Chapter 310: Panic

“Where is this?”

Liya opened her eyes but did not see the familiar blue sky, pure white clouds, or the crimson-orange sun.

A field of deep green.

Atop gigantic, crisscrossing branches, countless broad leaves—grown dense in their scramble for the meager sunlight—stretched upward and blocked out every ray.

Towering trees loomed like giants, looking down upon the tiny ants at their feet.

All around was dim, stifling, humid, and utterly windless.

“Is... anyone there?”

Liya felt a little dizzy. Propping herself up on roots that climbed like giant pythons, she tested the air with a call.

“...”

No one answered.

Only a shrill wail or two echoed from deep within the jungle—beastlike, yet also like wronged souls unable to find rest.

In this sweltering heat where even her pores struggled to sweat, Liya couldn’t help but shiver hard. Her wandering eyes swept the surroundings, and a mist of tears welled up of its own accord.

“Ai... Ariel?”

In fear, Liya instinctively called the person closest to her.

Of course... no answer would come.

“R-right, I need to contact Ariel first. She’ll come find me. In a situation like this, Ariel will definitely come.”

As if she’d thought of something, Liya fumbled at her waist in a panic—but as her searching hands moved, they suddenly froze.

“Eh?”

“Eh—eh?”

“W-why?”

“Where is... my spatial magitech device?”

Liya’s head rang. The spatial device that had been at her waist—holding her message stone and other things—had now... vanished.

“Could it be... during that space magic earlier...”

After a brief spell of confusion, memory began to return. Liya finally remembered where this was and why she’d come here.

“This... is the Forest of Deathbane, isn’t it.”

“In other words, what happened earlier wasn’t a dream. I was teleported here by space magic and, because the space magic was maliciously muddled, the spatial device got lost along with me?”

“This is... trouble.”

No—“trouble” no longer covered it.

The legendary Forest of Deathbane was said to lack powerful magic beasts, yet because of the aura overflow from that Calamity, some truly terrifying things still existed within.

And she was this weak—falling into it was no different than a little white rabbit tumbling into a wolf pack.

“W-what do I do? Is this already a dead end?”

“If only Ariel were here... she’d definitely think of a way to escape...”

“But me... alone... I can’t do anything.”

“Uuu... why did it turn out like this?”

Liya slowly crouched down again, hugging her knees, sinking into confusion.

Right—why did it turn out like this?

At that time, that already-damaged space spell shouldn’t have been able to cover her.

Yes—if she had chosen to stand by, nothing would have happened, and she wouldn’t be in this terrifying forest facing an insurmountable dead end.

But when that figure filled her eyes—Muen Campbell about to be engulfed—when she sensed that thread of annihilation within the space spell...

She couldn’t help but strike out, even using her strongest protection—Holy Light Aegis—which could only be triggered by using herself as the medium to rouse sacred light.

Why? Her most important task was to go to the Holy City and attend the Rite of Muen—so why choose to court complications now?

Could it be...

“Right, I’m a candidate Saintess. Faced with that, how could I possibly stand by?”

Liya clenched her fists, convinced:

“I just didn’t want anyone to die. It had nothing to do with who it was. No matter who it was in that moment, I would have done the same!”

Yes—this was the basic cultivation of a Saintess candidate. If she chose to ignore such a situation, she wasn’t fit to compete for the future Saintess’s seat.

Yes, it had to be that.

“Speaking of which, where is that guy?”

Thinking of what happened earlier, a blond figure surfaced in Liya’s mind and refused to fade.

“Logically, he should’ve been teleported into this forest too.”

Liya raised her head and scanned the area again, but aside from the massive, dense trees, there was nothing.

“Was he teleported somewhere else? Should I go look for him?”

“But even if I go... with just me...”

Liya fell into indecision.

After a long think, just as she finally made up her mind to muster some courage and at least scout the surroundings for now, the tangled, waterfall-like curtain of vines not far away began to shake and rustle.

The forest was still utterly still. Not the slightest breeze.

Which meant... something was coming.

Liya’s eyes widened a fraction; her heart climbed into her throat.

What do I do, what do I do—danger is coming this fast, and I’m not prepared for anything...

Anyway, hide first, hide...

In a fluster, Liya looked around for a place to hide—but she stepped into air by mistake and landed hard on her rear.

Hiss—th... huh? It doesn’t hurt?

Startled, she looked down and realized she wasn’t sitting on cold, muddy ground, but on a simple bed neatly spread with leaves.

It had been laid with great care—layer upon layer of thick leaves, soft and clean. Otherwise, in a place this damp, she would have felt uncomfortable already.

But she’d only just woken—who laid these leaves?

“You’re awake?”

Just then, a familiar, gentle voice came. The dense vines were pried aside by a strong hand, and a figure stepped out. Short golden hair stood out even ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ in the dim jungle, like a newborn dawn.

“I-it’s... you...”

Seeing it was Muen, Liya stiffened slightly, then patted the swell of her chest and let out a breath.

For some reason, just watching this person appear dispelled much of the fear in her heart, even though the dire situation hadn’t changed in the slightest.

“If not me, who else?”

Muen carried an armful of brightly colored wild fruits. He came close and set them down on the leaf bedding already laid out, then looked up at Liya, rubbing his chin.

“I meant to ask—what is that pose? Some new kind of training?”

“?”

Liya cocked her little head in confusion and glanced down blankly.

She discovered she was still in the posture of having fallen—legs spread, looking a tad improper.

“P... pervert!”

Liya’s face flushed scarlet in a swipe. She hurried to cover her long legs with her gown and curled up, turning her head away.

“So spirited—looks like your body’s fine.”

Muen chuckled, picked up a wild fruit and gave it a shake.

“Want some?”

“N... not hungry.”

Gurgle...

Her stomach’s protest sounded especially clear in the quiet woods.

“...Maybe eat a little anyway.”

Muen blinked, took the first bite himself, and sweet fragrance spread. Speaking around the mouthful, he mumbled:

“See? Not poisoned.”

“...”

The girl still didn’t answer; the blush spread all the way down her neck, and she curled herself even tighter.

Like a little hedgehog hugging itself—a sight impossibly cute.