15-Episode 15: Forest Road and Defeat of Wolf




Hmm, that's a pain in the ass.

 Up until halfway through, I was following Ivan's advice to ignore the demons and proceeded to periodically leave the forest, but halfway through, it started to become a hassle.
 That's because, while trap plants and killer plants are certainly troublesome, I thought it was too inefficient to go all the way out of the forest.
 Besides, Milisha-san also said that I should consult with what I can do and what's convenient for me.
 And when it comes to what I can do!

'It's easier to do this if all the demons around you are attacking and dangerous, right?

 After confirming that there are no humans in the vicinity with my exploration magic, I call out a call for evacuation to the surroundings just in case.

I'm going to burn all the trees around here! If you're in the vicinity, please evacuate!

 Okay, the warning is over, let's burn it down!

Flame Inferno!

 I release a Hellfire magic towards the forest in front of me.
 In the blink of an eye, the trap plants and killer plants burned up without a scream.
 And in front of me, a large road of 7m wide and 100m long was created.
 Yeah, it's something like this. If it's too long, it will burn anyone who enters the range after accidentally using detection magic.

''If we proceed like this, there's no danger of monsters attacking our surroundings!

 Plus, this would be convenient for people passing through here later, so they wouldn't have to think about getting attacked by a demon!

Now then, let's get back on track and find Forest Wolf!

 You're not going to be able to do that.

There was.

 As I was burning my way through the forest, I heard the sound of wolves crying in the distance.

'Which way is it coming from?'

 I rise with my flying magic and look around the forest in a 360 degree circle.

''Oh, there's a village over there...''

 I confirm that the village is located northwest across the forest from the town of Heshiki.
 Then I see a small dot going from the village toward the forest.
 And a larger dot is following behind it.

'Is the smaller one a forest wolf and the larger one an adventurer guarding the village?

 When I found the forest wolves, I flew through the air and landed between them and the forest.

 I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that I'm not the only one.

''That's the boss of the pack, isn't it?

 I decided to go after the boss first.
 Once the boss is defeated, the rest is just a bunch of crows.

I pull out my sword from my waist and cut at the Forest Wolf.
The boss of the Forest Wolf is going to jump at me to bite me, but it's too late for me to strengthen my body with body strengthening magic.

''Ha!''

 A flash of spirit, I cut off the head of the Forest Wolf boss.
 The request is a B-rank, but Forest Wolf itself is a C-rank demon, so it's not that strong.
 It's only troublesome because they run into the forest.

''Whomp!''

 The other Forest Wolves were upset that the boss was killed.
 Some of them even tried to run away, leaving their friends behind.

You can't get away from me!

 I gather up the forest wolves who try to escape and attack them with magic.

"Spark Mist!

?

 I released a spark mist that emits a weak mist of lightning over a wide area, paralyzing the bodies of the forest wolves.

The only thing left to do is to put a stop to it.

 This is a request to take down a demon, so it has to be intact.
 I won't make the same mistake as the last time we had a demon.

Hey!

 As I was putting a stop to the paralyzed forest wolf, people who seemed to be adventurers came from a distance.
 It's probably the people who were chasing after the forest wolf just now.

"Ki, you defeated those guys?

 They must have run after it desperately.
 The adventurers are all out of breath.
 It's a good thing they're wolves, right?
 You can't chase after them with full equipment, it's a crazy thing to do.

It's a good thing that you're not the only one who can do this.

You're amazing. You've beaten so many forest wolves.

No, no, no, it's nothing.

Are you a B-ranked adventurer, or are you just a B-ranked adventurer, like you were near the forest?

Yes, although I've only just become a B-ranked adventurer.

'No, it's still great! That's impressive for someone so young by the looks of it!

 It's a bit embarrassing to be praised so highly.

Oh, but did I interrupt your work?

 These people were chasing after the Forest Wolf.
 If that was the case, they might be the people who were asked by the village to defeat Forest Wolf.

Oh, don't worry about that. The request we received is to keep the forest wolf away from the ranch. The clients know that they can't catch up with the forest wolves that run away into the forest.

Okay.

 Good, it looks like we didn't get sidetracked by the request.

Then we'll go tell our client that the Forest Wolf is defeated. The people in the village will be relieved. Yeah, you can rest assured that we won't take the credit away from you.

 With that, the adventurers went back in the direction of the village.
 And I'm glad they were so friendly.

I think I'll go home too.

 You're not going to be able to do that.

''What the hell is this?!

 My name is Milisha.
 I'm the assistant guild leader of the Adventurer's Guild in the town of Hexi.

 We were worried about the existence of the ever-expanding forest of demonic beasts every day.
 Exploring dangerous places is a meal for adventurers, but the expanding danger zone is a pre-dinner issue.
 In fact, hundreds of years ago, there were towns that were swallowed up by this forest and the townspeople had no choice but to flee.

 Then a turning point came to us.
 That was the new B-ranked adventurer, Lex, who came to this town.

 He easily burned down a part of the forest with his high-level fire magic.
 We hired dozens of adventurers and spent days working on it.

 Of course, we immediately contacted him and asked him to stop the forest from expanding.
 Fortunately, he was a good-natured man and accepted our request with a resounding yes.

 Immediately, he reported the burning of the forest, so one of my men went to take a look at it, but this man came to me in a panic and asked me to come.

 I'm busy too.
 And when my man came with me, I saw something that I couldn't believe.

'Is there a path in the forest?'

 Yes, a road. The road is wide enough for a carriage to pass.
 It's wide enough for two small carriages to pass on it!

Who in the world could make a path like this...!

 I don't have to think about it.
 He's the only one who can do that.

'May I have a word, Mr. Lex!

 We hurried back to the town and sought out Mr. Lex and asked him if he was the one who made the path into the forest.
 Were you the one who made the path into the forest?

Yes, I thought that would be a safe way for adventurers to get deep into the forest.

 It was affirmed in a matter-of-fact way.
 Maybe I should have been angry.
 I'm a little worried about his future.

 But as much as I was worried about his life, I had a plan bubbling up in my brain.
 A plan that would normally be discussed with my superiors and the government.

 But even with this, I am a woman who has risen to the position of assistant guild leader in the shortest amount of time.
 There is no choice but to waste time on this opportunity.
 We must avoid the option of him going away while the old men are having a useless meeting.

'Mr. Lex, I've been asked to burn the perimeter of the forest, but if you don't mind putting it off a bit, I have a job for you. Well, let's see, this and that part of the map... oh, and of course I'll pay you extra for it...

 This was the moment when the great trade route, commonly known as the 'Lex Road', which allowed people to cross the Forest of Demonic Beasts and travel to and from neighboring villages and neighboring countries in the shortest possible time, was born.
 Yay, it's now easier to go home to my parents!