After using a storage spell on Hydra, we set off again.

　We must have been riding for about three hours.

Oh?
What's up, Kurt?

　Lara rolls her eyes.

I've got a bad feeling about this .......

　Marise's expression turned grim.

"No, this time it's a good one. You'll get an interesting response.
"Interesting?
"Yeah. There's a magical response a little further down the line.
"That means ...... enemies?

　Lara's expression tightened.
　But this is .......

There is no biological reaction. I think it's probably an item with a lot of magic in it. A little closer and we'll know for sure. ......
"Kurt. By the way, how long does it take to get a little further?
About two hours.
...... The range of your detection magic is as haphazard as ever.

　Marise sighed.

　We've increased the range because if it's anything like Hydra, we'll surprise everyone again.
　If we had said ...... earlier that there was a sign of a demon, it would have lessened the surprise. Maybe.

Wait a minute. Two hours down the road is .......

　Marise unfolded the map, her face turning pale.

"There's the Ljoveser Forest!
Do you know it?
"It's a very famous forest!　It's rated A for danger. Isn't that where the ...... large amount of magic power comes from?
I think so too.

　Lara also agreed with Marise's opinion.

　Lara's intuition is sharp.
　So it seems that the item is in the danger level A forest.

　Two hours later.

"Whoa, there's a reaction in this forest.
I knew it was the Ryobezer Forest!

　Marise shouted in the carriage.

　Then she stopped the carriage and consulted with Erica and the principal.

...... So, how about we go into this forest?　Looking at the map, I think it might be a shortcut. ......
"Sure. If we can make it through this forest, we can reach the neutral city a day early.
That's all well and good, isn't it?
But ......!　It's the Lyobether Forest.　Kurt's the only one who'd think of going through this place, right?　It's not safe!　I'm against it!

　Dr. Erica gave me a sharp look.
　She's right, there's a hint of evil magic coming from the Ryobezer forest.
　There are probably demons that are a little stronger than wolves and slimes.

　But ...... they're too weak for me.
　I don't know why I think it's so dangerous. .......

　But on the other hand, I could understand what Erika said about safety.

If it comes to that, let's use transfer magic to escape.
Are you saying that Kurt will be the only one to escape?
No, of course not. We'll take the carriage and bring everyone back here to the starting point. I really don't want to do that, because it would take a lot of magic, but ...... I can't help it if it's dangerous.
"...... really, you're a student .......

　I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that.

I'm not sure what to do, but I'm sure I'll be able to do it.　You can take the regular route if you want.
No, it's more dangerous to leave Kurt. I trust Kurt. Do what you want. Is that okay with you, Principal?

　The principal just shakes his head silently.

　Okay.
　Now that we've convinced the teachers, let's go into the woods.

　The carriage entered the forest, moving a little faster than I expected.

There are no demons, are there?
It's true, ...... there are some glimpses of detection magic, but...

　I'm not sure what to do.
　But.

But you two mustn't let your guard down. The demon is following us. It could attack at any moment.


What?　Us?
And there's more than one.

　And there's more than one.
　It's no wonder they can't detect us with their detection magic.

You should have said something more important earlier!
I'm sorry.
How many are there?
Exactly a hundred.
"Oh, a hundred!

　The two men hugged each other and shouted in unison.
　They stopped the carriage and went outside to see some of the Evil Monkeys peeking out of the vegetation.

Lara and Marise should be able to do this. Let's review what we've learned so far. Let's see, ...... quest, kill 100 Evil Monkeys!　That's about it. Erica, you and the principal can stay in the carriage.
That's outrageous!
Lara, you've got to do this!

　When Lara and Maryse deployed their magic formula, the Evil Monkeys attacked them all at the same time.

There's a lot of them!　There are too many of them!
But as Kurt said, I think I can handle them.

　The two of them unleashed their magic and killed the Evil Monkeys one by one.
　Although there are a lot of them, each Evil Monkey is probably only a little stronger than a Wolf.
　Even so, they handled the situation calmly, and I was impressed by the growth of the two of them.

"Ha, ha, ...... are you okay now?
No. I'm just checking in on you.

　They're back to back, breathing on each other's shoulders.
　Yeah. Marise is on her toes.

"You're both great. Just a little too much magic wasted. Just add this to the formula: ......".

　In the momentary pause in the battle, I'll give them a word of advice.
　But there was no time to waste.

"Here it comes!

　The Evil Monkeys scattered and attacked again.

Just in time. I'll show you how it's done. You two, stay back.

　I stepped in front of the Evil Monkeys.

　The magic formula to deploy is ...... Fire Spear.
　But there are only about 30 Evil Monkeys left.

　So I fire 30 Fire Spears at the same time.
　The Fire Spears track the Evil Monkeys as if they have a mind of their own and hit them.
　Some Evil Monkeys were trying to escape, but the spears of fire pierced their backs.

"How's that? This is a way to add tracking to magic. This will make it easier for you to hit the target and avoid wasting magic power when the spell misses.
"............

　Hmm?
　They seem to be frozen.

Was that too hard?
...... No, I don't think it's that difficult to add tracking.
I don't think you can have more than one ...... and be as accurate as Kurt .......

　Lara and Marlies also slumped their shoulders.

　I'm afraid I've lost your confidence.
　But don't worry.

You'll be fine. If you two practice, you should be able to do this with ease. It'll take three years to do a hundred at once. ......
No, 100!　It's a mess!
That's not human work.

　What are you talking about?
　In a previous life, I had a record of 936.
　If it were me now, I'd probably only be able to do half of that because I don't have enough magic power.

Anyway, now that we've defeated the demon, let's move on. We're almost to the item we're looking for.

　We got into the carriage and went on again.

　A little later, .......

"Whoa, that's it.

　We found a shiny herb growing at the base of a tree.

"Wow, it's beautiful!
What the hell is this ......?
"It's called 'Izunnian herb'.

　I never thought I'd see it in this world.

　I pick up a bunch of Izunnia's herbs.
　The Izunnian herb has been siphoning magic from the earth's veins for many years.



　This is ......, which is about 400 years old, if I had to guess.
　The herbs of Izunnia could be used to make good potions, for example.

　This forest is apparently dangerous, and the Izunnian herb grows in a place that is a bit off the beaten path.
　In a world where detection magic is not common,......, no one could have found it until now.

I'm sorry for the detour. Now that we have what we came for, let's get going.