"It's hard to say," Daniel replied in a calm tone, though he was torn apart by pain inside.
Serafina frowned.
"This information is vital for both of us. There's no reason to hide it."
"Indeed, there isn't," Daniel responded indifferently.
Serafina crossed her arms over her chest and looked at him sternly.
"I cannot be absolutely certain about the reason you are withholding most of the information from me. Perhaps it's somehow related to your condition..." Serafina carefully looked at Daniel's face, which didn't react at all. No unsettling movements were observed in his body either.
While Daniel himself was struggling to nod, twitch, or somehow affirm her words, his condition simply wouldn't allow him to. Even the intention to give the girl a hint was perceived by the system as a disclosure of a secret.
Serafina sighed.
"Or perhaps, you are consciously avoiding sharing information with me after what I said. If so, it may hinder our cooperation. Between us, there should be no room for hidden discord or unsaid things. To ensure the absence of misunderstandings and lay the foundation for open dialogue, I am willing to take the first step and name my fetish," Serafina looked piercingly at Daniel.
"You are free to do whatever you wish," Daniel calmly said.
"Very well. My fetish is formicophilia. According to the status, devotees of this fetish derive pleasure when insects or other small creatures crawl on their bodies. Therefore, as far as I understand, you need to place some insects on my body to activate my fetish," Serafina confidently stated.
"With your condition, this fetish doesn't seem that frightening."
Serafina darkened.
"Physically, this fetish doesn't affect me. However, let's just say - their presence, to put it mildly, does not please me, and I would prefer to do without it."
"Understood," Daniel said indifferently.
"As I see it, you are not willing to talk about your fetish."
"Probably so," he responded dryly.
The girl sighed heavily, lightly massaged her eyebrows, and continued:
"This puts both of us in a difficult position. Nevertheless, I'll write it off as something related to your condition, which prevents you from sharing important information. If that's the case, I'm afraid there's nothing I can do to help. We don't have time to try to figure out your fetish. Judging by my fetish, it could be anything. Trying to understand your fetish is like trying to find a needle in a haystack – there's no chance. I'm sorry, but I fear that due to your condition, you won't last long."
A tense silence hung over the Safe Zone of the Forsaken Traveler.
"I understand. In that case, we need to move on. Who knows what else could happen."
Serafina nodded.
"You're right. The chances of surviving on this island at night are close to zero, so we need to leave this place as soon as possible before it gets dark."
A wave of tension washed over Daniel. He recalled with horror the previous night he'd experienced, the creature whose steps he'd heard, monsters everywhere. He definitely had no desire to go through that again.
"Before meeting you, I planned to go straight to the shore."
Serafina shook her head.
"That's the worst of the three possible options."
"Three? I thought we only had one option. The Map of Revelations," The map suddenly appeared in Daniel's hands.
Serafina raised her brow in surprise but refrained from asking about where he'd gotten such a valuable item. Her gaze was drawn to two crosses on the map. One in a volcanic cave, the other in the center of a field. She could only guess at their meaning, but suspected they were something valuable.
'So he ended up at the top of the volcano... How did he survive... Hm, inside the volcano, there's another Safe Zone,' Serafina carefully examined the map. She was curious to know about Daniel's path, and this map was the only way to get any information about him since the boy himself revealed nothing.
Though most of the map was darkened, small white contours were visible. These white lines indicated how far the shore was. Daniel pointed to them and traced a path to the shore.
"This is the shortest route. What other three options are you talking about? A detour to the right will be very difficult for us since there are many trees, which is advantageous for primates. To the left, visibility is poor due to dense foliage."
"Where did you..." Serafina's eyes widened, but then she frowned, "Never mind. You're right. But only regarding the landscape. In all other aspects, you're wrong. I've studied this area well, and besides the landscape, the main threat here is the monsters, and the most dangerous ones are ahead..."
With a confident and decisive tone, Serafina began to explain. First, she emphasized that each type of monster strictly controls its territories, tirelessly guarding them. Specifically, to the north lies a region guarded by the Tuskgaroths.
Tuskgaroths are "Monstrosity" rank creatures. They are powerful humanoid beings with boar heads and thick, rigid fur covering their broad bodies. They are armed with massive two-handed axes that can cleave even the strongest material. Their "charge" skill allows them to accelerate instantly, catching even the swiftest enemies. Somewhere there is a camp of these monsters. Serafina could not determine their exact number. But it can be said with confidence that there is a whole horde of them there. They roam the territory in groups of three. That's all the information Serafina managed to find out about them.
Next, Serafina moved on to describing the territory of the primates, occupying the entire eastern region and the adjacent areas of the volcano. The main thing that caught their attention was their staggering number — clearly more than the Tuskgaroths. They usually move in groups of no less than five individuals, but their danger is not limited to their numbers. Knowledge of the landscape and the ability to use a large number of trees makes them a threat not to be trifled with. Most of them have the rank of 'Threat', but Serafina also noticed among them more powerful individuals with the rank of 'Dread'. She even encountered a monster with the rank of 'Monstrosity', who seemed to command the other primates, resembling a general in their ranks. These creatures, known as 'Mountain Orangutans', are significantly larger than their brethren and appear much more dangerous.
Daniel couldn't understand how Serafina managed to find all this out so calmly and stay alive. Of course, by his face, Serafina couldn't read that Daniel was interested in this, but it was not difficult to guess.
"My skill is scanning. It's an active skill that allows me to scan everything within a one-kilometer radius of me."
"You didn't have to tell me that. Who knows if I'll be able to tell you about my skill."
"There was no need to reveal this information to you, but I did it to avoid unnecessary questions about my knowledge of enemy positions or unexpected route changes in the future. Even by sharing information about my skill, I have lost nothing. You gained no advantage over me, as, of course, I deliberately concealed certain details," Serafina pronounced, folding her arms and haughtily tilting her head.
"Clear. Well, it's quite a useful skill."
'Unlike mine! Which hasn't even shown signs of life all this time! I've killed seven damn monsters and still nothing! Okay, I just need patience... Sooner or later, the skill has to trigger...`
"I hope your skill will be of some use too." The girl said in the same confident and haughty tone, piercing Daniel with her cold gaze.
Daniel mentally rolled his eyes.
"So, judging by your words, the only path left for us is to the west."
"Exactly. And that's exactly where the body of water I mentioned before is located. However, things aren't that simple here either. Perhaps you noticed the rather conspicuous wound that was left on my side. It was inflicted not by monsters from the east or the north, but by a monster from the west."
Serafina's face darkened... Daniel also tensed slightly, recalling the heavy, horrible wound on her side. He couldn't even imagine what kind of monster could leave it, considering the skill Serafina had. Did she not have time to use it, or did she become too relaxed?
"As you mentioned earlier, this territory is indeed filled with a fairly large amount of vegetation, and this is the main problem."
Serafina finally began a detailed description of the monsters inhabiting the western territory. The western territory. It is occupied by "Defiled Plants." Compared to primates and Tuskgaroths, there are far fewer of them, and most of the monsters belong to the ranks of "Threat" and "Filth." There are only a few of the rank "Dread."
The main danger of these creatures lies in their unpredictability. Since, as Daniel noted, the territory is covered with dense vegetation, this complicates the detection of monsters — any plant may turn out to be a monster.
"The monster that wounded me belongs to the rank of 'Dread.' Its intellect is quite high, and it can move quickly. All this time, while I was exploring the territory, it stalked me, and even with my skill, I couldn't detect it. Its ability to camouflage among plants stems from awareness of its environment, allowing it to blend seamlessly with nature and become invisible to the eye. Its name is 'Camouflage Hunter,' and as can be understood from the name, the monster is capable of taking on the form of the plants around it. However, the main danger lies in its sharp, long spike, buried underground and covered with poison. This poison causes excruciating pain, capable of driving an ordinary person mad, and also slowly begins to poison the body. Thanks to my condition, I was able to survive despite the severe wound, although even considering this factor, the poison could eventually kill me," said Serafina, directing a gaze at Daniel as piercing as an icy spear.
"I don't know what you did, but thanks to your actions, the poisoning effect disappeared, and the bleeding slowed. Therefore, this monster may be less dangerous for you than for me. Because of my condition, I might not even notice if I'm attacked."
"So is this the reason you consider this path the best of the three options?" asked Daniel.
"I did not claim that. It's just an additional factor. The main reasons were listed earlier. Among all possible paths, the likelihood of death here is lower than in other places. That's all," Serafina concluded.
"I see. Sounds pretty convincing. In that case, I suggest we move on, as staying here is not a very sensible idea," Daniel said indifferently, rising from the ground and stretching slightly. Serafina nodded.
"That's the right decision. If we stay here, it will only increase the likelihood of our death."
However, Daniel's situation was more desperate than one could imagine. His desire had increased to 76%. He couldn't tell the girl about his fetish; he couldn't even hint at what kind of fetish he had. Even if they somehow manage to survive and get through the 'Defiled Plants,' his desire will not decrease at all.
All Daniel could hope for in this case was a miracle. A miracle that perhaps Serafina might somehow accidentally discover his fetish, or possibly that he would find some magical item that could block his condition, and then he would be able to share his fetish. This was all Daniel could hope for. His chances of surviving on this island were now minimal, but he preferred to move on. After all, moving forward and trying to do something was much better than staying here and waiting for his fate...