Chapter 45: Safe Zone

Morning slowly arrived in the Emerald Forest.

The darkness that had covered the trees throughout the night gradually faded as pale sunlight slipped through the thick canopy. Birds began calling from somewhere in the distance, while the nearby stream continued flowing beside the campsite.

Kael slowly opened his eyes.

For a few seconds, he simply stared at the branches above him.

Then he remembered where he was.

The wilderness examination.

Kael sat up and looked around the campsite.

Darius was checking his greatsword. Elias was sitting near the fire, quietly inspecting his bow. Mira was not around.

They had clearly been awake for some time.

Kael wasn’t surprised.

He had woken them before the end of his own watch so they could take over. After spending most of the previous night fighting the Grimclaw Bear and processing its materials, he had eventually allowed himself to rest.

Kael smiled faintly before standing. His body still felt sore. The battle against the Grimclaw Bear had taken more out of him than he wanted to admit.

Kael walked toward the others.

"Morning."

"You’re finally awake," Elias said.

Kael nodded at him.

"Yeah. Haarf~" Kael let out a yawn.

"How’s the camp, did something happen while I was asleep?" He asked.

"Nothing worth mentioning. Everything’s fine," Elias replied. "But we have a big problem, though," he added.

"Oh, what is it?" Kael raised an eyebrow, wondering if something truly happened.

"There’s only a few valuable materials around this area," Elias said, sounding really worried.

Kael sighed in relief. He thought another strong beasts had visited the camp. Fortunately, it was just about the materials.

Darius looked toward Kael.

"Oh, you’re woken up already. How are you feeling?"

"Feel good," Kael replied with a faint smile.

Although he felt a little sore on his shoulder, it wasn’t important right now.

"By the way, we have already finished our breakfast. I hope you don’t mind," Darius suddenly mentioned.

Kael smiled and said, "No. It’s fine."

Speaking of breakfast, Elias suddenly smacked his palm with his fist when he remembered something at that moment.

Elias pointed toward the food.

"Kael, eat before it gets cold."

Kael looked over.

"Right."

He glanced at the food on a make-shift table before looking toward the nearby stream.

"Give me a minute," he said.

"Where are you going?" Elias asked with a frown.

"To wash my face," Kael replied.

Elias shrugged.

"Fine. Just don’t forget your breakfast."

Kael nodded.

"I won’t."

He walked toward the stream.

Quinn was nowhere in sight.

Kael looked toward the branches and quickly spotted the familiar white spider perched high above the campsite.

"Morning, Quinn."

Hearing a familiar voice, Quinn’s head twitched, it spotted immediately its owner and excitedly responded.

"Qiu!"

Quinn waved one of its tiny legs.

Kael smiled faintly.

He then continued toward the stream. The water was cold. Kael crouched beside the bank and scooped some water into his hands. He splashed it over his face. The cold immediately woke him up.

"It feels better," he said.

He washed his face again before finally looking down at the water. His reflection stared back at him.

Kael paused.

For a moment, Kael simply stood there and looked at his reflection.

The surface of the stream was calm enough to form a surprisingly clear mirror. The morning light filtered through the canopy overhead, breaking into scattered patches across the water. Every slight movement of the current distorted his reflection before slowly settling back into place.

His reflection showed a pair of silver eyes, black hair, and a fairly sharp jawline.

Kael leaned a little closer.

His hair was slightly messy from sleeping, and there were still traces of fatigue beneath his eyes, but his face itself...

Kael tilted his head.

"Huh."

He couldn’t help looking a little longer. Something felt different. He raised a hand and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to make it look less like he had just crawled out of a sleeping bag.

The reflection copied the movement perfectly.

Kael narrowed his eyes. Kael remembered what he had looked like when he first arrived in this world. The original Kael hadn’t exactly been ugly.

He had simply looked... neglected.

His hair had often been unkempt. His posture had been poor. His complexion had been dull from spending too much time worrying about his poor Hero Core, and he had never seemed particularly interested in taking care of himself. Combined with his miserable expression and constant lack of confidence, it had made him look far worse than he actually was.

Kael touched his face.

"So I wasn’t ugly after all."

He almost laughed. Apparently, the Grayford family had a good bloodline in terms of looks. The previous owner had simply been doing a terrible job of presenting it.

Kael looked at his reflection again.

His silver eyes stood out against his black hair, something that had always been a distinctive feature of the Grayford family.

Now that he had been training regularly, eating properly, and sleeping better, the changes were becoming increasingly obvious.

Not dramatically, but his face now looked sharper, his posture had improved, and his body had become more defined. And after the recent breakthrough of his Hero Core, even his overall presence seemed different. Kael wasn’t suddenly some overwhelmingly handsome man. But he definitely wasn’t the pathetic-looking noble he had once been.

He touched his jaw and said, "Not bad."

After appreciating his appearance, he washed his face one last time.

Then he stood.

"I guess taking care of oneself actually works."

Kael returned to the campsite while humming a random lively tone while wiping his wet face with a clean cloth.

Elias looked at him with a puzzled face.

"You look lively," he said.

"Am I?" Kael asked with a grin.

Elias stared at him.

"Yes. You look like you have won millions of gold," Elias replied.

Kael chuckled and said, "I just thought that being handsome is a wonderful thing."

Elias slowly looked at Darius.

Darius shrugged.

"Kael, I think you need to eat your breakfast as soon as possible," Elias said hastily.

Kael shrugged before looking around the campsite.

Their equipment had already been packed together.

They were ready to leave.

"Aight. I’m going to eat now. By the way, where’s Mira?"

"She’s over there," Darius pointed.

Mira was crouching beside a nearby patch of little green plants.

Kael sat on a log in front of the makeshift table.

"What is she doing?" He asked.

"She’s checking if those are valuable materials," Darius replied.

"I see..." Kael nodded.

One of the reasons they were here was to gather valuable materials.

"Then let’s talk about our plan for today after my breakfast."

Darius and Elias nodded.

...

Minutes later, everyone gathered around the makeshift table.

Darius placed his greatsword beside him and unfolded the map. He pointed toward their current position.

"We’re here."

Darius traced his finger across the southern portion of the map.

"If we continue in this direction, we should eventually reach another open area."

Kael shook his head.

"Not there."

Everyone looked at him.

"So where are we going?" Darius asked.

Kael smiled.

"There is a better place."

He moved his finger farther south, then slightly north. Then stopped.

"Here."

The others looked at the location.

Elias frowned.

"That’s far."

"It’s not that far," Kael shook his head.

Darius studied the area.

"What exactly is there?"

"A safe area."

The three of them exchanged glances.

Mira looked at Kael.

"A designated safe area?" She asked.

"No."

Kael shook his head.

"It’s different than that."

He tapped the location on the map.

"There’s a particular area around here where magical beasts don’t enter."

Darius’s expression changed.

"Don’t?"

"Yes," Kael replied with confidence.

Elias leaned closer.

"Wait. Are you saying there’s an actual place inside the Emerald Forest that beasts avoid?"

"Yes."

Mira looked surprised.

"I’ve never heard of such a place."

"Neither have I," Darius admitted.

Elias looked at the map again.

"Is it some kind of academy-established shelter?"

"No."

"Then what is it?"

Kael paused, wondering how to explain. In the end, he settled on the simplest explanation.

"The area has an unusual environmental condition."

Darius raised an eyebrow.

"What kind?"

"I’m not completely sure. I just know that beasts avoid it."

"Well. If you trust me..." Kael added.

His companion stared at him for a moment. Then they looked back at the map.

Mira pointed toward the surrounding terrain.

"Are you certain it’s safe?"

"Yeah," Kael folded the map slightly. "You will know once we arrive there."

That was the truth. In the original game, the area had been known among players as the Safe Zone.

It was officially classified as a safe area. Magical beasts never entered it. The reason had something to do with an ancient formation.

Kael remembered that much. He also remembered that several hidden events could occur around there later in the game. That was another reason he wanted to reach it. The location was useful for more than simply resting. However, there was no reason to tell his teammates about that part yet.

Darius folded his arms.

"How did you even find out about this place?"

Kael looked at him.

"I’ve researched."

Darius stared.

"Research?"

"Yes."

Kael answered without hesitation.

"I spent some time studying the forest before coming here."

It wasn’t exactly a lie. He had studied the forest. Just not in the way Darius probably imagined.

The three companions looked at each other and nodded before agreeing with Kael.

"I feel like you’re still hiding something from us," Elias suddenly said.

Kael almost choke.

"Ahaha. You got me. Okay, I’ll tell you the truth. Around this area, we could also gather lots of valuable materials," Kael explained.

They looked at him for a moment before nodding.

"All right. We’ll trust you again, Kael."

Kael nodded.

"Thanks. We should leave soon."

They finished preparing their equipment.

Darius took the heavier supplies while Mira secured the medical bag. Elias checked his bow and arrows before slinging them over his shoulder.

Quinn descended from the trees and crawled onto Kael’s backpack.

Kael glanced backward.

"Ready?"

They nodded.

"Yes."

"Good."

Team 37 left the campsite.

The morning air was considerably cooler. The forest looked different under daylight. What had appeared threatening during the night now seemed almost peaceful. Sunlight passed through gaps in the canopy, illuminating patches of moss and roots along the ground.

But Kael knew better than to let the scenery fool him. The Emerald Forest was still filled with magical beasts.

They moved carefully.

Kael kept checking the map while Darius handled the more difficult sections of the terrain. Mira stayed near the middle, and Elias periodically climbed onto higher ground whenever the terrain allowed it.

Quinn stayed perching on Kael’s head. It actually treated his master’s head as its personal carriage.

So far, nothing appeared dangerous.

After walking for nearly an hour, Elias broke the silence.

"Kael."

"Hm?"

"Three to our left and two in front," Elias reported.

"Alright. Everyone, ready for battle," Kael commander.

"Okay!"

They encountered several magical beasts along the way. But they defeated them without so much difficulty.

A few hours later, they finally arrived.