Busy right now. Currently fighting the wyvern.

"Have you decided?"

So I say casually.

Facing me is the entire governing body of the Parakirt tribe, the elders. They consist of Licuz, Zonn, the captain of the guards, several other old men and women and of course, Aire, who just walked up to join their side.

Just look at their faces, I can tell all of them are anxious. All except Zonn and Aire of course, both of them are just too carefree.

"Yes. We have..."

Licuz hesitates before continuing. I'm guessing he must be trying to not anger me with his answer. Is it that bad?

"We have decided that we will only follow sir Rolan if you manage to fulfill the prophecy our ancestor was given."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So here I am once again travelling through this forest. This time we are finally headed to our original destination, the previous settlement village of the Parakirt tribe, to hunt the so called wyvern king that has been terrorizing the forest for the past few months.

The answer Licuz and the elders gave me was the most logical one, I don't really get why they were so on edge. Were they perhaps scared of me?

Well, that aside...the trees here are getting thicker and the atmosphere is getting heavier as expected, there are even some strange plants around that I've never even seen in books before.

But the most jarring thing is that the atmosphere is getting even colder for some reason. Unnaturally cold.

Even if the mana condensation is that strong, it is unusual for such a place to be this chilly. Especially if the place is a goddamn forest.

"Is it usually this cold?"

I turn to Zonn standing on my right.

He shakes his head confused at the situation as well.

"No. It was never this cold."

Could this be related to the wyvern king? There was also that thing as well...

On the way here, we kept experiencing huge herds of mana beats charging right through us without any hesitation.

When questioned about it, Zonn also said this was a common occurrence nowadays. He said that the mana beasts that lived close to the heart were migrating elsewhere and this caused the village to be more on guard.

Hmm.

Looking at this entire scenario, I can think of several possible reasons for the mana beasts' migration.

First, the unprecedented appearance of a wyvern king made them move as they were no longer the apex predators of their habitat.

Second, the wyvern king produced this cold energy which ruined the homes for the mana beasts.

Or third, both of these reasons made the mana beasts move.

But there's one thing I'm sure off, and that is the wyvern king is somehow related to the herds of mana beasts we've been experiencing.

The surrounding keeps getting colder and colder to the extent that we had to use spells to keep ourselves warm. Maybe I should enchant the robes with cold resistance when we get back.

I look around to spy a thin layer of ice forming atop leaves and the ground dusted in snow.

This place seems like a completely different place from where we came from.

Oh right. Zonn is here as well, along with Lyndis. The both of them insisted on following us to hunt the wyvern so we agreed. Licuz was a bit on edge because he didn't want his child to go fight a wyvern, but after some convincing he was persuaded by Lyndis after she showed him her new-found abilities.

It seems despite his cold demeanor, he really does have a soft spot for his daughter.

But it doesn't really make a difference whether they follow us or not since I'm the only one needed for the wyvern subjugation. Heck, even if all the elders came along I wouldn't mind.

"We are here."

So says Zonn whilst stopping in this tracks.

Wow. It's really all destroyed.

Rows and rows of destroyed houses covered with a layer of snow filled my view as I turned my head to scan the surroundings.

Fallen trees, ruined structures, and a few animal carcasses that looked half eaten laying around. Luckily for us the chilly air had masked the pungent scent of the rotting corpses.

It was really a breathtaking sight. Seeing the precious crops drenched in snow and the neatly built huts fallen and broken made for such a cathartic sight.

Silence filled the air as the five of us walked up towards the village.

I slowly moved my eyes to glance at Lyndis and manage to catch the moment when a tear descended down her face. Beside her was Zonn with a solemn look on his face, patting her back and trying her best to comfort her.

It must be quite an overwhelming scene for them, seeing their home destroyed and all.

I turn to the opposite direction and spotted Zalfious staring off into one of the ruined houses.

The sight must have also impacted him greatly as his home village was destroyed by a mana beast as well.

We made our way to the open area at the center of the village, when we looked up, there was a massive tree and a house built on one of the branches. It looked much better built and decorated than the other houses despite being ruined.

This fancy house must be the chief's.

I turned around to look at the five tracks of footprints cleanly imprinted on the snowy surface.

"So. Where is this wyvern king?"

I say while dusting the snow off my shoulder.

Wait...snow? It's snowing? In a forest?

I hurriedly looked up and sure enough, it was snowing. The others caught sight of me peering up and did the same, only to be just as amazed as I was.

I'm sure that this is related to the wyvern king. When a mana beast reaches a certain level, they tend to produce their own energy that can influence and alter their surroundings.

Is it of the ice attribute?

Just then.

[STOMP!]

A loud footstep arose from our East.

Turning our heads, we found a large creature the size of building staring dead straight in the eyes. It was covered by the trees but we could clearly see the features of it due to its large size. Its wingspan stretched longer than its own body and it was covered in huge white scales. This, coupled with it's gorgeous blue gemstone like sapphire eyes, made the creature seem simply majestic.

This...It indeed is much bigger than a regular wyvern seen from the books. I couldn't help but let out a smirk when I thought that.

The excitement and anticipation of taking this mana beast down filled my entire body as I clenched my left fist.

"Move."

I turn my head back towards my two fellow demons and throw my right arm backwards to signal them to get away from the fight.

They bowed and hurriedly moved themselves away from the area whilst escorting Zonn and Lyndis.

I turn back to the wyvern and my smile deepens in excitement.

This guy was able to mask his scent and mana. Usually, mana beasts with such a high rank would be letting off some kind of aura, but even while I'm this close I don't feel anything emanating from it. It must be extremely strong to be able to do that.

6 star? No maybe 7 star since it's a king. Well, no matter.

After making sure the others vacated the area safely, I cracked my knuckles and took a stance.

"Alright. Let's start this."

[WRYYYY!]

A loud cry sounded from the creature as it charged directly at me, with its mouth opened wide.

This bastard must be trying to swallow me whole.

"Hup!"

I enhanced my legs with demonic energy and leaped far into the air, directing my body to be above the wyvern.

"Your reaction is kinda slow."

It took the wyvern a few moments to respond and by the time it did, it was too late. I was already above it and was readying my attack.

I lift my right leg into the air to perform a high kick, gathering small violent winds on my foot. Before too long, I slammed down with my right leg that has dark and demonic winds coiled around it, directing myself downwards at an abnormal speed.

"Demonic art 17: Tempest fall."