Master Of None

"I am going to scout ahead this time." Walker felt that he would think about things too much. Having all this tempting knowledge about the elemental planes was the worst thing. First it was life mana, then the addition of new skills such as crystal healing, and now it was the elemental planes. He felt that there was so much that he had not had the chance to even begin to explore.

Moving ahead with the group was also to clear his mind. He knew that the dips and falls ahead were much more dangerous. Especially since they had a lot of standing water. But he saw it all in person less than ten minutes after he had started to move ahead.

The ground was softer where there was soil. It had been water logged and standing for some time. Even just moving through made some of the soil fall away toward the ground. The sliding mud in to the pools of water made the silent forest seem as if it was being tempted. It was an eerie feeling.

The tall and large trees here and there had also shifted because of the difference in soils and rocks. Walker could only imagine how powerful a monster like a typhoon tiger must have been to create a storm that was able to topple and break so many trees. Especially judging just from the trees that were laying around rotting. They were already smaller but must have been double the size.

What stunned him, even more, were the sizes of roots that arched up and over larger stones. It seemed that the stones had cracked and broken while still being held together by them. It was truly a forest of unimaginable growth. Nothing like it was in genesis. Especially the elven forest, it was nowhere near as large. Even the spirit trees could barely rival these red wood trees let alone any other species.

The pools of water were lively with little bugs and other things. It wasn't hard to spot them as he moved. Every step that would vibrate the little pools was more than enough to stir the bottom. However, there were signs that monsters had been roaming about.

'Rot moth wings

The rot moth isn't actually a moth that can cause rot. It is just one that lays its eggs in rotting plant materials. These wings are inedible to the slime salamander, the rot moth's main predator. It will eat everything but the wings while moving through the forest. The wings are a good material for ornamental fans and other artistic means.'

The all around appraisal on the pair of green and tan wings that Walker spotted near an overturned log was enough. He could see that they were not sitting there long either. This was due to the fact that they were not covered in anything like dust or mud. Not even moisture had built up on them.

Being alone again was a little nerve wracking since he wasn't sure when he would face a monster. But Walker knew exactly where everyone was and what they were doing. He also knew that other scouts were closer to the main groups walking behind him following his tracks. Knowing that Gil was literally tracking him made Walker more comfortable scouting in general.

As if to reinforce the fact that he was alone, the sound of soft rotting logs being pushed over came to his ears. Upon looking up, Walker managed to spot a brown shape with a red stripe down its back. The lizard like body was moving in odd ways making Walker wonder if this was the culprit that killed the rot moth.

'Slime salamander

This is not a salamander monster made of slime. But it is one that lives with water and rotting slimes. This is due to its diet and habitat. The slime salamander requires a very damp environment to keep its skin hydrated and to hunt the monsters it likes to eat.

When it is dormant during the winter months, it is able to secrete a slime from its body that attracts water and rot slimes that will enter its den. They will live together for the colder months without any issues. The rot slimes will assist in preventing parasites and mushroom growth on the salamander's body. The water slimes will keep it hydrated and not frozen.

The lifespan of the slime salamander is around thirty years which is short for their species. Yet, they are able to grow based on the food available. Some of the largest have appeared during the periods of rot moth swarms forming. It is a  natural predator prey growth burst.'

This didn't bode well. The entire section of forest was toppled and rotting. Very few trees had taken root to return while even fewer were still around making the entire area shady and cool. But what was right in the alla round appraisal was the fact that the more food that the rot moths had, the more food that the salamanders would have.

While Walker didn't want to believe that the salamanders were dangerous, he already knew that rot and water slimes could cause issues. Add in the fact that the salamanders intentionally attract them, and he was left with a direct explanation of what they might face. The groups of soldiers were more than just him. Walker had already caused some disturbances in the area. What would happen when more things were disturbed?

Leaving the area where the slime salamander was foraging, Walker started to back track. But he was already too late. He could hear the sounds of fighting just ahead of him. This caused him to speed up and start using the wind ripple skill to step through the air.

As he did so, the view of an angel stabbing a white grub was clear to him. It appeared that a log the group had been stepping over had broken and revealed the rot moth larvae living within. The larvae had naturally attacked as soon as they could even though they were slow and only had a blind attack with their pincers.

It was just a small issue since the angels handled it in literal minutes. They were so efficient that genesis soldiers didn't even have to make a move. Walker hadn't even attempted to help either because he knew that they were more than enough to handle this issue.

"These are rot moth larvae eating the rotting wood. It's natural to see them." One of the angels reported to Walker when they saw him since they had separated from the main group by a few minutes. But the rest of the group were right behind them.

"I found the wings of a rot moth ahead. I assume we will be seeing more of the slime salamanders or slimes as we go on from this point. Ahead the terrain is even worse. But I know we can't go around this area due to the size of it and the cliff on one side or the stone mountain side on the other."

"Walker, you saw those grubs too? They are everyone. They are even tiny like a normal worms. But then they get massive like those things." Gil had run to catch up with the closest scouts then was going to link up with Walker since it was better to be together after finding danger.

"Yes, I saw them. I also saw one of the smaller slime salamanders. They are eating these things. I have no idea how aggressive they will be but the one I saw is fairly large. It could deal some decent damage if it bit or charged us. I don't know how many larger ones are around." Hiding what he had seen would be foolish. With the main group coming up, it was time to be more serious again.

"They don't like the cold so we could use the ice wither spike arrows. But that could make them attract slimes. It is a rough situation." Walker was saying this mostly for himself. He had a habit of relying on the easy water elemental mana to create the frost whip or other ice attacks. It was just easy to use the most abundant elemental mana around other than earth because water was faster.

"So we use fire. Remey will like that. All this rotting wood and water? How could we catch something on fire? If we do, then we can handle it fast enough." Gil smirked a little while preparing the fire elemental wither spike arrows. The few archers that caught up to the after finding danger also looked to Gil immediately for orders. He was like the captain of his own archer scouting group.

"Remey! You're turn to fight a little as we go forward. Take the lead and get your fire ready!" Walker saw Remey in the distance and yelled to her. She was already cracking her knuckles after he spoke.

….

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