Survive as a Prison Guard in the Game

Chapter 103
Village of the Dryads (1)

*Clip-Clop!*

*Clip-Clop!*

Wondering how far he’d traveled in the horse-drawn carriage.

The coachman in the driver’s seat shattered the silence.

“I can see the town.”

Yawning, he stretched out, then pulled back the curtains and peered out the small window.

A huge tree on a hill.

At the base was a village of people living in groups. Nearby was a large field made by burning the forest.

The Village of Geppetto.

It looked just like the illustrations in the game.

The carriage arrived at the entrance to the village, and after paying the coachman, he got out of the carriage.

“Thanks for the ride.”

There are times when one is unable to travel to an area using the teleporter, and Geppetto Village was one of them.

He had no choice but to take the long carriage ride.

“Ugh!”

He stretched out once more and smelled the fragrant scent of phytoncides¹. Bringing his body and head out of their drowsiness and surveying his surroundings.

People working in the fields.

Adventurers strolling up and down the streets.

There were a lot of people for such a remote village. As he walked along the bustling streets, someone approached from behind.

A middle-aged man with an impressive black beard.

Though he couldn’t remember his name, he recognized him as the Chief of the Village of Geppetto.

“Are you here at my request?”

“Yes.”

“You can follow that road.”

He pointed to a path that led up into the hills. Bowing his head slightly, he began following the path.

The hill up ahead.

An enormous tree on top of it.

-Whoever cuts down that tree, I will give you the entire bounty.

The mayor wanted to get rid of that tree.

“It was one of the top ten mysteries of the Bern Continent, was it?”

Otherwise known as the “Tree that doesn’t get cut” quest.

It’s a basic quest that’s given to players when they arrive in Geppetto Village, but no one has ever succeeded in cutting down that tree.

Players can only hit the tree with a flat strike while wielding an axe, and the game doesn’t tell you how much health it has.

Most players quickly gave up and moved on.

He recalled that one of the players who took the longest time to complete the challenge had been hitting trees non-stop for a year. Of course, nothing came of it.

After a while, time passes.

The game’s official setting lore revealed that the tree was a kind of guardian tree that protected the town, and that it actually housed the soul of a Dryad.

Afterwards.

With a renewed interest in the game, players attempted the Tree that doesn’t get cut quest in a variety of ways.

In the end, nobody succeeded, and it remained a mystery.

“I never thought I would solve such a mystery with my own hands…….”

After the Burning Hell patch, he came back to it while trying to break a hidden quest related to the Darkness Seven.

A Field Boss Monster.

The Fallen Queen of the Dryads.

The quest was to defeat the boss monster, and in the process learning how to cut down that tree.

And the item that came from cutting it down.

Something he needed.

“First, I should go to… and get the materials.”

Following the path up the hill, he veered off into the forest on the left.

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While searching for the necessary ingredients, the sun soon set. As the moon rose, he sat down and assembled the materials.

A stone bathed in moonlight.

A branch from a thousand-year-old tree.

Twine made from an ashen colored vine.

Ingredients that could be found in a particular location around the Village of Geppetto.

Taking the moonstone, he drilled a hole in the stone and sharpened the edge on one side. Next, he inserted the wood into the hole.

Then he wrapped the twine around the stone.

[Ding!]

[You have crafted an item].

[Axe imbued with Ethereal Power]

-An axe that can cut a tree that has the spirit of a Dryad in it.

“Done.”

With this special axe, he can cut down the giant tree on the hill.

Standing up, he grasped the axe.

The tree was unusually tall, so getting there wasn’t a problem. He started walking and ascended the hill until he reached the tree.

The moon shone brightly in the sky.

The mercenaries who had climbed the hill to cut down the tree had all retired for the night.

Upon the hill, a leafless tree stood high and mighty. As he slowly approached it, he was able to study it in detail.

Axe marks all over its trunk.

On the ground was a pile of bark that had fallen from the axe. There was a strange aura about it. He could almost feel the sadness in the tree.

“…. Huu.”

He reached out his left hand and touched the Tree.

‘Please kill me.’

The Fallen Dryad Queen he’d seen in the game wanted him to kill her.

The queen who loved humans more than anyone.

She had given away the forest beneath the hill so that humans could live on this land, and she had given away the fruits of the forest for food.

But.

She was betrayed by the humans.

“Pinocchio….”

The name was spoken in a furious voice.

He was one of the Darkness Seven, the one with the Curse of Lies.

To get the item that he wanted.

He had to be defeated.

“This time, I will avenge you.”

Just as he was about to lift the axe in his right hand and swing it at the tree.

-Where did you get that axe?

A clear voice rang in his ears.

Along with it, a cold wind swept past his ears.

A familiar voice.

“Is this the Queen?”

-You don’t look like you’ve come for a good purpose.

A small gust of wind rose around the tree.

The bark on the ground hovered around the tree, trailing the wind.

A moment later, the light breeze was gone.

A small girl with pink hair and clothes made of bark appeared.

The Queen of the Dryads.

“Plum Blossom.”

“I can’t believe you even know my name…….”

Plum frowned and looked at him warily. If things stayed like this, there would be an inevitable clash.

Setting the axe down on the ground, he raised his hands.

The purpose of crafting the axe was to summon the queen, not to actually chop down the tree.

“I wish to make a deal.”

“Tell me who you are first.”

This is where something like this comes in handy.

Bringing up the power of purification to show that he had been chosen by the Phoenix.

“Does this guarantee my identity?”

“No. It’s not enough. How the hell do you know how to make a spirit axe?”

“I found it in the archives of a druid family.”

Druid.

A profession reserved for those chosen by the Dryads, who used their powers to control animals or grow plants or trees.

“I thought the Druids were wiped out?”

Druids were wiped out in the War of the Demons.

That didn’t mean all their records were lost.

“I read what was written in the old grimoires they left behind.”

The suspicious look in her eyes didn’t fade, but Plum opened her mouth cautiously.

“……What deal do you want?”

“I’ll solve your problems.”

Plum snorted.

“You’re telling me that because you think I have a problem, aren’t you?”

He know all too well what she wants.

But telling her that would only deepen the misunderstanding.

“This town has grown up under the protection of the Queen of the Dryads, and it’s not normal for you to want to die now, is it?”

Plum bit her lip, her eyes sad.

“You think you can fix this situation?”

“You can’t move anyway.”

A boundary stretched around the hill.

He doesn’t know who set it up, but the energy flowing from it created a prison, immobilizing the queen.

“Then please get rid of it.”

“How do I get rid of it?”

“There’s a wooden stone statue in the back of the forest, tainted with a curse. If you smash it, you’ll be able to break the boundary.”

“Okay.”

“But it won’t be easy, because the curse will make the corrupted Dryads want your life.”

“That’s okay, as long as you give something in return.”

“What do you want in exchange?”

“An innocent branch.”

Plum’s body rose to the top of the barren tree, the only branch with a flower bud on it.

*Snap!*

She snapped it and dropped to the ground below.

“If you fulfill the agreement, I’ll give you this branch you want.”

“Okay.”

“But there’s a condition.”

“What is it?”

“I want you to save as many of the Dryads as you can.”

“Okay. Then I have a small request.”

A special skill he can get from the Dryad Queen.

A power that increases one’s natural affinity to an extreme level.

“Blessing of the Dryads. Give it to me.”

“I will.”

The wind picked up once more and Plum Blossom disappeared. Picking up the axe from the ground, he stowed it in his subspace pouch.

His next destination was a wooden statue deep in the forest.

This is the first time he have gone on a mission for the Queen, so he has no idea how difficult it will be.

With his current skills.

It should be doable.

“Time to head out.”

As he started to walk towards the forest, he felt a presence. It had to be a mage, considering how suddenly it appeared.

Teleportation magic.

He heightened his senses and activated the Eye of Arrakis. The fact that everything wasn’t turning red meant it wasn’t dangerous.

He positioned himself to draw his sword at any moment.

*Rustle!*

Hearing the sound of footsteps behind him, he unsheathed the sword at his waist. At the same time, he utilized his shadow alter ego to grab his opponent from behind.

Long, tousled hair.

Hair golden in the moonlight.

He held the person by the neck and pointed the sword at their back.

“Who are you?”

“And who are you?”

His brow furrowed at the vaguely familiar voice. Heat poured from his opponent’s body.

*Crackle!*

He quickly pulled some distance away.

The spot where he used to be was scorched red.

“Oh. So you’ve got some skill, huh?”

With a strangely confident voice, the opponent slowly turned around. The flames around their body gathered in their hands, revealing their face.

It was a very familiar face.

From the Kingdom of Resha.

From the Magitia Crime Squad.

Isabelle.

‘Why is she here when she should be hunting down the one who corrupted the Black Wolf in the Illusory Forest?’

Should he conceal his identity?

Or should he tell her?

“……What?”

Isabelle glanced at him, her brow furrowed.

“That’s Redin? Don’t be ridiculous.”

*Thud!*

Isabelle’s contracted Red Fox.

He must have read the phoenix energy in his body.

There was no point in hiding the truth of his identity.

The transformation was undone and his original form was revealed.

“It’s been a long time.”

“What! It’s real?”

Isabelle approached and smacked his back enthusiastically.

“It’s so good to see you here. How are you? I’ve heard the news. Word is you’ve captured the Head of Magnes this time.”

“What about you, did you catch the one who corrupted Black Wolf?”

“I’m here to catch him.”

“And he’s here?”

“Uh, Pinocchio. I think he’s one of the Darkness Seven, but I’ve been scouring the area for him, and I’ve ended up here.”

‘Pinocchio?’

He’s here now?

Originally, the plan was to get the Branch of Innocence here, then find Pinocchio and get his Curse.

This made things simple.

Hunt Pinocchio down, resolve the boundary.

“I also have some work to do, so why don’t we work together after so long?”

At this suggestion, Isabelle raised her eyebrows and held out her hand.

“It’s an automatic deal.”

** ** **

TL/N:

1. Forest bathing trip involves visiting a forest for relaxation and recreation while breathing in volatile substances, called phytoncides (wood essential oils), which are antimicrobial volatile organic compounds derived from trees

Trees known to produce especially high levels of phytoncides include the evergreen trees such as Cedars, Spruces, Conifers and Pine, but also Oak trees.