Chapter 61

### Day Ten of Exploration

As usual, Lucash and Charles stood at the front, followed by me, Lina-senpai, and Chelsea, with Oliver bringing up the rear, keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings. We continued our exploration in this formation. However, just like every other day, we found nothing today.

"…Let’s take a break again tomorrow. Not just one day, but multiple days. We’ll thoroughly investigate again."

Every day, the physical fatigue from walking deep in the forest, as well as the mental fatigue from not finding any clues, was building up. We needed to take a few days off to reset both mentally and physically. When I said this, I saw Oliver nod in agreement. It was a bit embarrassing, but I felt reassured knowing that he approved of my decision.

I was about to open my mouth to ask Lina-senpai and Chelsea to help with information gathering when—

"Chelsea, behind you!"

Oliver’s voice pierced my eardrums. I reflexively looked behind Chelsea and saw a dull light in the bushes. It was the sharp eyes of a monster. I instinctively reached out to Chelsea and pulled her by the hem of her clothes, supporting her as she fell into me. I looked up, and as expected, her pale green hair swayed in front of me.

"Oliver!"

Lucash’s voice was filled with anxiety as the hero’s emblem spread at the monster’s feet. The dazzling light from the emblem quickly enveloped the monster. When I opened my eyes, which I had closed reflexively, the monster was gone. Just as everyone was about to breathe a sigh of relief—

Another monster appeared from the bushes, and the moment was shattered.

"Fall back!"

Oliver engaged the new monster. The monster, which resembled a large boar with sharp tusks, was bigger than the previous one, and Oliver’s brow furrowed deeply. Charles, who quickly moved to protect us, used magic to support Oliver, tipping the battle in our favor. Lucash, seeing the opportunity, tried to join the fight. Just as he was about to approach the monster, another one burst out of the bushes and charged at him.

"Lucash!"

I called out his name instinctively. The monster that emerged from the bushes was even larger than the others, a beast-type monster. Despite being caught off guard, Lucash, thanks to his daily training, managed to block the monster’s tusks with his sword. However, the monster was more than twice his size, and Lucash was easily knocked down. As he lost his balance, he was heading towards a cliff.

I forgot about the monster and ran to him.

"Lucash!"

I saw Oliver cut down the boar-like monster out of the corner of my eye, then immediately attack the other monster that had knocked down Lucash. Charles, while protecting Lina-senpai and Chelsea, was also supporting Oliver. Lucash managed to grab onto the edge of the cliff, but his hands were slipping due to his weight. Just as his hands were about to fall off the cliff, I finally reached him and grabbed his hand.

"Let go! You’ll pull Laura down too!"

"There’s no way I can do that!"

I raised my voice to scold my childhood friend for his foolish suggestion. Sweat appeared on my forehead. I couldn’t pull Lucash up by myself. I needed help, but the situation was dire. Oliver was fighting the large monster, and Charles was protecting Lina-senpai and Chelsea. If Charles tried to help us, he might be targeted by the monster. There could be other monsters lurking around. In other words, no one could move recklessly right now.

I had to hold on until Oliver defeated the monster, but Lucash’s hand was slipping through mine, and my heart was pounding. My mind was blank; I couldn’t think of a way out of this situation. The only thing I knew was that I couldn’t let go of his hand.

"Laura, let go!"

"Absolutely not!"

His voice was lower and angrier than usual, and his words were harsh. Lucash’s hand was slipping through mine. I leaned forward and grabbed his hand with both hands—just as my body tilted forward. I realized the ground beneath my feet had given way, and we were falling into darkness.

"Laura—!"

The sound that shook my eardrums was Chelsea’s anguished cry. I felt Lucash pull me closer.

***

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