Considering the Lightning Breath the Harpy had used, it might be a good idea to let Set absorb the magic stone since it fell under the Breath category.
But at the same time, judging from past trends, using it on Death Scythe might produce a different effect—like enveloping the scythe's blade in lightning.
Both options were appealing. In the end, however, Rei chose to give the magic stone to Set.
After all, Rei had plenty of attack methods beyond Death Scythe's skills. Set, by comparison, had physical attacks at his disposal but still relied more heavily on skill-based attacks.
...Though this was the biggest issue: there was no guarantee that absorbing the Harpy's magic stone would grant the desired skill.
In the case of the Harpy Rei had defeated, the fact that it used Lightning Breath meant the odds of acquiring that particular skill were high.
However, the possibility of acquiring an entirely unexpected skill could not be ruled out.
"Alright, Set. Here we go."
"Gruu."
With those words, Rei gave the magic stone to Set...
[Set has acquired the skill 'Thunder Breath Lv.1']
An announcement message echoed in his mind.
"Alright!"
"Gruu!"
Acquiring the exact skill they had anticipated, Rei and Set each let out cries of joy.
They had worried that Set might acquire some other skill instead of Thunder Breath.
In that sense, this skill acquisition was a great success.
"Alright, Set. Try it out. Your target is... that rock over there."
"Grurururu!"
At Rei's instruction, Set immediately activated the skill.
From his open beak, lightning shot forth in a straight line.
The strike didn't shatter the rock, but it was powerful enough to crack it.
"That's quite powerful for Level 1."
Rei was genuinely surprised by the Thunder Breath's power. Having watched Set and Death Scythe acquire numerous skills through Beast Magic over time, his impression was that Level 1 skills were generally quite weak.
Of course, that was just the majority—there were some skills that displayed formidable attack power even at Level 1.
(Concentration... was it because it was a Breath with its power focused on a single point? If so, using it in diffusion mode would be useful in its own way.)
If Thunder Breath could be released over a wide area, it might not deal massive damage in a single strike, but it could numb enemies and slow their movements.
"Set, this time try using it in diffusion mode instead of concentrated. Can you do it?"
"Gruu? Grurururu!"
Hearing Rei's words, Set hesitated briefly before opening his beak again and releasing Thunder Breath.
The lightning certainly spread out.
However, it wasn't a spread like the Harpy's had been. It was narrower—something between the Harpy's concentrated and diffused forms.
"Does this require training, or will it become usable when the skill level goes up? ...Personally, I think it's training, but what do you think, Set?"
"Gruu!"
Set let out a cry as if in agreement.
This sort of thing was something the one who acquired the skill could intuitively understand.
"Anyway, we've confirmed Thunder Breath's effects... so should we get moving soon?"
"Gruu?"
Are we done with the eels? Set purred.
Originally, the reason Rei and Set had stayed here was to catch the eels likely hiding in the river.
Rei understood that, but since they had fought the Harpy here, there was no telling whether some monster might be drawn by the noise and attack.
While it was a shame to leave the eels behind, he judged it would be better to move on.
Above all, they had only caught one eel here. Even when Set searched afterward, he couldn't find any more. If they were going to catch eels, Rei's judgment was to try a different location.
...The fact that he still hadn't given up on catching eels even after being attacked by a Harpy spoke volumes about Rei's greed when it came to food.
"Should I just try catching eels when we go to the sea?"
Eels were generally considered a river catch, but as their spawning in the sea demonstrated, they could live perfectly fine in saltwater.
Eels caught in the sea were called sea eels, and they were said to be more expensive and tastier than regular eels.
Rei didn't know the finer details, but still—if eels could be caught in the sea, that was good enough for him.
That said, sea eels naturally tended to inhabit considerably deep waters rather than shallow ones.
And in Elgin, it was not uncommon for numerous monsters to dwell in the sea.
Rei himself had fought sea-dwelling monsters several times before.
"In that case, I can't deny the possibility that sea eels might have evolved differently from the eels I know. Though come to think of it, I don't even know if this river connects to the sea."
"Grururu."
Rei had been lost in thought about eels, but snapped back to reality at Set's cry.
"Ah, sorry. Well then, let's keep moving."
Climbing onto Set's back, Rei and Set resumed their journey upstream toward the river's source.
That said, time-wise, they could no longer afford to follow the river for much longer.
At most, another hour—no, two hours would be the limit.
(Reaching the river's source might be difficult.)
Given the hour, Rei thought it might be tough to find the source during this exploration of the Forest of Magic.
Since there was no absolute need to find it on this trip, it wasn't really a problem.
After all, this was merely an expedition driven by Rei's intellectual curiosity.
Still, he hadn't given up on finding the source.
In two hours, there was a chance he might stumble upon it.
(Well, even if I can't find the source this time, I can always come back when I have free time.)
He had firmly memorized the location of this Forest of Magic.
Given that, he should be able to return here even after going back to Gilm.
...That said, both Rei and Set were slightly prone to getting lost, so whether they could make it straight here from Gilm was debatable.
As they walked along with such thoughts...
"Gruru?"
"Set?"
Set suddenly stopped and let out a purr.
However, this wasn't the alert cry of spotting an enemy like before—it was a sound of bewilderment.
Puzzled, Rei surveyed their surroundings, but...
"I don't see anything out of the ordinary."
As far as Rei could tell, there was nothing particularly unusual about the area.
But since Set was this bewildered, something strange was definitely afoot.
Rei had confidence in his own senses, but he trusted Set's even more.
If asked which he trusted—his own senses or Set's—Rei would unhesitatingly choose Set's.
That was how much faith he placed in Set's instincts.
"Grururururu."
At Rei's words, Set scanned the surroundings.
Set probably sensed that something was there, but couldn't figure out exactly what.
Since it was clear from Set's behavior that something existed, Rei dismounted and carefully inspected the area.
After checking the surroundings for a few minutes...
"Is this... a Barrier!?"
The Barrier that covered the Hidden Base was immediately recognizable for what it was at a glance.
The Barrier Rei found now, however, was different.
At first glance, it didn't appear that any Barrier was in place. But once you reached a certain point, you could sense that there was... something there. A Barrier.
"In other words, this Barrier wasn't laid by the Zephyle Clan? No, but would there really be a Barrier in the Forest of Magic that the Zephyle Clan had nothing to do with?"
The Forest of Magic was vast, but even so, he couldn't imagine anyone other than the Zephyle Clan being capable of setting up such a Barrier.
If so, he could naturally guess who had created it.
"So this was also a Barrier laid by someone from the Zephyle Clan. In that case..."
"Gruu?"
Hearing Rei's mutter, Set purred as if asking what they should do.
In response, Rei quietly reached his hand toward the Barrier.
Set watched him with concern.
It was only natural. Some Barriers were highly aggressive. It was not uncommon for Barriers to unleash attacks—fire, lightning, shock—against anyone who touched them uninvited.
But while Rei understood Set's concern, he had a conviction that it would be fine.
He didn't have any particular evidence.
Still, the certainty was there within him. His extended hand touched the Barrier... and passed through without anything happening.
"Phew. Looks like it's fine."
He reached his hand inside, pulling it in and out a few times to confirm it was safe, then told Set.
At Rei's words, Set carefully touched the Barrier with his beak... and passed through without obstruction.
"Gruu!"
Set let out a happy cry, as if to say he could get through with no problem either.
Together with Set, Rei stepped inside the Barrier... and came to a halt.
"This is..."
From outside the Barrier, you could see what lay within. The scene visible through it had looked no different from the forest they'd been traveling through.
But what Rei saw upon entering was a spring—no, a vista grand enough to call a lake.
It was naturally smaller than the lake that had been summoned next to the Treant Forest, but it was undoubtedly of a scale befitting the word.
Flowers bloomed all around, and trees grew in abundance.
A truly fantastical sight.
"...Gruu..."
Set too purred in admiration at the scenery spreading before them.
Looking around once more, Rei spotted a single waterfall at the edge of the lake. Water flowed from it into the lake, and that water in turn flowed out into the Forest of Magic as the river they'd been following.
"Huh? But..."
Rei had been taking in the scenery when a sudden question struck him.
"There are no living creatures?"
It wasn't that there were no monsters befitting the Forest of Magic. Rather, there were no animals, birds, insects, or fish—none of the creatures that should normally inhabit a forest could be found anywhere.
In terms of life, plant life existed normally.
(If there are no insects or birds, how does pollination work?)
Rei had been puzzling over this question when he noticed Set beside him. Though Set wasn't purring, he was staring at one spot with a wary expression. Rei followed his gaze.
What Rei saw was the trees growing around the lake.
...No, to be precise, it was the presences emerging from among those trees.
In terms of height, they were perhaps a meter tall, if that.
The silhouettes—stout and stocky was the best way to describe them—were not alone.
Two, three, four, five... their numbers grew one after another, until eventually over twenty had appeared.
"Golems?"
Yes, they were Golems.
Golems came in a wide variety of types. From the most iconic earth Golems—the first image that came to mind at the word—to rock, mud, wood... some were even made of gemstones, Magic Metal, bones, or corpses. Golems truly spanned an impressive range.
Among them, the ones appearing before Rei and Set were typical earth Golems.
However, while the type was common, their numbers were considerable.
The Golems lacked any facial features. Though humanoid in shape, only flat earth existed where their faces should have been.
The group of Golems stood motionless, facing Rei and Set.
What on earth? Rei wondered, but he judged that in this situation, it would be better not to make the first move. At the same time, he readied himself to counterattack immediately if they attacked... and so the two sides faced each other in silence.
"Pi."
The Golem at the very front suddenly let out a small cry.
[Set]
'Water Ball Lv.5' 'Fire Breath Lv.4' 'Wind Arrow Lv.4' 'King's Intimidation Lv.4' 'Poison Claw Lv.6' 'Size Change Lv.2' 'Tornado Lv.4' 'Ice Arrow Lv.5' 'Optical Camouflage Lv.6' 'Magic Eye of Shock Lv.3' 'Power Crush Lv.6' 'Sense of Smell Enhancement Lv.5' 'Bubble Breath Lv.3' 'Crystal Breath Lv.1' 'Earth Arrow Lv.2' 'Power Attack Lv.1' 'Magic Reflection Lv.1' 'Acid Breath Lv.1' 'Wing Blade Lv.1' 'Underground Dive Lv.1' 'Thunder Breath Lv.1' new
Thunder Breath: A Breath that discharges lightning. Both concentrated and diffuse modes are possible, but the default is concentrated, and diffusion requires practice. At Level 1, the concentrated form has enough power to crack rock. Diffusion has a shorter range in exchange for attacking a wide area, and has the effect of numbing the target.