#1241 The Forest of Lost Paths 

Thus... 
We finally reach our destination, the real Forest of Lost Paths. 

“We’re finally here…!” 
“That was seriously rough…!” 

As expected, we end up at two similarly named places before getting here. 
We wasted a ton of time and energy in the process. 

 
This forest confuses you before you even get inside…  
The name Forest of Lost Paths isn’t just for show, huh? 

“Made it, made ittt.” 
“Here begins the enddd.” 

And the kids are still bursting with energy. 
Meanwhile, the grown-ups are dead on their feet. Kids really do have infinite stamina. 

“Going back and forth took way longer than I thought. Now that we’ve finally reached a good stopping point, how about a late lunch?” says Platy, spreading out a lunch bag just outside the forest. 

She’s just as full of energy as the kids.  
Maybe that’s a mother’s strength, what with having to keep up with them. 

“Uh, wait... Are you really having lunch right in front of a dungeon? This isn’t exactly a picnic spot.” 

Momoko jumps in with a valid point, but Platy responds without missing a beat: 

“Better than eating inside the forest, isn’t it?” 
“Y-Yeah, that’s… fair.” 

Even Momoko has to admit it. The atmosphere of the forest is already that bad, and we haven’t even stepped inside yet. 

It’s like… there’s this thick, unnatural presence. Call it miasma, evil energy, or whatever. 
But everything about the forest screams “danger” on an instinctual level. 
Compared to the lookalike forests we stumbled into earlier, this one is the real deal. 

No need for confirmation. 

This is it. The high-level dungeon that even the Adventurer’s Guild treats with caution! 

“…So it’s finally the real deal. I can feel my blood pumping.” 

Now that Momoko is standing in front of a worthy opponent, her motivation kicks into gear. 

“Watch me. I’m going to clear this dungeon in no time and get that S-rank license! I’ll beat it before those kids finish lunch!!!” 
“I’m already halfway doneeee.” 
“That was fast!” 

Don’t underestimate a child’s appetite. Seriously. 
Trapped by her own words, Momoko panics and dashes into the forest without a second thought. 

No recon. Just a full-on charge. 
Yeah, this is probably not great. 

“GUOOOOOOOOOOOH! LET’S DO THIS! GOING FULL SPEED AHEADDDDDD!!!” 
“Dessert timeee.” 
“TOO FAST!” 

And just like that, Momoko disappears behind the trees. Ten seconds pass. 

“Hey, Dear? Aren’t you going to chase after her and offer backup?” 

Hmm… 
Sure, helping her would be ideal, if she needed it.  
But this quest is supposed to be about helping Momoko grow enough to become an S-rank adventurer. 

If I jump in now, I could ruin the whole thing by lowering the difficulty and robbing her of a valuable challenge. 
Besides, I’ve got my adorable kids here with me! 
Protecting my own children comes first, obviously! 

“All doneee. Time to move arounddd.” 
“Let’s find some beetles on twee twunksss.” 

The kids finish eating faster than salarymen at a standing soba shop and are already off chasing bugs. 

Hmm, but it has to be late night or early morning for you to look for beetles... 
And you gotta do that in the summer… It’s winter right now... 

“Caught oneee.” 

Whoaaaaaaaa! Is that what I think it is?! 
That’s not a regular beetle, that’s a Yakushi Kabuto, a monster shaped like a rhinoceros beetle! 

Nope. Nope, nope, nope. We are NOT keeping that thing as a pet. Release it back into the wild, now! 

“Boooooo.” 
“Back to the forest you gooo.” 

Yup. This place is definitely a dungeon. 
The fact that monsters roam around like this confirms it. 
Now the question is, can Momoko actually overcome the challenges in here and grow stronger? 

“YEEEEAAAAHHH! HRAAAAGH!!!” 

That shout just now… it’s getting closer.  
Doppler effect and all. 

And right on cue, the source of that gorilla-like scream appears. 

“Your head is mineeeeeeeeeeeeee! ...Huh?!” 

Oh hey, welcome back, Momoko. 
You charged in all fired up. Did you already beat the dungeon? 

“No! I swear I went straight forward! But somehow I came out right where I started? What’s going on?!” 

That's exactly what we’d like to ask... 
Well, forests are naturally full of trees and underbrush, so not being able to walk in a straight line is just part of the deal. 
Sure, it’s common enough to think you’re heading straight while actually zigzagging off in some totally unintended direction, but still. Coming out exactly where you started is a whole new level of nope. 

You've done a full 180° turn without even noticing! 

“Hmm… I guess I need to proceed more carefully.” 

So you weren’t being careful before? 
Please tell me you learned something from that. 

“Okay! This time I’ll stay super aware of my surroundings! Sun position: check! North Star: check! Internal compass: check! CHARGING INNNNNNNNNNN!!!” 

She bolts again.  
No signs of learning whatsoever. 

And not even a moment later… 

“YAAARGH- Huh?!” 

Welcome back. 
That was faster than a vending machine spitting out a rejected bill. 

“How is this happening?! Isn’t this the Forest of the Lost?! The one that traps intruders and never lets them escape?!” 

Yeah, if that were true, how are you getting booted back out so fast? 

“I guess the Guild had a point about this dungeon. It must be messing with our sense of direction.” 

Platy offers an intellectual guess. 
Don’t forget, my wife is highly educated. 

“I’ve heard that some forests generate special magnetic fields that disrupt the sense of direction in living creatures. Maybe this forest takes that idea and cranks it up to eleven.” 

Huh… interesting. 

“Or maybe, someone here just has a terrible sense of direction.” 

Honestly, that sounds way more likely. 

So, how do we find out which theory’s correct? 

Simple. I go into the forest. 

If I make progress, then it means the problem lies with Momoko’s brain. 

“What the hell’s that supposed to mean?!” 

Anyway, time to brave the tiger’s den. 
Saint goes in. 

…Whoa. 
The moment I step inside, I feel the overwhelming sense of “not normal.” 

The air’s thick.  
Not just humid, but alive. Like being blasted by a giant creature’s breath. It reminds me of the atmosphere in Sensei’s dungeons. 

That’s not all. 
The moment I stepped into the forest, I feel an overwhelming number of eyes on me...an absurd level of pressure. 
Are that many people watching me? Or rather… 

It feels like every single leaf in this forest has an eye on it. From all directions, no, from beyond all directions, I am being pierced by countless stares. 
If a timid kid walked in here, they might wet themselves just from the pressure. 
I have to give Momoko credit. How did she not take any mental damage from this barrage of gazes? 

Well, she is known for her mental toughness... 
But still, what happens if we just keep going forward? 

I’m not exactly known for having nerves of steel, so I grip my holy sword Dreischwarz and cautiously press on. 

There’s a narrow path in the woods, well, more like a crude animal trail, really. With all the dense trees around, there isn’t much choice but to follow it. 

…Oh, a turn up ahead. To the left. 
I turn left and keep going… 

Another left turn. 

And after a bit more walking… I exit the forest. 

“Ah, you’re back, Dear.” 
“Welcome back, Daddyyy.” 

... 
So it was just a U-turn?! 

What is with this bare-bones setup?! 

Have you ever seen a dungeon so utterly committed to rejecting intruders?! 
It practically makes you do a U-turn the moment you step inside! 

The Forest of Lost Paths next-level terrifying! 

========== 

“your head is mine” is a mock-formal phrasing, a parody of overdramatic battle cries, especially from old samurai tropes. in old samurai times, warriors would collect the heads of enemies they defeated as proof of victory.