Chapter 14: The Inner Area

In the forest.

Seeing how Ethan was currently in a dense forest instead of the town, it was clear what happened. The portal had malfunctioned.

He scanned his surroundings, eyes sharp with wariness. "Where the hell am I?" he muttered. Silence answered him, save for the occasional rustling of leaves and the distant cry of something... big. No roads, no signs of civilization. Just an endless maze of towering trees and twisted roots, radiating an unsettling presence.

"Where the hell are we?" Mary’s voice rang out as she emerged from her usual white mist.

Ethan groaned. "There’s already mist everywhere. Can you not make it any worse?"

"The real question is, where the hell are you?" she retorted, floating around and glancing at the surroundings. "This place looks like a horror venue."

"For a lot of people, it is," Ethan shot back. "Now stop talking. You’re distracting me."

"Alright, Sherlock Holmes. Do your thing. I won’t disturb you," she huffed, floating away with a pout.

Ethan moved slowly, keeping an eye out for any signs that could help him figure out where he was. But after ten minutes of looking around, he found nothing. No clues, no markings, no animals, no plants—nothing that gave him any idea of his surroundings.

It was even worse that he didn’t want to walk too far, not knowing what kind of danger might be waiting. He stopped in his tracks, his forehead creased with worry.

"What’s wrong?" Mary asked.

"There’s not even a single damn sign here. Just trees after trees." He sighed, frustration creeping in.

Mary drifted closer. "That’s bad?"

"It means we don’t even know what to prepare for. If I could see a monster or hear a battle, I'd at least have some idea of where we are. But now? We are just sitting ducks."

It was like the world heard his frustration. Suddenly, a low buzzing sound filled the air.

A huge bee-like creature, about half the size of a grown man, hovered nearby. Its body was shiny and dark, and its stinger gleamed with venom.

“Whoa, look! A beast!” Mary said, pointing excitedly. “Though, I gotta admit, they really made bees look ugly as hell.”

Ethan didn’t waste any time. The moment he saw the bee, he ducked behind a tree, holding his breath and staying perfectly still, his body tensed. He was careful not to let it see him.

Mary blinked, confused. “Uh, why are you hiding? It’s just a bee.”

“Yeah, a B-rank bee,” Ethan whispered sharply. “You can’t be sensed, so you’re fine. But if it spots me, I’m done for.”

“Come on. It’s just a giant bee. How much harm could it do?” Mary teased. “Don’t tell me big ol’ Ethan is scared of a bee? Where’s your manly pride?”

“Ok, which part of it being a B-rank beast did you not understand?” Ethan shot back. “And pride’s something only the alive get to enjoy. What good will pride do if I’m dead?”

The bee buzzed around for a while, probably looking for food. Ethan kept switching spots, not wanting to be seen by it, no matter what.

“You know, if you keep moving around like that, it’s gonna hear you,” Mary said.

“Really? I had no idea. Thanks, Sherlock,” Ethan replied sarcastically. “The bee only relies on its sight. None of its other senses work. You really think hiding behind a tree would do any good if it could smell me or hear me?” He jumped from one tree to another.

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“You could’ve just said that, you know?” Mary pouted.

“Sorry, I was too busy monkeying around to answer,” he shot back, still sarcastic. Mary didn’t say anything else, just huffed.

After a while, the bee finally started flying away, no longer in sight. Ethan let out a big sigh of relief and jumped down from the tree.

But something felt off. The ground felt way too soft. He took a step, expecting solid dirt, but his boot sank into something soft and slimy.

A chill ran up his spine. His instincts kicked in, and he dropped to one knee, scanning the ground. The place was too dark, with little sunlight getting through, so at first, he couldn’t see anything. But then, as the light slowly filtered through the trees, he spotted it. A thick, scaly tail shifting under him.

“Oh no,” he muttered.

The tail shifted, sending a ripple down its length, and Ethan’s heart raced.

His breath caught in his throat as he snapped his head up. Standing before him, half-hidden in the mist, was the rest of the creature—a massive serpent, easily the size of a three-story building. Its slit-pupil eyes locked onto him, and its forked tongue flicked out, tasting the air. A slow, deliberate hiss escaped its mouth as it stared at him, almost as if deciding where to strike.

"What the hell?!" Mary gasped, her voice full of shock. "Which son of a bitch made a snake that freaking huge?"

Ethan didn’t hesitate for a second. His hand shot to his pouch, grabbing a small vial. Without thinking twice, he threw it right at the snake’s face with all his strength. The glass shattered on impact, releasing a thick, purple gas. The snake recoiled violently, sneezing and coughing as the fumes overwhelmed its senses.

Ethan didn’t stay still. No checking if there were other monsters nearby, no thinking about where to run. He just ran.

“What the hell was that?” Mary asked, floating alongside him.

“A Serpentide. Another B-rank monster,” Ethan replied between heavy breaths. “Well, the good news is, I finally understand where I am.”

“Where?” she asked, floating above him.

“The inner area. That’s why there are so many B-rank beasts around.”

“Isn’t that... bad?” Mary asked, her voice now more serious. “I thought the beasts here were way above your pay grade.”

“Yeah. Bad,” Ethan admitted, picking up his pace. “If even one of them gets me, I’m toast. And if I run into a herd... well, that’s game over.”

“Just throw another vial at them,” Mary suggested. “By the way, what was in that one? It stopped that huge snake pretty easily. Gotta say, that was impressive.”

“Pepper and spices,” Ethan replied with a smirk.

Mary stared at him, clearly not buying it. “Are you kidding me? You stopped a monster with... seasoning? That’s all it took to stop that giant snake?”

“Simple and effective is always the best,” he said with a small chuckle, his laugh growing louder.

Mary frowned. “How the hell are you laughing right now? You could die any minute!”

“Sorry, sorry,” Ethan said, still laughing. “It just reminded me of my past life. I used to come here all the time, hunting beasts and gathering plants to pay off my debt. Never got dropped into the inner area before, though. And I definitely never stepped foot in this place.” He let out another short, bitter laugh. “Looks like my bad luck never ends.”

“You can reminisce later,” Mary cut in. “Get out of here first.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” Ethan sighed.

Ethan kept running, scanning the area as he went. He was also careful to check behind him, making sure the snake wasn’t chasing them. Even though he had been running without a plan to save his life, he knew he needed to come up with one now, figuring out where to go next while avoiding any monsters.

Then, suddenly, he stopped dead in his tracks.

Mary’s eyes widened, panic creeping into her voice. “Why the hell did you stop?”

Ethan didn’t answer. His eyes were locked onto something tucked between the thick roots of a tree.

A mushroom.

Its cap was deep violet, and its stalk twisted in a spiral of white and gold. It pulsed faintly, almost as if it were alive.

“Why are you staring at that big-ass mushroom?” Mary groaned. “You don’t have time for this! You’re busy surviving! Now, chop chop!”

“It’s not just a big-ass mushroom,” Ethan said, his eyes gleaming with excitement. “It’s a Voidcap Mushroom. They’re insanely valuable—cooking, chemistry, medicine, you name it. There’s pretty much no limit to what it can be used for.”

“And none of that matters if you’re dead,” Mary shot back. “Keep moving!”

Ethan tsked, caught between logic and temptation. These mushrooms were ultra-rare, only growing under very specific, harsh conditions. The market price for one was insane. Even if it couldn’t make his loan disappear, it could give him the breathing room he desperately needed.

And if he didn’t sell it? He could use it to make high-quality healing potions for himself.

He might never find another one. Actually, he’d never find another one. They were rare for a reason.

“This is a bad idea,” he muttered, taking a step toward the mushroom.

“Then why the hell are you doing it? Ethan!!” Mary shouted, but he ignored her.

He pulled out his hunting knife and carefully dug around the mushroom’s roots, making sure not to damage it. Once it was free, he placed it in his storage ring and let out a sigh of relief.

“Alright, you got your mushroom. Now run,” Mary urged.

But before Ethan could respond, he felt it.

Cold stares on his back.

“Oh, shit.”