What was the meaning of this?
Erich stared at the words 【Don't Attack】 for a long while, completely baffled by what the Treants wanted to do.
The fireball was still burning, its heat warping the surrounding air.
Once an arrow was notched, it had to be released. Having gathered energy to this extent, the mana was boiling hot within his circuits. Trying to force it back at this stage would, at best, cause a mana backlash, and at worst, cause severe self-injury. Ordinary people simply couldn't hold it back.
Erich, of course, couldn't hold it back either.
What a joke. Who could tolerate being forced to stop right before the climax? Besides, forcing it back would actually damage his body.
So, Erich threw the fireball anyway. To avoid destroying the path ahead, he carefully hurled it back in the direction he had come from.
The fireball drew an arc through the air and exploded not far from the entrance he had entered through.
A pillar of flame soared into the sky, casting a stark, pale light over the entire forest. The twisted shadows of the dead trees stretched out long in the glare. The Treants retreated in unison, the collective rustling and grinding of their branches conveying their sheer terror.
The pillar of light persisted for quite a while, leaving a massive crater scorched into the ground and clearing a large patch of the forest.
It looked incredibly destructive.
In fact, it simply was incredibly destructive.
However, there was no need to worry about a forest fire. After all, this was a dungeon, and the surrounding organisms were no ordinary beasts. The moment the flames licked the bark, several creatures scurried out of nowhere and put them out. They could extinguish fires on their own, and the burned trees would soon regrow.
As the pillar of fire subsided, the embers crackled on the ground.
Taking advantage of the remaining light, Erich swept his gaze over the Treants.
“So,” he said, “what's your deal?”
The Treants looked at one another, nudging and shoving to push a companion forward. Their branches rustled loudly, creating quite a racket, but despite all the jostling, not a single Treant dared to step forward.
Instead, their dull yellow eyes were all fixed in unison on the staff in Erich's hand—specifically, on the small flame flickering at its tip for illumination.
The flame was only the size of a fist now, but the Treants stared at it as if it could incinerate the entire forest at any second.
Erich began to seriously consider whether he should allocate some of his free attribute points to Charisma in the future.
Objectively speaking, Erich was very handsome. Even though his once-flowing long hair had been cut short for various reasons, it did nothing to diminish his good looks. With features like his, any hairstyle was merely icing on the cake.
But Charisma was clearly about more than just looks; it also encompassed affinity with various creatures. If Erich's Charisma were even slightly higher, he wouldn't be in this situation where every single Treant was too terrified of his devastating fireball to approach and negotiate.
Fine, relying on these trees to take the initiative on their own was a lost cause.
“You, explain the situation to me,” Erich said, pointing directly at the closest Treant and forcing it forward with a glare.
The Treant shuffled over tremulously, bits of debris shedding from its bark. Erich could even read sheer terror on its wooden face.
Resigned to its fate, the Treant raised a branch and slowly wove a sentence in front of Erich.
【We were drawn by the aura of your staff.】
【We wish to request your help.】
His staff?
Erich looked down at the implement in his hand. The black, snake-shaped staff felt chillingly cold in his palm.
This was Serpent Ferry, given to him by the Adventurers' Guild as a reward. According to the weapon tier system—Mundane Iron, Fine-Forged, Enchanted, Soul-Forged, Relic, and Divine—Erich estimated it fell somewhere between Soul-Forged and Relic.
It possessed various benefits, such as significantly amplifying magic power and reducing mana consumption. When he first received it, he had felt he got an absolute steal.
But its aura could attract Treants? Was this staff of his really that extraordinary?
“What kind of aura does my staff have?”
【An aura similar to the lowest floor. We have lived here for many years and are exceptionally sensitive to this kind of energy.】
The lowest floor.
Erich frowned. According to this, the staff in his hand was connected to whatever was on the lowest floor of Old Radiant City? That would make this weapon even more impressive than he had thought. After all, whatever was sealed on the lowest floor was certainly nothing good.
Then again, that was Lorraine's problem to worry about.
Besides, it was still far too early. The barrier sealing that entity could probably hold for some time. Even if it did break out, that would be when a psionic mage like Lorraine should step up and do her part.
Erich tossed those distant concerns to the back of his mind and got down to business.
“So, what kind of help do you want from me?”
【A pack of spiders has occupied our original habitat. We would like your assistance.】
Erich's first thought was the spiders in the Abyss, but those were only about second-tier magical beasts. Judging by how the Treants treated this as a grave threat, the spiders they spoke of were definitely not simple.
“And what do I get out of this?”
【Our gratitude.】
The illuminating flame at the tip of his staff instantly flared up, sending a wave of heat straight into the Treant's face and instantly scorching a layer of fine singe marks onto its bark.
【Wait! What I meant to say was, we can increase your affinity for life magic!】
The flame shrank back down, returning to a small, warm flicker as if its sudden expansion had been nothing but an illusion.
Rate on N.U.
