Chapter 20: To The Forest of No Return

"Turn your head towards east."

"East?"

Following the voice's guide, Lyrica faced east. From there, the girl can see the cluster of giant trees, peeking out from the horizon.

"You can see how big those things are even this far," Lyrica stated in awe.

"The place where those giant trees reside is your destination. It's called the Forest of No Return."

"What a creepy name."

As Lyrica remarked on the forest's name, the voice stated that a walk from the flower field to the forest would take around half an hour.

"That is without taking any breaks." The voice added.

"Half an hour, huh."

Lyrica doesn't have any problems taking a long walk, but she's both tired and hungry.

"Walking for half an hour while starving and exhausted is going to be troublesome."

Lyrica carried herself out of the ground and then makes a 360-degree turn, scanning her surroundings.

She opened her mouth and asked, "Is there any other place nearby that we can go?"

"Unfortunately, there's none."

The voice knows some other places but getting there would take hours. On top of that, they don't have all the things Lyrica needed right now. Lyrica is looking for something to eat, heal up fast, and farm experience.

"So the Forest of No Return is my best option, huh?"

The forest's name itself was more than enough to tell the girl that there are monsters out there that could give her a much better EXP. But can a place with a horrendous name really have something that can help fill her stomach and regain her missing HP?

"On the bright side, you'll be able to increase your EXP on the way."

"That's probably the only good thing about this trip." Lyrica exhaled as she started walking. "This is going to be a pain in the ass."

Having made up her mind, Lyrica embarked on a long walk to the Forest of No Return.

***

Not long since Lyrica started heading to the Forest of No Return, somewhere in an unknown region where vast fields of green, high plateaus and foothills of colossal mountains adorned by lush trees and flowing streams of water make up the land, a large city resided around a gargantuan pillar that stretched so far up in the sky that one can't even see the end of it.

This unknown city was composed of elaborate buildings, intricate spires, large stone statues portraying a woman holding a sphere with both hands, and many other structures like concrete houses and observatories.

There are only four observatories found within the city, and they appear similar to that Earth's observatory domes. However, the interior design of these structures is not quite the same as any on the blue planet.

These observatories don't have giant telescopes, auxiliary instruments, or even an accessible ceiling to observe the skies. Instead, the inside has a single row of glowing white floors, surrounded by the gleaming darkness of infinite space.

What was hidden inside these observatories is the bona fide outer space, where glittering constellations and glowing stars permeate its boundlessness. But although it's a genuine view of the infinite space, it is a fact that this is the inside of an observatory.

And inside one of these mysterious observatories was a woman standing right at the edge of the glowing floor, looking at the image of Lyrica who was on her way to the forest through a round and translucent projection screen coming out of the miniature world of Alteria, floating on top of her hands.

Her young and angelic face shone brightly underneath her long black hair and a crown of flowers that amplified her natural beauty. Her white dress that would allow one to admire her golden-brown skin was tied with a gold rope belt which accentuate not only her slender waist but her knee-high gold buskins as well.

If a man were to ask where he could find the most beautiful woman in the world, people would be pointing fingers in her direction.

Her looks aside, it appeared as though the woman wasn't the least bit worried about her surroundings. One small mistake could lead to her demise. Yet, she's there, standing right on the edge, watching the image of Lyrica with a calm and collected face. It's almost as if she's used to it like it's a part of her daily routine.

"Why didn't you just help her get straight to the forest with your powers, Mousai? It's already too late for you to be concerned about breaking taboos you already broke once."

At that moment, an eerie voice of a man suddenly came out of nowhere, breaking the silence.

"As much as I'd like to do that, Lyrica cannot hope to achieve her desire, nor meet my expectations, unless she makes a step forward without relying on others."

The woman, who was called by the name of Mousai, responded to the eerie voice.

Mousai, a Lower Goddess, was the one who sent Lyrica into Alteria. She was the one who Lyrica made a deal with. Mousai was the voice who was speaking to the girl inside her head.

"But, to be contacted by the God of Earth who didn't let his presence known even to his own people for hundreds of years is quite a surprise." Said Mousai to the God of Earth. "Are you beginning to regret not doing anything about me breaking the rule you so much supported?"

The God of Earth, another Lower God, scoffed at Mousai.

"Brat, I wouldn't condone your selfish actions if there aren't any bigger problems on the way." The God of Earth let out a long sigh. "How very vexing... First, these UNKNOWN BEINGS suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and now we're being called to WAR? Just what in the world is going on?"

"Who knows... Only the higher-ups can answer that question."

Mousai can sense the God of Earth's worry, fear, and uncertainty in his voice. So much that she was beginning to feel the same and it was sending chills down her spine. But still, she kept her poker face. A goddess's poker face.

"Anyway, you're the only one left on the Lower Realm." The God of Earth informed Mousai in a grumpy tone. "Say your farewell and come to the Higher Realm quickly. It's not easy to be the only one being scolded by the Higher Gods and looked down on by the others."

"Yeah, I know."

Following her reply to the God of Earth, Mousai kept watching over Lyrica through the translucent projection screen.

***

Twenty minutes have passed since Lyrica left the flower field, the girl has been keeping an eye on her EXP since the start of her trip. And since then, Lyrica was able to collect a total of 2,406 EXP, and it's still counting.

"I only need... less than half of the required EXP... to level up."

Lyrica panted continuously while making heavy footsteps.

"For someone who's both tired and hungry, it's amazing that you're able to keep going without rest."

Lyrica knew that stopping will only make it seem longer and more tiresome. Hence she persevered and kept on going.

Life came back into Lyrica's dead-tired face as she looked up front. "I can see it."

What Lyrica saw was none other than the Forest of No Return. This time, she can see the towering trees as they stretch further and further on each end of the horizon.

There's still quite the distance standing in between the girl and the forest, yet she can't help but feel the creeps just by looking at it.

"It's about time you tell me everything about this forest," Lyrica suggested to the voice.

"The Forest of No Return is the biggest forest in Alteria, and is also the largest biodiverse ecosystem in the world."

"Oh..."

There are many species of plants, animals, and dangerous monsters lurking inside the forest. Monsters that give experience much bigger than that of Lv. 5 slimes.

"On top of that, the forest has an abundance of mana crystals which can be harvested and sold for a high price. However..."

"However...?"

"Those who dared to enter the forest to harvest those precious mana crystals were never seen again."

Lyrica stopped threading the path. "Say what?" She looked at the forest in the distance as a drop of sweat slid through her cheek.

"There are two reasons why the forest is called the Forest of No Return. Although one of them is just a rumor."

Said the voice nonchalantly.

"A rumor claims that a path that leads to the demon world can be found deep in the forest. The other reason why the forest has such a horrifying name is because of its ruler, the King of the forest known as the Guardian Snake."

CREATORS' THOUGHTS
OwariDa02

Hello, everyone. I just want to apologize for the really slow upload. It's been tough writing in the past few days. But I promise that soon, I will post more chapters frequently! Expect a chapter to hit on monday!

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