Beaten Up by a Chicken

Two years later.

One midsummer morning, Rosaline passed through a thousand-meter corridor carpeted with wisteria blossoms and arrived at a hidden corner formed by a collapsed overpass. She pushed aside the shrubs, revealing a pile of straw.

This was a mysterious farming spot she had discovered. Wild chickens often laid eggs here, allowing her to sneak back two eggs every few days to improve her meals.

She was already twelve years old. Her explorer's outfit made her figure appear ever more slender. Compared to when she had first arrived two years ago, she had lost some of her childishness and gained the budding charm of a young girl. She had also grown past 1.55 meters and was rapidly closing in on her teacher's height of 1.65 meters.

"Let me see... Hmm, five eggs this time? I'll only take two. Lady Chicken, I hope you won't be angry..." she muttered, taking two eggs from the nest with a smile before turning to leave.

Unfortunately, this time, she was caught—and the wild chicken that caught her did not look quite normal—

It had grown to nearly Rosaline's height. A wart-covered fleshy tumor had swollen from the top of its head, like some enormous overgrown gland, covered in writhing tentacles. Its exposed body and fleshy wings had no feathers, and viscous fluid with a sour stench dripped from them.

"Um... You don't look very well, Lady Chicken..." Rosaline said.

Its head had mutated, exposing raw flesh. By her teacher's standards, these were typical traits of a basic Mutant. But on the Radiant Continent, such a monster could easily kill four or five adult villagers. More frighteningly, once scratched by one, the corruption would spread and eventually Devour the entire village.

"Cluck—!!!" With a shrill crow, the Mutant charged at her. Its sharp beak sliced through the air like a keen blade.

Rosaline did not panic. The instant the Mutant closed in, green currents of air enveloped her body, carrying her effortlessly to the side. Then she lightly raised her hand, and more than a dozen blue bullets the size of little fingers poured out like shotgun pellets, freezing the wild chicken into an ice sculpture.

"...Let me help you find peace." She sighed softly and snapped her fingers. Crimson flames surged forth, engulfing the wild chicken.

Though the mutated wild chicken continued roaring in its final moments, it soon struggled weakly before collapsing to the ground as a charred corpse.

After dealing with the mutated wild chicken, Rosaline felt somewhat sad. Although Lady Chicken had humiliated her badly whenever she had come here to steal eggs, they could at least be considered acquaintances after fighting each other so many times. Now, after a year, Lady Chicken was simply gone. Already without any playmates, Rosaline felt even lonelier.

I wonder what kind of life Teacher lived before I came... But a reclusive master like her probably wouldn't be as unable to bear loneliness as I am. Even without me, she could live leisurely and happily. I'm the one who needs her...

After deeply bowing to Lady Wild Chicken and observing a minute of silence on the spot, Rosaline turned to leave with the eggs in hand. Yet just as she moved, another chicken blocked her path. It glared at her furiously, its tiny body brimming with immense energy.

Rosaline looked at the familiar-looking hen before her, then at the ugly corpse not far away—the one she had bowed to and mourned—and froze. "...Huh?"

"Where did you go? Don't tell me you ran beyond the safe boundary again?" Seeing Rosaline's hair far messier than usual, Ivette sat in the manor's tea room with a book in her hands and asked curiously.

Ever since she had given Rosaline a Sky Ring y2 two years ago, constantly helping her improve it and add new spells, Rosaline had gained a certain degree of independence and no longer required Ivette to follow her at all times. To that end, Ivette had specifically divided Ish City's map into zones: within three kilometers of the manor was the safe zone, where Rosaline could move freely; beyond that, exploration of the Central District required reporting in advance; all areas farther out were strictly forbidden.

The reason for such caution was that, during an expedition some time ago, she had discovered some seemingly highly evolved High-Tier Mutants in the Ish Mountains and Luya City. Since she did not know their capabilities and there were too many ordinary Mutants nearby, she had not approached them. Still, that did not stop her from suspecting that the high-risk areas she had marked contained even more advanced boss-level Mutants—given how Mutated Creatures evolved by devouring one another, all of Ish Island was a giant breeding ground. The emergence of high-level Mutants was hardly strange; it was practically inevitable.

"No, no! You warned me about that, Teacher. I wouldn't go there!" Rosaline hurriedly explained, then scratched her head awkwardly. "I got beaten up by a chicken..."

Ivette fell silent. She looked at Rosaline a few times, then lowered her head and continued reading. Only half an hour later, when Rosaline brought over fried eggs along with the rest of lunch, did she contentedly close her book in the tea room and leisurely enjoy the meal her disciple had prepared for her.

The sunlight was lovely. Perhaps because they were far from the equator, midsummer was not especially hot and instead felt rather pleasant. As the strong wind blew, the clouds scattered, revealing a clear, azure sky.

After eating, Ivette stood and said, "Let's go. To where that mist is."

The "mist" Ivette spoke of was a patch of Dream Mist. At least, in her view, it ought to be Dream Mist—just like the mist she had seen three hundred years ago while cautiously exploring the minus tenth floor of the Abyss Base.

It had been discovered during an expedition into the "Blackwater District" some time ago. Inside a ruined building that had not yet collapsed, Rosaline had rushed in first and found the spreading mist on the second floor. By the time Ivette climbed the old stairs, she was shocked to discover that the girl was already standing within the white fog.

But...

Why hadn't it triggered?

Ivette did not understand, but she was certain of one thing: it was definitely not normal mist, and there was no reason for mist to form there. If Rosaline could enter and exit it unharmed, then either the mist lacked enough power to drag people into dreams, or—

The Dream Mist only affected her.

Considering that she had once brought something from a dream back to the present through the mist—even if it had only been simple clothing—it still proved that she seemed to share a strange connection with the Dream Mist, one that others, or at least people from this world, could not reach.

Now, she intended to uncover the mist's true nature. If it really was Dream Mist, then she would certainly fall asleep there, while the unaffected Rosaline could remain nearby and protect her physical body as it slept in reality.

Taking on a disciple really was useful after all.

For this trip, Ivette and Rosaline's vehicle had received an upgrade. It was now a Magitech Motorcycle capable of low-altitude flight, with a maximum hover height of two hundred meters.

However, compared to ground mode, flight mode consumed magic power at a terrifying rate. On top of that, Elemental Capacitors experienced "Elemental Decay" over time. The Magitech Motorcycle, which had once possessed a range of over a thousand kilometers, now had a range of less than one hundred kilometers. Ivette had to stop halfway every time and act as a battery herself to recharge it.

Fortunately, the technology of "Elemental Replenishment" had been developed before the apocalypse. As long as an Elemental Capacitor affected by Elemental Decay had its depleted elements replenished, it could return to full capacity... Hmm, if I can successfully return to the past this time, I should take the opportunity to gather some technical knowledge on this... Knowledge changes fate...

She silently made her plans, feeling that she had taken another step toward becoming a professional Magitech Mechanical Engineer.

An hour later, Ivette and Rosaline landed the Magitech Motorcycle in a patch of wasteland beside the facility containing the Dream Mist.

Then, according to plan, the two conducted a thorough sweep of the area, eliminating every Mutant that could possibly threaten them in advance.

Finally, they used wind magic to carry over some large pieces of debris. After entering the building, they blocked every entrance and passageway, completing all safety preparations for the operation.

"Teacher, I still don't feel anything." Rosaline turned around and said after climbing to the second floor and entering the mist.

Seeing this, Ivette hesitated for a moment before cautiously stepping onto the second floor. However, the instant her body was completely swallowed by the mist, that familiar drowsiness swept over her once more.

"You... stay here... guard... me..." After struggling to finish those instructions, she lay on her side on the ground, resting her head on her arm, and fell into a deep sleep.