Ascension of the Sylvan Cosmos

Chapter 12. Froorar the Thornstride Chief.

[<Charm of the Seedling> has attracted a <Thornstride Level 11>. Proficiency increased by 110.]

'Huh?'

Once she read that message, all her usual activities stopped as she focused her every cell into her perception.

Then, a semi-bipedal creature shot from the bushes and landed on the ground where the group of hares was. It looked around and shot in the direction of one of the strongest hares.

With extreme ease, his sharp claw dug into the creature's neck, beheading it. Without looking back for a single instant, he moved quickly toward the Level 4 one, similarly killing it in an instant.

Then, it stopped.

Liu Shu, who had barely managed to follow his movements, was as still as possible, her energy careful not to spread outward and trying to control every inch of her skin.

She knew, from the bottom of her heart, that if that thing attacked her, she had no chance of surviving. 'What is that? It's so different from the other Thornstride I saw in the past.'

The Level 11 Thornstride sniffed the air and tilted its head. "What's this scent?"

Hearing it speak, she was surprised. Until now, all Thornstride she had met were not much more intelligent than any other random beasts she had encountered.

Curious, he looked around, observing the trees with its penetrating gaze. After all, while they fed on other animals, their diet was also filled with trees.

He calmly approached the two hunted prey, picking them up and constantly observing his surroundings.

Liu Shu's relatively small height compared to other trees was quite a life-saver for now, as a scent as enticing as hers would never come from a small tree. "Strange. All the biggest trees here are Level 7 or Level 8... Still, even while faint, I can smell something that should be quite nutritious around here..."

The Thornstride began taking bloody bites out of the corpse, spreading the sound of crunching bones as it masticated the freshly caught hares. "Well, whatever. I was searching for the Rose Fairies... Where was their camp? About a few hours east from here? Or was it north? Tsk. So complicated, why has that boy disappeared for so long?"

While the Thornstride mumbled as it ate, the Rose Fairies in the trees' canopies were extremely tense.

The second it appeared, Clavel's heart almost dropped to the ground. 'We need to call the leader quickly!' She silently jumped from branch to branch, reaching the side of a lithe Rose Fairy. "Zinia, go quickly to find the Leader. If something happens, we'll try to stop him, but we can't do much without Leader Flor being present."

Flor was currently out, leveling by hunting some creatures that harmed the forest. It was something all Rose Fairies did in their spare time as protectors of the forest. However, as a Level 10, the Experience Points she gained from lower-level creatures were quite pitiful, so she did so very rarely. Pollinating Liu Shu and doing other similar activities was much more efficient.

Zinia first moved silently through the branched and then took flight, speeding in the direction Flor left.

Clavel saw the Thornstride killing the two hares and looking around curiously with sharp eyes. 'The second he approaches the Little One, we attack as one."

With Zinia out, a Level 8 Rose fairy, there was one Level 9, two Level 8, and around nine Level 7 Rose Fairies. Level 6 fairies and below would probably be unable to pierce the defense of a Level 11 Thornstride. Their bark-like skin was tough and durable.

The Thornstride, intending to leave, started to walk in the northeast direction, the direction it thought the Rose Fairies were. Still, Liu Shu, who was north of the Thornstride position, felt as if it was approaching her.