The sweet juice of the fruit dripped down my chin as I eat it whole. My body felt strangely energized, a pleasant warmth spreade through my limbs. The mir stone had done its work quite well quickly my movements felt more fluid and my balance was much better than before, but not by much. It was okay okay, more precisely, I was satisfied with it.
"You're making quite a mess," Jaipa said while , flying near my shoulder.
I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. "Food is food. In this world, I need to take what I can get "
Standing up, I noticed the difference immediately. The agility stone that I had eaten had changed something fundamental in my movements. Each step felt lighter, more controlled…
"We should collect more of these fruits," I said, looking up at the big tree before me. "I can eat them later on "
Jaipa nodded reluctantly. "Yes, but we shouldn't linger here for too long. The smell of blood on your body might attract unwanted attention"
What he was saying was indeed correct if i stay hear for too long then, i will definitely get engage in another fight
I pulled off my outer garment and fashioned it into a makeshift sack, collecting as many fruits as I could fit. Their pink skin with red patches reminded me of something… What was it? I tried to remember, but I couldn't.
Then i said "Let's head back to the cave," securing my fruit-filled bundle.
Flying wasn't an option for me because it could attract much more attention than walking in the forest. But I had an exception; I was able to float in the air without flapping my wings. So, I lifted myself just enough to reach the group again in seconds
As I started to move… after a while of floating, I came across the Shadowmancer's fallen body the one I had killed before. How could I forget? It was one of the hardest things I had ever done in my life
Now, the fallen Shadowmancer's body was left with only large bones. Not even a little bit of flesh remained all of the flyhum were gone, leaving only bones behind. I told Jaipa to go ahead and take a look.
On my command, Jaipa whined and headed forward. After a while, he came back with a flat face, saying,
"All safe… you can come ahead."
I moved forward, looking at the bones of the Shadowmancer, passing them without exactly approaching them. A few trees ahead, I stood in the same place I had when I first came here for the second time.
Looking at the sea ahead of me, I bent down and took a few sips of water. After drinking, my whole body felt refreshed not completely, but at ease. Haa, I could say that…
Taking a long breath, I looked up at the sky The lonely sun staring back at me Then, I shifted my gaze to the Skull Waterfall nearby. I had been curious about it since the moment I saw it.
I flew toward it flying was the most efficient way to move in this world. I didn't even exhaust myself that much. If I didn't have wings, I would have had to climb that skull and swim in the water to get there at first, sprouting wings was painful i could say it was one of the most painful moments of my life.
As I got close to the skull, I realized how massive it was at least 20 to 30 meters long and wide, maybe 10 to 50 meters high. As I approached, all I could see was grass and short trees, vines covering the skull entirely.
After landing on the skull, I looked around, then at Jaipa, who was flying beside me. The massive skull was even more impressive up close, with vegetation reclaiming it like nature's slow victory over death. Thick vines snaked through empty eye sockets, and small trees had taken root in crevices where the bone had cracked and weathered over time.
"What kind of creature was this?" I asked, running my hand along the smooth, yellowed surface.
"This must be a creature from Titan of the Hollow Peak of the Forest of Absolute."
"Titan of the Hollow Peak?"
"Uhh, you'll come to know about it anyway…"
"Forest of Absolute?" I asked
Looking at Jaipa's expression, I could tell it was a serious matter.
"What about it?"
"Right now, we are on the edge of the Forest of Absolute…"
What?
After hearing what he just said that simple word was meant to fall out of my mouth,
"What do you mean by that…?" My voice held an unknown desperation. Was it fear? "And Why are you telling me this now?"
Jaipa's voice held a serious tone now "What would you have done if I told you this earlier?"
"Oh? Were you going to try running from it?"
"Shouldn't we at least try to do that?"
"Like I said before, you are a resource of this Forest of Absolute now"
"What do you mean by resource?"
"Look here… who do you think you're wandering around this forest like it's your playground?"
"So what? Should I have died in the cave, trapped forever from the fear of dying?"
"Even then, wandering around like this is just"
"You shouldn't talk about that… You were mocking me around until now, and now you express concern about wandering around?"
"Aren't you just two-faced…?"
"He he look who's saying the word 'two faced.'"
"Do you even look at yourself?"
"I've had enough of this," I raised my voice a little and said, "Could you just shut up and explain what you were saying earlier?"
It wasn't like I was angry or anything.
"Any more talking will eventually lead to wasting my energy…"
After a silence, Jaipa kept glaring at me for a while. Then, I looked around, trying to find something—anything of use. Even a little container would satisfy me. When I was getting serious about searching, Jaipa suddenly spoke.
"The Forest of Absolute… is divided into seven regions."
I was shocked, but not quite I didn't want to ask unnecessary questions and extend this conversation.
He continued in the same serious tone
There are seven region first one is
Lava Region , After that
Desert Region
Forest Region
Sky Region
Peak's Region
Snow Region
And the last, and least…
The Absolute Region
"As you've guessed, right now, we are in the Forest Region."
"And the thing you're standing on is from the Peaks Region."
Now, I could feel the thick air around us. Looking at the skull beneath me, I tightened my grip on the makeshift sack of fruits, their sticky sweetness still clinging to my fingers.
"So this… resource thing," I said, kicking a loose bone fragment into the skull's shadow. "What does that even mean? Am I…?"
Jaipa interrupted before I could finish my words.
"Resource means you're like a slave… or now you belong to someone else "
"When you got 'The Mark of Claim' that day, you became a slave of the Forest of Absolute."