28 Nerine's Quest [2]

Narine spoke, her voice filled with gratitude, "I'm sorry for judging you based on the rumors, Caius. You're nothing like what people say about you. You not only helped me from those bullies who were being mean to me, but you're also willing to help me with my request. I was in peril not knowing who to ask for help, and even seeing the students bullying me, no one stepped forward to help me except you. Thank you, Caius. Thank you so much again!"

Caius kept a smile on his face, but inwardly he was annoyed. 'She's quite talkative, just like in the game. Just shut up and let's get this quest over with.'

"No problem, I like being a hero. Anyway, are you ready to leave now?" Caius asked.

"Huh? Right now?" Nerine asked, puzzled.

"Yup, let's get this over with quickly. Since classes will be starting tomorrow, we'll be busy, right?" Caius said with a smile.

"You're right, but don't you need to make any preparations before we leave for the forbidden forest?" Nerine questioned.

"Nope, I already have my sword in my storage bracelet. Do you need to prepare something?" Caius asked.

"Well, since I won't be fighting, I don't need anything to prepare," Nerine replied.

"Alright, let's leave right away then," Caius said, to which Nerine nodded hesitantly.

Narine's mind was swirling with doubts as they walked in the direction of the forbidden forest, which was just behind the academy. 'Did I make the right choice asking for his help? Is it really safe to go alone with him in that scary forest? Can I trust him to protect me and not use me as bait instead?' She couldn't help but recall the way the other children in her hometown had treated her.

As they walked, many other first-year students hurriedly moved out of Caius' way, terror visible on their faces.

"Ugh, it's Cruel Caius. Don't even make eye contact with him if you don't want to get beaten," whispered one student.

"That poor beast woman, getting targeted by someone like him," another student murmured.

"Shh, keep your voice down. If he hears you, he might come and steal your SP," cautioned a third student.

Hearing their hushed gossip, Nerine's anxiety spiked as she glanced at Caius walking ahead of her, seemingly unaffected by their words.

"...No, I shouldn't judge a book by its cover. Maybe he's not such a bad person after all," Nerine muttered under her breath shaking her head.

After a few more minutes of walking, they finally arrived at the entrance of the forbidden forest, standing in front of a large black gate with a warning sign posted on it.

[WARNING: Forbidden Forest Ahead. Enter at Your Own Risk. This forest is home to dangerous creatures and deadly traps. Unauthorized entry is strictly prohibited. The Academy takes no responsibility for any injuries or fatalities that occur within the forest.]

Narine gulped as they stood in front of the ominous and foreboding entrance to the forbidden forest. Despite the morning sun shining down on them, an air of danger and dread emanated from the thick trees and twisted vines.

"I-I don't know about this, Caius. Maybe I should find another way to get the ingredients," she stammered nervously.

Caius ignored her whining and pushed at the gate, but it remained firmly shut. A metallic ting rang out as he let go.

Ting—

"I-It seems there's a spell on this gate to prevent entry," Nerine observed.

Caius nodded in agreement. 'I remember something like a password in the game that we had to type to open the gate and gain entry.' He pondered.

'Compi, show me the password,' he said inwardly, activating his Completionist Insight skill.

The skill responded with the message: [Password To Enter The Forbidden Forest: 'Nature's guardian, let us through.']

"...."

"...Nature's guardian, let us through."

Caius repeated the password under his breath, feeling a bit silly to say that out loud. But as soon as he finished speaking, the gate creaked open slowly, revealing a dark and ominous path leading into the depths of the forbidden forest.

"W-Whoa, it worked!" Nerine exclaimed. "How did you figure it out?" She asked curiously.

"...My sister is currently in her third year, and I remember her talking about it," Caius replied.

"Oh, I see. That makes sense," Nerine said as the two cautiously stepped into the forest, taking in the eerie surroundings. The sound of their footsteps echoed through the forest as they walked deeper into the darkness.

Nerine shivered slightly, feeling a chill in the air. "I don't like this place," she whispered.

Caius nodded in agreement. "Me neither, but we need those ingredients for your potions and alchemy. Let's be quick and get out of here as soon as possible."

As they walked deeper into the forest, the trees grew closer together and the sunlight was blocked out by the thick foliage. The only source of light came from the occasional patches of sunlight that managed to break through.

!?

Suddenly, they heard a rustling in the bushes nearby. They stopped in their tracks and listened carefully. The rustling grew louder and closer, causing Nerine's heart to race with fear.

"W-What do we do?" Nerine asked in a shaky voice, fear clearly evident in her eyes, as she clutched onto Caius' arm nervously.

"Don't worry, I've got your back," Caius reassured her, removing his sword from his inventory. "Just stay close to me."

His skill Completionist Insight suddenly alerted Caius. {Hostile entities detected. Analyzing... 2 plant-like creatures identified. They seem to be Thornstalkers. Caution advised.}

Caius was impressed by Compi's abilities. 'Whoa, I didn't think Compi had this feature as well," Caius pondered in amazement.

!?

Nerine suddenly clung onto Caius' arm like a koala bear seeing the plant-like monsters with razor-sharp vines and thorns emerged from the bushes. "C-Caius, Caius, what do we do?!" she cried out in panic.

"...."

Caius rolled his eyes, "Just relax and move away and leave it to me. My element is fire, and these are plant-type monsters. It'll be easy for me to take them down." He tried to remove her grasp from his arm, but she held on tighter.

'This loli is being a nuisance,' Caius grumbled, clearly irritated by Nerine's tight grip on his arm.

"Noo! I am scared! What if you leave me alone and run away by yourself same as they did," Nerine closed her eyes and exclaimed, tears welling up.

"...."

Caius rolled his eyes as Nerine clung to his arm for dear life. "What is this, a bad romance novel?" he muttered under his breath.

Despite his annoyance, he tried to comfort the trembling Nerine. "I won't leave you, okay? But could you maybe loosen your grip? My arm's starting to go numb."

Nerine's grip only tightened in response. "No way, Caius! I'm not letting go until this is over," she declared stubbornly.

Caius groaned. "Why did I have to bring along a scaredy-cat loli? This is like babysitting on hard mode."

He quickly summoned a ball of flames with his other hand and sent it hurtling toward the monsters that were rushing toward them. The creatures screeched in pain as they burned, but more continued to emerge from the bushes.

"Fire Ball!" Caius exclaimed and burned them as well in an instant.

{You Have Earned 1 EXP!}