Eventually, the forests began climbing, rolling hills gave way to jagged cliffs, the cliffs, in turn, surrendered to mountains.
Far beyond layers of emerald woodland and drifting mist, a colossal mountain range stretched across the horizon, so vast that its end disappeared beyond the curvature of the earth.
Its snow-covered peaks pierced the clouds themselves.
Even from this distance, it looked almost unreal.
Sunlight poured across pale stone while faint rivers of azure mana drifted between the mountains like living streams suspended in the sky.
Occasionally, tiny flashes shimmered high above the peaks.
Dungeon Portals.
Far too distant to make out clearly.
Yet impossible to mistake.
“…Beautiful.”
The word escaped before he realized it.
Ashveil Summit wasn’t simply a mountain range.
It felt ancient.
Like something that had existed long before humanity and would continue standing long after it was gone.
Seeing it with his own eyes was nothing like the image he’d once imagined while typing away on an old laptop.
He smiled to himself.
“…Not bad, teenage me.”
For once…
He couldn’t bring himself to criticize his younger self.
A pleasant electronic chime echoed through the bus.
“Next stop: Pittsburg Town. Final civilian stop before the Ashveil Exclusion Zone. Please ensure all personal belongings are collected before departing.”
Passengers began gathering their belongings as the bus slowed to a stop.
Ekaterina stirred awake beside him.
“Oh dear…” she murmured, blinking several times.
“I actually fell asleep.”
“You earned it.” Dylan Said.
She smiled before carefully lifting her basket.
“So this is where we part ways.”
“It looks like it.”
The doors slid open with a soft hiss.
Together, they stepped off the bus.
Warm mountain air greeted them, carrying the scent of pine trees and damp earth.
Pittsburg Town was quiet compared to New California.
A handful of cafés lined the main street alongside equipment stores, supply shops and small Hunter lodges.
Beyond them stood rows of modest homes nestled beneath the shadow of distant mountains.
Everything about the town existed for one reason.
Supporting those who lived on the edge of Ashveil Summit.
Ekaterina adjusted the basket in her arms before turning toward Dylan.
“Thank you.”
He tilted his head.
“For what?”
“For listening.”
She smiled warmly.
“Sometimes that’s all an old woman needs.”
Dylan returned the smile.
“It was my pleasure.”
“If you’re ever in town again,” she continued, “come visit us.”
“Our farmhouse isn’t much, but my husband would love to meet the young man who made his wife laugh all the way home.”
“I’d like that.”
He looked around the unfamiliar town before scratching his cheek.
“Although…”
“How exactly am I supposed to find your house?”
He pretended to think deeply.
“I suppose I could just ask…”
He cleared his throat dramatically.
“‘Excuse me, could you point me toward the house of the most beautiful lady in Pittsburg?'”
Ekaterina laughed so suddenly she nearly dropped her basket.
“Oh, you really are dramatic.”
“I’ve been told.”
She wiped the corner of one eye before shaking her head.
“You probably could ask that.”
He blinked “…Really?”
“Our town has fewer than a hundred residents.”
She spread her arms with a fond smile.
“Everyone knows everyone and everyone knows the old russian couple running the dragonfruit farm.”
“That certainly narrows the search.”
“It does.”
For a brief moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Ekaterina stepped forward and gently patted his shoulder.
“Take care of yourself, Dylan.”
“You too.”
“And don’t skip meals.”
“I’ll… try.”
She gave him one last warm smile before turning toward the residential part of town.
Dylan stood there, watching until her figure disappeared between the quiet streets.
“…Good people.”
He adjusted the strap of his backpack and turned in the opposite direction.
North.
Far beyond Pittsburg Town, Ashveil Summit dominated the horizon.
His phone vibrated softly before displaying a navigation prompt.
Distance to Sector-V33 Exclusion Zone: 21.8 km
“…Twenty-two kilometers.”
He rolled his shoulders.
“Could be worse.”
Then his eyes drifted toward the main road.
Several armored Bureau vehicles blocked the highway.
Uniformed officers inspected every vehicle approaching the checkpoint while licensed Hunters presented identification cards before being allowed through.
Dylan watched the scene for several silent seconds.
“…Well, that seems inconvenient.”
He sighed dramatically.
“I wrote these security regulations myself.”
“…And now I’m the idiot trying to sneak past them.”
His gaze shifted toward the dense forest stretching alongside the road.
Somewhere beyond those trees, hidden beneath years of overgrowth, lay a forgotten maintenance route.
One he’d invented years ago because he thought secret paths were cool.
He chuckled.
“…Teenage me.”
“You magnificent little criminal.”
Without another glance at the checkpoint, Dylan adjusted the strap of his backpack and headed toward the forest.
The moment he stepped beneath the trees, the world changed.
The distant hum of traffic disappeared behind a wall of leaves.
The chatter of the town faded until it was little more than a memory.
Only birdsong remained.
The steady chirping of insects.
The whisper of wind weaving through branches.
He glanced back once.
Pittsburg Town was already hidden behind the dense treeline.
“…Peaceful.”
He smiled faintly.
“Deceptively so.”
The forest gradually thickened with every step. You are reading on g.com, the official source.
Towering pines stretched high overhead, their branches intertwining until they formed a natural canopy.
Sunlight struggled to slip through the gaps, scattering pale shafts of light across the forest floor.
Roots twisted across the earth like sleeping serpents.
Fern-covered rocks jutted from the ground.
Everything smelled damp and alive.
“This isn’t even Ashveil Summit yet.”
He stepped over a fallen log.
“It’s just the outer wilderness.”
The truly dangerous areas still lay many kilometers ahead.
Even so…
Mana lingered in the air far more heavily than it had back in New California.
Enough that he could almost taste it.
His pace remained steady.
The phone in his pocket had long since lost signal, leaving only the offline map he’d downloaded before leaving the city.
According to memory the entrance should be somewhere nearby.
Hopefully.
An hour passed.
Then another.
His legs began protesting first.
Then his shoulders.
Finally, his throat.
“…Damn.”
He wiped sweat from his forehead before unscrewing one of the water bottles he’d packed.
The label immediately caught his eye.
Mountain Spring Water
Mana Concentration: 0.2%
“…Even bottled water has mana now.”
He chuckled to himself.
“I wonder what teenage me would’ve thought if someone told him supermarkets would start listing mana percentages.”
The water was refreshingly cold.
He emptied nearly half the bottle before sealing it again.
“…Better.”
Not completely.
Just enough.
He continued deeper into the forest.
The trees grew older.
Larger.
Silence settled more heavily with every passing minute.
Eventually…
Something emerged through the undergrowth.
A crumbling stone watchtower.
Its upper half had collapsed years ago, leaving only broken walls wrapped in vines and moss.
A weathered Bureau emblem was still barely visible above the entrance.
“There you are.”
Dylan smiled.
“The old checkpoint.”
He approached slowly.
Nature had reclaimed almost everything.
If he hadn’t known exactly what he was looking for…
He would’ve walked right past it.
He stopped beside the ruined tower.
“…Now…”
He looked left.
“…One.”
He began counting each step beneath his breath.
“…Two.”
“…Three.”
“…Four.”
The forest looked exactly the same in every direction.
“…Five.”
“…Six.”
“…Seven.”
He snorted.
“Teenage me…”
“…Eight.”
“…Nine.”
“You really thought readers were supposed to remember this?”
“…Ten.”
“…Eleven.”
“…Twelve.”
He stopped.
Silence.
“…Seriously?”
He looked around.
“There isn’t even a landmark.”
He rubbed his temples.
“What kind of psychopath writes directions like ‘walk twelve steps left from a ruined tower hidden inside an unnamed forest?'”
He sighed.
“I deserved every angry comment.”
A twig snapped.
His smile vanished.
Slowly…
Very slowly…
He turned his head.
Standing less than thirty meters away was a deer.
At least it resembled one.
Its body was almost twice the size of an ordinary stag, muscles rippling beneath silver-white fur streaked with faint blue lines of mana.
Its antlers branched outward like polished crystal, glimmering beneath scattered sunlight.
Beautiful.
Majestic.
Its crimson eyes met his.
“…Right.”
He swallowed.
“I also made you violently territorial.”
The Mana Deer lowered its head.
Its front hoof scraped against the earth.
Once.
Twice.
“Oh no.”
The ground exploded beneath it.
It became a blur.
Dylan barely registered movement before instinct threw him sideways.
The antlers tore through the air where his chest had been a heartbeat earlier.
He slammed into the forest floor, rolling across dirt and roots before crashing shoulder-first into a tree.
Pain shot through his ribs.
“…Still healing.”
The deer skidded across the ground before pivoting with terrifying speed.
“You’re supposed to be prey!”
He dove behind another tree.
The antlers slammed into the trunk with enough force to send bark flying.
The entire tree shook.
“…Never mind.”
“I wrote you wrong.”
No.
Not wrong.
Too strong.
His breathing grew heavier.
He couldn’t outrun it.
Not with his current body.
Not against something built for speed.
His fingers tightened around the hilt of his saber.
“…Think.”
The deer circled slowly.
Searching.
Waiting.
Then Dylan remembered.
Camouflage.
He activated the copied skill.
Mana drained from his core almost instantly.
The surrounding light bent around his body.
His outline blurred.
Then disappeared.
“…Don’t move.”
He remained perfectly still.
Even his breathing became shallow.
The Mana Deer stopped.
Its ears twitched.
It sniffed the air.
Confused.
Unable to find the prey that had been standing there only moments ago.
Slowly…
Cautiously…
It stepped closer.
Five meters.
Four.
Three.
Its head turned slightly, exposing the side of its neck.
Now.
Dylan exploded forward.
The saber flashed.
Steel buried itself deep beneath the creature’s jaw.
The Mana Deer shrieked.
It didn’t fall.
Instead, it panicked.
Its body bucked violently, dragging Dylan several meters through dirt and fallen leaves.
He refused to let go.
Blood soaked his hands.
The deer slammed into another tree.
Again.
Again.
Each impact rattled his bones.
Then…
Its movements weakened.
Its legs buckled.
The massive body collapsed onto the forest floor.
Silence returned.
Dylan remained kneeling beside it for several seconds.
His lungs burned.
His entire body trembled from adrenaline.
“…People…”
He took another shaky breath.
“…Really underestimate how difficult it is to kill something.”
The deer’s crimson eyes slowly lost their light.
For a long while…
Neither of them moved.
Eventually, Dylan exhaled.
“I’m sorry.”
It wasn’t an apology for defending himself.
It was for the life that had just ended.
He cleaned the blade against the grass before getting to work.
Years of watching survival videos finally proved useful.
The best cuts of meat went into waterproof storage bags he’d packed beforehand.
Everything else…
He dragged nearly a hundred meters away from his intended route before leaving the remains scattered among the undergrowth.
Predators would find it soon enough.
Better they gathered there…
Than where he planned to disappear.
“…Waste nothing.”
His father had always lived by those words.
Dylan adjusted his backpack, now noticeably heavier.
His gaze returned to the spot where he’d counted twelve steps.
This time he noticed it.
Hidden beneath layers of roots and creeping vines a rusted steel hatch sat almost perfectly flush with the earth.
A faded warning sign hung crookedly beside it.
BUREAU OF AUTHORITY
AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY
ENTRY STRICTLY PROHIBITED
Dylan brushed away decades of dirt.
“…Found you.”
He remembered this place.
One of the Bureau’s oldest deep-forest checkpoints abandoned after a terrorist attack years ago.
He never did finish writing that incident.
“…That’s a story for another day.”
Due to that terror attack the defence around this zone has been mostly turned into cyber security and surveillance drones which half of the don’t even work well.
Which ended up being his golden ticket to enter the Ashveil Summit.
He gripped the rusted wheel locking the hatch.
With a harsh metallic groan…
It slowly turned.
Darkness greeted him from below.
Cold.
Silent.
Waiting.
Dylan looked back toward the forest one last time.
“…Trespassing into a restricted Bureau facility.”
He smiled despite himself.
“I don’t exactly have another choice.”
Then, without another word, he climbed into the darkness beneath the earth.