Chapter 88: Pebbles and Leaves Part 8

– Boooooom!!!

An explosion, loud enough to rupture eardrums, shook the entire forest. It was not an illusion. The powerful vibration spread all around the place. For a while, clouds of dust filled the air and obscured the view.

With the explosion that occurred simultaneously with Grizel's touch, I rolled several times and crashed into a tree trunk. I had no time to break my fall. Intense pain shook my entire body. Perhaps it was a small mercy that I didn't lose consciousness.

[Child of the Forest Trait Activated!]

[You can sense the blessing and grace of Lynshaka...]

Glittering words appeared in my shaky vision. Lynshaka's blessing and grace...

Right, this place is also a "forest".

"Ugh...."

I barely managed to get up. The impact had been so severe that I worried my bones might be broken, but fortunately, my body was intact. My ribs hurt, so I couldn't say I was completely fine, but that could be dealt with later.

When I looked across from me, I saw Grizel lying on the floor not too far away. I needed to subdue him first. I dragged my staggering body towards Grizel and reached out to wrap his body with tough vines.

-Buuzzzzz...

However, the skill didn't activate properly. Even though [Plant Binding] was a low-level skill, not even a sprout popped up, let alone a vine. Did the recent explosion drain all my magical power? But I had already drunk the potion from the sage's flask earlier… I pulled out a low-level potion from my space ring and put it in my mouth.

-Gulp, gulp.

After swallowing the bitter-tasting low-level potion, I reached out to use [Plant Binding] again.

"...Damn it!"

This time, Grizel had vanished. Just a moment ago, he had been lying there unconscious, but now he had disappeared in an instant. Damn it, damn it, damn it. I cursed under my breath as I scanned my surroundings. Fortunately, I spotted some trampled grass not far away. It seemed he had dragged his feet, leaving faint traces on the ground. I held my breath and pursued his trail like a hunter chasing its prey.

"Huff, huff...."

Moving my body which had yet to heal made me short of breath and dizzy. I should have ensured Ayla's escape. If I had, she could have taken on the pursuit now. But there was no use in regretting it now. I needed to find and subdue Grizel as quickly as possible and return to the injured Ayla.

-Rustle.

A slight noise caught my heightened senses. I quietly and slowly approached the source of the sound while muffling the sound of my footsteps. After carefully parting the bushes, I saw a familiar face in the darkness.

"...!"

But it was only the face of Grizel.

Grizel's head lay on the ground like a discarded object with black mud-like substances oozing from his neck. His body was no different. Black mud oozed from his severed neck and wounds all over his body while black dust filled the air.

I had seen these things before.

In the "Labyrinth of Dreams".

They were in those "rooms" that were broken, empty, abandoned, and didn't even have doors.

– Bubbleeee…

The black mud began to clump together, then started to cover Grizel's head and body.

The feeling of witnessing something that shouldn't have happened was truly terrifying. It sent chills down my spine, and I felt utterly paralyzed.

I forced myself to move. I had to do something. As I kept repeating this to myself, I reached out my hand.

– Splat!

– Crunch!

The black mud splashed up, and Grizel's head and body fused together. It seemed they were attached in the wrong direction because the head made a creaking sound as it turned back to its original position. Then, those eyes that were emitting a fierce purple light looked directly at me.

Grizel raised his hand and pointed at me with a bent finger.

– Boom!!!

At the same time, I was struck by a powerful force and thrown back to the ground. My skull rang, and I tasted gritty dirt in my mouth.

"Ugh, cough…"

While I was on my hands and knees and retching, Grizel slowly walked toward me. His twisted body moved in a grotesque manner. I tried to back away from him, but it didn't last long. My back quickly hit a tree.

"Huff, ha, huff…"

I took deep breaths as I looked at Grizel. His young face showed no emotion.

"It seems even Linshaka can't help you anymore."

"…"

"I'll show you what it means to be abandoned."

Grizel grasped my head with his broken fingers spread wide. A headache, as if my skull would soon shatter, began to overwhelm me.

_-~~~~~~_

A sinister whisper I had never heard before drilled into my ears. Despite my [Polyglot] trait, I couldn't understand the language.

Is this how I die?

In the face of such overwhelming power, only these futile thoughts came to mind.

It felt like my brain was slowly shrinking inside my skull. Warm blood trickled across my mouth. No, no, no…

-Beeeeep—!

Just when I braced myself for the end and tightly closed my eyes, something leaped out from my chest and started scattering light as it flew.

It was Beepy.

"Ugh!"

Grizel immediately let go and staggered back, and I collapsed to the ground. Beep, beep… Beepy's cries echoed and sparkling light particles scattered. I couldn't tell exactly what it was, but those sparkles were pushing Grizel back. Moreover…

"Ahh…"

It gave me strength.

When I first met Beepy, it infused the bathwater with life force, and now the sparkling particles of light descended onto my body and started healing me. The headache that felt like it was splitting my head in half gradually faded away, and my strength returned. Slowly, I stood up.

"How dare a failure like you…!"

Grizel shouted at Beepy and sent purple light in all directions. Beepy narrowly avoided the attacks.

I need to take him down quickly…

But the bow was already broken in half. What about the dagger? Or the Hydra's fang? Just as I reached for my waist.

-Piyoooooo…!

Beepy flew high and emitted a dazzling light.

-Thud!

And when the light dimmed, something fell down. I instinctively caught it.

"This is…"

A bow.

Lightweight, smooth and sturdy to the touch. It shimmered softly in five colors as if carved from opal. It bent gracefully and powerfully even without a string and was exuding a majestic presence…

It was not made of wood, horns, or any mineral. It was mysterious, as if crafted from something not of this world. I took a natural stance and pulled the 'invisible' string as if I had been using this bow for years. Then an arrow that seemed to have been made by collecting the bright particles of light that Beepy was scattering "came into existence".

Despite having rolled around in the dirt and not being in normal condition, I was clearer and more focused than ever. Without hesitation, I aimed the arrowhead at Grizel. Dark purple flames that spewed out from both of his hands flickered fiercely and rushed toward me.

-Thud.

I released the drawn string.

-Piyoooooo!

With a beautiful whistle-like sound, the arrow sliced through the wind, the darkness, and the ominous dark purple flames.

-Thwack!!!

It struck Grizel's heart.

"Ugh, aaaaah!!!"

"Kyaaaa!!!"

"Hiyahaaa!!!"

Though I only hit Grizel, several voices screamed at once. Old men, children, women, men…

The ferocious flames began to die down slowly. I approached Grizel. Black mud flowed from his eyes, nose, ears, and mouth. I realized that the "black mud" was what had been screaming.

"…Grizel."

I knelt on one knee and grabbed his chin.

"Gah! Gah…"

Grizel couldn't speak properly because he was constantly vomiting mud. Black mud flowed from every hole, so it seemed he couldn't see or hear me. I placed my hand on his head, just as he had done before, to use [Nature's Healing].

Then it happened.

-Stop....

A familiar voice came from Grizel. He began to speak with his mouth covered in black mud.

-It will only cause him more pain.

"…Queen Dianta?"

-Yes. You can call me Dianta, if it's you....

"How are you here...."

-Grizel and I are connected. It's a thin and fragile link, like a spider's web....

"…What exactly happened?"

-....

"Tell me now, what you couldn't say in the Labyrinth of Dreams."

-Grizel is....

The queen began to explain in a quiet voice. According to her, Grizel was a dark elf with the ability to enter the "Labyrinth of Dreams". He had entered the Labyrinth of Dreams and tried to meet the queen in order to prevent the disaster that befell the dark elves, but…

What Grizel encountered were the horrifying past and shattered souls of the dark elves. The "remnants" of the dark elves trapped in the Labyrinth of Dreams started to consume Grizel's soul, and he ceased to be himself.

-And then....

The queen paused for a moment. Then Grizel's body twitched, and soon he vomited something glowing purple from his throat.

"Guwueek!"

-Grizel obtained the 'power' he needed from this.

It was a small bead-like purple object. I picked it up.

This is....

It felt similar to the power from the new bow. When I held the bow and the bead together to compare them, something strange happened.

The glowing bead floated and fit perfectly into the groove made for the arrow.

"...."

Before I could understand what was happening, Grizel began to cough up blood. Blood was now flowing from his heart, where the black mud had been. It was clear that he was close to dying.

-There is something I want to ask of you.

And the queen who was borrowing Grizel's mouth whispered to me.