Chapter 35: The Expanding Black Forest - Soul Knights in Arknights

Doctor?

Hedley and Ines exchanged quick glances, both seeing the confusion in the other's eyes.

Hedley spoke first, his tone cautious.

"...We don't know Babel Tower's exact location."

Vera raised a brow, and Hedley hurriedly explained.

"Babel Tower and the Military Commission are both making intense preparations for war. They won't let outsiders know where they are."

He watched Vera's reaction. Seeing that she did not lash out, he breathed a sigh of relief and continued.

"As for this 'Doctor' you mentioned... I'm sorry, but I've never heard that title. Is it someone's codename?"

Having said that, Hedley waited tensely for a response while Vera lowered her head in silence.


[Second: Fourth, what do you think of what he said?]

[Fourth: Hmm... The part about Babel Tower's location being confidential is probably true. They're at war, after all. As for the rest...]

[Damn... Did I get the timeline wrong? Has the Doctor not been dug up yet?]

[First: They are a commander. Maybe they're staying hidden behind the scenes.]

[Fourth: Oh, right! The war only started not long ago. Maybe the Doctor hasn't turned into an evil spirit yet.]

[Third: What do we do, then? Search everywhere one place at a time?]

[Fourth: Second, ask him again. Even if he doesn't know where Babel Tower is, he should at least know how to contact them, right?]

Vera raised her head and stared at Hedley.

"How do you contact Babel Tower? Don't tell me you don't know."

The doubts in Hedley's heart deepened.

She was absurdly powerful, and her goal was clearly to find Babel Tower and the "Doctor," yet she seemed completely ignorant of Kazdel's current situation and rules.

And the way she spoke... Could she be a Sarkaz who had grown up in Victoria, or somewhere else far from the war?

But why had she chosen this particular time to return?

His thoughts raced, but Hedley did not dare neglect her on the surface.

"There is no direct way to contact Babel Tower... They are extremely cautious."

Seeing the displeasure on her face, Hedley quickly added.

"There are only two circumstances in which Babel Tower contacts the outside world: to collect specific supplies, or to recruit capable mercenaries."

"The supplies are generally handled by specific intermediaries in Scar Market. The channels are well concealed, and outsiders find it difficult to get involved."

"As for recruiting mercenaries..." Hedley paused and glanced at the wounded remnants beside him.

"Whether it is Babel Tower or the Military Commission, they will only approach mercenaries or mercenary groups with sufficient fame."

"We... are not qualified to be recruited yet."

There was self-mockery in his words, but he had also clearly pointed out the path forward—

To make contact with Babel Tower, they either needed enough strength and fame to make Babel Tower come to them, or they needed to find the hidden supply line in Scar Market.


[Second: This is troublesome... Going by what he said, do we have to slowly grind reputation like we're playing a game?]

[Fourth: Easy, Second! Just find a place and go on a rampage. Whether it's Babel Tower or the Military Commission, I guarantee they'll come running to recruit you!]

[First: No! That's too dangerous!]

[What if someone can counter time stop? At the very least, we need to wait until I get there!]

[Second: I have no intention of joining either side.]

[At the end of the day, what do these people from another world have to do with us? Not to mention, this is their civil war.]

[Fourth: Huh? You weren't this cold and heartless toward Little Fire Dragon, were you?]

[Second: ...Younglings receive special treatment. That is a matter of principle.]

[Third: How about... I come over and join you?]

[Second: No need... Who says becoming famous means you have to personally take the field?]

After thinking it over, Vera looked at Hedley and revealed a smile that made his scalp crawl.

"Mercenary. Your name."

"...Hedley."

"Then, Hedley..."

Vera lightly tapped the hilt of the Void Sword with a finger.

"I have a commission for you. Will you take it?"

Hedley fell silent. Looking at her threatening gesture, he ultimately chose to follow his heart.

"Please tell me..."

The scene shifted to the Ursus snowfields.

Amid the endless expanse of white, a patch of deep black stood out starkly.

At the heart of the darkness, several faint candle flames flickered.


[Second: All right, they've already 'agreed' to take my commission.]

[First: Helping them build their reputation, then using them to contact Babel Tower... Isn't that rather roundabout?]

[Fourth: I thought you were going to slaughter your way across Kazdel and draw attention directly. But this is it?]

[Second: Easy for you to say!]

[By your account, Kazdel is crawling with freakishly powerful fighters. What if they realize I'm not a real Sarkaz and gang up on me? What's wrong with being cautious?]

[Fourth: You're overthinking it~ Babel Tower has plenty of operators from other races. They even have hostile Sankta. Sneaking in as a non-Sarkaz is no big deal at all.]

[First: Sankta?]

[Fourth: Uh... Just think of Sarkaz as traditional 'demons,' and Sankta as 'angels.']

[First: Isn't this Kazdel's civil war? Why would Babel Tower have enemy angels on its side?]

[Fourth: It's a difference in ideals! Babel Tower is more idealistic. Its leader, Theresa, hopes all races can live peacefully together, so they recruit talent from every race.]

[The Military Commission is more pragmatic. They advocate Sarkaz supremacy and reject, even hate, other races.]

[Third: It sounds like... Babel Tower's side is better?]

[Fourth: Uh... You can't really put it that way.]

[If Babel Tower follows Theresa's idealistic path, it is destined to perish in such a brutal environment.]

[Second: It doesn't matter. Their ideals have nothing to do with us. If the Babel Tower route doesn't work...]

[Then when they are destroyed, we'll just 'fish' the people inside out.]

[Fourth: That might be a little difficult, but if you really want to forcibly snatch them away, with your abilities... Mm, forget I said anything.]

[Second: ...It hasn't come to that. Let's follow the plan for now and see how far things can develop here.]

[First: To be safe, I should start heading toward Kazdel first.]

[I'll just leave tonight. This lava body of mine doesn't need rest anyway.]

[Third: First, you won't get lost again, will you...]

[Fourth: Surely not? The routes of mobile cities are pretty obvious. You can't get lost if you follow the tracks... probably?]

[Second: In any case, get here as soon as possible. Be careful on the way. As for Third...]

[You should keep hiding in Ursus for now. Your Wendigo appearance is too conspicuous and could cause unnecessary trouble.]

[Third: Mm... Come back here first in a little while. I prepared some things for you to protect yourself with.]

[Fourth: Wow! Third, you've been holding out on us! Hurry up and show us!]

Ignoring Vane, Gorth turned his attention back to reality.

The shadows beneath his feet writhed and expanded as he tested the limits of his abilities.

To his surprise, the shadows under his control could cover an extraordinarily large area, but the corresponding energy expenditure was also rapid.

Gorth was somewhat uneasy about this. It was fine when he was clearing fodder, since he could replenish his energy through his talent of restoring mana from kills.

But if he encountered a prolonged battle like First had, this energy weakness would be fatal.

What can I do...?


[Fourth: Third? Say something, Third! What good thing are you giving Second?]

Gorth casually replied in the group.


[Third: Seeds compressed with my skill.]

Seeds...

Seeds!

Gorth's eyes lit up. That was an idea!

He could prepare more seeds in advance and use them as backup energy reserves.

But...

Feeling the energy consumed to make a single seed, Gorth felt the efficiency was still too low.

I need a more efficient conversion method...

He summoned them again. This time, the vines bore strange crimson-red patterns—

They were the mutated variants produced after absorbing Fourth's blood.

Let's try this...

The blood-patterned vines swiftly burrowed beneath the frozen soil and firmly took root.

The scarlet patterns on the vines pulsed like breathing, drawing what little nourishment they could from the earth.

Energy is flowing back... but it's too weak. Almost negligible.

Is there not enough of them? Or is the soil unsuitable?

Gorth glanced at the number of blood-patterned vines and spoke in the group.


[Third: Is Fourth there?]

[Fourth: Oh my~ After neglecting your humble servant for so long, Your Majesty finally remembers me~]

Gorth glanced through the chat history and, sure enough, saw a whole pile of messages tagging him. He calmly replied.


[Third: I merely muted the group notifications for a while.]

[Fourth: ?]

[You can mute it? It really is a chat group?]

[First: Third, what do you need Fourth for?]

[Third: I need his blood.]

[Fourth: ???]

[Wait... Third, why do you suddenly need that? Have you awakened cannibalistic urges? Is there finally going to be infighting among us?!]

[Third: I just want to make more special vines...]

[Fourth: Oh, that? No problem! What's a little blood for a brother's cause!]

[First: Will your body be all right?]

[Fourth: Don't worry. Later, I'll activate a skill and make my health bar dance around. The efficiency will be amazing!]

[Second: Mm, then prepare more.]

[Fourth: So cold, Second! Shouldn't you praise my noble spirit of self-sacrifice?]

[Second: Oh, you're amazing.]

[Fourth: That was so perfunctory!]

[Second: Once there is enough blood, recover your condition.]

[When you're ready, head out and determine your exact location as soon as possible so we can plan a route to meet up.]

[Fourth: Eh~ Aren't you worried about me?]

[I'm going out alone to explore! What if a beautiful girl captures me?]

[Second: If you can still die with Immortal Body active, then you might as well restart. No point wasting everyone's resources.]

[Fourth: Mission guaranteed! Then I'll come back alive and keep pestering everyone!]

The conversation in the group temporarily came to an end, and Gorth quietly began preparing.

Before the blood arrives, I should do something first...

With a thought, the shadows beneath his feet surged.

The next instant, black vines erupted wildly, writhing as they covered a vast stretch of snowfield.

Gorth pondered for a moment. Driven by his will, these black vines no longer twisted about in disorder but began to intertwine and merge.

They altered their forms, their surfaces mimicking the rough texture of bark.

In the blink of an eye, an eerie, dense forest of dead trees appeared on the once-white snowfield.

The branches of these "trees," disguised by vines, were gnarled and jagged like ghostly claws reaching toward the sky, silently devouring the surrounding snow.

A silent gardener had sown a strange garden upon the frozen earth of Ursus.

"Let them absorb energy and sustain themselves for now..."

Gorth murmured in a low voice as he walked toward the center of the forest.

"Come to think of it... how are the seeds I sent out doing?"

He did not notice that every one of the "trees" was slowly growing as time passed.

The growth was very, very slow... but the forest was undeniably expanding.

How far would it spread?

No one knew...

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The Expanding Black Forest