We arrive at the forest after going to an armor shop and a weapon store. I help Sakura purchase a new bow with about a forty-pound draw, and we both help Josh pick out a set of armor. We pick one mostly composed of monster parts. The top layer is comprised of a thin sheet of metal. Under that is a layer of leather, linen, and finally, the shell of an Arachnovi. Overall, the set is fairly light, but it consumes most of what Josh has saved over the last few weeks. Both Sakura and I push very hard to make sure he buys a proper armor set because he wants something cheap. Knowing how kind Josh can be, I can't have him jumping to the rescue in shabby armor and getting injured; Sakura seems to agree. Finally, I buy a simple set of leather armor and a spear. The plan is to have Josh as the vanguard since he has the best weapon and armor; I'll take center and cover his back while also defending Sakura, and she'll stay in the back and aim for weak points on the enemy. Sakura still has a dagger, so she isn't completely defenseless at close range. Still, I really want to focus on developing our specialties before moving on to secondary roles. I talked to the guards and a couple of people at the guild to get an idea of how to use the spear, but I'll be learning on the fly for the most part. Woohee greets us after I call out for her, and she looks at our new equipment.
"Oooh, you look like real adventurers now."
"Are you saying we didn't look like real adventurers before?" I ask in a teasing tone.
"Nope," Woohee responds, oblivious to my intentions, and hugs herself while flying around us in excitement. We can all feel the electricity in the air. The thrill of pitting ourselves against an unknown enemy causes a primeval heat to boil up within me.
"I have to go pee," Josh says, completely breaking the mood.
"Then go pee real quick. We'll wait for you." I sigh and hold a hand over my face. The forest is silent except for the sound of Josh wandering off to relieve himself. I take a deep breath to calm my nerves. We're in the forest, so it's important that we stay alert. Just as I finish regaining my composure, I hear a shout from Josh's direction in the woods.
"He wants to cut it off!" Josh, who apparently had enough time to pull up his pants, rushes past us while being chased by an Equuinoid. I take a stance and intercept the small creature with a swing of my spear.
"Sakura, run to my right and shoot it with an arrow."
"Hai!" She dashes into my peripheral vision and notches an arrow. I slowly retreat while stabbing at its body, but the small creature is too agile for me to land a direct hit. After a few thrusts, Josh shouts.
"I'm ready!" I step back and allow him to take up the vanguard position. He only has time to block one attack before Sakura's arrow lodges into the monster's exposed flank. The Equuinoid staggers to one side from the shock of the impact, and Josh uses the opportunity to remove its head. The corpse falls to the ground in a slump, and I stab it with my spear for good measure before turning to the kids.
"Good job, team. We took it down without losing any appendages." I can see Josh visibly flinch at my words. I continue. "Now, I don't know how the experience system works entirely, so I'll have the two of you check your status to let me know which of us is leveling up and by how much, understand?"
"Okay."
"So, have either of you leveled up at all?"
"My individual level went up by one!" Josh says as he raises his right hand into the air.
"No," Sakura says, clearly disappointed. Checking mine, I see that it does not go up either.
"Nor did mine. The person who killed the monster seems to get the experience."
"There's a skill that can spread experience points to a group," Josh states this information as if it is the most obvious thing in the world.
"Why didn't you say that earlier?"
"You didn't ask?" He tilts his head as he responds.
"Uh, hm, that's fair. Anyway, we'll have to try and evenly distribute who lands the last blow, so one person isn't getting more experience than the other two."
"Okay." Josh agrees, and Sakura nods, so it seems we're all on the same page.
The corpse of the Equuinoid is stored in the den so that we can pick it up on our way back. We continue heading into the forest with Woohee as our guide until we come to the more tightly wooded area that Inari took me to yesterday. At a second glance, I notice the trees growing closer together because they aren't mammoth trees. These trees are much thinner. They have a pine-like bark and smaller leaves. For whatever reason, the mammoth trees don't seem to grow in this part of the forest.
[I wonder if the depth of the bedrock affects the types of plants growing in the area. Our first expedition showed us that the bedrock appears at different depths, but I don't know if other factors are involved. On the other hand, it may have something to do with the soil.]
I think back to the open area where we saw the Brontobeasts and how there weren't any trees growing in that area. Instead of heading into this section of the forest, we walk along its edge with the smaller trees on our right. Along the way, I notice several other trees in this grove.
The bark on the trunks of the trees near the delineation looks similar to that of the maple, oak, and beech trees from my world. I also notice how small some of the leaves are in contrast to those of the mammoth tree. In fact, most branches lead to leaflets instead of full-sized leaves. I allow my imagination to wander about the vegetation as we continue on our way. My concentration breaks when I notice some sudden movement from the corner of my eye. I turn my head around and see that Woohee has vanished.
"Something's coming. Put your guard up." I speak softly so as not to draw attention to ourselves. I don't know why Woohee suddenly abandoned us, but we can sort that out later. All that matters is that we survive this encounter. I hear the sound of branches snapping from our left. Josh positions himself in the front and Sakura behind me. The noise grows closer until we see a small group of people walk out of the undergrowth.
"I thought I heard something over here." A small girl in an expensive-looking yellow robe walks into view. I believe I've seen her in our class before, but I don't know her name. She's probably the daughter of some noble, but she couldn't be older than twelve or thirteen years old. "I didn't think I'd find a couple of kids out here."
She crosses her arms triumphantly as if she had just won an argument.
"You're a kid too." I counter. It's very strange having a child call out a child for being a child, so I decide to have some fun with it.
[Kids always want to grow up quickly, so I'll use that against her. This should be fun.]
"I don't want to hear that from someone younger than me," she declares.
"But, you're still a kid, though." Josh comes out of nowhere with the assist. I ignore the mild frustration in the pit of my stomach as I think of all the other times he's dropped the ball in situations like this.
"He's right." I pour a little more fuel on the fire.
"You're the kids! Look how young you are!" Her voice goes up and down several octaves as she retorts.
"We can all be kids. Although, the fact that you are so concerned with the age of those around you betrays your maturity." I smirk as I see her grit her teeth.
"Who do you think you're talking to?"
"How are we supposed to know? You haven't given us your name." Sakura comes in with an unexpected hook.
[Man, we're really in sync today.]
"It's improper for a noble to give their name before a peasant." She raises her nose at us. I look behind her and see her companions with very defeated expressions on their faces. Maybe she pushed them into this, or maybe they're her guards. Either way, they're just as sick of her antics as we are.
"So are you going to ask us for our names?" I realize I'm just being a dick at this point, but I can't resist.