In the Forbidden Forest, winters are quite short.
At most, they last only about a month and a half.
Considering that winters on Earth last nearly three months, that’s just half the time.
Because of this, one can witness a rather unique natural phenomenon here…
That is, even in the dead of winter, leaves do not fall off the trees.
Usually, the reason leaves fall in winter is to conserve energy.
In winter, there’s less sunlight than in summer, making the energy used to maintain leaves greater than the energy obtained through photosynthesis.
Thus, trees typically shed their leaves in winter. You could say it’s the trend.
If they don’t, they suffer losses in winter, making survival tougher.
However, there’s something the trees didn’t know.
Nature operates on the logic of survival of the fittest, and it takes time to regrow leaves.
So while most trees are like, “Oh no, it’s so cold… I should conserve energy,” a rugged tree that declares, “Screw this, I’m going my own way!” makes for an interesting sight.
When this macho tree withstands winter, it absorbs all the sunlight for a while.
It’s as if it’s compensated for enduring the chilly winter, the macho tree grows robustly.
As a result, the leaves of the macho tree end up covering those of the cowardly trees from above.
The outcome is predictable.
The cowardly trees end up getting NTR’d from the sunlight they once had.
Their attempt to recover losses in winter only leads to greater losses.
Defeated beings in competition can’t help but see their numbers dwindle.
Consequently, the population of cowardly trees has decreased, and the macho trees that go their own way occupy most of the ‘Forbidden Forest’…
Of course, if winters lasted three months, the macho ones would’ve dried out before then, but the one-and-a-half-month duration allows them to survive.
Anyway, for this reason, the lush leaves of this forest hardly fall throughout the four seasons.
Natural selection seems to favor the macho trees.
Honestly, at first, I wondered what kind of ridiculous environment this was.
Immortal trees that don’t shed their leaves and keep growing endlessly? No wonder people don’t come here.
But I’ve come to appreciate this environment after a long time.
The reason I’m suddenly bringing this up is that I’m currently benefiting greatly from those leaves.
“Ugh… Where the heck are they?”
“I came to see the real deal, and I can’t even find their cave.”
Looking down, I saw two female adventurers glancing around.
Fortunately, it seemed they didn’t think to look up.
Actually, it wouldn’t matter if they did. My appearance is mostly concealed by leaves anyway.
It’s been five weeks since that attempted assault incident.
During this time, I’ve had my fair share of unexpected visitors. I’m not sure how many watched that stream, but they keep coming to this dangerous place, hoping to see the real thing.
“Hey, we should just leave.”
“Why? Let’s look around a bit more!”
“No way! I didn’t bring any gear. I can’t die.”
“Ugh.”
Luckily, this latest uninvited guest left quickly. That was already the fifth unexpected visitor I’d chased away.
After confirming they’d completely left, I descended from the tree and let out a sigh.
“Huff…”
The silver lining is that no one has come with ill intentions like that first one.
Most seem to just want to talk to the locals while sightseeing.
Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m obligated to engage with them.
Another fortunate point is that, as she mentioned last time, the route to the cave wasn’t revealed properly. So most who come to the forest fail to find my dwelling.
Moreover, the fact that it’s called the Forbidden Forest doesn’t hurt either.
Most of those who come here are stealthy thieves. It’s not like lots of tourists flock to a sightseeing spot.
Thanks to all these reasons, I’ve been able to live without any significant issues so far.
Of course, I have to be more vigilant than before, which has made things a bit more tedious.
“Damn, if it weren’t for that stream…”
Every time, I blame that Yoo Chaerin, the streamer.
If it weren’t for that stream, I’d still be living peacefully. Sure, my life has become more colorful, but it’s not the variety I was looking for.
If I ever meet her again, I’ll give her a smack!
“How long do I have to keep this up?”
After reclaiming my peace, I pondered these thoughts as I headed back to the cave.
Life’s already tough enough; I can’t keep living like this indefinitely.
Sometimes, desires stir within me.
“Damn, should I just meet them casually?”
What they want is simply a conversation. It feels like being in a zoo watching monkeys, but their intentions seem harmless enough.
And I wish for a conversation, too.
To someone like me, constantly accompanied by loneliness, human company is a precious thing.
“…No, I can’t.”
But just for a moment, I managed to rein in those impulses.
As I mentioned before, I’m someone who has limits when it comes to interpersonal relationships.
Honestly, I still don’t fully trust otherworlders.
I’m unsure of their reactions to the Demon’s Blood and how things will unfold.
To me, this is reality, but to them, it’s merely a game.
In a game, you never know when they might turn on you. Who knows, they might just try to kill me for fun.
Ultimately, I found no clear answers again today. If I really feel uneasy, I should just camouflage the cave…
“…Phew.”
Finishing yet another game of hide and seek with the otherworlders, I trudged back to the cave.
It wasn’t quite sunset yet, but I didn’t have anything to do anyway.
I had enough food, and I needed to spare some monsters for the otherworlders.
My supplies were getting a bit low, but preparation was necessary before heading to the city.
For all these reasons, today is a day of rest.
As I returned to the cave, I immediately noticed something peculiar.
There was an unexpected guest inside the cave.
“Hehe… Ah, hello?”
And that guest looked somewhat familiar.
A woman with silver bobbed hair and purple eyes. Yoo Chaerin sat there patiently waiting for me.
In front of her were some fruits, unsure if they were bribes or housewarming gifts.
It was obvious she was trying to show goodwill.
While her effort was commendable, she was the root of all my unexpected guests.
I couldn’t help but curse as soon as I saw her.
“Hey, what the hell—”
*
Spring’s fresh warmth had settled, but the cave remained cool, yet an unusual sound of a woman’s weeping echoed through the typically serene space.
“Sniff… Ugh…”
Strangely, her smooth forehead bore a bright red bruise.
It wasn’t a punch… She had just received a rather hard slap.
To an extent, I set the pain to feel significant even with a low hit rate of 40%, yet it felt quite real.
Need I say more? The pitiful woman shedding tears was, of course, Yoo Chaerin.
Opposite her, Yor wore an annoyed expression as he looked at her.
She felt a pang in her heart, as sore as her crimson forehead.
It felt as if she had run into a group of bullies in a back alley during her school days…
“Ugh…”
Having been quite tense, she had run mental simulations of her meeting with Yor several times.
She had already guessed his reactions. Given that she’d told him to shove off last time, she expected no warm responses.
But that was okay.
She had already thought of how to respond. If the conversation stalled, she had some topics lined up.
I can’t believe that I, who has yet to go on a proper date, was putting this much effort into one NPC.
It was a little amusing, but nevertheless, she felt prepared.
…But to suddenly get slapped hard was nowhere in her expectations.
Regrettably, that wasn’t something she foresaw at all. And she had no idea about the other party’s psychology.
Thus, she cautiously asked him.
“Ugh, why…?”
Yor didn’t say much. Instead, he went inside to grab something.
Ping—!
With a clear sound of metal clashing, something was thrown in front of her.
It was a pair of leather greaves and a dagger. High-quality materials—an expensive item.
She wondered why he was showing her this so suddenly…
Just when she was contemplating, Yor opened his mouth.
“Are all otherworlders like this?”
Before long, Chaerin learned the whole story from Yor.
