My Joker System: From Low Mana Trash to the Mightiest Wizard!-Chapter 72: Finally Out

"The hell?"

Hal exited the bushes, scratching his head as he looked in the direction the pebbles were pointing, his brows furrowed.

He hadn’t made an effort to remember every tree, bush, or pebble’s position last night, so he couldn’t really tell what had happened.

It felt like someone had played a prank on him and moved the stones just to make him even more lost than he already was...

However, who the hell would even be in the mood to play pranks in such a dangerous place?

Hal was sure there was something wrong with the Blue Zone.

Maybe that was also why, no matter how hard he had tried yesterday, he couldn’t find his way out.

’Shit...that C-ranked wizard knows what’s up, huh?’

Hal looked at the pebble marker, then at the surroundings, then back at the pebbles again.

’Haah...’ he sighed, fully aware he couldn’t rush things.

’No matter...’

At the very least, once he made it out, he could be sure there would be no bastard waiting for him.

Maybe they’d even think he was already dead...

Returning to his hiding spot to calm himself and eat breakfast with Loki, Hal pondered the matter deeply, coming up with three theories.

The first was that the Blue Zone, at night, caused one to lose their sense of direction, which might explain why he was lost now.

The second was that the zone itself was somehow rotating, which would explain why his pebble markers now pointed in a different direction, though this theory seemed a bit too unrealistic.

And the third and most horrifying was that he was being followed and toyed with by a beast or monster that excelled in illusion magic.

’Shit...’

In any case, he needed to run a few tests to determine which theory was correct before he could have any real chance of finding the exit.

The two finished their meal a few minutes later.

Hal returned his bags to the system’s inventory before exiting the bushes, deciding to follow the path the stone markers were pointing to.

He hoped to know whether he would be able to return to where the blood marks were.

If he succeeded, then it meant that he could, at the very least, use markers to avoid walking in circles.

He would be able to proceed in one direction that way.

No matter how huge the forest was, it most definitely would end somewhere, and as long as he kept on moving in a certain direction, he would inevitably be able to leave the Blue Zone.

As for how many hours or days it would take, Hal could only hope that he would be able to exit where he entered.

And so, Hal and Loki walked back to where they battled the Red Goblins.

He used the same method he did yesterday, advancing a few dozen meters before shifting to the Spirit Sparrow’s vision, moving it along with them until they reached their destination.

To Hal’s delight...

’There it is!’

He would indeed be able to navigate his way out using markers.

Although he still didn’t know why the pebble markings were pointed in a different direction came sunrise, Hal had no intention of investigating too deeply.

All he wanted was to leave this darned place as soon as he could.

’Phew...that’s one step closer to the exit...’ Hal breathed a sigh of relief.

He then shifted his vision to his tiny summon again, surveying the surroundings.

It seemed they were still safe for now...

But Hal didn’t move immediately, pondering instead:

’There should be a way to slowly pinpoint the direction where I entered...’

He now believed that he hadn’t misjudged the distance yesterday and that the closest exit was only thirty to forty minutes away from where he currently was.

Five minutes later, Hal grinned, having thought of a nice plan.

He would head in a certain direction, leaving markers every five minutes. If the regular forest biome still wasn’t in sight after forty minutes of travel, he would return and repeat the process.

This way, he wouldn’t waste time checking a direction he had already explored, since he could turn back just a few minutes after encountering one of his markers.

He would then proceed to check the other directions.

Inevitably, he would stumble upon the exit he was looking for.

Using this method, he’d only be stuck for three days at most.

’Hahaha, not only am I handsome, I’m smart as well. Aihh... once I achieve my goal physique, who could resist my charms?’ Hal mused.

But before he could even think about charming a woman he fancied, he had to escape the Blue Zone.

Without wasting any time, Hal began to execute his plan.

He shifted his focus back to the sparrow, and once he neither saw nor sensed any monsters in the periphery, he proceeded, leaving a marker by drawing a wide line across the path and placing three faintly glowing pebbles in the center every few minutes, sometimes twice every five just to be sure.

Unfortunately, methodical and careful as he was when advancing, beasts and monsters ultimately had sharper senses than humans. ƒrēenovelkiss.com

Hal had to fight a few battles, though nothing he couldn’t handle with a bit of effort.

He had also earned a total of thirty-five Chaos Points in the process.

Fortunately, his earlier assumption that beasts like the Lightning Fox were aplenty in the Blue Zone turned out to be wrong.

He was just unlucky enough to encounter that menace yesterday.

Nonetheless, it seemed that D-ranked monsters and beasts were the weakest residents of this zone, as he had yet to encounter an E-ranked creature.

Hours passed, and Hal’s luck remained as trashy as his mana affinity.

He still hadn’t found the damn exit, despite supposedly being only thirty to forty minutes away from it.

He would’ve had to stay and survive even longer if not for his plan, so he didn’t complain and simply tried again whenever a direction didn’t work.

No matter how garbage one’s luck was, hard work always bore fruit in one way or another.

And so, before night fell, the regular forest biome came into view.

Hal was so happy he could cry if he didn’t think it was a bit lame to do so.

"Hahaha! See that, Loki? We’re out!" He said in a slightly hushed celebration.

Loki barked once in response before suddenly turning to the right, ears twitching.

The cub then darted off.

"W-Wha? Hey! Loki!"

Hal immediately gave chase.

Moments later, he pushed through thick shrubbery, chasing after the suddenly unruly pup.

His eyes then widened as he stepped out the other side and found himself standing a short distance from another of his kind.

A white-haired young woman stared back at him, her face frozen in shock and disbelief.

"H-Hal?"

Updated from fr𝒆ewebnov𝒆l.(c)om