Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 417: Big Ape
While teaching Fabienne how to harvest mana grass, I carefully collected the seedlings. As expected, I couldn’t gather many, and it seemed like I would only be able to take this one. But that wasn’t a problem. We had plant nutrients. With that, we could multiply them in a short period.
However, I had to be cautious with the amount used.
“This concludes the collection of mana grass.”
“Different plants require different harvesting methods, don’t they? This is quite educational. Oh, I just had an idea! If you compile Julius-sama’s harvesting methods into a book, wouldn’t it allow cultivation in many different places?”
“That’s a good idea. If we can grow them in herb gardens, we can also help preserve the forest’s resources.”
Maybe I should write a book someday? But if I want many people to read it, I’ll need a printing magic tool. I’ll hold off on that idea for now.
“Kyuu!”
“What’s wrong, Mira? A monster is heading this way!”
At Mira’s cry, I focused my awareness on my “Detection” skill. A monster that had previously been moving in another direction had suddenly changed course toward us. How had it detected our location? There was still some distance, but it was only a matter of time before we encountered it.
“Julius-sama.”
“Don’t worry, Fabienne. I will protect you.”
“Julius-sama.”
“Alright, alright. Let’s save the dramatic lines for later. The monster is coming, right? What’s the plan?”
A slightly sulking Isidore asked. Maybe he felt left out. But that wasn’t the case. Nero, Giles, and Christopher were all his comrades too.
The scouts, led by Lionel, had returned. They must have sensed the monster heading our way. As expected of them.
“Julius-sama, a monster is approaching. We should hurry and escape this dark forest.”
“I understand. But why is it necessary to leave this particular forest?”
“I once heard a report that if a creature other than a monster enters a monster-infested dark forest, all the monsters will attack at once. At the time, I thought that couldn’t possibly be true, but…”
“So, you’re saying that it turns out to be real?”
Lionel nodded apologetically. This wasn’t his fault. If I had received that report, I would have thought the same. “That can’t be true,” I would have said.
How do the monsters even detect the presence of other living beings? Do they sense changes in the surrounding mana flow? Even if that were the case, it would take time for such changes to reach all the monsters, and it’s not even certain that they can detect mana fluctuations.
If monsters were truly adept at sensing mana, humans would be in much greater danger. Monster hunting wouldn’t even be feasible—it would be all surprise attacks from their side.
“There must be some secret about this dark forest. But before we think about that, we need to get out of here quickly. We’ve obtained what we needed, so let’s move. If more monsters show up, things will get complicated.”
We hurried away from the area. Once we reached a brighter part of the forest, we carefully tracked the monster’s movements. The knights remained on high alert.
It seemed that the monster was still pursuing us. At this rate, it would eventually catch up.
“It’s still following us. We should find a place to stand our ground.”
“If there were an open space, that would be ideal, but unfortunately, there isn’t one in this area. We’ll have to form a defensive formation and fight.”
The knight captain of the Marquis Mulan family said this. Since we weren’t being ambushed, this strategy seemed reasonable. However, the monster’s slow approach was bothering me. It was a Forest Wolf, right?
We decided to intercept it after advancing a bit further. The trees were somewhat obstructing our view, but since there wasn’t much undergrowth, movement wouldn’t be too difficult. The monster wouldn’t have a place to hide, so we wouldn’t be at a disadvantage.
The knights, sensing the monster’s approach, readied themselves. Of course, we also remained vigilant of our surroundings. However, the monster, which should have been visible by now, was nowhere in sight.
Something felt off. A bad feeling crept over me.
“Kyuu, kyuu!”
“Mira? Above us!”
Mira pointed up into the trees. We had assumed only Forest Wolves lived in this forest—that assumption was our mistake. The knights also looked up.
There, a Big Ape lurked. Though it was still at a distance, it was moving through the treetops, meaning it could bypass our defensive formation.
This was bad. Most of the knights were equipped with swords suited for fighting in the narrow, tree-filled forest. They had few long-range attack options. There were some archers and mages, but they were in the minority.
I wasn’t the only one who thought we were at a disadvantage. The knights were visibly shaken as well.
“Why is there a Big Ape here? It wasn’t supposed to be in this forest!”
“Did it migrate from some distant forest? Could this be why the Forest Wolves have been leaving the forest?”
As the knights murmured in confusion, the Big Ape closed the distance between us. I had no time to hesitate. With Fabienne clinging to my arm, my only available option was magic.
I needed a spell that could damage the Big Ape while weaving through the trees at high speed.
Fire magic was out of the question—it would set the forest ablaze. I needed a spell with homing capabilities, the maneuverability to avoid obstacles, and enough power to take out the monster in one go.
Only lightning magic could meet all those conditions. I had never seen anyone use lightning magic before, but it should be fine, right? There was no other choice. Here goes nothing!