As Beans delved deeper into the forest, Leon and Marvin followed closely behind him. Leon and Marvin walked in silence, with Leon sensing the growing anticipation and Marvin becoming increasingly anxious.

A deathly silence enveloped the forest, with not a single creature making a noise, creating an eerie atmosphere during the entire walk. Were forests always so calm and peaceful? Right as Leon was about to recall the forest from the tutorial, a sudden change occurred.

Without warning, the beans began to jump around silently. However, Leon could perceive Beans’ excitement. Leon cast his gaze in the direction and spotted a colossal snake-like creature dragging a massive bovine by its neck. Marvin briefly entertained the idea of confronting the beast, but quickly realised he would be overpowered.

[Mossback Serpent] (Super Elite)

Level 12

HP 750/750

The Mossback Serpent had scales resembling moss, which helped it camouflage effortlessly. Leon observed rows of small, needle-like teeth stained with flecks of fresh blood as the serpent dragged the bovine. Is this the creature responsible for the cattle disappearances? Leon initially believed the snake was to blame, but he quickly realised that there were inconsistencies.

“Mr Marvin, stay back. We’re going to take it on”. Leon’s demeanour turned serious. He has faced Super Elites before, but this time he’s going solo.

“Are you crazy! Even if you’re blessed, you’ll still die!” Marvin didn’t want Leon to die a fool’s death and tried to dissuade him.

Instead of explaining, Leon chose to simply look at Beans. “Ready for a tough battle?” With a smile, he inquired, already aware of the response. Beans expressed his excitement by making loud chirping sounds and hopping energetically, as if dancing.

With his wand in hand, Leon connected with Beans. Okay, here’s what we’ll do. He shared the general plan with Beans, who nodded and quickly ran off. Leon’s display of confidence was enough for Marvin to retreat, avoiding any entanglement in the ensuing confrontation.

Unaware of Leon’s presence, the serpent continued to drag the bovine. All of a sudden, a vibrant purple light was approaching it. With a powerful impact, the light collided with the serpent, resulting in its painful recoil.

-121

With a quick scan, it located Leon. The snake made a hissing sound towards Leon. While assessing the human standing before it, it experienced an additional pang of pain on its side.

-34

Beans had used his skill to bite into the serpent. The scales made it difficult, but he still managed to pierce through. The serpent ignored Beans, as it was the least threatening and focused on Leon.

The serpent coiled up a little, making Leon frown. Without warning, it lunged at Leon with its mouth wide open, moving at incredible speed. “Flash!” Leon acted quickly and created a blinding light as the serpent raced towards him.

The snake had to shut its eyes in agony and even shift its head to avoid the pain, causing it to change directions. With its path deviated, it barely grazed Leon. Leon gritted his teeth in pain as he felt the serpent grazed his sides.

-45

Still so much damage from a graze? Leon thought as he looked at the damage. Out of nowhere, he experienced a heaviness in his body, making it hard for him to move as the snake landed and tried to shake off the confusion. I’m tired? No, it’s different. Leon’s initial assumption was that he was simply tired, but this feeling wasn’t like that.

-9

Beans raced over and managed to take another bite from the serpent. His regular bite didn’t have a significant impact. Leon felt the sluggishness slowly leaving his body overtime, which gave him a theory. Poison? No damage. A neurotoxin?

He launched another Arcane Missile at the serpent while it was still confused from the bright flash. The serpent was hit by the missile for the second time.

-117

HP 469/750, going well so far. Leon had managed to decrease the serpent’s HP by a third, but he still had some surprises in store. Leon was met with a furious glare from the serpent. Out of nowhere, Leon’s body froze as he made eye contact with the serpent.

Intimidation? Or some paralysing gaze? Leon remained composed as he maintained control over the situation. Even if the serpent limited his movements, Leon wouldn’t be an easy target.

With its vision restored, the serpent lunged at Leon once again. Its jaws were wide open, ready to devour Leon. In an unexpected turn of events, the snake bit into empty space as it passed right through Leon.

It looked behind and observed that Leon vanished in a cloud of smoke and then materialised a few paces away. The skill exhibited by Arcane Step was extraordinary. The snake was struck by a third missile, causing its blood to splatter even more.

-122

Over halfway there. Beans’s damage is too low, definitely going towards the support route with him. Leon reaffirmed Beans’s role for in the future.

-8

Beans had a taste for snakes as he tried to dig in once more. Nevertheless, he persisted despite the scales’ toughness. Despite Beans’ presence, the serpent focused on Leon, ready to strike once more.

One more jump later, it tried to close its mouth around Leon’s throat when a magical force interrupted and repelled it. Leon quickly fired another missile at the still-recoiling snake.

-118

Two more shots. As all of Leon’s skills went on cooldown, his nervousness increased. He grit his teeth as he watched the snake shake off the damage and stare at him, freezing him in place once again.

Just as it was about to spring, a mound of dirt swiftly wrapped around and gripped its body. The snake made furious hissing sounds as it attempted to wriggle free. Leon repeats his action, casting Arcane Missile and striking it once more.

-120

That should be enough- What!? Leon believed that Beans’s earth bind would keep him grounded, but unexpectedly, it darkened in hue and expanded in size. The expression on its face as it stared at Leon was undeniably filled with rage. A final trump card? Leon was able to surmise the reason behind saving that move for last.

With great force, the snake broke free from the dirt mound and launched itself at Leon, resembling a green meteor. Leon tried to move, but his body remained frozen from the serpent’s stare. Guess this is it. Right when Leon had come to terms with his impending death, something suddenly intervened.

Leon realised what jumped between them, which made his heart sink. “Beans! No!” He yelled in panic as Beans had jumped in between them. Upon noticing Beans, the serpent swiftly clamped its jaws shut, sinking its fangs into him.

-512

Beans screamed out in pain as blood flew everywhere. The sight was extremely distressing for Leon, causing his brain to feel overwhelmed. A moment of clarity washed over Leon when he discovered that Beans was not dead yet. With his wand in hand, he concentrated all his energy and launched a final attack at the snake.

Stolen novel; please report.

-125

The missile he had conjured slammed into the serpent, making it drop Beans on the floor as it fell dead. [Level 12 Super Elite Mossback Serpent killed. Obtained bonus experience for killing a higher levelled enemy. Obtained 868 EXP.]

Leon didn’t even bother looking at the message or serpent as he ran to Beans and carefully picked him up.

“Why did you jump in between!? You know I won’t die for real!” Leon immediately scolded Beans as tears stung his face. Witnessing Beans in such a state was more agonizing for him than the idea of his own death. Seeing Leon unhurt, Beans’s expression shifted to one of relief.

Leon grabbed a health potion from his inventory and fed it to Beans, bringing him back from the brink of death. He then grabbed a large chunk of meat. “Take this and rest up in the familiar space.” Leon told him, giving Beans no room for arguments.

Despite his anger towards Beans, Leon couldn’t deny feeling a sense of pride towards him. Showing no fear, he courageously intervened between Leon and the serpent, disregarding his own life. Beans quickly disappeared with the meat.

After dealing with Beans, he focus on the snake again. Suddenly he felt a massive wave of relief and happiness wash over him as he realised he had taken down a Super Elite all on his own. “Phew, another step closer.” He muttered with a content smile as he looted the snake.

+ 1 silver and 20 copper

+ Venomous Staff (Green)

+ Leather Shirt (White)

The upside to killing a Super Elite all on his own was that Leon didn’t have to share it with anyone. He collected the loot and didn’t forget about the snake. The snake is full of alchemical ingredients. He noted as he collected it.

Leon took a closer look at the staff and compared it to his wand.

[Venomous Staff] (Green)

Equipment Level 11

Requirement: Intelligence 18

Intelligence: +6

Magical Power: +23

Durability: 20/20

Additional Skill: Poison Infusion - Infuse your staff with toxic energy, causing your next attack to poison your enemies for 10 seconds, dealing poison damage over time. Cooldown: 2 minutes.

As expected of staffs, excelling in damage. This one in particular with the extra poison damage. Leon assessed the staff. His wand had the flash skill which was decent at stunning the enemy, but this staff had far more damage.

After some quick maths, Leon concluded the staff would do about a fourth more in damage, not adding the skill. He decided to switch out his wand for the staff and felt empowered as he held it.

Marvin shuffled over a little sheepishly. He had fully expected Leon to die, yet here was still standing strong. “Is your familiar alright?”

Leon sighed. “He’ll recover.” His voice monotonous voice. Leon knew this wasn’t the time for a meltdown and put on a mental mask, which put a massive clamp on his emotions.

“I’m sorry for being such an ass to you, kid. You’re strong.” Marvin apologised for his earlier actions and

Leon nodded in thanks. “It’s fine. Let’s move along. We still need to find the attackers.” His statement confused Marvin.

“What do you mean? Didn’t we find the monster?” Marvin referred to the serpent.

Leon shook his head. “It was something that covered up the blood, remember?” He drew attention to the blood that was present at the farm.

“Couldn’t that have been the snake?” Marvin remained unconvinced.

“Mr Marvin, what do you currently hear?” Leon’s question made Marvin even more confused.

He looked around a little and said, “Well, I hear nothing.”

Leon nodded. “Exactly, no forest sounds or anything.”

Marvin initially didn’t understand, but suddenly his eyes widened with realisation. Who would even pay attention to something like that!? How is it possible for someone to think in such a way?

“Serpents only eat once every one or two weeks. The serpent couldn’t have made the forest silent.” Leon continued unaware of Marvin’s thoughts and hinted at something even bigger than the serpent.

“I-Isn’t this a job for the army?” Marvin got more and more nervous as this whole ordeal was getting blown out of proportion.

“That’s what we find out.” Leon calmly stated. Marvin didn’t even realise the stark change in Leon’s demeanour.

Leon pointed to the west. “The snake came from there, meaning it got the bovine from that location. Let’s go.” He said as he walked away.

Marvin was even more stunned. He even remembered where the snake came from? He found it unbelievable, but Leon sounded so sure that Marvin had to believe him.

After a brief walk, they stumbled upon something. In a small clearing, Leon and Marvin discovered bloodstains on the floor, accompanied by a collection of shattered weapons. Glancing around, Leon remarked, “It looks like the serpent killed something that was carrying weapons and then took the bovine.”

Marvin frowned. “And we can’t even find out what due to the body disappearing into mana.” His words made Leon a little confused before he realised what Marvin was talking about.

It was about the bodies disappearing into motes of light. Is that what the NPC call it? Leon noted before focusing on the clues.

There were multiple broken small weapons and splotches of blood around. “Seems like our target operates in groups. The weapons are also poor quality, meaning it’s unlikely to be humans.” Leon noticed the spears were from wood and the small daggers were standard-issue daggers.

“So now what? We don’t know where they were heading.” Marvin had become completely dependent on Leon.

Leon thought for a moment. Assuming that they are organised in groups, it follows that they are likely to be a social species. Which means they need shelter.

Leon looked at Marvin. “Is there a large abandoned structure nearby? Or maybe a large cave system?” Marvin had to be more familiar with the area than Leon was.

Marvin thought for a second before narrowing his eyes, “It’s possible.” His voice carrying uncertainty.

Leon noticed the uncertainty and asked. “What do you mean?”

“You’re not from around here, are you?” Marvin asked, making Leon shake his head.

Marvin sighed, “You’re familiar with our recognition of a strong military, right?” He asked Leon, who nodded with affirmation.

“Well, let’s just say they’ve had a lot of practice in wars. This very forest was a massive battleground for a long and arduous 10-year war around 30 years ago.” Marvin revealed some history of the kingdom.

Makes sense, practice makes perfect even for the military. Leon understood why the military was so famous. “Does the war have to do with abandoned structures or caves?” Leon asked, making Marvin nod gravely.

“In this very forest, war castles and keeps were constructed as strategic strongholds and footholds during the war.” Marvin mentioned that the kingdom supposedly removed them in recent years, but he didn’t finish his sentence.

Leon, however, finished it for him. “It’s possible they overlooked one.”

Marvin remained silent and let out a sigh after a few seconds. “Follow me,” He said with a serious tone.

Was he in the military? And got too old and became a farmer? Leon speculated, as Marvin looked like he knew where the structures were.

Marvin suddenly chimed in, saying, “If you’re curious about how I’m aware of this, it’s not really a well-kept secret in the capital. Even kids are being taught this.”

Leon experienced a slight sense of embarrassment due to his overthinking of Marvin’s past. “I see.” He tried to play off his embarrassment and act like nothing was wrong.

They eventually reached the end of the forest into an open plains clearing and what Leon witnessed stunned him.

The plain field’s grass was red! Dark-red grass was flourishing everywhere. Atop the red grass was a massive structure resembling an ancient castle from Leon’s past life. “This is…” Leon was so stunned his mask dropped from shock.

“Insane? Yes, it was,” Marvin said bluntly. He looked at the castle with mixed emotions.

“Shall we take a closer look?” Leon asked Marvin.

“I’d rather stay behind, if you don’t mind. I don’t like being here.” Marvin rejected his offer and Leon didn’t force him. He nodded and walked ahead.

As Leon walked, he thought about the grass. How many bodies would it need for grass like this to develop?

He made use of blood grass while taking the alchemy test. Although Leon assumed it was literally grass that grew from blood-infested lands like these, it was still a shock seeing it in person.

I shouldn’t pick this grass now. Marvin might get mad at me. Leon refrained from taking the grass.

As Leon got closer to the castle, he could see more of the design. It was grand and gigantic, made of bricks with massive walls and an entrance. There were no open holes from what one would expect from an abandoned castle.

He also noticed something standing near the entrance. Leon crouched down and carefully got closer, making little to no noise.

Two green small creatures with pointy ears stood in front of the building completely kitted out in old metal armour with antique-looking spears. Leon got close enough to assess them and had to stifle any surprise he had as he read their description.

[Goblin Warrior] (Elite)

Level 25

HP 800/800

Too strong! Those two are just the guards!? Leon knew he was out of his depth and the whole situation became clear to him.

They claimed the castle and found old weapons still in there for use, using those they raided the forest to near extinction and when nothing else was there, they targeted the farm animals. Leon put the whole story together.

This was a disaster waiting to happen and Leon knew this had to be reported to the higher-ups. If nothing would be done, the entire farmlands could get overrun and dozens, if not hundreds, of people could die.

Leon silently crept away as the goblins looked around, trying to find whatever it was that scanned them. When Marvin saw Leon’s complexion upon returning, he could tell something was wrong. Nervously, Marvin asked, “Was it really that bad?” Leon nodded and explained what he saw and his theory.

Marvin grew outraged hearing that mere goblins took the castle, “How dare these filthy creatures use our capital’s equipment!?” After yelling for a bit he calmed down, “It’s a good thing we found this, consider the job done, we need to report this.” He said seriously to Leon, making Leon nod.

He looked back at the castle. How big is that nest? And how strong is the leader? I’m afraid I’ll never know, as I’m too weak to take it on. Leon sighed as he had to retreat. He couldn’t take this on right now.