The Regressed Mercenary's Machinations-Chapter 320: They’re Truly Dangerous (1)

“Hmm...”

Ghislain crossed his arms, deep in thought. Many people had commented on the ominous energy emanating from the Forest of Beasts, but most attributed it to the dark, oppressive atmosphere of the place.

He himself had never heard the kind of whispers Lumina described, and there was no mention of anything similar in the records he’d studied in his past life.

Of course, in his previous life, there hadn’t been any elves included in the expeditionary forces. Only elves, with their unique connection to nature, could sense such things.

‘Could there really be something here?’

While it was possible Lumina was mistaken, Ghislain couldn’t afford to dismiss her words outright. This forest was undoubtedly different. Its energy was far richer than anywhere else, fueling rare resources and fostering stronger, larger monsters.

In his past life, the unique energy coursing through the Forest of Beasts had been one of the most compelling theories to explain its anomalies. There simply wasn’t another explanation that made sense.

‘The forest is calling her to unite with it?’

He didn’t fully understand what that meant, but one thing was clear—this forest held secrets.

‘There were parts of the map I saw in my past life that were left unexplored.’

The ducal family had successfully developed the Forest of Beasts. However, even after most of the forest had been charted, its core remained a blank void on the map, shaded in ominous black.

No markers or records explained this blank area.

At the time, Ghislain had brushed it off, assuming it was simply unexplored. His focus had been on dismantling the ducal family, not on fully uncovering the mysteries of the forest.

Even after traveling back in time, he hadn’t given the area much thought. He’d planned to leave it for a time when funding was scarce, intending to eventually develop it as a fallback plan.

But now, Lumina’s words stirred unease, bringing the map’s blank space back to his mind.

‘Was it not unexplored... but deliberately concealed?’

One fact had always bothered him: the ducal family’s obsessive fixation on the Forest of Beasts.

At first, they hadn’t even been aware of the forest’s vast resource wealth. Yet they had launched a massive development project.

It had to mean they were after something else—something beyond mere land expansion or resource collection.

Even in his past life, Ghislain had never uncovered what the ducal family sought within the forest. Most of those involved in the project had no idea why they were doing it, either.

‘Even Harold only managed Ferdium without destroying it outright.’

Despite their power, the ducal family had chosen to maintain Ferdium instead of wiping it out, ensuring no one else could take it. Only after succeeding in their rebellion did they finally destroy Ferdium and begin aggressively developing the Forest of Beasts.

‘There’s definitely something here that I don’t know about.’

And whatever it was, it might be connected to what Lumina had mentioned.

Ghislain’s years as a mercenary had ingrained in him a habit of never ignoring suspicious signs. Even seemingly trivial details were worth considering. Survival often depended on such instincts.

“Let me know if you hear anything else unusual or sense anything suspicious. Tell the other elves to report anything they notice as well,” Ghislain instructed.

“Yes, understood,” Lumina replied.

The Forest of Beasts was unpredictable. Even the smallest signs could not be dismissed.

Whether Lumina’s concerns were related to the ducal family’s intentions or not, keeping an open mind was better than ignoring potential warnings.

‘Whatever it is, I’ll find out eventually.’

Ghislain’s goal was clear: to claim the entire forest and all the land it held.

After dealing with the ogres, the group resumed their advance, expanding their territory as they moved.

This time, the atmosphere was tense. Everyone was on high alert, wary of when and where another dangerous monster might appear.

Inspired by Lumina’s insights, the other elves began sharing their observations with Ghislain.

Most of their reports amounted to vague feelings, but there were some useful discoveries:

“There seems to be a group of monsters over there.”“Some creatures are hiding between those trees.”“There’s a strong energy concentrated here—it might be a rare herb.”The elves’ heightened senses in the forest were unparalleled, surpassing even the mana perception of mages.

They could detect the flow of energy within the forest and discern natural patterns, uncovering hidden details and valuable information. Naturally, this also made them the first to spot monsters lurking in the distance.

The others couldn’t help but be impressed by the elves’ abilities. Ghislain himself was no exception. While he had expected them to be helpful, their proficiency far exceeded his expectations.

Watching the elves, Galbarik grumbled to himself.

“What is this nonsense? Racial discrimination? They’re too perfect. At least let them look a little uglier...”

Elves, with their exceptional prowess in the forest, were already a sore point for the dwarves, who shared a historical rivalry with them. Galbarik’s bitterness was palpable.

But Ghislain was pleased. The elves were proving to be invaluable assets.

“Good. I didn’t expect the elves to be this helpful.”

While Ghislain possessed knowledge from his previous life, it wasn’t flawless. He could pinpoint key resources and powerful monsters’ territories, but minor, unrecorded details—such as roaming monsters—were beyond his grasp.

Additionally, the forest’s dynamics had shifted over time, altering the locations of monsters and resources.

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Despite these challenges, with the elves’ assistance, Ghislain felt confident they could uncover secrets even his past life had left untouched.

The elves’ assistance made it much easier to avoid dangers and uncover previously unknown resources in the Forest of Beasts.

Still, it would have been better if Ascon hadn’t constantly voiced his feelings about the place.

“This place is a fucking nightmare... It reeks of shit energy... I hate it here so fucking much.”

“...What now? What’s pissing you off this time?”

“It’s a shit hole. I don’t want to be here. Why the hell should I, at my age, suffer in a place like this? Goddamn this, screw that, fucking everything!”

Overcome with frustration, Ascon unleashed a tirade of curses. Before he could finish, Belinda twisted his limbs and gagged him, dragging him off.

And so, the casualty list of Fenris’ forces gained one more name: Ascon, incapacitated due to self-inflicted annoyance.

Even though there was one more “injury” on the list, the elves’ help ensured steady progress in the expedition.

Ghislain frequently consulted the map, gauging their position.

Compared to his previous venture into the forest, the current operation was proceeding with unparalleled speed and efficiency.

When the elves identified potential dangers, skilled knights and soldiers prepared for battle, and Ghislain provided strategies and commands for how to engage.

No one allowed themselves to become complacent, making even the fights manageable. Most wild beasts and monsters simply fled at the sight of the large army.

‘We’re getting close,’ Ghislain thought.

Not to the Rune Stone deposit; they were still quite far from that goal. What Ghislain had in mind was something else entirely.

[The Forest of Beasts was a truly treacherous place. Our initial expeditions failed repeatedly. But that was simply because we lacked information. Once we understood the monsters, we were never caught off guard again. No matter how strong they were, our skilled knights and elite soldiers always triumphed.]

‘Of course they did,’ Ghislain thought, nodding as he recalled the records he’d read in his previous life.

Even with fewer troops than the Duke’s House had once deployed, he was steadily carving a path through the forest.

Back then, the Duke’s forces were far superior—each soldier stronger, each unit more disciplined.

Yet, even with such overwhelming power, the Duke had not progressed as smoothly as Ghislain was now. This was because they constantly sent in scout parties and vanguard teams, holding back their main forces under the pretense of “conserving strength.”

[Baron Josef cared little for the deaths of the vanguard troops. He hoarded the main forces obsessively, deploying them sparingly. Only Count Balzac occasionally joined the vanguard out of sheer frustration.]

[...Still, as they continued to fail and die, they gradually gathered enough information to adapt to the Forest of Beasts. It was during this process that they discovered yet another strange and unknown monster.]

“What is this?”

A knight stationed at the outermost perimeter carried over the half-mangled corpse of a monster. The body had been partially torn apart, likely by another predator.

The creature was grotesque. About half the size of an adult human, its upper body resembled that of a red-skinned humanoid, while its lower half looked like a spider’s.

Its hands sported long, hard claws, resembling those of a mole—perfect for digging or slashing.

The humanoid comparison was superficial at best; its body shape vaguely mirrored a human’s, but its features were horrifyingly alien.

Where a mouth should have been, there were tentacle-like appendages, and its eyes had atrophied into mere vestiges.

A long skull extended backward, and antennae-like structures jutted from the front of its head.

The creature’s appearance was both incomprehensible and deeply unsettling. The soldiers wrinkled their noses in revulsion.

“God, that’s disgusting...”

“What the hell is that thing? I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“This forest has all sorts of abominations, doesn’t it?”

The soldiers gathered around, murmuring among themselves. No one seemed particularly frightened, though. Compared to the massive beasts they’d encountered so far, this creature seemed unimpressive—perhaps the size of a large dog.

For a wild animal, such a size would normally be intimidating, but after witnessing the giant monsters of the forest, this one seemed almost harmless.

Still, in terms of sheer grotesqueness, it was undeniably in a league of its own.

[These creatures were considerably weaker than other monsters in the Forest of Beasts. A couple of armed soldiers could easily handle them, and a single soldier could defeat one alone if willing to risk injury. Why such weak creatures lived in the forest’s depths remained a mystery.]

Approaching the mangled corpse, Ghislain studied it briefly before speaking.

“This one is called a Grex. It must’ve gotten separated from its pack and ended up here.”

[We named them “Grex” in an ancient dialect. Out of caution, we observed their habitat for several days.]

[Their territory was densely populated. Like other monsters, they were fiercely territorial, attacking any intruders in swarms. They killed and shared the remains among themselves. Occasionally, they even went out on group hunts.]

The soldiers tilted their heads in confusion at the name.

“Grex? Never heard of it,” someone said.

“Yeah, they’re dangerous,” Ghislain replied with a matter-of-fact tone.

No one questioned how he knew this. By now, they had grown used to their lord’s encyclopedic knowledge.

[Their hunting success rates were abysmal. More often than not, they scavenged carcasses dragged in from elsewhere. Occasionally, they would use their sharp claws to dig holes and store the remains. Despite their grotesque appearance, they were, in truth, insignificant creatures.]

“These things live in packs. Don’t underestimate them just because they’re individually weak,” Ghislain warned.

[One puzzling observation remained: when stronger monsters appeared and killed the Grex, they never claimed their territory. Despite the areas being spacious and resource-rich, the predators always left after eating.]

“Should we prepare for anything in particular?” Gillian asked.

Ghislain nodded. “Yes. I was planning to prepare a little further ahead, but finding this corpse means we should start now.”

[After days of observation, nothing changed. The Forest of Beasts’ apex predators killed and ate the Grex, then left. This led us to a conclusion: the Grex existed solely as a food source. The forest’s other monsters allowed them to breed and thrive, ensuring a steady supply of prey.]

“How should we proceed?”

“We’ll need to prepare even more thoroughly than before.”

“Just give the order,” Gillian said.

[Once we reached that conclusion, we decided to eradicate them immediately. It seemed simple enough. The Grex were small, weak, and ultimately insignificant monsters.]

Ghislain’s expression turned resolute as he delivered his command:

“Build a fortress here. Large and impenetrable.”

[But that decision... turned out to be one of the gravest mistakes we ever made in the Forest of Beasts.]