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The creature’s dark, unfocused eyes shed tears, its eerie gaze fixed ahead.

Damian looked at it, bewildered.

At that moment—

—Kill…me.

The voice echoed once more.

There was no doubt; it was the voice of the creature.

Damian’s mind grew more muddled.

He couldn’t understand why this unidentified creature was begging for death.

Gritting his teeth, Damian bit his lip.

‘You were planning to do it anyway.’

However, the creature’s seemingly tragic appearance made him pause.

“…I’ll end this in one blow, as painlessly as possible.”

He didn’t know the full story.

But the fact that it retained some consciousness even while corrupted by dark energy meant one thing:

‘This is no ordinary being.’

Damian gathered his mana.

Wooom! Wooom!

He drew all the mana from his mana core, infusing it into his spear as he lowered his stance.

The spear in Damian’s hand began to glow with a soft blue light, radiating an immense aura.

“What… is that?”

“What’s going on…?”

Dianal and Kyle swallowed nervously as they watched.

It was their first time seeing Damian unleash his full power.

“Was that guy always this strong?”

“…We’re standing this far away, and it still makes my skin crawl.”

Dianal and Kyle didn’t know much about mana techniques, only that they existed.

But that didn’t mean they couldn’t feel Damian’s overwhelming presence, even from a distance.

Damian set his eyes on the tree-like monster in front of him.

It seemed to have succumbed to the dark energy again.

“Screeee!”

With a shriek, the creature created long spears in both hands and charged at Damian.

It was threatened by the fierce aura Damian exuded.

Whoosh!

Damian calmly suppressed his mana as he watched the charging monster.

Then.

With a firm step on the ground, Damian’s eyes blazed as he launched himself toward the creature.

“Screeee!”

The tree monster’s attack extended in a straight line.

Damian sidestepped effortlessly, dodging the attack, and then—

Boom!

He stomped hard on the ground.

“One strike.”

He put everything into this blow.

For a brief moment, memories of the past flickered through Damian’s mind.

When he had killed that monstrous enemy knight, it was just like this…

‘It’s been a while.’

This feeling.

“Pierce.”

There was no grand name for it.

Damian’s subordinates often said it looked like a dragon’s breath shooting out.

As Damian’s spear thrust forward—

Crunch!

A gaping hole appeared in the chest of the tree monster.

Thud…

The creature took a few steps forward, staggering.

Slowly, the tree monster, still standing upright, turned its head toward Damian.

Its lips moved as if trying to say something.

The creature’s pitch-black eyes began to return to their original color.

Flash!

In an instant, the tree monster turned into green smoke and dissipated.

Dianal and Kyle gasped in astonishment at the sight.

“What the…?”

“What’s that?!”

It was a mysterious light they had never seen before.

The green light rising toward the sky looked like a fairy’s wings fluttering or the spirit of the forest dispersing.

“…Ah.”

Diel let out a soft gasp as she watched the light.

However, the green light that had floated into the sky soon condensed, forming a small, round shape.

The orb of light then slowly drifted toward Damian.

—Thank you, young one, for freeing me from the dark energy.

“…Who are you?”

Damian asked, hearing the voice echo in his head.

The green light flickered and replied.

—I am of the Great Forest Clan. However, this place… Having once been tainted by dark energy, I can no longer remain here.

A voice tinged with sorrow.

It carried the sadness of an exile who had lost their homeland.

—Young one of great strength, may I ask a favor, though it may be shameless?

“A favor? What kind of favor?”

—Guide me to a forest brimming with vitality. If you send me there, I shall repay your kindness.

“A forest full of vitality…”

Damian pressed his lips together.

He couldn’t leave this place just yet.

However,

‘The Forest Clan…’

He thought he had heard of them before.

Many strange tales had circulated on the battlefields where Damian had been.

Among them were stories that sounded like they came straight out of a fairy tale.

The Forest Clan was one such tale.

‘When people think of the Forest Clan, they usually think of elves…’

But this creature didn’t look like an elf. If not, then…

“…Are you a Clonyrind?”

—You know of our clan?

“I’ve only heard about it.”

Clonyrind.

A term from ancient language, referring to those blessed by the forest.

They were beings who resembled trees and loved the forest more than anything, living for its prosperity.

Perhaps the reason Bronselian Forest was rich in herbs and elixir ingredients was because of them.

They were mysterious beings, almost like fairies… Who would have thought he’d encounter one like this?

‘I never thought the random stories that guy shared would actually come in handy.’

For a moment, Damian recalled the face of someone who used to chatter endlessly.

They would meet again someday.

Recalling the memories, Damian looked at the Clonyrind before him and spoke.

“What’s your name?”

—Bard.

“Alright, Bard. But I’m sorry, I can’t fulfill your request right away.”

—It’s fine. As long as it’s before the end of your lifespan, it won’t matter when.

For Clonyrinds, whose lifespan differs vastly from humans, one or two years would feel like just a few days.

Damian nodded.

“So, what should I do with you? You’re quite noticeable right now.”

—Don’t worry. I’ll stay within you. And…

“…?”

Before finishing his sentence, Bard seeped into Damian’s body.

Ssssshh.

As Bard entered Damian’s body—

Thump!

Damian’s heart suddenly started pounding rapidly, and his expression hardened.

The sudden change left Damian speechless.

Flash!

“What, what’s going on?!”

“What now?!”

Kyle shouted.

Green light burst from Damian’s body, lifting him into the air.

Crack! Crackle!

Damian’s body twitched and emitted strange bone sounds as it floated.

Misaligned bones snapped back into place, and the accumulated impurities in his body were expelled.

Another reconstruction of his body.

Damian’s eyes shook with the unexpected transformation.

‘What is this…?’

—A small token of my gratitude, human. When you eventually reach a forest full of vitality, call my name with intention. For now, I’ve exhausted much of my strength and need some rest.

Bard’s voice echoed in Damian’s mind.

Damian’s body slowly descended to the ground.

He clenched and unclenched his fists lightly.

He felt considerably lighter.

But more than that, he noticed something else distinctly.

“…My mana.”

The mana flowing inside him was now moving freely and naturally.

The movement of the mana, precisely as he imagined it.

‘Could it be…?’

Woooom!

A long, blue spear formed in Damian’s hand.

A spear made purely of mana.

It soon faded and disappeared.

Damian’s eyes widened.

What he had just witnessed.

“A mana… blade?”

Or in Damian’s case, it was more accurate to call it a mana spear.

A supreme technique where one creates weapons purely from mana.

If he could take this further, Damian would reach the level he truly aspired to.

He might even be able to use ‘Aura.’

The power only those chosen could wield.

Damian felt as though he had taken one step closer to that realm.

“…Isn’t this what they call a fortuitous encounter?”

“Damian!”

“Hey, you!”

As Damian murmured to himself, Dianal and Kyle ran over to him.

When Diel joined them, Damian looked at the three and said,

“It seems something big has happened.”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“You don’t seem hurt?”

“W-what do you mean by that?”

Dianal, Kyle, and Diel couldn’t hide their astonished expressions.

But Damian shook his head.

“I think I’ve gotten stronger.”

“…What did you say?”

“Huh?”

“…What?”

The three looked at him, unable to contain their surprise.

But Damian simply smiled broadly as he looked at them.

* * *

Time passed swiftly.

Before long, Damian turned 14.

It had already been ten months since the Hamel Trading Company arrived in Erkal.

Many things had happened during that time.

Though none of it involved the Neokalitz unit.

The events had occurred elsewhere.

“…Sigh. Another trading company is entering.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Aren’t you worried, Lady Diel?”

Brant, who was in charge of the Hamel Trading Company, sighed at the arrival of yet another trading company in Erkal.

“Didn’t we have an exclusive deal for a year?”

“It was an exclusive contract granted by a provincial baron. If a higher noble intervenes, it’s only natural that it would crumble.”

Around six months in, the Bronselian Forest gained immense fame throughout the kingdom.

The elixirs produced by the Hamel Trading Company had become extremely popular among high-ranking nobles.

However, since the supply was limited, it couldn’t fully satisfy all the nobles.

“I didn’t think they would interfere like this. That Red Dragon Claw or whatever it’s called must be something exceptional.”

“That was Damian’s idea. I don’t know where he finds these things. Phew!”

Diel tied a bundle tightly and wiped the sweat from her forehead.

“But don’t worry, Brant. Even if those companies establish themselves here, it will take them months just to find herb gatherers.”

Diel had already anticipated the collapse of their exclusive contract.

Therefore, she had secured contracts not only with the herb gatherers in Erkal but also those in nearby cities and villages.

The contract fee alone was 10 gold coins.

An amount equivalent to nearly half a year’s work, paid upfront.

To cancel the contract, they’d have to pay a penalty ten times the contract fee.

It was an amount that ordinary herb gatherers couldn’t afford.

“Most of them have already extended their contracts for another year. So let’s not worry too much and focus on our work.”

Diel smiled at Brant and walked off somewhere.

Today was the day he was coming.

“Oh, Lady Diel!”

“Sir Damian!”

Diel waved back at Damian, who was approaching from afar.

As Damian arrived, Diel spoke.

“This trade was another big success.”

“You’ve been working hard. By the way, there seem to be many trading companies coming into Erkal lately, right?”

“It’s unavoidable. I heard that count-level nobles are putting a lot of pressure.”

“I thought we’d be fine for at least a year, but it’s a bit disappointing.”

“Don’t worry. We’ve already secured contracts with all the herb gatherers. It will take those companies at least a few months to start their operations.”

“As expected. Honestly, I wasn’t too worried.”

Damian’s playful smile made Diel grin.

“But… is that news true?”

“I was going to talk about that today.”

Damian’s expression hardened slightly at Diel’s question.

Finally, Damian spoke.

“It looks like I’ll be leaving Erkal soon.”