A little while after Yumigawa Sumeragi moved on, somewhere inside the Enchanted Forest.
Rustle, rustle—the brush shivered, something sliding back and forth like a fish in reeds. Then a clear girl’s voice chimed.
“Hmm? You cracked the surface illusion that fast. Not bad. Heh-heh—wait till tonight; I’ll give you a show.”
As her words fell, the bushes peeled apart. On the soft, springy earth, a figure slowly surfaced—slender, the outline of a girl.
This was where Yumigawa Sumeragi had first stepped into the Enchanted Forest. Which meant she’d been watching her since then, unseen.
So, yeah—she was very good at hiding. Probably.
“Mm, time to prepare. There’s plenty of time; playing slow is more fun.”
Muttering, her shadow blinked out, leaving only a few shallow footprints, like petals pressed into damp soil.
…
It was a little past six in the morning.
Weariness soaked me like rain; I’d hit the Enchanted Forest at midnight and walked six hours straight.
Sigh.
Hours of walking, and still nothing. Sword Intent burned through the surface illusion, yes, but only that.
The path felt normal no matter where I went, too calm, like a pond with no ripples.
“Rest a bit.”
I’d kept my Sword Intent humming for six hours; my core felt scorched like a kiln. I sat beneath a giant tree.
I plucked a few fruits and bit in; sweet juice ran like sunlight over my tongue.
“Mm, so sweet.”
Chewing nameless fruit, I forced my mind to rewind the roads I’d taken, hunting for a thread like spider silk.
After a while.
“Ugh…”
My head ached, frustration pooling like stagnant water, and I still had nothing. Sleep tugged at me like tide.
I’d jumped straight to Floor Three after finishing yesterday—no sleep at all… Wait. Did I overlook something?
Alarm pricked first, then action; I sprang up and hurried to a clearing, eyes tipped to the sky.
Same flawless blue, the sun high and mild, like spring wine—nothing like six in the morning.
When I arrived at midnight, it looked like this too. Does the Enchanted Forest have no night?
Only now did the wrongness bite, cold as iron.
Another thing stood out: the Enchanted Forest was beautiful and tranquil, an idyll painted in mist and leaves.
But it lacked breath; I hadn’t seen a single beast, only birds, butterflies, and bees, small sparks in a vast hush.
So, rather than paradise, it felt like… a land with no people, a stage with no actors.
Silence pressed in. A sudden chill crept up my spine like an ice lizard.
If I was the only one in this whole forest, fear bloomed like frost on glass.
I even longed for a monster or an enemy—anything with teeth and heat—to prove I wasn’t alone.
Saying you feel no fear here would be a lie; my heart isn’t an ancient well without ripples.
“Keep moving.”
I tossed the fruit core and started walking again, hoping for a large creature—even a beast would do, a pulse in this green void.
…
Time slipped fast as sand, and noon came in a blink. The sun had already begun to sink.
Orange-red light stained the Enchanted Forest like dye soaking silk.
Birds stopped singing and arrowed away to the distance, little commas against the sky.
Soon there was no sound at all, save for the wind combing grass and leaves with a soft rustle.
I still didn’t find anything large. And the distance I’d covered since morning felt wrong.
I’d been moving at full speed for half a day; by rights I should’ve cleared a forest, even without a map.
Reality disagreed. Forget an exit—I never even saw a thinning of the trees.
All around lay dense trunks, brush, pools, and streams, looping forever like a painted scroll.
The Enchanted Forest was still eerily beautiful, but more than that, it was dead quiet.
No life stirred; it felt gloomier than a graveyard, colder than stone.
With the sun about to fall, fear swelled in my chest like black smoke.
“Uu…” My strength was gone and my stomach gnawed empty.
I wanted to go back. The Enchanted Forest was terrifying, a beauty with a dead gaze.
I’d rather fight a powerful guardian than linger in this stagnant hush.
Complaints didn’t help; afternoon flicked past, and night stepped in like a dark tide.
For the record, the sun dropped completely a little after three, plunging the forest into shadow.
Even with a white moon and glittering stars overhead, the darkness felt packed tight as velvet.
Night here was as silent as midnight; I didn’t want to stay a heartbeat longer.
But I had no choice. I must clear Floor Nine; I can’t retreat on Floor Three.
The thought made me sigh, breath like mist. I found a spot with better light and sat to recover.
Thankfully, the Enchanted Forest offered plenty of sweet fruit; otherwise I’d have fainted from hunger.
Still, fruit alone throws off balance and never fills you. Tomorrow I’ll check a pool or lake for fish.
Decision set, I let my eyes fall closed, drifting toward sleep like a leaf toward water.
Rustle rustle came from the grass around me, a shadow shifting like a snake in weeds.
My drowsiness shattered. I hugged the Shattered Light Sword tight and stared around, panic prickling like frost.
Please—no ghosts.
Hee-hee-hee…
A woman’s laughter spilled out, pretty but hollow, echoing in the dead forest like bells in an empty temple.
It almost made me faint.
“What is it…”
Fear first, then resolve; I forced myself upright, planning to check the source.
The moment I stood, the laughter cut off. A voice took its place, still lovely and empty.
“In the beautiful Enchanted Forest lives a cute little rabbit;
It watches, nonstop, the poor adventurer who enters;
When you’re tired, don’t rest, don’t drop your guard;
Because once you sleep, the rabbit behind you
Will bare its sharp fangs and its scarlet, wide eyes;
And you will soon be a delicious dinner in its belly.”
Not good—the mood twisted strange. The once-bright moon slowly dyed blood-red, and the cool breeze turned knife-cold.
