Winstred Sylvia.
A member of the prestigious Winstred Duke.
From a young age, she grew up recognized as a prodigy with extraordinary talent.
A genius who stirred the imperial court and the entire empire.
That was her.
However.
“This is a different story.”
Her ruthless hands cut down beasts without hesitation.
Her seasoned composure handled attacks from all sides with ease.
Her actions reflected not just talent but experience.
“This is crazy. I’d believe it if someone said she was a different person.”
After dealing with the leader, Sylvia climbed down the tree slowly to the ground.
“Does the ducal family train their children to hunt beasts from childhood?”
Sylvia , hearing Kanua ’s muttered words of astonishment, left him standing with his mouth agape.
She approached me slowly.
“What are you doing?”
“Hmm, not bad.”
She looked me up and down, suddenly nodded, and smiled with satisfaction.
“What on earth is going on…”
As I sighed deeply in confusion, I saw Ian trailing behind her.
“Apologies.”
He immediately bowed his head in a deep apology.
“If you want to die, Ian, I won’t stop you, but don’t drag others into it.”
“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”
Ian, nodding pitifully while feigning submission, made me suspicious.
“This bastard is definitely lying.”
The Ian I know never bows his head so easily.
Even in the novel, instances of him sincerely lowering his head could be counted on one hand.
“Cunning as ever.”
Still, being adept at diplomacy isn’t a bad thing.
At least it means he won’t let his pride blow up like a fragile fish.
“Let’s just get out of here quickly.”
“Yeah, we need to treat Minerva.”
“Right, let’s do that.”
The time remaining to leave the Forest of Beasts was about an hour.
It might even be faster if we quickened our pace.
“Tch, I might’ve been too hasty.”
Even though I acted to aid the protagonist’s growth, I admit some of my decisions were reckless.
Using beast pheromones was one thing, but learning Altheia Swordsmanship to manage the situation was a painful cost.
I spent a whopping 16,000 EXP on it.
Collecting points takes an eternity, but spending them is instantaneous.
“Earning just 1 or 2 points at a time is way too stingy.”
With the main story starting and aligning with both the heroine and the protagonist, there’s hope for better rewards this time.
As I walked, spinning my wheels in optimism—
Screech!
A grotesque scream, like metal scraping, echoed throughout the forest.
Thanks to Sylvia ’s signal, we quickly covered our ears.
But even then,
“Ugh…”
I felt like needles were stabbing my eardrums.
“Damn it, could it be…?”
From the distance, an overwhelming aura began to approach.
It made each step feel heavier, as if gravity had doubled around us.
Knowing all too well what this phenomenon meant, I shouted:
“Run! Just run!”
With Minerva on my back, I bolted.
“What do you mean—”
“Just shut up and run!”
If a typical beast were involved, this would be the wrong response.
In some ways, it might even be considered trolling.
But.
“That guy won’t be dealt with just by holding your breath and moving carefully.”
It has a hunting habit that relies on its extremely developed sense of smell.
Thus, moving quietly doesn’t mean you can avoid or escape detection.
The best approach is to leave its territory as quickly as possible.
“But that’s impossible.”
Everyone is at their physical limit after dealing with many beasts.
I’m slightly better off, but since I’m carrying someone, speed isn’t an option.
After I suddenly started sprinting.
Ian and Kanua were bewildered.
But once Sylvia started following me, they hurried to catch up.
“This won’t work.”
Even if you start running the moment you hear its cry, escape is impossible.
That applies to Sylvia and Ian as well.
“If we’re going to get caught anyway, we need to change the location.”
The forest is like that beast’s playground.
There’s no reason to fight it in such a disadvantageous place.
Since we already know what it is and its capabilities and habits, we need to eliminate as many variables as possible.
***
“Huff… huff…”
“Why did you suddenly change direction, Theonar?”
“So… we can… win…”
“…Catch your breath and explain.”
Ian and Kanua seemed dissatisfied that we didn’t run straight out of the forest.
“Can’t blame them since I didn’t explain and just ran.”
It couldn’t be helped given the urgency.
They don’t even know what’s chasing us.
“I had no time to explain or convince them.”
We stopped at a clearing on the outskirts of the forest.
“Someone said a student accidentally burned this place.”
The trees, infused with magic and possessing strong regenerative power, were burned to their roots.
What kind of magic did they use to burn this entire area?
“It should be here soon.”
While catching my breath in the center of the clearing for a few minutes.
“Kieeek! Kieeek!”
A sharp, metallic screech grew closer.
I was confident we could handle it with our current strength and chose this location.
But contrary to my expectations.
“Kiek?”
“Kieeeek!”
The mutant that appeared.
Wasn’t alone.
“…What the hell?”
Are they some kind of convenience store promotion?
Buy one, get one free?
What absurdity is this?
“Sylvia!”
“Got it, I’ll take the one on the left.”
As I urgently called Sylvia, she immediately responded, offering to handle one of them.
“Disgusting creatures.”
The long, tentacle-like tree roots were strikingly grotesque.
The main body resembled an old stump, but its surface wasn’t bark—it was hardened flesh, with black liquid oozing from every crevice.
“The center part isn’t easy either.”
In the middle of the stump, a pulsating magic core was visible between the tree rings.
“Something about it feels disturbingly like a heart.”
Stumps are normally peaceful, harmless beasts.
Small and charming enough to be kept as pets by nature lovers.
But after being corrupted by dark energy and turning into mutants, they became grotesque horrors.
“Everyone, aim for the magic core in the center! That’s their weak spot!”
The stump’s weak point, the magic core.
Even as mutants, their fundamental nature hasn’t changed.
There’s no need to drag this out. I shouted its weak spot to the group and charged.
“This won’t be easy.”
Two mutant stumps in a 1+1 deal?
Ah, that’s fine.
Sylvia is unexpectedly strong, and we have the numbers on our side.
What’s really giving me a headache is—
“No, don’t just amplify it, focus it on one spot!”
Raising this precious kid of ours.
“The regenerative power is so strong it seems pointless unless you completely sever it, right?”
Even when I practically spoon-feed the right answer to him.
“Damn it, you frustrating guy.”
He spits it right back out when all he has to do is chew.
“I’ll take the front.”
“Okay, so just concentrate your mana—”
Before I could even finish, Ian charged recklessly forward.
Watching him made me feel like I was about to explode.
‘I even lured it into an open space to make it easier to handle, but all he’s doing is wasting time.’
Sure, I understand that solving a problem when you already know the answer is different from solving it blind.
But this level of ignorance? It’s as if he’s completely shut his ears.
‘Sylvia’s almost done over there.’
Honestly, it’s not like I’m teaching some groundbreaking technique.
It’s something Ian should have naturally picked up while fighting this mutant.
But judging by his actions, there’s no hope.
‘If it weren’t for his divine blood…?’
If he didn’t have the power to take on the final boss, I would’ve abandoned him, protagonist or not.
‘Let’s just give up; it’s a waste of time.’
At this rate, we’re going to miss the golden hour to treat Minerva.
As much as I want to train the protagonist, it’s unsettling to let someone die right in front of me.
“Move aside, idiot.”
I grabbed Ian by the collar and yanked him back, away from the wildly thrashing roots.
Swoosh!
Focusing my mana into a single point, I slashed through all the roots protecting the stump.
“Sylvia, now!”
The moment I stepped back, Sylvia, who had been waiting while dealing with another mutant, seized the opportunity.
As the mana core of the stump was exposed, she swiftly struck it down.
Crack.
The mana core shattered, and the stump collapsed, unable to maintain its form.
After much trial and error, we finally managed to eliminate the sudden mutant threat.
“Winstred Sylvia, you’re getting points deducted. You know why, right?”
“Yes, I’m sorry.”
After the battle, Group 24 returned safely, only for Sylvia to face harsh scolding from the supervising professor.
‘It’s fortunate for us, but wrong is still wrong.’
Now that Minerva had been successfully treated, it was time to return to the academy.
‘I wonder what Ian is thinking about now.’
Feigning a stretch, I subtly turned my head.
There he was, sitting on a rock, lost in thought.
‘I just hope he’s not thinking about anything weird.’
Even if the story doesn’t progress as planned, his talent as the protagonist is undeniable.
As long as he doesn’t stray too far off course, he’ll grow stronger.
The problem is the pace.
I’m not expecting faster growth than the original story.
I just want him to develop normally, without any unexpected twists.
‘Forget it, let’s take a break.’
My body ached all over from the intense activity in this fluffy, soft form.
Looks like I’ll need to carve out more time for physical training.