An hour had passed since the Goblin pack was slaughtered — or rather, since they had been unilaterally trampled.
Rei and his party had been pushing through the forest, but they had yet to catch sight of a single Smog Panther.
"Hey, Nielson..."
"I know, just give me a moment. Honestly, I've lost track of which direction to go."
"...Maybe you should take a short break? I'm not sure how, but resting might help you find Smog Panthers again."
Rei offered the suggestion, though he didn't actually believe it would work.
The truth was, there had never been any particular reason why Nielson could find Smog Panthers in the first place.
Given that, if asked whether a break would restore her ability to locate them, Rei would naturally shake his head.
But even so, the faint hope that it might was hard to dismiss entirely.
(If she lost the ability to find Smog Panthers for some reason, it's not impossible that the ability could return for some reason as well.)
He didn't know whether things would actually play out that way, but either way, taking a break wasn't a bad deal for Rei.
He still hadn't used the magic stone from the deer that Seto had killed with Wing Blade earlier.
"Hmm, you're right. I'm not really feeling in top form right now, so maybe I should rest a bit. Besides, I'm getting a little hungry, so I want something to eat."
Nielson turned an expectant gaze toward Rei, clearly asking for his approval.
She was no doubt hoping for something delicious stored inside his Misty Ring.
Rei naturally knew what Nielson was after.
He had to admit his own appetite had been building as well.
It was a bit early for a full meal, but a snack was certainly in order — or so he thought as he scanned the area for a suitable spot.
The deer corpse, bisected vertically, was in a state that would make dissection difficult.
Given that, there was no need to go to a river like before — any spot nearby would do just fine.
Fortunately, they were in a forest where the canopy of leaves blocked out the sunlight.
It was already early autumn, but perhaps because not much time had passed since summer's end, the midday sun was still quite intense.
Judging by that alone, one might mistakenly think it was still summer.
Rei's Dragon Robe had a simplified air conditioner function, so the heat itself wasn't an issue... but even so, it couldn't block the blinding glare of the sun.
In that sense, the forest was a comfortable environment for Rei.
...Though since it was a place where people rarely ventured, the difficult terrain made it somewhat troublesome to navigate.
"Good idea. Let's rest a bit. How about over there — doesn't that look decent?"
The spot Rei indicated was near a large boulder.
The rock stood about three meters tall, effectively shielding the area from view on that side.
If they were attacked by some kind of monster, having one direction where they didn't need to worry about an assault wasn't a bad arrangement.
...In a way, it also meant they couldn't flee in that direction if attacked, but for Rei, that was a non-issue.
He was confident he could repel any monster that inhabited this forest, no matter what appeared. And above all, if a Smog Panther showed itself, that would be exactly what he wanted.
Even a spider — he had only defeated one so far — would be welcome as far as Rei was concerned.
"Hmm. Over there? Well, I don't particularly mind... but more importantly, come on. Let's hurry up and eat!"
For the fairy Nielson, if a monster attacked, she could simply fly away to escape. Or even without flying, she could use a Fairy Circle to teleport to safety.
And before any of that, Rei and Seto were right there, so dealing with a monster attack wouldn't be difficult.
That was exactly why she had said any resting spot would do.
Rei proposed the location, Nielson agreed... and Seto purred, having no objection since Rei had chosen the spot. With that, they settled in for a short break.
"So? So? What are we going to eat? Hey, Rei."
After leaning against the rock and resting for a moment, Nielson immediately peppered Rei with questions.
She was eager to get to Rei's food — more accurately, food stored in his Misty Ring rather than anything he had prepared himself — as quickly as possible.
"Let's see. How about this?"
What Rei pulled from his Misty Ring was a sandwich: bread kneaded with a nut resembling walnuts, Orc meat seasoned with tare, and fresh vegetables, all layered together.
The bread had been stored in its freshly baked state, so the warm, roasted aroma of the nuts immediately spread through the air around them.
"Whoa! Wait... what is this! It looks absolutely incredible!"
"Right? It's from a bakery that's famous for being delicious. ...Naturally, the price matches."
As with anything, top-quality goods came at a premium.
The sandwich Rei had produced this time was made with flour that had been carefully selected from the start, and every other ingredient had been just as thoroughly scrutinized.
Naturally, a sandwich crafted with that level of dedication to quality couldn't be priced like something bought at an ordinary shop.
It was priced as food fit for nobles or trading company presidents.
That was why a slightly proud look colored Rei's face as he explained this to Nielson.
"Then let's eat already! If you let such a mouthwatering smell drift around the area, it wouldn't be surprising if enemies came drawn in by the scent!"
Normally, one would dismiss that as ridiculous.
But the aroma rising from the freshly baked nut-filled bread had a fragrance that stimulated the appetite to the utmost degree — calling it almost violent wouldn't be an exaggeration in the slightest.
"You're right. I would've preferred to eat a sandwich this good somewhere with a nicer view, but... I went all out to help you get back in form, so let's eat it before it cools."
The freshly baked, freshly assembled sandwich hadn't lost any of its quality while stored in the Misty Ring.
But now that it was out, the flavor would inevitably deteriorate as time passed.
The freshly baked fragrance would fade, the vegetables in the filling would wilt from the heat of the meat and bread, and the meat itself would go cold — the taste would decline rapidly.
With that in mind, they needed to eat the sandwich while it was still at its best.
Rei handed sandwiches to Nielson and Seto, then took out his own portion and bit in.
The softness and sweetness of the bread, along with the roasted aroma of the nuts, spread across his palate first, followed by the crisp texture of the fresh vegetables, and finally the rich, savory flavor of the Orc meat.
After the first bite, he was struck by how delicious it was — but still pressed on to a second and third.
The sandwich was reasonably sized, but driven by appetite as he was, Rei polished it off in no time.
"Delicious..."
Lingering on the aftertaste, Rei next pulled out a cold fruit water from his Misty Ring.
It wasn't particularly sweet — rather, it had a tartness that lingered in the finish.
Rei drank it down, washing away the remnants of the sandwich from his mouth.
"Ah! Hey, it's not fair if only Rei gets some! Give me some too!"
Spotting Rei drinking fruit water, Nielson immediately demanded her own share.
Rei produced another fruit water and handed it to her.
The sandwich alone had been larger than Nielson herself, and yet she downed the fruit water just as casually.
As always, he had absolutely no idea where all that volume went in her small body.
"Phew, that hit the spot. ...So, the real question is what we do from here. What do you think?"
"You're asking me? Finding Smog Panthers was your job to begin with, wasn't it? Even if I try searching for more, whether we actually find them still depends on you, Nielson."
"That's... true, but... Rei and Seto could help search too, couldn't you?"
Rei found himself nodding in agreement with that.
In truth, Nielson had been finding Smog Panthers one after another, and Rei had simply been following her lead as they moved.
They had even established a division of labor — Seto would immobilize a found Smog Panther with King's Intimidation, and Rei would finish it off.
But that hadn't been planned from the start. It had simply fallen into that pattern as events unfolded.
Given that, now that the previous approach no longer worked, they clearly needed to find Smog Panthers using a different method.
"Fair enough. Nielson's right about that. Given the situation, I definitely need to search for Smog Panthers using a different approach too. If Seto and I pitch in, the dynamic of relying entirely on you will change. The procedure after finding them probably won't change, though."
Regardless of who found them, the sequence of King's Intimidation followed by Rei's attack wasn't something they could alter.
"Hmm, you're right. If that happens, my job will..."
Considering what Rei was proposing, Nielson realized that most of her role would simply vanish.
If she had no work to do in the current situation, there would be no meaning in her traveling with Rei.
In reality, there wasn't really any need to worry that much, but Nielson had been firmly instructed by the Chief to be useful to Rei.
Given that, she wanted to properly fulfill her role.
"True. Then how about you think about what to do from here while you rest?"
At Rei's suggestion, Nielson nodded... but then looked at him with a puzzled expression.
"What is it?"
"Nothing. I was just thinking that you let me rest quite a lot. Given your personality, I didn't think you'd do something like that."
At Nielson's question, Rei froze for a moment.
The truth was, he was letting Nielson rest because he had an ulterior motive.
But letting her know that was out of the question.
"If you can find Smog Panthers for me, it makes things a lot easier. If a short rest brings back that ability, I don't mind letting you take a break."
"Really? Well, if you say so. Then since I'm full, I'll go rest for a bit."
Seemingly satisfied with Rei's explanation, Nielson slipped inside a nearby tree.
Watching her retreating figure disappear into the trunk, Rei let out a quiet sigh of relief.
At least he had managed to pull the wool over her eyes... for now.
"Gururu?"
Seeing Rei look relieved, Seto purred as if asking, "You okay?"
Rei smiled and stroked Seto's head.
"Don't worry about it. Everything's fine. More importantly, since Nielson is resting, let's use the magic stone while we have the chance."
"Gururururu!"
At Rei's words, Seto purred in understanding.
Given the current situation, Seto must have also felt it would be better to use the magic stone sooner rather than later.
Spurred on by Seto's response, Rei retrieved the magic stone and Death Scythe from his Misty Ring.
He glanced toward the tree Nielson had entered as a precaution, but nothing seemed amiss.
After confirming that, he briefly considered whether it might be better to move to a different location before using the magic stone — but the process would only take a few seconds.
Deciding there was no need for such extra effort, he tossed the magic stone into the air and cleaved it with Death Scythe.
[Death Scythe has acquired the skill "Flying Needle Lv.2"]
An announcement echoed in his mind.
It was a skill he hadn't used much before — one that fired Long Needles by swinging Death Scythe.
Considering it came from the magic stone of a deer with blades growing across its entire body, it was an understandable skill to acquire... but Rei would have been much happier if Flying Slash or Power Slash had been upgraded instead.
Just as that thought crossed his mind...
"What are you doing?"
Nielson's voice suddenly reached Rei's ears.
【Death Scythe】
Corrosion Lv.6, Flying Slash Lv.5, Magic Shield Lv.2, Power Slash Lv.5, Wind Hand Lv.5, Terrain Manipulation Lv.6, Pain Burst Lv.4, Penetrate Lv.5, Multi Slash Lv.6, Blizzard Slash Lv.5, Flying Needle Lv.2 (new), Underground Transfer Slash Lv.1, Dragon Slayer Lv.1