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Chapter 66
"Well, it's still just a hatchling, so let's leave it be. It's only ‌‌‌‌‌right to spare the young of any creature."
Kaiden shook his head at me, finding my sentiment rather peculiar.
"Shall we go?"
I tugged at the hem of Kaiden's robe and, after a brief staring contest with the worm-like baby serpent, issued it a stern warning.
"Listen, Silver Earthworm. Don't follow us ‌anymore."
Kaiden gazed quietly at my hand gripping the edge of his robe.
"Margaret."
At the soft call of my ‌‌‌‌‌name, I lifted my head from my silent battle of wills with Silver Earthworm.
Kaiden pulled my shoulder and drew me into a firm embrace.
"I'm going mad."
What do you mean...?
Grrrrowl.
I couldn't bring myself ‌to ask him. My ravenous stomach had loudly announced its mealtime.
Naturally, I recalled the fish trap I'd cast into the Valley waters the night before.
"I should go retrieve the trap."
I watched Silver Earthworm fidgeting nervously as it watched my expression, then tugged at Kaiden's robe hem.
Kaiden grasped my hand and flashed a broad grin.
"Yes, let's go." ‌‌
Trembling with anxiety that Silver Earthworm might follow, I made my way to the Valley with ‌‌‌Kaiden.
Fortunately, the trap we retrieved ‌‌‌from the Valley was brimming with fish.
We settled near the Valley and kindled a fire. Then we cleaned the fish, skewered them on ‌‌thin branches, and roasted them over the flames until they turned golden brown.
Fragrant smoke rose alongside the savory aroma.
Watching the fish skin sizzle and char, I ‌‌picked up ‌‌‌a fully cooked fish and tore into its plump flesh. The delicate meat melted softly on my tongue.
Ah. The heat made me part my lips slightly before I looked up. Soon I was chewing the tender meat and swallowing—it was pure bliss.
"I feel like I'll live."
Kaiden laughed at my words.
What made me happiest today was that we'd caught plenty of fish and could eat our fill.
For a month ‌‌‌now, fish had been our staple, yet it was always scarce—we were in dire need. There was ‌‌no room for ‌‌‌‌us to tire of it. ‌‌
Rujeep, with his finicky palate, seemed to retch whenever he saw fish these days, but Enoch and Kaiden ate well enough, so ‌‌I'll overlook that matter.
After finishing our meal, we set out to find the Cabin again. As Kaiden and I pushed through the undergrowth for some time, a question suddenly occurred to me.
Why does this feel like climbing a steep Mountain? Why is the incline so severe?
"Are we heading in the right direction?"
"The direction is certain. The Forest is obscuring our view, but once we climb to the top of the Cliff, we'll have an easier time ‌‌surveying the surroundings."
I nodded in ‌‌agreement ‌at Kaiden's words. We'd ‌‌gone straight from the Cabin when we entered, so finding that ‌‌‌Cliff would make our return to the Cabin much easier.
'Yes, and my bag might be lying on top of that Cliff.'
Harboring a faint glimmer of hope, I pushed through the undergrowth alongside Kaiden.
And regrettably, a Crossroads appeared before us as we carried that hope ‌‌‌forward.
"Which path should we take?"
At my question, Kaiden stood before the Crossroads, rested his chin in his hand, and ‌‌pondered for a long while.
"Which direction ‌‌‌‌is closer?"
"The fact that we've hit a crossroads means the path isn't straight, so direction doesn't really matter."
At Kaiden's words, I stood before the crossroads for a long moment before pointing down the left path.
"Then let's go up ‌a bit, and if it doesn't seem right, we'll turn back. We'll exceed our calculated time slightly, but there's no helping it."
Kaiden nodded at my words as if resigned to the situation, then turned his body toward the left fork. That was when it happened.
Something moved rapidly across the ground. Or rather, did it crawl? I couldn't tell. But I could certainly vouch that ‌‌‌whatever it was moved at a speed barely visible to the eye.
"What was that just now...? Ugh!"
I grabbed the hem of Kaiden's robe and stumbled backward. Right before my face was a creature—a worm with shimmering silver scales.
It extended its head lengthwise and stared at me while flicking its tongue. Why was it licking its ‌‌‌lips?
"Huh? Isn't that the snake from before?"
The moment Kaiden finished speaking, the creature rapidly crawled in the opposite direction ‌from where we stood at the crossroads.
Curious about what it was doing, I watched as it came to stand at the entrance of the right fork and tilted ‌‌its head.
"What's going on? Why is it acting like that?"
Kaiden and I exchanged puzzled glances at the worm before attempting to continue on our way. We could have done so if the creature hadn't rapidly crawled in front of us and blocked our path.
"You know, Kaiden... isn't that thing ‌‌‌‌moving far too fast ‌to be just a regular ‌‌‌‌worm...?"
Whether Kaiden agreed or not, even he stared at the worm ‌‌with a bewildered expression.
The worm blocked our path and tilted its head, then rapidly crawled toward the right ‌‌fork again, flicking its tongue while staring ‌‌‌‌at us.
"It seems like it's telling us to go that way?"
Kaiden pointed at the worm and ‌turned to me, his eyes sparkling with what looked like innocent curiosity. He seemed to find this situation quite interesting.
This creature appears to be an intelligent, higher-order being.
"How are we supposed to trust what it says?"
"It didn't actually speak, Margaret."
"..."
"Besides, it didn't matter which way we went anyway."
I couldn't argue against his words. They were all true. If there had been a clear answer, would we be wandering through the Forest ‌‌‌like this?
I let out a sigh tinged with self-reproach ‌‌and glared at the worm with conflicted feelings.
Whether the worm understood my sentiments or not, it continued to tilt its head and flick its tongue.
The small ‌‌creature really did look like a worm, and with its silver coloring, I decided I'd call it the Silver Earthworm ‌‌‌‌from now on.
"It looks fun. Should we follow it?"
At Kaiden's suggestion, I was taken aback.
"What ‌‌if it leads us to a Monster's lair?"
"Hmm, you're right. That would ‌‌‌‌be dangerous."
Kaiden agreed far too easily.
This is troublesome. Really troublesome.
I alternated my gaze between the path we had intended to take and the path where the Silver Earthworm stood.
"But Margaret, doesn't that creature look familiar to you?"
While I was lost in deliberation, Kaiden suddenly posed an eerie question.
"Its color is similar to those ‌‌‌‌we defeated a few weeks ago..."
Those we defeated ‌‌‌a few weeks ago?
Among the Monsters we'd defeated, the only ‌one that resembled the Silver Earthworm was the Anaconda.
"Anaconda? No way."
But it was so small....
The ones we'd killed were absolutely massive.
"Those silver scales. They're identical to theirs."
As Kaiden voiced his doubt once more, I scrunched my face in displeasure. ‌‌‌I didn't want to entertain ‌‌such an unsettling suspicion.
Now that I thought about it, those creatures had seemed to be preparing to lay eggs back then.
"So you're saying that thing is a Monster X?"
"Margaret, you really do have a way with words. You're definitely nobility, aren't you?"
"That's hardly something you should be saying, Rodban, given how freely you curse."
Kaiden laughed and raised both hands in surrender.
In any case, we found ourselves confused once again.
Silver Earthworm grew anxious as our silence stretched ‌‌on, circling the ground repeatedly ‌‌and gazing at us like a puppy.
'What is this situation—a worm-like baby snake that turns out to be dog-like....'
Even as it writhed across the dirt, its silver scales didn't accumulate a speck of grime. It seemed to have some kind of water-repellent property.
I watched Silver Earthworm's frantic display with fascination, then felt my cheeks burn and turned away. Kaiden was staring directly at me.
"What?"
"Isn't it cute?"
"What? Are you insane? I absolutely hate snakes! I can't stand them! Ugh...!"
In that moment, I recalled a film featuring an anaconda. In the movie, the anaconda had swallowed a person whole in one bite.
Shuddering at the unsettling memory, I glanced at Silver Earthworm, ‌‌and it drooped its body as if understanding my words, then peered at me sideways.
It seemed to be gauging my mood. As if I were its master.
"Still, let's follow it and see."
Kaiden said this to me. I looked ‌‌‌‌at him in alarm. He simply shrugged his shoulders with a composed expression.
"It's suspicious. We need to figure out what it is."
He seemed to be making a more rational judgment than I was. That's true—understanding what ‌‌‌‌it wants is important too.
I exhaled a sigh and nodded.
"Fine, let's go."
The moment my words ended, Kaiden drew his dagger and grasped my hand with his other palm.
We moved in the direction Silver Earthworm was facing. It immediately took the lead as if it had been waiting ‌‌‌for us.
It crawled back and forth across the ground with evident excitement, flicking its tongue. Its tail tip even seemed to wag like a dog's.
It was certainly no ordinary snake—it was a Monster. Its crawling ‌‌‌speed was anything but normal, moving far faster than us despite being no ‌‌‌‌larger than a palm.
Whenever it seemed ‌‌we might fall behind, it would stop and look back at us, then continue forward, repeating this pattern.
"This is strange. It's the first time I've seen a Monster behave like a pet."
Kaiden said this while walking behind Silver Earthworm, adjusting his grip ‌‌‌‌on his dagger firmly.
"Moreover, it seems to recognize you as its master."

---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please ‌‌‌read directly on our ‌official site: valirscans.org
---------------