CHAPTER 196: D-RANK MISSION

"We will meet at the gate we came through at 6:30," Adam stated, his voice a low, commanding rumble that seemed to absorb the sounds of the forest.

"I will make this clear now. Neither team is to assist the other. Do not approach each other for any reason." He paused, letting his gaze drift into the shadowed depths between the trees.

"I have a feeling this forest plays games with the mind. There are traps here, things that hunt not just your body, but your thoughts."

Robin gave a single, almost imperceptible nod. He had felt it too, a subtle pressure against his consciousness, a whispering at the edge of his hearing that was not the wind.

Adam turned away from Void and Robin. His focus shifted to the remaining pair. "Kado," he said, his eyes locking onto the stern-faced boy, "you are this team’s attack force. You are the tip of the spear."

Then he looked at Ryan, whose face was a mixture of fear and determination. "And you, Ryan, will be the rear guard. Your job is research and analysis. Watch everything. Understand everything. Keep your team safe from what Kado doesn’t see."

With a smooth motion, Adam produced the last eight mission slips from his jacket. They were all F-rank, just like the others. He handed them to Kado. "I’m trusting you with these eight missions. They are mostly hunting assignments for low-level insects. The most dangerous target on this list is a Red Rabbit."

Kado took the slips without hesitation. His calloused fingers brushed against Adam’s as he accepted the responsibility. He scanned the parchment, his lips twitching into the barest hint of a smile. "Interesting missions," he murmured, more to himself than to anyone else. The simplicity of the targets was almost an insult, but the context—the bet, the forest, the stakes—made it a true challenge.

Ryan stepped forward, his posture straighter than it had been all day. "Eric," he said, still using the name he knew, "I will give one hundred percent to fulfill this responsibility."

Adam then addressed both newly formed teams. In his hand, he held two smooth, crimson stones that seemed to pulse with a faint, internal warmth. They were identical to the one he had received at the mission counter, yet there were clearly two of them. He had not gone back for another. He offered one to Void and the other to Kado. "These will help you for Mission Collection. Keep them on you at all times."

He offered no explanation for the second stone’s existence. There was no need. The implication was enough. Void took his with a curious glance, weighing it in his palm. Kado accepted his with a respectful nod, immediately securing it in a small pouch on his belt. The trust was absolute.

"Alright then," Adam said, a note of finality in his voice. "6:30. Be there."

Before another word could be spoken, Adam turned. There was no wasted motion. He pivoted on his heel and launched himself forward, a blur of motion that the eye could barely track. He was gone.

For a moment, the two teams stood in silence. Then, Kado looked at Ryan. "Let’s go." They turned in the opposite direction from where Adam had disappeared.

Void let out a low chuckle. He looked at Robin, who was adjusting his glasses, his eyes already scanning the shifting patterns of the trees. "Well, Glasses," Void said, "looks like it’s just you and me." He jerked his head to the side, and they too moved, taking a third path, vanishing into the distance.

Adam finally slowed, coming to a stop in a small clearing where the canopy was so thick that the light was a murky, green-tinged gray. He pulled three slips of parchment from his pocket.

These were different from the others. These were his missions. The ones he had saved for himself. Each slip described the same target: the Stone Mantis.

He read the details carefully, absorbing every word.

Target: Stone Mantis.

Rank: D.

Description: Lives a solitary existence under the trunks of ancient trees. Its primary characteristic is an outer carapace formed from a unique, stone-like substance. This substance is highly valued by adventurers and blacksmiths for its use in forging shields and reinforcing gear. Caution: Possesses incredible speed and a reclusive nature.

He committed the information to memory and tucked the mission slips back into his jacket. Then, he closed his eyes. The visual chaos of the forest faded away, replaced by a different kind of perception.

He pushed his own magical energy outwards, not in a destructive wave, but as a fine, invisible net. He cast it wide, letting it settle over the entire area, becoming an extension of his own senses.

The forest came alive in his mind. He could feel the low thrum of life from countless small, insect-type monsters scurrying through the undergrowth and in the hollows of trees.

He could sense the positions of his teammates, two distant pairs of warm signatures moving slowly but steadily through the woods. He noted their progress, then dismissed it. They were not his concern right now.

He was searching for something specific. He filtered out the background noise, the buzzing life of the forest, the thrum of his own team’s energy. He was looking for a particular signature. A single, distinct form. A creature the size of his hand, with a cool, gray aura and the potential for a sudden, explosive burst of speed.

He swept his senses back and forth, a predator searching for its prey. Seconds ticked by. The forest shifted around his physical body, but in his mind, his perception was a fixed point of absolute stillness. Then, he found it.

A tiny, dormant spark of energy. It was under the base of a massive tree trunk, not far from his current position. It was perfectly still, almost perfectly camouflaged, but he could feel the coiled power within it.

Adam’s eyes snapped open. He looked in the direction of the signature and saw the tree. It was a goliath, a behemoth of wood and bark easily twice his own height and many times his width. Its roots were like thick, gnarled claws digging into the rich earth.

He moved without a sound, closing the distance in a few swift strides. He stood before the great tree, a silent observer. A fleeting thought crossed his mind. If these trees are constantly moving, how does this creature stay under this specific one? How does it maintain a home in a world without fixed locations? He pushed the thought aside. It was an interesting question, but it was not important. The mission was important.

His presence had not gone unnoticed. As he stood there, a small, triangular head poked out from the dark space where a massive root met the trunk. Two multifaceted, black eyes fixed on him. The Stone Mantis. It was exactly as described, its head and armored thorax a dull, granite gray that blended perfectly with the bark and shadows. It watched him, its antennae twitching, sensing the air.

Adam recognized the moment. The creature knew he was here. He prepared to move, his muscles coiling.

Before he could even take a breath to act, the Stone Mantis vanished. It was not a blur of movement. It was simply there, and then it was not. Adam’s eyes widened in genuine surprise. He caught a flicker of motion fifty feet away—a gray streak darting through the undergrowth with a speed that was almost unbelievable. It was fleeing.

He stood perfectly still, watching it disappear. He did not give chase. An unpleasant sense of familiarity washed over him. The man-eating plants. When he had prepared to fight them seriously, they had recoiled and fled. Now, this creature had done the same thing, escaping before a fight could even begin.

A cold realization settled in his mind. It wasn’t just his skill or his killing intent. It was something more fundamental. His magical energy. The immense power he was constantly suppressing was still leaking from Eric’s body like radiation. The magical beasts of this forest, honed by instinct and a world of constant danger, could sense it.

They could see the catastrophic difference in power. They knew he was a predator on a level they could not comprehend. And so, the moment they saw him, the moment they felt his presence, they ran. They ran for their lives. His very being was a warning siren that was scaring his prey away.