Village Chief's room.
"You son of a bitch," Ian cursed Jacky as he punched him brutally.
Punch
"Ahhhh, Listen to me... Ian." The chief wanted to speak something, but Ian interrupted him immediately by giving him another powerful swing.
"No, you are a selfish bastard," Ian shouted.
Punch
"I-Ian... Please, Stop. You don't want to do this," the chief spoke as blood started flowing out of his nostrils.
Ian finally stopped and sat down beside him.
"Oh, darn... My nose is bleeding," the chief spoke as he tried to stop the bleeding with his handkerchief.
"Yeah, and that's how it should be, you idiot. You didn't let me go in for my son, but you let all those parents go for their children. Have you lost it?" Ian spoke.
"Yes, say whatever you want, but I stopped it from being a bloodbath here," the chief replied.
"Yeah, you did, Mr. Hero. Now that bloodbath will happen inside the forest. Those parents can die in that forest, you know that, right?" Anon asked.
"I do, but what can I do about it? If I wouldn't have allowed it... They would've used the way you used to go into that forest, and I can't keep a mother away from her children," Jacky spoke.
"Jacky, I don't think you understand... What if their children survived somehow in this competition, but when they come out of the forest and you tell them that their children are dead... Can you imagine what their reactions would be?" Ian spoke.
"I-I can't do anything about it... They would've killed each other anyway if I wouldn't have allowed them to go inside the forest.
I am sorry, Ian," Jacky apologized.
"No worries, friend. Save it for the kids who will find out that their parents died because of you," Ian spoke as he stood up and moved toward the exit of the room.
"W-Wait... Please Ian. You can't do this to me. Please stop, don't leave me like this," the chief immediately spoke as he stood up and grabbed Ian's hand.
"Leave me, you piece of shit," Ian spoke as he swung his hand forcefully to remove Jacky's hand.
"I-Ian... Listen... Listen. Please don't go. Y-You can hit me more if you want to, but please don't leave me. Please stay. I want your help; you are my only friend here," Jacky spoke as he started crying in front of Ian.
"Friend, huh...? Can you tell me where my house is in the city?" Ian asked.
"Y-Yes... Why not? I-It's on the eighteenth block, right?" Jacky spoke with a confused expression.
"Go to hell," Ian said as he started walking out of the room.
"Wait... Ian, please. I-I will pay your loan. All of it," the chief spoke.
Ian immediately stopped and looked back.
"What do you want from me?" Ian asked.
"Yes... Please come back in and let's talk," Jacky said as he closed the door and wiped his sweat with his handkerchief.
Inside the Evensong Forest...
Anon is still searching for Ven.
"Ven... Are you here?"
"Ven, can you listen to my voice?"
Both Fen and Anon are calling her name inside the forest; they are currently in an unknown area, and this area is filled with long trees from every side.
"VENNNNNNNNNNN.... Please come out Sob-Sob" Fen falls down on her knees as she started crying again.
"Hey, Hey, Hey... What happened? Keep yourself calm. We will find her; don't worry," Anon said as he tapped on her shoulder.
Woooooooof
Suddenly, Gin barked very loudly as he started running again.
"He found her," Anon said as he smiled.
"What? Really? Are you telling the truth?" Fen asked as she looked at Anon.
"Yes, let's go," Anon said as he stood up and started running behind Gin.
As they were running behind Gin... Anon noticed that something wasn't right.
'Well, this is odd. I haven't seen a single animal since I entered this area. It's as if everything living here just vanished... Only trees and leaves are here, nothing else.
What is it that I am missing? Is this a sign of some kind of danger?' Anon wondered as he continued to run.
After running behind Gin for 10 minutes, they reached an empty place.
There was nothing there except a big large tree that had sparkling leaves of different colors.
The tree looked mesmerizing; it had the glow and smell of heaven, but to Anon, it looked like a fancy trap.
Gin suddenly stopped barking and started hiding behind Anon's legs.
'He is afraid? Why? There is no one here?'
"W-Where is she? Where is Ven, Jule? You said he found her," Fen asked with a very confused expression.
"Gin, why are you scared, my boy? What is it that's making you afraid?" Anon asked as he patted Gin's head.
Gin didn't respond and started whining as he transformed back into his puppy form and hid in his pocket.
Zzzz
Suddenly Anon heard a sound and immediately turned toward Fen.
"Fen, are you alrig..." But as soon as he turned around, he noticed that Fen is also missing.
"What the heck?" Anon spoke as his eyes opened wide in surprise.
"FENNNNNNNNNN..." Anon shouted immediately.
"Juuuuule..." Her voice came in a surrounding echo.
"Where are you?" Anon shouted.
"I am at-"
Suddenly her voice got silent.
'How? I didn't sense anything? Who the heck is it? No, What the heck is it?' Anon wondered as he swiftly scanned the area.
"Gin... Use your sound and tell me where is it, I command you as your master," Anon ordered as his anger shot up to the top level.
Woof Gin barked slowly and didn't come out.
"Gin, I COMMAND YOU," Anon shouted loudly.
Wooof
Gin jumped out of Anon's pocket and used his skill.
Woooooof
Gin suddenly started running toward the big sparkling tree.
He stopped near the tree and started barking at it.
Woof Woof Woof
"What are barking at ? I can see that-" suddenly Anon stopped talking as he saw a horrific view.
"Gin, why are you barking at the..." Anon spoke as he walked over to Gin's position and looked at the tree's other side.
As soon as he looked at the tree, he felt a shock in his body.
The tree was holding Fen and Ven tightly using its roots on its trunk with some other students.
"What the heck is this?" Anon asked as he looked at the tree.
Fen looked at Anon with wide eyes and couldn't speak; a root tightly held her mouth.
"Fen, don't worry. I will-"
Stash
Suddenly, a root grabbed Anon's body from behind and lifted him up.
"You darn piece of..." Anon grabbed the root and started applying pressure, but the more he tried to remove the root from his body, the more it pressed against him.
"Heck... Leave me, you!" Anon shouted as he summoned his sickle and cut through the roots.
Thud
He fell to the ground immediately.
Anon's skin around his torso was torn apart because he couldn't heal while still in the air.
As soon as he landed on the ground, his wounds immediately healed.
"Okay, okay... Let's play," Anon said as he summoned his other sickle as well.
'Let's see what you are...' Anon said as he looked at the tree and used his skill.
[Class: Unknown]
[Race: Prampel Tree]
[Level: 500]
[Description: The Prampel Tree is a terrifying entity that resides deep within the heart of the ominous Evensong Forest. Towering over the surrounding flora, its grotesque appearance is shrouded in darkness, a stark contrast to the serenity of the natural world. This malevolent tree exhibits a sinister adaptation for its survival, as it thrives by absorbing the life essence of living beings.
Its presence is eerily alluring, particularly in the pitch-black depths of the forest. The Prampel Tree possesses an innate ability to emit an otherworldly, enchanting glow, beckoning curious creatures and lost wanderers toward its deceptive radiance. Unsuspecting victims who draw near, captivated by its ethereal luminescence, soon find themselves ensnared in a web of doom.
The true horror of the Prampel Tree becomes apparent when it deploys its deadly roots. These serpentine tendrils, concealed within the tree's gnarled bark, lash out with predatory precision to ensnare its prey. Once ensnared, there is no escape, and the malevolent tree begins its cruel and insidious feast.
The Prampel Tree gradually drains the life force from its victims, a process both agonizing and inexorable. As it siphons away their vitality, its victims wither and weaken, helpless in the face of their impending demise. Their desperate struggles against their arboreal captor are in vain, as the Prampel Tree slowly drains them of every ounce of life, leaving behind only lifeless husks.
Any type of resistance is futile once trapped in its roots... If you use mana, it will suck it out immediately and use it against you.]
[Threat Type: C+]
"Okay, you are a little dangerous but not that dangerous. I have killed a fish that had four legs, so you should be easy because trees can't move, right?" Anon said as he started running towards the tree with his sickles.
Suddenly, four root whips emerged from the ground and grabbed Anon's legs.
"Heck..." Anon said as the roots threw him away.
Thud
He hit the tree and fell down.
"You darn-"
Titch
Before Anon could've said the word, the tree whipped Anon's face with its roots, injuring his face. However, it healed immediately with the Troll locket.
Anon stood up slowly and smiled.
"Okay... It's experiment time," Anon said as he de-summoned his sickles and used a spell.
A javelin appeared in his hands, crackling with blue and golden light.
"Take this..." Anon shouted as he threw the javelin at the tree, but before the javelin could've reached the tree, one of its roots came in between and absorbed the javelin immediately as if absorbing water.
"Uh huh... Let's try another one," Anon said as he used another spell.
Another javelin appeared in his hands, but this time the glow of the javelin was much stronger.
'This thing can turn King Arthur into dust... Let's see what this can do to you,' Anon thought as he threw the spear towards the tree.
This time, four roots came in between and absorbed the javelin without any delay.
"Okay... You, take this!" Anon shouted.
He used all of his mana in this attack because he knew he could get more mana from Link at any moment now.
Crackle
This time, the spear that formed in his hands was shining bright blue with a few hues of golden light.
Zzzzz
He threw the spear towards the Prampel Tree with all his strength.
This time, more roots came in between and tried to stop the spear. However, it was different this time; the spear tore through the roots into pieces and pierced through them easily.
It reached the tree's main body this time... But as soon as it touched the tree's main body, it dissolved.
"Heck..." Anon shouted in anger as he looked at the tree.
'Link, I need mana...' Anon ordered.
[Yes, master.]
Link immediately followed his orders and filled his mana tank to full.
[Master, I don't think this tree will die that easily because it can absorb mana... You have to fight it without using mana.] Link advised.
"Link, don't talk stupid. I can't do that. This tree is stronger than me in every aspect. You think I can beat it without mana?" Anon spoke.
[Master, another way is to use me because I can absorb mana too.] Link spoke up.
"Yeah, that's a good idea. Come out here right now," Anon ordered.
[Yes, master.] Link immediately followed his orders and started materializing.
Anon continued to strike the tree with Thunder Javelins as Link materialized.
Anon's mana got depleted again, and he stopped attacking.
Suddenly, the tree stopped moving as well.
"Why did it stop?" Anon asked with a confused expression.
Village Chief's Room...
"Excuse me? Can you repeat what you just said?" Ian asked Jacky with a very angry expression.
"Ian, my friend, listen, this is not a bad deal. I will give back every single penny from your loan, and all you have to do is tell your son to save all the parents and children inside that forest, or at least as many as he can save. Please, Ian, I'll lose my position if I let them die... I can't take that. If I lost my position, someone else will take my place, and you don't know what bastard takes it, right? He can be even worse than me. So please help me. Your son is the most powerful contestant in that forest; I saw it with my own eyes. Your son tore apart over 50 hellhounds in less than one hour. Please-"
"Wait, wait, wait... He did what?" Ian asked, interrupting Jacky.
"H-He killed 50 hellhounds?" Jacky spoke.
"Are you sure? We are talking about Jule, right?" Ian asked.
"Do you have any other son as well?" Jacky asked.
"Don't play games with me, Jacky. Just tell me. Did you see him kill the hellhounds?" Ian asked.
"Yes, obviously."
"So why didn't you show it on the screen?" Ian asked.
"Listen, you see... Y-Your child... He is a very talented Elf. He can easily become a knight commander's right hand at this age; he has a very bright future ahead of him, and I can't reveal that to everyone, can I? If everyone saw this diamond, they won't sit still. Everyone would want to take him as a student. He will receive a lot of attention." Jacky explained.
"Okay, so what's wrong with it?" Ian asked with a confused expression.
"Ian, how can you be so naive? Those who receive too much attention are the first ones that get killed. So, do you want your son, or do you want your dead son?" Jacky asked.
"Ah, yes. Well, thank you for that, but I don't think he can save that many people." Ian replied.
"Oh, he can. I'm not forcing him to save everyone; I'm just saying save as many as he can. I will call off the event and declare your son as the winner. You win, I win. It's a win-win deal, right? Please say yes, Ian. This is the only way to do this thing. And, if your son saved them, he will become the village hero. He will be loved by everyone. I will personally award him with a B-grade artifact... What else do you need? Just tell me, but please, Ian, save those villagers, please. I beg of you." Jacky spoke with big hopeful eyes as he grabbed Ian's hands tightly.
"Ah, I can't say. How do I contact him?" Ian asked.
"Oh come on, Ian, don't play with me now. I saw you when you met your son inside the forest; you gave him a secret crystal ball to contact you if any emergency comes, right?" Jacky spoke, smiling at Ian.
"You saw that, huh...?" Ian asked as he looked at Jacky.
"Well, I have to keep an eye on a villager who escapes into the jungle to save his son, who is already safe," Jacky replied.
"Okay, I accept the deal, but with one change." Ian spoke as he took out the crystal ball.
"Anything, just speak up," Jacky spoke with a smile.
"I want you to pay his and my daughter's academy fees for the full course too," Ian spoke.
"Huh...? Yeah, okay. I-I will do that, although it will cost me some of my hard-earned money, but it's worth it. Let's do this. Now contact him and tell him to help the villagers," Jacky spoke with a hesitated expression.
'What a foolish man. I have so much money that I can pay this amount four times over, and I will still only lose about 50% of my total worth. Hahaha...' Jacky thought as a smile appeared on his face.
"Okay," Ian replied as he started supplying mana to the crystal ball.
Suddenly, the ball started shining.
Evensong Forest...
Suddenly the tree stopped attacking Anon, and Anon stopped attacking the tree because his mana was now depleted.
"What's happening, Link?" Anon asked Link.
Link, who was standing beside Anon, was observing the tree carefully.
"Master, please get behind me. I don't have a good feeling about this," Link spoke.
"Why? What is happening?" Anon asked.
Suddenly, a leaf stopped shining and fell from the tree.
Zzzzzzzzzzz
Its roots started shining golden and blue, just like Anon's Thunder Javelin.
"Master, behind me. It's going to attack," Link spoke.
Anon immediately hid behind Link.
Suddenly, more tree roots started popping out of the ground and surrounded them as they started throwing Thunder Javelins at Link and Anon with double speed from all sides.
[Your pet Link has used a defensive skill]
"What the heck? You can absorb them too?" Anon asked with a surprised expression.
"I can, master. But unlike the tree, I am not that good at absorbing. Look at the top of the dome; it's already starting to crack," Link informed.
Anon immediately looked up and observed that the dome was really starting to break.
"Ah, darn it. What do we do after this breaks?" Anon asked.
"Master... Grab my tail. I will recover your mana to full," Link instructed.
Anon grabbed Link's tail.
Suddenly, his mana started filling up.
In just a few seconds, his mana was full.
'Heck... My head is hurting due to the sudden mana influxes.' Anon thought as he grabbed his head.
"Master, the attacks are getting heavier. This tree is using its saved-up mana and the life force that it sucked from its victims."
"...and that's just the power of one leaf." Anon spoke as he started thinking about what to do.
Zzzzz
Suddenly, he felt the crystal ball vibrating in his inventory.
"Why the heck is he contacting me now? I don't have time, darn it." Anon spoke in a very angry tone as he decided to ignore the crystal ball.
Anon and Link have been hiding inside Link's protection dome for 10 minutes now, but the Prampel tree is still attacking them without any breaks.
"Master, we have to run away. This monster is too strong for us to handle. It's not his first time fighting someone; he knows how to fight. We can't use mana to fight it. You can easily come back once you become more powerful, but if you try to fight him today, I don't think any good results will come out. Death can be one of the results," Link explained.
'This is the first monster that I couldn't defeat since I got reincarnated into this world. I knew that this was bound to happen at some point but so soon? Link is right; that tree has so many glowing leaves, and if only one leaf can do this... I highly doubt I can give it a scratch,' Anon thought as he looked at the tree.
"Master... The dome will break shortly, do you have any plan?" Link asked.
"I do have a plan. Link, just hold the dome for some more time," Anon said as he used his skill.
"Yes, master," Link replied.
[How many skills do you want to combine?] A screen popped up in front of Anon.
'Two,' Anon thought inside his mind.
[Choose Skill 1]
'Echo,' Anon replied.
[Choose Skill 2] The system asked again.
'Light,' Anon replied.
[Combining skills...]
[Combination Successfully completed]
[Distractive Flash] [B+]
[This skill is used to distract a monster. When used, this skill creates a flash and noises at a selected destination in a 200-meter radius.]
"Good... Let's see if this can work on that thing," Anon said as he looked around and found the perfect place to distract the tree's attention.
"Link, when I order... You will remove this dome, do you understand?" Anon asked.
"Master, I don't think it can last that long. You have to order fast," Link spoke as he constantly repaired the dome.
Anon used the skill and projected a distraction at the exact opposite side of the tree that he was standing on.
Pop-pop-pop
Suddenly, popping sounds started coming out of the bushes with light flashes.
The tree immediately stopped attacking Anon and retracted his roots to attack the distraction that Anon had created.
"Remove it," Anon ordered.
"Yes," Link replied as he removed the dome.
Anon immediately started running towards the tree with his full speed.
He continuously changed the position of the distraction to keep the tree busy, so he could save Ven and Fen.
Anon summoned his sickle and cut through the roots that were holding Fen and Ven tightly.
As the tree was busy chasing the distraction like a dog, it paid no attention to Anon's actions.
As both of them were unconscious, Anon securely picked both the sisters on his shoulders and started walking away silently.
"H-Help-" suddenly a sound came from the tree.
"Hmm...?" Anon looked back and noticed another person trapped on the tree.
"Sorry, mate, I would've saved you, but I only save my own toys. I will save you some other day, if you survive. Until then, have a good day," Anon replied as he started walking away.
Suddenly the tree realized that something was wrong, and it stopped chasing the distraction.
'Ah, darn it...' Anon thought as he saw the tree retrieving his roots once again.
"Link... Do something," Anon shouted.
The tree's roots immediately started crawling towards Anon with full speed.
"Master, I will hold them. You run away," Link said as he used some spell, but it didn't work because the tree has realized that two of his preys have escaped from his grip.
The roots continued to chase Anon as he ran with his full power.
'If it hadn't been for these two... I would've used Phoenix Ignition already.'
As the roots were about to reach Anon, Gin jumped in front of them and sacrificed himself.
Woooooooooof
The roots grabbed Gin and trapped him inside the main body of the tree, but this bought time for Anon to run away safely.
"I will never forget your sacrifice, man," Anon said as he continued to run.
'I can make another Gin, but I can't make these two girls... Oh wait, I can make them too with the cloning spell, but the feelings part will be impossible to get. Gin, my boy, I will try to take as much fun as possible from these two. Don't you worry,' Anon thought as he continued to run away.
Link transformed back to his tattoo form, and Anon finally escaped Prampel tree's territory.
"Fuck.. FUCKKKKKK...." Anon shouted loudly, so loud that his voice echoed all over the forest.
Putting down both of the sisters, Anon sat down beside them and started thinking about what just happened.
'I need Physical Training. I need to train my body without using any mana. The first thing I am going to do after escaping this forest is going to strengthen my body. I can pick up over 25 Quintals of weight using mana, but how much can I pick without using mana?' Anon thought as he noticed a rock in front of him.
He stood up and tried to lift the stone without using any mana.
"Hiyaaaaaaa...." Anon shouted as he couldn't pick up the stone without using any mana.
'Just a weak piece of junk... Now I understand what the demon gods meant when they told me to strengthen myself for the candidate that the gods have sent. They didn't want me to strengthen myself by leveling up or learning new spells; they wanted me to strengthen myself physically,' Anon thought as he sat back down.
Suddenly he felt the communication crystal ball vibrating again.
"What does this guy want?" Anon spoke as he took out the crystal ball and injected his mana into it.
"Jule, can you hear me?" Ian spoke up from the other side.
"Yes, motherfucker- i mean mother and father, i can hear you." Anon replied.
"What ? But your mother isn't here ?"
"Why ? Where is she ?" Anon asked.
"That's not important, i want to talk to you about something else." Ian said.