Dreambreaker

Chapter 57: Mystery of Solaris Amulet [1]

Without a second thought, I teleported through the steel fence.

I did not bothered to check on the security gaurd or the office— teleporting right into the jungle.

My stay here was destined to span the entire night. Maybe even one more day? I couldn't tell—I didn't know.

But who would let a stranger the privilege of wandering unrestricted in this canopy? Nobody.

This particular area was off-limits during the night time, for reasons that I simply didn't care to know.

Casting a fleeting glance over my shoulder at the fence I had just bypassed, I propelled myself forward—deeper, into the heart of the forest.

The ground beneath whispered with mysterious melody luring me further still.

Lush emerald vines cascaded from the majestic, green-splashed trees, as the view expanded before me.

This forest existed in midts of a literal desert.

Amidst the symphony of colors, delicate pink-violet flowers introduced themselves to be lutkraka trees—essences of their sweet fragrance gently caressed the air.

But I wasn't here for Lutraka flowers.

I was currently looking for a particular species of small tufted plants that sprouted purplish leaves from the forest floor.

Deeper into this wilderness, I pressed on.

In herbology, the plants I was looking for were known as the 'Eldritch Barilants.'

My eyes were greeted by bizarre, egg-shaped mushrooms which sprouted alongside the banana trees, I came across.

I carved my path with the machete while moving forward.

I was pretty sure that there weren't any monsters in the forest.

While writing about mysteries, I had established unbreakable rules—no monsters, no natural disasters, no unseen accidents. These principles served as an ironclad rule.

My reasoning behind such precautions was simple—the mysteries were rarely bound by a singular form or shape.

They manifested as rocks, trees, or even monumental structures.

Any presence of monsters would certainly disturb and dismantle the surroundings structures.

????????!—????????! "Damn, bloody mosquitoes!" I exhaled frustration as I swatted the pest, which landed on my neck.

Yes there were mosquitoes in here.

Unlike the dungeon trials, where the jungle was artificially engineered, this was an untamed wilderness.

Here, nuisances like mosquitoes thrived in abundance.

While the train of thoughts passed through my mind's railways, my attention was held to a row of purplish leaves sprouting from the ground at a distance. "Heh, there you are!"— ????????!—????????! "Damn mosquitoes!"

I approached the plant, retrieving a bluish bottle from my dimensional bracelet.

It contained a thick liquid—DO2, a chemical the Eldritch Barilants liked alot, thanks to its naturally sweet taste.

I squatted, my fingers wrapped around the purplish leaf resting on the ground, ready to pluck it from its roots. With a swift tug—??????????????!—a sight was unleashed to my eyes.

Instead of roots, a weird creature came out. Its body seemed to be constructed from the essence of wood. But, it had the height of a human baby, a face that bore the countenance of a mature adult.

Its limbs were diminutive, while its torso, strangely enough, had a substantial weight.

The creature was no more than a foot in length—Eldritch Barilants.

I splashed the creature's —what I supposed was its face, with DO2.

The liquid splattered across its countenance, and doused the rest to the nearby purplish leaves as well.

And just like that, the atmosphere shifted.

A whispering chorus filled the air, the bizarre organisms exhaled demands, I didn't know how a plant based organisism could even have lungs to exhale, but whatever made sense to this magic world. Their voice sounded to meld the tones of a feline and a human infant.

"SWEET!","SWEET!","SWEET","SWEET","SWEET", "SWEET","SWEET!", "SWEET!"

"MORE, MORE, HYUMAN, MORE!"

"Alright, alright, everyone will get, but first, answer me!"

""Yea!""—exclaimed a chorus of voices, combining the syllables into a sweet melody—"Hyuman, ask! More! Sweet!"

The overlapping voices were becoming increasingly irritating, making it difficult to discern a single coherent thought.

"Shut up!" I snapped, directing my gaze towards the Eldritch Barilant in my hand,"You, tell me do you know where the hidden ruin is in this jungle?"

"First, give us with the sweet nectar, you ugly looking hyuman."

'Emotional damage! Ugly who? Who ugly? Who ugly?! A fucking plant face is making fun of me! No,... Nvm. I am beyond all this. I shouldn't be bothered. I am ultra-giga-heavenly chad.'

"Stop day dreaming weird looking human, give us the sweet nectar!"

In that moment, the persistent mosquito from before came back to console me— landing on my cheek, to give a vampiress kiss.

????????!—I swatted the fly.

'This is getting annoying...'

"Alright, I am willing to offer you the sweet water, but before that, could you please tell me the exact location of the ruin?"

In response, the Eldritch Barilant in my hand extended —what seemed to be its hand, pointing to a particular direction.

My curiosity piqued further, I pressed on, seeking more specific details about the location.

With the assistance of Nano, I mentally crafted a detailed map in augmented reality by merging the knowledge imparted by the Eldritch Barilant with my own navigation instincts.

Finally a detailed map of where the [Solaris Amulet] possibly could be was created.

After I was done, I released the Eldritch Barilant from my grasp, allowing it to find its rightful place. Its right place, back on the dirt that is.

I started walking away not bothering to look at the plant face.

But before I could take a step forward, an outcry stung my ears.

"Hyuman, where is my sweet water?!" The seemingly vexed little monster raged, demanding the fulfillment of our agreement.

"You want sweet water?" I asked with a smirk.

"Too bad, you shouldn't have," I started taking assertive strides towards the Barilant, "talked smack shit, when I was being so polite."

"I was already pissed due to the mosquitoes and I had to tolerate your nonsense too?" I muttered under my breath.

"What?" The startled Eldritch Barilant began to speak, but I abruptly lifted it into the air, leaving its words unfinished.

With swift kick, I launched it like a football sending the ugly bastard away from me. "Go to hell bastard. Go first fix your own face before you bring that on me! You fucking plant face piece of shit!"

***

After half an hour of walking my footsteps led me to a small clearing within the forest.

Here broken pillars stood stoically, their steps melding into the ground over time. The remnants of a forgotten structure was consumed by the flourishing vegetation. Nature reclaiming what was once man-made.

At the center of the stage stood an idol resembling a deity.

Surprisingly, the idol remained untouched by dirt or decay.

With anticipation, I reached into my dimensional bracelet, retrieving ten mosquito repellents.

The mosquito repellents I had resembled large, red sticks, measuring about 30 cm in length.

A thread protruded from their mouths, ready for use.

I activated all ten mosquito magic repellents, placing them around the stage of the ancient ruin.

Satisfied with my preparations, I removed my shirt and settled into a cross-legged position in front of the idol, its shape looked like the shape of sun.

"Nano, do not heal my chest when..."