Ch.4141. Southern Swamplands (2)

In the southern part of the Frankish Kingdom, beside the second largest lake on the western continent, lies a swamp formed by moisture flowing from the lake.

Originally just an ordinary swamp… but perhaps because one of the central ley lines is located beneath it? The high-density magical energy surging from underground has grotesquely twisted the swamp’s environment.

Thus, a natural otherworld comparable to the Great Forest was born in this world, bearing the name Southern Swamp.

The most common plant seen in the Southern Swamp is the Troll Mangrove. Only this magical plant, with its terrifying environmental adaptability and regenerative capabilities, can survive in this otherworldly environment that is virtually a living hell.

The swamps that make up the wetland are each isolated by invisible natural barriers. About half of the total area consists of ordinary interconnected swamps.

However, approximately half of that portion consists of toxic swamps filled with poisonous substances, while some are acidic swamps composed of acidic liquids. Even the remaining half is far from normal.

There are bottomless swamps where one wrong step means no return. Boiling swamps made of high-temperature mud. And we can’t forget the swamps that emit gases causing hallucinations or berserk states.

The only relatively safe places from these dangerous swamp threats are the Troll Mangrove forests and the rare patches of solid ground. But just because the footing is secure doesn’t mean the area is safe.

The swamp’s air is contaminated with toxic components or acidic gases rising from its depths. Fortunately, the various toxic substances are blocked by barriers, preventing them from mixing with each other.

And through this perilous environment, two druids—myself and Sophia—could pass through without any trouble.

The secret was to disguise our druidic presence as natural objects by applying our attunement to nature’s mysteries. Treated as natural elements, we could ignore most effects of the natural environment.

[Grow.]

[Stabilize… maintain.]

Thanks to this, we didn’t have to worry about the dangerous air, and we actively utilized this advantage to move forward by rapidly growing platforms (Troll Mangroves) through nature magic.

“…Are you alright?”

“The Prophet is… hot…”

The climate of the Southern Swamp is unbearably hot—already hot in the southern summer of the western continent, made worse by bubbling swamps scattered throughout, and insanely humid.

I can somehow endure it, remembering the climate gone mad from global warming in my previous life, but the problem was Sophia. Accustomed to the western continent’s climate that, while hot, isn’t humid, she was suffering in this suffocating, sticky heat.

Currently attuned to natural elements to protect ourselves from the surrounding environment, we couldn’t use magic to cool down without creating greater dangers.

“Here, drink some of this.”

“…The Prophet expresses gratitude to her kind compatriot. …(gulp).”

Fortunately, I had prepared for this situation by purchasing a water pouch that creates cold water. Without this cold water pouch, we might have suffered even more.

Meanwhile, after entering this swamp, we encountered various life forms.

The most commonly seen creatures were insects. Having adapted to this otherworldly environment, they had grown larger and gained special abilities… they were repulsive and creepy enemies even before considering their combat power.

The next most noticeable beings were slimes. Colored similarly to the swamps they inhabited, these wild slimes were fundamentally different from those living in sewers.

Slimes, creatures resembling liquid monsters, possess no cognitive abilities whatsoever. They exist solely by instinct, sensing organic matter, consuming it, growing, and then dividing repeatedly.

Their attack method is simple: make contact, bury prey within their bodies, and then crush whatever is inside by contracting. Normally, a slime’s interior contains concentrated toxins or acidic substances, making this alone sufficiently lethal.

Additionally, a slime’s body, like that of a liquid monster, cannot be dealt with by simple sword cuts, and they have no core-like weak point. At most, one can only burn them entirely with high-powered magic or burst them with blunt weapons.

In the skies above the swamp, giant poisonous insects and predatory water bird magical beasts hunt the swamp’s creatures, while inside the swamp itself live aquatic magical beasts such as fish, reptiles, and amphibians adapted to the environment.

In this Southern Swamp with its indescribably insane ecosystem, I managed to spot several magical beasts that might make decent animal companions.

Prime examples included juvenile basilisks that I often used as transformation targets, mollusk-type magical beasts like swamp snails, or the giant scorpion-like creatures crawling atop the Troll Mangroves.

Yet even while observing these creatures, I strongly felt that something was lacking in them as potential animal companions.

“Hmm. Nothing really jumps out at me…”

“The Prophet… the Prophet suggests it’s better to hold off for now.”

It was just a baseless intuition, a mere ‘feeling’… but Sophia advised me not to ignore such intuitions.

Though called intuition, it might actually be a warning from spiritual senses developed through long exposure to the mysteries of nature.

Anyway, with our bodies half-merged into nature’s mysteries, we pushed through the Southern Swamp, gradually penetrating deeper into its depths.

‘Little shadows, please help.’

[[[Yes!]]]

Dispersing our shadow rat swarm (which recently exceeded 500 in number) for reconnaissance, we carefully stepped toward the center of this otherworld where we could encounter denser magical energy.

Confident that even mid-rank magical beasts specialized in detection couldn’t sense us, I walked for quite some time until we reached what could be called the vicinity of the deep layer and then…

[■■■■■■■■■────!!!!]

[[[[[[■■■■■■■───!!!]]]]]]

“”…?!!””

At that moment, two intense roars—like those of beasts—loud enough to make our heads ring, reached our ears.

I deduced these were no ordinary beasts. The faint but intense scent of poison embedded in these roars filled with dense magical energy, and the life force emanating from them undoubtedly placed them at the upper limit of the mid-rank realm.

“What should we do?”

“…The Prophet will follow her compatriot’s lead.”

Faced with the choice between retreat and advance, I considered my options. Should we prioritize safety and retreat, or push forward into danger and challenge ourselves?

Both choices had their own merits and drawbacks, but… according to our dear fellow druid’s prophecy, no life-threatening crisis would befall us in this swamp right now.

Besides, having set out on this adventure specifically to find a new companion, wouldn’t retreating now be foolish?

“…Let’s go forward.”

“The Prophet accepts her compatriot’s proposal.”

So we advanced toward the two clashing life forms.

Just in case, we cast several simple protective spells on each other and prepared to draw out insurance from our pockets if needed.

What kind of creatures could be clashing? Trying to calm my excited heart, I finally advanced enough to witness the magnificent battle with my own eyes.

[────■■■■■■■!!!]

[[[[[■■■■■■■■───!!!]]]]]

Two massive monsters—a swamp hydra and what appeared to be a sub-adult dragon with dark brown scales—engaged in fierce combat.

The hydra, a multi-headed serpent with red scales and twelve heads, stood on four dinosaur-like legs, extending its five remaining attached heads in various directions to target the dark brown-scaled dragon flying through the air.

It bared its fangs dripping with sinister, glistening venom, sometimes wrapping the venom in magical energy to shoot like bullets or exhaling poisonous breath.

Additionally, the severed neck stumps were slowly beginning to regenerate. Facing this monster that truly lived up to the hydra name, the dragon also displayed intense movements.

Opening its mouth to dissolve one of the hydra’s heads with toxic breath—the very symbol of dragonkind—it also actively engaged in close combat, overwhelming with speed that belied its massive size.

As these two mid-rank giant monsters fiercely confronted each other, my gaze remained fixed on them.

Just now, an intuition—or rather, a certainty—flashed through my mind.

That is… one of those two was likely the owner of the connection I had been seeking.

‘…What should I do?’

Unable to act in this situation, I sought stronger confirmation. After partially releasing my attunement and surrounding myself with protective power against potential stray attacks, just as I was about to step forward—

[───■■■!!!]

Suddenly, the dragon turned its head as if noticing us, and with a roar full of obvious hostility, it moved to attack us.

“…Sophia! We’re siding with the hydra!”

“The Prophet agrees!!”

It seems that at this stage, our ally has already been decided.