Chapter 240

How Could Anyone Resist? (1)

A full month had passed since Grylls began surviving in the Forest of Four Seasons.

Every one of his actions had set not only the Gallery but the entire world abuzz. However, there was one group in even greater turmoil.

It was the numerous academic communities scattered throughout the world—organizations of people devoted to studying it.

Humanity had advanced through its endless desire to acquire knowledge.

Among every race, "humans" could be said to possess the greatest thirst for knowledge.

Title: The Reason Humanity Advanced

Because humans are overwhelmingly weaker than every other race.

Try to prove me wrong.

└ Isn’t this genuinely true rather than an insult?

└ Beastkin can throw hands with bears, while humans absolutely need tools, lmao.

└ Aren’t dwarves also good at making tools?

└ They’re weak when it comes to theory. Even dwarves tend to learn the theoretical side from humans.

└ That’s why humans are so good at education. They also produce far more experts.

└ It’s easier to think of civilization’s entire framework as being centered around humans.

They were a race whose highest potential pierced the heavens while their lowest plunged beneath the earth.

They struggled desperately to overcome their weakness, and that struggle ultimately fueled their thirst for knowledge.

They questioned even the simplest stone and eventually discovered how the land itself had come into existence.

However, such knowledge often came into conflict with "religion."

If the gods created every living creature, how could they have arisen naturally?

How could creatures known as dinosaurs have existed before the Age of Mythology?

It was only natural for such conflicts to occur, yet the two sides cooperated surprisingly well.

Title: Why Scholars and Believers Get Along

Believer: The gods created all things!

Scholar: All things evolved from the first living organism.

Believer: Are you denying the gods? Do you want to be declared a heretic?

Scholar: No, no. I’m not denying them. I’m only saying that’s what happened.

Believer: So you’re not denying them?

Scholar: Praise Ares. Praise Aragon.

Believer: All right, carry on.

Since scholars don’t deny the gods’ existence, believers don’t particularly care what scholars do.

└ How could anyone deny them? The records are right there.

└ They aren’t called myths for nothing.

└ But aren’t myths essentially records of actual history?

└ Yeah, but they seem too absurd from a modern perspective. That’s why they’re called myths.

└ Magic was born during that age, and mana appeared then as well.

└ Before that came the Age of Dragons. The Age of Humanity began with the Age of Mythology.

Even if some exaggeration had been added over time, mythology was still "history" that had genuinely occurred.

In other worlds, myths might be treated as impossible events or fictional stories, but that wasn’t the case in this world.

There had been an age when dragons ruled humanity, followed by the gods who brought that age to an end.

Not only were clear records of these events preserved, but proof of those beings’ existence was also undeniable.

Consequently, academia and religion shared a mutually beneficial relationship.

Being knowledgeable and being wise were separate things, after all. Intellectuals had made countless mistakes.

Title: The Number-One Reason People Enter the Forest of Four Seasons

Curiosity.

Title: What’s the Difference Between Magic Towers and Academia?

Do they also have a mutually beneficial relationship?

└ They’re basically mixed together.

└ The only real difference is whether they focus on magic or general knowledge. Otherwise, they aren’t that different.

└ Magic itself is basically mathematics in the first place.

└ Magic Towers originally branched off from academia.

└ Fuck, that’s ridiculous, lmaooo.

└ What makes it funnier is that it’s completely true, lmaooo.

A pure passion for knowledge.

That passion had elevated humanity into the strongest race.

However, such desire occasionally led people to make dangerously complacent decisions.

The Forest of Four Seasons was the most prominent example.

Other regions could at least be predicted to some extent, but even that was impossible in the Forest of Four Seasons.

Since it was filled with every imaginable kind of "unknown," intellectuals occasionally forced themselves to venture inside.

The results of those expeditions were horrific.

Not one of them returned.

Kadir had at least taken a single step inside before his unease compelled him to retreat immediately, but the others had not been so fortunate.

Under such circumstances, Grylls began uploading a real-time record of his survival. Naturally, the academic world descended into chaos.

Most recently, he had confirmed the existence of the "sky whale," a creature said to have lived during the Age of Mythology.

"Could we not ask that man for assistance? This is a sky whale we’re talking about!"

"What could we possibly offer him? All we possess is the knowledge inside our heads."

"Then could we not combine all our knowledge to help him?"

"The Forest of Four Seasons is where all that knowledge is ground into dust."

The resulting shock had turned the academic world upside down.

There was a concept used in academia known as a "paradigm."

It meant that the world possessed certain established frameworks and that knowledge could likewise be understood through them.

For example, even demons, despite differing significantly from the other races, still remained within the framework of "humanity."

Before the discovery of the sky whale, the prevailing mythological paradigm had been as follows:

[Certain mythical beings, including sky whales, could exist only because the gods were present.]

[Whales are animals that must live in the sea. How could one possibly live in the sky?]

[They survived through the gods’ unique powers.]

[The fact that no sky whale has ever been discovered despite the continued existence of dragons proves it.]

Such creatures had existed through the gods’ special powers. They could not exist naturally.

Scholars should investigate those divine powers instead. Searching for the creatures themselves was foolish.

Title: Grylls: What’s That?

(A video of the sky whale discovered by Grylls)

Wow. A whale is flying through the sky!

└ Ah, lmaooo! It was in the Forest of Four Seasons this whole time!

Grylls’s exploits completely overturned that paradigm.

He had proven that the sky whale wasn’t sustained by divine power. It was simply a naturally existing creature.

If that was true, then other creatures appearing in mythology must also exist.

Although only the sky whale had been discovered so far, that alone had delivered an enormous shock.

To make matters even more remarkable, Grylls had also discovered the exceedingly valuable ambergris it produced.

"We must obtain that ambergris immediately!"

"How? Do you have a way?"

"Has no one here registered a fixed nickname on the Gallery?"

"Someone has, but Grylls immediately rejected his request."

"Damn it..."

Despite exhausting every available option, the academic world could not find a clear solution.

Moreover, the Magic Tower levitation incident occurred immediately afterward, leaving them occupied with managing the resulting disorder.

Grylls had thus dropped an enormous meteorite upon academia, and just as matters were finally beginning to settle down—

"Everyone! A dragon! It’s a dragon!"

"What?"

"A dragon capable of polymorphing has appeared!"

Grylls dropped yet another meteorite upon the academic world.

Like the sky whale, he had discovered a creature from the Age of Mythology.

Worse still, it wasn’t merely an ordinary creature.

It was a dragon—and one capable of polymorphing.

Dragons were supposedly capable of polymorphing, but even that had been regarded as little more than a legend.

Now that legend had been proven true.

"...Does this mean every one of these records is true?"

"Most likely. Oh, and apparently, the dragon burned a World Tree sapling. The World Tree seems to have played a major role in the incident."

"Good grief..."

The scholars felt as though they were finally assembling the pieces of a puzzle.

But those were among the more fortunate cases.

"Say, weren’t you writing your thesis on dragons?"

"What? Ah... Yes, I was..."

"You’ll have to rewrite it. Every legend concerning dragons has now been proven true."

"What kind of bullshit is— Wait, my thesis is due tomorrow! And this theory—"

"Rewrite it. That theory is about to become completely obsolete."

"..."

A graduate student had been writing his thesis in hopes of finally graduating.

They experienced their painstakingly written theses turning into worthless scraps of paper in real time.

But what could they do? These weren’t mere rumors originating from the Gallery, but truths discovered within the Forest of Four Seasons.

The graduate students could only choke back tears of blood and throw their theses into the trash.

"At least this has reduced the number of academic factions."

"I’m not sure whether we should consider that a good thing..."

Having to scrap their theses wasn’t actually the worst outcome.

The worst problem was academic factionalism.

The more controversial or ambiguous a subject was, the more inevitably scholars divided themselves into opposing factions.

When undeniable evidence was suddenly placed before them, however, one side had no choice but to collapse completely.

"I refuse to accept this! A single Gallery post can overturn everything?!"

"Would you like to enter the Forest of Four Seasons yourself, then?"

"W-Well, that might be going a little too far..."

Some continued to deny the discoveries for a while, but they were reluctant to enter the Forest of Four Seasons themselves.

"Let go of me! I refuse to believe it unless I see it with my own eyes!"

"Professor! Where do you think you’re going?!"

"Please calm down!"

Well, some extremists occasionally flew into a rage and declared they would enter the Forest of Four Seasons to verify everything personally.

Those people were restrained and calmed down somehow.

Even if they intended to go, entering the forest without any preparation would be dangerous.

In this manner, each post Grylls uploaded became a massive meteorite crashing into academia.

However, that only applied to the relevant fields. Scholars from unrelated disciplines merely found his discoveries fascinating.

"The scholars specializing in the Age of Mythology certainly have it rough."

"They really do."

Professor Jones, an authority in paleontology, was one such person.

He studied animals that had lived before the Age of Mythology—in other words, dinosaurs.

He clicked his tongue as he watched the theologians descend into chaos over a mere "discovery."

It is best not to believe anything unless you excavate it yourself.

He considered them foolish.

Instead of burying themselves in books, they would be better off embarking on expeditions.

What could compare to the pleasure of discovering and researching all manner of fossils during those adventures?

Life was much easier when one established a theory while accepting that it might ultimately prove incorrect.

Moreover, the Forest of Four Seasons is home to all manner of bizarre plants and animals. It would be best to treat it as an exception.

Professor Jones gently tugged at the upturned ends of his mustache.

With his overall neat appearance, he resembled an aristocrat.

However, it wasn’t long before even he was thrown into confusion.

"P-Professor! A d-dinosaur!"

"Yes. Where was the fossil discovered?"

Professor Jones responded calmly to his assistant’s commotion.

When the assistant said they had discovered a dinosaur, he initially assumed it was a fossil.

"No! A dinosaur was discovered in the Forest of Four Seasons! And it was alive!"

"...What?"

Professor Jones froze while tugging at his mustache.

A living dinosaur rather than a fossil?

It was utterly unbelievable.

Since it had been discovered in the Forest of Four Seasons, the explorer named Grylls must have found it.

He remained dumbfounded for a while before clearing his throat and regaining his composure.

"Ahem. Ahem. Since it is the Forest of Four Seasons, it is not entirely impossible. But is there any need for us to make such a commotion? Unlike the creatures studied by scholars of the Age of Mythology, the existence of dinosaurs has already been proven."

Professor Jones was correct.

Unlike sky whales and other mythical creatures, the existence of dinosaurs had been established long ago.

Although a dinosaur had been discovered in the Forest of Four Seasons, the main subject of interest would merely be its "appearance."

Since only fossils remained of dinosaurs, reconstructing their appearance required extensive research.

"No! That man listed a dinosaur carcass in the auction house!"

"..."

Professor Jones stopped dead at the assistant’s shout.

His expression suggested that he wondered whether he had misheard.

He hastily raised his head and accessed the Gallery.

Being an intellectual didn’t mean he refrained from using it.

"...Good heavens."

Professor Jones’s mouth opened and closed soundlessly.

There had been only one reason he could remain so composed:

He had never imagined that Grylls would list a dinosaur carcass in the auction house.

Although he pretended otherwise, Professor Jones had been closely following Grylls’s activities.

No—in truth, it would be more accurate to say that the entire academic world was monitoring Grylls’s every move.

Until now, Grylls had usually given rare objects to other users with fixed nicknames. He had hardly ever listed them in the auction house.

Professor Jones had therefore assumed it would be better to locate one of the users who had traded with Grylls and propose a joint research project.

"...Do it."

"Excuse me?"

"Bring me our budget immediately! We cannot allow anyone else to obtain it!"

"B-But although it’s a dinosaur, it apparently possesses a stealth ability..."

The assistant pointed out that this was a dinosaur capable of concealment.

Couldn’t it be different from the dinosaurs they knew?

Perhaps it merely resembled one and was actually an entirely different species.

Despite his assistant’s request that he remain calm, Professor Jones refuted him with ease.

"Have you ever lived during the age of dinosaurs?! For all we know, stealth abilities might have been common among them!"

"H-Huh? C-Could that really be true?"

"Exactly! If you cannot refute me, hurry up and bring me the budget!"

"Y-Yes, sir!"

At Professor Jones’s command, his assistant hurried away.

Meanwhile, the professor stared at the dinosaur carcass as its price continued rising in real time.

I must obtain it... I absolutely must obtain it!

If he could acquire it, he could elevate paleontology’s standing to unprecedented heights.

What he needed now was money.

Even if he had to pour their entire budget into the auction, he had to obtain that carcass.

But what about the other carcasses? Where are they? No, before that...

Professor Jones swallowed hard as another thought occurred to him.

Does that mean the forest is crawling with dinosaurs...? Living dinosaurs?

His eyes began to sparkle.

They burned with curiosity toward the unknown.

As previously mentioned, he was a man of action who had personally excavated all manner of fossils during his expeditions.

Above all else, he was a "scholar."

A scholar equipped with an endless thirst for knowledge.

How much does the latest expedition equipment cost again?

"..."

Curiosity slowly rose from the deepest reaches of his heart.

No. I should purchase that specimen first.

For the moment, practical concerns forced him to suppress it.

"This is everything? We have no more money?"

"This is our budget for the current month..."

"You blithering fool! I didn’t tell you to bring this month’s budget! Bring me the entire annual budget!"

"Y-Yes, sir!"

While one person passionately prepared to blow an entire year’s budget—

"Oho. So this is a dinosaur’s heart? How magnificent."

Someone else had effortlessly obtained an entire dinosaur carcass through personal connections.

"What could I create from this blood? I hope it will prove useful to Mr. Grylls."

Another had obtained an entire carcass by exchanging it for elixirs.

Of course, from Grylls’s perspective, both individuals had helped him enormously, so it was only natural that he would give the specimens to them.

Finally, the dwarf who had received a dinosaur hide from Grylls was—

"Hey, hey. Take a look at this."

"What? Where are you speaking from?"

"I’m standing right in front of you, dumbass."

"I can’t see anything."

—admiring the hide’s properties with his friend.

Meanwhile, Grylls—the man who had dropped a meteor-sized bomb comparable to the one that ended the age of dinosaurs—said:

"Okay. We’ve eaten, so let’s head out again."

[Could we not rest for the remainder of the day?]

"When would we have time to rest? We’ve hardly explored anywhere beyond our immediate surroundings."

He had finished preparing to set out on another bombing run—no, another expedition.

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