Chapter 27
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Episode 5 - Hunting Festival [7]
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"You've been quiet. Is something wrong, Adel?"
Rinna asked. It was currently break time.
I was in the cafeteria, eating sandwiches without saying a single word.
Rinna must have noticed my silence. I slightly raised my head and smiled.
"It's nothing, I'm just… thinking about a lot of things."
Today was Wednesday, the day the Demonic Beast would make its appearance.
It was unfortunate that I couldn't prevent the Demonic Beast's appearance when I searched for the Item.
But since there was nothing unusual, I left. Besides, because of the Curses and the Power of Chaos, I couldn't investigate much.
I was lost in thought, especially about what happened yesterday.
'Even though my teacher helped me recover from those thoughts, I still can't forget it so easily.'
Knowing that my fate is completely Dark affected me quite a bit.
I simply couldn't see any meaning in anything anymore. I also understood the reason why the Summons were so friendly toward me.
Because they pitied me.
Pitied me because I have a terrible fate.
'Ugh, let's not think about that. Today I just need to focus on the Demonic Beast.'
Returning to the present, I brought a sandwich to my mouth and took a bite.
Then I took a sip of my favorite coffee.
'The probability of it being a Class 6 Demonic Beast is 10%, while the probability of it being a Class 5 is 90%.'
But that was all—just probabilities.
That simple 10% could become 100%, but regardless of the outcome, there was another concern.
'If my fate is filled with misfortune, that means I'll constantly be in danger.'
It basically guaranteed that an anomaly could appear in this chapter because of me.
What if two Class 6 Demonic Beasts appear?
Or what if villains appear instead of wild beasts?
An endless number of scenarios could happen.
From the very beginning, I never cared if the story changed, because I already had a plan of actions I needed to follow.
If I followed them, no matter how difficult it became, I could reach the true ending.
"Hey, Rinna, what time are you going to the Golden Forest?"
I asked Rinna. She tilted her head and answered,
"I don't know. Whenever, I guess."
First of all, Rinna absolutely must not appear in this chapter.
If she appears, even briefly, there's a chance she could die.
That's why I need to prevent her from entering the Golden Forest, unless she stays at the entrance where the medical staff are stationed.
"You could wait for me at the entrance at three in the afternoon."
She nodded.
"Sure, but why at that time?"
"I'll try to go to the central region. If something happens to me, I might need to look for you—like what happened on Monday."
Remembering the Curses and the corruption of the Power of Chaos, Rinna nodded energetically without hesitation.
"Yes, I'll keep an eye out."
"Thanks."
She waved her hand as if it were only natural.
Meanwhile, Liora, who had been sleeping on my head, moved her wings and stood on the table.
When Rinna saw her, she asked,
"It's a light fairy. I've never seen one up close before."
"And what about your summon? Didn't the egg hatch?"
"No, mine was a Dark attribute one. It really rejected my mana strongly."
Rinna asked a few more questions, and after a while, I stood up from my seat.
She asked,
"Are you going to the Golden Forest?"
I shook my head.
"No, I'm going to buy a few things."
I needed some potions to heal severe injuries.
And some for mana recovery, stamina, and mental energy.
The mental exhaustion that appears after using up all your mana doesn't go away, even if you fully recover your mana.
'Besides, I need to find out where Clementine is; yesterday I told Diana we could talk at the pavilion after three in the afternoon, on the condition that she doesn't enter the Golden Forest.'
So Rinna and Diana are outside the Golden Forest; only Clementine remains.
The problem is figuring out a way to convince her not to enter the Golden Forest.
'That's going to be a headache, but if I want her to live, there's no other option.'
After leaving the cafeteria, I headed to Parliament D-1.
At first glance, it looked like an ordinary city; however, there was one small difference.
That difference was none other than the number of shops.
It was literally filled with stores, and the only reason was because they were inside the Academy.
There are at least ten thousand people in total within the Academy.
Professors, workers, cadets, and so on.
At least 90% of them come to D-1 City every single day without fail.
Walking through the crowded streets filled with cadets and professors,
I soon arrived at a particular shop.
The moment I saw the sign, an ironic smile appeared on my face.
'I don't know why it's called "Destiny," but here we are.'
A shop named Destiny was, in short, destiny.
As soon as I entered, a small bell rang, and the first thing I saw were display cases and shelves filled with bottles.
Some elixirs and other potions.
'It would be great if I could sell the potions I obtained, but we're inside the Academy.'
Here, information reached Director Bernice and other executives and Council members, especially the vice director.
So I needed to come up with some excuse in case they questioned me about the potions.
I couldn't even tell a lie.
In any case, I looked around.
Whenever I approached and touched a potion, the mana signature gave me information about it.
I grabbed at least six of each potion I needed.
All of them were medium-high quality; this would cost me a fortune, but what could I do?
'Goodbye, my money.'
In total, I only had three million gold left.
Potions are an incredibly expensive product in this world, especially elixirs.
'I need to go rob some villains of their money later.'
Then I left the shop and, without anyone noticing, stored the potions in my Inventory.
After that, for around two hours, I tried to find Clementine, but it was impossible.
I even went to the place where players could usually find her most of the time.
But she wasn't there either.
'Damn it, today of all days is the only day I can't find her.'
Normally, she appears in front of me out of nowhere.
She usually complains, saying that I'm always the one appearing in front of her.
'Ugh, this is seriously getting on my nerves.'
In the end, I decided to use my senses to search through the entire Academy.
'It might leave me with overwhelming mental exhaustion, but I still have to do it.'
I extended my senses throughout the entire Academy; every person appeared in my mind as clearly as if they were standing right in front of me.
The beating of their hearts, the sound of their breathing, and so on.
An endless stream of information flooded my mind.
However, no matter how hard I concentrated, I couldn't find Clementine.
'She must be in the Golden Forest.'
Aside from her, I also noticed that Lumina wasn't there either, but knowing her, she's probably outside the Academy right now.
In the end, I failed to discover Clementine's whereabouts; I assumed she was in the Golden Forest.
'According to the game, she wants to become the first-year representative, but she won't even make it to third place.'
I let out a long sigh and rubbed my temples.
'If she's in the Golden Forest… then there isn't much time left.'
Even though I still have three hours left, that isn't enough time to find her in the Golden Forest.
Especially because I need to secure the area where the Demonic Beast might appear.
'Alright, let's go to the Golden Forest.'
***
"Whew, that was close."
Clementine said as she sat down beneath a tree.
In front of her was a strange grotesque creature.
Normally, wild beasts are evolved animals; because of that, they were given the name Wild Beasts.
They are monsters that exist everywhere, some docile while others remain dangerous.
However, there are also Demonic Beasts.
Monsters that were exposed to the Power of Chaos or infected by villains.
'What is a Demonic Beast doing here?'
Even though it was only Class 4, it had been extremely dangerous for Clementine to face it.
'If a higher-Class Demonic Beast has appeared, then it's likely infecting lower-Class wild beasts.'
A high-Class Demonic Beast can indirectly infect a low-Class one.
Since Demonic Beasts usually attack any living being within reach.
It is normal for zones inhabited by large numbers of Demonic Beasts to exist throughout the continent.
Normally, when they appear, they are killed almost immediately.
But in front of Clementine was one of them, within the territory of the Holy Academy.
A place where humans of up to 9 Stars exist.
'How is this possible? Did the villains infiltrate this place?'
Then, suddenly, she remembered Adel.
'If he encountered villains and was exposed to the Power of Chaos, why didn't he report it…? Could it be that…?'
It was the most logical conclusion for Clementine.
Adel was probably working with the villains.
Otherwise, how could there be Demonic Beasts?
'I ignored it because I thought he had gone to report the villain he encountered, but if that's not the case, then he's on the villains' side.'
She looked at the dead Class 4 Demonic Beast in front of her.
"That son of a bitch…"
But before she could continue cursing, she suddenly heard screams in the distance.
There were not just a few screams; there were at least dozens, perhaps close to a hundred.
Clementine stood up, searched through her bag for a potion, took it out, and drank it.
Most of her wounds closed up; afterward, she did the same with a mana recovery potion and a stamina potion.
Then she wiped the blood from her lips with her arm.
Finally, she grabbed her sword and began running toward the source of the screams.
'There must be more Demonic Beasts. That son of a bitch must have already infected at least one Class 5 wild beast.'
She noticed that Adel seemed to have come from the deeper region of the Golden Forest.
That is where the Class 5 and 6 wild beasts are located.
'Don't tell me there are already hundreds of low-Class Demonic Beasts all throughout the Golden Forest.'
At this rate, the Golden Forest would probably turn into a Demonic Region, a place inhabited by Demonic Beasts.
When she arrived at the source of the screams, Clementine could not help but widen her eyes.
At least dozens of Class 2 and 3 Demonic Beasts were attacking all the cadets.
Farther away, near the central region, the second-year students were fighting against Class 4 Demonic Beasts.
At the very least, fighting a Class 4 Demonic Beast requires an entire six-member team.
Clementine had used the terrain to her advantage and employed strategies, barely managing to kill the Demonic Beast.
'This is bad, but the worst part is… no professor has appeared.'
That was the strangest thing; by this point, all the cadets should have called for help.
And even so, the professors still had not appeared.
'Could a barrier have been raised around the entire Golden Forest?'
That was her first thought, and at that exact moment…
"..."
Suddenly, the entire Golden Forest trembled.
Clementine looked up beyond the treetops.
Beyond the Central Region, enormous tentacles were destroying everything.
Some cadets, probably third-years, were being crushed with ease.
Clementine's breathing hitched.
'T-that is… a Class 6 Demonic Beast… no, wait, at this point it looks like it's only one step away from evolving into a Class 7 one.'
One of the tentacles hurled a massive rock in her direction.
Clementine tightened her lips, raised her sword, and swung it, cutting the rock in half.
'Adel… this was definitely all his fault.'