Volume 1: Path – [Mist Forest Arc]
Chapter 39: Mist Forest
Caelus and Aiv stood on a platform, and to their right loomed a massive circular portal, swirling like a black hole but glowing with a deep, luminous blue.
Just then, a train bus emerged from another portal opposite the one they were about to enter.
This train bus was the designated means of safely traveling through the portals.
"Aiv, why can't we just walk straight into the portal? Wouldn't that be easier?"
"It would, if it didn't kill you. The portal is made of space-element energy, which is lethal unless you're a space-element user. During teleportation, your body isn't simply moved from one place to another, it's broken down into spatial fragments and reconstructed at the destination. Without resistance to the space element, that process can distort your flesh, shatter your core's stability, or even erase parts of you from existence.
That's why normal travelers use a space-resistant medium like the train bus, built from space stone, to shield them during crossing. The bus carries you through the warped dimension without exposing you directly to the space element."
"Oh, so cool," Caelus said, awe in his voice.
Seeing his reaction, Aiv just smiled. "Alright, time to go."
The train bus doors opened, and they stepped inside.
The interior resembled a modern metro train, with digital screens above the doors displaying stop names and destinations.
Their target was Mist Forest. According to Aiv, each island had its own unique climate and vegetation unlike anywhere else. Mist Forest was large enough to cover an entire island, hence also being called Mist Island.
They were four stops away from their destination.
After a minute, the doors closed as all passengers boarded.
Caelus and Aiv took seats. A broadcast message played before departure:
[Please close your eyes before entering the portal.]
But controlling human curiosity is easier said than done. Caelus kept his eyes open, still glancing around, intending to shut them at the last second. The bus began to move slowly, then gained speed before plunging into the portal. A flash of blinding light overwhelmed his vision. Seconds later, the bus stopped. Passengers, blinking and squinting, slowly opened their eyes, only to find themselves in an unfamiliar place.
[Destination Rocky Mountain]
As the voice announced the stop, the doors opened and fewer than ten passengers stepped off.
Outside loomed a massive mountain, its slopes swallowed by a gloomy atmosphere that made it feel like nighttime. The station itself mirrored the academy's in design floor and walls of pristine white tiles, bright lights banishing every shadow.
A few minutes later, the train bus started again. No new passengers boarded; this route now headed in the opposite direction from the academy. In total, there were fourteen tracks and fourteen portals, two for each of the seven academies.
After three more stops, Caelus and Aiv reached their destination. Stepping off, Caelus immediately felt the shift to a cooler climate.
It was exactly as described in the Chronolink's briefing on the Mist Forest.
He had received that information at the mission check-in hall, where they also provided details on Mist Forest and the necessary tools for the mission.
[Region Name] Mist Forest/Island
[Climate] Warm-to-cool, 14°C–22°C; high morning humidity; perpetual mist from Mistroot Trees; two seasons, one is Dewfall (blooming) and the other is Clearfall (pollination).
[Light] Eternal twilight; no direct sunlight. Illumination comes from bioluminescent plants, drifting pollen clouds, fungi, and certain animals. The mist scatters this glow into shifting, dreamlike patterns.
When Caelus read the data earlier, he realized how ordinary the places he had known as a normal human truly were.
'Damn, it feels cool here. If it is cool right now, it means it's Dewfall season right now.'
Dewfall lasted eight months, during which the mist thickened until it was almost tangible, wrapping the forest in a cool, damp embrace. Flora reached its peak growth, with Dew Flowers in full bloom.
Right now, the station was clear; its roof and walls kept the thick mist from seeping inside.
Caelus and Aiv didn't linger. Passenger numbers here were sparse; only three others had arrived from different academies.
Caelus and Aiv stepped out of the station and were immediately met with a dense mist that blanketed everything. They couldn't see far ahead; the world faded into white after only a short distance. There were lights, but not the kind from street lamps, according to the information they had; technology didn't function here. Even signals failed, which is a normal knowledge known to a human being, since signals can't reach this continent. Instead, the locals relied on nature for illumination. The station itself had been adapted, with natural light sources modified to resemble tube lights.
In front of them lay a unique road. Each step they took caused the moss-covered path to glow softly, lighting their way deeper into the forest.
'This moss is called Emerald Glowing Moss. This feels so amazing.'
Alongside the moss path grew Mooncap mushrooms, their silver light casting a calm, ethereal glow.
After several minutes of walking, the road ended. From this point on, they would have to be cautious of the beasts roaming the forest while they searched for their target materials in the darkness.
Fortunately, Mooncap mushrooms were plentiful, like sprouting from trees, carpeting the ground, and clinging to rocks, which made the way easier to see. However, according to the information they had, Dew Flowers never grew near Mooncap mushrooms. They thrived only in secluded mist pools, where water collected on smooth stones or leaf beds, usually at low elevations where the mist condensed the thickest.
They could grow near mooncap mushrooms, too, but mooncap mushrooms consume the mist near them to emit light, which is the reason they are not found near Mooncap mushrooms.
'That means we have to find mist pools now.'
Caelus and Aiv continued on, searching for Dew Flowers in the dark. They couldn't use torches; any light source not produced by the mist would alert beasts to intruders. All plants here emitted light through mist condensation, and a foreign light would stand out. They also couldn't pluck Mooncap mushrooms cause once removed, their light vanished.
"Caelus, do you know why I picked this mission in particular?"
"No, why?"
"Because my element is water, and water and mist are closely related. The water element here is abundant, and if I meditate for a few minutes, I can sense where it's most concentrated. This is a technique taught by my master, and very few people know about it."
"Oh, that's great! Then why didn't you say this in the first place? We could've already finished our mission."
"It's not that easy, Caelus. My senses only reach about 200 meters from where I stand, and my Leym energy is limited. Even though I'm Rank 1 Spark – Middle, I can only use this technique three times before my Leym energy is completely drained."
"Oh."
Just then, a faint sound of running water reached them. Caelus barely noticed it, but Aiv's ears caught it clearly. Caelus, still only half-awakened, had heightened senses and physical strength at only half the level of a fully awakened state.
They quickly ran toward the sound. In the area they reached, there were no Mooncap mushrooms, clear evidence to both of them that they had found the Dew Flowers.
Soon, they arrived at the place they could see the mist pool the water is not a river ather a huge deer is in the middle of the mist pool and that huge deer dancing beautifull upon the mist pool and directly on the edge of the pool is the flower which is hard to see for Caelus but Aiv can see it and he is telling about it to Caelus.
The huge deer stood at an impressive 2.5 meters (8 feet) at the shoulder, its antlers spanning nearly 3 meters (10 feet) like crystalline branches catching the dim light. Its silvery-white fur shifted in rippling patterns of pale blues and soft violets, as if mist flowed across its body. Luminous sapphire eyes seemed to hold faint constellations within, while its antlers glowed softly from within, veins of light pulsing like moonlight through frosted glass. Delicate strands of Emerald Glowing Moss draped from them, swaying gently with each graceful movement. Every step left motes of bioluminescent pollen drifting through the air like stars, and each breath curled into shimmering clouds that dissolved into the surrounding fog.
Caelus was awestruck by its beauty, not in any romantic sense, but in pure wonder that such a creature even existed.
"Caelus, it's going to be hard to take the flowers. Once the Mist Deer finishes its dance, it will fall asleep, but if even the slightest sound is made before that, it will become enraged. So here's the plan: I'll carefully go and take the flowers, and you create a distraction."
Aiv's proposal made Caelus pause in thought. Noticing this, Aiv added, "Don't worry, I won't betray you."
"I know you won't. I'm just thinking about how I should make a distraction."
"Don't overcomplicate it, just throw something in another direction, then run far away from the pool immediately. The Mist Deer can sense you easily if you stay close. I'll wait until it's gone, then take the flowers. We'll meet back at the moss road."
"Sure."
[End of chapter 39]