Chương 16: Chapter Sixteen: Investigation

I really wish Pawl was here. If he was here, I would be giving him all the belly scratches I could muster along with a constant fondling of his beans. That sounded a little weird but whatever. I have been scrolling through my notifications as I sit at the edge of the woods to gather information. So far, I haven't seen any notification about a cat dying in my wildfire, which makes me very relieved.

I am confident in Pawl's survivability, but I also don't really know how he plans on getting out of here unless I can find him. I also don't know how I will get through this goblin camp and to the valley. I watch the camp for a while longer and stay patient. I have an obvious solution to my goblin problem, but it is dangerous and will take time. Luckily, I can hit two birds with one stone and search for Pawl in the meantime while I gain information.

With that settled, I take off running through the woods alongside the field. In order to make my plan come to fruition, I need to find out where the last goblin camp was located.

After two days of running around and sleeping in the midst of an inferno, I finally reach the left-over cinders of the goblin's previous home. Back when I was scoping out the valley, I had noticed that along the field, there were multiple paths just like the one I had used to find the new camp. With no frosty markers to follow this time, I took turns with the paths, following all of them for an hour or so each just to see where they led.

I soon realized that each path was mostly barren except for one that had a significant amount of burnt goblin corpses littering the area. After that it was a simple process of elimination, and I decided to trail the populated path for as long as it went. It took a while and I encountered a couple of goblins that I had to dispatch and… consume. In the end, I found the leftover remains of the goblin camp buried under ash and charcoal. Unfortunately, even with the fights, I have not leveled up again.

Also, my time is beginning to run out here, as the woods have begun to extinguish, and in the area where the camp is at, only weak embers remain. As I begin to sort through the burnt home of the goblins, I pull up my Status to see what I am currently working with on time.

[Status of Sebastian Bet] Pillar Difficulty: Death is Certain Floor 1: The Last Tribe Time Used: 06: 06: 59: 25 Time Left: 2183: 17: 00: 35 Level: 11 Body (BDY): 17 Mind (MND): 14 Agility (AGI): 12 Power (PWR): 29 [Unallocated Points: 0] Class: Undecided Form Association: Undecided Skills: Emit [Lvl 9] Polarize [Lvl 1] Cogitation [Lvl 9] Mana Control [Lvl 7] Infuse [Lvl 4] Traits: Thermal Resistance [Stage 1/3] Augments: 1. Mana Foundation 2. Undecided Did you know this story is from Royal Road?

Read the official version for free and support the author. 3. Undecided Condition: Mana Mutation [Permanent] I am already approaching my first week on floor one. I don't know how fast each floor should be beaten, but I feel like I am already behind based on the number of days I spent knocked out. I also haven't seen any other humans around either, meaning that it is probably as I expected, and any who remain have already cleared the floor.

This worries me to a degree as I still don't know what type of relationship these people even have with me when it comes to these floors and this 'Pillar Difficulty.' Are they my competition? Is that why they left me in the cave to die? Does the first person to clear the floor get better rewards or is it a group endeavor? Too many questions remain unanswered about this place.

The only thing I can really do is focus on getting to the next floor as strong as possible so that I may have a chance to ask the others myself. I scroll down the screen to my skills. During the last couple of days, <Emit> has leveled passively. This makes sense, as I am constantly using the skill to offset the amount of radiation I produce. Along with my mighty PWR stat of 29, I have been putting the skill to good use. <Mana Control> has been making good progress too.

I think my new Augment has something to do with this, but I'm not complaining. The other skills haven't really budged, but I'm not too worried about them for the time being. It might be foolish, but I think focusing on pushing <Emit> and <Cogitation> to level 10 will be my best move. The two have been my bread and butter so far, and I still have limited applications for mana since I can really only use it to fuel <Infuse> for better movement.

I have high hopes for <Emit>'s future with my radiation, as the Augment selections I read about earlier have given me more ideas on how I can utilize my growing energy pools. <Cogitation> has been almost overpowered as well in comparison to my other skills. Its ability to hone my senses and manage my skills fluidly is an invaluable boon, especially in combat situations. For now though, I resign myself to digging through the ashes of the old goblin encampment.

I stalk around the area and search in a wide circle around where the monsters used to live. I look high and low, and even move around debris to search the ground itself. Time passes but I do not break until I am finally done with my exploration. As I suspected, I notice one very important thing in my search of the perimeter: There are paths littered all around the old goblin camp that were clearly created by the Train.

Throughout the nearby area of woods, countless splintered trees and deep ruts in the dirt run in haphazard lines. I can see that the trails were created before the fire, as a fine layer of ash lies over the surface of each. There are so many trails that the empty spaces caused by the destroyed areas even act as firebreaks in a couple of cases. I continue along one of the paths and examine the ruts that are dug into the forest floor.

Perhaps I had not noticed before when I first sighted the Train, but the ruts run along all of the trails. It is clear that they are some sort of tracks left over by the seemingly enormous monster. Sweeping away the thick layer of ash from one of the ruts, I easily recognize the shape as a hoof. It is around the size of my entire head, but the indentation is clear and even gives me a good idea of what type of animal left it behind.

It seems like the Train that had been chasing around goblins and tearing through the forest is actually some sort of huge cow. With the new information that I gathered, I make my way back to the center of the camp itself, looking around for any sign of the Train left inside the camp. From my constant snooping, I can tell that the area was densely packed with goblins, as if their living space couldn't have more than a couple of meters between each tent used.

The sight makes me wonder if this setup is just a matter of habit for the goblins, or if it actually has some sort of other reasoning for being so cluttered. After I finish my once over, it comes as no surprise to me that there is no evidence of the Train actually having entered the camp at all. When I confirm the Train did not touch the camp, I trudge back out to where I found the nearest splintered path that the mysterious beast left.

I follow the trail slowly and carefully, making sure to examine the side that bordered the encampment. Eventually, I spot a fairly intact tree that had fallen into the trail itself. Approaching the fallen tree, I bend down and run my right hand along the scorched bark while I inspect the surface. Even after a few days, my left hand is still useless, so I make do with my one appendage. The ash and scorch marks practically riddle through the entirety of the fallen tree, yet I push forward with my inspection anyway.

Finally, I find what I have been looking for. Although it is partially hidden due to the natural texture and cracks of the bark, I can see rough lines traced through the wood. It was almost imperceptible given the blackened and flaky remains of the wood, but I can identify hand-carved traces of a weird looking diagram. I don't really know how to describe the shapes, but after inspecting them for a few minutes, I get the feeling that the diagram is not a complete piece.

The lines themselves look to end at a specific point on each end of the trunk; some even in the midst of a whirling design as if they were purposefully divided. I leave the inscribed tree behind and start my search once again. This time, it barely takes any effort at all, and I find the remains of another diagram on a different tree that is also on the edge of the Train path.

It is different from the first I found, but I find the continuation of one of the shapes from the tree I checked earlier, which tells me that the opposite end of this diagram is also incomplete. I continue to follow the path of destruction left behind by the mysterious boogeyman of this floor. One after another, wood carved inscriptions litter the trees bordering the goblin camp. I follow various leftovers created by the Train that go all the way around the charred remains of the monster civilization.

Just as before, I find a consecutive pattern of trees with carvings against their surfaces. Filing away the information I have collected, I start to head back toward the valley. Knowing time is of the essence, I <Infuse> my body with enough mana to make my muscles cramp before shooting down the road. My new Augment makes the infusion of mana evenly filled along my muscle fibers, allowing me to force even more of my energy into the limb.

Even though the circumstances are becoming dire as my investigation slowly connects the dots of the mystery of this floor, I can't help but feel elation bubble up through me. The wind whips against my face as I travel at speeds any normal person could never manage. The rush of the mana. The heat rolling off my skin. The smile on my face. I can't help but love this feeling of freedom. When I was first receiving treatment, I had only dreamed of having the power of an average person.

The strength to run, the feeling of happiness that came from doing mundane tasks. It was all I could ever hope for. But now, I have real power. Power that grows the longer I stay alive. Power that can cause a natural disaster through a simple touch and the right circumstances. Power that I will use to gain even more power.