Life didn't get easier, even in another world.

"Wow, what is this?"

"An outside worship place?"

The three people walked towards the strange room. Just like the other parts of the temple, this place was also extremely damaged. There were huge broken parts in the benches and a part of the platform was also damaged. 

The three of them approached the platform and looked closely at it. At the first glance, there was nothing to it. But after looking at it a little bit more, they could see some carvings on its surface.

After looking at the whole place one last time, Kain turned on his communication device.

"Team leader Dains, we found something at the back of the main building. Please come here after you are done searching the temple."

The leader of the operation was team leader Dains so Kain had to report everything that might be useful and important to him.

'Is it alright to be here?'

Kairen was scared of this place to his bones. He didn't know if it was safe to be around anything related to this temple and especially worship places. 

What if another incident happened? 

No way he didn't want to be hospitalized again.

'But I don't have the same feeling as that time.'

He didn't get the creepy feeling this time that he felt as soon as he set foot in the temple last time. Maybe it was because he didn't enter the temple and maybe because this place was different. He didn't know the reason but he was happy nonetheless.

"Let's look around this place until they come."

After his conversation with team leader Dains finished, Kain and the other two started to look around the worship place again.

The more they looked, the more interesting it seemed.

The place was built right behind the temple, which meant's the hind wall of the temple was facing the platform. After looking at the wall they could distinguish some old and ragged patterns carved on it. The patterns were similar to the ones on the platform. There was also a symbol of 7 heptagons inside each other with a dot in the center that looked exactly the same as the worship place. 

Geeeez

"!!!"

Kairen jerked his head to the right.

"...."

SHHH

There was nothing but some trees on his right.

"What's it?"

Kairen glanced at the trees one last time before turning to the wall again.

"I just thought someone was watching me."

"Someone was watching you?"

Hearing that, Kain also turned to the right and examined the woods. He walked to the place where Kairen pointed and examined the area thoroughly.

"There is nothing here..."

Kairen shrugged.

"I must've been mistaken."

The two of them went back to looking at the patterns in the wall.

Geeez

"!!!"

Kairen jolted his head to his left as he felt a gaze on himself once again, but there was nothing.

'Am I mistaken again?'

Kairen shook his head and turned back to the wall.

GEEEEZZ

But the gaze was still there.

"What the hell who is there?!"

Kairen turned back and shouted towards the jungle.

"...."

"...."

No answer came back.

Despite there being no answer and him seeing no one, he could still feel the gaze.

'Have I finally gone crazy?'

Did Kairen 1's mental state finally affect him? 

"Hey, are you sure there is someone in the woods?"

Kain, seeing how serious Kairen was, approached him with a frown.

"It might be Philomns..."

Kain mumbled.

"I'm not sure... but I feel that someone is looking at us."

Looking at the two people's faces, Asa also approached them and hid behind their back.

"Can't you use magic to make sure?"

Kain said that while he created a small water barrier around the three of them.

"Magic..."

Kairen wasn't sure.

He didn't know the spells that would help him find the location of the possible enemy as he was a battle mage and not a support mage, though there were some spells that would be helpful in such situations. Still, he wasn't sure if they would be helpful in such a dense forest.

"I'll try..."

It wouldn't hurt to try, Kairen thought. So he moved his mana and started to cast the spell that was in his mind.

ZZZZ

Not knowing that even trying would hurt.

ZZZZ

Kairen had to stop his spell midway and turn to the source of the strange vibration.

He didn't need to search or think long to find out what was happening. It was all clear before his eyes.

Red.

Red lines were drawn on the wall. 

Starting from the dot in the center of the symbol on the wall, a red line was drawn. Like a snake, the light of red wrapped around the whole symbol before spreading through the wall and turning all of the symbols on the wall red.

"SHIT!"

Kairen changed his spell immediately to that of a shield while standing in front of Asa. Kain who was looking around with a confused face also pushed Asa to his back, making the girl stand between him and Kairen, and then created another water barrier. 

He wanted to ask Kairen what the hell he had done, but there was no time for that. Before he could even open his mouth the red light had already spread through all the symbols on the platform and the whole place was now shining red.

ZZZZZAAAPPP

Then, an explosion happened. 

A blast of red light.

Just like the other time, the impact pushed Kairen back.

Asa was closer to the center of the explosion than Kairen so she was pushed back and hit Kairen. The two of them were flung away towards the woods. The force of the explosion was not that much but it was enough to push them back a few meters. Just like last time, Kairen grabbed Asa, preventing her from hitting the broken branches and the hard ground of the jungle. 

"ACK!"

"OWW!"

The two of them rolled on the ground a few times before eventually stopping somewhere inside the jungle.

"What theeeeee!!!"

Asa jumped up from the ground while yelling.

"What was thatttt!!!"

She looked between Kairen and the platform, which was far away now, with an open mouth.

"H-hey weirdo! Are you okay? Where is that water guy?"

The weirdo, Kairen, was still sitting on the ground with a panicked face.

'Shit! Again! Again! Even though I tried to avoid it so much! Again! Was that my mana? Did that happen because I used mana? But I didn't use mana last- Oh no I created shields back then as well! Why am I such a fool! Why didn't I think of it!'

Why did that damned light appear as soon as he- Oh no never mind. He was not surprised at that but at how stupid he actually was.

'But... I'm not hurt this time?'

The last time that the red light blast happened his body was burnt in some parts. But now, he was fine?

TAP TAP TAP

But Kairen had to snap out of his thoughts.

"Who?"

As he was now clearly hearing hasty footsteps approaching them from the other part of the jungle.

'Where is Kain?'

Kairen couldn't see him anywhere. Standing up, he prepared another shield.

TAP

Finally, the footsteps stopped somewhere before reaching Kaien. 

"Huff... Huff..."

Kairen could see a panting man who seemed to have run a long distance to here real quick.

"Ah?"

Kairen subconsciously took one step back.

'What is this soil dude doing here?'

He looked at the hooded man that was approaching him while still panting. 

"Don't come-"

"You-"

Kairen opened his mouth to warn the man not to approach him but he was interrupted by him.

"...You fine?"

The man stopped walking a few steps away from Kairen.

"P-pardon?"

Kairen tilted his head with a dumbfounded face. 

Instead of answering, the man looked at him from head to toe.

Without him, himself, noticing, Karien subconsciously stopped casting his spells. He was facing an enemy but rather than danger, he suddenly felt safe.

"Psst! Hey! Kairen!"

Asa pulled Kairen's shirt from behind.

"What are you doing? He is an enemy? If you can't fight, let's run!"

"...."

Kairen just realized that he had let his guard down and had been staring at that soil dude in a daze.

TAP

He took another step back.

'What am I doing? I should fight this dude- No wait. Shouldn't I talk to him? Like... ask him why he didn't kill me last time?'

Kairen had been wanting to know why this guy spared his life when they last fought. He had to ask him about it. He had to prevent fighting as much as possible.

"Why did-"

"You-"

When he finally decided to talk, he was interrupted again. Kairen automatically shut his mouth as if that was the rule.

"You... how?"

The man mumbled.

"...Pardon?"

The man tapped the ground with his spear.

"How... here..."

"...."

What is he talking about?

Kairen tilted his head even more.

Tap Tap Tap

The man tapped the ground again and again.