Chapter 304: The Two Left Behind
A Wyvern appeared, and their guide, Libery, had vanished.
For a moment, Rest stood there, dazed… but he couldn’t remain like this forever. After a brief pause, he shook his head to clear his thoughts.
“Well, now that we’re this far, we should be fine without a guide. Yeah.”
They had already reached the mountainside, and Rest had begun to understand the terrain. It would take time, but as long as he proceeded cautiously and maintained a safe margin, the dangers shouldn’t be too great.
“From here on, let’s proceed with extra caution… If I sense even the slightest hint of danger, we’ll turn back.”
“Sure, I’m fine with that. Still… that Wyvern was massive.”
Yuri nodded, her brows slightly furrowing.
“The Wyvern we just encountered… I regret letting it escape. We should have taken it down right then and there.”
“Absolutely… I couldn’t agree more.”
In the face of the sudden attack, they had prioritized defense. If they had defeated the Wyvern back there, they could have returned home with a bounty.
“Well, what’s done is done. Let’s focus on Life Search from here on out.”
Rest concentrated his nerves, expanding the range of Life Search. Ten meters, twenty meters, thirty meters—his perception widened, and multiple presences flooded into his mind. The broader he spread Life Search, the greater the burden on his brain became. No matter how much Magical Power he possessed, this was unavoidable.
He didn’t want to extend his range too far, but considering the speed of the Wyvern they had just seen, it was safer to keep it wide.
(There are many signs of wildlife… I’ll filter out presences with low Magical Power and focus solely on the stronger monsters…)
He discarded unnecessary information, selectively honing in on what was essential. Reducing the burden on his mind, Rest finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Alright… let’s move.”
“Yeah, let’s go… Rest, your walking seems a bit wobbly, doesn’t it?”
As the two resumed their ascent, Yuri looked at Rest with a puzzled expression due to his unusually slow pace.
“It can’t be helped. I’m using too much focus to sense the monster’s presence, so I can’t pay attention to my feet.”
It was a classic case of capacity overload. By concentrating too much on detecting the monsters, his ability to walk was compromised. On flat ground, it might have been manageable, but traversing uneven terrain was proving difficult. If he didn’t slow down, he would likely stumble and roll down the mountain.
“Oh, I see, I see. That makes sense.”
After hearing Rest’s explanation, Yuri clasped her hands together in understanding. Then, she pulled Rest close and lifted him up in a Princess Carry.
“Then let me carry you! Leave it to me!”
“That’s a relief, but… could you at least think about how you’re carrying me?”
It felt a bit humiliating to be carried this way by a woman who was smaller and slimmer than him, even though he had experienced something similar before.
“Alright, here we go! Just think of it as riding a mud boat!”
“Wait, a mud boat isn’t exactly reassuring… Whoa!?”
“Alright, let’s go!”
Yuri took off running, holding Rest in her arms. She dashed up the mountainside at breakneck speed, rapidly gaining altitude.
“Whoa, take it easy… Aaaaaah!?”
The speed and wind pressure felt like riding a roller coaster, and Rest couldn’t help but scream. Despite hearing his cries, Yuri didn’t slow down, sprinting up the slope as if she were unburdened by the weight she carried.
“Aaaaaah!?”
Even so… he was proud of himself for not deactivating Life Search. After a few encounters with monsters along the way, Rest and Yuri somehow managed to reach near the summit.