At last, I understood. This goddamn forest was the polar opposite of childhood innocence.

The obviously dangerous things, like bears, tigers, and guardians, were actually fine. Their appearance triggered an instinctive sense of danger. You could tell your life would be at risk unless you did something.

Not the little things, though. The ordinary-looking or genuinely tiny things were far more dangerous.

Martial arts novels said it, too: beware of children, the elderly, and women.

The little things had survived in the Forest of Four Seasons despite their puny size. What did that mean?

It meant they had at least two ways to thoroughly fuck an opponent up.

Why two instead of one?

One was a visible move to intimidate the enemy. The other was an unexpected last resort to catch the enemy off guard.

I figured you needed both to survive in the Forest of Four Seasons.

That had been little more than speculation until just now, but my run-in with the porcupine-pufferfish had convinced me.

'Small peppers really do pack the most heat.'

Except these peppers weren't merely hot. Eating one would literally melt my body.

At this rate, a yellow mouse that shot lightning might pop out someday. Or a dinosaur that breathed fire might start roaming around.

Why was I bringing this up out of nowhere?

"Woun'fuh (Roundfur)."

"Kyuu?"

"Dah-ee can't moov (Daddy can't move)."

Because the porcupinefish's poison had left my body half-wrecked.

The slurred speech was the least of my problems. My body wasn't moving the way I wanted it to. I kept dropping things I picked up, and I couldn't even walk without staggering.

Thank goodness I'd managed to keep my balance long enough to get back to the cave. Otherwise, I might have collapsed in the middle of the forest.

The speed-sloth smoothly handed something over. It had been watching quietly and must have realized how bad my condition was.

An Elixir, its golden liquid sloshing inside. I barely managed to take it and gulped it down. On top of that, I drank the antidote I'd stocked up on beforehand.

Finally, I practiced my internal energy cultivation method. I did everything I could.

"Ugh..."

After a while, my body returned to normal. Strength began returning to my limbs.

I let out a long sigh and went over what had just happened. That had been a terrifyingly close call.

'Without the medicine Allfather gave me, I'd have collapsed on the spot.'

It had only been this mild because I had poison resistance. Without even that, I would have died instantly.

Pufferfish poison was called "te" something.

Anyway, it was the most dangerous toxin in the world. And since this thing lived in the Forest of Four Seasons, its poison would have been even nastier, not less.

'This is a place where the smallest things are the scariest.'

I'd been consistently applying insect repellent to avoid getting bitten. What would happen if I were poisoned by a bug, or a wound developed a secondary infection?

I didn't even want to imagine it.

I carefully checked for anything wrong with my body and made sure all my sensation had returned. Maybe it was thanks to the combination of Elixir and antidote, but nothing felt particularly wrong so far.

My internal energy cultivation method was working smoothly, too, so I seemed to be fully recovered. Everyone on the forum agreed that there was no better way to check your physical condition than practicing a cultivation method.

'If I'd been missing even one of the things I had, my life would've been in danger. The forum really saved my life.'

This place would kill you the moment you let your guard down. You had to be wary of everything to survive.

'That aside, should I build a proper door first...?'

I looked at the iron fence blocking the entrance, remembering today's siege. Animals that had presumably lost their homes to the downpour had tried to force their way into mine.

Fortunately, I'd held them off easily with the aura I'd honed all this time, but there was no telling what would come next. If something as strong as the speed-sloth threatened me into handing over my home... that would have been a bit rough.

'At the very least, I need solid defenses when it rains.'

I planned to stick with the same tactic of using the iron fence as a shield. Putting up a door would only prevent me from counterattacking, and more importantly, it would get smashed in no time.

A single charge from a boar could bring the door I'd worked so hard on crashing down, along with my spirits.

'If I'm unlucky, I might have to fight off a wave every week.'

Grumbling to myself, I got up. I'd fully recovered, so there was no time to mope around.

Just as the shark giant had visited my shelter before, there was no telling what animal might show up this time. I'd have to remain constantly alert for at least a day or two.

CRACKLE! POP!

First, I lit a fire to dry out the surroundings, which were damp from the rain. I also went back up to the river to collect the fish flopping on the ground, checked the drainage ditch, and so on.

By the time I'd finished everything, evening was approaching. It was getting dark.

'Is tomorrow day eighteen?'

I thought about it as I marked the cave wall. About three days had passed since the investigation team incident.

If that Ludwig fellow really had entered the Forest of Four Seasons, today would mark the end of his first day. Was he still alive and well? Or was he dead? Unlike me, he wouldn't have an Elixir.

'If I'd known this would happen, I would've given him a bottle of Elixir, too.'

Regret was still regret, no matter how soon it came. I prayed that Ludwig would make it to me somehow.

Honestly, if even this prayer went unanswered, that would go beyond petty and reach a whole new level.

RUMBLE!

... Or so I nearly said, but there was only so much anyone could do about human affairs. I stole a glance outside.

Despite the thunder, it wasn't raining. Were the heavens really listening to me?

'Nah. It must be a coincidence.'

Forcing myself to dismiss it, I logged onto the forum. What had everyone been talking about while I cleaned up?

Normally, all sorts of shitposts would be flying around, as you'd expect from the forum, but lately most of the discussion had been about the investigation team.

That hadn't changed. More than half the topics concerned Eldorado or the investigation team. Hot topics usually died down quickly, but this one seemed to be lasting because it had some connection to real life.

'Nothing particularly interesting here.'

The only remotely fresh topic was the Messiah Empire—its emperor, specifically. Apparently, the emperor, who'd been at death's door with an illness, had recovered.

As for what sort of person he was, he was said to have led the Messiah Empire to strength and prosperity. He'd given his full support to Ashe, now a renowned swordmaster, and even introduced policies to provide benefits.

But that was about it. His diplomacy was so-so, making "an emperor for domestic consumption" a fitting description.

What happens to the crown prince if the emperor gets back up?

I'd rather Crown Prince Arnoly just inherited the throne. I fucking hate the emperor.

└Why do you hate him?

└That fucking emperor's policies sent magic item prices through the roof.

└Oh lmaooo, I know what you mean.

└Aren't the side effects still pretty bad?

└Yeah. This is actually an improvement.

└Seriously, if he hadn't pulled that shit, public opinion wouldn't have tanked lol.

└The current Messiah emperor really should never be allowed anywhere near diplomacy lmao.

└AbsoluteSupremeArnoldRules It was only like that at the time. Didn't things improve afterward? Policies must be judged in the long term.

└Cut the bullshit. Do you know how much it still costs to import magical goods from the Iris Kingdom?

└That asshole must be a noble. That's why he has no idea how hard commoners have it.

└AbsoluteSupremeArnoldRules Not at all. His Majesty was looking to the future. Posterity will surely judge him favorably.

└What good does that do? We're struggling to put food on the table lol.

└Besides, Sword Masta's posts raised the continent's average combat strength, so it doesn't mean jack shit anyway lol.

└Can't you just fucking admit he's incompetent? Why all the excuses lol.

└AbsoluteSupremeArnoldRules You uneducated vermin. Do you know who my father is?

└Why? Didn't your mom tell you?

└Ooooh lmaoooo.

└Scary stuff lmaooo.

└What does that mean?

└He's indirectly mocking him for growing up alone with his mother and no father lol.

└Can't believe that needed explaining lmao.

Well, it was the same old forum. All kinds of jokes flying around.

But with nothing except political posts right now, it had gotten a lot less entertaining. The admin seemed to be away, judging by the lack of intervention.

Heavenly Demon only removed posts that went too far. Nothing more, nothing less.

'They said Chae U has a match tomorrow, so that's a relief.'

Political bait was bound to be shoved aside by the dopamine hit of every goal. What sort of undead would emerge tomorrow? Would Slutty Princess escape joining their ranks?

I planned to stay at the shelter tomorrow anyway, so I could browse the forum with an easy mind. If I wandered around needlessly, some strange creature might come to my shelter.

'I'll have to make do with smoked food through tomorrow.'

Something might follow the smell here, like the shark giant. Of course, there was no guarantee another creature like that would turn up. It just didn't hurt to be prepared.

'Why does it feel so cold, though?'

Was it because we'd had a downpour rather than ordinary rain? As the moisture dried, the temperature had dropped to a shivery chill.

Thank goodness for the fire. Without it, I'd already have been trembling. The uniform Slutty Princess had given me helped, too. Its long sleeves and pants kept me nice and warm.

'I'll have to use the hide as a blanket.'

I'd been using the tiger hide as a carpet, but tonight it would serve as a blanket. The weather had turned so cold all of a sudden that the fire alone probably wouldn't cut it.

The human body was fragile. I had to keep it warm somehow. One wrong move, and I could ascend to heaven in my sleep.

CRACKLE! POP!

I added wood to the fire to raise the cave's temperature further. I could feel the chill gradually fading. It was getting cozy.

"Kyuu..."

"..."

My cave companions came over to warm themselves by the fire, too. Roundfur even sprawled out on the ground to sleep.

'Why does he look so fat, though?'

I'd noticed him getting plumper over time... but now he was perfectly round. I almost expected him to start rolling across the ground soon, living up to his name.

Still, he was cute, so it was fine. Being round only made him cuter. Besides, putting on weight in the wild meant having that much more stored energy.

'He's a cub. Eating plenty is good for him.'

Food was scarce enough here as it was. Gaining weight was a good thing in itself.

As for me, maybe it was because I practiced an internal energy cultivation method, but I felt like I was gaining nothing but muscle, not fat. As far as I knew, muscles—human muscles in particular—weren't very energy-efficient compared to those of other animals.

'Not that I can afford to stop building them.'

With danger everywhere, muscles were essential. They weren't very efficient, but there was nothing I could do about that.

I posted on the forum that I was done for the day and lay down. The chilly weather made me curl up instinctively.

"Speedy, get under a blanket, too. It's cold."

"..."

I'd already tucked Roundfur in separately, and now I offered the same to Speedy. But Speedy simply stared at me without doing anything.

I spread out the blanket and offered again.

"Come on in here."

"..."

The speed-sloth backed away hesitantly. Did it hate me that much?

'Wait a second. Come to think of it, that little bastard still hasn't washed, has it?'

I'd forgotten its body had to be crawling with mold and bugs.

In the end, the speed-sloth settled down to sleep a short distance away. It was near the fire, so I didn't have to worry.

Before going to sleep, I quietly closed my eyes and circulated the mana inside my body. Rather than practicing my cultivation method, I wanted to feel the mana itself. That alone was a form of training.

'I still haven't got the slightest feel for aura blade.'

Would I really be able to control this aura that just kept growing?

I did my best to settle my anxiety and fell asleep. It kept getting colder, but the fire made it bearable.

And so that eventful day passed, and the next morning arrived.

"Brrrr..."

The biting cold woke me early. Why was it so damn cold?

I could hardly accept that a single downpour had left the weather in this sorry state.

'F-fire... I need to light the fire first... '

Wrapping both arms around myself, I went outside. And...

"... Huh?"

A completely white forest greeted me. Forgetting even the cold, I looked around at the white scenery.

Everywhere I looked was white. White stuff had piled up on both the oven and the furnace.