When his senses once again returned to his body, the nature spirits' loud chirping was the first to be heard.
‘The Demon dog keeps hitting the gate! So fucking persistent!’
‘If it’s an obedient dog, I really want Florian to keep that dog as a pet!’
‘For destruction and revolution! Peace comes when you befriend your foes! Let’s ask Florian to tame it!’
Florian wanted to rest longer, but he couldn’t help but defy the crazy water ball’s statement.
“You crazy! Why would I tame that demon dog?!”
‘Oh, you finally woke up! You have fainted for over six hours!’
Even without the whirlwind telling him, Florian knew he had been unconscious for quite a while as he looked at the surroundings. The forest was washed in a blanket of shadow due to the moon’s glow hardly blessed it with any light, only enough to focus on the looming shapes of trees. But the nature spirits floating around him were clearly visible.
Worse, he sensed his pain again.
Damn.
Groaning, Florian moved his numb legs, then cried as he noticed the long gash on his right leg that revealed even pink flesh and some fresh and dried blood mixed with some dirt.
“Holy shit,” he voiced under his breath, then looked away from the sight of his wounded leg. “Great, and I can’t even stand.”
‘It’s alright! There’s no monster around, so take your time!’
No monster around. Florian kind of disliked the combination of those three words, but he felt relieved anyhow, especially since it was the only normal spirit, the fire spirit, who told him.
Then Florian sat up to inspect the deplorable condition of his body and saw there were wounds here and there, his clothes were torn a lot, and mud covered his back. Even though in the dimly lit forest, his miserable appearance was clear.
“Damn,” was the only word he could spit out.
Frustrated, he flicked his eyes around, checking out the woods that had been wholly devoured by darkness.
And everything simply frightened him.
Faint silhouettes seemed to be among the dark trees that stood eerie and unyielding, flashing him with curious gazes. The wind howled, carrying various kinds of vague sounds from afar. And the atmosphere was horribly quiet and frigid, making him not stop feeling goosebumps.
“Gosh… this place is even scarier than a graveyard.”
Florian was sure to be in the first region, the outermost region of the forest, which was said to be the safest. Said a book he once read. Perhaps after being here, his trust in all the contents of the books he read decreased. Because this forest was just far from terrifying, even for him, who spent his entire childhood playing in the woods.
The Forest of Gluttony was one of the five restricted places in the world that also became the border splitting the two great counties, Varaklich and Arcsvere.
And why was it called the Forest of Gluttony?
A legend said that one of the seven princes of Hell, the Greed, left behind many monsters, along with a dark power that caused them to mutate and get stronger. The Greed was in a rage because beings in this world failed to fulfill their desires. Since then, the forest had been greedy to any living creatures entering the forest.
As the stillness remained, Florian remembered something he needed to study.
The statistic, he said in his mind.
Statistic
Player
Florian (12)
Level
1
Class
Warlock (tier I)
Race
Faerie/Human
Rank
Mugler
Title
The Coward Warlock
Experience Point
5,25%
Hit-Point
650/3000
Strength
26
Endurance
21
Mana Power
760/2800
Charisma
30
Wisdom
21
Dark Mana Power
120/2800
Dexterity
25
Intelligence
18
He studied his statistics thoroughly but was left with tens of questions.
So, this statistic is about me? And why am I a Warlock? A coward, too?
Warlock. He had heard about that title once in a book. Similar to Sorcerer and Mages, Warlock was said to have violated the laws of Sorcery Arts, yet he did not know more than that.
So frustrating, he sighed and continued reading the stats but left more questions, which the system answered his questions about his stats with more screens.
Alright, so those skills are something I can use, and passive skills are automatically activated. And I need to level up all my skills to strengthen them? But how to level them up? And how do I level up as well?
[How to level up: Gain Experience Point.]
[How to Gain Experience Point: gain knowledge, defeat or kill enemies, success and failure in fighting or casting skills, training, and experiences.]
His long lashes fluttered a few times as he thoroughly and strangely stared at the screens, guessing that his mind was connected to the system because—how could the system answer his questions that he did not even put into words?
If this is really a weird disease, I don’t mind it.
A weird disease, it was, he deduced.
“Alright, so—what now?” he asked no one but himself, then looked around again, but his gaze quickly fell down to his miserable body. Great. Pushing himself to stand, a quiver of pain just crept through the scalp to heel. But that didn’t stop him from moving to the point where he even made a groaning sound like a monster having an indigestion.
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“I need to find a river or…food,” he muttered through a harsh sigh.
But where could he find those in such pain?
“So annoying.”
‘For the future crime, destruction, and revolution! I sense a river around two hundred meters from here! Let’s dominate the river with our mightiness!’
Florian was flabbergasted to hear the crazy water ball say something good in such a hideous way. Just how the hell there’s such a spirit? But he kept the question and complaint to himself as he was somewhat glad to have something to distract his mind from thinking about his grief.
“Lead the way, please.”
‘Follow this mighty water spirit! For the future revolution!’
Florian followed the water spirit and ignored the rest of their vicious words.
Two hundred meters was not a short distance, especially while limping slowly and on uneven ground as many roots and stones carved the path. It took him nearly fifteen minutes to sense the rippling sound and a damp, mossy smell.
Florian chuckled triumphantly. What an achievement to be able to reach this stream!
“Thank you, mighty water ball.”
At his thanks, the water spirit hovered in the air crazily. Of course, it shouted something like ‘revolution’ and other vicious words, but Florian had begun to ignore and get used to it.
Cleaning his soiled body and wounds was not as easy as he thought. The cold water stung his wounds like a lightning streak, and the deeper he washed away the dirt mixed with his flesh, the louder moans came out of his mouth.
This pain is just too much.
And if it’s not embarrassing to admit, he really wanted to faint again.
After the long minutes that felt like days, his body and wounds had been cleansed—maybe not very clean, but it was sufficient. Succumbing to the pain, Florian rested his back against the tree, letting the rumbling in his stomach growl like background music.
The chill breeze prickling his skin no longer bothered him. But the serenity in the earth and the whispering trees made him reminisce about the terror that had happened to himself—the cause of all his pain.
Florian gazed upon the water stream that reflected the flickering stars in the sky, lighting up the dark forest from below and above. Tears began to fill his eyes and blurred his vision. When he shut his eyes, tears rolled down, and so… memories began to play.
Maman, Zed, Lita, Kieran…I’m so sorry, it’s all my fault.
Memories kept being reminisced, sweet and bitter but utterly painful. His gut-wrenching sobs that tore his chest caused his breathing to sound choppy. He wasn’t the boy who easily cried, but for once, he wanted to release his misery through his tears since he was sure he was alone.
But—
*ding*
[+3% HP]
As the screen appeared at that inappropriate moment, he groaned and waved it off. What was recovery for if it couldn’t handle his hunger and mental pain?
[Do you want to disable the HP recovery notification?]
“Hell, yes! It’s annoying!”
[HP recovery notification is disabled.]
While unsettling, what appeared in his vision as the screen had gone caused his heart to skip a beat. Florian froze in horror, perhaps forgetting to breathe, either. His trembling eyes were fixed on the face of someone from across the stream: only his shabby face was visible among the surrounding bushes, and with the help of the light reflected from the water—from below—caused him to look even more terrifying than the demon dog or any description of ghosts he had ever read.
“Weak. Noisy. Like a baby,” echoed the boy from across the river in his frosty, penetrating tone. That boy looked shabbier than Florian himself but undoubtedly scarier than a monster he could possibly meet.
Florian’s olive skin had turned white, especially on his face. “W-who are you?” he managed to ask, fear and panic shimmering into his unsteady voice.
The young boy took a few more steps forward, revealing a dagger in his right hand as if ready to slaughter him at any moment.
“I could hear moans and weak whimpers from afar. Never thought it would be a weak fae boy who was crying loudly while washing his wounds—so weak and noisy.” The boy sank his bare feet into the shallow river and crossed it over, with his piercing brown eyes scanning Florian.
Florian was mute in horror. Was I too loud? He wondered, mortified. A chill shot down his spine as that boy approached him even closer. Florian’s cold and clammy hands staggered to pull him backward. But his gaze couldn’t help but focus on the dagger in the boy’s hand.
There’s even still some black blood covering the shine of the blade.
‘Uhm…she looks so scary…’
Right?
Even the fire spirit judged the same.
“Wha-what do you want?” Raw panic was in Florian’s voice. He rose to his feet and continued to stagger backward, his legs wobbling with fear at the rhythm of the boy approaching him.
As the boy made it to the other side of the stream, he paused, tilted his head, and coldly stared at Florian as if staring straight into the soul.
Fear had gripped Florian’s throat and heart, causing him to question whether oxygen had been lost in the atmosphere. But upon seeing the sight of the two tiny humanoids suddenly hovering around the boy with their dark and translucent wings, Florian jolted up in a new kind of shock and curiosity.
What are those now?!
The two creatures were around twenty centimeters tall, with dark hair, slate-colored skin, and pointed ears. Florian had seen nothing like them before.
“You are wounded so badly and look like a drenched rat. And what might a faerie do in here?”
The boy inspected him from head and toe, with eyes as though studying the weak point of Florian’s, while the two dark nymphs sat on both sides of his shoulders. He looked at Florian like a predator watching his prey. While Florian did the same; he observed the boy’s figure, especially his treated wounds: stitches, scratches, and bruises—but in fear and as the prey.
“I—am lost.” Florian nearly faltered, and then quickly jiggled backward as the two dark nymphs flitted towards his face, eyeing him with pitch-black eyes. “W-what are these?!” he asked in both shock and anticipation.
[Special Identification lv. 1]
Race
Dark Nymph
HP
135/150
Strength
3
Dark MP
890/900
Race
Dark Nymph
HP
150/150
Strength
3
Dark MP
898/900
[Notice: It is possible to absorb the Dark Mana of the dark nymph]
What?!
Florian was taken aback by what the screen told him.
“Oh, you could see them?” the boy asked in a surprised tone, his brows hiking. “Don’t be afraid; I don’t do any harm for fun. And besides, I have some food and medicine in my bag too”—he glanced at the long cut on Florian’s right leg—"I don’t mind sharing them, but if only you don’t either.”
Florian ignored the dark nymphs flying around him and focused on the boy, who said he had food and medicine with such a demeanor. He really won’t slaughter me with that dagger, right? Or would it be bait before killing me?
Feeling less threatened, except for the dagger, Florian swallowed hard and let the boy draw closer to him. Then, a screen appeared between them.
[Special Identification lv. 1]
[Notice: Hidden Power detected]
Name
Unknown
Race
Human (?)
Strength
22/???
HP
1600/2100
Hidden Power
(???)
[The system discovers a strange and powerful tension from the necklace.]
[The system is unable to identify the necklace]
“Huh?”
“Hm? What’s wrong?”
Looks like he cannot see this weird screen? And what’s with the necklace, anyway? Why is there a question mark in his race? What’s hidden power?
Florian tore away his questions and glanced at the suspicious choker around the boy’s neck. “Nothing,” he said, shaking his head.
The boy narrowed his eyes even further. “Helping someone isn’t my thing. Frankly, I’d rather let you die here because you are a fae, and I despise faeries. But this one dark nymph would keep nagging at me to help you.”
“The dark nymph asked you to help me?” Florian drifted his gaze towards one dark nymph who kept staring at him curiously.
The boy seated on Florian’s previous spot and motioned him to sit as well. “Well, they cannot talk like a human, but I somehow understand their noisy tweets,” he explained as Florian warily lowered his body and settled next to him. “But it’s surprising you can see dark nymphs because only people who have seen cruel death can see them.”
Florian stiffened and swallowed dry saliva. “Cruel…death?”
The boy’s nod was simple. “And if they choose to follow you, they could also understand your emotions—sad, happy, jealous,” he paused and pulled out his scuffed hand, and one dark nymph sat on his short index finger. “I let them follow me because I can use them as a danger detector, too.”
Seeing how gruesome the boy’s smirk was as he ended his words, Florian subtly averted his gaze. It was a mistake to look at the boy’s face.
The boy turned to him, roving over Florian’s eyes. “Are you running away from Lapsterra?”
But his question left Florian confused.
Florian gave him a dazed look of bewilderment. What’s even Lapsterra? Is that the name of the Faerie kingdom?
“Literally.” He quickly recovered from his confusion and cleared his throat. “And I believe you said you would share with me your food and medicine?”
Changing the topic might be the best option when Florian had no answer to a question.
“Ah, but I only have grilled giant spider legs I killed before. Would you eat meat? Faeries only eat vegetables, I gather?”
Again, the boy’s innocent questions left Florian at a loss for words.
Like hell, I know Faeries are vegetarian!
Florian might shout in his mind, but his face looked like a dolt kid who lost his mother at a festival. He did not have any proper knowledge about them except for the basic information, which was from humans’ point of view. And sad to be true, he almost knew nothing about his background, except for being a half-fae who was abandoned by his parents when he was a baby—it was a story that Rebecca and Locke told him when he was young. Nevertheless, he never bothered to ask more because having Rebecca and the other children with him was more than enough for him.
“Oh, I sometimes eat meat, but in secret,” Florian assured him, feigning confidence.
The boy looked at him, skepticism evident on his features, then nonchalantly handed him a grilled spider leg.
It looked rather burnt, and…was it even edible?
“It has a strong bitter aftertaste,” informed the boy simply, and Florian received the piece of a spider leg without hesitation. “I have an ointment and tools to stitch up the cut on your leg.”
“I will treat the bruises with the ointment myself, but can you help me stitch up the cuts?”
Florian detested iron needles for many reasons.
Without showing any reluctance, the boy readied the needle and thread while Florian ransacked his thoughts as he inspected the spider leg one last time.
I won’t die by eating this, right? Florian mused.
Betraying what his eyes saw, Florian, with all adrenaline that was left, sunk his teeth into the dry spider leg with a texture worse than a stale baguette, then puckered his face as he tried to digest the unexplainable taste of the spider leg. The meat part was less than the bones and might not be enough to fill his hunger.
Does the boy have more of this?
Well, it turned out not too bad.
“What’s your name? And how old are you?”
Florian tried to summon a better atmosphere by asking friendly questions since chatting was more or less his talent.
The boy flitted his eyes towards him, glancing out of the corner of his eye.
“My name is… Y—just call me Yves, and I’m eleven.” There was a slight hesitation at the edge of his voice, but Florian cared nothing and asked again.
“And what are you doing in this dangerous forest?” Besides, you are still so young, Florian finished silently.
Yves paused his hands’ movements and drifted his face towards him with a vicious, taunting smile that gave Florian a quiver all over his body. And his toneless, confident statement deprived the idle atmosphere.
“I want to kill a sage dragon.”
And at that very moment, Florian hoped his ears were also injured.
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