Chapter 147: The First Lord of the Forest

When I opened my eyes, I saw the Ancient Dragons looking down at me.

“Ugh.”

My body ached all over, as if my recovery was not yet complete.

“Your body cannot withstand the power,” one of them said.

“What do you mean by that?”

“You must create a new body worthy of such strength.”

I lowered my head slightly to check my condition.

The tip of my left hand had turned translucent. I couldn’t feel anything there. There were other translucent spots scattered across various parts of my body as well.

“What should I do?”

“…Even we do not know. We have never reached the stage you have attained.”

“What do you mean you don’t know…?”

“It is because of the magic the Lord etched into us. We can learn Nature Magic, but we cannot see it through to its end.”

“Has no one else shown these symptoms before?”

“No one. You are the first. You are the only being to reach the pinnacle of Nature Magic within a human body.”

Hearing that I was the only one felt strange.

Many thoughts crossed my mind, but normalizing this body was the priority.

While witnessing the end of Nature Magic, I had glimpsed a new stage. It seemed to be related to divinity.

‘If I meet the God, I’m sure there will be a solution.’

I stood up, enduring the pain. For now, it wasn’t too difficult to move, but it looked like things would get dangerous as more time passed.

“Ah. For now, try going to the Advanced Arena.”

“The Advanced Arena?”

“With your current skills, you should be able to climb the ranks easily. The blessing of the Advanced Arena will likely prevent your physical form from vanishing.”

“I understand for now.”

I told the Ancient Dragons it was fine, as they seemed apologetic for being too greedy, and then I returned to the tavern.

As soon as I arrived, Rose looked at me with wide, startled eyes.

“Dragon Emperor Jorge?”

“Ah. I’ll explain later. I don’t have much time.”

I quickly left the tavern and moved to the Advanced Arena.

[Welcome to the Advanced Arena.]

Letters appeared in a space dyed in golden light. The light quickly faded, revealing a pure white room.

It was a place I had seen before. A woman with golden horns stood there.

It was Ren, the guide of the Advanced Arena. Ren, dressed in a white cloth dress, wore an expression similar to Rose’s.

“Lord Jorge?”

“The pain is definitely duller here.”

“…Your situation is serious.”

“Do you know anything about these symptoms?”

“I don’t know the exact symptoms. However, I can tell that your body cannot handle the power.”

“The Ancient Dragons said that winning in the Advanced Arena would help. Is that true?”

“Yes. Most likely. Winning in the Advanced Arena means growth. That growth will stop your body’s immediate dissolution. The higher you climb, the more time you will gain. However, it will not be a permanent solution.”

“That’s enough for now.”

I only had one forest left to conquer anyway.

The First Forest.

Since I had mastered Nature Magic, defeating the Orcs wouldn’t be a problem. The important thing now was buying time.

I had plenty of Arena Tickets collected from hunting High Apostles. I should be able to gain enough time to last until I conquered the First Forest.

“Let’s start right away.”

“Understood.”

Ren snapped her fingers, and the number 199 appeared along with the name Rexodan.

It was a clone again. Since it wasn’t a living being, there was no particular risk of death.

“I’ll challenge him immediately.”

“I will be cheering for you.”

Ren, returning to her original form, vanished after answering like an automated machine.

I approached the door, grabbed the handle, and threw it open.

[You are challenging Rexodan, Rank 199 of the Advanced Arena.]

[Moving to the Arena.]

As the door opened, golden light poured out, and the surrounding scenery changed.

This time, a desolate land appeared. It was a stage with two caves in a withered forest, not exactly a place where one could use complex strategies.

[The connection between the challenger’s Dragon Lair and the Advanced Arena is complete.]

[The effects of owned Sacred Relics are being applied.]

[Owned Guardians and troops are being summoned.]

[The duel with Rexodan begins.]

As the connection was established, the Guardians walked out from my Lair.

“We’re going to skip this section quickly. Save your strength.”

I moved forward and looked toward the enemy camp.

From the entrance of the opposite Lair, a group of Guardians and troops owned by the clone marched out.

They had a raw feel to them. Most were instinctive, wild-type Guardians.

Looking at them, I tapped into the Mana within my Dragon Heart.

Whoosh!

I didn’t need an incantation.

It was the sensation of becoming one with nature. Through that sensation, I manifested magic.

The desolate earth split open, swallowing the enemy army whole.

Crunch!

I merged the ground back together, crushing the Guardians and enemies to death. I didn’t even need to check if they were still breathing.

When sharing senses with nature, everything is transmitted to you.

“Uwaaaaaah!”

Seeing the few remaining enemies approaching, I stirred the wind. I created a whirlwind and swept them away.

Now, only one remained.

Rexodan, who took the form of a wolf, smirked.

“Wow. You’ve mastered Nature Magic to the absolute limit. There’s nothing I can even teach you.”

“Are you going to surrender?”

“Well, I should at least put up a fight.”

Rexodan dashed forward and transformed into a Beastman form. Extending his sharp claws, he lunged at my position.

Rumble!

I created a stone wall from the ground to block Rexodan’s attack. Then, I turned the stone wall into a fist and struck him.

Boom!

With a heavy impact, Rexodan was sent flying back. I turned the ground into mud and dragged him down.

‘He can’t even react.’

The power of Nature Magic at its limit was no joke. I could easily handle an expert of that caliber with simple magic.

“Damn it. I couldn’t even last one minute. Tsk. You’re a boring guy. Farewell.”

The duel ended as Rexodan’s presence vanished while being dragged into the mire.

[You have won the advanced duel.]

[You have acquired part of the ‘Nature Magic’ mastered by Rexodan.]

[You have brought over the SSS-rank Guardian ‘Belly,’ who was under Rexodan.]

[You have obtained the Sacred Relic ‘Storm Sprint’ held by Rexodan.]

The white room reappeared.

“Let’s go to the next one immediately.”

“Understood.”

Only Ren’s voice echoed, and a golden door appeared shortly after.

The number 198 and the name Successor of the Lord appeared. Again, I opened the door without hesitation, went inside, and quickly wiped out the enemy army with Nature Magic.

[You have won the advanced duel.]

[You have acquired… mastered by Bultak.]

[You have brought over the… under Bultak.]

[You have obtained the Sacred Relic… held by Bultak.]

I skipped the messages quickly and challenged the next rank.

197.

196.

195.

150.

I used all the tickets I had and reached Rank 150. I needed more tickets to climb higher.

Taking a moment to catch my breath, I checked the things I had acquired. Fifty Sacred Relics and fifty SSS-rank Guardians were piled up in my Dragon Lair.

My forces had expanded significantly just by climbing the Arena.

‘…Hmm.’

A thought crossed my mind. To see if I could actually realize it, I felt like I needed to meet the God.

“I’ve bought some time. Shall I go meet them?”

I left the Advanced Arena and returned to the cave of the Dragon Lair. As I walked out of the cave, I felt an unusual aura.

The Guardians of the other Successors who had been transferred to me were gathered there.

“We greet our new Owner.”

“Nice to meet you. Let’s get along.”

“Where are your manners when speaking to the Successor?”

The personalities of the Successors they used to serve were all different, and since they had reached SSS-rank, their egos were strong.

Would it be possible to unite them into one?

I shook my head, deciding it was impossible. It seemed right to just let them be free.

“Do things the way you’ve always done them. And if there is anyone who doesn’t want to be with me, speak up. I will terminate your Guardian contract.”

No one stepped forward to terminate their contract.

“Then go eat at that restaurant first. His skills are top-notch. You’ll like it.”

I sent them all to Balak’s Restaurant. Then, taking only the Lords of the Forest, I headed toward the First Forest.

“Are we finally unifying the forest?”

“Is that even possible?”

“From what I saw this time, his level has completely changed. I wonder what his blood would taste like if I sucked it now?”

I was a bit curious about that too.

I considered giving my blood to the Vampire Lord Rynne, but then I stopped. There would be no way to fix it if things went wrong.

Accompanied by the slightly excited Lords of the Forest, I arrived at the entrance of the First Forest. A massive iron gate stood firmly in our way.

“Is this the place?”

“Yes. This is the only entrance.”

Pedrias, the High Elf, nodded.

“The gate will open when all the Lords of the Forest place their hands on it.”

“Let’s go then.”

I was the first to place my hand on the iron gate. Following me, the other Lords of the Forest placed their hands on the gate as well.

As soon as everyone’s hands were in place, a powerful aura flowed from the iron gate. As if checking if we were worthy, it flowed through our hands, scanned our bodies, and returned to the gate.

Creak!

The iron gate, which hadn’t budged at all before, swung open, revealing a path leading inside.

It wasn’t dark. Rather, light was flowing out from the other side. I stepped through the gate and headed toward the First Forest.

Upon entering, a massive clearing appeared. In its center, an Ork who appeared to be the First Lord of the Forest sat on a rock with his eyes closed.

‘He’s twice as large as the Orcs I have.’

I used Golden Dragon Eye to check his information.

[Using Golden Dragon Eye.]

[First Lord of the Forest, Ork (SSS+)]
– He is the first sword meant to protect the sleeping Goddess.
– He is calm.
– Total Stats: SSS+
– Potential: SSS+
– Held Items: Sword Bestowed by the Goddess (SSS+)
– Held Skills: Composure (SSS), Goddess’s Protection (SSS), Transcendence (SSS)… Invariability (SSS)

He was a being who had grown to the limit of his potential. Since he was the first sword protecting the God, his specs were terrifying.

Ork, who had his eyes closed, opened them.

“Have you finally arrived?”

His gaze turned toward me. No emotion could be felt in his eyes. Since there was no emotion, it was difficult to grasp his intentions.

I also erased the emotion from my own eyes and looked back at Ork.

“It feels like it has been over 1,000 years. Since someone last set foot here.”

Ork stepped down from the rock and drew the sword he had planted in the ground. It was a sword imbued with strong Divine Power. I could catch a glimpse of how powerful the master who bestowed that sword must have been.

“I had hoped that one of the races within the forest would open this gate. To think an outsider would be the one.”

“So, are you disappointed?”

“Disappointed or not, it is what it is. I am merely the sword and proxy protecting the Goddess. If you defeat me and awaken Her, then that must be what She desires.”

I looked at Ork while drawing up the Mana stored in my Dragon Heart.

“Is that so? Then shall we start right away?”

“I’ll give you the first move.”

Maintaining his composure, Ork raised his sword and looked at me with an expressionless face.

Looking at him, I fired my magic.

Boom!