No one had ever heard of the Month of Forgetting causing someone to appear in a place they didn't recognize.
Was someone targeting him?
But he had already been extremely cautious. Before releasing the Source of Calamity, he had thoroughly surveyed the surroundings. After generating the Tier 6 dungeon, he had immediately stored the Source away.
And the restrictions he had set up outside—
Those meant that if anyone approached, he would definitely sense it.
As a master of barriers, he had that much confidence.
Even if the opponent were also a scholar of decryption, it would still take time to break through his restrictions.
There was no way it could happen so quickly.
So was this a natural phenomenon?
But with his breadth of knowledge, he had never heard of anything like this…
No.
The Month of Forgetting itself had almost no recorded information.
Not having heard of it was probably normal.
A sheet of paper appeared in his hand. As he thought, he wrote down his conclusions.
Even if the records disappeared, the information had already been retained.
Kanzaki Rei didn't fly at full speed.
Instead, he drifted forward at a moderate pace—about thirty meters per second.
His perception wasn't blocked, but within a radius of two hundred kilometers, everything was barren land, filled with dense pale pink mist.
…Sigh.
If not for the mist, he could have flown high and observed with the naked eye.
With perception alone, he couldn't see far at all.
I should've brought Luluvia along. She can probably see farther than I can.
The one time I go out alone…
And I run into something like this.
From now on, no matter what, I'm dragging someone with me—even if I have to beg. At least there'd be backup.
"Oh… got something."
His perception suddenly picked up something different.
"An… orc?"
Rei noticed a slender tail extending from above the figure's pants.
He had seen beastfolk in the Battle Arena before.
They were stronger than humans in strength and constitution, but not very adept at magic.
Powerful mages were rare among beastfolk.
Instead, they more commonly produced powerful archers, assassins, and warriors.
They also had hunters as a standard class.
Though hunters used bows, they relied more on traps, short blades, and daggers—
Far more flexible and versatile, especially in complex terrain.
A beastfolk becoming a hunter…
Heh. As someone who had transmigrated from another world, Rei couldn't shake the feeling that something about that was… off.
The one in front of him was a female beastfolk.
Judging by the ears on her head, she was feline—silver-white long hair, a catgirl.
An intelligent species capable of communication.
She didn't emit any particularly strong aura. Though he couldn't determine her exact level, she was probably not a Level 6 powerhouse.
Rei thought for a moment.
Then he had his Subterranean-tier undead conceal their presence and remain in place.
Meanwhile, he rapidly approached.
Whoosh!
In an instant, he closed the distance to within five kilometers.
Then, he removed his luxurious equipment.
He changed into plain, unremarkable clothing and staggered forward, running unsteadily toward her with a hint of panic.
After only a few steps—
Her ears twitched, and she immediately looked in his direction.
Her perception range was roughly five kilometers.
Rei had already confirmed that.
With his current spiritual sensitivity, he could even perceive fluctuations in others' detection, making it easy to determine the limits of their awareness.
"A child, nya?"
She looked at Rei, puzzled.
"And a human child, nya?"
Whoosh!
In two quick steps, she closed the distance and grabbed Rei by the back of his collar, lifting him into the air.
"Why are you here, nya?" the catgirl asked curiously.
Rei dangled in midair.
Sensing no hostility from her mental fluctuations, he spoke in a panicked tone:
"I—I got lost…"
"There's fog everywhere. I don't know where this is."
Everything he said was true.
He was lost.
There was fog everywhere.
And he truly didn't know where he was.
"Did you enter a dungeon, nya?"
…Huh?
Was entering a dungeon a necessary condition for this situation?
Otherwise, how did she guess so accurately?
Rei nodded timidly, not pretending ignorance.
The catgirl pressed her hand to her forehead and shook her head.
"Didn't anyone tell you not to wander around on the first day of the Month of Forgetting, nya?"
"You humans actually have a habit of throwing children into dungeons, nya?"
Rei asked, "Big sister, where exactly is this place?"
"Isn't it obvious, nya?"
"This is the Land of Forgetting."
This time, she didn't add "nya."
"Sigh. Just stay here and wait. Once today passes, you'll naturally leave."
"Of course… there's also the chance a monster shows up and eats you, nya."
She set Rei down on the ground.
After stretching lazily, she began walking away.
After a few steps, she turned back and saw Rei still following her.
"Big sister, what is the Land of Forgetting? Why are you here?"
Rei followed, asking curiously.
"Sigh… kid, you're really annoying, nya."
"Why should I answer your questions?"
"I'm not about to drag around dead weight while treasure hunting. Don't expect me to save you if you get into danger, nya."
She pointed at Rei.
"In our beastfolk rules, it's survival of the fittest. If you die, you die, nya."
Rei flinched as if frightened.
"I… I can trade some life-saving items my parents left me for information."
"You've got life-saving items, nya?"
Rei took out a few magic tools worth around 50 gold coins, along with several Tier 4 magic scrolls.
"This… is about all I have."
The catgirl pressed her forehead again.
"…Fine."
She took everything Rei had shown and said,
"Consider it payment for hiring me to protect you for a short distance."
"But only for a short distance."
"I'll take you somewhere relatively safe. After that, you're on your own, nya."
"As for what the Land of Forgetting is… sigh, even if I tell you, you'll probably forget anyway, nya."
Still, she continued:
"The Land of Forgetting is a place that only appears on the first day of the Month of Forgetting during leap years. During this month, if you enter and exit through two unconnected spatial passages, there's a chance you'll enter this space."
"For example, leaving a dungeon. Or exiting the Tower of War God. Or walking out of the Battle Arena gates, nya."
Oh.
So leaving the dungeon must have triggered it.
A leap year trigger?
But… the year is 5026, isn't it?
"But… it's the year 5026, right?"
The catgirl flicked her tail.
"You really don't know anything, do you… Because of the Month of Forgetting, January doesn't actually exist. So every 12 full years, 12 Januaries are removed, reducing the total year count by one."
"So by the lunar calculation, this year is actually 4608."
…There's a system like that?
If one year is removed every 12 years, then 418 years would indeed be subtracted from 5026.
By that logic… this really was a leap year.
He vaguely remembered hearing that during leap years, the power of each month grew stronger, and special phenomena would occur.
But this Land of Forgetting…
This was the first time he had ever heard of it.
Probably because everyone forgot.
"The Land of Forgetting is an independent special space."
"People from all over the world come here. But… anyone who enters probably won't exceed Level 5, nya."
She glanced at the child beside her.
Level 0 also counted as not exceeding Level 5.
Rei pondered.
A level cap?
This was the first time he had encountered something like that.
Until now, whether entering dungeons or nests, there had never been restrictions where high-level individuals couldn't enter.
This… was actually refreshing.
So I finally found a level-capped instance?
As someone invincible within the same tier, this is exactly where I should be bullying weaker opponents.
Shame the cap isn't lower.
If it were capped at Level 3, that would've been perfect.
Suppressing his inner excitement, Rei cautiously asked,
"Big sister, what's the basis for the 'not exceeding Level 5' claim?"
"None. I just heard it, nya."
Rei's lips twitched slightly.
So… hearsay.
Better not trust it completely.
"But the legend has always been like this. Even Level 6 adventurers have tried to enter and failed. It's very reliable, nya."
Alright. Close enough.
"Then… did you come here on purpose, big sister?"
At that, her tone turned resentful.
"I've been going in and out of the Tower of War God tens of thousands of times since midnight. What do you think, nya?"
…So she had been forcing the trigger.
And he got in on the first try?
Lucky.
"Is there something you want from the Land of Forgetting?"
"How would I know?"
"All I know is that this is a forgotten land. They say countless treasures from across history are left here."
"Many powerful beings have visited this place."
"They died here—and left their possessions behind."
"Strong people usually carry a lot of good stuff. You can imagine that, nya."
Rei nodded.
If he died, the contents of his storage bags alone would probably shock whoever looted his corpse.
He extended his perception.
The fog was growing thicker, suppressing his senses further.
Several monsters had already approached within twenty meters.
Yet they were completely invisible to the naked eye.
Rei said, "Big sister, I think the ground is shaking."
"You've got sharp senses for a kid, nya…"
The catgirl gripped a short blade at her waist.
"Monsters are coming, nya."
Whoosh!
Her body moved in an instant, slicing through the air like a streak!
She skimmed along the ground, her curved blade slashing open the belly of a rhino-like monster—
Disemboweling it with precise accuracy.
A clear strike at its weak point.
Judging from her movements… about a standard Level 4 adventurer.
Not a top-tier like Kiyomi.
Whoosh!
After cutting through the rhino, she immediately drew a longbow from her back!
A hound-like monster lunged at Rei, jaws wide open—
It was about to bite his head off.
Thwip!
An arrow pierced straight through its skull, killing it instantly.
Rei kept his hands in his pockets, pretending not to notice.
Slightly stronger than a typical Level 4.
Capable of instantly killing elite monsters of the same tier.
Probably able to solo a Lord-class or fight a King-class.
An elite among Level 4 class changers.
He quickly assessed her strength.
After she killed four Tier 4 elite monsters in quick succession, she returned.
"You almost got eaten just now, nya."
"Saving your life makes your payment worth it, nya."
Rei smiled brightly.
"Thank you, big sister."
…Sigh.
This kid has no sense of danger at all.
Along the way, they talked for quite a while.
He learned her name was Shumi, and she lived on a continent called Mishirush on the Moon Sea.
A land of beastfolk.
Whether it was as large as Riga, Rei didn't know.
The Moon Sea…
That should be beyond the Secret Sea.
To encounter someone from that far away—
This phenomenon really had a wide reach.
After staying here for one day, one would naturally leave the Land of Forgetting.
You would return to wherever you came from.
Though… that "day" might feel longer than usual.
In Shumi's view—
This child wouldn't survive a full day.
And she wasn't about to waste such a rare opportunity babysitting him.
So taking his life-saving items was actually doing him a favor.
After all, against Tier 4 monsters, those items wouldn't save a child anyway.
After traveling some distance, Rei's perception stirred again.
Boom—
In the distance stood a massive white wall.
In front of it, many adventurers had gathered.
A few kilometers away, one adventurer was fighting a violently thrashing giant serpent.
Shumi seemed to know this was the right direction.
She headed toward the wall without hesitation.
"There'll be a wall up ahead."
"You won't be able to get in. Just wait outside for time to pass."
She sounded experienced.
"…Okay."
Rei didn't object.
They picked up speed.
Shumi carried Rei as she ran.
After about an hour—dealing with a few Tier 3 and Tier 4 monsters along the way—they reached the wall.
Rei extended his perception beyond it.
On the other side—
Corpses.
Human, monster, and various other creatures.
A chaotic battlefield.
Shumi placed her hand on the wall.
"The Land of Forgetting… seems to be the site of an extremely brutal war that occurred during this month."
"But that war—along with the month itself, and everything that happened within it—was forgotten."
"The memories, the history, even the battlefield… all left behind here, nya."
She turned to Rei.
"Kid, bringing you here fulfills my promise, nya."
"What happens next is up to you."
She walked toward the gate.
At the entrance, translucent figures raised their weapons at her.
She took out a jade-white token.
The figures lowered their weapons.
The restriction lifted—
And she was allowed to enter.
A permit was required?
"She has a token!"
"Kill her!"
"Cut her down!"
"Don't let her in—take the token!"
From the mist, killing intent surged.
Rei clicked his tongue inwardly.
Very different from the people he had encountered so far.
These people—
They truly intended to kill.
Hearing the shouts, Shumi smiled faintly.
Her golden cat pupils turned blood-red.
Whoosh!
In an instant, she appeared before the nearest person—her hand plunging into his chest, ripping out his heart.
The next moment—
Her blade swept out, beheading another.
Whoosh! Whoosh whoosh whoosh—
A blur of afterimages.
In less than a second, the front-line attackers were slaughtered like livestock.
Rei watched calmly.
So she was hiding her strength earlier.
Not Level 4.
Level 5.
Very good at concealing it.
Waiting before acting was definitely the right call.
In about a minute, only Shumi remained—
Covered in blood.
The rest fled in all directions.
She deliberately exposed her token to provoke killing intent.
Definitely not a kind person.
She looted their storage items one by one.
After killing so many, the spoils were abundant.
"Hey, you're not running, nya."
She placed a hand on another adventurer's shoulder.
The man smiled and revealed his own token.
"I have one too. No need to take yours."
"Lucky you, nya."
After collecting everything, she strolled into the gate.
Rei checked—
He was still standing quietly by the wall.
She probably assumed he hadn't seen anything.
What a shame. That was a pretty cool display.
She entered.
The other token-holder followed.
Rei looked at the wall.
A thousand meters tall.
With anti-flight and impassable restrictions.
He thought for a moment—
Then simply rose into the air.
Ignoring the gate, he flew over the top.
Landing on the other side.
His perception swept the area.
Several figures were searching through corpses.
No one above Level 5.
All average.
A once-every-four-years opportunity.
Better proceed cautiously.
He summoned over a dozen Tier 6 King-class undead, sending them into the mist to scout.
Then he walked to a corpse and picked up a storage bag pinned beneath it.
"…There really are treasures."
Inside was a powerful-looking combat technique:
[Chaos Staff Style]
The deeper he went, the more corpses he saw.
And more valuable items.
But also—
More people.
People were said to come from all over the world.
Surely more than what he had seen so far.
Maybe this was just one entrance.
Still, even just picking things up yielded plenty.
No wonder everyone wanted to come.
Though—
How many people actually had tokens?
After walking further, his perception counted at least a hundred individuals.
A lawless zone.
If he killed them all…
No one would know.
But why were there so few conflicts?
Only scattered skirmishes.
Better observe first.
Besides—
Random slaughter didn't sit well with him.
As he continued looting—
Someone followed him from behind.
About ten kilometers away.
Closing in.
Their perception locked onto him.
A man holding a dagger in reverse grip.
An assassin.
Rei continued picking up storage bags, pretending not to notice.
Ten seconds later—
The man suddenly accelerated.
In three seconds—
A dagger was pressed against the child's throat.
Slash!
No words.
Straight for the kill.
But—
The blade passed through mist.
The child dissolved into bubbles.
An illusion?
Pfft—
A chill spread through the assassin's chest.
He touched it—
A spear tip protruded from his body.
He turned—
And saw a child staring at him coldly.
How… did he notice?
As his consciousness faded—
Rei casually raised his hand and extracted his soul.
"So weak."
"But he had quite a lot of stuff on him."