After leaving E-Rantel, the first thing visible was a vast forest in the distance.
It was a dense, ancient-looking forest, showcasing dark green hues.
Within the forest, countless sturdy giant trees stood tall, and their lush branches and leaves grew so wide that even sunlight seemed unable to penetrate.
It gave off a sense that visibility inside was definitely poor, making the gaps between those giant trees appear as if a giant beast was opening its mouth wide, waiting for prey to wander in, creating a sense of both unease and fear.
According to the monster location map provided by the Adventurer's Guild, the forest not only covered an extensive area but also housed numerous monsters that would be extremely difficult for an average adventurer to handle.
There were leeches that could jump between trees, suddenly dropping down to latch onto people's bodies, capable of sucking a large amount of blood in an instant.
There were gigantic insects comparable in size to elephants.
There were vicious spiders that could spit out strong, sticky silk, directly dragging people up into the trees.
And there were forest longworms that could open their wide mouths from the ground, ambushing anyone who passed through the grass and rotting wood.
At least Riezel didn't want to be walking along the road when suddenly a leech fell from the sky, latching onto his neck, or be ambushed by a longworm while passing through the grass.
It wasn't that he couldn't deal with them; it was just that they were simply disgusting.
According to the monster location map, it pointed out that some high-ranking female adventurers wouldn't choose to enter the forest simply because some of the monsters in the forest were far too disgusting.
Additionally, the map also provided a special warning in red letters, stating that the forest was the territory of a powerful monster that had survived for hundreds of years, known as the 'Wise King of the Forest', which not only could use magic but also possessed incredible strength.
Since even the highest-ranked Adamantite Adventurers couldn't defeat the Wise King of the Forest, adventurers were strongly advised against entering, especially deep into the forest, where it made its home.
"Wise King of the Forest…"
When Riezel saw this warning, his expression became somewhat strange.
If it had been any other monster, he might have felt intrigued and even sought it out after reading how the guild warned adventurers to avoid it.
However, this one?
"Forget it."
Riezel felt that he wasn't cold-hearted enough to take action against a monster that looked like a pet. Furthermore, with the presence of jumping leeches and forest longworms, he instinctively avoided the option of entering the forest.
However, if he didn't go into the forest, there were roughly two routes to take from E-Rantel to Carne Village, located to the northeast.
The first route was to head north, where, when he reached the edge of the forest, he could proceed east along its edge.
The second route was to head east and then go straight north to reach Carne Village.
Generally, unless there was another purpose, most people who wanted to go to Carne Village chose the second route.
After all, the first route required traveling along the forest's edge, which still had a high chance of encountering monsters coming out of the forest.
Although staying at the forest's edge shouldn't lead to encountering strong monsters, if someone wanted to avoid a monster encounter altogether, the second route would naturally be the more sensible choice.
Riezel actually didn't mind, even wanting to test the strength of the monsters in this world a bit, as long as they weren't disgusting monsters like jumping leeches or forest longworms.
In the end, he chose the first route, heading north toward the forest and then walking east along its edge.
When taking this route, one generally wouldn't be able to reach Carne Village in a day by carriage, but with his pace, when he sprinted at full speed, he could easily outpace a carriage.
Moreover, with his highest-ranked development ability, Healing Power, he rarely felt fatigued, and his stamina was never exhausted.
Because of this, Riezel decided to run at full speed toward Carne Village.
Thanks to this, if anyone happened to be nearby, they would see a cloud of dust rolling across the plains between E-Rantel and the forest, moving at an astonishing speed from the direction of E-Rantel toward the forest.
Such a sight would be something even a carriage couldn't achieve while sprinting across the plains.
Riezel had initially intended to continue sprinting straight toward Carne Village, but when he passed by a village, he came to a halt.
===
"..."
Standing in a relatively open square, Riezel looked around and fell into silence.
At this moment, he had entered a village and arrived at its central square.
However, what he saw was not the hardworking villagers going about their chores but a horrific scene straight out of hell.
Buildings were engulfed in flames, burning slowly as plumes of black smoke billowed into the air, while the ground was covered in fresh blood, still bright red and vividly glaring.
On top of that, the smell of burning mixed with the stench of blood filled the air, constantly irritating his nostrils.
In this gradually charred ruin of a village, over a hundred villagers, dressed in rough clothing, had all turned into corpses, lying in pools of blood, having lost their lives.
Among these corpses were not just strong men but also women, children, and even infants.
Needless to say, a massacre had taken place—an inhumane, one-sided massacre.
"It has already started?"
Recalling the storyline of the original work, Riezel finally understood the time period he had arrived in.
"No, I can't be sure yet..." Riezel muttered, lightly shaking his head. "Maybe some monsters broke into this village and did the slaughter..."
Monster attacks in this area weren't uncommon.
Due to its proximity to the forest, this area occasionally saw monsters appearing.
For example, goblins and ogres—these humanoid monsters sometimes emerged from the forest to attack travelers passing by, and if they found a human village, it was common for them to storm in and slaughter everyone.
Especially goblins, as countless tales from his previous life spoke of these detestable creatures not only attacking humans but also taking women to breed.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Riezel approached a nearby corpse, crouched down, and began to examine it closely.
"Hmm... this wound doesn't look like it was caused by a monster's claws or fangs... it looks very neat, clearly pierced by a very sharp weapon."
He could only find one wound, indicating a single, fatal blow.
If it was caused by a weapon, the likelihood of the killer being human was over ninety percent.
"Looks like I can't just hang around here anymore..."
Riezel immediately stood up.
Needless to say, the current situation told him that soon, Carne Village, his destination, would likely face a massacre just like this one.
At that time, in that ordinary little village, there would be not only a tragedy but also three factions clashing and engaging in fierce battles involving the protagonist from the original work.
However, Riezel had to meet the protagonist before that happened.
Otherwise, once the protagonist got his hands on first-hand information about this world, trying to learn Tier Magic from him, a magic system that held great status and influence in this world, would become several times more difficult.
Only by taking advantage of the fact that the protagonist had yet to interact with this world's natives and hadn't fully grasped this world could Riezel make the most of his gains.
"No choice..."
Riezel suppressed the thought of burying the unfortunate villagers and gently bowed to them.
"Someone will come here later. At that time, they will give you a proper funeral."
With that, Riezel turned and left.
As soon as he stepped out of the village, a surge of energy coursed through his body before his body was suddenly engulfed in a wild burst of lightning.
*BOOM!*
In the next moment, a flash of lightning shot up like a thunderclap, soaring into the sky, flying directly over the forest, bypassing Carne Village, and heading toward the grasslands where the protagonist would appear.
===
Night fell quickly.
As the moon rose, the stars twinkled in the night sky, lighting up the entire scene.
The bluish-white moonlight, along with the starlight, chased away the darkness on the ground, bathing the grasslands below in a glow as the gentle breeze swayed the countless wild grasses, creating a refreshing rustling sound.
In the sky were countless stars and a bright moon.
On the ground lay endless grasslands, caressed by a gentle breeze.
At this moment, it felt as if heaven and earth were connected, making the scenery complement each other beautifully.
Such a scene was incredibly picturesque.
*BOOM!*
Suddenly, a flash of lightning struck the vast grasslands with a thunderous roar, accompanied by a loud crash as it hit the ground.
As if it had been struck by lightning, the ground shattered instantly, leaving a charred circle and sending debris and dust flying.
*Crackle—*
Riezel's figure appeared amid it, crackling with several tiny, snake-like lightning bolts around his body like a god of thunder descending.
"Hahh..."
He let out a long, deep breath, expelling a large amount of air that turned murky, causing the temperature in the nearby area to rise slightly.
"Mm... this should be the place, right?"
Riezel scanned his surroundings and saw the seemingly endless grasslands with no hills or buildings—just boundless wild grasses and several trees, all laid bare under the moonlight and starlight.
In the next moment, a transparent gleam appeared in his eyes as he surveyed the area until he felt a sudden sensation and turned his gaze upward.
"Is he there?"
A faint smile crept onto Riezel's lips as he whispered.
"Let's say hello first, shall we?"
Riezel raised his hand and began chanting.
"Unleashed streak of light, bow limbs of the holy tree. You are an expert of the bow."
"Shoot, sniper of the fairies."
"Penetrate, arrow of absolute accuracy."
"Arcs Ray."
*WHOOSH—!*
In the next second, a beam of light shot up into the sky, piercing the night.
Before the beam of light, two figures emerged in the cloud layer, appearing and disappearing like mirages.