Riku let the monsters taste their own medicines. In his world, usually, the monsters loved to eat the human as the human for them was like a lump of wagyu meat. Nevertheless, he never anticipates that he'll be going too far.
The heck? For him, it was better to eat the food have been in the trash than the disgusting flesh of the monsters. What he could do? It was already done.
"Shit..." This was the only word he could say every time he remembered the slimy flesh that dripped on his throat.
He felt that can't take eating meats for several years so from now own he declared himself a vegetarian.
...
When a man saw himself reflected in the clear lake, he came here to wash away the foul taste in his mouth while also washing the body that bathed his blood.
Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!
He cleansed his hands before drinking several liters of water. He was unconcerned about drinking as he knew the water in this woodland was still safe to drink.
Unfortunately, Riku was able to eliminate the aftertaste, but he was unable to remove his clothing due to direct sunlight. The main reason for this was that the monsters smashed a large section of stone that served as a sun blocker.
He looked up at the sky and estimated the time to be around two o'clock. In his view, if he stayed here while still coated in blood, monsters would inevitably appear.
He put his head into the lake, and the blood was slowly washed away by the lake's gentle waves.
Splash!
"Argh...!" he cried out in agony as the water caused his wounds to swell. He examined himself and noticed that there was still blood on his clothes, so he dipped once more.
Splash!
There were a few moments after that. Riku finished cleaning his garments, and the ache he'd been experiencing vanished. For almost five minutes, he was almost submerged in the water.
When he turned to the right, he saw that his water originated from a large green mountain nine hundred meters away from where he was now.
"Hmm... This lake is fine; I can use the pipeline and air pressure to move this water through Arzotoc village."
His wounds were still fresh, but fortunately, some of them had narrowly healed, so there was no blood streaming from his body.
Riku left the lake to reduce the chances of the monsters discovering him in this forest. Furthermore, the putrid odor emanated from the monsters' bodies, which were strewn around the marble surface.
He muttered, then looked seriously at his path. "I should find Solomon and a place where I could rest from the being."
He knew he'd be able to return to the Arzotoc village by this evening if he waited for his mana pool to regenerate.
...
Riku was unsuccessful in his search for Solomon in the huge green forest after fifteen minutes of wandering. Nonetheless, he was aware that Solomon was still in this location as a result of the monster's [Astray spell], which he was unaware of.
It's said that if you flip your clothes inside out, you can dispel the monsters' spells.
Solomon!
Solomon!
Solomon!
Riku attempted to contact him but received no answer. "Where's Solomon? Supposedly, he's still in this place," he mused, trying to figure out where Solomon had gone after escaping the Naga monster.
As he watched the trees dance, a cool air from the forest brushed his body. "This is refreshing..." His body was still fatigued as the monster's flesh improved his body's ability to generate energy instantly, posing a threat to his fitness.
He sat beneath a twenty-foot-tall tree, out of the direct sunlight. It wasn't a good idea to stay in the same area for too long since the monster would see him.
"I need to relax in the interim so I can continue looking for Solomon." The task was already in his hands, but Solomon vanished into the forest due to the Naga monster.
Riku could use [Target], one of his dark crows' abilities. This skill didn't just imply high precision, but it could also help him expand his range. The [Target] talent was split into two sections: land and sky. On the ground, he'll have a 150-meter radius to see around him, however in the air, he'll have a 300-meter radius. To activate it, he must first cast the [Fly] skill, which consumes a significant amount of mana. Eight + ten equals eighteen mana pool, which was less than his existing mana pool, so casting those talents at the same time was impossible.
"I must conserve my mana for the [Fly] skill. Tsk!"
He clicked his tongue, thinking that if he only possessed mana potion in this realm, he'd have no trouble casting talent. In his world, the only place to get mana potion was in America, where one small bottle cost a hundred dollars. Riku used seventeen mana potions to increase the capacity of his mana pool at the time, but due to an occurrence, it was reduced to fifteen mana pools.
Yes, having a tiny mana pool was difficult because it limited the skills of certain mutants. Level one mutants usually have sixty or more mana, and it can be higher if you drink a lot of potions before awakening.
One transparent bottle adds four to five mana pools, therefore Riku's mana pool should be approximately 85 if he's taken seventeen mana potions over the years. It was far too big for a mutant of level one.
...
After another thirty minutes had gone, Riku decided to take a power nap to speed up his recovery. Furthermore, the chirping of the bird awoke him, as he mistook those bluebirds with crimson beaks for the monster intent on killing him.
Despite being in a dangerous environment, there were nonetheless harmless animals living here. The soft wind sent the sound of the bird and leaves to his ears.
"I have to go, but where should I go? I need to find a place before nightfall," Riki said, moving his head left and right in search of a suitable temporary location.
It was preferable to hide somewhere as bright as he could be sure there was no monster there. However, his body was a concern since this sunshine may harm him.
"Cave?" He needed to locate a little location to hide from the monster's attack, and he had an idea where he could find it.
The caves were generally found behind the rock, behind the waterfall, or when an occurrence occurred in the natural world. It was not hard to find even one cave the size of the forest like this.
"I can return to the Arzotoc village two hours after the sun has set, but I can't do that; if I return to the village, I should bring Solomon with me," he said, massaging his chin and carefully strolling down the straight path, continuously watching his sides for anything strange.
Riku was well aware that if he went to the forest alone and didn't return before the sun set, Lady Asarki would be furious. But the search was vital to him since, despite the fact that he had been mutant for months, he had made little progress in becoming stronger.
His daily endeavor merely served to enhance his physical body so that he could serve as a stronger receptacle for the monsters' genes. That training was pointless for him because Arzotoc's guards were stronger than him, but it was also useless as he only had two skills cast and could use them again after waiting several hours.
There was a chance he may enhance his mana by adding the free attributes to his 'Intelligence.' He must finish this mission in order to raise it.
He noticed the dried leaves on the surface, and he was seeking for Solomon's left clues.
"He can't travel further into the forest since he stated it was familiar in this spot, so he's merely hiding in a place where he's the only one who knows about it,"
Riku ate some healthy fruits like oranges and apples while strolling. It was enough to get him back on his feet. And then, as he approached the high golden brown cliff, each side was separated into two divergent paths, each leading to a new type of monster.
Trees and bushes surrounded him, and after a short distance, he would step onto a surface with green tiny grass, and beyond this cliff was the rest of the forest.
Sniff! Sniff!
When Riku smelled the iron scent that came with the wind caressing him, he was concerned. As a result, he examined himself to check if he still had open wounds that were leaking through his garments. After he left the forest, he obviously stopped all of them from bleeding.
"That's a smell of blood..." His eyelids were widened as he knew that blood wasn't from the monster. To be exact, it came the human also the monster's blood releasing rotten smell.
Only human was in this forest, so possibly that strong smell of blood was coming from the Solomon.
"W-Wait, don't tell someone to attack him?"/