Ch.48The Price of Environmental Destruction (3)

The rain had stopped.

I took advantage of the engineer looking elsewhere to brush off my uniform. The static electricity made it difficult to remove the fur.

Damn it, the smell won’t go away because of the moisture.

That’s when I heard the sharp voice.

[“Children, where are you?”]

[“Where could those things have gone?”]

Looks like the Dryads have followed us.

We quickly hid behind a rock. The group of Dryads missed us by a hair’s breadth.

[“Let’s split up and search. Alert everyone immediately if you find them.”]

[“Whoever finds them first gets to claim that Mage first?”]

Rustle rustle.

The Dryads scattered. They move like slithering snakes. Two left that way, and only one remained nearby.

[“Where could they be?”]

The Dryad hummed a tune.

This is our chance to ambush.

I exchanged hand signals with the engineer. She nodded. She moved toward the bushes on the opposite side.

[“You’d better come out now.”]

I loaded a small stone into my slingshot. I planned to wait until the monster had its back to me.

Not yet.

Not yet.

Need to wait longer.

Now.

[“No matter how much you run, once you’ve entered the barrier, you’ll never escape. Since you’ll eventually be caught and suffer anyway, it’s better to surrender early…”]

Whoosh!

The Fire Sea Stone cut through the air.

The power might be pathetic, but accuracy and speed are what matter. Once it hits, the Magic Stone will do the rest.

My prediction was correct.

Crack!

Upon impact, the Dryad’s head was engulfed in flames.

[“Kyaaaah! Fire! Fire!”]

The Dryad flailed about. The plan went slightly awry. I had deliberately aimed for the head to silence it first, but it was still screaming loudly.

Nothing I can do about it now.

I need to finish this before reinforcements arrive.

[“Kaaaak!”]

After changing position, I fired two more Piercing Blue Stones. Maximum penetration power. The Dryad’s legs were severed. It lost balance and collapsed.

[“Damn it, where the hell…!”]

I saw the engineer moving to the next bush. I filled my lungs with air as much as possible. Then, I shouted.

“Look at me——!!”

[“There you are! Insolent fool! How dare you, a worshipper of magic, rebel against us magical beings!”]

Bang!

The Dryad struck the ground. Its fingers pierced through the floor.

Rumble rumble.

I have a bad feeling about this. I instinctively threw myself aside.

Boom!

Roots shot up from where I had been standing just moments ago. About a dozen of them. I nearly had my entire body skewered.

[“…You dodged?”]

The Dryad gave a chilling laugh. Its head was still burning. Its eyes had turned to ashes and were empty. Yet somehow it was still staring at me as if it could see.

[“Good reflexes. Were you a renowned Mage in the outside world?”]

The monster flicked its tongue.

[“Well, it doesn’t matter. Since you’ve hurt me and our Mother Nature, you must pay the price. At the very least, after I rip off your head…”]

The monster’s words were cut short.

Crack!

The engineer, who had approached from behind, chopped off the Dryad’s head with her hand axe. A clean strike.

The Dryad’s body, which had been squirming, went limp. Purple blood trickled from the severed part.

“Whew, being charred makes it easier to cut!”

The engineer grinned as she shook off her axe. I smiled back.

When I stepped on the Dryad’s head, which had turned to ash, I felt something round and solid. It was a Magic Stone. It had a yellowish tint.

“Resin? Or amber?”

It resembles resin or amber in appearance. Either way, it would be a great help for survival.

It’s too early to relax. After securing the Magic Stone, I hid in the bushes again with the engineer. Shortly after, two Dryads returned the way they had come.

[“How dare they deceive us?”]

[“Insolent bastards. They’ll pay for destroying Mother Nature.”]

It’s those ones from earlier. Behind them followed more than a dozen monsters. They seemed to be forming a unit.

[‘At least their numbers have decreased since earlier.’]

[‘It seems there’s a limit to how many each one can lead.’]

[‘Good, we can hit and run, taking them out one by one.’]

[‘No, think about it. After one of them was killed, would they still move separately?’]

[‘Hmm. You have a point.’]

David is right. The Dryads showed no sign of separating. They buried their dead comrade in the ground and then shouted loudly.

[“Come out! Lowly creatures!”]

[“Where are you hiding? You must be nearby.”]

I handed the axe to the engineer and gestured. She nodded. We slowly moved away from the scene.

Today’s exploration ends here.

***

Or at least, that’s how it should be.

“What should we do? I think we’ve gone too deep.”

No matter how much we tried to find our way out, we couldn’t. Instead, we seemed to be going deeper. The evidence was the increasing cold.

I’m anxious.

Are we really trapped on this island?

“W-what should we do? Are we really unable to leave this place?”

The engineer’s voice trembled. Darkness was approaching. The temperature continued to drop, and rustling sounds came from all directions.

I mustn’t be overwhelmed by the atmosphere.

I took the engineer’s hand. She made a strange sound, “Eh?”

“Hold tight so we don’t get separated.”

“Uh-huh? Okay.”

Before the sun completely set, I took out a luminous stone. I squeezed out the remaining magical power and wrapped it around the Magic Stone. A soft light illuminated our surroundings.

“Let’s find a place to camp.”

The engineer held my hand tightly.

The perception of her as an enemy, the discomfort of her being a beastkin—those feelings had long disappeared. In this forest, the only ally I could trust was the engineer.

We walked and walked and walked some more. There was no suitable place to lie down, no cave in sight. The water in our canteens was almost gone. My throat was parched. A chill wrapped around my entire body. The engineer and I drew closer together.

“M-Mage.”

“What?”

“L-l-look at that.”

Where the engineer pointed, there was a person.

Not a living human. It was a corpse with one body and two heads. The eyes were empty, and the nose was cut off. It hadn’t been dead for long.

“…Holy Spirit Kingdom uniform.”

“Ugh, that’s horrible. What is that! Who would do such a thing…”

I frowned. I could sense traces of corrupted magical power from the man. Perhaps there had been castaways who reached this island before us.

How long had we been walking like that?

[“Hm, hmhm, hm.”]

An unidentifiable singing voice reached my ears.

“…A woman’s voice?”

“It must be a monster. Let’s turn back.”

The voice carried a musical note just as we were taking a detour.

[“You’ve worked hard to come this far.”]

[“Good job!”]

Rustle rustle.

Something scraped across the floor. At the same time, bright particles began to float around us.

“Holy Spirit magic?”

No, that can’t be.

This is light containing mana. Whether it’s fire-based magic or a luminous Magic Stone, it’s the work of someone who knows how to handle magic.

Finally, the owner of the incantation was revealed.

[“Welcome!”]

[“To our hideout.”]

They were two female forms completely covered in plants. One had large breasts, and the other had wide hips.

The two female forms embraced each other as they looked at us.

[“New test subjects have arrived! Isn’t that right, Ne?”]

[“Of course, Al.”]

So the one with large breasts is ‘Al,’ and the one with wide hips is ‘Ne.’

Could these be the ‘Alraune’ the Dryads mentioned?

[“One filthy beastkin and one cunning Mage!”]

[“Both are targets for disposal. But…”]

[“Both are interesting. A child with two souls, and a human Mage who has reached the level of performing sacrificial rituals. Moreover, the Mage could have performed ‘surgery’ if only he had enough mana in his body?”]

[“Al, you’re going too far.”]

[“Yes, yes. There are no ‘ifs.’ Still, it’s a shame, isn’t it? If he had reached the level of surgery, we would be nothing to him.”]

The two monsters chuckled and then looked at me. I opened my mouth.

[“Who are you?”]

[“We are the forest keepers of this island. Beings who deliver severe punishment to those who destroy nature.”]

[“Of course, with bodies like these, we can’t go very far.”]

The monsters’ main bodies were attached to the ground like old trees.

[“So we usually send out sentinels to patrol the forest.”]

[“Our lovely familiars.”]

[“Those children told us that you were wreaking havoc on this forest.”]

[“How dare you cut into our precious home.”]

[“The garden we received from Him…”]

[“Don’t ruin it carelessly——!!”]

The two monsters simultaneously pulled out vines. One from between her breasts, the other from behind her hips. Rose whips with thorns.

[“The Dryads, those children didn’t do their job properly. We told them to capture you, but they were pathetically outwitted!”]

[“Al, there’s no need to be so hasty. These creatures can’t escape this island unless they overcome us anyway.”]

I was certain.

These monsters are Alraune.

If we kill these creatures and obtain their Magic Stones, we should be able to proceed to the next island.

“Th-they seem like incredibly strong monsters…”

I placed my hand on the trembling engineer’s head. She seems to have sensed the opponent’s strength through her animal instincts.

But what can we do?

Some fights just can’t be avoided.

***

Rachel and Tiria returned with food. The hunt was a great success, so they could have a generous meat party for dinner tonight.

However, as night fell, Riyo and Erich had not returned.

“Colonel…”

“I know.”

Tiria nervously bit her fingernails.

“Maybe they’re just taking a bit longer to return.”

“But that Mage isn’t stupid enough to miscalculate time.”

“Still, you never know. Unexpected variables might have occurred…”

Unexpected variables.

For example, being attacked and killed by monsters.

Rachel was the first to consider this possibility. The image of Erich as a corpse suddenly flashed in her mind. A chill ran down her spine.

Why?

Wouldn’t it be good if the Mage died?

Even as she thought this, she questioned herself.

The enemy of her friends. How empty would it be if he didn’t die by her own hands? She didn’t want to end this bitter relationship without exacting revenge.

“Colonel.”

Rachel looked up. The full moon had risen to the middle of the sky.

“I think we need to make a decision.”

“You mean enter the forest?”

“Yes.”

“It could be dangerous.”

“Those two might be in even greater danger.”

Tiria saw it. The look in Rachel’s eyes, wavering like a candle in the wind.

“I don’t want to live only losing things anymore.”

“I understand about Sergeant Riyo, but what about that Mage?”

“Yes. Even though he’s an enemy… no, I misspoke.”

Rachel shook her head.

“…Because he’s my sworn enemy. Precisely because he’s my enemy, I don’t want him to die by someone else’s hand.”

Tiria sighed.

“Entering a forest full of monsters at night would normally be suicidal. You understand what I’m saying, right?”

“I do.”

Rachel picked up her spear and gathered Fire Sea Stones. She had received everything from that Mage.

A halo sparkled above Tiria’s head as she recited a Divine Word. She took out her baculus and added quietly:

“Major, you protect me. I’ll track the Mage’s traces.”

In truth, Tiria was just testing Rachel.

She had already planned to enter the forest.

Wherever he was, she would definitely find him.