Ignoring Thrall's overreaction upon meeting us and Sword Demon's deliberately sour face, we briefly introduced ourselves and continued on our way.
Fortunately, perhaps because the sword demon had cleaned the surrounding area exceptionally well beforehand, even after staying in this area for quite some time, they still didn't detect much hidden danger from the shadows nearby.
The carrion birds that had been circling nearby landed quietly away from the main group, without causing any trouble. The blood that rippled backward with the waves did not attract any more giant crocodiles.
The surroundings were so quiet it was almost like a lie.
To save time, we proceeded along the cleared path for a while, avoiding areas corroded and blackened by the poisonous blood. To save time, we no longer chose to travel along the wetland boundary, but instead switched between traversing the wetland and breaking through the tree walls, making the most direct and rapid march possible.
Of course, the reason for making such a decision was partly due to efficiency, and partly because a guy who had just joined was acting on his own, saying that he didn't want to take detours and that whatever came his way would be cut down by him.
Indeed, it was just as he said, after all, the Dragon Slayer Sword was in his hands.
Is that a tree ahead? Cut it down.
There are rocks ahead? Cut them down.
A large monster suddenly appears? Should I kill it?
Looking back, all that remained was a scene of carnage, with corpses strewn everywhere.
It's like slicing a vertical line into an exquisitely decorated cake with a sharp blade, completely disregarding the damage it will do to its delicate appearance, cutting it from one end to the other without any pity... even though this forest wasn't exactly well-maintained either.
Now, not only Sal, who had barely regained his senses, looked back at the neat gap that had suddenly appeared behind him with a gloomy expression, but even Sheng, who was standing next to him, couldn't help but want to cover his face and sigh.
"Ah, the woods have been..."
Hmm, I have a feeling that the Sword Demon's goal is completely ruined.
It perfectly showcases the social nature of the lone wolf.
We could only pat Sal on the back gently: "At least now your safety on the way back is guaranteed."
Tears flowed freely as she looked around, wiping her face and nodding. Even while crying, she maintained her most beautiful appearance; truly worthy of being the legendary most beautiful elf.
Of course, this is not something we need to worry about.
After finally setting aside all other distractions, the spirits, eager to get home, thoughtfully corrected their course several times and took turns traveling for a while. Finally, we, who were walking in the lead, heard some strange noises coming from the other side.
It sounded like the whistling wind, or like the subtle noises of leaves rubbing against each other as branches sway.
"etc."
The Shadow Butterfly, who had been keeping a close eye on the surroundings, immediately jumped out and, under the apprehensive gazes of the rest of the team, placed its hand directly on the slightly trembling sword.
I'm really worried that a crazy person who gets carried away with the hacking might just start a fight.
Fortunately, this did not lead to a further tragedy.
With immense control, he fixed his hand movements, glanced at the Shadow Butterfly who was truly listening intently to the sounds around him, and remained silent for a moment. He allowed his slightly bulging muscles to subside, gradually loosening the force applied to the hilt of his sword, and the tip of the sword pointed diagonally towards the ground.
This is not a sign of retreat, but rather a wait for a reasonable explanation.
Having finally confirmed its presence, the Shadow Butterfly nodded slightly, then turned slightly to look in this direction, its gaze subtly glancing towards the top of a nearby tree canopy. The senses, which had been closely following the past, instantly projected in the corresponding direction, capturing and anchoring the two shadows that were trying to quickly move away.
“Sarl”.
Sheng turned and called over the elf who was chatting with his people. Soon, the elf came running over with a confused look on his face.
"When did you leave, and when will the support team arrive?" I asked.
Sal looked completely bewildered: "Didn't I already say that once before...?"
"It's okay to double-check."
"Alright, alright, we're the ones who need your help."
Thrall shrugged. "Well, to put it simply, we left the settlement at dawn, and it's just past sunrise now. Logically, this should be the time we usually gather and hunt in the area. The forest rangers, while supposedly responsible for welcoming our people leaving the settlement, are primarily responsible for guarding the area around the settlement to prevent dangerous creatures from infiltrating. They also rotate shifts regularly to avoid overwork..."
"If we're talking about deployment, I've only seen them deployed once in my entire life."
He paused for a moment, looking up at the small patch of sky peeking through the trees: "It seems like someone's child got lost in the woods while playing, and we sent a lot of people into the forest to search for them. If I remember correctly, it was around sunset, wasn't it?"
"Gui Xia" likely refers to the time of evening.
Even though much time has passed since we set off, it's only a little past noon, shortly after the scorching sun that Thrall mentioned. It's clearly not the time for those forest rangers to be dispatched.
Could it be that something unexpected happened in the elven settlement, or that other small teams that also entered this dungeon did something irrational to these overly protective guys?
Could it be that the Sword Demon made too much noise along the way, which alerted the other side?
Turning around, the other team members, who had also sensed something unusual, were on high alert. Only the Sword Demon, standing at the forefront, remained calm and collected. The Dragon Slayer Sword, which had been pointing diagonally at the ground, had been flicked away, the juices on it wiped off, and it was casually sheathed. The Sword Demon himself even nonchalantly put his hands into his pockets.
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