Bab 14: Lemon Drizzle: Into the Forest She Goes!

Because of the blasted portable chair due to your slippery finger on the microgun trigger, intentionally; the pink devil sits on the ground, smirking while imitating the Buddha's posture despite being the reincarnation of Satan himself. "Remember, an array, or formation, or whatever you call them—will only be activated if you pour your mana into it."

With a beef jerky in your mouth, you reply, "Wokeh, undwerstood!"

Using the knowledge from the 'Floating a Paper With Gusto' and with the guidance of your companion, you smear your muscles and veins with a magic circuit: Increasing muscle density, increasing the ability of contraction resistance, fortifying veins, enhancing blood cells productivity, strengthening tissues, increasing heart rate, and converting mana into oxygen.

This method is one of many to strengthen physical prowess. Newbies are heavily discouraged to perform this as they may not be able to balance all of the gates to each command from the circuit at the same time, which can actually be automated but it needs a more complex mana contraption and an established line to your mana sea, or so Chronos said.

But that problem only applies to newbies, as you have Chrolings at your side. The adorable, bouncy, round, and midget devils; except that muscular one—who've made home in your finite storing realm.

Channeling the contraption with your consciousness, you begin the casting process, "Ashura Body Array, activate!"

The three Chrolings begin to pour the mana from the pond to the mana circuit, determining every amount of mana quantity and micro activity to the owner's best.

You ponder, "Hmm?"

There is no change whatsoever in your body, as you hear the familiar laughter arise.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

Another gyro-rocket is blasted into that pink assholery thugger, Just in case, you put another three rounds into the ammunition chamber slot.

"WHAT IS IT THIS TIME!?"

Leaping into the air, she landed smoothly into the ground unscathed. "W-w-wait! Lemme take a breath!" Before continues wheezing with weak knees.

"Hurry up, before I want to try a faster target dummy."

After technical mockery, she casually approaches you while shrugging.

"You don't have the optimal amount of mana to perform it." She takes a vial from one of her pouches, putting her forefinger into the tube as a neon pink liquid drips into a single bead. "You're lucky that you're using the my minions as the catalyst, or you'll end up withering your mana sea into an unrecoverable state because your midget brain's gonna be thinking, 'Do I need to pour more mana to make it work?'."

She sways the vial left and right in a hypnotizing way.

Still in discontent, you stare at the single bead within the vial. Like a singular oasis in the middle of the desert, it wouldn't make a noticeable change for the whole continent. Just like the single bead, if you're comparing it to the amount of painkiller you took before fighting Timoreia, then the consumable might not affect anything.

Without any words, you understand that the liquid bead is the equivalent of your mana, and the vial is the determiner for the spell to work.

Grunting, you put away your microgun, "You could've just told me that, you know?"

"This method is more fun, ya' know?"

"For you."

"Exactly."

After more exercise and experimenting, you've encountered the dusk.

Unlike the clear starry night you've experienced before, the sky is dark red with a singular monstrosity grinning as red drips from the edge of its mouth—replacing the moon.

"Ah, it seems like you're really unlucky to be hunting right at the killer dusk. How unfortunate~." She shrugs before continuing, "Then again, it means that you'll encounter more calamity beasts on your hunt, so that's a plus!"

Knowing her, you definitely know that anything Chronos deem as a plus is definitely a disaster. Wait, what did she say?

With a deadpan, you try to confirm your suspicion, "What do you mean by 'you'?"

She tilts her head as her smile widens deviously.

"We're going to hunt together, right?"

Her smile turns into a grin.

"W-we're going to hunt together, right!?"

She walks past you, putting her palm into your shoulder, "My dear child, sometimes, the little bird must leave the nest."

"Are you kidding me!? Also, I'm not your child!"

Not long after, you find yourself in the middle of the forest. You mark each gigantic tree you pass by with your mana, a method used by many while traversing an unknown area—or so you're told. Still in the gothic lolita getup, strapping a giant empty backpack on your back with your microgun attached to it as you try to analyze the unholy scribble of a bipedal dinosaur-like creature on the piece of paper you're holding, with the noticeable trait of having large fangs, completed with a badly written 'Yelper' on the top side.

You shifts your gaze into the ceiling of branches and leaves, orchestrating the red sky's shadow within the frame.

The breezy wind, the creepy howling from afar, the maniacal ambiance, and the numerous tears you're holding of why you're abiding this death-flag route.

"IS THIS A SHOUNEN FORCED TRAINING ARC!?

Your voice echoes throughout the forest.

Nobody replies.

"Okay, shouting is a bad idea."

Recollecting the event before you begin venturing into this forest, there might be some important things you've been told to despite a devilish 'goodluck' from Chronos.

You remember one.

...

"I have a special magic spell for you!"

"I'm not taking it!!"

"No, no, no! This is legit! It can help you out when you're in a dire time!"

"Fine, fine. Fire away."

She smiled, hunched, and started to caress your hair, "It goes like this," she closed her eyes in deep trance as she began chanting the spell, "'The world is my lemonade, within my lemon veins, and my heart is a lemon grenade. Tock Tick, my time is yours'~"

The same face, the same warmth that she exudes back then on the first day you trampled the sand from this world, right after she found out that you're not the original Long Leggy.

...

"If I recall it again, the chant doesn't make any sense."

Coming back to your senses, you notice a curious living-block of white in front of you, staring at you with its cute and goofy red eyes.

"Okay?"

The small cube launches itself into your abdomen at extreme velocity, resulting in some of your digested jerkies getting blasted away like a cannonball through your throat.

With the backpack cushioning your fall, your mind is still wondering what in the oblivion is happening through the journey of sailing all the seven seas before you regain your consciousness.