Creekbank Village was just as its name suggested.
Scattered wooden houses stood against the mountains and along the riverbank.
A clear stream flowed through the village, surrounded by vast stretches of lush farmland.
At the very edge of the villagers’ sight stood an ancient, verdant primeval forest, its undulating canopy stretching endlessly into the distance.
Byakuran and Gray consulted the map as they walked for most of the morning before finally arriving at the village, which was located on the outskirts of Magnolia.
Along the way, Gray endlessly complained to Byakuran about his boring past experiences of searching for cats and dogs.
It was obvious that the boy had been cooped up in the guild for too long, and his expectations for this combat mission were through the roof.
As they entered the village, they saw quite a few villagers working in the fields.
Byakuran casually stopped a villager carrying a shoulder pole and politely asked,
“Hello, uncle. We’re mages from Fairy Tail, and we’ve come here after accepting the village’s commission. Could you tell us where the village chief’s house is?”
Hearing the words “Fairy Tail,” the uncle’s face initially lit up with joy.
However, when his gaze fell upon Byakuran and Gray—two brats who didn’t even reach his chest—the joy instantly froze and turned into bewilderment.
“Uh… You’re mages? For this commission, only two little kids like you came?”
Gray immediately frowned and puffed out his chest.
“What’s wrong with being little kids? Uncle, we’re officially registered mages! Don’t let our young age fool you. When it comes to fighting, we aren’t necessarily weaker than adults!”
The uncle was stunned for a moment by Gray’s fierce, tsundere-like attitude before subconsciously looking toward the relatively calm Byakuran.
Byakuran smiled slightly, raised his right hand, and deliberately displayed the white Fairy Tail emblem on the back of his hand.
“Indeed, there are only the two of us. But please rest assured. The guild wouldn’t have assigned us this mission if they didn’t believe we were capable of handling it. Take us to see the village chief. Once we discuss the situation in person, everything will become clearer.”
Seeing the genuine guild crest, the uncle scratched his head.
Although his doubts hadn’t completely disappeared, he could only nod.
“…That’s true. Since you’re mages from Fairy Tail, then follow me. The village chief’s house isn’t far from here.”
The villager led them through the houses and brought them to a small house in the center of the village.
It looked no different from the other houses.
An elderly man with graying sideburns was sitting in a chair outside, basking in the sunlight.
When he noticed someone approaching, he slowly stood up.
“Village Chief, the mages from Fairy Tail have arrived!” the villager called out.
The village chief’s face had initially been filled with relief, but when he saw Byakuran and Gray, the smile at the corners of his mouth froze just as the villager’s had.
“These… are the two mages who accepted the commission?”
The village chief looked the two boys up and down.
Although he tried to remain polite, the worry and disappointment in his eyes were impossible to conceal.
“It’s not that this old man judges people by their appearance. It’s just that this commission concerns the livelihood of the entire village for the coming year. That group of wild boars comes out every night to destroy our farmland, and they’ve even bitten several strong young men who tried to drive them away.”
“And there are far too many of them. They move in packs. If there were only two or three, we could have beaten them to death with sticks ourselves. But facing an entire pack…”
The village chief sighed.
“The two of you are simply too young. This old man is worried that something might happen to you, and then it would be difficult to explain things to your esteemed guild.”
Just as Gray was about to flare up again, Byakuran stepped half a pace forward and stopped him.
He then nodded slightly toward the village chief.
“I understand. It really is difficult to feel reassured based solely on our appearance. So, let’s demonstrate our strength in person.”
With that, Byakuran turned around and slowly walked into the open space outside the courtyard.
He stopped, his expression becoming slightly stern, and then clapped his hands together sharply in front of his chest.
“Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!”
“Rumble—!”
The moment the words left his mouth, the ground violently trembled.
Amid the horrified gazes of the villagers and the village chief, the soil cracked open.
A wooden Eastern-style dragon nearly ten meters long, covered in intricate scales and exuding an incomparably majestic aura, roared out from the fissure amid billowing clouds of dust.
The wood dragon circled through the air, kicking up powerful gusts of wind that rustled the surrounding leaves.
Then, it obediently descended and coiled its massive body around Byakuran.
Its enormous body, ferocious dragon head, and overwhelming sense of oppression caused every villager present to hold their breath.
For a few seconds, everyone’s minds went completely blank.
Then—
The villagers who had gathered around erupted into an uproar.
“Th-That’s a dragon?! A dragon made of wood?!”
“Good grief… It’s enormous!”
“Can a mage really create something like this? Are mages really this ridiculous?!”
Their initial shock quickly turned into uncontrollable excitement.
Some villagers rubbed their hands together and laughed aloud, while others looked toward the fields, finally feeling the heavy burden that had weighed on their hearts for days disappear.
“With this kind of ability, what do a few wild boars even count for?!”
“Fairy Tail truly lives up to its reputation!”
“Village Chief, this commission is basically settled, right?”
The village chief swallowed hard.
He looked at the enormous dragon head nearby before turning toward Byakuran.
All his previous concerns about their age had transformed into genuine admiration.
He bowed deeply.
“…Impressive. With this kind of strength, dealing with the wild boar pack should be absolutely no problem. The two of you… please take care of this commission!”
Meanwhile, Gray was also tilting his head back and staring intently at the wood dragon, his eyes wide with amazement.
He subconsciously rubbed his wrist, where the memories of being dominated by Byakuran’s vines back at the guild still lingered.
“…Hey,” Gray muttered.
His previous tsundere attitude and refusal to admit defeat had completely transformed into genuine amazement.
“Byakuran, you guy… How many cards were you holding back when we sparred at the guild?! Using those vines and wooden walls was one thing, but the size and magical power of this wood dragon are on a completely different level!”
Byakuran dispelled the magic, and the massive wood dragon burrowed back underground.
The cracks in the ground gradually closed and repaired themselves at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Byakuran turned slightly toward Gray and smiled gently.
“The circumstances are different. At the guild, we’re companions sparring with each other, so we stop once we’ve reached a reasonable point. Here, I’m trying to reassure the client. Naturally, I have to use something more intimidating.”
Gray clicked his tongue.
Although he continued to act tough, his eyes were shining brightly.
“Hmph… Cunning bastard. But just you wait. The next time we spar, I’ll definitely force you to show your true strength!”
“Mhm. I’m looking forward to it.”
Although he said that, Byakuran felt a slight pang of guilt toward Gray.
By the time Gray grew stronger, Byakuran would have grown even faster.
It would indeed be difficult for Gray to force him to reveal his full strength.
Having witnessed the mages’ abilities, the village chief enthusiastically invited the two into his house.
He served them tea and began explaining the details of the commission.
“The trouble started about two weeks ago. A large number of wild boars suddenly rushed out of the depths of the forest. During the day, they hide inside the woods. At night, they come out in packs to gnaw on and trample our crops.”
“At first, we organized the young and strong men of the village to keep watch at night and drive them away. But for some reason, the number of wild boars kept increasing.”
“Eventually, the villagers couldn’t drive them away anymore. They didn’t even dare approach them.”
“We also didn’t have the courage to venture deep into the forest to find out what was happening. So, we could only place our hopes in the mage guild. We were hoping you adults could enter the mountains, find their lair, and either eliminate them completely or drive them deeper into the forest.”
Byakuran immediately caught the key point.
Holding his teacup, he asked,
“Village Chief, you said these wild boars suddenly appeared in large groups? Before this, were there ever so many wild boars around the outskirts of the forest?”
“Definitely not.”
The village chief shook his head firmly.
“Our ancestors have lived here for generations. At most, we’d see some wild rabbits and pheasants around the outer edges.”
“Moreover, a few days ago, a bold hunter went to investigate the edge of the forest. He said that it wasn’t just wild boars. Even many docile small animals were fleeing toward the outskirts of the forest, as if…”
The village chief’s expression became uneasy.
“…as if something terrifying deep within the forest was driving them out.”
Byakuran and Gray exchanged glances.
A sudden increase in animals around the outer edge of the forest.
Abnormal animal migration.
This sounded very much like an extremely powerful magical beast had appeared in the core region of the forest, established its territory, and forcibly driven out the native wildlife.
“This is somewhat interesting.”
Byakuran placed his teacup down and stood up.
He looked out the window at the setting sun slowly sinking toward the western horizon.
“Village Chief, it’s almost dark, and entering the forest at night would be inconvenient. Could you arrange a place for us to rest? We’ll enter the forest early tomorrow morning to investigate.”
“No problem. Just stay at my house. I happen to have a spare room.”
The village chief nodded repeatedly.
Afterward, Byakuran walked outside and cast his magic once more.
The wood dragon appeared again, circling through the sky.
Byakuran looked up and issued an instruction.
“Tonight, patrol around the village. If any wild boars appear, drive them away and hunt them.”
The wood dragon released a low roar.
Its enormous body plunged into the gradually darkening sky as it dutifully flew toward the edge of the forest.
The setting sun stretched the dragon’s shadow across the ground.
Villagers finishing their work, returning home, or looking out through their windows all raised their heads and let out another round of astonished exclamations—this time even more lively than the reaction outside the village chief’s courtyard.
Gray watched the scene with amazement.
“Your construct can even patrol by itself? The more I see your magic, the more ridiculous it becomes.”
“Mhm. By combining it with Nature Magic, my constructs can possess a certain degree of autonomy and carry out simple instructions,” Byakuran explained.
Beside them, the village chief looked up at the wood dragon circling above the village and let out a long sigh of relief.
The huge burden that had weighed on his heart for two weeks finally disappeared.
“With that thing keeping watch tonight, the villagers can finally sleep peacefully. You two adults, thank you. Truly.”
“It’s nothing. It’s part of the work covered by the commission.”
Byakuran smiled.
The Next Morning
Having rested and recovered their energy, Byakuran and Gray woke up early.
After eating a hearty farmhouse breakfast at the village chief’s house, they packed their equipment and prepared to enter the mountains.
The village chief escorted them to the village entrance.
He pointed toward the dense, dark-green forest to the north, which looked somewhat eerie beneath the lingering morning mist.
“The wild boars usually come from that direction. The terrain inside the forest is complicated, so you two adults must be extremely careful.”
“Don’t worry.”
Gray rolled his shoulders, his joints producing several crisp pops as his youthful blood began to boil once more.
“We’ll finish this today.”
The two stepped into the edge of the forest.
The thin morning mist had yet to disperse.
The scent of damp earth mixed with the stale odor of rotting leaves filled the air.
Huge claw marks left by the wood dragon during its patrol the previous night could still be seen on the ground.
As they went deeper, human footprints completely disappeared.
In their place were countless chaotic hoofprints, some shallow and others deep, belonging to various beasts.
“Look here.”
Byakuran crouched beside a bush and brushed his fingertips over the freshly disturbed soil.
“These hoofprints should belong to wild boars. The soil is still very moist, which means they passed through here around dawn.”
Gray leaned over to examine the tracks as well.
Then he stood up, clenched his right fist, and slammed it into his left palm.
“Then what are we waiting for? If we follow these tracks, we’ll definitely find their base! Let’s go!”
The two immediately began moving rapidly through the dense vegetation.
Along the way, they encountered a surprisingly large number of small animals.
Wild rabbits, pheasants, and even several sika deer that should normally have remained deep in the mountains were all gathered near the outer edge of the forest.
The abnormal sight caused Byakuran’s brows to furrow slightly.
He stopped and walked toward a towering ancient tree that would have required several people to encircle.
Gently placing his palm against its rough bark, Byakuran infused Nature Magic into the tree.
In an instant, the magic power within his body transformed into countless tiny tendrils that spread rapidly through the ancient tree’s root system and the surrounding vines.
Byakuran closed his eyes.
A mental map formed from countless faint “sounds” gradually unfolded within his mind.
Heavy panting.
The sound of roots being torn from the soil.
Dense, chaotic footsteps.
And deep within the forest…
That oppressive aura that was making all the small animals uneasy.
“How is it?”
Gray stood nearby, looking around vigilantly.
“The wild boars are slightly farther north, and there are quite a lot of them.”
Byakuran withdrew his hand.
His tone became slightly more solemn.
“However… there’s something else deeper inside the forest. I’m afraid that’s the reason all these animals have migrated toward the outskirts.”
“What should we do next?”
Gray’s eyes lit up.
Rather than being afraid, he looked eager to fight.
“Should we charge straight into the deepest part and deal with whatever’s causing this?”
Byakuran speechlessly tapped Gray on the head.
“What are you thinking? Let’s clear out the wild boars first and complete the actual objective of the commission.”
“As for whatever is hiding deeper inside, we’ll slowly and carefully investigate it afterward. If it turns out to be something we can’t handle, we’ll retreat immediately and return to the village. Then we can report the situation to the guild and have the quest updated.”
“You’re really cautious.”
Gray rubbed his head with some dissatisfaction.
“Alright, let’s go. Half the wild boars are mine.”
“Fine.”
The two continued forward.
After about fifteen minutes, the bushes ahead suddenly shook violently.
“Roar—!”
Accompanied by a piercing roar, five or six rugged wild boars with black skin and razor-sharp tusks suddenly burst out from the side.
Having been driven out by the wood dragon the previous night, they were exceptionally irritable.
Their bloodshot eyes locked onto the two boys as they charged straight toward them.
Instead of being startled, Gray became excited.
He laughed loudly and immediately raised his hands into a casting position.
“Here they come—Ice-Make: Lance!”
Several sharp, spear-like ice lances materialized out of thin air and shot forward with piercing whistles.
At the same time, Byakuran clapped his hands together.
Several thick wooden stakes instantly erupted from the ground, intersecting to form a sturdy fence that forcefully stopped the two wild boars charging at the front.
Before the boars could turn around, several thick vines burst from the wooden fence.
They wrapped around the boars’ legs like serpents and violently dragged them to the ground.
Gray’s ice lances followed closely behind, precisely piercing the restrained wild boars.
The cooperation between the two was seamless.
Gray exhaled and smiled happily.
“This is much better than searching for cats! Shall we keep going?”
Byakuran nodded.
Working together, the two quickly cleared out the group of wild boars.
After briefly tidying themselves up, they continued deeper into the forest.
Above them, the morning sunlight was gradually broken into fragments by the dense branches and leaves.
The shadows beneath the trees grew increasingly dark and heavy.
The commission from Creekbank Village had only just reached its most dangerous stage.
As they ventured deeper, the surrounding vegetation became increasingly strange and dense.
Towering trees stood around them like dark-green pillars piercing the sky.
Their enormous canopies formed a dome overhead that blocked out most of the sunlight.
Occasionally, fragments of light slipped through the leaves and fell onto moss-covered rocks and damp earth, creating mottled patterns of light and shadow.
If one ignored the potential dangers, the scenery could almost be considered peaceful and beautiful.
Yet the more beautiful the forest became, the heavier the atmosphere felt.
It was simply too quiet.
Hardly any animals could be seen.
Only the footsteps and breathing of the two boys echoed through the forest.
“…It’s abnormally quiet.”
Gray unconsciously clenched his fists and cautiously scanned the twisted shadows of the trees around them.
Byakuran nodded.
He looked at the surrounding trees and activated Nature Magic once again, attempting to resonate with the surrounding natural environment and sense whether there were any other living creatures nearby.
Within his sensory world, a large area around them appeared completely dead and gray.
Yet about thirty meters ahead and slightly to the left, beneath the canopy of an extremely tall ancient tree, there was an intensely concentrated and tense aura.
Byakuran’s eyes suddenly snapped open.
A sharp glint flashed through them as he immediately raised his head and locked his gaze onto the pitch-black canopy.
The monster hiding there seemed to realize that its perfect concealment had been discovered.
It erupted into action.
“Boom!”
The dense canopy exploded apart.
Green leaves flew wildly through the air as a demonic beast nearly two meters long burst from the shadows.
Its body was covered in dark-brown bone armor.
It resembled a leopard, but possessed a pair of terrifying tusks.
Its four limbs landed silently.
Its speed was so incredible that it left several blurred afterimages in its wake, while the resulting wind pressure scraped moss from the ground and sent it flying.
Clearly startled by Byakuran’s sharp senses, the beast abandoned its sneak attack and instead relied on its overwhelming speed to pounce directly toward Byakuran’s throat, intending to kill him in a single strike.
“Watch out!”
Gray turned sideways and condensed ice.
“Ice-Make: Lance!”
Several ice lances shot through the air.
The demonic beast twisted its body between the shadows of the trees, its shoulder brushing past the tips of the lances without even being grazed.
In the blink of an eye, it had already circled to the side.
Byakuran clapped his hands.
Wooden stakes erupted from the ground to intercept the beast.
Yet the creature seemed to predict where the stakes would appear.
It lightly tapped one of them with its claws, flipped gracefully over it, and continued closing in.
What incredible speed!
What terrifying combat instincts!
Whenever Gray created his ice lances, the beast seemed to anticipate their trajectories through pure animal instinct and avoided them before they could even reach their target.
The two’s long-range attacks repeatedly missed.
But when the creature finally got close to Byakuran, the situation changed completely.
At that moment, every piece of vegetation around Byakuran seemed to come alive.
The grass beneath their feet sharpened like blades and slashed toward the demonic beast’s limbs.
The surrounding vines transformed into a massive green hunting net, bursting from the shadows without warning and sealing off every possible direction the creature could use to dodge or maneuver.
“Roar?!”
The demonic beast had nowhere to gain leverage in mid-air.
Its front paws slammed violently into the rising branches and vines.
Although it tore through the first layer of restraints through sheer brute force, the dense vines that followed immediately wrapped around its hind legs like maggots clinging to rotten flesh.
“Snap!”
A sharp whipping sound echoed through the forest.
The immense force sent the demonic beast flying.
It rolled several times across the ground before creating some distance between itself and Byakuran.
Standing several meters away, it released a series of low, wary growls.
The battle had entered an interesting stalemate.
At a distance, the demonic beast could rely on its terrifying speed to easily evade Gray’s ice lances and Byakuran’s single-target Wood Release techniques.
But whenever it tried to approach Byakuran for close combat, it would immediately fall into an inescapable net woven from countless plants.
The closer it got to Byakuran, the less room it had to react.
And the easier it became for Byakuran to suppress it.
For a moment, neither side could gain the upper hand.
‘What a nimble demonic beast.
Its speed is much faster than mine right now.
My physical reaction speed isn’t enough.’
Byakuran silently analyzed the battle.
‘But that doesn’t mean I have no solution.’
‘If single-target attacks can’t hit it, then I’ll use an area-of-effect attack.’
With that thought, Byakuran turned slightly toward his companion.
“Gray, protect yourself. I’m going to use a powerful move. The commotion might be a little… large.”
Gray’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
The frustration from missing several consecutive rounds of ice lances had yet to disappear.
Hearing that Byakuran was about to unleash a major attack, Gray was somewhat unwilling to admit defeat, but he still sensibly stopped his offensive.
“…Tch. Don’t look down on me. Who needs your protection?!”
His eyes sharpened.
“Bring on whatever move you’ve got!”
Before his voice had even fallen, the demonic beast seemed to sense the danger.
Its golden slit pupils suddenly contracted.
Then it pounced forward once more, carrying a foul, fishy wind with it.
“Ice-Make: Shield!”
“Wood Release: Advent of a World of Trees!”
Gray formed his hands, and several thick, heavy ice shields suddenly rose from the ground, tightly guarding him.
At the same time, Byakuran clapped his hands together.
A terrifying surge of magical power erupted from within his body.
“Boom—!”
The violent magical power transformed into a tangible hurricane that surged from beneath his feet, causing the entire forest to shake violently.
The ground across hundreds of meters cracked open as though responding to his call.
Countless thick tree trunks twisted, grew rapidly, and intertwined with one another.
In the blink of an eye, a massive sea of trees rose from the earth, blocking out the sky.
The demonic beast didn’t even have time to let out a cry before countless wooden vines tightly bound its body.
Every possible route of escape was completely sealed.
The battle ended there.
Gray maintained his ice-shield stance, but his entire body had frozen in place.
The terrifying demonic beast that had previously moved so quickly that only afterimages could be seen was now like a helpless insect caught in a spider’s web.
It had been completely swallowed by the primeval forest that had suddenly erupted from the ground.
Hundreds of meters of trees danced wildly, closing in from every direction.
This completely exceeded Gray’s conventional understanding of Ice-Make and shaping magic.
“…So… so strong.”
Gray muttered to himself, his throat dry as he stared at the enormous forest before him.
“Isn’t the range way too big?! What’s the point of that demonic beast dodging as fast as it can when there isn’t even a single patch of open ground left for it to land on?”
He turned toward Byakuran in disbelief.
“Byakuran, you guy… just how strong have you become?”
“This is already my full strength. I don’t have any stronger moves for now.”
Byakuran casually raised his hand and wiped the thin layer of sweat from his temples.
He spoke modestly.
It wasn’t entirely a lie.
He truly didn’t possess the conventional combat power required to casually reshape the landscape.
That attack had drained his current maximum output.
Furthermore, this area was already a forest, giving his Wood Release a natural environmental advantage and allowing him to spread the technique across hundreds of meters in a single attack.
However, this wasn’t actually a normal method of fighting.
If another mage tried to release such a large-scale spell by concentrating all their magical power into one attack, the consequences would range from severe magical exhaustion to sudden death on the spot.
But Byakuran possessed infinite magic power, which effectively acted as an inexhaustible power source.
Immediately after releasing the attack, his internal magical power would be replenished once again.
That was why he could perform such a terrifying technique.
It looked like an ordinary attack, but it was actually an ultimate move.
Yet for Byakuran, an ultimate move could indeed be used like a basic attack.
“You guy…”
Gray turned toward him, the corner of his mouth twitching.
“You’re getting harder and harder to understand.”
Just then—
“Hey—! Is anyone there?! Help—!!”
A miserable cry for help suddenly echoed from deep within the sea of trees.
The two froze simultaneously and immediately turned toward the sound.
There, among the intersecting branches at the edge of the sea of trees, an adult man was hanging in mid-air, tightly bound by thick wooden vines.
His arms were completely restrained, leaving him unable to move.
Only his head and half of his shoulders were exposed.
The sunglasses resting on the bridge of his nose had been knocked crooked, making him look like a ridiculous sculpture growing from a tree.
It was none other than Macao.
“Macao?!”
Gray’s eyes widened.
“Why are you here?!”
“Stop talking nonsense… hiss! Let me down first!”
Macao’s old face had turned red from holding his breath.
The wooden tendrils around him were still tightening slightly, almost as though they could understand human speech.
“I-I was ordered by the Master… to secretly follow you guys and provide backup!”
“I thought that if you two got into trouble, I’d make a dramatic appearance and save the day!”
“But who knew that as soon as this kid Byakuran made a move, it would turn into a disaster-level commotion?! I couldn’t dodge in time and got caught in it!”
“I simply can’t break free!”
Byakuran: “…”
Gray: “…”
The forest fell into an eerie silence for two seconds.
Only the unwilling low growls of the demonic beast in the distance and the creaking sounds of the branches wrapped around Macao could be heard.
Gray froze for a moment.
Then an extremely colorful expression appeared on his face.
His shoulders began to shake.
In the end, he simply couldn’t hold it in anymore.
“So… the Master was worried about us, so he secretly sent you to protect us.”
Gray pointed at Macao.
“But look at you! You got caught by Byakuran’s magic and still had to call us for help?!”
“Why did you have to put it so bluntly?!”
Macao flew into a rage from embarrassment, though he was still completely unable to move.
“Hurry up! If these things squeeze any tighter, I’ll really become a decoration on this tree!”
Byakuran coughed awkwardly.
With a wave of his hand, the branches wrapped around Macao immediately released him.
Macao tumbled to the ground in complete disarray and landed flat on his back.
He gasped heavily for air before looking up at the spectacular sea of trees still trapping the demonic beast.
His expression was so complicated that it was difficult to tell whether he wanted to laugh or cry.
“Holy crap… this magic is way too exaggerated.”
“Using such a large-scale spell just to deal with a single demonic beast…”
Macao looked at Byakuran with a strange expression.
“I’ve really joined an incredible monster.”