The Neighborhood High School Girl, Miss Isezaki, Is the Great Saintess Returned from Another World~ And I, Suddenly Awakened as Her Exclusive Mana Supply Uncle, Travel Between Earth and Another World with Time-Space Magic~ - 196. The Wooden Monster, Treant

196. 196. 196. 196. The Wooden Monster, Treant

A group of Treants, the wooden monsters, were slowly making their way towards us. They were blending in with the surrounding forest. There were about five or six of them. As I observed them closely, I noticed that besides their writhing branches and roots, there was another moving part: a large, hollow knot, gaping open like a mouth and moving in a disturbing way.

Luckily, their movement speed seemed to match that of a walking human. This meant that if I used the [Dimensional Net] to trap them, I could easily immobilize and crush them.

I quickly expanded the [Dimensional Net] horizontally, like a soccer goal net, to encompass the entire group of Treants, and then pushed it forward.

“[Dimensional Net]!”

*Crack… Crack… Snap! Snap, snap, snap! Crunch!*

The [Dimensional Net] appeared in front of me, moving with the force of a heavy machine as it snapped trees and overturned roots on its way toward the Treants. However, I realized something as I watched.

“Oh, this isn’t good.” I muttered, and promptly dismissed the [Dimensional Net].

From above, Maristel’s irritated voice called down.

“Why did you cancel it, Matsunaga?! You could’ve just used that weird black net to crush the Treants! You destroyed my dolls that way, didn’t you?! Smashed them to pieces! You’re really awful!”

“Well, I was planning to do that, but… I thought it might cause a landslide if I uprooted too many trees.” 

Trees have a crucial role in stabilizing the ground by intertwining their roots, preventing landslides. I’ve seen news reports about landslides triggered by excessive deforestation. I’m not trying to preach about environmental protection, but considering there’s a magic stone mine in this mountain, a landslide could cause significant damage to both personnel and facilities. Even if I wouldn’t be blamed, I’d feel guilty. I’m a bit of a worrier like that.

So, to avoid unnecessary destruction of the forest, I decided to hold back on ripping out trees.

“Huh?! Landslide? What are you talking about? That doesn’t make any sense! Explain it to me right now!” 

Maristel demanded for explanation while kicking her legs from her perch on a tree branch. It revealed a glimpse of red fabric between her legs as she did so. I couldn’t help but notice—was she matching it to her eye color?

“Um, husband? This isn’t the time to get distracted. The Treants are closing in” 

Isezaki-san whispered in a voice that sent a chill down my spine.

“R-right!”

This was no time to lose focus. I quickly turned to face the Treants again, but I could still feel the ominous pressure from behind. It made cold sweat pour down my back. I was too scared to look.

Anyway, I had to attack the Treants another way.

One option was to drop items from my [Storage Space], but that would be less effective in this densely packed forest. Another possibility was to use [Leap Warp] to take the Treants to a high place and drop them, but that would take too long since I’d have to do it one at a time. Plus,  maintaining contact with a Treant seemed dangerous, unlike the Earth Dragon that was safe to touch as long as I avoided its shell.

In other words…

“―[Accelerate Haste]!”

I had no choice but to defeat them in close combat.

Resolving myself, I cast [Accelerate Haste] and dashed through the trees towards the Treants.

As I faced one of the Treants up close, it still looked just like a tree. Yet, it moved in a sickening, squirming way despite its appearance.

“Gyui!“

The moment I hesitated due to its grotesque appearance, the Treant let out a bizarre screech. It flexed one of its long branches like a whip, and swung it down at me.

――Fast! This is on a whole different level than dealing with some thug’s punch. Even under the effects of [Accelerate Haste],  I might get hit if I lose focus for even a moment. I’m just an ordinary guy in his thirties with no special training or armor—just moving quickly thanks to time-space magic. If I got struck by one of these wooden whips, I wouldn’t get away unscathed.

I carefully turned my body sideways to dodge the whip as it came down. Once I got inside the Treant’s reach, I placed my hand on its main trunk and—

“[Eject!]”

I unleashed the time-space magic [Eject], which repels everything it touches.

*BOOOOOOOOM!!*

A deafening explosion rang out as the area I touched was obliterated. The Treant was blown apart, split right down the middle. This was the first time I’d used [Eject] at full power.

“Giiiii!“

I had taken down one of them—but there was no time to relax as the other Treants closed in. Now I had to face two at once.

Both Treants swung their branch-like whips at me simultaneously. I dodged and prepared to use [Eject] again on the next Treant when—

“Husband!”

I heard Isezaki-san’s voice calling from behind me, and I instinctively turned around. A branch whip was sweeping in from the side, just inches away. I realized too late that all of the Treant’s branches were like its arms, and it had swung another one at my blind spot.

I quickly leapt backward to create some distance, but I felt a light impact on my abdomen. Looking down, I saw that my jacket had been sliced cleanly as if by a sharp blade.

I immediately placed my hand on my abdomen—thankfully, my body was unharmed. The thought of what might have happened sent a shiver down my spine.

Even though the Treants seemed slow, dealing with their unpredictable movements was almost too much for an untrained guy like me.

“Thank you, Isezaki-san, you saved me.”

Isezaki-san smiled at my words. Honestly, if she weren’t here, I’d probably have teleported out of here with [Dimensional Teleport] after that.

Wiping the cold sweat from my forehead, I once again turned to face the remaining Treants.