When we entered the Illusory Forest we were following a trail, each person was in their respective carriages and the Gray Elf who was leading the way was mounted on a Shadow Horse, this is a rare monster on this continent and also a monster that the Church of Light hunts as well as all monsters from the elements of Darkness, Shadows or the undead.
While we’re inside the carriage I look out the window for respective directions, then turn to Sophia with the intention of asking her a few questions.
“Why are we still being followed even when we are being guided to the village of Elves?” (I)
“Because this is another test, to get to the village of the Elves you must pass three tests.” (Sophia)
“What are these tests?” (I)
“The test of truth, the test of strength, and the test of will.” (Sophia)
“The test of truth must be the questions they ask in Jargan City, right?” (Vanessa)
“Yes, this first test is to find out why the person wants to go to the village of the Elves.” (Sophia)
“The second test starts now, the master has already noticed that there is only one person guiding us and there are 4 following us, right?” (Sophia)
“Yes, just now I looked in the direction of 3 of them to show that I knew of their presence, but I made it look like I didn’t notice the last one to prevent them from calling more people out of being wary of me.” (I)
“As always you are the most cautious, Master.” (Sophia)
“Even if you had demonstrated that you noticed all of them it wouldn’t matter they must know you noticed the last one too or at least they must be suspicious since you noticed them very quickly.” (Sophia)
“Those who are following us are also part of the test, they are hiding to see if we are able to sense their presence and to protect ourselves if we are to be killed by the monsters of the Illusory Forest.” (Sophia)
“I imagined this when I realized that there was only one person guiding us, if any monster appears we are the ones who will have to fight for the visa.” (Kira)
“So they want to gauge our strength with these fights?” (I)
“Yes, through battle they will verify our combat experience, our fighting techniques, the type of energy we use, the type of weapon we use, our elemental Affinity, our courage, etc.” (Sophia)
“But they protect us doesn’t mean there won’t be deaths, the risk of death still exists, but in our case this second test is worthless.” (Sophia)
“Why you say that?” (I)
“Because the monsters that will appear in this Forest must be weaker than you, Father.” (Vanessa)
“Exactly that, the maximum strength of the monsters in the part of the Illusory Forest we are going to pass through is up to SS Grade, as far as I know, they won’t be a problem for us.” (Sophia)
“They shouldn’t be a problem for the people in that woman’s carriage either.” (I)
“I can still feel her eyes on our carriage.” (Orion)
“Keep paying attention to the people in that carriage, that man from before has a speed very close to mine, we better be careful.” (I)
“You’re always cautious.” (Diana)
“You are straying from the topic at hand, Sophia still hasn’t talked about the third Test.” (Nira)
“…” (all)
“Thank you, Nira.” (Sophia)
“As I was saying, they’re not just considering combat power in this second test, they also want to see the strength people have in front of a much stronger creature.” (Sophia)
“Look at the merchant’s carriage behind us, the merchant is not strong but he is aware of his surroundings and keeping close to our carriage, he is demonstrating an intelligent mind, when a monster appears we will see if he will run or help in combat somehow it’s all part of the test.” (Sophia) .𝘤𝘰𝑚
“That won’t happen, there’s a Moon Spirit in the merchant’s carriage, I think he’s being protected.” (Nix)
“So he must already be someone who has passed these tests in the past, so he doesn’t have to do it again.” (Sophia)
“What’s the third test?” (I)
“The test will happen when we are further into the center of the forest in another 5 or 6 days.” (Sophia)
“There’s a reason this place’s name is Illusory Forest.” (Sophia)
“There are many plants and monster trees that use illusions or traps in this forest, the place we are going to pass is known to the Elves for having a Tree of Desire, this monster creates illusions directly in people’s minds while attacking the body with its vines ” (Sophia)
“I’ve heard of this monster, if I’m not mistaken it creates an illusion with the things the target wants most.” (Freya)
“Yes, if the target resists the illusion or is unaffected by the illusion, then that monster will do nothing considering it to be a strong enemy, but if the target is consumed by the illusion, then the target will lose control over its Aura signaling that it is a prey.” (Sophia)
“So how is this test different from the second one?” (I)
“Because in the third test strength and power don’t matter anymore, the only thing that matters is the person’s willpower.” (Sophia)
“That’s not a problem either, everyone here has a strong will.” (Kira)
“…” (I)
These tests seem to be easy but let’s see how things go, I think my will is strong but how strong I don’t know, besides I worry about Jade, Freya, and Nira being affected by these illusions.
While thinking about these things, we continued the trip quietly, there were no problems with any monster that appeared nearby I used my intimidation skill to scare them away.
That way no one in my group would need to fight, besides these monsters are weak enough that I don’t even need to use my Aura, just the intimidation skill is enough.
When the first night arrived, the Gray Elf who was guiding us said that we were going to camp where we were and that each one should take care of his own needs.
The merchant was locked inside his carriage, but I got out of the carriage with the others, we set up a makeshift fire and took out pots for cooking.
Freya pulls out a table and kitchen tools from her item storage, then takes out the body of a monster that looked like a horned Sabretooth Tiger that died from an arrow to the head while trying to run after I used my intimidation skill on him, Freya said that this monster had very tasty meat and that’s why she used her bow and arrow to kill him, I don’t remember the name of this monster, but I think he was Grade S.
While Freya was preparing the meat, the others and I finished making the fire where I put two large stones on either side to use as support for the iron grate I asked Anton to make a long time ago.
What I’m doing is a barbecue, the sky is very beautiful from this forest, besides the forest was magnificent, I would like to have a camera to take pictures of the many beautiful landscapes we passed today.
Because of that I’m in a good mood and I thought a barbecue and beer would be ideal with this starry sky, so I took out one of the Orcs’ Beer Kegs.
As a barbecue can always have more people I decided to call the merchant, the group of that insistent woman, the Gray Elf who guided us, and the 4 Elves who were following us.
The merchant didn’t want to participate in the barbecue and looked at me like I was some kind of idiot.
The strange woman’s group accepted being coerced by her, what surprised me was the Gray Elf and the other 4 Elves watching us accept to participate in the barbecue.
The 4 Elves that followed us were Dark Elves, we all gathered around the fire while Freya started to put the slices of seasoned meat there leaving that delicious aroma in the air.
“Thank you for inviting us to a meal, my name is Alan, these are my companions Priestess Bianca and Knight Darcia that you have met before.” (Alan)
“Nice to meet you, I am a Priestess of the God of Justice.” (Bianca)
“It reminds me that I haven’t introduced myself before, my name is Darcia, but if you want you can call me my darling, my red-haired prince.” (Darcia)
“I’ll just call you Darcia, besides my name, is Zenos and I prefer to be called that.” (I)
“I apologize for Darcia, she is normally someone very trustworthy, but she has a soft spot for beautiful people and things.” (Bianca)
“Alright, I can understand.” (Diana)
“You can understand her…” (Alan)
“Exactly what you’re thinking.” (I)
“That’s why you managed to stay so calm these days, you’re used to that kind of person.” (Alan)
“Believe me when I say there are more difficult people to deal with, plus Darcia didn’t cause any big problems as her fights weren’t intended to hurt anyone.” (I)
“You are talking very quietly for someone who is roasting meat in the middle of a forest full of monsters.” (Grey Elf)
“We are doing this because there is no danger in the surroundings, the monsters are too weak to be a threat” (Kira)
It was in this relaxed atmosphere that we spent the rest of the night eating and drinking.