The Wizard Has A Biochip

Chapter 44: Forest outside the tower

As soon as I stepped through the doors of the Mission Hall, I felt dozens of eyes turn toward me.

All because of the constant hum of my armor.

Vrrrrm...

It didn’t take long before a young man left the line in front of the counter and walked straight toward me.

From the way his eyes examined every detail of the armor, I immediately recognized his profession.

An Engineer.

But unlike me.

His clothes were stained with oil, and small tools hung from a belt around his waist.

His eyes shone like those of a child looking at a brand-new toy.

— W-wait...

He stopped in front of me.

— Is that...

— A combat suit?

Without even asking for permission, he slowly began walking around me.

His eyes scanned every single detail.

He looked completely mesmerized.

Carefully, he raised a hand.

With extreme delicacy, he ran his fingertips across one of the hydraulic pistons on the knee.

— This frame...

— The alignment of the joints...

— The servomechanisms...

He crouched slightly to inspect the leg system.

Then stood up again.

His gaze settled on the blue glow of the engine.

— A magic crystal-powered reactor...

— But the force distribution...

— The transmission system...

— This is... extraordinary.

I remained still.

This was exactly the kind of reaction I had expected.

I answered casually.

— Haven’t you ever heard that curiosity killed the cat?

I shrugged.

The engineer let out a small, embarrassed laugh.

But his curiosity only grew stronger.

— You...

— You really built this by yourself?

— That doesn’t make any sense.

— A system like this would require months of calculations...

— Maybe years...

— I’ve never seen anything like it inside the Tower.

— How long did it take?

I smiled behind my helmet’s visor.

— I don’t know.

— Maybe your beloved mother knows. After all, she asked me the same thing when I slept with her last night. I used both of that bitch’s love holes.

He froze completely.

He blinked twice.

His face turned bright red.

— You bastard...

But I had already completely lost interest.

I turned my back on him.

My attention shifted to the enormous board where dozens of mission scrolls were pinned.

I slowly approached it.

My eyes moved across each of them.

There were missions for every taste.

Hunt magical wolves.

Eliminate giant spiders.

Escort alchemists.

Explore ruins.

Investigate disappearances.

Almost all of them offered relatively high rewards.

Which meant only one thing.

High risk.

My priority wasn’t making money.

It was testing my armor in real combat.

I needed to learn its limits.

As I carefully examined the scrolls...

One of them caught my attention.

It was much simpler than the others.

I removed it from the board.

[Mission]

[Collect Luminous Herbs for Alchemical Research]

[Reward: 5 Magic Crystals]

[Description: Gather twenty Luminous Herb leaves, five Gray Lotus flowers, and three Crimson Moss fruits found in the outer regions of the forest surrounding the Tower.]

[Classification: Common]

[Recommended Level: Acolyte I or higher]

[Estimated Danger: Low]

I read everything carefully.

Then I looked at the other missions.

A simple hunting mission paid forty.

Some went as high as one hundred crystals.

Five...

That was practically nothing.

I smiled.

Any other Acolyte would probably ignore that scroll.

But not me.

After all, money wasn’t my objective at the moment.

I stored the scroll.

Then I walked over to the registration counter.

Behind it...

Floated a creature that could hardly be called human.

Its body was made of a pale white mist.

Its outline constantly shifted.

Two bluish orbs occupied the place where its eyes should have been.

It had no legs.

Nor did it appear to touch the ground.

It silently drifted through the air.

I approached.

I placed the scroll on the counter.

The specter didn’t even raise its head.

Its translucent hand partially passed through the scroll before grasping it.

It read the contents within seconds.

Then it spoke.

Its voice sounded as though it echoed from far away.

— Mission registered.

A bluish glow appeared before it.

Shortly afterward...

Another scroll slowly materialized.

It extended it toward me.

— Here are the appearances of the herbs you must gather.

I took the document.

I was just about to walk away when the specter spoke again.

— Memorize the return password.

I stopped.

It slowly pronounced the words.

— Blazing Radiance Zentrix.

I repeated them silently in my mind.

Blazing Radiance Zentrix.

I could never afford to forget them.

The Tower possessed extremely powerful defensive mechanisms.

The enormous runic statues guarding the entrance made no distinction between an enemy and a late student.

Without the correct password...

I would be treated exactly like any other intruder.

I gave a slight nod.

— Understood.

Then I looked toward the Tower’s exit and began walking.

Along the way, I raised the yellowed scroll I had received from the specter.

— Biochip. Record all the information and activate the digital scan field. Notify me whenever you detect anything with more than eighty percent similarity.

[Beep!]

The electronic sound echoed directly inside my mind.

A moment later, I felt a faint vibration behind my eyes.

Several luminous lines swept across my vision before disappearing.

Although I couldn’t physically see them, I knew exactly what was happening.

An invisible wave of analysis expanded around me.

[Scanning field activated.]

[Database synchronized with the scroll.]

[Search mode initiated.]

I smiled in satisfaction.

The Biochip truly turned any tedious task into something absurdly efficient.

I continued walking until I reached the Tower’s main exit.

The gigantic white gate remained shut.

Several glowing runes spread across its surface began lighting up one after another.

The massive gate slowly slid open to both sides.

As soon as I stepped outside, I immediately felt the warmth of the sun striking my armor.

The change in environment was abrupt.

The cold, dry air inside the Tower was replaced by a humid breeze carrying the scent of earth, leaves, moss, and flowing water.

I took a deep breath.

That natural aroma was pleasant.

My eyes quickly adjusted to the brightness.

Before me stretched an immense staircase of white stone.

It descended the mountainside like a gigantic scar, disappearing into the sea of green formed by the forest.

In the distance, the Tower rose above the trees like a spear pointed toward the heavens.

Without wasting any time, I began descending.

After several minutes of walking down the staircase, I finally reached the main trail.

It wound its way between the trees, disappearing deep into the forest.

I immediately slowed my pace.

This was where the real danger began.

Massive branches blocked much of the sunlight.

Vines hung from the trunks like sleeping serpents.

Giant ferns completely concealed the ground in many places.

Magical insects flew among the leaves, producing tiny bluish glimmers.

Everything seemed alive.

Beautiful.

But absolutely deadly.

My gaze swept across every tree around me.

None of them inspired confidence.

I had already studied this forest during my research.

I knew exactly why the Tower allowed it to exist.

It wasn’t merely a forest.

It was a living wall.

The seemingly ordinary trees concealed terrifying natural mechanisms.

If an animal or an acolyte wandered too close to a trunk...

The branches would awaken instantly.

They would expand like enormous wooden arms, seizing the victim before they could escape.

But that was only the beginning.

High above, among the branches...

Lived the Blood Vines.

They remained motionless for hours, looking like nothing more than ordinary vines.

However, the moment prey became trapped among the branches, they would strike.

The vines would plunge onto the victim’s body.

Long thorns would effortlessly pierce muscles and arteries.

Then the feeding process would begin.

The blood would be drained away slowly.

The victim remained alive through much of the ordeal.

When death finally came...

The body would be discarded among the roots.

Over time, flesh and bone would become nutrients, feeding the murderous forest.

I glanced discreetly at the dark soil.

Even without digging, I could imagine how many skeletons lay beneath that reddish earth.

It was an extremely efficient defense system.

On top of that...

The roots of those very trees were valuable alchemical ingredients.

It was an ingenious way of turning the forest into both a natural defense and a constant source of magical resources.

I shook my head.

Whoever had designed this ecosystem was a true genius...

I kept walking.

After several minutes of moving cautiously, I heard the distant sound of running water.

I headed in that direction.

Soon, I found a huge smooth boulder overlooking a small waterfall.

Crystal-clear water cascaded between the rocks, forming a shallow pool below.

The scenery was surprisingly beautiful.

Droplets sparkled beneath the sunlight.

Tiny rainbows shimmered in the mist created by the falling water.

[Beep!]

A small window appeared before my eyes.

A plant near the base of the waterfall was immediately highlighted by a blue outline.

[Ingredient detected.]

[Luminous Herb.]

[Similarity: 98.7%.]

[Condition: Excellent.]

The first ingredient.

Much faster than I had expected.

I slowly approached the plant.

It had slender, light-green leaves.

Tiny golden specks covered its entire surface, emitting an almost imperceptible glow.

Now I understood why it was called the Luminous Herb.

I crouched down.

My metal hand slowly reached toward the stem.

Then...

The entire interface before my eyes turned red.

[BEEP! DANGER!]

[Attack detected!]

[Jump to the right immediately!]

I didn’t even think.

My body reacted before my mind could.

VROOOOOOM!!

The magic crystal embedded in the armor’s chest flared brilliantly.

The engine roared.

Gears spun at incredible speed.

The pistons compressed.

The hydraulic springs in my legs stored energy for a fraction of a second.

Then...

WHOOSH!!

My body was launched several meters to the side.

I rolled across a rock and landed firmly on my feet.

At the exact spot where I had been standing...

SHHHHHH!!

A massive jet of greenish liquid sliced through the air.

The substance struck the boulder.

Instantly...

The stone began to melt.

White smoke billowed upward as the acid violently ate away at its surface.

I watched the scene for a few seconds.

Then I let out a low whistle.

— Son of a bitch...

I slowly turned toward the source of the attack.

[Creature identified.]

[Venomous Land Shark.]

Emerging from behind the rocks near the waterfall was an unusual predator.

Its body resembled that of a shark, but it had adapted completely to life on land.

It measured nearly three meters in length.

Black scales covered its body, reflecting a damp sheen.

Its four fins had evolved into muscular limbs that allowed it to glide over the rocks with surprising speed.

Curiously...

It didn’t attack.

Nor did it retreat.

It simply watched me.

Its gaze shifted between my armor, the launcher mounted on my left arm, and the saw installed on my right.

It seemed to be deciding whether I was prey...

Or a threat.

Then a deep growl rumbled from its throat.

"ROOOOARRR..."

It began circling me slowly.

It was intelligent.

Far more intelligent than an ordinary animal.

It was studying my movements.

I slowly raised my left arm.

The launcher’s cylinder rotated.

CLACK...

An explosive fire crystal automatically slid into the firing chamber.

The small runes engraved along the barrel began to glow.

I calmly aimed at the monster.

— Looks like I’m having shark meat today.

...

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