Infinite System Inheritor Return From The Abyss

It had been two hours since they found their first marble. They wereexhausted, their energy drained from walking , avoiding and running from the wild beast.

The siblings collapsed onto the grass, breathing heavily. Andrew sat down nearby, wiping sweat from his forehead.

"H-Hey, let's rest. We've been walking," Andrew said tiredly before lying down flat on the grass.

Lila glared at them, ready to scold, but seeing how exhausted everyone looked, she sighed. "Fine! But not for too long," she muttered, walking to a nearby tree. She sat down and leaned against the trunk, crossing her arms.

The brother groaned, still lying on the ground. "Hoo! Why can't we find any blue or red marbles? It's always the yellow ones!" he complained.

Andrew, sitting up, glanced at Seojun, who remained standing and stared off into the distance. "Seojun, sit down. You need to rest too," Andrew said.

"I can still stand," Seojun replied calmly, his tone indifferent.

Andrew sighed but then spoke again. "Anyway, guys, doesn't it seem like yellow marbles are everywhere? They're the easiest to find."

The brother nodded, sitting up. "Yeah, isn't it obvious? No one has tried to steal from us because they're not worth the trouble."

Andrew remembered how some groups they encountered earlier had looked at them and then walked away upon realizing they only had a yellow marble.

"The second marble is so difficult to find!" the brother complained again. "We've been walking for two hours, and still nothing. What's the time, Lila?"

Lila checked her watch. "It's 9 a.m. We have plenty of time, so we don't need to rush. Just rest for now, but don't think we can stop every five minutes."

The group agreed, using the time to save their energy. Andrew quickly fell asleep after lying down. The siblings leaned against each other and dozed off too, leaving only Lila and Seojun awake.

Lila closed her eyes, trying to relax, but her mind stayed alert. Meanwhile, Seojun stood silently, still scanning the surroundings.

[Host, don't you want to make this easier? We can use my function. You can even find the marbles without much effort.]

Seojun frowned slightly but didn't reply immediately. After a moment, he muttered, "This is the final test. Using you would be cheating."

[But using your skill isn't cheating, Host. It's part of you.]

Seojun sighed deeply, shaking his head slightly. "You're so stubborn, aren't you?" he muttered under his breath. After a moment of thought, he relented. "Fine. I'll just find where the second marble is, but I won't grab it immediately."

Seojun leaned back against a tree and closed his eyes. Focusing, he activated one of his abilities. He reached out with his mind, taking control of a nearby bee beast's vision.

Through the bee's eyes, Seojun began scanning the forest. The buzzing of its wings filled his mind as it flew high above the trees, giving him a bird's-eye view.

He spotted a group far away, gathered near a beast with a red marble around its neck. They were securing the area and preparing to take the marble. Seojun memorized their location before letting the bee fly away, looking for other signs of beasts.

The bee's vision shifted, showing him another part of the forest. He spotted a lone beast near a cliff, its horns glowing faintly. A blue marble hung from its neck, swinging gently as it grazed on the grass.

"Found it," he muttered to himself, letting the bee's vision fade. He opened his eyes and glanced at the resting group.

"Two marbles located," he thought. "One red, one blue. Now to figure out the best way to get them without drawing too much attention."

He leaned back against the tree, waiting for them to wake up.

After resting for a while, the group slowly began to wake up. Andrew groaned as he stretched, rubbing his eyes. "Ugh, I feel worse after lying down," he muttered.

The siblings stirred as well, their tired faces showing slight relief from the short break. Lila stood and dusted off her pants, her sharp eyes scanning the surroundings. "Alright, we've rested enough. Let's move."

Andrew groaned again, but he got up, knowing better than to argue with Lila. The siblings followed suit, albeit slowly, as they gathered their things.

Seojun, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly began walking ahead. "Let's go this way," he said calmly, not looking back.

Lila frowned, crossing her arms. "And why are we following you?"

Seojun glanced back, his face neutral. "The forest is quieter in that direction. If there are fewer groups, we'll have better chances of finding a marble without interference."

Lila considered his reasoning and finally nodded. "Fine. Let's go."

Andrew blinked in surprise. "Wait, you're agreeing with him that easily?"

Lila shot him a glare. "Do you have a better idea?"

Andrew shook his head quickly. "Nope, following Seojun sounds great!"

Seojun led the group deeper into the forest, his pace steady but not rushed. He made sure to occasionally pause, as if scanning the surroundings, to avoid raising suspicion.

In truth, he was leading them directly to the beast with the blue marble he had found earlier.

The forest grew denser as they walked, with tall trees and thick bushes blocking their view. The sound of rustling leaves and distant bird calls filled the air. Seojun's calm demeanor helped keep the group focused, even as the tension of finding the next marble loomed over them.

After about twenty minutes, Lila grew impatient. "We've been walking forever, Seojun. Are you sure this is the right direction?"

"Yes," Seojun replied simply, not breaking stride. "We're getting close. Stay alert."

Lila raised an eyebrow but said nothing more.

Andrew tried to lighten the mood. "Hey, maybe we'll find a beast lounging by a picnic spot, and it'll just hand over the marble."

The brother chuckled. "Yeah, and maybe it'll ask us to play a game of cards for it.

Their light banter stopped when Seojun held up his hand, signaling them to stop. "Quiet," he said softly.

They froze, their senses suddenly on high alert.

"There," Seojun said, pointing ahead. They followed his gaze and spotted a large beast grazing near the edge of a cliff.

The creature was massive, its body resembling a mix of a bull and a goat, with glowing blue horns that pulsed faintly. Around its thick neck hung a blue marble, swinging slightly as it moved.

Andrew's eyes widened. "That's it! The blue marble!"

"Shh!" Lila hissed, pulling him down behind a bush. "Don't be reckless. We don't know what this thing can do yet."