Setting Out

Rhode looked at the girl before him and sighed.

"Lize, you're the one who should be most worried right now. You haven't had a proper rest since last night."

At the mention of "last night," Lize's body suddenly shrank back, as if she had remembered what happened all over again. Even so, the girl stubbornly bit her lip and shook her head.

"No... I..."

"Smack!"

Lize hadn't finished speaking when Rhode raised his hand and slapped her hard across the face.

What was he doing?!

Clutching her flushed cheek, Lize stared at Rhode in astonishment and disbelief. The young man merely watched her quietly before speaking.

"I can understand how you feel right now."

Hearing those calm words, spoken with almost no emotion, sent a surge of anger welling up from deep within Lize. She lowered her hand and clenched her fists, seeming ready to argue against Rhode's irresponsible remark. But his next words completely drained her strength to do so.

"You feel guilty for surviving simply because you're different. But for an angel-blooded person, that isn't the right way to think."

"!!"

Lize was startled. Instinctively, she crossed her arms protectively in front of herself and retreated two or three steps, stopping only when she hit the tree behind her. Even then, she paid no attention to it. She stared fixedly at the man before her and opened her mouth, but no words came out. How could he possibly know? No, it was impossible. She hadn't told him. Even in her mercenary group, only a handful of people knew.

"How did you...?"

"Your eyes."

Rhode held up one finger.

"Your eyes reflect a golden glow when light shines on them. That's the mark of an angel, a 'Light Protector.' But unlike a pure-blooded angel, the light in your eyes isn't dazzling. That's because your human blood obscures it—isn't it?"

The girl didn't answer.

Though she hadn't responded, Rhode had already confirmed that his guess was right. The girl standing before him was indeed angel-blooded. In fact, he had been observing Lize for some time. As a top-tier player, after years of gaming, Rhode had long since grown adept at judging someone's attributes from their equipment and features. That didn't just let him devise the best tactics in the shortest time during boss fights; it also gave him the initiative in PvP battles. It was a skill every seasoned player was bound to master.

In fact, ever since Rhode and Lize had been rescued, he had made a point of watching her, and it hadn't taken long for him to realize who she really was. Though she was only of mixed blood, an angel's powerful healing and resistance to damage hadn't disappeared. That was the main reason Lize had survived being thrown from the airship.

Lize herself must have understood this, which was why she had been so despondent.

"That's why I said I understand how you feel."

Rhode shrugged.

"You know exactly why you survived. It wasn't luck; it was the difference between you and everyone else. And you can't accept that... If you could, you'd even wish you were just an ordinary human, facing death alongside your companions instead of surviving like this."

"..."

Lize lowered her head, gripping her skirt tightly in both hands.

"But it wasn't something you could decide."

Seeing Lize's shoulders tremble slightly, Rhode softened his tone.

"You can't choose where you come from, and you couldn't stop any of this from happening. It was beyond your control. Never regret something you couldn't change."

"Then..."

Lize finally spoke.

"...What should I do?"

"That's your path. You have to choose it for yourself."

Lize fell silent for a moment, then lifted her head.

"I understand. Thank you, Mr. Rhode."

"You're welcome."

"...But that slap really hurt..."

Though the process had been somewhat "violent," Lize eventually emerged from the shadows of losing her companions and blaming herself. When the sun rose the next day, there was no trace of her earlier sorrow on the blonde girl's face. In its place was her usual gentle smile. Mace, who had slept through the night and had no idea what had happened, looked from one of them to the other in surprise. At last, he gave Rhode a meaningful smile—but what exactly he meant by it, no one could say.

But before the fat merchant could satisfy his curiosity, one remark from Rhode sent him plummeting into the depths of despair.

"I think it's time we set out."

Set out?

The word jolted the fat merchant, who had just woken up, finished breakfast, and belched in satisfaction. He finally remembered that he wasn't in his warm, comfortable room but in this endless, dangerous forest... Right, they hadn't come out here for a picnic. There was that damned Wind Serpent, and that damned captain... Forget it. There was no point dwelling on that now. What mattered was—how were they supposed to get out of this damned forest?

With that thought, Mace hurriedly looked up at Rhode. If the young man said he had a way, surely he'd have a well-thought-out plan. After all, they were deep in the mountains. One wrong move and they could get lost, not to mention all the wild beasts lurking there. How were they supposed to avoid being hunted down? This was all essential wilderness-survival knowledge. He had to pay close attention and not miss a single word. If carelessness got him killed out here, it would be a terrible waste.

With that in mind, Mace slapped his cheeks, dispelling the last traces of sleep. Then he watched Rhode carefully as he stood up from the ground, casually brushed the dust off his legs, and rolled his wrists before speaking.

"Let's go."

"...W-wait, Mr. Rhode!"

The fat merchant sprang up with a sudden "boing," as if he'd been sitting on a chair covered in nails.

"Where are we going?"

"Northeast. There's a small town there. Once we get there, the rest of the journey will be much easier."

"Isn't there anything we need to watch out for?"

"Nothing in particular."

It wasn't strange that Rhode would say that. Paffield, the beginner's hub of the Dragon Soul Continent, had already been scoured by players from top to bottom. Influenced especially by online novels, many players had deliberately ventured into remote, dangerous, or hard-to-reach areas early in the game, hoping to find legendary artifacts powerful enough to let them dominate the game. Then they could wield divine weapons, become invincible, build a mighty faction, and eventually unite the continent... Reality, of course, was always cruel. Though players had thrown themselves into the search with tireless determination, they had indeed found some rare weapons and pieces of equipment with decent attributes. Unfortunately, not one of them met the players' standard of "a divine weapon in hand, and the world is mine."

That was simply too high a standard.

To Mace, this place was full of danger, and every step might cost him his life. But to Rhode, the area was as familiar as his own backyard. In the game, as a guild leader, he had brought new recruits here to level up countless times. He knew where the monsters were numerous and where they were scarce, which quest rewards suited which classes, and which areas were best for efficient training. All of it came naturally to him. You could drop Rhode anywhere, and he could find his way out with his eyes closed. So, of course, he had nothing in particular to warn them about. As for Mace? Rhode had done merchant-protection quests in the game hundreds, if not a thousand, times. Why would he be concerned?

At Rhode's answer, Mace's chubby face drooped like a frostbitten eggplant. He had no idea what Rhode was thinking, but surely this was too casual? The merchant began to wonder if he'd made the wrong choice. Thinking about it carefully, the young man had been badly wounded in the mountains. If he hadn't been injured, then this nonchalance might have made sense. But he was hurt, and he was still being this careless... Wasn't that just asking to die?

Though he was already beginning to regret it, he was in too deep to turn back. Mace had no other choice, so he gritted his teeth and followed the two of them deeper into the forest.

Under the bright sunlight, Silver Moon Forest looked peaceful. Sunlight slipped through the gaps in the leaves, scattering specks of light across the ground. Birds chirped now and then, and rabbits could even be spotted among the grass. The scene was so tranquil that the nervous fat merchant gradually relaxed. He no longer looked around suspiciously or fidgeted as he had before.

Rhode walked in front. Though traveling through a pathless forest wasn't easy, he moved nimbly through the trees. Neither vines nor the stems of thorny plants could impede him. Looking only at his back, it was hard to imagine that he'd been seriously wounded not long ago.

Lize followed close behind, keeping pace with him. She had clearly grown used to traveling and living in the wilderness. Though her long robe was inconvenient, she walked steadily beside Rhode, occasionally reminding the merchant behind her to watch his footing.

The deeper they went, the more astonished Lize became.

On the surface, Rhode seemed to be choosing his route at random. He didn't travel in a straight line, but instead turned left or right from time to time, sometimes even taking a wide detour. Judging only by appearances, anyone would think he was wandering aimlessly. Few people would notice that under Rhode's guidance, a smooth path was opening through the forest, which had been filled with obstacles. It was as if the path had been hidden there all along, waiting for someone to discover it.

Lize had once heard her leader say that this was an exceptionally advanced skill. Finding one's way through a forest was simply too difficult for ordinary people. Only elves who lived in harmony with nature and rangers who spent years in the mountains could master it. She had seen it with her own eyes once before. Her group had gotten lost in a forest, and the elves sent to rescue them had chosen to travel in the complete opposite direction from the existing trail. Lize had been very worried at the time, but they had eventually left the forest without difficulty. That was when her leader had explained this skill to her. But...

Watching Rhode's back, Lize tilted her head in confusion. According to her leader, only experienced elves and rangers could master this technique. Ordinary elves might be able to communicate with nature, but they couldn't do this. Yet Rhode made it look so easy and never even stopped to speak with the plants around him. That meant he couldn't be an elf. But... he didn't look like a ranger either. Lize hadn't had much to do with rangers, but she knew their main weapon was a bow. Yet from the first moment she'd met Rhode until now, he had never used one...

Who was he?

Deep in her heart, Lize was growing more and more perplexed.

Rhode stopped.

Through the bushes, he could clearly see the clear lake nearby. It was the heart of Silver Moon Forest: Moonlight Lake. In the game, this was one of the wilderness campsites where players could rest midway through their journey.

"This is wonderful!"

Looking at the clear lake, Mace unconsciously licked his chapped lips. They hadn't been traveling for very long, but to a merchant accustomed to a life of comfort, it already felt like they'd been struggling for days. Seeing such a fine place to rest, the fat merchant immediately strode forward, intending to take a proper break by the lakeshore. But the moment he moved, Rhode's hand came down on his shoulder.

The fat merchant looked at the young man in confusion, but Rhode said nothing. He merely raised one finger to his lips in a hush, then pointed ahead. Mace followed his finger, and his face instantly turned deathly pale.

For there, in the shadow by the lakeshore, a huge white wolf lay quietly, eyes closed as it rested.