Solomon apprehended Riku in his area, suspecting him of being the monster known as "Doppelganger." It was the monster that could imitate the outward appearance of a human or a monster, but it didn\'t stop out since it could also imitate the abilities.

Those types of monsters are said to have appeared in the S+ Dungeon. So, why in the world do these overpowered monsters keep reappearing in this forest?

The dungeons on Earth were divided into the following categories: E, D, C, B, A, S, and S-S dungeons. Each tier had a different level, so a level one mutant could enter the E and D dungeons. Level two mutants can also enter the C and B dungeons.

...

Riku slowly opened his eyes, his vision hazy at first. He felt like he\'d been hit in the head with a metal bat.

Oh, no!

The only thing he could think of was how he felt the first time he visited the Arzotoc village. Is it required in this world that you harm someone, even if you\'ve only met them once?

His body was bound to the tree with thick green vines found in this area. He attempted to flee, but Solomon apprehended him.

"Don\'t make any moves, monster, or I\'ll never hesitate to kill you."

A taller man with tanned skin, a masculine body, green hair, and violet eyes. It was Melissa\'s father, and he was pointing his sword at the unfortunate man.

Riku was certain it was the man he had been looking for. But there was a problem: this man suspected him of being a monster. What a jerk.

Since he had entered Solomon\'s domain, he thought it was just a minor misunderstanding. At the same time, he was aware of one thing that would undoubtedly persuade him.

First, he looked up, grateful that the sunlight could reach this location. To be more specific, the entire area had a marble surface that was covered by the leaves and vines of the trees.

"Please listen to me, Solomon," he said with a malicious smile, seeing how stunned Solomon was after he addressed his name.

Solomon went all-in, aiming the sword under Riku\'s chin without hesitation. "Who are you?! How did you know my name?! I had no idea there was such a thing as a monster."

The end of the sword was slicing him, and his blood was pouring down the white blanket that covered his neck. "Argh!" Riku wailed in agony, "Listen to me, I\'m Riku Hirota from Arzotoc village, and I came here to save Melissa\'s father!"

Solomon let go of his sword, wondering if a farmer like him could save someone. He shook his head, convinced that it was impossible. "No, guards or farmers will try to save me here; this is just a monster\'s trick to kill once my guards are lowered," he said solemnly.

This monster was using his daughter\'s name inside Solomon\'s head to soften his heart.

"What are you saying, Solomon?! Your wife\'s name is Jara Bandit, and you\'ve been lost in this forest for several weeks after attempting to get some water from the crops!" He spits out all the words he knew about him before it was too late.

Clang!

The sword made a vibrating sound as it fell to the ground. Furthermore, Solomon couldn\'t believe what he was hearing as this guy stated the facts about him.

"B-but, w-why?" Solomon stuttered, "why do they try to save a useless farmer like me?"

"Honestly, the guards didn\'t try to find you, and I only found out about you from Melissa, so I\'m doing my best to find you as part of my promise to your daughter."

Unfortunately, Riku could now breathe freely as he had persuaded Solomon that he was an ally.

"Melissa... Jara..."

You could see how much Solomon missed the two most important women in his life, and you had no idea who would have the courage to find him and save him in this dangerous forest.

Solomon kept crying, oblivious to the fact that Riku was clinging to the tree.

After a few seconds of slowly rubbing his eyes, Solomon noticed the ma had black eyes staring at him. He immediately took up the sword and cut the vines that were stitching him up.

"I\'m sorry; I nearly forgot about you."

Swish! Swish! Swish!

When he was free of the green vines, he could see the dark bruises on his body. It demonstrated Solomon\'s assurance that he will not let him escape.

He scratched the back of his head as he noticed a marble rock on the surface with some blood on it. This appeared to be the object used to knock him down.

"I sincerely apologize, Riku; I didn\'t expect someone to look for me, and there\'s a slime here with the ability to imitate the human body; I\'m just protecting myself from them," Solomon explained somberly.

The heck?!

This man kidding me?

Riku was upset thus when Solomon smashed his head with this rock, he could no longer claim to be the slime that he had mentioned. One thing we could easily demonstrate was that Riku wasn\'t the slime as the slime was devoid of blood.

He sighed deeply and raised his shoulders, attempting to forget what had happened to them. What could he do? It had already happened, and it had changed the words in his head.

"It\'s fine, Solomon; everyone has a survival instinct," he pretended and added. "You\'re still strong, so what\'s keeping you from returning to the Arzotoc village?"

He shook his head slowly, then looked at the ground with an unfavorable expression. "I didn\'t know, Riku; I\'m familiar with this area and know how to return to the village, but for some reason, I can\'t get out of here."

"Astray spell?" This was the right term for how you could what was exactly happened to Solomon. "How do you call this forest?"

Solomon said with a slight tilt of his head. "Why did you inquire about the Mystic Forest?"

He shook his head, rubbing his chin slowly. The astray spell was usually cast by the monster who guarded the forest. He couldn\'t jump to conclusions because he had no idea what kind of monsters existed in this forest.

It wasn\'t a big deal for Riku as he could easily escape using his [Fly]. What bothered him was whether Solomon would be afraid if he saw Riku\'s black shining wings.

"How do you know you\'re familiar with this place?" Riku inquired, his voice solemn.

"I\'m familiar with this, and I know what kind of monsters live in a certain area," Solomon stated confidently.

He asked him to test him and learn more about the other monsters in the area. "Which monster could see in this lake?" he asked, referring to the Naga monster.

"What do you mean, the lake behind the chunk of stone?" Solomon asked, pointing to the area.

"Eh? A lake here?" Riku couldn\'t believe there were more lakes in this forest.

"Yes, it\'s a hidden lake, this is the lake I mentioned to the guard to support the crops, not the big lake there," he said, pausing as he realized something about the man\'s question. "Won\'t you tell me you went there?"

Riku nodded, pondering what would happen if he went there. "Yes, I was looking for a lake in Arzotoc village for my invention."

"So did you see the half-human and half-serpent in the seratic lake?" Solomon asked him and added, "How do you survive?"

"I\'m just lucky-"

Riku jumped towards Solomon and both of them rolled to the ground several times as he felt the sharp attack was coming to them.

Fuck me!

Boom!

A new explosion transpired and there was a huge hole in the tree where Riku tied up earlier. Eventually, the tree fell to the ground.

"You\'re looking for the Naga monster, isn\'t it, Solomon? Look in front of us, the strong a tough monster is there." Riku bit the bottom of his lips, couldn\'t\' case the [Fire claw].

[Mana pool: 4]

We are done...

Riku succeeded to find Solomon inside the Mystic problem. But the problem was, he wasn\'t still completing the quest which could help him to increase his mana pool.

Solomon took his sword along with his trembled arms as the Naga\'s outward appearance was way looked scarier than the story made up by the villagers.

"Of course, run!"