"Is that a mushroom forest?"
In the distance—about 2 to 3 kilometers away—lay a mushroom forest, but not just any mushroom forest...
This one was at least 20 kilometers wide and 25 kilometers long. Some of its areas were red and emanated a stifling heat. The blue areas were as cold as a frozen tundra. And the green areas were a dense tropical rainforest.
The mushrooms that made up the three main areas varied in size, from 2 to 7 meters. The strangest thing was that the jungle was filled only with mushrooms and shrubs... it didn't look like any other kind of life.
Merlin took two steps back, staring at the mushroom forest with a puzzled expression.
"Could it be...?"
Nero looked at the wizard with a raised eyebrow.
"Merlin, what's wrong with you?... What's wrong with that mushroom forest?"
"Aurora Concentration!"
Aurora Concentration? What are you talking about, Merlin...? You mean the mushroom forest?
Sunday blinked in surprise and said cautiously:
"Really?... How big?"
Merlin curled his lips, revealing his teeth.
"Yes! This is one of the biggest I've ever seen, almost 20 kilometers... 20 kilometers!"
Nero looked increasingly surprised...
The green, red, and blue jungle, the feeling of danger, the mental exhaustion, the feeling of being watched, and now the term and concept of an auroral concentration. All of this didn't seem contrived, but rather natural. As if the environment itself were a web of exhaustion and suffering.
Kōri placed his hands on his hips and said impatiently,
"And what the heck is an aurora concentration?"
Nero smiled inwardly.
Thanks, Kōri... although this was my chance to ask.
"The same question," Lux exclaimed.
Merlin and Sunday exchanged confused glances, puzzled by the three of them's lack of knowledge.
Merlin opened his mouth and then closed it. He began to think about what he was going to say.
"Well, um... the Aurora Concentration is a kind of zone where many Sinners have died..."
Lux, Nero, and Kōri's bodies shuddered, while Sunday remained unfazed.
"...in these areas there might be food, strange materials, and enormous caves."
Nero almost fell from the tower of corpses due to a bone collapse...
The red-eyed boy steadyed himself on one of the corpses. He began to piece together all the information he had:
The piles of corpses were scattered throughout the catacombs, while the Aurora Concentration wasn't that far away. This desolate landscape had only two possible outcomes: either the Catacombs of the Wind was a real catacomb, or... it wasn't just a catacomb.
The possibilities were numerous, almost endless. A war zone or a nursery of corpses?
Nero shook his head at nothing, then looked at Merlin with doubt in his eyes.
"And... should we go to this 'Aurora concentration'?"
The wizard laughed heartily and looked at Nero with disbelief.
By the gods, what's wrong with you, Merlin...?
"Should we go? Of course! We can find food there, shelter, and if we're lucky, or unlucky, however you want to see it, we might find other people."
Nero shrugged. Then he looked at Merlin's arm, which had magically healed.
"How?" he said, pointing at the arm.
"How?" Merlin pulled out some Sinner Grass and winked at Nero.
...
The group began walking through the catacombs forgotten by time. Their destination was the mushroom jungle, which wasn't far, only about a 10-20 minute walk... barring any unforeseen problems.
At a point in the nameless wasteland, Sunday—who carried the wand with lantern abilities—stopped, staring into the dark void.
Fear and cold gnawed at the entire group...
Sunday took a step back.
"There's something..."
Nero approached him silently and said in a short whisper.
"What is it?"
"It's like a... giant monster."
Lux whispered, "I'll activate it," and began peering into the darkness.
He realized that his night vision range had decreased drastically, from his usual 15 meters to only 5 meters.
Clack...
"What was that...?"
Kōri shrank back, her heart pounding in her chest. Her body trembled so violently it felt like she was convulsing.
Nero took two steps back and instinctively reached for his belt, searching for his revolver, which he had given to Rose.
Shit...
"Group together..." Sunday ordered.
They took up positions where no flank was exposed.
They heard the sound of something gigantic slithering...
Nero saw red scales—
Nero saw red scales!
An immense creature, 16 meters tall, rose from the darkness. Half of its body was that of a snake, and the other half was that of a naked woman with serpentine features, like a tongue that forked in two.
The serpent-like female form slithered away, leaving a trail of debris—piles of bones and sand. Then, the creature raised part of its body for the group to see.
They froze, like sheets of paper, sweating from every pore.
It was the first time Lux hadn't been delighted or even excited by the sight of a naked woman... because this time, the woman had him utterly terrified.
The snake-like creature smiled and said cheerfully,
"Hello... how are you?"
Nero visibly trembled and fell to the ground, his skin paler than usual.
"W-what are you?"
All of Merlin's primal instincts urged him to flee, but he held back and whispered fearfully,
"What do you want?"
The half-snake woman laughed like a lady. She even dared to cover her mouth with her gigantic hand.
"What am I?... I'm a calamity... what do I want?... I want my 'son's' freedom."
Sunday raised an eyebrow, still sweating profusely, and looked into the woman's enormous eyes.
"Why us and not other people?"
Kōri nodded.
"Besides, who is this 'son of yours'?"
The snake's scales began to glow with such an intense crimson red that they could be seen even in the deep darkness.
"My son..."
"She" turned her body toward the luminous mushroom forest and pointed at it.
"He's there... and if you want to continue with your miserable mortal lives... you must make him escape from this dungeon."
Lux moved a little closer to the creature and snapped his fingers to get its attention.
Nero swallowed hard.
Now what's this idiot going to do? Doesn't he see we're in a situation where we could die?
The woman lowered her head and looked at Lux with intrigued eyes.
"Well, old lady, what does your son look like, and what is his and your name?"
The group looked at Lux with frightened expressions, thinking he had offended "old lady."
"Haha... you're very funny, kid... my name is Abigail."
Luckily, Abigail hadn't been offended by the old lady's comment. On the contrary, she seemed to be laughing her head off.
"My son's name is Reirh, his hair is black, and he's human."
Nero looked at her with calculating eyes.
"And what do we gain by doing that?"
Abigail looked at Nero with a new contempt etched in her eyes. It wasn't hateful contempt; the feeling in the creature's large eyes seemed more like disgust than anything else.
"I let them live, and you dare to ask for a reward..."
Abigail lowered her head, looking into Nero's eyes for the first time.
Nero froze, his legs trembling.
After 20 seconds of silence, Abigail smiled calmly, as if the disgust and contempt had suddenly vanished.
"It's alright... I can forgive you if you complete my mission."
Without another word, Abigail snapped her giant fingers and disappeared into the darkness.
Kōri fell to her knees.
Lux smiled, watching the 16-meter beast disappear.
"At least she had a nice pair of breasts."
Nero, still pale, looked at him.
"Tone down your lust... and don't you ever call a lady 'old lady' again."
Kōri covered her face with her hands and said in a panic,
"By the ancient gods..."
"We should go to the mushroom forest. If we don't, we'll die at the hands of that half-woman monster," said Sunday, looking at the illuminated forest.
Nero looked in the same direction as Sunday.
Wow... the mushroom materials are phosphorescent. Could it be that they also have Sinner powers like moss? If that's the case... we'll have more materials to sell and make money!
Nero turned to Sunday and pointed at Merlin.
"Yes, we should listen to Merlin."
The wizard smiled and nodded smugly.
...
After discussing what they should do, the group began walking toward the gigantic mushroom monument.
Lux cracked jokes as if nothing was wrong while Sunday teased him. Kōri was quieter than ever; she seemed to be reflecting on something. Nero and Merlin, meanwhile, were debating what they should do: take refuge in the mushroom forest—a decision Merlin supported—or listen to Abigail—a position Nero advocated.
When they arrived at the mushroom forest, they stopped before entering.
Kōri's cold expression softened.
"This place looks beautiful."
Sunday sighed.
"All beautiful places are the most dangerous."
The five of them ventured into a green area where bushes and "trees" made their passage difficult.
Whack!
An arrow sliced through the air and nearly pierced Nero's foot.
The group went on high alert, every sense on high alert.
"Strangers!" someone shouted in a female voice. "Your journey ends here..."