Our Family Has Fallen

Reynard, as the main force confronting the monsters head-on, had been struck countless times. His survival could only be attributed to the life-saving armor. He was critically injured; an ordinary person might not have held on. Curiously, however, Reynard's condition stabilized and did not worsen. His body surged with a tenacious life force, much like his willpower.

However, such grievous injuries also astonished those around him.

"Evacuate... hurry and evacuate..."

Even though his body was recovering, Reynard's first words upon waking up indicated that his mind was still on the battlefield.

His movements also alerted the guards caring for him, who quickly notified the other instructors of Reynard's awakening.

By the time Barton and the others arrived, Reynard had already sat up. Although he wasn't fully recovered, sitting up proved his injuries were stable.

"How's the situation?"

Reynard looked at the people before him. Dismas was without his coat, his body wrapped in numerous blood-soaked bandages. Balistan's left arm, his shield arm, was in a sling around his neck, likely injured from repeatedly blocking the monster's attacks.

"It's alright, the monsters have been killed."

Dismas briefly explained what had happened after Reynard had fallen, along with how they dealt with the monsters.

"Although we wanted to keep the corpses for My Lord to study, we had to burn them to kill these monsters completely. However, some strange things were left behind from the monster's body. They're definitely treasures, and most likely the Spiritual Materials My Lord mentioned."

As he spoke, Dismas fetched two boxes. Opening one, he revealed a fist-sized black crystal inside. It was irregularly shaped and shone with an eerie luster.

Dismas handed the box with the crystal to Reynard, then opened the other. It contained a piece of flesh that seemed to have lost all reactivity.

"I made the decision to keep a piece. Perhaps My Lord could study it and find the monsters' weakness, so we won't suffer as much in future encounters."

"We don't fully understand these monsters yet, but you should know the dangers of corruption. How could you carry such things around with you?"

Reynard was startled by Dismas's rashness. He knew full well how terrifying the monsters were; how could Dismas simply carry these strange items around?

Dismas could only offer a wry smile and explain, "Precisely because they're dangerous, leaving them elsewhere wouldn't be safe. So, I had to keep them with me."

Reynard had nothing more to say to this and turned to the most troubling issue at hand.

"What's the casualty situation?"

At these words, everyone fell silent. Dismas and Balistan had eventually retreated due to injury and exhaustion. Barton was the only one uninjured, but he looked worried, burdened by having to deal with the aftermath.

"Three sacrificed, eleven wounded. We haven't notified the families or informed the townspeople yet."

Tending the injured, calming the soldiers, controlling public opinion, reestablishing defenses, not to mention figuring out how to notify the families of the deceased...

Without the Lord's guidance, all these matters were difficult for him to decide.

"These matters should wait for My Lord's return. Let's first ensure the bodies are properly handled," Reynard sighed upon hearing this. He looked outside, murmuring, "I wonder when My Lord will be back..."

「...」

"Hehehe! Are the fruits ripe yet?"

In the depths of the wilderness, the figure stirring a large cauldron suddenly ceased its motions. As if sensing something, it looked in the direction of Hamlet and let out a strange laugh.

But moments later, the figure whispered eerie words, "It seems to have failed. My spores still couldn't control the power of the Void, but they have matured enough..."

No sooner had the words ended than they seemed to carry a strange power, awakening the countless parasites lurking within the Spore Forest.

No one could have imagined so many had gathered. As far as the eye could see, there were all sorts of bizarrely shaped parasites.

A significant number appeared to be refugees in tattered clothes—whether they had strayed into the wilderness or been captured by Ascension Cultists, it was unknown. But by now, all were corrupted by the blight, their bodies covered in mushrooms.

Some were originally wild beasts living in the wilderness, but now, they too were corroded and controlled by the blight; no wonder Lance couldn't find a single beast when he entered the wilderness.

Now, these vast numbers of corrupted parasites, awakened by some strange force, began advancing toward Hamlet, led by a tall, gaunt, hunched figure.

No one could know whether Hamlet, having just suffered heavy losses, would be able to withstand this tide of decay...

「...」

"This is the third corruption point already," Lance said, raising a hand to sacrifice the desiccated corpse and destroy the ritual site.

However, he felt no relief. On the contrary, his brow was tightly furrowed, his expression worried.

As they ventured deeper, he saw a wilderness severely ravaged by corruption. Everywhere he looked, mushrooms with yellow caps and white stems grew. The toxins poisoning the land caused trees to wither, and even weeds struggled to survive. The entire forest was filled with a spore-laden mist resembling light smoke.

This place could truly be called the Spore Forest.

But a more troublesome problem was that as these mushrooms grew in number, Fergus's sense of smell became less sensitive. It had taken them so long to find just three corruption rituals, which was like a drop in the bucket for the entire wilderness.

At this rate, forget uncovering the enemy's conspiracy; even clearing the corruption itself seemed impossible.

"Let's all take a break."

He might be able to go without sleep or rest, but that didn't mean others could. This wasn't simply a journey; each corruption point was protected by parasites, and they had to fight to destroy them, not to mention the Giant Spiders and traps ready to ambush them at any moment.

They had to be extremely careful. While they hadn't been injured, the mental exhaustion and pressure were mounting within them.

Among them, only Boudica still seemed to have some energy left, but it was evident that fatigue was enveloping her too.

This small team was nearing its limit.

Realizing this, Lance suddenly understood something; he had been overthinking it. This was the real world, not a game world; there was no need to waste time on this. What was all his hard work for? Wasn't it to establish a strong rearguard that could provide him with support and allow him to contend with the Old Ancestor? Behind him, he didn't just have a few heroes; he had an army. All they needed was to gather enough information. Then, they could devise tactics enabling an ordinary army to eliminate these monsters. They wouldn't even need to go too deep. They could just cut a firebreak and set the mountains ablaze, letting the flames purify the wilderness of its corruption.

"Rest up and prepare to head back. We've gathered enough information this trip," Lance announced his decision. This wasn't about abandoning the mission, but about understanding how to utilize available resources effectively to exert even greater strength. To hell with any conspiracy! I'll just call in the army and set the mountains ablaze. I'd like to see how you, old bastard, plan to deal with me then!

Upon hearing this decision, William and the others felt a great sense of relief. The wilderness truly was no place for humans.

The team took a brief rest, then packed up and started on the journey home. Since there was no need for investigation and searching, they estimated they could return in just a day.

Everyone was eager to return home, their steps quickening.

However, because they hadn't encountered any monsters on the way here, their guard was somewhat lowered on the way back.

Even Lance, walking at the rear, devoted most of his attention to how he could get the soldiers to accept the world's twisted aspects and how to mobilize them to advance into the wilderness. It was a very troubling issue. If possible, he didn't want more people exposed to these matters, but the team's strength was too limited. Only a united collective could muster the power to overcome the Old Ancestor.

Just then, Boudica, at the head of the team, suddenly felt a sense of crisis.

But before she could react further, a thick tree trunk swung out from behind a withered tree, heading straight for them...