Storm

"I'm staying stationary while that thing is probably getting closer... Still, the girls need to rest. It would be bad if everyone was as exhausted as I am when we continue," he muttered under his breath.

His breathing was irregular, and his heart felt like it was about to explode. The only thing left to try to calm himself was meditation.

He had done it before, of course, but it wasn't something he had mastered. Usually, the act of meditation was reserved for moments when he was overwhelmed by emotions, like today.

Crossing his legs one over the other, straightening his back, closing his eyes, and trying to control his breathing, he started meditating.

'I hope this works.'

A few hours later, night was over, and the next morning arrived.

Eric slowly opened his eyes. He hadn't managed to get any sleep during the night, but at least he was able to calm himself.

'Does this officially mean I've reached the second week of being in this world? It's quite bizarre… Things have been happening so fast, one after the other, that I haven't even had time to think about my future from here on.'

"Ahh… Good morning," Olivia said as she woke up and began stretching her body. Aria soon woke up as well and followed her example.

Though Eric had seen it before, he was always captivated by the women's remarkable flexibility. They could balance effortlessly on one leg while stretching the other high overhead. Despite considering himself fairly flexible, he knew he couldn't come close to matching their level of grace and control.

"Hm?" Aria raised her eyebrow, looking at Eric. "Eric, did you not sleep well?"

He scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Yeah, I guess I just had too many nightmares."

After everyone was ready, they exited the tree and began heading toward the cathedral. Before they did, Eric checked how much distance remained and saw that they were only eight kilometers away from their destination.

Eric was becoming increasingly skilled at moving stealthily through the forest, and the girls were improving as well. As a result, their speed steadily increased.

Eric had become incredibly focused, trying to pick up on the slightest danger he could find, until suddenly something caught his interest.

Rather than whispering, which could attract the attention of the floating eyeballs in the sky, he placed his two hands on the shoulders of Olivia and Aria.

Both of them immediately stopped and turned toward him. Despite staying silent, it was clear they were asking, 'What?'

Without wasting a moment, he raised his hand and pointed into the distance. The girls shifted their focus to where he was pointing… and saw a tower looming ahead of them.

'They must have been so focused on the dangers around them that they hadn't noticed the tower a few hundred meters away,' Eric thought.

He wasn't sure if he should alert the women, but considering that they were supposed to be in a place devoid of civilization, the sudden appearance of a tower could be cause for concern.

He held his breath and looked at Aria, who was lost in thought. They had, of course, discussed what to do in situations like this.

If the structure or entity ahead seemed dangerous, Aria would signal with an open palm, meaning they should avoid it. If she held out a fist, it meant they should move past it.

Seconds passed as Aria became lost in thought. It was clear she wasn't sure what their next steps should be.

Finally, after about a minute, Aria made her decision. She held up her hand with an open palm.

'So she decided to play it safe…' Eric thought, furrowing his eyebrows. 'Considering the mysterious tower ahead, we'll have to take a small detour. That could cost us time.'

Without complaint, everyone began changing their course to avoid the tower.

'Better safe than sorry, I guess.'

Just as he thought that, lightning fell from the sky and struck the ground. The sound was so loud that it felt like his ears might burst.

If it had been just one strike, it might not have been a problem—but then another came… and another.

Dark clouds, blacker than charcoal, began to gather. The mushrooms around them dimmed suddenly, the floating eyeballs closed their eyes and fell to the ground, reluctant to move, and the human-faced plants wrapped themselves tightly in their vines.

Eric shuddered as every fiber of his being screamed at him to run. He turned to look at Aria and Olivia and saw the terror on their faces.

Suddenly, a cold wave assaulted Eric's body. Despite being clad in armor and having a cloak on his back, he felt like he was about to freeze.

Turning sharply, Aria yelled with all her might, her voice filled with both concern and horror.

"It's a storm! Run!"

Eric didn't need to be told twice. He dashed forward, using every ounce of strength he had.

"The tower ahead!" he shouted, not daring to look back. He knew the girls were faster than him, so they couldn't be far behind. "What do we do with it?"

"What else but to enter!" Olivia shouted, irritated… no, she was scared—scared beyond belief.

"But didn't Aria say—"

"We can't be caught in the storm, no matter what!" Aria interrupted as she overtook Eric.

"Why here?! Why didn't I sense anything?!" Olivia muttered as she also overtook Eric, leaving him in the rear.

He was running with all his might, but he quickly realized that he couldn't see anything in front of him, except for Aria and her white, almost glowing armor.

The dark clouds had gathered so thickly that they completely blocked the sun's rays from reaching their positions. Not to mention, the giant mushrooms had stopped glowing shortly after the clouds began to approach.

"What is happening?" he muttered under his breath as he followed closely behind Aria, hoping that she knew where she was going.

Trying to match her speed—she, who was considered the strongest master—was no easy feat. He felt the muscles in his legs begin to tear under the inhumane stress he had placed on them.

In situations like these, a person would usually sweat a lot as their body temperature increased, but… strangely, Eric felt cold—unnaturally cold.

Then, as he pushed past his limits, a bead of sweat finally formed and rolled—

Eric's eyes widened in horror. He suddenly understood why the girls had panicked earlier.

The sweat bead on his forehead froze instantly upon appearing.

If he stopped moving for even a second, he would freeze like a statue.

"I hope you know where you're going!" he muttered, following closely behind Aria.

Left with no other choice, he had to bet his life on her.