"Excellent! I'll handle the loading," Dr. Morrow smiled. "You just watch the path ahead. The Wym Forest awaits."
"Understood," Klein responded.
Then,
Ding!
[You have Triggered the Side Quest: Safely Escort Dr. Morrow, to Silverpeak.]
[Loading Side Quest...]
[Side Quest loaded!]
[Quest: Safely Escort Dr. Morrow, to Silverpeak.]
[Escort Dr. Morrow through the Wym Forest unharmed, until she arrives in Silverpeak.]
[Reward: +70 Reputation, +50 EXP, 50 gold coins, Scroll of Minor Teleportation (uncommon)]
Klein read through the quest description, and what caught his attention was the [Scroll of Minor Teleportation], it was an [uncommon] item.
...
Through the Wym Forest, Klein meticulously trails the carriage, trying to always be at its side. As Dr. Morrow said earlier, they wouldn't be using the usual path, but rather a path locally referred to as the Old Pilgrim's Path was where they followed.
The greenery and fresh air of the Wym Forest was somewhat refreshing to Klein. Having spent most of his recent time hospitalized, he could now experience nature once more. This could only be possible due to the hyper-realism of 'Another World.'
"Come closer, Klein," Dr. Morrow said, as she noticed he was trailing off the carriage. "I saw something moving through those bushes."
The Old Pilgrim's Path, unlike the central areas of the Wym Forest, has monsters that reach levels as high as Level 4, unlike the usual range of Level 2–3 of the forest's central areas.
Level 4 Monsters such as: [Stoneback Boar], [Mana Sprout], and [Horned Dire Wolf] could be seen in the Old Pilgrim's Path. It was also important to note, and would soon be known to Klein, that the Old Pilgrim's Path contains the highest-leveled monsters in all of the Novalis Plains, the continent that holds all the sanctuary locations.
[Green Snake]
[LVL. 2 HP: 80]
[Green Snakes are aggressive creatures that naturally inhabit forests.]
"Green Snakes!" Dr. Morrow exclaimed.
Klein immediately took an offensive stance, and pointed his staff at the direction of the moving [Green Snakes.] The tip of his mage staff immediately shimmered with a faint yellow, and quickly—
[Mana Bolt.]
Immediately, yellow lighting struck on the green snakes, as it took severe damage.
-24!
[16 Mana Points Consumed!]
Then again,
Mana bolt! Mana bolt! Mana bolt!
-24! -24! -24!
He kept spamming [Mana Bolt] on the same green snake until it was vaporised in a shimmer of blue sparkles.
[Killed Level 2 Green Snake! Gained 5 experience points.]
'So level 2 monsters give 5 EXP,' Klein thought, as he noticed the blue screen in front of him.
Then, more green snakes began to emerge from the bushes, as the noise of their lost comrade definitely altered them.
Surprisingly, the company of green snakes, of not less than ten of them, began to move in an intelligent manner. They split, as some went in the direction of Klein, while the others went for the carriage.
Klein immediately took note of that anomaly and began to spam [Mana Bolt] at the snakes headed for the carriage.
Mana bolt! Mana bolt!
...
Mana bolt!
-24! -24!
..
24!
[Killed Level 2 Green Snake! Gained 5 experience points.]
[Killed Level 2 Green Snake! Gained 5 experience points.]
...
[Killed Level 2 Green Snake! Gained 5 experience points.]
'Eight down,' Klein thought, as he quickly got rid of the ones headed for the carriage, but that made him vulnerable as he sustained some damage from the snake that attacked him.
[You have suffered damage!]
[-10 HP]
...
[You have suffered damage!]
[-10 HP]
A total HP loss of 40 was damning to Klein. With only a meager HP of 120, the damage was truly severe.
Clearly full of rage, Klein performed a barrage of [Mana Bolt] and cleared all the remaining green snakes.
Mana bolt! Mana bolt!
...
Mana bolt!
-24! -24!
..
24!
With a flicker of his hands, Klein materialized his status screen, as his gaze immediately locked on his HP gauge.
---
...
HP: 80
---
With a sigh, he returned to the carriage and took a slight rest.
"Is it over?" Dr. Morrow asked.
"No need to worry, there gone," Klein replied.
"You killed them all?" Dr. Morrow was genuinely surprised, at how Klein was able to handle all of them without any significant mana drain symptoms. "Aren't you an apprentice mage?"
"Nothing to hide here," Klein replied, affirming his rank again.
"Do you have any health elixirs with you?" Klein asked.
"Yes I do have some, high grade ones," she replied.
"Here take," she said, handing him three bottles of health elixir.
[You have received 3X Health Elixir.]
[Unable to store in inventory as it's filled.]
Since Klein couldn't store the elixirs, he made the pragmatic decision to drink them all immediately. He could already feel the potent effects taking hold.
[You have consumed Health Elixir!]
[You have consumed Health Elixir!]
[You have consumed Health Elixir!]
[HP Regeneration Complete!]
"Thanks," Klein said, giving his gratitude to Dr. Morrow, for the health elixirs.
....
The journey through the Wym Forest continued, the Old Pilgrim's Path living up to its reputation as a monster-infested path. But that was exactly what Klein needed.
He was now a [Level 3] mage, as he encountered many [Green Snakes] and [Shock Bats] which were all Level 2 monsters.
Ding!
[Congratulations! You have reached Level 3!]
[Skill: Mana Bolt has reached Level 3!]
[Equipment: Wooden Staff has reached Level 3!]
[You have gained 5 attribute points!]
Then, Klein decided to have another look at his status screen, his improvements clearly visible.
----
[PLAYER STATUS: MAGE - Lv. 3]
ID: BigD
EXP: (20/300)
Rank: Apprentice Mage
HP: 120
MP: ∞
STR: 5
AGI: 7
VIT: 6
INT: 18
WIS: 15
LCK: 5
Talent: [Arcane Sensitivity] – 5% reduction in MP cost for all spells.
U. Talent: [Infinite Mana (SSS)] - Grants the player an Infinite amount of mana.
Weapon Affinity: Staves, Grimoires
Skill: [Mana Bolt LVL.3]; Deals 36 points of damage to target, consumes a total of 24 Mana points and has zero cooldown.
[Attribute Points:] 10
[Equipment:] Wooden Staff (LVL. 3), Penny Pouch (LVL.1)
----
Two days had passed on their journey—two full, uninterrupted 24-hour cycles that Klein had spent logged into Another World. They were now nearing their destination.
Dr. Morrow pointed ahead down the winding Pilgrim's Path. "We are about to reach Silverpeak," she said, visibly relaxing for the first time in hours. "Just a few more hours left."
Dr. Morrow let out a gentle sigh of relief, the tension finally easing from her shoulders after their long grind through the Wym Forest. "Just a few more hours and we'll be through the last stretch. It's truly a relief."
She turned her focus to Klein, her expression thoughtful. "So, Klein, since you're new to the area, what are your plans once you reach Silverpeak? Will you meet someone, or moving on immediately?"
Klein hadn't thought that far ahead. His only goal was to safely escort her through the Wym Forest and level up through the process. He didn't want to admit he had no plan, so he defaulted to an explorer's vague curiosity.
"I plan to simply tour it for a little while," Klein replied, keeping his tone light. "See the research station, perhaps stock up on supplies before moving further into the forest."
"A tour sounds delightful, if you have the time," Dr. Morrow said, her earlier anxiety entirely completely replaced by scientific enthusiasm. She clutched a journal to her chest. "As for me, I absolutely can't wait to continue with my experiment! The stabilization of these runes requires specific atmospheric conditions, and Silverpeak offers them perfectly. I am very excited to finally get started."
Klein simply nodded, as he was about to ask her for a brief description of the station when the front horse whinnied in alarm, digging its hooves into the ground.
A noise—a low, rumbling snorting sound, rattled the air just ahead of them on the narrow path. The trees were dense here, as suddenly, the foliage burst open, and four massive, charging monsters erupted onto the path.
They were covered in thick, gray hides, their backs filled with sharp, stony spines. Each one was the size of a small cow, their eyes filled with aggression.
[Stoneback Boars.]
[LVL.4 HP: 200]
Dr. Morrow screamed, clutching the railing of the carriage.
Klein's hand instantly tightened around his staff, but before he could cast the first spell, a series of urgent blue panels slammed into his vision.
Ding!
[Mini-Boss Challenge Alert!]
[Challenge: The Stoneback Boars.]
[Objective: Neutralize all 4 Stoneback Boars before the thirty minutes time elapsed.]
[Time Limit: 30:00]
[Reward: Skill Unlocked: Stone Blast (LVL. 7), +200 EXP.]
Two hundred experience points! That was enough to instantly put him well on his way to Level 4, the reward was immense, but the risk was there, as the boars were charging directly at them.