Affinity:Chaos

Grey and Ellis entered the bamboo forest, as soon as they entered, Grey spread out his spiritual sense.

'*Sigh* I don't think it's here. But that thing is surprising, hopefully, it's not what this guy's searching for.' Grey thought while staring into the forest.

Albeit not finding the pond within his sensory range, he could sense something else close by. He didn't know what it was exactly, but he could tell it wasn't simple.

When he sensed it, he recalled Ellis telling him there was something here that he wanted.

"Do you know the location of what you're searching for?" Grey turned to look at Ellis.

"Yes, senior. Follow me," Ellis replied happily before taking the lead.

Grey didn't speak any further and followed behind him, he kept his spiritual senses out just in case he could find the pond. His senses couldn't cover the entire bamboo forest, so he didn't have any idea if it was here or not.

As they walked further into the bamboo forest, Grey got a clearer grasp of what he previously sensed. It was radiating the aura of the water element. Even though what he was searching for was a pond, this wasn't it.

'This is likely what he's searching for. *Sigh* Why do I always have to get into so much trouble for others' sake?' Grey thought when he also sensed the aura of people there as well.

The people there had also sensed them, so they were probably expecting them.

"Hey, stay vigilant," He warned Ellis.

There's a chance that those people would attack as soon as they got there, so he felt it was better to warn Ellis beforehand.

"I know, senior, I can sense them as well," Ellis nodded.

Grey didn't speak any further and continued walking behind him nonchalantly, he would occasionally run his hands across the bamboo leaves.

After walking for almost three minutes, they got to where the treasure was located. Unfortunately, Grey didn't find anything related to the pond he was searching for.

In front of them was a cave abode, Grey guessed it was man-made given how it looked. It even had what looked like a door in front of it.

"What you're searching for should be inside this place," Grey said.

He had heard of how some experts would live in the Magical Beasts' forest, and this is the first of such abodes he had seen. According to rumors, such abodes hide lots of treasures.

'The person who stayed here must've been a Water Elementalist.' He looked around.

He couldn't deny it, staying in this bamboo forest would be very peaceful. Other than the occasional beasts which would intrude, it wasn't bad. As long as the expert sets up some arrays, they could stay here peacefully.

After getting involved with arrays and forge mastering, Grey knew how important it was for one to stay in a peaceful environment. The better the environment, the clearer he could think.

….

Rumble…

The stone door in front of the cave abode rolled to the left side.

As soon as it opened up.

Swoosh! Boom! Bang!

Multiple attacks flew out of the cave abode, heading straight for Grey and Ellis.

Since the duo was already expecting this, they didn't have any problems with moving out of the way.

"Hehehe, if it isn't Miss Ellis," A mocking laughter rang out from the cave.

What Grey found surprising was what they called Ellis. Although he thought he was a lady the first time he saw him, he didn't think of calling him Miss at any time.

'Looks like he is familiar with these people.' Grey thought inside.

Since they were people Ellis was acquainted with, then there's a chance that he might resolve this without having to fight. But from the way they addressed him, he didn't think the chances of that happening would be high.

A middle-aged man was the first to walk out of the cave abode, followed by four other men and two women. All seven of them were either in the Eighth or Ninth stage of the Origin Plane.

"I didn't think he would make it here," One of the women said, her voice slightly rueful.

It was almost like they didn't wish to see him.

"It's you guys!" Ellis exclaimed in surprise.

"Of course it's us. Now, tell us, how did you escape from the bear?" The middle-aged man asked curiously.

"I was helped by this senior," Ellis pointed at Grey, not even offended by the way the group was addressing and speaking to him.

"Uh, wait, how did you people find out about the bear?" He suddenly thought of something and asked.

When he was first attacked by the bear, the group was nowhere to be found. They got separated when they just got to the bamboo forest, on his way to find them, he was unfortunate and attracted the bear.

"How can you be this dumb?" Grey, who was by the side, couldn't help but ask.

Even without interacting with these people, he could tell they didn't like Ellis. There's a chance that they were even the ones who caused his attack.

'Wait, how did he survive escaping from the bear for such a long distance?' He thought, confused.

Given the distance from here to where he helped Ellis, it was almost impossible for Ellis to stay alive under the pursuit of the bear unless he had the lightning or wind element which would've given him a boost in terms of speed.

It was just like the time he was almost hit by the attack of the mole, Grey was certain that given Ellis' speed, there was no way he could escape it. But for some reason, he managed to escape it by a hair's breadth.

"What do you mean, senior?" Ellis asked, his face showing pure innocence.

He didn't understand why Grey asked him such a question.

"These people obviously set you up, yet here you are, smiling in their faces," Grey decided to point it out to him.

"No, senior. They would never do such a thing. If not for them, I'd have been dead," Ellis explained.

Grey shook his head with a sigh, how in the world is Ellis still alive given his reasoning? To be honest, he had no idea.

"And who are you?" The middle-aged man asked, turning his attention to Grey.

"A passerby," Grey shrugged and moved to the side.

Since Ellis was being stupid, then there was no use helping him, not just that, but he was suspicious of him. If this group were to kill him, it would be to his advantage since he would get the chance to obtain whatever was here.

"Good, make sure to act like one, hmph!" The middle-aged man snorted before walking in Ellis' direction.

"Since you're here, why don't you help us in collecting the item?" He put his hand across Ellis' shoulder.

"What item?" Ellis asked, confused.

"Don't worry, you'll find out when we get there," The middle-aged man snickered as he shoved Ellis in the direction of the cave.

"Okay, looks like there's also something there you guys needed. Why didn't you say so earlier?" Ellis asked as they headed into the cave.

Grey was the only one left outside.

'Hmm, is he truly naive, or could this be an act?' He looked at the cave, suspiciously.