Chapter 506 – Help
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We got lost.
In the middle of the dark forest.
If I tried to move further like this, I would end up in a strange place.
I felt the need to reorganize.
We settled down in a suitable place and lit a bonfire.
-Crack. Crack…
In the heavy silence, only the sound of a burning bonfire tickled my ears.
“Sorry… I was planning to move while looking at the map data of ‘Link’… But I didn’t know that Link wouldn’t work in the dark forest.”
Veronica apologized with a sullen expression.
You can think of ‘Link’ as Earth’s smartphone and the Internet.
It was expected that the demons would use this ‘link’ 99.9% of the time.
Link was like air to the demons.
I was also comfortably using a smartphone-type Link similar to the one I used on Earth, and Veronica was wearing a wristwatch-type Link.
I know the frustration of not being able to use my smartphone or the internet because I have experienced it on Earth, and there is no need to mention demons.
I raised my senses to the next level and looked around. I read the flow of mana floating around.
Then, I don’t know if it was natural or artificial, but I felt a subtly distorted flow of mana that was a little different from other places.
‘Does this flow of mana affect Link?’
It may be a special characteristic of this place called the Dark Forest.
Did you travel for about 3 hours?
It didn’t travel that far.
It wasn’t difficult to return if you put your mind to it.
But I had no intention of doing that.
For the first time, we may find a plausible clue about Helena.
You can’t back down in a situation like that.
Fortunately, I had plenty of time to explore.
This schedule lasted one week.
Even excluding holidays, Zepia Academy had a period with no classes for a long period of one week, once every two months.
Maybe it’s because of the demons’ long lifespan, but there were many holidays.
We arrived in Selby at that time.
I was planning to follow Veronica’s plan out of ignorance, but this would change the story.
“Veronica. Where was our destination?”
“He said that if you go west to Wrightville, there will be a large tree that is different from the other trees. If you move southwest from there again, you will find a secret laboratory…”
Should we look for it through expanding consciousness?
If it’s not too far away, it won’t be difficult to find.
“How far away is that tree?”
“Wrightville, it was written in my mom’s plan that it would be about 60 km west.”
It was farther than I thought.
Extending consciousness up to 60 km… Is a bit burdensome.
It wasn’t overpowering.
What bothered me was that this was the residential area of the demons.
Expanding your consciousness and looking at your surroundings means that your mind enters a higher-dimensional realm that is different from usual.
And as the scope of my consciousness expands, my sense of presence is bound to increase naturally.
If you are a strong person above a certain level, you will have no choice but to recognize my presence.
What if there is a demon in this Selby who feels my presence?
Things could get quite messy.
And if I suddenly said I knew the location of the tree, even Veronica might find it strange.
It seems that exploration through consciousness expansion should be left as a last resort.
Then, there is another way… The simplest and most classic way is to look at it from a high place.
Unlike Pantera, there are no restrictions on using the power of thought here.
It was also possible to use the power of thought like telekinesis. It is also possible to fly in the sky without the help of Sunni or Chaos.
When you kick the ground, your body rises upward.
When I used my intention to support that power, my body continued to soar into the sky.
‘How high is the ceiling?’
It climbed quite high, but did not reach the common ceiling.
Still, it was high enough to look around.
First, in the distance, you can see the city of Selby, splendidly sparkling in the dark.
Let’s say the west side of the city we are on…
I looked west to see if there was the large tree that Veronica had mentioned.
It seemed like I could see a few hills…
“I can’t see it?”
There were no trees large enough to be noticed.
It may not be a bigger tree than I thought.
“Uh, how was it?”
When I came down to the ground, Veronica asked with an expectant expression.
“I wasn’t sure.”
“Is that so…”
I suddenly thought of a person.
‘Celestia.’
Previously, Chaos obtained information from Veronica about four cities where Helena might be located.
After hearing that information, I decided to tell Celestia and send her incarnations to those four cities.
Selvi was one of those cities, and the incarnations of Celestia were probably looking for a place where Helena might be.
So, it wouldn’t be strange if there was an incarnation of Celestia nearby.
「Unho: Celestia. “Is there an incarnation west of Selby?”
Since the link wasn’t working, I called Celestia through the raid message.
「Celestia: There are three incarnations to the west of Selby.」
「Woonho: Good. Have you ever seen a big tree?”
「Celestia: Hmm… I have seen a tree that is bigger than other trees.」
「Woonho: Good. Then have you ever seen a building like a research institute?”
「Celestia: I haven’t seen anything like that yet.」
「Woonho: Celestia, I would like you to guide our group to that big tree. Can you tell where I am?”
The raiding party can know each other’s locations with my permission. However, I wasn’t sure if the raid function would apply to Celestia’s incarnation.
「Celestia: … I think I understand.」
Fortunately, Celestia seemed to be able to determine the location of the raid team even with an incarnation derived from authority.
「Woonho: Then, I hope you can send Hwashin to where I am.」
「Celestia: Got it. I will send you the chill of the nearest incarnation.”
After exchanging raid messages with Celestia, I spoke to Veronica.
“I called someone to give directions. Please wait a little longer.”
“You called someone? How…”
Veronica didn’t seem to understand when I said I called someone when the link wasn’t working.
“I am a telepath. Luckily, someone we dispatched was nearby.”
First of all, the demons have awakened their magical powers.
It doesn’t matter if the power is big or small, but he had all the supernatural powers.
So it wasn’t particularly strange that I was a telepath.
“What do you mean by dispatching someone?”
“Before, I received information from President Veronica, and I was sending people to those cities to investigate. The guide my father called is one of them.”
Chaos said to Veronica, who was dumbfounded by my words.
“Well, you went that far?”
“Chairman Veronica. Didn’t I tell you before? We are people who are serious about finding Helena.”
Seeing Chaos’ serious look, Veronica nodded like a dumb person.
“Now that I think about it, didn’t you fly in the sky just now?”
“Well… That’s also possible.”
“Mr. Bark, you know how to use your strength… I thought you were a hmm, but you turned out to be more capable than I thought.”
“…”
I guess I waited for about five or six hours while warming up by the campfire.
A female demon with an ordinary face appeared through the bushes.
Veronica, who had been dozing off, woke up in surprise.
“This is this person?”
“Yes, she is her guide.”
The incarnation of Celestia that appeared was messy.
There was dust on her face and something that looked like leaves stuck in her hair.
He looked like he had been in the forest for quite some time.
Nevertheless, there was no bad smell.
It is not a living being, but an incarnation created with the power of Celestia. It was a being similar to a mannequin or doll. There was no scent at all… There was only the smell of dirt and grass.
“Can you guide me?”
“No problem.”
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We began moving after the incarnation of Celestia.
“Celestia, have you had any results in your search?”
I asked the incarnation of Celestia.
“Not yet. There is a powerful demon in the cave to the north of this forest. One of the Avatars has been eaten. I want to look inside the cave, but I’m wondering if I should make a more powerful Avatar and send it out.”
“Let’s first look at the results of this investigation and make a decision.”
“Okay.”
Celestia is currently operating in many incarnations other than the one that guides us.
It was an incredible multitasking ability.
“Isn’t it difficult to control multiple Avatars?”
“It’s not like fighting the great demons, it’s just walking around. It’s not difficult.”
You should not approach it with human stereotypes.
She is a great devil who has lived for a long time.
After traveling for a while with Celestia’s incarnation at the forefront, we were able to see a tree that was dozens of times thicker than other trees.
I think I know why I couldn’t find it when I looked from the sky.
This is because although the tree boasted an incredible thickness on the sides, the height itself was not that high.
“Mr. Bark, I think this tree is right!! Just go southwest from here!”
Veronica looks in one direction with her hopeful eyes.
“That’s the north.”
“Hmm… Is that so…”
Veronica looked embarrassed at my words and turned her head. When she didn’t become a link, she became a fool.
