Footsteps (4k)

Thin Mist Forest lay deep within the heart of the Aifala Continent. Ancient hidden remnants, combined with its naturally unique terrain, gave this place a dense concentration of Magic Power unlike any other region.

And with it came dangerous monsters born from the pale, wispy mist.

Having lived for generations in an environment saturated with Magic Power and nourished by its abundance, these monsters either possessed bodies far hardier than ordinary creatures or were born with the ability to manipulate the laws of nature.

They occupied the highest ecological niche in the entire forest.

Yet the reason they could sit firmly atop the pyramid was inseparable from the vast foundation supporting them below.

This forest, perpetually shrouded in a thin mist, was also home to countless ordinary creatures not listed in the Monster Bestiary.

"Rustle."

A light breeze swept past, sending leaves spiraling down.

The brownish bark resembled a dried-up riverbed, rough and covered in cracks and grooves.

From afar, it seemed to be nothing more than one of the most common Oak branches in the forest.

But if one looked a little longer and a little closer,

they would gradually notice the scarlet forked tongue flickering through the air, as well as the slender outline faintly bulging and stretching along the surface of the trunk.

This was a Rosalind Sharp-nosed Viper.

The mottled light-brown patterns on its fine scales, along with the patience and sluggishness unique to cold-blooded creatures, allowed it to blend almost perfectly into its surroundings.

Its long, pointed triangular head also hinted, from a natural standpoint, at the potent venom this species possessed.

It waited quietly.

Thin Mist Forest was never short of prey.

Its unique body structure allowed it to swallow creatures several times its own size. With a body nearly five feet long and two sharp fangs beneath its skull, ready to inject venom at any moment,

its prey was not limited to frogs and lizards. It even included some small and medium-sized mammals.

And when they encountered creatures too large for them, the survival instincts buried deep in their bloodline would make them steer clear of these dangerous creatures that wielded lethal toxins.

"Squeak."

A Long-eared Mouse, covered all over in soft fur, cautiously shuffled through the fallen leaves.

Its clear yet foolish little eyes seemed to foretell its fate.

It drew closer.

There was not a trace of emotion in the Sharp-nosed Viper's cold Vertical Pupils. Its neck curved and coiled, its muscles tensing.

The explosive muscles beneath its scales meant it needed only a fraction of a second to inject its venom into the target. Then it would coil around it, constrict tightly, and wait for its prey to die.

Its tiny brown scales trembled faintly as its muscles swelled.

This was the sign that it was about to strike.

Then—

Bzz—

A sharp iron-gray flash vanished through the air.

Along with the splinters spraying from the tree trunk, the Long-eared Mouse fled in panic deep into the bushes.

The Sharp-nosed Viper's body remained in the taut, coiled posture it had held just before hunting.

But its head had already been sliced clean off by a cold, sharp blade.

"Fuck! That scared the hell out of me!"

Still shaken, Xia Nan exerted a little force with his right hand and yanked the Beheading Longsword embedded in the trunk free.

This was already his second day back in Thin Mist Forest.

Unlike what he had expected, the forest's complex environment—filled with mist and countless similar-looking trees—made it difficult to tell direction even with the professional compass and crude map he had bought from the General Store.

And since he was alone, even the slightest movement around him put Xia Nan on alert, forcing him to proceed carefully.

As a result, his progress was even slower than that of the Stinky Fish Rotten Shrimp party—

He had not noticed it at the time, but looking back now, it was probably because Maji possessed some kind of Combat Skill for navigating and exploration.

Fortunately, the Firefly Garlic Vine's location was not too far from River Valley Town. After one afternoon and half a morning of wandering around, he was almost there.

He dug a small pit in the ground, then used the tip of his sword to toss the snake's head inside with a disgusted expression.

A bit of trivia he had picked up somewhere in his Previous Life told him that even after a snake's head was severed, it could still open and close its jaws through muscle memory and inject venom.

So, to be safe, it was best to bury its head somewhere, lest he get bitten by mistake.

In Xia Nan's view, the most dangerous things in Thin Mist Forest were naturally the bizarre monsters.

But if they were talking about disgusting, the snakes and bugs scattered all over the road took the crown.

Even though he carried antidotes and insect repellent, getting bitten by one of those little things by accident was no joke.

He stood still and carefully swept his gaze around the area.

Only after confirming that nothing was out of place did Xia Nan relax slightly. He took off the Backpack behind him and pulled out a piece of gauze.

As he rested and recovered some stamina, he also carefully maintained the new longsword in his hands.

According to Barn, the Shopkeeper of Rock Hammer, unless it had been through a major battle, this sword only needed maintenance once every three days.

But he had only just gotten it. Even knowing that, before long, the blade would accumulate countless hard-to-remove marks from use, he still could not resist keeping it in that fresh-from-the-forge condition.

The soft gauze brushed gently over the blade, wiping away the small amount of grime on its surface.

Feeling the tough, cool Sword Hilt in his hand, Xia Nan's thoughts drifted.

Come to think of it, for an adventurer who regularly faced all kinds of combat, a suitable weapon was practically a second life.

Therefore, when choosing a weapon, one had to carefully determine whether its feel and balance suited one's combat habits.

Xia Nan had not thought that much about it at the time. He had simply bought the longsword with the mindset of picking up a bargain.

Looking at it now, it was not exactly a mistake, but he should have considered things more carefully.

Fortunately, after a day and a half of getting used to it, Xia Nan could confirm that this Beheading Longsword suited him extremely well.

It was somewhat heavier than an ordinary Two-Handed Sword, but still within the limits of what his current strength could handle.

Its four-foot, double-edged blade allowed [Whirlwind Slash] to display its power perfectly.

Even its understated iron-gray blade suited his tastes.

Xia Nan now almost wished for a few more encounters so he could chop down a few Goblins and prove the blade's sharpness.

"Uh... forget Bear Goblins."

He joked to himself.

He stood and slung the slightly heavy pack back onto his shoulders.

Just as he was about to leave, he caught sight of the snake's corpse amid the fallen leaves.

As if suddenly remembering something, he took the already slightly wrinkled [Adventurer's Manual] from his chest.

21. [An Adventurer's Hands Should Have Some Blood on Them]

Hey! What's there to be disgusted about? Those are fragrant, shiny Gold Coins!

—21.3 [Regarding Those Crawlers]

...Remember to remove their Snake Gall. It can usually be sold for a decent price at Herbal Shops and alchemy stores. (The exact price depends on their size and species.)

Certain special species are worth even more. For example, the Horn on an Ice Trail Horn Snake's head and the Snakeskin shed by a Tube Python can both fetch a good price.

Of course, all of the above applies only to ordinary creatures. As for monsters...

"Sure enough, I almost lost out on a few Gold Coins again."

Xia Nan pulled a dagger from his waist. Comparing it to the illustration in the manual, he awkwardly sliced open the Viper's scaled body.

"Got it!"

In his hand, now covered in mucus and blood, was an inky-black sac-like organ.

"A Snake Gall from a Viper this size in Thin Mist Forest should sell for around 3 Silver Coins?"

Recalling the price list he had seen while buying supplies at the Herbal Shop, he guessed to himself.

In his Previous Life, Xia Nan had once heard someone pose a very interesting question.

If someone earned 5,000 a month in both places, why was the experience of living in the countryside so vastly different from living in the city?

Prices naturally differed, but in his view, the temptations of one's surroundings were also an important reason.

If it had been the Xia Nan who had just transmigrated into this world, whose mind held only the simple memories of his predecessor's eighteen years spent alongside wheat stalks, then 100 Gold Coins and 10 Gold Coins would not have seemed all that different to him. They were both enormous sums.

But after Xia Nan had walked around River Valley Town with the more than one hundred Gold Coins he had obtained as loot, after seeing 500-Gold-Coin potions and four-digit-priced armor,

his understanding of this world had changed clearly.

At the very least, as he held down the writhing, twitching snake body and extracted the Snake Gall from the mucus and blood,

beyond the disgust, he felt even more joy at being able to earn a few more Gold Coins once he returned to town.

Especially given that he only had 24 Gold Coins, 2 Silver Coins, and 7 Copper Coins left on him.

Yes.

Xia Nan, who had once possessed over one hundred and thirty Gold Coins, now had less than even a fraction of that remaining.

The 35-Gold-Coin Beheading Longsword and 10-Gold-Coin Leather Armor were only part of the bill.

And the chief culprit behind the drastic shrinkage of his savings was now lying quietly at the bottom of the safest, most convenient pouch at his waist.

50 Gold Coins.

An entire bottle, unopened, faintly glowing when shaken—

a Healing Potion.

Xia Nan had ultimately been unable to resist.

After completing all the necessary preparations before heading out, he had used what little savings he had left to add another trump card to his adventure.

But he did not regret it.

Because he knew exactly what kind of effect this Healing Potion could have.

A metallic gleam flashed before his eyes. Xia Nan's reflection appeared on the iron-gray surface of the blade.

His gaze focused, and translucent text appeared before him:

[Name]: Xia Nan

[Attributes]:

Strength: 6

Agility: 6

Constitution: 5

Intelligence: 5

Perception: 5

Charisma: 5

[Feat]: Slicing Master

[Skill]: Whirlwind Slash lv5 (Max)

[Equipment/Items]: Dead Line, Sturdy Beheading Longsword, Healing Potion *1...

This was Xia Nan's second adventure.

But without a doubt, compared to himself when he had first transmigrated into this world, he had undergone tremendous changes, both mentally and physically.

If the current him returned to that dark, bloody Goblin Cave,

he might not achieve a complete victory, but at the very least, when he dealt with those four Goblin lackeys, Ga Gu should not yet have completely lost his ability to fight.

Xia Nan casually tossed the still-twitching snake corpse to the ground, then calmly took the compass and map from his chest.

"Hmm... this way."

As he drew closer and closer to his destination, the memories that had seemed veiled in mist, much like the air of the forest itself, gradually became clearer.

His footsteps quickened.

About another two hours later, Xia Nan pushed aside the dense bushes before him, and an open clearing appeared in his field of vision.

To be honest, the clearing was not particularly large. Even including the increasingly lush vegetation along its edges, it was only about a quarter the size of a basketball court.

But within Thin Mist Forest, which was filled with towering trees, it seemed especially conspicuous.

At the center of the clearing stood a dark Oak Tree about as thick as two people with their arms around it.

It was neither tall nor especially majestic or sturdy.

Judging from its appearance alone, the only thing distinguishing it from the trees around the clearing

was the clusters of pale white vines hanging from its branches.

Xia Nan's eyes lit up.

His memory of passing through here several days ago told him that these strangely colored vines emitted tiny points of light like fireflies at night.

"Firefly Garlic Vine!"

His heart leaped with excitement.

But he did not hurry closer.

A clearing appearing suddenly in a dense forest, a strange plant that gave off light, and the potentially enormous profits it could bring...

Any adventurer with even a little common sense would not rashly approach such a scene.

Xia Nan, still very much a novice adventurer and constantly wary of everything around him, was even less likely to do so.

He gripped the Beheading Longsword tightly with both hands. His half-crouched body leaned slightly forward, maintaining the posture most convenient for exerting force.

Moving as quietly as possible, he spent a full ten minutes circling the edge of the clearing.

The grass, the treetops...

Only after checking everything and confirming there was no ambush did he turn his gaze back to the Oak Tree in the clearing.

His expression showed some hesitation.

There were many trees in the forest. Though they often blocked his vision and kept him from promptly spotting potential dangers, they could also serve as cover when necessary.

If there were hidden enemies, stepping into the open clearing would mean exposing his entire body to them.

After pondering for a moment, Xia Nan finally made his decision.

There was no point in keeping up this standoff. He had to take the initiative!

Gritting his teeth, he stepped forward with his right foot and charged out.

When he neared the vines, he abruptly stopped.

He held his longsword horizontally, its iron-gray blade flashing with a cold gleam.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

A light breeze swept past, and the swaying branches rustled.

Realizing that he had just been outwitting the air, Xia Nan decisively sheathed his sword—no one else had seen him anyway, so there was nothing to be embarrassed about.

Then, at top speed, he pulled out his dagger and cut down clump after clump of Firefly Garlic Vine.

After all, he was the only one who knew about this place. Though he did not know how this vine-like plant grew, he still left some immature branches and leaves behind, intending to make sustainable use of it.

In less than five minutes, Xia Nan had carefully yet swiftly stuffed 32... clumps of Firefly Garlic Vine into the backpack he had specially prepared.

"Perfect!"

He tightened the fairly weighty pack on his back and was just about to leave.

Then he heard two hurried sets of footsteps coming from the woods to his right.

"Hm!?"