The Demonic Mist Forest and Ominous Signs

We had finally left the area affected by the battle with the Ancient Dragon. It had to be admitted that it was a massive region with immense damage, proving that the Ancient Dragon was incredibly powerful, nearly invincible. The fact that I had defeated it proved that I too had grown much stronger.

In particular, we were now venturing deeper into the heart of the Forest, where the magical energy was highly dense. It formed a sort of Demonic Mist that enveloped the entire Forest. While the magical energy no longer affected us, its density was enough to create the Demonic Mist, which caused no small amount of difficulty. It obstructed our vision, making it quite hard to determine our path and direction.

After traveling in one direction for a long time through this Demonic Mist Forest, we had slain quite a few strange beasts. Indeed, strange beasts chose their habitats based on the density of magical energy. Here, it was almost entirely populated by S-rank and SS-rank Demonic Beasts. However, we could defeat them with relative ease. I acquired quite a few skills, but since they mostly overlapped with my existing ones, they only served to level up my current skills. Yui's magic was exceptionally powerful; she could easily take down an S-rank Demonic Beast. So this was the power of Supreme Magic.

The sky began to darken, though sunlight still filtered through the thick Demonic Mist. This was because it was no ordinary fog; it did not dissipate upon encountering sunlight. It was merely condensed magical energy. We stopped at a clearing inside the Forest next to a lake. Releasing Asp, it scampered around the lake area in its Dragon Hatchling form before diving headfirst into the water while we prepared our meal.

A moment later, Asp emerged from the water with some sort of algae tangled in its wings and mouth. Finding it strange, I approached to untangle Asp, who was struggling to free itself from the weeds. Finally finished, it turned out to be a dark, greenish-black water algae with a rather pleasant fragrance.

[Rudexx Aqua Weed: A herb that typically grows in the deep waters of areas with vast magical energy, in very small quantities. Because it grows in deep waters and dense magical energy, it is highly difficult to find and harvest. It possesses the effect of rapidly regenerating magical power, contains high nutritional value, cures various illnesses, and neutralizes many types of toxins.]

Oh, another spiritual herb, one that aids in regenerating magical power. Now I wondered if Asp had intentionally dived down to retrieve it, or if it had simply gotten tangled by accident. But wait, could Asp actually dive that deep? This algae only grew in the deepest depths. There were still many things I did not know about my pet. Why did a powerful adult dragon prefer to remain in its Dragon Hatchling form?

I stored the entire harvest of Rudexx Aqua Weed into the Spatial Ring and returned to help Yui prepare dinner. After eating, Asp curled up and fell asleep. Asp ate a massive amount, fitting for an adult dragon despite being in its Dragon Hatchling form. Following that, Yui and I also went to sleep, lying opposite each other across the campfire. Thus, all three of us slept after a day of traveling—or rather, trekking through the forest.

As I slept, I felt my arm being lifted, followed by a warmth enveloping my body, along with a soft and fragrant sensation. Opening my eyes, I saw Yui lying in my embrace, holding my hand as she slept soundly. Seeing this, I wrapped my arm around her and went back to sleep. Yui's body was soft and warm, allowing me to quickly drift off.

Waking up in the morning, we were still holding each other tightly. I gently kissed Yui's forehead, waking her up. An incredibly adorable expression appeared on her face. Her face flushed red, showing unspeakable embarrassment as she buried her head in my chest and hugged me tightly. I stroked her hair while she remained clung to me. Shyly, she looked up at me, and our lips quickly met.

"This is my morning greeting!" she said, her face flushed. I responded with a smile and a kiss.
"You cheated! I wanted to be the one to kiss you!" she protested, her face turning red with embarrassment from the kiss.

After our early morning intimacy, both of us stood up, with Yui still blushing as she held my hand. We were greeted by a tragic yet rather comical sight. Dozens of magic beast carcasses were piled high near the lakeshore, with Asp sleeping soundly on top of them. Asp slept peacefully while resting atop the pile of carcasses. Their blood was still flowing, proving they had died not long ago. Their bodies bore claw marks or scorch marks, which were the causes of their deaths.

All of them were S-rank or SS-rank Demonic Beasts, yet they lay piled up like this, right beneath Asp's feet.
"Did Asp do all of this?" Yui asked, her face filled with surprise.
"Perhaps."
Suddenly, Asp woke up and hopped down from the pile of carcasses. It then flew onto my shoulder and pointed toward the campfire where we had cooked yesterday.
"So you hunted all of this?" I asked Asp. Asp nodded vigorously.
"You want to use these carcasses as food?" Asp continued to nod.
Both Yui and I laughed as Asp eagerly urged us to prepare the food. "To think we ended up with a gluttonous adult dragon who is also skilled at finding food," I thought to myself.

The two of us prepared breakfast together while Asp scampered around waiting for the food. I stored the surplus into the Spatial Ring. After breakfast, we set off once more to return to the Human Realm.

After traveling for a few hours, the magical energy grew even denser, creating a thick Demonic Mist that limited our vision. We primarily determined our direction through the fluctuations of magical energy around us. Asp was still asleep on my shoulder. Yui held my hand, insisting that I lead her, perhaps because my ability to perceive magical energy and terrain was superior, or perhaps simply because she preferred it that way. I was not like those dense protagonists in anime, manga, or light novels. I knew Yui liked me, and I felt the same, which she understood very well.

As we walked through the thick Demonic Mist, I sensed a wave of magical energy different from the surrounding atmosphere, likely belonging to some S-rank or SS-rank Demonic Beast. It had probably detected our location as well, as the magical signature drew closer. Assuming a combat stance, I prepared to draw my sword and strike toward the source of the magical energy.

Suddenly, Asp, who was sleeping on my shoulder, opened its eyes and flew straight toward the wave of magical energy. A sharp cry, "ECHHH...", echoed out. Yui and I remained still, as that cry did not belong to Asp. A moment later, Asp emerged from the Demonic Mist, walking slowly. Its mouth was covered in blood, undoubtedly from the strange beast. Once it fully stepped out of the Demonic Mist, Asp's figure became clear.

Asp was dragging the carcass of an SS-rank Demonic Beast while still in its Dragon Hatchling form. The strange beast had died instantly from two fatal wounds. One was on its neck, which had been bitten and bled profusely; judging by the teeth marks, it was definitely Asp's doing. The second was on its chest, where a massive claw mark had shattered several ribs and severely damaged its internal organs. Those two wounds had slain the SS-rank Demonic Beast instantly. Although its skin and bones were exceptionally hard—such that even an Advanced-grade weapon would barely scratch it—Asp had ended its life in two simple moves without even needing to transform into its adult form. From this, I realized that Asp was incredibly powerful.

Asp dragged the beast's carcass before me and hopped onto the two-meter-tall monster, as if wanting me to store it in the Spatial Ring. I complied with Asp's wish and stored the carcass, after which Asp flew back onto my shoulder and went back to sleep. Meanwhile, Yui and I smiled at Asp's adorable behavior. We continued our journey to find a way out of the Labyrinth.

Suddenly, Yui gripped my hand tightly, and Asp woke up.
"Is something wrong?"
"Ahead is no longer the Forest," Yui said with a serious expression.
Snapping out of my thoughts, I realized the terrain had indeed changed while I was daydreaming.
"It seems so," I replied to Yui.

Perhaps we had finally found a change since entering this Forest. Since entering, we had seen nothing but trees and the occasional lake. Now, a mountain stood not far from us. Feeling as though we had found a clue to escape, all three of us headed toward it. Asp left my shoulder and flew alongside me, heading toward the mountain as if reading my thoughts from my actions and expression.

Approaching the mountain, its shape was revealed right before our eyes. It was an exceptionally tall and colossal mountain. According to my estimates from sensing the magical energy, it was about twenty thousand meters high, and its length was completely beyond my ability to determine. As all three of us stared in awe at the mountain's grandeur, we detected a massive cave entrance a few kilometers away through our magical perception.

Heading toward the cave, it was about eighty meters high, sixty meters wide, and very deep, appearing to connect to the outside world. We headed toward the cave. When we were about five hundred meters away, an unexpected sight startled us. A massive silhouette stepped out of the cave and slowly, steadily approached us. Neither Yui, Asp, nor I had sensed any magical energy from this strange beast, nor had we heard any sound.

Yui and I broke out in a cold sweat, while Asp assumed a combat stance, letting out a low growl. As the strange beast drew closer, the sensation was entirely different. An incredibly, colossally massive wave of magical energy erupted, pushing away all surrounding magical signatures. This magical energy was utterly overwhelming, several times stronger than even the Ancient Dragon, appearing out of nowhere in an instant.

The surrounding vegetation rapidly turned lush and green, only to wither and decay just as quickly. Numerous magic beasts in the distance fled in droves, their stampeding footsteps echoing clearly. Even the exceptionally powerful magic beasts were fleeing in panic upon sensing this magical energy. The Demonic Mist was pushed far away, revealing the form of the strange beast approaching us. An incredibly powerful and colossal strange beast now stood before us.