As Amos said, Gordon examines grass roots and soil to see if there has been rain in the last day or two.

Now that you have a definite answer, you have a general direction for the next search.

Like the Great Boar, the Odd Faces are a mushroom-loving race, and unlike the former, who only know how to eat, these cunning little things can make use of mushrooms in a much wider range.

Gordon had seen the Odd-Face Clan use a huge mushroom umbrella cover as a hat to disguise themselves and sneak up on the approaching spirit deer.

According to instructor Ernest, some of the larger Odd-Faced tribes have even mastered the technology of mixing gunpowder with nitrified mushrooms and gunpowder herbs, and have developed "thermal weapons".

Fortunately, these "high-tech" odd noodles are currently only found in the New World, and for the time being, there is no need to worry about a chachapu (odd noodles) popping out of the grass and pasting a bomb bucket or something......

In any case, all kinds of mushrooms are quite attractive to the Odd-Face people.

Gordon decided to find a suitable place for mushrooms to grow, search for the traces of the Oddfaces, and then track the tracks.

The vegetation on the periphery of the Metabel forest is similar to that of the Shuretsen Mound, and Gordon is too experienced in finding the place where the mushrooms grow in this environment.

Along the way, he carefully observed the growth status of the forest plants, the density of shade, and the distribution of water veins, and soon found a large area of rotten horizontal trees with special shiitake mushrooms growing at the edge of a small reservoir in the forest.

To tell the truth, if he hadn't known that Amos and Hayatta were not far behind him, and that there was a pride peculiar to young men, he would have rushed forward with a shout of joy and gathered a wave.

Putting aside the slightly embarrassing thoughts, Gordon told the pork chop to keep an eye on the police line, and he approached the crossbar and took a closer look.

After only two glances, Gordon clenched his fists excitedly.

This specialty shiitake mushroom has obvious traces of being "visited"!

The horizontal wood overgrown with shiitake mushrooms is located in a high position, and it should be difficult for animals such as wild boars and shiitake pigs to reach, and these traces are also different from the appearance of those gluttonous ghosts after gnawing on them, and many shiitake mushrooms are cut off by their roots.

That is, they were "harvested" away!

Gordon couldn't help but get closer, squinting and searching carefully, and soon he found a few small footprints on the moss attached to the crosswoods and the surrounding dirt.

The footprint is only the size of two fingers together, and the shape is somewhat similar to that of a human, but it does not have the structure of a toe.

Gordon is sure that this is the footprint left by the Strangefaces!

Squatted down, gently stroked the dirt over the edge of the trail with his fingertips, picked up some more, and twisted them on his fingertips.

"It's still fresh, I guess it was left over in the middle of the night last night."

He followed the trail and searched for a while, and soon found a small animal path that could easily be ignored if he didn't deliberately observe—the kind of natural path with relatively sparse vegetation due to the frequent passing by of small and medium-sized creatures.

The beast's path curved intermittently, eventually pointing in a direction deep in the forest.

Gordon glanced back and found that Amos was also looking at him from more than ten meters away, the two exchanged glances, and seeing that the latter tapped his chin, Gordon no longer had any worries in his heart.

With the big guy following, what else is there to worry about?

"Walk away from the pork chops, pay attention to the sound and smell."

"Meow!"

Behind them, Hayatta was grimacing, struggling to keep up.

It was the first time she had traveled through a dense forest full of foliage, vines and fallen leaves.

Amos also just followed her unhurriedly and did not offer extra help, all of which she had to adapt to if she wanted to become a hunter.

As a "special equipment for beginners" hunter set, the advantages of the set are reflected at this time.

- Lightweight enough to provide the most basic protection.

The hard leather shin armor protected the ankles and knees well from sprains, and the sharp blades of grass and thorns between the bushes could not break through the protection of the hunting suit, and she was covered in scaly wounds.

Of course, it was inevitable that a few blood marks would be left on the bare cheeks.

"Ya... How far is it going, Mr. Amos......"

After holding on for a while, Hayata, who finally couldn't hold on, put her hands on her knees and gasped for air.

Amos, who breathed as if she were walking in the garden, glanced at her flushed cheeks, glanced around again, put his finger in his mouth, and whistled loudly and shortly.

Gordon, who was hurrying not far ahead, immediately stopped and turned his head to look.

Amos pressed his palm against him and made a "rest" gesture, and Gordon was stunned when he saw this, and then touched the bridge of his nose with some embarrassment.

He has never hunted in a team, and he lacks a sense of cooperation.

This time, it is true that the Hayatta in the team is a pure "oil bottle", but similar problems are often encountered when hunting in teams with fellow hunters.

Is the physical exertion of a twin swordman who carries a lightweight double knife weighing about a few kilograms the same as a gun operator who carries a tower shield and a gun with a total weight of more than 100 kilograms?

Keeping an eye on your companions is also a necessary part of cooperative hunting.

"Sorry......"

Gordon's apology was just beginning when Amos waved his hand to interrupt, "It's nothing, I didn't stop you just because Hayatta needed to catch his breath.

We've entered Strangeface territory, and they should be showing up soon, and there may be patrolling guys watching us right now.

Adjust your form and get ready for battle. ”

Amos said this not only to Gordon, but also to Hayatta.

The little girl, who suddenly became nervous, immediately pulled out the hunter's knife that was stuck in the back of her waist, and put the round shield in her right hand on her chest, looking around, ready to fight with others at any time.

Gordon and the others looked much more relaxed, checking the sharpness of the weapon, checking whether the straps of the armor were tight, and adding a small amount of water, and they were ready to go.

Only the eyes that glanced around, and the pinna that fluttered slightly from time to time, showed their mental concentration at this time.

"Here we are, two."

Amos's gaze suddenly turned in a certain direction, and he didn't mean to draw his weapon, but grabbed Hayatta's collar and began to retreat.

It took a few more seconds for Gordon to catch exactly what was coming from that location.

It was the "squeak" of the branches of the bushes being squeezed apart, and some kind of shrill and strange cry.

"Quack!"

"Click, Quack!"

Gordon placed his right hand on the hilt of his sword behind his shoulder, his eyes locked on the slightly swaying bushes, and he swung his great sword behind him without hesitation as the two short figures leaped out of the bushes one after the other.

"Huh!"

The preemptive attack missed, and the heavy hook-like head of the blaster was embedded in the soil, seemingly difficult to pull out for a moment.

Hayata, who was watching the battle from the rear, couldn't help but let out an exclamation.

Only then did she see what the two figures that avoided Gordon's sword slashed looked like.

It is a small humanoid creature about 60 centimeters tall, with a very thin body and uneven gray-green skin, reminiscent of mossy limestone.

Helmets that appear to be made of large tree husks are covered in strange patterns, and the helmets, or masks, which are almost half the size of their bodies and cover their heads tightly, are the origin of their racial names.

- The Odd Faces.