and resignation.
"I told you I'd handle everything! You bastards! Are you dying to get yourselves killed?"
"Why won't anyone listen to me? That's right, this isn't my fault. It's yours!"
From anger to hatred. The expressions varied, but they were all equally shackled. So Calix awakened his companions one by one.
He placed his hands on the shoulders of those trembling, sweating coldly, looking as if they might expire at any moment. Soon, 'Divinity' devoured the magic of the fog and focus returned to their eyes.
"……Calix?"
"Basim."
"……Yes, it's you."
And in that process, Calix couldn't help but glimpse into his companions' pasts.
Basim the Dwarf was rejected by his own kind and ultimately driven from his homeland. Zahira was wailing over the corpses of her young husband and newborn baby. The sight of Hadiya being utterly humiliated by those dressed in luxurious garments, and so on.
Though he didn't observe as long as he had with Gregor, these were stories he dared not speak of, even the smallest fragments.
"Marik, Marik!"
"Captain?"
"Yes, Nalse."
Just then, figures including Ella and Royce broke free of the illusions on their own, and the chaos subsided. Royce comforted and raised Vice-captain Marik, while Ella recited a brief prayer, spreading a warm energy.
With many hands helping, the mercenaries regained their senses in an instant.
Calix patted Volga's shoulder and stood up. Everyone wore dazed yet shocked expressions. Then suddenly, a convulsive murmur drifted into his ears.
"There's no time, we must pass through the forest quickly!"
Raven Saitz.
The heir of the ducal house still seemed unable to escape his panicked state, swept away by waves of emotion. His voice was mixed with extreme anxiety and desperation.
At this reaction, Adrian Deconti stepped forward with a calm voice to soothe him.
"Look here, if rushing could solve the problem, I would have moved already. We shouldn't move hastily but judge calmly."
Unfortunately, it had little effect.
"Adrian, I cannot disgrace the family. I cannot, cannot return like this……. Let's hurry past the Storm Forest and join the investigation team!"
"Just the two of us?"
"We have the mercenaries! Those things will do anything for a bundle of gold coins!"
Captain Royce refused with a calm yet firm attitude.
"We've completed the commission, so we'll withdraw by going around the forest's edge. If you want to propose a new mission, discuss it through the guild."
"You, you uncouth bastards! Don't you also have roots in the Astria Kingdom! How dare you—"
"Whoa, whoa, Raven. Calm down."
Adrian calmed the excited Raven Saitz. But only for a moment, as he then uttered something incomprehensible in a low voice.
"However, Captain, the current situation is not a coincidence. The forest is guiding us."
"……What do you mean by that."
"This isn't a simple trap. The Storm Forest is already changing. Some fundamental force……Is drawing us in."
He turned his head while maintaining his composure. His meaningful gaze only stopped when it met Calix's.
There was something there.
Not only the person involved but those around him felt the same. Gregor, who had somehow regained his cheerfulness, whispered in a suspicious voice.
"Cook comrade, that island nation bastard's eyes are suspicious."
"……Indeed. Are you alright?"
"Of course, I'm alright! It's all thanks to you."
Crack!
However, before the argument could ripen, the sound of breaking branches and growling echoed from the surroundings. Wolves' shadows had fallen upon them.
The Mountain Rabbits gritted their teeth and drew their weapons.
The Captain quickly made a decision.
"Talk later! Move inside for now, hurry!"
It was Calix's turn to step forward. In his vision appeared countless colors of light. The magic spread throughout the forest and the assassins' blood-red magic. The problem was that they were surrounded.
The enemy numbered in the hundreds.
"Captain, over there!"
"……."
"We'll be completely surrounded soon!"
Even at the sudden statement, no one questioned it. Royce nodded briefly, then slapped the horse's hindquarters with his palm, sending it off to one side of the forest.
"Adrian—"
"Ah, the horses will only be in the way. I'll send mine too."
An attempt to buy even a little time.
After the horse and donkey disappeared into the undergrowth, the Mountain Rabbits quickly moved their legs.
Rustle, crack!
Grrrr—
Ironically, it led to a situation opposite to the mercenary band's plan. The noise created by the enemies was heard from all directions. Whenever they tried to head toward the forest's outskirts, they felt the assassins' presence everywhere.
"Damn, they're driving us in. This is definitely not a coincidence."
"Didn't I tell you!"
Dwarf Basim muttered a curse at Adrian's quick response. The human who was supposedly Latia's prince had a talent for getting on people's nerves.
***
The Wolves of Engelson are beasts specialized in mountainous terrain. They advanced while crushing entire thickets, gradually closing the distance. To make matters worse, the forest fog didn't hold back the assassins' feet.
'The blood-red magic pushed away the fog. Time is running out.'
Calix, who was leading the party at the front, gritted his teeth.
The colors visible in his sight numbered at least 400. Meanwhile, the Mountain Rabbits were only 50, and even they weren't in normal condition after consecutive forced marches.
The new recruits' breaths had risen to their chins, and shadows had fallen across the veteran mercenaries' faces alike.
Fighting meant certain defeat.
In other words, the moment they were caught, it was over.
'Should we go deeper like this?'
Even though there was no choice, he reconsidered again. Not only was being herded as the enemy intended a problem, but at some point…… A mass of light had caught his eye.
Amid the dizzying fluctuations of magic's colors, the forest's center alone shone quietly.
A collection of pure light unlike anything seen anywhere. The appearance of magic pulsing slowly like a heart resembled the mud pit of the magic stone mine. Except it was far more massive and magnificent.
Thump!
And soon, Calix felt his own heart begin to beat at the same speed. It was an unfamiliar phenomenon.
"Calix, are you alright?"
Vice-captain Marik noticed the subtle change and patted his shoulder, but before he could answer, a heavy shadow leaped out from ahead.
[Combat Acceleration Activated, 2.4x]
Calix immediately swung his sword and pulled his body to the left. A build far too large for human proportions. It was a wolf that the assassins controlled like their own limbs.
Swoosh.
Scrape, swish!
The blade cut three times in an instant. He severed the beast's front paw while moving to the side, then slashed its torso with the inner side of the blade before twisting the handle outward again.
He killed the wolf with a single stroke, but no one had the luxury to exclaim in admiration. Only one wolf had attacked. The enemy's mass didn't follow, but this clearly reduced the distance.
[Xah'ak dhr'a!]
[Over there!]
The sharp syllables uttered by the assassins flew in like metallic sounds. The ear-piercing scraping, like nails on tree bark, was extremely close.
From now on, it was a race against time.
[There is no peace for those who point!]
[Extinguish the light!]
Fortunately, 'intuition' provided Calix with options.
"Forward, we must advance! We need to go deeper into the forest!"
They had to head toward the forest's heart.
***
The Mountain Rabbits undertook a desperate flight for nearly four or five hours.
Sssss—
Thick, massive tree trunks were shrouded in deep darkness. The ground beneath their feet was muddy, and moss-covered tree roots, from some point on, grabbed at their ankles as if alive.
Whoosh!
Inevitably, the members' breathing became extremely ragged, and at that moment, an unidentifiable projectile barely grazed past their ears.
"Duck your heads! Poison darts!"
Thwip!
As soon as Royce shouted, a fine steel needle embedded itself in a tree trunk. In a normal state, they would have deflected it without a thought, but it missed by a hair's breadth.
"We should use, huff huff, the Neural Accelerators, shouldn't we!"
"Not yet! We have to consider the limited operating time!"
[Kill their breath!]
"Damn, those bastards absolutely won't give up!"
The enemy's advance guard, rushing from behind, repeatedly appeared and disappeared using the shadows, employing every means to delay the party.
When veteran mercenary Hagen mistepped and fell into a swamp, Calix quickly ran over, grabbed his arm, and pulled him out.
"Fuck, these vermin……Dug traps?"
"Are you alright?"
"Of course, I'm alright. Stop worrying about me and watch the path ahead!"
Perhaps it was because he had such strong pride. Though a grumbling answer came back, there was no time to feel uncomfortable as his subsequent action grabbed everyone's attention. He discovered a poison dart stuck in his shoulder and, gritting his teeth, carved out the surrounding flesh.
Thud, crack!
"Coming from the left!"
Soon after, assassins burst out from the left side. Adrian Deconti instantly cut them down with a blade imbued with refined flames, but the enemy's true intention lay elsewhere.
BOOM!
Crackle-snap!
With a massive explosion, a giant tree standing on the left fell.
"Scatter!"
The Mountain Rabbits split into two in an instant. No one was crushed by the tree, but the dust rose thickly, obscuring visibility, and even the experienced veterans fell into confusion, unable to determine which direction to proceed.
"Zahira!"
"……Calix!"
"This way!"
It was also Calix's role to regroup them. He stepped on Volga's shoulder and crossed over the fallen tree, then quickly brought the separated group together.
Though traps using the terrain's characteristics endlessly held them back, poison darts and explosive projectiles flew at them, and evil whispers gnawed at his companions' mental strength.
'We're still okay. As long as we don't get caught by the enemy's main force.'
Calix led the party at the front.
Following the guidance of 'intuition', following the flow of light.
Huff huff.
However, they eventually reached their limit. Those who seemed unable to endure any longer began to appear. Eventually, veteran mercenaries like Royce and Marik supported their exhausted companions, lending their strength.
"Just a little more strength!"
"There will definitely be an exit at the end of this path. Don't give up!"
"That's right, you damned humans! If you die in the forest, we can't even hold a funeral for you!"
Their shouts carried trust in Calix. Even though they were being led without a proper explanation of where they were going, there was certainty.
That's how Adrian felt about it.
"Better than most knight orders. Their trust in each other is solid. Don't you think?"
"They're just mere mercenaries."
"Is status so important? People only reveal their true selves when they're sprawled on the ground."
"……We're all going to die."
"No, that's not true."
He firmly denied Raven Saitz's gloomy murmur. Indeed, soon the forest's center came into the Mountain Rabbits' view.
The clearing was still without a breath of wind. At its center, a gigantic tree that defied comparison had taken root, harboring a beautiful yet eerie crystallization of light.
Hundreds, thousands of light fragments gathered together, rotating slowly. A 'Core' created by a Circulating Mage—a concentration of magic.
"…...So it's true that a mage created the forest."
"Did they survive?"
"Look, it's emitting light stronger than the sun. At the very least, they won't be able to jump out of the shadows recklessly like before."
"What the hell is that? Is it like a magic stone?"
As the members poured out statements mixed with doubt and hope, Calix pressed his lips tightly together and gazed at the massive crystal.
[Core of the Circulating Mage, Leatus, has been recognized]
[State out of control]
[User caution required]
Even without the Neural Accelerator's explanation, he could intuitively tell.
That this was the center of all the incidents that had occurred.
'The assassins keep approaching. They're spread everywhere. What should I do now?'
However, no clue to overcome the situation was visible. Just because the forest's Core was before their eyes, what could they do with it?
'Is the only option to break through to the other side of the forest?'
At that moment, Adrian quietly spoke.
"It's inevitable."
Calix turned his head and stared at him.
"What do you mean?"
"It'll be difficult to shake off the assassins. Those bastards have already completed their encirclement. My intuition tells me so. Then isn't now precisely the moment to be honest?"
When he responded with silence, Latia's prince smiled slightly and whispered.
"You pinpointed my Neural Accelerator. Aren't you curious? About what exactly led us here."
"……Will you tell me if I ask?"
"Gladly."
When an answer came to his casually thrown words, the movement toward Royce abruptly stopped.
"My ancestor, the hero Latia, was a sailor by birth. Sea breeze flowed through his body instead of blood. Then, what did the Pointing Mage, Yelayen, give him? Navigation skills? No. He already possessed that ability. Then was it swordsmanship? That wasn't essential either. Combat on a ship isn't determined by swordsmanship alone."
"……."
"So, he asked for luck. Though it wasn't something visible or tangible, he asked for the power to discern right from wrong."
The secret held by Latia's prince. Inherited from his ancestor, his Neural Accelerator leads the user to the right path.
In a small scope, it would be called luck, and in a broad sense, it could be called destiny.
However, Calix didn't listen attentively to his words.
Outdated fatalism?
It was bullshit.
"……Let's end the conversation here. We're going beyond the forest."
"However, this place has already been given a mission. The Circulating Mage must have summoned them of their own will."
"Who exactly are they summoning? You?"
To this, Adrian Deconti, the man who inherited the hero Latia's bloodline ability, uttered with a confident voice as if he had been waiting.
"Not me. Calix, they summoned you."
Calix felt his heart sink for a moment. Though he didn't believe his words, instinctively he felt as if he had touched the flow of fate.
Grrrrr—
Just then, a growling resonance spread through the undergrowth. Dark emotions arose in the new recruits' eyes, and the veteran mercenaries groaned while raising their weapons.
Thud, thud.
Assassins mounted on wolves walked out from all directions. Their leisurely attitude stemmed from the fact that they no longer needed to chase.
They were perfectly surrounded.
"You……."
"Please don't resent me. And don't run away. Fate is terribly perverse, loving those who resist it."
It was only briefly confusing whether he was friend or foe. Adrian drew his sword and stepped to the front. Despite the desperate situation with enemy numbers reaching 500, a small smile spread across his face instead.
That there was no longer any need to flee,
He knew it.