Chapter 42

In a bright forest where sunlight always filters through the leaves, the impression I had of the Enchanted Forest was just that.

It's easy to imagine a sinister and ominous place just because it's called the "Enchanted" Forest, but this is simply a forest where magical monsters live.

"Ah, there are mushrooms growing."

A magical-looking mushroom with a pink cap and a light blue mottled pattern was growing at the base of a tree. When I picked it up to test it, it turned out to be an item and was stored in my inventory.

*Magical Mushroom*

"Why did they mix in kanji..."

*What's kanji?*

*That's a Magical Mushroom, right?*

*↑...Indeed, a unique sense of style.*

*Ah, I see.*

*It's a pretty rare one.*

"Wait, is this a rare item?"

Looking at the comments from the audience and reading the item description, it said, "Changes to a unique color due to the contained magic power. A valuable mushroom used as a material for making magic potions." At the very least, it seems to be a valuable item according to the flavor text.

I wonder what a magic potion is. Is it a different item from a potion?

"I'll keep it for now... Oh, but there are quite a few of them."

Probably because my vision is good, I can see a few more of the same mushrooms scattered around. It's just right for filling up my empty inventory, so I decided to collect them while exploring the Enchanted Forest.

"Hmm... Oh, a monster."

While collecting mushrooms and wandering through the forest, a butterfly suddenly appeared in my field of vision. It's a fairly large butterfly, about 30 centimeters in size. It's labeled as *Butterfly Mage Lv22*, so it might be a formidable opponent.

The Butterfly Mage flutters like it's dancing, and suddenly draws a magic circle in front of its body, releasing an ice spell. The speed is about the same as a lightly kicked soccer ball, so it's not impossible to avoid. However, I thought it might be a good idea to take a hit to test it, so I deliberately didn't defend and took the hit.

My HP dropped by about 80%.

"Seriously!?"

Indeed, my magic defense is abysmally low, but I'm a Level 30 Oni, and I should have more HP than the average player. Yet, I lost 80% of my HP.

Moreover, it wasn't a particularly strong spell, just a simple ice ball.

I quickly switched my focus and closed the distance with the Butterfly Mage. While closing the distance, I dodged the ice chunks that came flying and punched the erratic butterfly. I stopped its movement with a one-two combo, grabbed both wings, and delivered a knee strike, then lifted it up and slammed it to the ground with a heel drop. Fortunately, its HP wasn't very high, and it fell easily with that combo.

"Thank goodness it was small."

*Good combo... I guess?*

*You're really weak against magic, huh?*

*First time I've seen someone take that much damage from an ice ball.*

*↑Is that what it's called?*

*↑It's a basic ice spell.*

*You were really panicking, weren't you?*

"No, I was really panicking."

I now understand why many Oni players don't choose the *Child* class. Even a basic spell has that speed and power. Moreover, stronger spells will likely have a wider range and higher power and speed. If you visit this forest around Level 20, you'll probably be sent back to the respawn point without a doubt. Even with the benefits, it's understandable to hesitate when faced with this.

"For now, I'll drink the potions I bought at the teahouse..."

I drank two potions that tasted like regular herbs. The empty bottles remained in my inventory. I had used the money I earned on the way to the Enchanted Forest to buy potions at the teahouse at the forest's entrance. I didn't expect to use them so soon, but there was no choice. I took a deep breath as my HP slowly recovered, then resumed my exploration.

Hmm, but now that this has happened, it makes the wound I received from Apocalypse yesterday even more suspicious. The first attack left me completely unaware of what happened, and I was pierced through the stomach. I thought it was the same as the light spear that followed, but considering the damage I took from the Butterfly Mage's attack, it's clearly strange that I survived Apocalypse's attack with my durability. I thought it might be a spell specialized in limb damage, but... I don't know. It was only a brief encounter of about a minute.

I pondered the new mystery that had arisen, but since there's no need to fight right now, I decided to stop thinking about it.

☆

According to the knowledgeable audience members, the Butterfly Mage is one of the higher magic attackers in this forest. So, I probably won't take the same amount of damage from the same spell from other monsters. However, there are monsters that use even stronger spells, so the conclusion is to avoid all magic attacks.

"O-Oh no!!"

I was in a big predicament right now.

It all started about five minutes ago.

After an hour of filling in the map, I had become accustomed to fighting mainly magic-based monsters like the Butterfly and had let my guard down.

"Ah, look at that. There's a monster glowing... It looks like a fox, but what is it?"

During my exploration, I saw a fox that wasn't just glowing but was radiating light in the relatively bright forest. I cautiously approached and saw the name *Shiny Fox Lv5*.

It felt like a rare monster, and I got a bit excited as I prepared a throwing knife. The throwing power is based on strength, so I judged that even a low-power throwing knife could easily defeat a Shiny Fox with a level difference. Even though the gauntlets made fine control difficult, hitting it straight on wasn't too hard. I carefully, carefully threw the knife at the Shiny Fox.

"Kyaa!"

My plan worked, and the knife cleanly pierced its neck, reducing its HP. It fell with a short scream, probably because its throat was pierced.

At that moment.

The Shiny Fox, which had been glowing white, scattered a red flash around as it died and disappeared.

"What was that just now..."

I was a bit surprised, but the battle result showed an enormous amount of experience points, far more than I would expect from a Level 5 monster. Additionally, I received 10,000 Iris, a generous reward that didn't match a Level 5 monster.

"I see, it must be a bonus monster."

I smiled genuinely, happy about the level-up and the boost to my empty wallet. But then, I saw two Butterfly Mages appear in front of me and immediately switched my focus.

Two of them are a bit troublesome. I got ready to fight, but then three more Butterfly Mages appeared in my peripheral vision. A bad feeling hit me, and I quickly turned around to see not just Butterfly Mages but also *Goblin Mages* and *Magical Matango* among the forest's regular monsters popping up around me.

Before I knew it, over 30 monsters had appeared, centered around where the Shiny Fox died.

"...Trap, monster."

In this rather desperate situation, I muttered to myself. The Shiny Fox was clearly the cause of this situation. Its final flash of light must have been a skill that summoned monsters. It wasn't just a rare experience point monster; it was a literal trap.

"Damn..."

By the time I realized my mistake, the battle had already begun. Five ice balls, launched preemptively, were roaring towards me, ready to pierce me.