I regressed and became the Sword Ice King

Team Gold had gotten to their destination, north of the Giant Rain Forest, known for its dangers in numbers and size, but that wasn't a reason enough to stop them.

On the tall trees of the RainForest, they prepared their equipment while Zara and Iane went over their plans.

"So we check here?"

"Yes, we could…" Zara replied, her thoughts reeling in as she added. "....but that would take time, time we don't have especially if the others know about it already".

Jane sighed as he looked up at the sky, his gaze lingering on the score between the classes.

He turned around to his teammates.

"We're splitting up". He announced.

Their gazes flickered with surprise as they glanced at each other before turning towards him.

"What do you mean, split up? We're already here," Lana replied, but with the score sheet written clearly in the sky, she already had her response to her question.

"Is it because of Team Bronze?" Jonny asked.

"Yes, three of us will focus on getting the set of equipment while the rest of you will go after the others….if I'm right, the region with the most would be…?" His gaze flicked towards Zara and she flinched before responding quickly.

"Oh, east and south. You'll find a lot of experts to master equipment in the south, though, so I'll suggest it.

Check the bark of the trees, the roots as well, and perhaps even their leaves. It's not difficult to find those".

Jane nodded. "Lana, you'll lead Jonny, Sonia and Ben; I'll assume that Raph put you two in this group for a reason, so focus on the task and avoid trouble. This is a treasure hunt, after all, not a monster hunt",.

Sonia smiled lightly. "Of course" she replied while Lana nodded.

Soon the four turned around and jumped onto another tree branch, turning in the opposite direction.

"Now then" Jane looked away from their disappearing figures towards the ground.

"Where should we start?"

Zara pointed towards a particular location and the trio headed there in the next second.

It wasn't long till they closed the distance and found their first equipment. An Armour, hidden beneath the bushes.

"It's a Master Ranked Armour, Trojan Armour".

Zara explained as Jane placed it in his ring storage.

At that moment, the numbers next to their name increased by 70 points before Zara led them to their next destination.

"If I'm right, the gloves and swords would be placed in more ... .discreet place insusceptible to the elements". She explained on their way as they jumped from one tree branch to another.

"Why do that when the armour was kept in a bush? Aren't the tests of the equipment made from the same materials?"

"Well yes….". Zara turned towards Alicia and she replied to her question. "...but the thing about blacksmithing and alchemy which has a similarity would be giving them unique properties and skills".

Jane's gaze flickered towards Zara, intrigued by her reply.

"Do you know how to add skills to potions?"

"Not necessarily skills, buffs and the likes, though; I'm capable of achieving already".

"Hah….what degree do you have in alchemy?" He asked, his thoughts reeling in.

'She's a lot more useful in the class than she seems…' he thought to himself when he felt a sudden trigger warning.

It was like his divine mana spiralled within him furiously, stopping him from moving further.

At the same time, Zara and Alicia stopped next to him, confusion on their faces when the sound of trees cracking and breaking suddenly projected in the air.

It was followed by loud hissing and a sudden thud as a large shadow cascaded upon them.

"Oh?" Alicia muttered in surprise. "A Green Serpent?" She asked Jane.

"Yeah….most of the creatures here are named after their unique colours….but that shouldn't be a problem…."

Jane replied though something did bother him. "It shouldn't be here…..so why is it?" He wondered as Alicia prepared her magic staff while Zara pulled out a wand.

'Is someone following us?'

*****

A far distance away, Team Silver hid behind a tree, their gazes lingering at the sight ahead.

"Good, it caught up with them. Let's turn the corner and head to the Oak Tree first".

The Oak Tree was one of the largest trees in the area, and underneath its large and old canopy was a distinct temperature contrary to that of the Forest itself.

"Why leave it to a serpent when we can go ourselves though?" Andrej felt annoyed at their backwater method of handling the situation.

He always had an image of Monica and Ruthy as cautious but crafty but now, they just seemed like plain cowards.

"We won't get any points for fighting them, neither would we get any points from fighting against the creatures. I'm sure they know this as well, so sulk it up and come with us".

Ruth replied as she hurried after her teammates.

Andrej and Tomaz lingered behind though, their gazes flicking towards the sight when a loud bestial scream echoed.

"He's dealt with it already?" Andrej muttered as he whistled loudly.

"Oh, we could have done the same…..should we get closer? Or listen to the stuck-up Monitor and her lesbian Deputy".

Tomaz asked, disinterest laced in his tone while their gazes remained fixed on Team Gold.

"It would be better to get it done now….but the timing…"

"Yeah, let's go".

Tomaz rushed after their teammates, Andrej following soon after.

*****

"It's safe to assume that there's another class after the equipment as well" Jane said as they continued on their way, divine mana suffused around him while the dead serpent behind them burned with the same golden energy.

Alicia glanced at him, intrigue plastered on her expression. 'I heard the divine household borrowed the powers of gods….but so far, he hasn't done that?'

Zara led the way this time, increasing their pace to the same destination as Team Silver.

"It's most likely Silver, they'll probably put other obstacles in the way".

"Don't worry about that and focus on finding us those treasures….no level of obstacles can get in our way when I am here". He replied with a smirk.

Silence suffused around them after that, their attention now focused on the task at hand.

Just as Zara assumed, their path to their destination was filled with obstacles in the form of giant creatures crossing their paths.

They must have dealt with at least five by now, with Jane taking charge of the assault and Alicia serving as backup.

Thus, the trio left a trail of ice and golden energy in their path, until they finally got to their destination.

"The oak tree". Zara muttered as they stood on top of the last branch that separated them from the Large natural beauty.

Just like they described it, this tree was large, its diameter twice as those of the others and its canopy spreading far and wide in the air.

Underneath it was a temperature, humid and capable of sustaining any form of life.

They needed to be careful here as the creatures found here were known for their practical capabilities that enabled them to survive for such a long period.

"So, what now?" Alicia asked with a sigh, spinning her staff when a figure crossed her peripheral vision.

"Oh?" Jane muttered as well on recognizing the figure or figures.

Below them, on the mushy surface of the soil, were Team Silver, their gazes fixed on them.

"You decided to stop us yourself?" Jane asked, a chuckle escaping his lips.

"Do you find it that funny?" Monica asked as she gripped her magic staff tighter while Ruth pulled out her broadsword.

"We know we want the same things, but there's only one legendary weapon, so why don't you just offer it up? It's just a hundred points anyway…why do you want it?" Monica asked.

"It's not a matter of whether we want it or not…." Jane replied, a smirk crossing his face as he folded his hands. "Were the gold class, we need to prove that we were at least that capable".

"What?" Monica muttered, a fit of rage boiling within her. "For a reason like that?"

Alicia and Zara also seemed surprised by his statement but remained silent.

"What do you mean for a reason like that? Did you think getting into the gold class was easy? Hah….I'm sure you would know since you couldn't make it yourself even when one of your former classmates did".

His words were filled with venom, enough to provoke anyone.

"I heard you took thirty-first in the entrance exam? That must have sulked for you…..is that why you hate us so much".

This asshole!" Ruth was about to lunge at him when Monica stopped her.

Ruth turned to her to find her shaking her head.

"Sadly for you, Jane, I have no intention of listening to your provocations".

At that moment, Tomaz and Andrej stepped out in front of the group, a devious smirk plastered on their faces.

Tomaz pulled out a piece of paper, a patterned inscription drawn on it and raised it in the air, his gaze fixed on Jane as his smirk widened into a grin.

Jane raised a brow in confusion, turning his attention to the piece of paper.

"Did you think a piece of paper would?" At the same time, he signalled for the girls behind him to go ahead with his fingers behind his back.

Tomaz tore the paper and a sudden, familiar force of energy exploded into the skies and descended down on Jane in a sudden, drastic force. He was pulled to his knees as the force took a drastic hit in his energy reserves causing a nearly suffocating pain to engulf him.

There was a reason why this energy was familiar as it was something akin to dark mana, black and opaque but this seemed more…impure, crimson, unnatural and most especially, demonic.

Jane looked down at Tomaz and Andrej as the rest of Team Silver hurried away, shock evident in his gaze.

"Miasma mana?"