Chapter 1258: Black Root (Part 1)

Usually, it was Adam who delivered the final blow. This was not surprising, since most of his opponents fought him and no one else.

Sure, with the Plague Reaper, the situation was not so simple, since Katrin was the one who delivered the final blow. But even she admitted that it was a last-ditch move on her part, made possible only by Adam’s prolonged resistance.

With the Red Bloom, everything was different.

Under the gaze of the monsters and Adam, she burned in green flames. There was no hint of pity in Garrah’s amber eyes, though he felt no cruelty toward her either. She shouldn’t have been there, and Garrah was doing his duty to the monsters of the forest.

He saved his home and contributed no less, and perhaps even more, to the victory than Adam.

“Garrah…” Adam muttered inwardly. “His attack had passed, it had practically killed the Red Bloom. Everything that happened next was inevitable. None of her attempts could make Garrah change his mind.”

Although Adam was confident that in a one-on-one fight, he would defeat Garrah, he gradually realized that it would be very difficult. He still had no doubts about the outcome, but the question was how many resources he would need for that.

‘Only if I use all my trump cards could I defeat him. Hah, if the Red Bloom didn’t know how to create such complex barriers, Garrah and the others would have dealt with her long ago.’

The Red Bloom didn’t have the strength to resist; it seemed she didn’t even feel the pain as she disappeared in the green flames.

As Garrah had said, only ashes remained in her place, with a few unusual red particles.

Silence.

No one said anything, allowing the wind to scatter the Red Bloom’s ashes throughout the dark forest. Every speck of those ashes was more valuable than the massive energy crystals growing at the far edges of the Dead Lands.

Still, no one chased after the ashes to absorb them. Everyone understood that this was a reward not for them, but for the forest, which had been under attack by the stranger for so long.

Even the Dark Blobs remained silent, watching with wide eyes as the gray and red particles covered the forest.

“Gha…” Garrah took a deep breath before looking at Adam. “It looks like this is the end. The Red Bloom made the wrong choice, and she fell, which means her barriers fell too.”

Crack. Crack. Crack.

At the same moment, cracks appeared in the transparent walls in the distance, causing the great barriers to shatter into myriad fragments.

Rays of light made them look like tiny stars slowly descending to the ground. Even a small fragment retained energy, becoming an additional aid for the forest to restore itself to its former glory.

Adam’s gaze was immediately drawn to the glow on the west side—emanating from the Glass Bridge.

Step. Step. Step.

With slow steps, Garrah approached Adam and bowed slightly in respect.

Strangely enough, Adam decided to do the same. This was rare for him.

He didn’t feel he had contributed enough to deserve anyone’s gratitude. The victory over the Red Bloom was a joint achievement.

“What are you planning to do now, Adam?” Garrah asked.

Adam nodded toward the bridge.

“The Glass Bridge and then the Forgotten Mills. You know my plan. I don’t know if it’s good or bad, but I ended up in this forest and I don’t regret it. The Red Bloom has finally met her match.”

Garrah nodded deeply, looking at the red petals scattered on the ground.

“You shouldn’t rush.”

“Hmm?” Adam gave him a questioning look.

Tap.

Suddenly, Garrah’s palm slammed into his chest. There was no malice in his movements, so the impact threw Adam sideways as he fell into the nearest bush.

“See? That ability you used was new to you. It was obvious. You used more energy than you should have, so it’s no surprise you didn’t notice my simple movement.”

Adam got up from the ground, dusting himself off.

“The Glass Bridge, do I have anything to worry about there?”

In response, Garrah nodded.

“Sure, it’s one of the main passages in these lands to more dangerous territories. Since you want to get to the Forgotten Mills, you should know that their lands intersect with the Renegades’ territories. I don’t know what your goal is, but you shouldn’t go to such places when you’re tired.”

“What do you think?” Adam asked mentally.

Silvana nodded. “I don’t see anything wrong with taking time to recover. Moreover, I doubt that anything threatens you in the dark forest.”

“Good. In that case, let’s build a victory bonfire and have a feast!” Adam exclaimed vigorously, raising his fist in the air.

Garrah smiled, like an old man watching the passionate younger generation, remembering his own days long ago.

…

That same evening, the feast began, just as Adam had said. It was different from the one at the Fallen Ring Castle, and unfortunately for Adam, there was no meat among the food.

Various fruits, both sweet and sour, lay on large leaves like plates, and everyone could take as much as they wanted.

Many fruits tasted better when cooked over a fire, and this time, Adam made sure to stay away from the Dark Blobs.

He left that task to the Thorn Hunter.

“Food! Food! We want to eat!”

“We won! We deserve it!”

“Yes! Hurry up! Otherwise, we’ll eat you!”

Garrah sat next to Adam, slowly eating a fruit that looked like a grape, only curved in shape and green-purple in color.

“You avoid the Dark Blobs like the plague. Do they annoy you that much?” Garrah chuckled. He knew that everyone reacted that way to the Dark Blobs.

“Pffft, are you saying you got used to these little demons right away?” Adam snorted.

“Of course not. It took me a long time.”

Adam tasted the grapes and pointed toward the Glass Bridge.

“Go on, there are guards there, right?”

After a few moments, Garrah nodded.

“Yes, but you only need to worry about one thing — the beast.”