Chapter 95: Blessed Side Quest 5
TL/Editor: Raei
Schedule: 5/Week Wed-Sun
Illustrations: Posted in discord.
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The Blessed Forest was true to its name.
"If this is called a forest, then what's inside the tower might as well be called a cave."
"This is the grace of the Goddess..."
The forest was dense with trees, but not to the extent that it hindered passage, allowing us to stroll along the forest trail.
The rich canopy of branches obscured the sky, but sunlight warmed us through gaps in the leaves.
This place felt like a well-maintained park.
With each breath, refreshing air filled the lungs, and chirping from birds of unknown species filled the ears, boasting a beauty incomparable to any other monster-filled forest.
"Look at those fruits, they're all edible... but they're much larger than normal. Can we pick them?"
"My, even this strawberry bush is giving off divine energy."
Small birds pecking at fruits on the trees, bushes laden with gem-like strawberries, and small animals like squirrels darting up and down tree branches.
It felt like we were in a forest out of a Disney princess movie.
If only a fawn or something would come close to our party of beautiful ladies.
-Squirrel? Acorn? Will you get experience from killing it?
-The forest in the tower was cool, but it's no comparison to here.
-Damn it, my brain has been so wired by games that I first think of hunting when I see an animal.
-This is so healing.
-Do you get a buff from staying in this forest?
"Seriously, who looks at this beautiful scenery and thinks about killing squirrels? Are your brains made up of just 0s and 1s?"
But viewers were merely curious about hunting outside the tower.
After all, quite a few players started the game outside the tower given the game's open-world realism.
Some players enlisted as soldiers to learn basic combat skills, and some players joined mercenary groups and headed to war zones.
Due to this, the minds of the viewers watching Han Se-ah's broadcast for information were gruesomely curious.
But still...
To be looking at a forest more beautiful than any movie CG and ask if killing a squirrel gives experience points...
Really....
"Judging by how the small animals aren't scared of humans, I don't think there are any orcs around here."
"You can tell through that?"
"Yes, well, animals learn too. They remember things like where hunters usually pass by or where traps and snares are. If they're not afraid of humans, it means they haven't seen any two-legged hunters."
While the chat was filled with heated discussions, Grace and Irene chatted amongst themselves.
Indeed, if orcs had been around, bushes would have been trampled, and small animals like rabbits and squirrels would have been hiding.
Those unintelligent brutes wouldn't even think of covering their tracks.
The party, perhaps soothed by the serene forest, looked more like they were on a picnic than on an adventurer request.
They chatted quietly amongst themselves, showing no signs of feeling threatened or being on alert.
Even if it seemed like they were off guard, there was nothing to worry about. Grace would detect the orcs before they could detect us.
"Now the mini-map is about 2% filled. Is it a mechanism that fills up bit by bit and jumps up all at once when you reach a certain area? I have to be next to Grace side... I had intended to pair her up with Roland, but, oh well."
As we moved forward, listening to the chirping of birds, I could hear Han Se-ah mumbling from behind.
She'd been browsing the web instead of focusing on her stream, but now it appeared she had opened her quest window.
As we walked through the forest our party naturally made its way into a wide, spacious clearing in the middle of the forest.
The wide, open clearing provided a beautiful view.
A single ray of sunlight pierced the clear sky, illuminating the area.
It was a peaceful scene that could easily pass for an illustration from a fairy tale book; if only there were a small mushroom house in the middle.
Of course, there were no signs of any orcs or anything else threatening in this peaceful clearing.
"I'm going to mark this clearing with magic for now."
"Shall we take a break?"
"Huh? Oh, no, it doesn't take that long."
Han Se-ah casually approached the center of the clearing, staff in hand.
The gathering of a meager amount of mana at the end of her staff was obviously meaningless.
The progress of the quest had already jumped about 10% when we entered the clearing.
It seemed she had given it some thought on how to pretend she was actually using magic to mark the location.
Since skills require vocal activation, she seems to be just gathering mana without releasing it.
-Not getting better at the game, but you are getting better at being sneaky.
-Holding the staff like that... It's like she's a cult leader, lol
-The power of the quest window
-If one clearing is 10%, and it fills up a bit by walking around, it should be about 8 clearings? I could sleep and come back
-But if nothing comes out after the eight, this will just be a walking simulator.
While the party enjoyed the serene environment, the chat atmosphere was quite the opposite.
Even a beautiful scene would become tiresome if it went on for five hours, or ten.
A picturesque forest full of chirping birds and small animals was pleasant to see, but if no orcs appeared, viewers would be left watching trees the entire stream.
It's not a development viewers would welcome, nor would it be favorable for Han Se-ah.
After quickly closing the video I was watching, I reopened Han Se-ah's stream to find the chat filled with comments about how it had turned into a walking simulator, a VR hiking trip, and so on.
"Hey, there's no way we'll just be walking around the forest and that's it~. Something will pop out when we reach about 50%. We've only filled up 10% so far, don't be so impatient."
Han Se-ah, lifting her staff and talking with her viewers, also looked a little anxious.
Given the mood of the forest, it seemed more likely that a baby deer like Bambi would spring out from the bushes than an orc.
The chat, sensing her unease, could only scoff at Han Se-ah's unconvincing words.
"Is nothing really going to happen...?"
As if her ominous premonition was becoming reality, they met nothing but small animals as the quest progress rose from 10% to 20% and 30%.
Squirrels, rabbits, deer, small birds with colorful feathers, even toothless grass snakes
By the time the sun was high overhead and they were preparing a meal in their fourth clearing of the day, the most dangerous thing they'd come across was a buzzing beehive.
The forest is so peaceful. There are no signs of orcs, let alone large or carnivorous animals.
"Right. It feels more like we're on a vacation than a request. This forest seems safe enough for kids to play in."
"It must be why the royal family keeps guards around. Even after walking for quite some time, I feel more refreshed than exhausted."
The party, preparing lunch in the open clearing and cheerfully tending to the fire, looked utterly at ease.
Unlike Han Se-ah, who was growing increasingly anxious about the potential of a ruined broadcast.
Even if they make a living by hunting monsters, at heart, they're delicate young women.
Just as they would enjoy eating sweet macarons, chatting, and shopping, they also loved observing cute little animals amidst beautiful nature.
Right now, a few curious squirrels were fearlessly approaching Irene.
It was probably because of the scent of the beans and grain flour for the stew.
One squirrel, with twitching whiskers, confidently climbed up to Irene's shoulder.
"Oh my, these little ones aren't just fearless; they seem quite familiar with humans."
"Hmm, maybe some noble ladies came here to recover once took care of them?"
Irene, laughing softly, let the squirrel nibble on a bean from her shoulder.
Everyone was relaxing amidst this peaceful scene until Grace abruptly stood, changing the mood.
Someone is coming through the bushes.
I'm not sure if it's unfortunate that someone came just as we started eating or if it was fortunate that we can meet them in a nice open clearing.
As Grace took hold of her bow, staring at the bush where the sounds were coming from, the group naturally fell into formation.
I also picked up my gear and stepped forward, ready.
I could tell that it wasn't an orc approaching, but that didn't lessen my guard.
Logically, the only non-orc beings in this forest would be knights on a mission or high-ranking nobles visiting for relaxation.
However, considering this was an actual quest, anything out of the ordinary could happen.
After all, an Orc Chieftain opening a dimensional gate with a pyramid to invade the blessed forest of the kingdom isn't exactly ordinary.
What if there were orcs that communicated eloquently or other orcs that used dimensional gates?
It sounded strange just thinking of it.
"... We are a group of adventurers carrying out a request from the Knights Division. Please identify yourself before you approach further."
"."
Unless there are other adventurers in this forest, if the approaching party is human, they are likely of higher status than us.
I called out to the rustling bushes, and the noise grew louder.
Considering the lack of subtlety, they didn't seem intent on surprising us.
If anything, it seemed like they were caught off guard by our call.
Who could it be, really?
"Hmm, ahem... Excuse me for a moment. I was wandering the forest and seem to have lost my way.
Emerging from the bushes was a man with a stature as massive as a bear's.
He stood a head taller than me, probably reaching around 2 meters.
Due to his size, his expensive leather coat was covered with leaves.
And his short silver hair was disheveled, probably from forcing his way through the forest.
From his intimidating face, a scar ran down his cheek, stretching all the way to his neck, giving him a fierce appearance.
"No way, why is the Northern Duke appearing here of all places...?"
Han Se-ah, reading his information, murmured in surprise.
Even after living in this kingdom for ten years, I have never heard of this Northern Duke, and now he was standing right before our eyes.
Even when I traveled to the North at Kaiden's request, I never heard any stories about a Northern Duke.
...Did such a person exist in our kingdom?
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