Chapter 35

Two weeks had passed.

The task of clearing mines across the entire forest region was nearing its end, and the muscle pain that had plagued my body had subsided to a bearable level.

…The fact that after two whole weeks, the muscle pain hadn’t disappeared completely, but had merely improved to a tolerable level, wasn’t so shocking anymore.

Who could I blame?

I had only myself to blame for assigning stats so wretchedly.

“…It’s quiet again today.”

“Indeed it is.”

“Everyone else is bustling about in the forest, and I wonder if it’s alright for us to just stay put like this.”

“There’s no reason for Lir to feel uncomfortable. We’re simply following the commander’s orders.”

“…Still, it does feel uneasy.”

If Lir and I joined forces, the mine clearing operation would have been completed much faster, but I had my physical stamina issues, and Lir had to fill the role of a communications officer.

Furthermore, the deeper we went into the uncharted territory, the more rugged the terrain became, and plants with dangerous toxins, capable of paralyzing the entire body with just a touch, began to appear. With my physical abilities falling far short of the standard, I would only be a hindrance to the work.

‘More than anything, mine clearing… I’ve never even learned how to do it.’

I’m just a newbie who has finally began to comprehend the reasons why wizards chant spells. I haven’t even properly learned the basics of magic, and suddenly I’m supposed to handle dangerous things like mines?

Isn’t that the same as handing a pistol to a five-year-old?

The reason I’m lying in the corner of this wagon, staring blankly with Lir at the leaves and the sunlight filtering through them… is strictly for the safety of us all.

“Then, shouldn’t I at least help with the outpost construction? It’s been two weeks of just resting, doing nothing… I feel a little awkward.”

“…Help with the construction, you say?”

“Yes.”

“Lir, have you ever studied architecture?”

“…No.”

“Have you ever even held a hammer?”

“…No.”

“Then staying still *is* helping.”

“That’s true, but…!”

It’s not that I’m lazy or want to shirk my responsibilities. It’s just that I’m doing nothing because there’s nothing *I* can do.

“The road paving is finally complete! Valerland urgently needs supplies, so we will immediately send a wagon train with food and weapons!”

Valerland is a fierce battlefield where countless demons and hero parties are engaged in a bloody war.

The reason the Akiliptus Forest area was so important in the game was because it served as a supply route that directly connected the capital to this battlefield called ‘Valerland’. So, there was no reason for Belua, the company commander, to object to the nameless dwarf squad leader’s decision.

Belua nodded and ordered the dwarf squad leader and his men to escort the wagon train.

As I watched the wagon train disappear into the distance, filling the time with pointless thoughts like, ‘Those loaves of bread in that wagon must be rock hard,’ a faint light began to emanate beside me.

The crystal ball Lir had placed on the wagon floor had begun to glow.

“…Uh, just a moment.”

Lir stuffed the review notes she was holding away and hastily reached for the crystal ball, cautiously opening her mouth.

“Ahem. Communication security… communication security…”

This young elf still seemed very clumsy with military-style communication.

― Secure comms, this is Second Squad of the Seventh Infantry Battalion, Capital Guard Division. Chris Waver, Fifth Circle Mage, reporting. I’ve discovered something of note. The Elf says it’s a plant used to make Philia Fiber… Looks like a rose, outwardly. No thorns, and a thick, egg-like thing attached to the innermost leaf.

Philia Fiber was a rare and valuable material used in the game world to craft high-performance Ranger Hoods.

If I were an archer, I’d be jumping for joy right now… but as a mage, it’s not exactly something I need.

Well, I’ll have them collected and loaded onto the baggage train. The quartermasters can sort out the rest.

“Gather everything you see. If it’s as rare as the Elf says, it’s worth it.”

― Understood. I’ve swept my assigned area, so I should be able to return by morning.

If I remembered correctly, obtaining the plant used to make Philia Fiber involved climbing a cliff face several hundred meters high at the eastern edge of the forest. To receive a report that they’d reached such a dangerous place and acquired the plant… it wasn’t hard to deduce that the operation was truly reaching its end.

…Come to think of it, calling the partner you’ve roamed the forest with for two weeks “the Elf,” and not by their name…

That mage, Chris Waver, must be utterly fed up with the Elves’ personalities.

“Ah, secure comms…”

“Secure comms. Secure comms.”

As I suspected, five reports came in today alone. Most of them saying they’d patrolled their assigned area and would be returning either this evening or tomorrow morning.

‘Jackpot.’

I was quite flustered when the Spirit gave me a quest I’d never heard of, but now it seems like I’m getting off easy.

After all, I’m a ‘General.’

What general in this world goes out and defuses landmines on foot? You sit back and take it easy. Leaving the actual work to the poor soldiers of lower rank.

I just needed to anticipate the ‘special gift’ the Spirit mentioned, while blankly watching the barracks, warehouses, and outposts that were undergoing interior construction.

…Can’t I have a sweet event like this, just once? Even with a Luck stat of 1, surely not *every* second of *every* hour can be bad, right?

That would be absurd.

* * *

“Aghhh! Still, still there remains! The filth those vile demons left behind!”

Damn, it must be serious.

“My forest, cursed… My forest! I cannot bear it! Those trashy things!”

Lierre and I, as soon as the mage company and elves returned, immediately took Trian to the colossal tree where the runestone was buried.

We had walked this path once before, and thanks to Trian’s skilled guidance – who had tirelessly circled this area for the past two weeks – we arrived in a time that was incomparable to our first arrival.

And so, under the afternoon sun, we reached the tree and without hesitation, laid our hands upon the runestone.

“Why did you stop halfway through your task? Do you seek to insult me?”

And… the spirit, for reasons unknown, yet again stood before us, fuming.

“Forgive us. We were certain we had surveyed the entire forest… Perhaps, could you indicate the area where this foul demonic energy persists?”

I bowed my head, focusing on calming the spirit, just as I had done before.

“Hmph… Yes, humans are prone to such things. You are mortals, not transcendent beings… Mistakes may occur.”

This time, only six apologies were needed to soothe this maddened deer, unlike before. It seems that appeasing spirits improves with practice.

“…At the southern end, there lies a deep cavern. You must have overlooked the demons’ foul stench contained within.”

A deep cavern at the southern edge of the wooded area?

…I have a bad feeling about this.

“Um… Spirit-nim?”

“Dajin. My name is Dajin. Address me thus from now on.”

He really warmed up quickly and shared his name.

“Ah, yes, Dajin-nim. I ask this just in case, but is that cavern… the one that possesses a strange property of obscuring any view of its interior from the outside? The one I am thinking about?”

“It seems you are well-acquainted with the cavern. Yes, that very cavern. The one where once you step inside, you cannot exit through the entrance you used. You must explore to the very end and find another way out. It seems I needn’t bother guiding you then. If you know its location, quickly go and resolve this, for I am filled with a vexation I can barely endure any longer.”

“It’s a dungeon, you damn fool.”

“……How did the demon spawn manage to… deposit themselves so far in?”

I let out a disbelieving chuckle, utterly dumbfounded, as I asked.

“Why would I know? I don’t care what those disgusting things think as they live, and I certainly don’t want to find out.”

The southern dungeon in the forest region was a place where incredibly useful artifacts for the Barbarian class were awarded as a final prize. But it was known for its immense difficulty befitting such a great reward, so I wanted to avoid even coming close if possible…

“Heh heh. What else can I do.”

All I could do was accept my fate…

“……I’ll be expecting a gift, something special.”

“Don’t worry about the gift. I’ll open a path for you, to a whole new dimension.”

That glittering deer b*stard, oblivious to how I felt as I turned my steps back toward headquarters, burst into a hearty laugh as he slowly began to disappear into the runestone.

“……Do you know anything about the caves in the southern forest?”

Lyr, who had been just keeping her head down since the appearance of the spirit, finally let out a sigh as if relieved, raising her head and asking that question once that damned deer was gone.

“I need to talk to Commander Belua about this.”

I rubbed my brow with my fingers, where wrinkles kept forming, as I spoke.

This is getting more and more difficult.

* * *

We must venture into the southern dungeon.

Upon hearing the news, Commander Belua looked at me with an uncharacteristically troubled expression.

“Dungeon exploration…? Hmm…”

Belua’s reaction wasn’t exactly strange. After all, the goal of the squad here was to “complete the outpost and keep it safe.”

Unlike the ‘mine clearing’ missions where one could return to the main force immediately upon a battle report, those deployed on ‘dungeon expeditions’ couldn’t receive reports of what was happening with the main force, nor could they return as they pleased.

To not forget one’s primary objective was a crucial virtue for soldiers, especially commanders, so Belua’s reaction was rightfully considered reasonable.

“I’ll leave the decision entirely to the company commander. I don’t want to harm the completion and defense of the outpost.”

Thus, I easily conceded. Though time was a bit precious, it was nothing a solo dungeon clear during downtime after the outpost stabilized couldn’t fix.

“Make an efficient choice, Belua. This mage’s time holds a different value than ours. A promising talent nicknamed ‘The Future of the Continent,’ every day is precious for them, is it not?”

Surprisingly, it was Sergeant Trian who backed up my words.

…By the way, when did I get the nickname, ‘The Future of the Continent?’

I frowned at Trian, but the elf, indifferent to me, the subject of the conversation, continued what he was saying.

“This mage must grow even stronger. Our allied forces have a duty to support that growth. Besides, even if an emergency arises… we have Archmage Alter. I don’t foresee any major problems.”

“Hmm…”

Trian’s words held some merit.

Barely keeping up with the necessary stats, I had already missed two weeks of Alter’s lessons.

Of course, Lire had been teaching me things here and there, but she couldn’t compare to Alter, who had the lecture skills of a top-tier tutor from Daechi-dong. She also went into her turtle stance without warning, which made it difficult to concentrate.

Even with the construction entering the final phase, interior work and finishing would take another week or so.

Having spent the last two weeks lying in a carriage, re-reading books I had already finished, or enduring Lire’s lectures-that-weren’t-lectures during my inefficient stat-boosting time, wasting any more time was a problem for me, too.

“Anyway, that mage isn’t useful for construction, right? You’re in charge of most of the command, and it’s better to let him go explore the dungeon than to leave him standing like a decoration.”

Honestly, if not for that sassy tone, I might have been grateful to that elf.

“…”

Black Hammer Belua stroked her chin with her large hand, deep in thought. She had a duty to protect her subordinates and build the outpost, as well as a duty to diligently assist a promising individual who could become the future of humanity.

“…Very well. With Archmage Alter here, I shouldn’t worry too much. In truth, my squad alone could have handled the outpost construction… From the start, we had mage power far beyond the level the mission required.”

Belua, after much deliberation, offered such words, and began to recite the names of squad leaders, saying that a decent warrior would be needed to explore the dungeon.

Among the names she chanted, there was one familiar to me, and without hesitation, I pointed to it.

“I wish to go with Lex, the son of Belzark.”

Rather than faces I don’t know at all, it would be better to go with Lex, with whom I’ve already fought to protect each other’s lives.

“He is a strong warrior. A steadfast character whom you can trust and rely on, even in the most extreme situations. In addition to that, I recommend bringing Trian along. His speech is very… ‘elven,’ but… he is agile and has a good eye, so he will be a guide in the dungeon.”

“…Well, I don’t care.”

…To be precise, this is a selection by a superior, so that elf has no right to refuse. Unless there is some truly special circumstance.

Yet, watching that elf shrug his shoulders as if he couldn’t help it and pout his lips, my head started to spin a little.

This kind of guy… a soldier?

“…What are you staring at?”

…Fine. Don’t try to understand it, and don’t try to change it. It’s just that the elf is being ‘elfish,’ so what can I do?