"Do I really have to do this now?"
Isaac reached up for the third time to stop his bow from sliding off his shoulder.
He walked behind Logan and Lancel, following them down a path that had started paved and was quickly becoming mud, the treeline drawing closer with each step.
"It's better to start early," Logan replied, slowing down to match his pace. "You need to learn everything you couldn't in the last ten years."
"But still…" Isaac protested. "It's still too early—"
"Or what else do you want?" Lancel cut him off in an annoyed voice. "Hide behind Mother's skirts for the rest of your life?"
"...."
Isaac opened his mouth to rebuke him but thought against it.
'There was no point arguing with a child…'
He let it go and turned his attention to their surroundings instead.
'Everything is meant to kill us…'
It hadn't been that long since he had read the book, and now he was going to witness it firsthand.
As they walked further away from the town, Isaac couldn't help but notice a translucent object in the distance.
Both Lancel and Logan didn't react, and that made Isaac wonder if that was considered normal.
After a five minute walk, they reached the translucent object.
Logan was the first to walk through the barrier without any problem, and Lancel followed right after.
Isaac put his hand forward and felt it wrap around his fingers, clinging lightly, like pressing through a membrane.
Isaac slowly tried to walk through it as he felt the barrier wrapping around his body like polythene.
After a little bit of struggle, Isaac walked past it like the other two.
"What is that!?"
He asked aloud, glancing back for the barrier, but to his frightening surprise there was nothing.
Isaac swung his head around, finding himself in an empty grey forest with the town nowhere to be seen.
Logan chuckled softly. "Welcome to the world without colours."
Lancel didn't like the way Isaac was gawking around, and he wasn't shy in pointing it out.
"You would be the first to die if you don't focus," he spat. "Don't make Mom mourn you once more."
He began to walk behind Logan, leaving Isaac stunned.
'What is wrong with this brat?'
Isaac groaned inwardly before he too fell in line behind his grandfather.
"The barrier you saw was something the World Tree generates to keep the elves safe from dangers."
Logan explained, his voice noticeably softer now.
"It hides our town from aggressors and only lets elves inside."
Isaac nodded and looked around more carefully.
The forest was much darker, with tall trees that didn't let a single ray of sunlight fall on the ground. There was no grass or any type of green plant, only mushrooms and some other plants that Isaac couldn't recognise.
'But why is this place so silent?'
Isaac couldn't help but wonder when he couldn't hear a single sound from the place. It was like the entire forest was absent of any type of living species.
"Keep your eyes open, you can come across anything in the forest."
Lancel said in a quiet voice, looking back at Isaac.
"And remember, anything red is dangerous."
Isaac gave him a nod while he slid down his bow, knocked an arrow and pulled just enough for him to feel the pressure.
'I am glad I know the basics of archery.'
Isaac began to look around for anything that moved, but he couldn't see much.
"Have you come across any flowers lately, Grandpa?" Lancel asked, grabbing both their attention.
"No," Logan replied gruffly. "It's been so long since I saw a wild one in the forest."
"What flower?" Isaac couldn't help but ask.
Logan glanced back at his grandson for a long second before deciding to answer him.
"The Rafflesia flowers," Logan replied slowly.
"They are the flowers that are the most important ingredient for any rituals that include a breakthrough in Ascendant levels. There are thirteen different species corresponding to the thirteen different Ascendant paths."
Logan paused, looked around, and concluded. "They're also what backs the value of the Grivna. The flowers in the bank vaults are real, not symbolic."
"….I see."
Isaac mumbled softly, seemingly falling into his own world of thoughts.
'So the flowers are both ingredients and currency. The same thing that makes you stronger is what the whole economy is built on.'
Logan led the group to a hill that provided them with higher ground for hunting.
As an experienced hunter himself, Logan had always been keen with his surroundings, and right now he could clearly detect a faint scent of prey.
When they reached the top of the hill, Logan looked around while Lancel and Isaac sat down to rest.
"Found them."
Logan said, pointing toward the east.
Isaac turned his head toward where he was pointing. He saw a dozen reindeer grazing in a glade, their thick antlers reflecting the little sunlight.
'Wow, they are surprisingly cute…'
His thought died when one of them turned toward him, showing off its six eyes and a jaw that was split into four with razor sharp teeth.
'…I take back my judgement.'
Logan patted Isaac's shoulder and gestured toward his bow. "Get going, boy."
Isaac let out a deep breath and stood up, knocking an arrow in his bow. He took his stance and picked a target.
Logan stepped in without comment, adjusted the angle of his elbow by two degrees, straightened the line of his back with a light touch, and stepped away again.
"Take the shot."
Isaac hesitated as he kept his eyes on the reindeer.
Even though his arm was drawn back, arrowhead aimed, he still couldn't let go.
"Death is a part of life, Isaac," Logan said softly. "Don't be too gentle for this world of pain."
"W-what if I can't hit?"
Logan leaned forward, his voice low in his ear.
"You are an elf, Isaac. The race which is far superior to any other race out there. Believe in yourself."
Isaac held his breath and pulled his arm back a little more.
In that same heartbeat, the reindeer he had chosen looked up from the trunk it had been scraping lichen from.
Its ears twitched and it leaped, but a single arrow hit the centre of its third eye.
It let out a cry and the herd around it broke into motion, scattering all around the forest in just a split second.
Isaac let out a sigh, his eyes on the reindeer as it slowly died.
He turned to look at Logan, who had a surprised look on his face.
"What?" Isaac asked, tilting his head in confusion.
"N-no, nothing." Logan cleared his throat. "I just didn't think you would hit on your first try."
'…Really?' Isaac's lips twitched.
"Of course he would hit on his first try," Lancel said, walking away. "He is the Messiah, isn't he."
Isaac looked at Lancel and could clearly tell the boy was sulking.
"It took him three months to kill a rabbit," Logan said pleasantly, falling into step beside Isaac. "Come. Let's collect your hunt."
Isaac nodded his head and walked behind him down the slope.
Lancel had already reached it and was sharpening his knife, testing it with his thumb.
"We only take the parts that we can consume," Logan explained, grabbing the reindeer's hind leg. "The rest we leave for the forest as an offering."
Lancel began butchering, starting from the skin of the hind legs.
Isaac, however, had his eyes on the face of the reindeer with a confused look.
'What could possibly have made them evolve a face like that?'
"Turn it around, Grandpa," Lancel requested, taking a step back.
Logan nodded, grabbed either side of the reindeer's ribs, and picked it up like it weighed nothing.
'…What the hell?'
Isaac watched wide-eyed as the old man put the reindeer down on the opposite side.
'That thing is at least three hundred kilograms.'
The only thing that Isaac could associate with such bizarre strength was being a beyonder.
'….How strong are you, Logan?'
Lancel took only a few minutes to butcher the best meat from the reindeer and pack it up.
Logan grabbed the fifty or so kilos of meat in one hand as the group began to head back.
"How do you feel, Isaac?" Logan asked, looking back at him.
"I'm fine," Isaac replied. "Just surprised by your strength."
Logan let out a small laugh. "You will have such strength once you become an Ascendant."
Isaac nodded gently while he glanced back at Lancel, who was behaving oddly.
"What happen—?"
Before Isaac could speak, a hand grabbed his mouth and dragged him behind a tree.
Isaac was frightened to his core but only sighed in relief when he saw that it was Logan.
Logan slowly let go and gestured for him to stay quiet.
Isaac looked to his side where Lancel was hiding with them.
A faint sound made Isaac frown. He peeked out from Lancel's side and saw two beings in armour walking along an unpaved path.
'….Humans?'