90 – The Forest (1)
“Well, before we head out, let’s do a quick check.”
As the group gathered and exchanged greetings, the lady spoke.
“Have you all prepared your equipment and provisions?”
They would be spending several days in the forest.
It was a basic rule to bring along enough food and supplies for those days.
“Of course.”
Charlie nodded with a sly smile.
“Yes.”
I also nodded lightly.
“Good. I believe both of you have prepared adequately, but just in case, I will share a list of items to check off.”
The lady nodded lightly, continuing the process.
This step was necessary for entering the forest.
The forest was a dangerous place, and one could never be certain of what might happen.
Preparing and knowing the group’s belongings in advance was essential for dealing with unforeseen circumstances.
Seeing her suggestion, it was evident that the lady had conducted thorough research before entering the forest.
“Indeed, it seems you have done your research thoroughly. Impressive.”
Charlie complimented the lady with his characteristic sly smile.
“Oh, it’s nothing. It’s only natural to do this before entering the forest.”
In response to Charlie’s praise, the lady beamed with a lively smile and a grateful expression.
That smile, which might have seemed forced on someone else, appeared simply adorable on her face.
What to call it, it reminded me of Sarah in Lakeinwood.
When Sarah was young, she had that exact feeling.
Should I say it was like a child craving praise?
As I had grown older, such expressions had faded considerably, so seeing the lady brought back faint nostalgia.
Regardless, the group followed the lady’s suggestion and revealed their belongings to each other, inspecting the contents.
Most of it consisted of emergency items like food and potions for treating injuries.
Especially the escort, Dorothy, carried a large bag on her back, seeming to be several times her size, filled to the brim with preserved food designed for the journey into the forest.
“Wow. With this, we won’t run out of food during the journey.”
Charlie exaggeratedly widened his eyes in surprise.
“The more thorough the preparation, the better.”
Once again, a delighted smile spread across the woman’s face.
After confirming each other’s burdens, we finally stepped out of Darville and into the forest.
***
“It feels strange, doesn’t it?”
After some time had passed since entering the forest, the woman, Elle, spoke.
I had finally learned the woman’s name through the introductions that took place before leaving Darville.
“What do you mean?”
Charlie immediately picked up Elle’s words.
Ever since meeting Elle and her group, Charlie had always been like this.
Whenever the women, especially Elle, said something, he would respond abruptly, almost like a reflex.
There was a stark contrast between how he treated me and how he treated them, making his intentions very transparent.
It didn’t seem merely polite to be courteous to a client; the childish emotions in his eyes didn’t appear wholesome.
No, there was a clear ulterior motive behind his actions.
Come to think of it, there were rumors about Charlie.
He was said to be quite infatuated with women.
If there was a woman with a striking appearance, be it a client, a colleague, or a resident, he would make advances without discrimination.
If that was indeed the case, it made sense for him to react that way after seeing Elle and Dorothy’s faces.
Elle and Dorothy were individuals with distinctive appearances, even in bustling Darville.
Especially Elle, who exuded a rare nobility not commonly found in Darville, so it wasn’t surprising that Charlie was captivated.
The blatant gaze was enough to send shivers down my spine if I were in their shoes, but they seemed oblivious to the hidden intentions and interacted with Charlie normally.
“It’s fascinating to actually step into the forest we’ve only heard about.”
Once again, the woman replied to Charlie’s words with composure, gazing up at the sky obscured by the dense trees.
“I see. Well, from the perspective of an outsider, it’s natural to find it intriguing.”
Charlie nodded.
Elle had not revealed her surname, only her name.
Yet Charlie naturally referred to her as ‘miss.’
Just by having exceptional bodyguards, one could speculate that her background was not ordinary, but even without going that far, one could tell by just looking at her.
The atmosphere she exuded was not something an ordinary commoner could possess.
Even if she were a noblewoman, such natural grace did not flow up to a certain level of nobility.
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In other words, it wasn’t difficult to deduce that her family was quite powerful or had a significant lineage.
“But we haven’t even begun our journey through the forest. It’s too early to be amazed yet.”
Charlie chuckled, wagging his finger.
“Miss, it’s not just intriguing. The forest is dangerous.”
At that moment, Dorothy interjected into their conversation.
Elle, who seemed to be taking the situation of entering the forest as merely intriguing, didn’t seem pleased with it.
Personally, I thought Dorothy was right.
While the likelihood of real danger as long as I was there wasn’t high, it wasn’t wise to completely let one’s guard down.
“Ugh…”
As if stung by those words, Elle furrowed her eyebrows ever so slightly.
She seemed about to say something in return, but someone beat her to it.
“hahahaha. Of course, what Dorothy says is right. The forest is a dangerous place. You never know when, what might happen. You must never let your guard down.”
Right then, Charlie.
Charlie turned towards Dorothy, a sly smile on his face as he spoke.
“However, there’s no problem as long as I’m here.”
With a confident expression, Charlie declared, “Just trust me. I’ll safely guide us to our destination and to Derville.”
Saying so, Charlie smiled once again.
Setting aside the childish side seen in his eyes, when you looked at Charlie’s face without prejudice, it wasn’t all that ugly.
With a decent amount of skill to boot, approaching in such a manner would likely sway quite a few women.
However.
“…Ah, yes.”
Dorothy’s response was dull.
“There! Everything’s fine!”
El, not paying any attention to Charlie, simply beamed at Dorothy.
“…….”
Upon witnessing this scene, a subtle hint of resentment crept into Charlie’s smile.
El and Dorothy seemed entirely uninterested in Charlie, but perhaps they hadn’t noticed.
“…Hey! Keep up properly!”
In the end, Charlie could only vent his frustration to himself.
***
Occasionally feeling a presence, the atmosphere, not much different from any other forest, began to change as the group progressed.
The trees grew denser, and the sense of presence around them faded away.
As if there was nothing around, the surroundings grew quiet.
“Now, it’s best to refrain from speaking too loudly.”
At that moment, Charlie stepped forward with a solemn expression on his face, unlike before.
“Because of the forest monsters?”
El interjected suddenly.
At this, a smile reappeared on Charlie’s face.
“Indeed. As expected of you, miss.”
But as if to say, “When did that happen?”, his expression quickly turned serious again.
“So far, it’s been fine, but roughly from this point, the monsters start appearing. That’s why it’s necessary to avoid speaking loudly. It may be difficult to completely hide our presence from them, but we can avoid provoking them.”
“I see…!”
El’s face lit up with interest.
Even after hearing that monsters could appear at any moment, no sign of tension showed on her face.
“Miss….”
Dorothy looked at El as if she had a headache.
“…….”
I sent a sympathetic glance towards Dorothy.
Though I hadn’t known El for long, within that short time, I had grasped the kind of person she was.
Perhaps she seemed like the type of person who was more curious than others, yet didn’t know how to control that curiosity.
The day they first met her was probably the same – a feeling of things progressing in that manner.
Seeing Dorothy in a position where she had to protect El by her side and take responsibility if anything happened, I couldn’t help but feel sympathy.
“But there’s no need to worry too much. Only those who aren’t very aggressive have come out so far. Occasionally, there are individuals who hold a grudge against humans, but they won’t come near if you use the ‘scent’.”
Saying that, Charlie took out a small pouch from his pocket. He then pinched some powder from it between his index and thumb, sprinkling it on his body.
“With this, we should be safe for a while.”
Setting aside the fact that his smile while saying this felt forced, Charlie’s response was textbook.
Although his intentions to impress El and Dorothy were quite obvious, he still followed the rules that needed to be upheld.
It was too early to judge, but I couldn’t help but think that Charlie’s reputation wasn’t entirely unfounded, and so, we continued to move forward.
Even though we had left the safety zone, we were still at the edge of the forest, allowing us to move forward without any major issues.
And as time passed, the group welcomed their first night in the forest.