Where are we going? HOOT. • To fetch some fruits. •

That day, Naell finally saw the news he was waiting for; the mysterious fogging of the forest between the border of Taglagas and the tribe of Pegasus.

The forest of Lagupa existed for the cohabitation and peace between the human kingdom and the Pegasus tribe.

Two entrances stood in the forest of Lagupa: The entrance to the forest (guarded by the Knights of Taglagas) and the entrance to the Tribe of Pegasus (guarded by the half winged-beasts).

The forest was protected by both sides as a sign of respect towards Pegasus, the legendary beast who protected the kingdom ages ago and was therefore rewarded his land by the king.

Yet Pegasus was free-spirited and was often embarking Mundo alone. Some scholars believed that the legendary beast was wandering at the center of the world where no one dared to venture.

Those were the things that Naell had managed to read about the forest they were headed to. Some parts were, of course, ridiculous to him as he imagined that Pegasus was just some sort of horse that managed to grow a pair of wings.

'So how come he has some half-human descendants?!?!?!”

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Naell and Owly were currently nearing the southern border of Taglagas.

The travel time was not that long, but they were both satisfied with their decision to eat heavy meals upon seeing the forest.

Lagupa, that was known for its vivid greenery, was now covered with thick fog. Cold humid air could already be felt from its entrance.

It would be annoying to walk inside the wilderness and much more eat inside it, as the humidity would surely spoil the food.

As the entrance to the forest was heavily guarded by the Autumn Kingdom's knights, especially due to the abnormal fogging situation, Lagupa became eerie and lifeless from outside.

If it weren't for Naell's greed, he would have surely gone home by now. Luckily, profits blinded both of them as they walked (with Owly atop his head) towards the entrance.

Upon seeing both of them, the knights guarding the entrance were surprised.

They flinched from the deep HOOTS they heard and the appearance of the approaching beings, as they began to remember the rumors;

A frosted ghostman bearing a translucent complexion would visit their dwelling, and with its chilling bloody eyes would judge that person from their evil doings.

He was accompanied by an undead man, who might've been considered a good uncle in the past, and a crow that was fairly fat for its own body as it would often devour the flesh of the wicked.

The now paler knights were hoping it wasn't them, as the undead man from the rumor was nowhere to be seen.

Still, they could not help but be frightened. They then raised their guards up, as they fearfully declared,

"State your business!"

With a cheeky smile, Naell slowly held out a letter and a card within his hand, immediately letting the guards sigh in relief.

The letter signed by the Vice Guildmaster of Taglagas stated that Naell W. Beryldot was commissioned to investigate the abnormality within the Forest of Lagupa.

Both knights were impressed seeing the letter and the rank of the young adventurer.

The saying that an A-rank adventurer can change the outcome of a battle, but an S-rank adventurer can end a war was not completed without the lower ranking adventurers.

F-rank adventurers were called the new seeds of the guild, E to the C-ranks were its primary work-force, while the B-rank adventurers were the foundation of the guild.

That was why, seeing Naell's B-rank card made them more friendly and giddy.

'What more if they see ranks above me.' Naell thought as he knew that an A-rank adventurer would soon visit that place.

He could only imagine how the guards would swoon over that person, chuckling at the misfortune that would befall his group.

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"Why are you laughing like a villain, HOOT?" Asked Owly, as he flew uncomfortably, slightly ahead of Naell.

"You've read too many hero books lately, Owly."

"Hero stories are the greatest of all books, HOOT!"

"..."

Naell was glad that Owly had been enjoying reading novels from the library in the past days, saving himself from the usual jabs they would often do.

Yet on the downside, his allowance had decreased a lot more as Owly began eating more while reading.

As they walked deeper into the forest, it became harder to discern where they were going, and since they chose to use less mana to avoid luring in monsters, they had to simply use it to prevent them from being soaked.

'Now what to do...' Naell knew that finding the tree of the golden apple would be a challenge.

If it weren't for the money that was blinding his mind, he would not even bother going to that place.

In the novel, Arts and Magic, what he recalled was that the place was supposedly on the west of the forest, yet it was so enormous to the point that knowing which direction was where, was not that helpful.

Even all the maps Naell had gathered throughout the past days became of little help the moment the fog became visible (which he thought was ironic).

Luckily, with the help of Owly, it would become easier to find the place, or so he had thought.

"Huh...HOOT... Oh, it is this way." Hurriedly, he flew while Naell followed suit.

It had been three times already when Naell noticed they were circling back to locations they had already been in. He was getting tired of the mist and the moist air he was breathing.

Of course, if Naell wanted to, he could try to use magic to remove all the dampness covering the places.

Yet he found it best to avoid doing so. Recalling the novel, he wished to not aggravate the rampant monsters in the dungeon that readers had assumed was the cause of the fogging.

Annoyance was building up in his mind, but he continued persevering. Out of the kindness in his heart, he chose to believe that Owly was just trying to recall what he remembered.

'Yeah, that's right I'm sure we aren't---“ but before Naell could even finish his thoughts, the situation they were in, quickly grew dire.

"Yup! We are lost, HOOT."

"I thought you knew where the left bridge was?" Naell's built-up frustration burst on Owly's face that seemed to say he did not care.

"Yeah! But it is weird, I'm pretty sure that the apple tree that I often feast--- saw should be around here, same with the bridge, HOOT."

"Uhhh..." Hearing Owly's reply drained all of Naell’s anger, as he knew it was his fault in trusting the gluttonous owl in the first place.

'Should I try again after this weather?... Nay, if I waited that long, she would find it instead.' Naell was now contemplating his thoughts. Directions were not his forte, and going aimlessly would be dangerous especially at night.

Yet before he could even decide, an eerie creak stopped them in their tracks, and the now paler Naell activated his detection magic.

Sensing the mana, sharp branches flew directly towards them. The impact brought forth shockwaves of wind as it clashed onto Owly's mana shield.

I can't detect them. •

Naell was calm as he thought those words. He had already garnered a lot of experience to know that panicking would surely be his demise, and besides he had a powerful ally.

Owly's mana began emitting brightly, as his wind and dark magic made some animals and monsters screech in fear.

Naell’s white mana also shined brightly as his staff radiated along with Owly.

It was quiet for a while but soon, strands of fog then encircled their surroundings. Hints of glistening particles seemed to stipple around them.

Almost in an instant, the trees that were encased in the fog then came into view. Holes reminiscent of eyes, and a distorted form resembling a man's, appeared mystically glaring at both Naell and Owly.

Not even a minute passed when trunks and sharp poisonous branches bombarded both of them with full force.

Quickly the fog began deepening with the barrage of attacks that produced smoke upon impact from where they were, combining with the mist all together.

Yet as it settled down, a fortified set of walls made out of snow protected Naell and Owly.

Before the creatures could even attack once more, sharp dark feathers chased them with supersonic speed.

"[ feathered beak ] HOOT!."

The branch-like monster called Ent tried blocking the feather with force as it sent out his trunk, yet it was easily sliced down as the feather penetrated him.

Other Ents with their speed avoided the feathers, but failed to evade the cannon ball-like snow that came from the snowy fortress, sending each of them down.

As the assailants were defeated, Naell deactivated his [ canon fortress ] and to his surprise, saw the monsters that attacked them became no more than normal trees.

"Fairies... HOOT." Owly’s words scared Naell a bit.

He knew from the book he had read, that Fairies were creatures known for their mysterious magic, making it especially hard to sense them.

"But aren't they peaceful creatures?" Naell could not help but ask. Golden apples were truly something that could make him rich, but if it meant that he would have to risk his life, he'd rather end things there and sleep in his bed.

Therefore, Owly's reply reinforced his will to stop their expedition.

"They are, but they are also known for their mischievous side---"

"Alright, then I guess we’re going home now, Owly."

"Wait!!!"