It was definitely the rest section, so the team atmosphere was full of energy that had never been seen before. The guild members, who settled near the river where the blue water flowed, rested and seemed happy as if they had come on a trip.
“Yi-gyeol-ssi! They’re making curry over there. Let’s go eat together!”
“Curry? In here?”
“Yes. Because there’s water here. It’s been a while since we’ve eaten properly. Let’s take this opportunity to eat!”
…I didn’t expect you to enjoy this so much. I took a step back and said to Min Ah-rin, who was about to drag me right away, “Alright, you go first. I’ll find Kim Woo-jin and go with you.”
“Okay. If you're late, there’ll be nothing to eat, so come quickly!”
As if Min Ah-rin’s words were true, the delicious smell wafted over here. Min Ah-rin, who hadn't had a proper meal in four days, was so excited that she urged me to come too.
“Don’t worry. I’ll be right there.”
But I won’t go.
After sending Min Ah-rin off with a smile, I entered the forest in the midst of the energetic atmosphere. Unlike the riverside, the inside of the forest was full of large trees and was heavy and humid.
‘It would be better to look for it from above.’
It would be much faster to find it by flying than from under the bulging roots that were the size of an adult male’s thigh. I floated my body up with my abilities and thought of the items I had to get.
First, the wings of the ‘sapphire-tailed butterfly’ (사파이어 꼬리나비), an insect that could only be found in the Rest section.
It was called sapphire-tailed because it had a similar colour to a sapphire gem. This butterfly had wings that were a beautiful mix of blue and purple. It was an insect that no one paid any attention to because it was simply pretty—nothing else special about it.
Second, the horn-shaped branch of the ‘bluish bighorn tree’ (큰뿔푸르스름나무) that grew only in a forest gate or the Rest section.
This tree was engraved with a unique pattern that was not commonly seen elsewhere. It was a tree that grew only in a forest gate or the Rest section, but what I needed was a horn branch obtained from an A or higher grade gate, so I had to get it this time.
Neither of them were easy to find, so I would have to search around for a while. I sat on a thick branch and looked around.
Jjireureuk, jjireuk. (찌르륵, 찌륵)
A bright light shone through the dense leaves, illuminating the interior of the rainforest. An unidentified strange-looking bird flew around, and the soil wriggled as if something was crawling on the ground.
Here, various creatures that could not be found outside the gate, such as the butterflies I had to look for, were alive and breathing. When the gate was created and the Rest section became known, various biologists showed interest, but it was a place that could not be entered except by the few who had awakened as ability users.
‘Besides, even biologists who had awakened as ability users focused more on monsters than on the Rest sections.’
When you looked at it like this, it was not much different from the rainforest you saw on TV. It was so peaceful without the monsters.
What exactly were gates? Why did they appear all over the world and spit out ferocious monsters?
The research was still underway to find out. Five years after the first gate appeared, guilds were established and zones were divided, and in the tenth year, facilities that researched monsters and items were established. The world barely regained stability in the fifteenth year. However, the world still did not know why gates existed.
‘…I’m curious, but it’s none of my business.’
After all, this was just a creation made by someone. As long as you could find a way out, who cared?
I stood from the branch I was sitting on and flew up again. I would have to find the horn branch before the butterfly, whose location was still unclear.
Most of the horn branches grew on the tops of bluish bighorn trees. As I flew high into the sky, the wide forest of the Rest section unfolded beneath my feet.
If the ‘Abyss’ I had heard of wasn’t a novel, I would have been able to find it more easily. It was difficult because I had only read the descriptions through writing.
“Ah, goddamn.”
Unfortunately, the horn branch that I barely found after flying over the Rest section for over an hour was a regular horn branch without a pattern engraved on it. I sighed as I held the ordinary horn branch the size of an adult male’s fist in my hand.
“It’s more difficult than I thought.”
Abandoning the ordinary horn branch, I turned towards the entrance of the Rest section. I thought it would be better to comb through the forest from the entrance slowly. The sky was full of red before I knew it. The sun was setting.
The butterfly had a fluorescent substance on the surface of its wings, so it was okay to search for it at night, but not the horn branches. I was in a hurry, so I increased my speed.
After wandering around looking for the horn branch, it took a lot of time to return to the entrance. By the time I arrived, the sun had already set and the darkness had settled in a little. Fortunately, a large tree with a mysterious pattern, which I had been looking for, came into view.
“Found it.”
It was the horn branch that I barely found after flying for almost 3 hours. I pulled out a horn-shaped branch covered in patterns that were difficult to explain in words. After putting it in the leather bag I was wearing on my waist, I slowly descended to the ground. The sapphire-tailed butterfly lived near plants, so it would be faster to find it while walking.
I jumped over the thick root of a tree and pushed away the large leaves that blocked my view. I heard that tropical rainforests were full of animals and plants that were dangerous to humans, but I don’t know what it was like here. As night fell, my sight was getting darker, so I was a little nervous.
* * *
“Where the hell are you, huh…”
So I walked for a long time like that. Han Yi-gyeol, an A-rank ability user, had a stronger body than ordinary people, but wandering through the rainforest for hours was quite difficult. Moreover, the high oxygen density and humidity tired me quickly.
‘Aigo, I’m going to die.’
I agonized as I sat on the branch of a suitable height. Let’s give up the butterfly wings and go back. I was seriously conflicted, but in the end, I shook my head. If I gave up like this, I had to go through another gate to get the butterfly wings, but I didn’t have time for that, because I had to go through a difficult procedure to enter the gate as an independent.
I made the decision to take a break and look for it even if it was a little late to return, leaning my back against the tree trunk, and I saw a blue light through the crevice of the forest on the other side. At first, I thought I was mistaken, but whenever the wind swayed the bushes, the blue light continued to sparkle.
“A sapphire-tailed butterfly?”
I jumped up and flew towards the light. With a pounding heart, I removed the dense bushes and there were several sapphire-tailed butterflies fluttering their pretty wings.
‘Crazy. What a victory*.’
I found it after 4 hours of searching. I clenched my fists and shouted in my heart. I had to be careful as the butterfly might be scared away if I actually screamed out loud.
It was simple once I found it. I pulled the butterfly closer with my powers and just took off its wings. I didn’t need much, so I only removed two pairs of wings. I put four palm-sized butterfly wings in my bag.
I’m sorry. I will put the wings I took to good use.
Now that I had all the items I wanted, all I had to do was go back. I flew along the river with a light heart. It had been about 7 hours since I left, so the team must have reached the end of the Rest section. I flew leisurely to find the team, expecting nothing to have happened, but I blinked at the faint sound of an explosion in the distance.
“I think it’s Park Geon-ho’s ability.”
Boom! There was another explosion and the ground shook slightly. I sped up a little bit as an ominous feeling passed through. Apparently, the team had already left the rest section and faced some monsters right away.
Rustle! Crunch! (파사삭! 파삭!)
Moving rapidly, leaves and such slammed into me, but I did not stop. The team moved much faster than I thought. I expected them to stop at night in the Rest section.
“…block it!”
“…please!”
Boom! Bang!
Kyeehk!
Urgent cries, explosions, and monster cries. The distant sounds came to me at once. I finally exited the Rest section and frowned at the sight in front of me.
“Get out of here!”
“Grade identification is complete! They’re S grade!”
Kwaak! (크아악!)
Dozens of monsters with muddy bodies were rushing towards the team members, spitting out green acid solutions. The square-shaped and tightly packed teeth gleamed dangerously, and the carapace that covered the eyes was long and protruded outwards. Its arms were bent like a mantis, pointed like a sickle, and its lower body looked like a snake, moving quickly on the sand.
“Kim Woo-jin!”
The monster swung its sharp arm towards Kim Woo-jin. Kim Woo-jin hurriedly turned his body to the right and managed to avoid the attack, but failed to escape from the monster that was just around the corner. Seeing a monster trying to bite Kim Woo-jin with its teeth soaked with acid solutions, I hurriedly moved my hands.
“Ack!”
Kim Woo-jin’s body flew towards me. Having caught him, I grabbed his waist and flew away from the monster. As Kim Woo-jin suddenly disappeared from its eyes, the monster made a sharp sound as if it was scratching the window with its fingernail.
“…Han Yi-gyeol?”
“Get your head on right.”
Kim Woo-jin, who was tired and covered in cold sweat, looked at me with a blank expression. I spoke coldly so as not to lose my temper, and looked around to find Min Ah-rin.
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