Chapter 323 – You Can Do It. (2)
Alfoi turned away from Queen Grex, who seemed to have made space as if inviting him closer.
Then, facing the empty space behind him, he whispered desperately.
“Wh-what should I do? What do I do now?!”
“Get closer.”
“What do you mean, closer? What am I supposed to do when I get there?”
“Lure it here. Just cast a couple of spells, something flashy. It’ll follow you like it’s hypnotized by the magic.”
“Ugh… fine.”
After taking a deep breath, Alfoi cautiously stepped forward. The Grexes only squirmed but showed no hostility toward him.
Watching Alfoi slowly approach Queen Grex, Belinda asked in disbelief.
“What… what is he doing? Why is he acting like that? The Grexes attacked us the moment they saw us, didn’t they? And Alfoi was with us too, wasn’t he?”
On their way here, they had fought off every Grex they encountered. The Grexes hadn’t shown Alfoi any special treatment either.
The only difference here was that Queen Grex was present.
[When a reconnaissance team was wiped out, a fairly skilled mage survived alone and wandered through the forest. By chance, he came across Queen Grex. Although surrounded by hundreds of Grexes and on the brink of death, he somehow managed to survive thanks to the queen.]
Ghislain nodded as he replied, “Queen Grex is showing interest in Alfoi right now.”
Belinda’s eyes widened in surprise.
“C-could it be… is that monster into Alfoi? Like, trying to make him her husband?”
“…That’s not it.”
[According to the mage, it was thanks to Queen Grex that he was able to return alive. Queen Grex was more intelligent than the other Grexes, possessing an unusual curiosity and a tendency to closely observe anything new. The surviving mage confirmed this behavior after encountering the queen.]
Ghislain, still watching Alfoi’s careful movements, explained,
“That thing seems particularly interested in mages.”
“Mages?”
“Yeah. For some reason, it can sense magical energy. That’s why we sent Alfoi instead of anyone else.”
[We believed Queen Grex was friendly toward humans, so we sent forces to investigate with the surviving mage as a guide. But we were mistaken.]
Belinda tilted her head, puzzled.
“Then can’t we just stick close to Alfoi? As long as we have a mage, it should work, right?”
“No. There’s a limit to what that thing allows, and it doesn’t accept just anyone.”
[One person. Queen Grex only displayed a sense of curiosity and comfort toward a single individual. If there were more than one person, she immediately became hostile. Furthermore, even with just one person, she showed interest only if that individual was a mage. This led us to believe Queen Grex had a unique ability to detect magical energy.]
Though skeptical, the group had no choice but to trust the situation unfolding before their eyes. Everything was going exactly as Ghislain had described.
Belinda, however, was dying of curiosity. So were the others.
‘How does the Young Lord know all this? He’s never been to this forest alone before, has he?’
If he had entered the forest alone as a child, he wouldn’t have survived, and his body would’ve disappeared without a trace. Back then, Ghislain lacked the authority or skill to even approach the forest.
And yet, when it came to the forest, Ghislain behaved as though…
‘It’s like he’s been here before.’
Although Ghislain had pulled off other extraordinary feats, nothing felt as bizarre as when he led the group through the Forest of Beasts. Every move he made seemed as if he were following a detailed record.
A woman’s intuition can be eerily accurate at times. Deep inside, Belinda revived a suspicion she had buried away.
‘It’s not like he’s possessed by a dark mage… Besides, he’s still our adorable Young Lord most of the time.’
Still, she felt as though some other presence resided within him, feeding Ghislain information.
‘Just let me catch you once. I’ll put so many holes in you that you won’t know what hit you.’
Her resolution didn’t consider the fact that Ghislain would die if she followed through with her plan.
Unlike the still-skeptical Belinda, the others dismissed the oddity. They had experienced so many strange things with Ghislain that they couldn’t be bothered to question every little thing anymore.
As the rest of the group got lost in their thoughts, Alfoi cautiously inched closer to Queen Grex.
The surrounding Grexes simply stared at him, showing no signs of hostility.
“Ugh…”
When he got close enough to Queen Grex, Alfoi hesitated and stopped. He couldn’t summon the courage to go any further.
“Chirrrrrr…”
Queen Grex tilted her head slightly, her multiple eyes gleaming as she scrutinized Alfoi from all angles.
She bobbed her head a few times, almost as if sniffing him. Just watching the saliva dripping from her mouth made Alfoi’s legs feel weak.
After observing him for a long while, Queen Grex let out a low, displeased cry.
“Grrrkkk…”
At that sound, the other Grexes began to shift, their movements gradually growing more aggressive. They raised their claws and started inching closer to Alfoi.
‘Th-these bastards?’
When one’s life is on the line, instincts sharpen to extraordinary levels.
Alfoi immediately sensed that Queen Grex’s interest in him was waning.
“Eeeeeeeek!”
As the Queen Grex let out a piercing screech and the Grexes started advancing, a small flame flickered into existence in Alfoi’s hand.
“L-look at this! It’s fire! Fire!”
“Eek?”
Queen Grex recoiled as if startled, stepping back. In response, the Grexes also stopped moving.
“Amazing, isn’t it? Watch this, it can even move like this.”
Alfoi moved the flame around with all his might.
His control over the mana was so precise that even a 7th-circle Archmage would have been impressed. Such precision could only come from someone gambling their very life.
“Eeeeeek!”
Queen Grex twisted her body as if she found it truly fascinating.
‘It’s working. It’s really working.’
Gaining a bit of confidence, Alfoi manipulated the flame as he slowly backed away.
Queen Grex, completely captivated by the moving flame, began to follow him.
Sweating profusely but maintaining focus, Alfoi thought to himself, ‘Just keep going like this.’
If he could just make it back to where Ghislain was, everything would be resolved.
Trembling as he carefully moved, Queen Grex suddenly stopped in her tracks.
“Eeeeeek!”
Alfoi understood what she meant this time too. It was as if she were saying, “Got anything else?” His life hanging by a thread, Alfoi had become fluent in deciphering her cries.
‘You damn monster. You’re so picky, aren’t you?’
In the end, Alfoi extinguished the flame and unveiled his ultimate trick.
“L-look at this.”
Picking up four small stones from the ground, Alfoi opened his hand and showed them to Queen Grex.
“…?”
Queen Grex tilted her head curiously.
With her gaze fixed on his hand, Alfoi flipped his palm over and performed the odd-or-even trick with magic.
Swoosh.
Only the back of his hand was visible, and Queen Grex couldn’t see that one of the stones had disappeared.
When Alfoi slowly turned his hand back over, there were only three stones left.
“Eeeeeeeek!”
Queen Grex let out an ear-piercing screech that sounded like she was gasping in amazement. It was as if she were exclaiming, “That’s incredible!”
As a monster, there was no way she could grasp such a high-level sleight of hand.
Alfoi continued to perform simple tricks to keep her entertained, luring her further away.
With every backward step he took, Queen Grex followed. The other Grexes simply sat where they were, watching quietly.
Kaor, watching this unfold, muttered under his breath.
“This is ridiculous.”
Everything was going exactly as Ghislain had planned. Whether it was Ghislain’s brilliance for predicting Alfoi’s success as a bait or Alfoi’s unexpected competence, Kaor couldn’t decide which was more astonishing.
‘That guy’s really hiding something, isn’t he?’
Known as the “Man Who Defeated a God”, Alfoi’s nickname suddenly felt less like a joke to Kaor. Watching Alfoi in action made him nervous, bringing back memories of the airship crash incident. Shaking his head furiously, Kaor tried to dismiss the thought.
The others were equally tense, holding their breath as they watched Alfoi. Their palms were damp with sweat.
‘Please! Please!’
‘You can do it, Alfoi!’
‘You’re the Man Who Defeated a God!’
If Queen Grex decided to swing her claws, Alfoi, busy hiding stones, would be shredded instantly.
“Eeeeeek!”
Every time Queen Grex let out a cry, Alfoi flinched. Yet, he kept luring her slowly but steadily. Surprisingly, his mental fortitude held strong.
In this suffocating situation, Alfoi finally succeeded in leading Queen Grex to where Ghislain and the others were hiding.
Although there was still some distance between them, it was close enough for Ghislain and the group to spring into action.
And that was the end of Alfoi’s repertoire.
“Eeeeeek!”
“Wh-what should I do now?”
Alfoi’s mind went blank. He had shown everything he could, short of taking off his clothes.
As Alfoi panicked, Queen Grex let out another cry.
“Eeeeeek!”
At the same time, the Grexes raised their claws and began advancing on Alfoi.
Ghislain’s eyes flashed red.
“Now!”
Bang!
“Eek?”
From the depths of the dark forest, something emerged, prompting Queen Grex to raise her head.
“Well done, Alfoi!”
Ghislain shouted loudly as he swiftly severed Queen Grex’s arms and legs.
“Kyaaaaaaaaah!”
Queen Grex’s agonized scream reverberated, and at the same time, the rest of the group sprang into action. The Grexes howled as they charged forward.
“Bind it!”
At Kaor’s command, Belinda’s robe fluttered, releasing dozens of daggers.
Threads, thin yet durable, connected to the daggers, binding Queen Grex tightly. Knights followed up by securing her further with thick ropes they had prepared.
“Eeeeeek!”
Queen Grex thrashed around, but the tightly secured ropes wouldn’t budge.
“Move out!”
At Ghislain’s command, the knights dragged Queen Grex away.
“Belinda! Grab Alfoi!”
“Got it!”
Belinda hoisted Alfoi by the scruff of his neck and sprinted.
“Kaor! Clear the path!”
Boom!
Ghislain swung his sword, obliterating the trees obstructing their way. Kaor smashed through trees beside him, clearing more space.
Queen Grex’s massive size required them to avoid letting her get caught in the forest’s dense vegetation.
As the group ran, a collective thought crossed their minds.
‘Do we really have to go through all this trouble?’
‘Wouldn’t it be easier to just kill them all and drag her out?’
‘The ones behind us can’t even keep up.’
Hundreds of Grexes were chasing after them, but none could match their speed. It seemed like they could make it back to the fortress without much trouble.
But then Ghislain shouted again.
“Run at full speed! Now!”
It felt as though they were being pursued by something else. Although bewildered, the group complied with his urgent tone.
Soon, they began to feel tremors resonating from all directions.
Rumble, rumble, rumble…
“Eeeeeeeek!”
The Queen Grex continued to scream incessantly. The tremors, however, seemed to be following her.
Something was coming.
Belinda, whose sensory perception was unmatched, stiffened as she realized what it was. The vibrations weren’t coming from the surroundings.
While running, she glanced downward.
“Underground?”
The tremors were emanating from beneath the ground. It felt as though a massive tidal wave was surging through the earth.
“And it’s not just one.”
If it had been a single massive monster, it would have been preferable. But the vibrations beneath their feet suggested otherwise.
It was the movement of tens, hundreds, or even thousands of creatures.
[We wanted to uncover the secret of how Queen Grex had managed to claim her territory. We hypothesized endlessly about how such a seemingly weak group could survive in the Forest of Beasts.]
Kaor, who had been cutting through trees at the front, suddenly widened his eyes.
Crash!
“Kyahhhh!”
All around them, the ground began to collapse as Grexes emerged from below.
“What the hell is this?!”
Kaor screamed in panic.
It might have been fine if only a few had appeared. But there were easily hundreds of them, and they kept coming.
“Eeeeeek!”
The rumbling from underground only grew louder. As the group hesitated, Ghislain’s thunderous voice cut through the chaos.
“Push through!”
Slash!
At the forefront, Ghislain cut down the Grexes mercilessly.
Individually, Grexes were considered weak monsters, roughly equivalent to a human soldier in combat ability. But when gathered in numbers, the story changed. Just as an army of human soldiers could be terrifying, so too could a swarm of Grexes.
[We believed that uncovering her secret would make it easier to conquer the Forest of Beasts. That’s why we kidnapped Queen Grex. But we were wrong. There was no secret. The Forest of Beasts operated purely by the law of power.]
“Eeeeeeeek!”
The number of Grexes erupting from the ground swelled until they filled the entire area.
Kaor gritted his teeth as he slashed at the Grexes. Belinda and the knights fought fiercely to keep the Grexes from reaching the Queen Grex.
But as more Grexes poured in, the group’s pace slowed. The ground was riddled with so many holes that there was barely any solid footing left.
[As we suspected, Queen Grex did possess a unique ability: she could mobilize all Grexes. To save their queen, the Grexes gathered in overwhelming numbers. The total number of Grexes that moved to rescue her was…]
Boom!
Ghislain unleashed the full power of his Third Stage Core as he roared.
“Break through faster! If we delay, we won’t survive!”
[…approximately 200,000.]