"That wrapped up faster than I thought."

"Yeah, we’ve got more time than expected."

It was just before noon, so returning to the village would leave us with little to do besides reporting our completed quest to the guild.

"Alright, since we’re already here, why don’t we explore the forest a bit?"

"Sure. It doesn’t seem as dangerous as the Demon Forest, but I’m curious about those Silver Wolves."

"And let’s not forget the wild Skywolf Mushrooms."

With our next course set, we changed direction, heading deeper into the forest. Returning to the main path, we walked further in the opposite direction from the village. A conveniently placed sign reading ‘Beyond this point: Deep Forest’ and another indicating the last of the Skywolf Groves marked the transition into less-traveled territory. The D-ranked quests for the groves ended somewhere around here.

"This area looks pretty deserted."

After a quick lunch, we ventured further in. I kept an eye on the trees, hoping to spot some wild Skywolf Mushrooms, but there weren’t any obvious signs.

"They’re not as easy to find as I hoped."

"Want to pick up the pace?"

Instead of slowly wandering through unchanging scenery, we decided to fly deeper into the forest. About ten minutes later, the path narrowed into a thin trail and eventually disappeared altogether, leaving only faint signs of game trails. The presence of monsters we’d felt near the groves thinned out, replaced by fewer but noticeably stronger ones lurking in the distance.

"Think those are Silver Wolves?"

"Probably."

"It might be faster to track mushroom-eating monsters than search trees one by one."

Relying on perception, we headed toward the cluster of monster signatures. As we approached from downwind, they came into view—wolves with shimmering silver fur. A quick use of Appraisal confirmed they were Silver Wolves.

"What are they up to?"

The wolves were sniffing the ground, pacing around as if searching for something. Occasionally, one would dig or press its nose to the earth.

"Could they be hunting for Skywolf Mushrooms?"

"Wolves eating mushrooms? Really?"

"Think about it. There’s a magic creature called the Skywolf, and there’s a mushroom named after it. Sounds plausible, doesn’t it?"

"Well, when you put it that way…"

"Let’s find out."

Rather than speculate, the best way to know was to observe them up close.

"Alright, let’s check it out."

With a plan in place, we sprang into action, dividing the group of twelve wolves between us.

Our surprise attack began with Earth Needles floating around us, which we launched simultaneously. Focused on their search, the wolves didn’t react in time, and one by one, they were struck down. Only one managed to dodge and fled into the forest.

"That was… anticlimactic."

"The ambush worked better than expected."

"Yeah, I guess."

While letting one escape wasn’t ideal, we had no reason to chase it down. Our real objective was to see what the wolves were after.

Peering at the ground where a wolf had been digging, I found… nothing.

"Not here either," Rio reported as she searched a nearby tree root.

We continued to check while draining the wolves of blood, but no mushrooms turned up. By the time we finished, the day was already waning.

"It’s not going to be easy to find them," Rio sighed as we walked back to the village.

"Yeah, but it’s only the first day. We’ll keep trying. That taste is unforgettable!"

Rio chuckled as I clenched my fists in determination. Even if she thought I was being overly enthusiastic, my food-driven resolve wouldn’t waver.

At the guild, we reported our completed quest and sold the spoils from the grove. However, we decided against selling the Silver Wolves yet—it’d draw too much attention. The guild might question if we’d ventured into restricted areas, and since we planned to stay for a while, avoiding suspicion seemed wise.

The guild staff marveled at the quantity of prey we’d pulled from the dimensional box, but by now, I was used to their reactions. This quest brought our total E-rank completions to 28—a long road still lay ahead to D-rank.

"For the reward, would you like cash or Skywolf Mushrooms?" the receptionist asked after tallying everything.

Naturally, my answer was already decided.

"I’ll take the mushrooms."

"Understood."

We received four small mushrooms as our reward. Considering the quest’s payout, it seemed generous—probably because we were in the production area, where costs were lower.

"Looking at these mushrooms makes me hungry again," I said, holding them up.

"Let’s head back to the inn and eat," Rio suggested.

"Think they’ll cook these for us?"

"It doesn’t hurt to ask."

We returned to the inn and, to our delight, the staff agreed to cook the mushrooms we brought. Unsurprisingly, they were just as delicious as always.