Genius Wizard Hides His Sword Skills [EN]: Chapter 58

58. Ego Forest

“Y-You guys. Are you going to the Ego now?”

It was one of the people eating.

‘An adventurer?’

With a large scar on his cheek and an eyepatch covering one eye.

‘He must have been through a lot.’

If it weren’t for the staff in his left hand, I would have thought he was a skilled knight. He was definitely the man with the sharpest aura here.

“Hey kids. Do you even know where you’re messing with?”

His unfiltered, rough tone. He didn’t recognize Delemaim because his eyes had darkened right after arriving in this city.

“We know. Isn’t it the forest next to Aital?”

Perhaps my calm attitude didn’t please him.

“Tch!”

The man frowned deeply and raised his hand, removing his eyepatch.

“Gasp!”

Drew gasped. The large scar on his cheek extended to his eye.

The eye, showing only the white, glared at us.

“A forest? Don’t make me laugh. Do you know who made my eye like this? It’s those guys over there.”

The man curled up one side of his mouth at Drew’s frightened expression. He must have thought he had completely taken control. He continued speaking with a grim expression.

“The Ego isn’t just a normal forest. It’s a place where monsters live. A place where other races never stop hunting humans.”

Of course, I found it ridiculous.

‘Trying to act tough for no reason.’

I wasn’t going to be intimidated just because someone’s face was a bit rough. My comrades in my previous life were even worse.

“They’re the ones who did that to your eye?”

“Yeah. Those damn other race bastards, I need to catch them all and kill them. Do you understand where you’re going now?”

I nodded slightly.

“Yes. At least it’s a place where those stronger than you live.”

“W-What?”

“You said you lost your eye to the other races.”

“That’s because they came out in droves! I was lucky to save my life, but most people would die without even knowing what hit them.”

The man glared. Following him, those who were eating with him shouted.

“Yeah! He’s Rakhun, who came back alive from an other race attack!”

“He’s a 5-star mage!”

“Are you finally getting a sense of how serious this is?”

The man looked down on us confidently.

‘Rakhun, huh…’

He was just as insignificant as I thought.

“I understand. Thank you for the advice. We’ll make sure not to offend the other races.”

In other words, I’ll take care of it myself. Seeing that I wouldn’t back down, the man finally shook his head.

“Tsk! You don’t know how precious your lives are. You seem like rookies, but you’ll regret not listening to me. It’s not a place for kids to play house.”

After those words, he turned his gaze away from me. He couldn’t force us, whom he had just met.

‘Who is he to lecture me?’

I was about to ignore him as well, until I heard him whispering to the innkeeper.

“Hey, innkeeper. I heard there’s a new place where those other race guys are trading. Where is it? I heard they pay well for catching them.”

He, too, had a dirty purpose for being here.

‘An other race hunter, huh.’

Those who kidnap and sell other races. The Suwang race girl I saw before must have been caught by someone like that. Naturally, I frowned.

“Other race trading? Hmm. If it’s a new place, there’s a general store right across the street. I think the owner of that store has connections with traveling merchants.”

The innkeeper gestured towards the window. The sign above the store was faintly visible through the restaurant window.

‘Dorn General Store, huh.’

It was a name I had seen somewhere before.

[Wasn’t the name of that traveling merchant Dorn Auction House?]

Those who put the Suwang race girl up for auction in Anti. They were definitely connected.

‘They must be getting them here and taking them away.’

[Smells fishy, right?]

‘Yeah. I’ll have to look into those guys slowly while I’m in Aital.’

Another thing to do here. Of course, there was nothing I could do right away.

“Let’s go, Drew.”

I took the room key and went upstairs.

“Leave your robe in the room. It’s better not to wear it in the Ego.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah. It’s a forest, so it’ll get in the way of moving around. And the other races don’t really like mages. No need to show off.”

“Okay!”

All the other cumbersome luggage went into the subspace.

“Then, shall we go right away?”

“Hoo! Are you sure it’ll be okay? I’m a little worried after hearing what that guy said earlier.”

“That guy just looks tough, but he’s nothing special. If you just pay attention to what I tell you, it’ll be fine.”

“Oh, really?”

Other races extremely dislike those who enter their territory. You must never show them any hostility.

“Just be careful of three things. I’ll take care of the rest.”

“Three things? What are they?”

“First, don’t talk loudly. The residents of the Ego are sensitive to the five senses. You might offend them.”

“Residents of the Ego?”

“Yeah. That’s what we call the other races living there.”

“Ah, ah. I understand! I’ll be quiet.”

Drew nodded, covering his lips with his index finger.

“Second, don’t damage the trees or plants there. The residents of the Ego cherish nature.”

“Hmm, it’s like destroying their own home?”

That was an accurate analogy. If someone not only invaded their territory but also damaged it, no one could tolerate it.

‘Even a saint would get angry.’

If they were sensitive, they would naturally show aggression.

“That’s right. You should never start a fight first.”

“Easy. What’s the last one?”

“Don’t draw your weapons or use magic rashly.”

“That’s a similar principle?”

“Yeah. If you show aggression in their territory, they won’t just stand still, right?”

“Hmm. I see.”

Drew tilted his head.

“Why? Is there something you don’t understand?”

“No, it’s not that. Is the Ego really that dangerous? It sounds like there’s nothing dangerous if you just follow your instructions. It’s just basic manners you should follow when visiting someone’s home.”

“That’s the right answer. If you’re polite, most of the residents are friendly. Humans start fights first and then say the other races are savage. They’re simpler than you think.”

The other races had a savage image because of humans. They take an aggressive stance just because they look different, so the reaction is bound to be savage.

‘Of course, there are some who are hostile from the start.’

Anyway, we weren’t planning to go deep today, so we wouldn’t encounter those with a lot of aggression.

“I feel a little more confident. Let’s go quickly!”

Drew smiled brightly.

He left the inn with light steps.

* * *

Our steps stopped before long. After walking along the fields on the outskirts of Aital, dense trees blocked our path.

“Is that it?”

The trees were densely packed, as if marking a boundary.

“That’s right. The Ego starts there.”

Even after a thousand years, this primeval forest exuded a similar aura to what I remembered.

‘It’s still the same.’

The strange aura emanating from the entire forest seemed to weigh down on Drew and me.

“Hoo. I’m a little nervous now that I’m here.”

“Don’t be too nervous. Just follow what I said earlier. We’re just going to wander around the entrance today.”

I was about to urge him to walk again when.

“Aren’t those the kids from earlier?”

A voice came from behind. It was Rakhun and his companions.

‘Are those guys going now too?’

A dozen people armed with all sorts of equipment. Their laughter echoed in the field.

“Are those kids really going?”

“Hey, you better just go back!”

“They don’t know how precious their lives are. Do they think this is a playground?”

“Or, just follow us around. You seem to have a lot of money. If you give us one gold coin, we’ll give you a tour.”

I could laugh off the sarcasm. What was important now wasn’t those guys. They were just ridiculous people who didn’t need to be dealt with.

“Let’s not get involved with those people.”

Even Drew was shaking his head.

“Good idea.”

Instead of reacting, I turned in a direction away from them.

[I hope those guys don’t cause any trouble.]

‘They probably know the basic precautions. But it seems like they’ve experienced the Ego before.’

Anyway, as long as they don’t draw their weapons or shout in the forest, we won’t get involved.

“Drew. Let’s go in now.”

Drew and I took a step into the dense trees.

“Oh, it’s a strange feeling. It’s a little creepy.”

Drew whispered as soon as he entered the forest. He was rubbing his arms.

“The aura is a bit thicker here than outside.”

“Aura? Are you talking about mana?”

“Yeah.”

I swallowed the words that the aura also included Orre [a type of magical energy]. There was no need to tell him.

“Look around, and if you see green scales, tell me.”

“Scales? We’re in the forest?”

“Yeah. That’s the trace of the race that travels around here. They’re called the Leaf race, and if you follow those scales, you can get to their residence.”

“Gasp! Are we going into an other race’s lair?”

“If we’re lucky.”

The Leaf race was one of the most docile races. As long as you don’t show aggression first, they would approach humans without hesitation.

“They’re very kind residents. Meeting them is also safer.”

They know the Ego better than anyone else. If they are the guardians of the forest, they could take us deep into the Ego.

“Hmm, I understand! But why does it have to be green scales? It’ll be hard to find with all the green grass.”

“That’s why I don’t know how long it’ll take. It could take days. You have a good eye, so let’s try to find it.”

“Okay.”

Drew clenched his fists and started searching right away.

‘Let’s sprinkle some of this too.’

I opened the subspace and took out a bundle.

[Oh ho. The Leaf race guys will like this.]

It was a cookie that Yoomo had packed. Other races rarely come out of the Ego, so they found outside food amazing.

I broke the cookie into small pieces and placed them on the broad leaves.

‘It’s not just today.’

We might encounter those who came out smelling the cookies. Or, the guy who ate the cookies overnight might have dropped scales.

All that was left was to roll our eyes diligently.

“Drew. Do you see anything?”

“No, not yet.”

We looked around together.

“But, are there no other races besides the Leaf race around here?”

“Yeah. The guys living in the Ego don’t come out to the entrance. They don’t want to encounter humans.”

It was similar to the reason why humans don’t live near the Ego.

“Instead, the Leaf race likes people quite a bit, so they sometimes come out to this area to watch humans… No, they observe.”

“I see. Unless we make a fuss here, we won’t meet other races?”

“Yeah. As long as we don’t go deep, it’s safe here…”

I was about to finish speaking when.

Flap! Flap!

A flock of birds flying from the other side of the forest.

“You bastards! Come out! I’ll kill you all!”

And a booming voice.

‘Haa. That crazy bastard.’

The man I met at the restaurant. Rakhun’s voice began to shake the quiet forest.