285 Great Forest
Asher arrived at the junction connecting the boundary of the Outer Sector and the entrance to the Great Forest.
A few senior-year students wearing armor could be seen exiting. Their tired faces told a story of hard-fought battles.
"I told you that you should stay near the mage," one of the students said as he walked towards the scanning device.
"Whatever, I still killed more monsters than you," his friend replied.
Most people who entered the Great Forest were seeking to improve their teamwork. The Great Forest was designed to make students adept at fighting multiple monsters at once and adapting to the environment.
"Excuse me, we want to exchange these monsters for GP," a student said to the staff member as he passed over a ring.
And this was why many people visited the Great Forest and the dungeons that would form within it: GP, the currency of the World Academy.
Students could earn GP by entering the dungeons inside the Great Forest. Sometimes there would be a request to clear a newly formed dungeon, but this could only be done when accompanied by an advisor.
Asher stopped at the entrance area, where he first needed to gain approval to enter.
"Can you put your ID Bracelet near this device?" the staff member asked, pointing at a lens.
Asher raised his hand, and a red scanner read his ID Bracelet.
<Entry Confirmed>Hearing the approving voice, the staff member entered Asher's details into the database.
Every student who entered the Great Forest was tracked with an ID Bracelet, and they were strictly instructed not to venture too deep.
Mana sensors were placed in the Great Forest to detect if any high-rank monster breached the area. In such cases, it would alert the security team, which could then act to save the students.
"You are only allowed in near the Outer Area, and the map on your device has been updated," the staff member informed.
"If you need any armor or weapons, you can purchase them with GP," he added.
"No need," Asher replied as he pulled his hand back.
Asher proceeded down the hallway to a heavy metallic door, which opened to reveal a dense forest.
Asher glanced around him, noting multiple cameras recording the surrounding area.
Touching his ID Bracelet, a map displayed the area where he was permitted to enter.
With his sword in hand and mana accumulating near his legs, Asher dashed further inside the forest, away from all the surveillance.
Once inside the forest, he saw various monsters in the nearby area, but they were mostly E Rank or D Rank monsters.
He was searching for C Rank Monsters that could provide enough experience to make a difference.
Arriving at an area with very tall trees, he stepped atop one, standing on a branch.
Moving in such terrain was not easy. One needed to be careful with their surroundings, and not everyone possessed the same Mana Sense as Asher.
He could sense even a faint mana around him, which made it much easier for him to navigate the forest freely.
"Come out," Asher said, and Rifir materialized around his hands.
In the Great Forest, Asher was confident that he was out of sight.
"Go in that direction, and you will find monster corpses," Asher instructed Rifir, pointing in a particular direction.
Rifir dissipated around Asher, and the black energy disappeared.
If Asher couldn't go deep into the forest, that didn't mean Rifir couldn't.
And the direction Asher had pointed Rifir to was a specific place where a lot of monsters would die. This was one of the zones where students would lead particularly strong monsters and use the surroundings for ambush.
Normally all the monsters that were hunted here were submitted for GP, but sometimes students would leave the monsters there and come back for them the next day.
The Great Forest was an excellent way of earning GP, but it also meant that there were times when some students were forced to earn GP for higher-ranking students.
Because of their status, such students would comply with these requests, hunting monsters and submitting the GP they earned for the day to the person who asked for it.
This resulted in some students hiding the monsters they killed, returning the next day to submit them and earn the GP for themselves.
It was a way for them to maintain good connections without offending those who asked for these favors.
Most of these hunters were average kids that were in the lower or middle rankings of their years.
While most of these students didn't mind giving their GP to others if they promised them something in return, some didn't like the idea of giving others their hard-
earned rewards, resorting to such tactics.
Asher also sent Rifir to this specific spot.
It wasn't far from his position, as he could sense the lingering mana of a powerful lower B Rank beast, but it was still beyond the area he was allowed to enter.
Asher looked down, then jumped, the loud sound alerting many nearby monsters.
Asher flared his mana, but his mana core and presence were still like that of a peak D Rank Hunter, attracting a few C- Rank monsters.
The soil near Asher started to move as vines erupted from the ground.
"Swift Slash," Asher swung his sword, cutting the vines. As he did, several wooden-bodied monsters with glowing bluish eyes leaped at him from the nearby trees.
Using Mir Steps to change his position, Asher used Swift Slash to pierce the skins of these strange monsters.
[ Host has gained 500 EXP ]
[ Host has gained 500 EXP ]
He didn't stop, using a Black Element spell to create a footing in the air as he launched at the other monsters and dispatched them as well.
[ Host has gained 500 EXP ]
[ Host has gained 500 EXP ]
...
It didn't take long for Asher to quickly kill six of these creatures.
These were fairly weak C-Rank Monsters, suitable opponents for someone of Asher's D+ Rank, and they were within the region assigned to him.
Asher placed the corpses into his spatial storage ring, and proceeded further into the region.
As he ventured deeper, Asher was careful to keep a safe distance from any monster corpse he sensed too closely.
He was still waiting for Rifir to absorb the monster and return, but he stopped at a certain point and conjured a fireball in his hands.
"This should be enough to lure them," Asher said, launching the fireball at the fruits of a particular tree.
As soon as the fireball collided with the fruits, a small explosion occurred, the noise of which was enough to alert many monsters.
"CREEEEEEK," the call of monsters echoed from a nearby area.
