Fairy Tale: Little Red Riding Hood's Wolf Mentor

"You suspect me... of being in league with those strange animals in the forest?"

Reek was somewhat taken aback by what the surviving soldier said.

"Miss, I really want to believe you."

The surviving soldier shook his head. "But if not, can you tell me where your wolf went? The one you brought with you when you arrived."

"Being separated by the maze, isn't that a normal thing?"

As Lake spoke, she heard some unusual noises coming from the bushes above her head. She couldn't tell if they were from ordinary birds or some strange animals.

Therefore, she did not reveal the fact that the Poro was "lurking".

Moreover, many of the hunters present had brought hunting dogs or falcons with them, but after the maze shifted, reuniting with their "animal companions" was truly a pipe dream.

"I have some confidence in my memory. I was attacked by unusual animals, including a wolf."

The surviving soldier said, enunciating each word clearly, "And this wolf looks exactly like the one that came with you—"

"I……"

Lake opened her mouth, not expecting this seemingly ordinary soldier to ask such a question.

After all, one must remember the appearance of a Poro—a wolf with no distinguishing features—before entering the forest, and after numerous chaotic battles, glimpse a part of the truth.

This is indeed very difficult.

More importantly, Lake isn't good at lying, especially when faced with such a sudden question.

"What are you hesitating about?"

Leik hesitated for only a few seconds before the special forces soldier asked again.

Therefore, the other hunters and soldiers also cast suspicious glances at Rek, and a few special forces soldiers even reached for the weapons at their waists!

"She couldn't possibly be with those animals!"

But just then, the stag girl Sideg stepped out of the crowd and stood beside Lake. "She helped me decipher the forest maze, allowing me to calculate my escape route well in advance."

This way, I can avoid being distracted by the maze and rescue as many others who have been separated by it as possible, so that you can leave here safely..."

However, after hearing these words, the other hunters became even more puzzled.

The surviving soldier at the head of the group narrowed his eyes and looked at Lake:

"Young lady, your hunting skills are quite good, but a person's energy is always limited. We've never seen you use magic before."

Whispers began to ripple through the crowd, and Lake's extraordinary hearing allowed her to hear their conversation:

"Yes, I heard that the court mage beside the king is already over eighty years old..."

"This little girl started learning that thing in the womb, can she really learn it?"

"And she seems to be from out of town; nobody knew this girl before..."

"..."

Seeing this, Lake wanted to explain something, but the surviving soldier interrupted again:
“You should leave the camp. The rest of us will go to rescue the princess. If, as Sideg said before, the formation is broken and she won’t be teleported again, then those wild beasts alone won’t be able to stop us.”

Hearing these words, a hint of worry flashed in Sideg's eyes, and she wanted to say something more to help Lake.

"Okay, I'll leave."

But Lake had already nodded. Originally, Lake didn't want to say anything more, but after thinking about it, she still offered one last piece of advice:
"You'd better listen to Sideg and leave the forest as soon as possible. It's really dangerous to be in an unknown forest maze."

After saying that, he turned and walked into the depths of the forest.

"Wait a minute—"

Among the crowd, only Sidag hesitated for a moment before chasing after them.

“Hey, Lake, I can tell you’re not a bad person. Besides, all those guys combined aren’t as good as you alone. You don’t need to leave…”

"It's alright. If they're wary of me, I might as well act alone."

As Lake spoke, she patted Sidag on the shoulder.

"Ok."

Looking into Lake's eyes, Sidag could only nod, but then, as if remembering something, she took out her magic book from her bosom, pulled out the maze diagram she had drawn, and handed it to Lake.

“After cracking it, I no longer need this map. You can keep it. I can tell that your purpose in coming to this forest is different from those hunters, but you also know magic. With this map, you will be much safer.”

Lake took the paper that Sidag had been drawing on for several days. It had a slightly rough texture and a hint of spirituality—a material specifically created for making magic books.

"Thank you."

……

Away from the camp, the forest fell silent once more.

But Lake could hear the rustling of bushes and the canopy overhead—perhaps the lurking of some unusual animal in the forest.

They are waiting for the right moment to use the maze to launch an attack on every lost soul!
But there's nothing to worry about.

With a slight increase in speed, Lake disappeared from behind a tree. A few breaths later, a rodent emerged from the bushes, sniffing at the empty space, but ultimately returned empty-handed.

With the invisibility cloak and Rek's skills from [Spiral Beacon: Hunter], these aberrant creatures had absolutely no chance of being tracked.

"Poro, I've reached the Spire Rock. Which way should I go next?"

"The valley to the west, north of a withered tree entwined with red vines."

Reck sensed the increasingly clear response from within her heart, and she drew closer to the Poro.

At the same time, she also discovered that there were more and more strange beasts lurking in the seemingly peaceful forest, like... sentinels?
Using her invisibility cloak, Lake easily bypassed several beasts and spotted a Poro waving its claws behind a tree.

"So, you've found the guy who controls these beasts?"

"No, but progress is rapid."

Although Poro couldn't see Lake either, he could sense Lake's location. He pointed to an open space not far away, where a tiger was waiting for something in the center.

"While there are quite a few unusual animals we've encountered, they don't represent all the threats in this forest. After all, fighting against the regrouped hunter soldiers—"

This number of sharp teeth is not enough.

"You mean, there really are other threats?"

"Yes, most importantly, it's the King of the Forest who controls these strange animals—he's very cautious, and I still haven't seen his face."

Poro thought for a moment, then continued, "Among these anomalous creatures, only a small portion of them have heard the voice of the King of the Forest."

The voices they heard, regardless of age or gender, were not uniform.

Just then, a strange, hoarse cry came from the sky, and a rather unusual-looking crow descended from the sky, landing on the top of a dead tree in the center of the open space.

Unlike the ones I've seen before, this crow had some purplish-red markings on its body, its eyes lacked any light, and even looked somewhat decayed.

“Look, that’s the kind of guy, the messenger of King Lin Zhongguo—there’s more than one kind.”

Poro looked at the strange crow not far away, which was placing a stone engraved with runes in front of the tiger.

"These unusual beasts seen in the outer forest are, at best, cursed 'humans'."

"And this crow?"

"It carries an aura akin to that of the devil; that is the more dangerous 'anomaly' in the forest."

So, should we follow this crow?

“Yes, I’ve followed a few messengers already, but the maze deep in the forest is much more complex—it will take me a lot of time…”

"maze……"

Reck thought for a moment, then took out the paper that Sideg had given her from her bosom and handed it to Poro. "By the way, Sideg gave me this magic circle."

"Ok?"

Poro took the array diagram recorded on the magic book page, a glint of magic flashing in his eyes, before he laughed, "It seems we can find this King of the Forest much faster!"

"By the way, that surviving soldier wanted to lead a group to rescue the princess, wouldn't that...?"

"It's a trap, and if you don't heed the advice, you can only hope they arrive later."

Poro shook his head. "We should go find the King of the Forest. Chasing these ordinary wild beasts won't be very effective. The maze will hide them, and it will be difficult to kill them all. Instead, it will alert them."

"Only this King of the Forest carries a secret that is truly important!" (End of Chapter)