Insect Tamer's Ascension Chapter 518. I will trigger the trap intentionally

"An easier path will definitely have more traps," Osric commented, making the red-haired girl stop.

"So you expect us to take the east route, Osric?" she asked, making Osric merely shrug.

Varelya gritted her teeth. It almost felt like Osric was intentionally trying to piss her off.

"We should just leave the chest behind, take everything inside it, and carry the items ourselves," Theo suggested.

This time, however, the red-haired girl didn’t even stop walking.

"Just carry the whole chest. That’s the mission," she replied as they finally reached the forest’s entrance.

Theo picked up the chest and quickly realized that while it wasn’t particularly heavy, its weird shape forced him to hold it at a tilted angle.

Osric glanced back and smiled after noticing Theo’s sword.

’This guy is smart. He knows I shouldn’t be the one carrying this chest since I’m a swordsman too...’ Theo thought.

Everything seemed to be progressing according to what Theo had expected, yet at the same time, it was as if Osric’s remarks were starting to make even more sense than his own.

A few minutes later, they arrived at a crossroads.

The split looked natural. Theo observed the eastern path first. There was barely any proper trail in that direction, with thick roots jutting out of the ground and trees packed tightly in random patterns.

The western path, on the other hand, had a faint walking trail that stretched far into the distance; at least it looked that way as he observed it.

As he focused further, Theo noticed that the west path gradually curved to the right.

"Can I take a look at the map, Miss Varelya?" Theo asked.

Valerya looked at him for a moment with an expression that literally screamed, ’You disturb me too much.’

’Yeah... she really isn’t made for leadership,’ Theo thought, wanting to chuckle out loud, though he knew it would completely ruin the group’s already weak synergy.

"We are taking the west path now. Stay vigilant, and make sure to protect the dummy with your lives," she ordered.

Theo examined their formation and quickly realized she hadn’t arranged anything at all.

They were simply moving randomly.

It was Rhevard who was carrying the dummy, and he moved to the center of the group so that the others could protect the dummy as well.

Theo stayed right behind him in the formation, positioned behind the girl who already seemed to have developed tunnel vision.

She moved forward so slowly that it could barely be counted as walking. Her every step felt hesitant, as though she was scared of triggering a trap the moment her foot touched the ground.

"Trap ten steps ahead," Theo warned. "There’s a thin rope line camouflaged with the ground."

The entire group turned to look at him, noticing his sharp gaze fixed on the forest floor.

Varelya squinted her eyes ahead and cautiously stepped closer. Only after taking a few steps forward did she crouch down and spot the nearly invisible rope stretched just above the ground.

Theo moved ahead and traced where the line led, only to find out that it was tied around trees on both sides.

But after being wrapped around the trunks, the rope extended upward toward a higher branch, and that was when Theo noticed several daggers hanging overhead.

"There." He pointed upward, making everyone follow his gaze.

"From what I can tell, if someone touches this rope and snaps it, those daggers would rain down on the team members at the back of the formation. That means Sir Rhevard and I, since he is holding the dummy," Theo explained.

Osric let out a small sound of realization and clapped his hands, only for Theo to quickly motion a hand sign toward him.

"We have already learned hand signs in the first year," Theo said quickly. "It would be better if we either talk slowly or use hand signs instead, Sir Osric."

Psric simply smiled and nodded as if he didn’t mind being corrected like this.

Varelya, on the other hand, stared at the rope while biting hard on her lower lip. Theo could clearly sense her frustration.

"...If you have experience with traps, then you should be the one moving ahead, Theo Merrick," she said reluctantly.

Theo responded with a respectful nod.

She clearly wasn’t suited to be the leader and had an aggressive personality, but even so, she was still willing to take the right decision instead of succumbing to her ego like Theo had expected.

"I will see what else I can find," Theo said. "But for now, I am curious about this trap. Shall we trigger it safely?"

A smile appeared on his face as he stepped closer to the thin rope.

He glanced back at the group—one ridiculous face, one amused, one completely nonchalant and the last hard to read.

"I say we go for it," Osric said as he walked over to Theo in approval. Soon, Rhevard followed as well.

The man said little, and Theo still couldn’t read his eyes, but he was cooperative enough.

The nonchalant girl clearly just wanted to get this over with, so she joined the trio too, leaving the red-haired girl staring at them with a look that screamed, ’Yeah, this is too weird. You are too weird.’

Still, she eventually moved closer and carefully stepped over the rope herself.

Once everyone was safely out of the trap’s range, Theo triggered it.

The moment his boot barely touched the rope, he felt like it was hard at contact.

The rope snapped within seconds, then rapidly whipped around the tree under Theo’s special gaze.

As it rose toward the branch, the daggers hanging above tilted downward and fell at varying angles.

When they struck the ground, two out of five landed dead center and buried themselves slightly into the ground, while the others bounced away harmlessly.

Theo felt like he had gained genuine insight into how the trap worked, and for the first time, he found himself wanting to learn to make them as well.

It felt like an invaluable skill.

And more than that, it reminded him of a nostalgic memory from the Viper Territory within the Whispering Forest.