The southeastern forest was a dense, thriving ecosystem teeming with life, dominated by a mature, evergreen coniferous forest with thick, gnarled trees, and deep green foliage.

  It had been four days since Eric entered the forest. He had been running around but still hadn't reached the Ocean Cliff of his dreams.

  He had underestimated the terrain to reach there, and probably the townsfolk had also miscalculated the distance.

  Riya had warned him previously that it might not be 50 or so kilometers, as the town’s people were not that smart or that invested to measure the distance within a forest where there were predators and dangers.

  The route was also far from straight, encompassing insurmountable small hills, sheer rock, and impassable ditches. All these further hampered Eric’s navigation.

  There were also ponds and lakes that he could not swim across, as there might be cute alligators waiting to make love with an underage boy... Shameless! Where were the cops!?

  Basically, Eric had to travel around these areas, and these extended his journey time largely. Otherwise, he was confident he could reach the ocean cliff within a few days even if the distance was 100 kilometers—after all, he was very strong, fit, tall, and handsome!

  What was even more annoying was that he could not journey during the night. Figuring out the direction was not a major problem even if the sun had gone down, as during the day he had been using the sun's position to travel. What was truly troublesome was the dangers during the night.

  On the second night, after realizing how late he was running, Eric tried to travel at night by marking a faraway hill as a landmark. And it didn't take him long to regret his decision—he was nearly eaten alive by an oversized black panther.

  Thankfully, Eric's instinct from training kicked in, and before he even came to his senses from the shock of the sudden silent ambush, he grabbed his dagger in a swift motion and stabbed the pouncing black panther, who was leaping from a tree branch above him.

  The black panther just received some skin injury, but it also gave up and ran away.

  Eric wasn't injured, thanks to his proper timing of dodging, his swift reaction, as well as the precise angle of his stab while making sure he stayed out of its claws, jaw, and body.

  But no matter—after getting stabbed like that, which was definitely not something severe for the panther, it should have continued fighting, as Eric was all alone, it was night, and it looked too ferocious. But despite all that, the black panther walked away, which surprised him.

  Eric was confident in killing it, but he allowed it to leave. The fewer troubles within a forest, the better—no need to prove his masculinity to a panther.

  As the panther was jogging away, Eric managed to grasp its full size under the moonlight, and that made him gasp in horror.

  He wondered if it was actually a full-grown Siberian tiger disguised as a panther, as its full length was probably more than 10 feet! And its weight might even be over 700 pounds!

  It could very well give an adult Siberian tiger from Earth a run for its species!

  How dare it try to act as a cute blacky panther and climb a tree to ambush him! Shameless!

  After that incident, Eric was extra careful and no longer used his 'wits' and 'experience' to travel during the night.

  Thankfully, the trees—though also oversized and extremely thick—had branches that were at good enough heights, so by the time the sun set, Eric would climb a tree, take a good spot in case of sudden ambushes, and rest.

  Sadly, due to the slightly different ways animals reacted and... sizes, Eric couldn't use his experience to judge them—who knew a crocodile might climb a tree? Due to all this, he was a little sleep-deprived.

  His tent was completely wasted and had been used as an alerting trap.

  But thanks to his partner—the greatest, beautiful A.I. secretary—he still managed to get some sleep, as she could track the traps Eric had left behind with just sound and alert him awake in case of trouble.

  After four days of traveling, Eric finally managed to 'hear' and 'smell' the ocean.

  He quickly became energized and was filled with anticipation.

  Although the journey was troublesome and tiresome, it was also fun. What worried him was that even if he returned immediately, it would probably still take him another four to five days.

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  It was turning dark, and it had also started raining—though not too heavily. So, Eric decided to call it a day and reach for the ocean cliff the following day.

  By now, both Eric and Riya had long forgotten about their main goal in coming to this forest.

  Riya actually hadn't forgotten, but there was no point in desperately finding a needle in a haystack—and whether there was a 'needle' in the first place was also a question.

  So she left it to fate. If Eric was close by, maybe he could feel it?

  If not, 'Let's just enjoy the ocean together with Eric and then return back,' was Riya's thought.

  On the fifth day, around 11 AM, Eric stood over a high cliff and gazed at the wide-open horizon, which was filled with deep blue water.

  "So beautiful."

  Eric didn't know how this ocean was different from Earth, but he had a feeling that it was different somehow.

  He really wanted to go touch the ocean water and have a good swim. But the cliff was really damn high.

  He wasn't too confident in surviving after jumping off. Not to mention, the ocean waves were striking the cliff not so 'gently,' and there were also dangerous rocks below waiting to impale him.

  Maybe with luck he could survive as he had survived a similar fall, but that was with much gentler waves. Right now, even if he somehow survived, he might still not be able to get back up, and he was also cautious of animals in this world—who knew what would greet him when he swam?

  Eric sat on the edge with Riya, who was sitting in her special dark room, enjoying the cool breeze that Eric was enjoying. It was an enigma.

  Riya was actually very much enjoying this moment. She could share Eric's senses if she wished, so she was also having a fantastic experience together with Eric.

  Neither of them wished to return back immediately. So they quietly sat back without saying anything, enjoying the scenery along with the oceanic breeze.

  Eric had left his 'barely holding on' bag on a tree branch a little far away. The tree population was few where he was sitting.

  After a while, Eric looked around and noticed the cliff was very long.

  He decided he would walk beside the cliff later and maybe find a good spot from where he could easily descend as well as ascend back—after abusing the ocean water.

  Riya suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Hey, look! There are some islands far away!"

  Eric narrowed his eyes to observe far into the distance—and there were indeed, probably islets? He couldn't be sure, as it was too far away.

  He looked around and felt there were a few more islands far apart from each other—he wasn't sure, as the ocean and the tiny islands or islets were mixing together on the horizon.

  Eric sighed with longing, "I really want to go there immediately and spend a few weeks, if not a month, there as a vacation."

  "Indeed," Riya nodded with a wishful feeling. "That will be fantastic—though not before you can become a Mana Wielder and can understand the dangers of the world."

  Eric rolled his eyes at Riya for being like an overprotective mother. But she was not wrong—he genuinely felt that he shouldn't underestimate the 'nature' of this world.

  It was indeed a new 'world'!

  He sighed but with hidden excitement.

  Eric suddenly felt longing for companions to share the moment. Maybe someone would cook while others played games—it would be fun. It reminded him of his past-life friends—it was quite fun while it lasted.

  Riya immediately took the chance and started brainwashing Eric, "See, see! Having companions to share joy and troubles is so much more fun!"

  Eric rolled his eyes once again and lay down on the flat, grassy, cushiony ground behind him, with his feet dangling out of the cliff.

  "Don't I already have you with me? I am fulfilled." He smiled.

  He was being honest and wasn't teasing or praising Riya. He was genuinely enjoying this moment with her—though physical companionship was also not bad.

  Riya’s cheeks quickly turned red. Although she didn't have blood, she was pretty much a complete human.

  Riya didn't know how to answer Eric's honest 'confession.' Just as she was planning to open her mouth to say that butterflies were flying inside her stomach, she was stunned—Eric had fallen asleep...

  'Damn bastard!'

  Riya panicked. Although the current location was safe, danger could come from anywhere, and with Eric's eyes closed, she could only hear and smell.

  Eric also hadn't put up any traps around. Riya wanted to wake him up, but she also knew he hadn't properly rested for five days straight.

  She held her breath and fully focused on the surrounding sound—but the loud noises of the ocean hitting the cliff were the only thing she heard.

  Riya was on pins and needles. She really didn't like how helpless she was in every situation and couldn't be of any real help to Eric. Although she could wake him up, if possible, she didn’t wish to—she just wanted to be a guard for him at this moment.

  She waited while panicking internally.

  Thankfully, after half an hour, Eric woke up. Riya finally released a deep breath of relief.

  If Riya had ‘enabled’ perspiration like humans, she would have been covered in sweat at the moment. She had intentionally blocked various body reactions and reduced the effect of many things so she could maintain a calm mind in all situations.

  "Oh... I fell asleep." Eric yawned while rubbing his eyelids. "The place is really fantastic. Nice breeze, warm sun, nice ground, mesmerizing sounds of the ocean, and finally a tired body." He smiled, as he was still in a great mood.

  Eric glanced up at the sun, which was high above him, and understood that not much time had passed since he dozed off.

  He wished to stay there longer, but he was already running late, and he still wanted to walk beside the cliff to find an opportunity to molest the ocean.

  After a short while relaxing, he stood up.

  "I guess I will walk around and then find a nice spot for the night."

  Eric then turned toward his pitiful bag and started walking toward it, which was hanging over a tree branch around 10 meters away from him.

  While Eric was humming in a good mood and walking toward the tree branch, suddenly—out of nowhere—he felt a 'sun' had risen directly behind him, as the entire area brightened with a yellowish hue. He was startled.

  "What the—"

  Before Eric could finish his thoughts and turn around to see, his sense of danger triggered violently, and at the same time, Riya screamed out, "WATCH OUT!"

  Riya didn't know what it was, but a bright yellow thing was clearly heading rapidly toward Eric at an alarming speed.

  But it was too late.

  BOOM!