Chapter 16

The next day, Thor and Sora headed deep into the forest as usual.

As Sora greeted the guards cheerfully while passing through the outer gate, the guards on duty for the afternoon exchanged glances and awkwardly turned away, suggesting that the events of last night had already become a topic of gossip.

After walking along the forest trail for about two and a half hours, they arrived deep in the forest just before noon.

From there, they started hunting goblins and managed to take down three groups in about two hours, after which they took a break for lunch.

They continued hunting, taking a five-minute break every hour, and after three hours, they had taken down four more groups before taking a longer break to recover their magic and stamina.

"Today, we'll hunt a big one at the end."

"Oh? A big one?"

"Yes, it's quite large in a certain sense."

"That sounds exciting! Yeah, I'm full! I'm ready to go anytime."

After finishing her apple snack, Sora stood up energetically.

"How's your magic?"

"Yeah, I'm fully recovered."

"Then, as usual, let's start by observing first."

"Okay, I'll watch carefully."

Thor headed towards a spot where the sun shone brightly through the gaps in the trees, picking up fallen branches along the way.

Upon closer inspection, the branches of the surrounding trees were stripped of their leaves.

The area was bright, apparently due to this.

In the sunlit patch at the base of the trees, two large green masses lay horizontally.

They were about as tall as an adult's thigh and had a long, flat body.

Their girth was probably just about the size that could be held with both hands.

The most striking feature was the white fur covering their light green bodies, which extended seamlessly from head to toe.

Sora, who had been watching from the shade, hesitantly spoke the correct answer.

"......Caterpillars?"

"Yeah, they're called giant caterpillars."

"Uh, yeah. They are indeed big."

While looking at the monsters, which were over a hundred times the size of ordinary caterpillars, Sora muttered.

"Do they have poison or something?"

"Yeah, they do."

"Like, do they shoot venom or something?"

"Not exactly. When you hit them, the poisonous spines fall out."

"Ugh, how do you defeat them?"

"You just have to endure and beat them to death."

Thor, who had covered his neck and head with a handkerchief to hide as much of his skin as possible, boldly approached the monsters.

The giant caterpillars, which had been completely still, immediately raised their heads and started moving as soon as they sensed an intruder in their territory.

They approached in a menacing manner, but not particularly fast.

Thor took a step back and struck the head of one of them.

White poisonous spines flew into the air.

He swung his wooden sword at another one coming from the side, causing more spines to fly.

While deflecting the spines with his wooden sword, Thor continued to circle around without stopping.

However, the fine, poisonous spines had already entered through the collar and sleeves of his clothes.

Intense itching attacked Thor's neck and wrists.

Enduring the urge to scratch fiercely, Thor focused his attacks on the heads of the giant caterpillars, where the nerve centers were located.

He ran around in the space filled with flying spines, enduring the intense itching while striking with his sword.

The giant caterpillars moved slowly but were highly durable.

He repeatedly cut into the wounds, gradually slicing through the flesh.

Sometimes using <Restoration> when he couldn't endure, and sometimes receiving support from Sora, Thor finally managed to defeat the two giant caterpillars after nearly thirty minutes of continuous attacks.

"Haa... Haa... Man, it's itchy!"

"Are you okay, Thor? Oh, should I apply the mushroom medicine?"

"No, I'm fine."

Using the seventh full-body <Restoration>, Thor finally took a breather.

He had chosen this monster to train in using <Restoration> quickly during battles, but it was still a formidable opponent.

However, he had grasped some of the techniques, and most importantly, the giant caterpillars provided a great reward after being defeated.

"Phew, I almost used up all my <Restoration>."

"Good job. Wow, they're pretty big when you see them up close."

"These guys are really troublesome with their poison, but their meat is actually quite delicious."

"Oh, that green steak!"

The meat of the giant caterpillars, though somewhat suspicious in appearance, had very little odor.

It was rich in umami and had a texture similar to ham, making it a popular ingredient.

Thor carefully removed the poisonous spines from his clothes and returned to the shade where their belongings were placed.

He brought a bundle of collected branches and a flint to the giant caterpillars.

Thor skillfully stacked the branches and started a fire using a loosened hemp rope as kindling.

"It's hot, Thor. Why are you making a fire? Oh, I get it. You're going to cook them now!"

"We're burning off the fur. Here, help me."

Sora, handed a burning branch, pressed it against the caterpillar's back, mimicking Thor.

They carefully burned off the poisonous fur, making sure it didn't spread to the surrounding area.

In less than twenty minutes, the giant caterpillars had transformed into giant roasted caterpillars.

While Sora was extinguishing the fire by covering it with soil, Thor approached the monsters and kicked them over.

He then stabbed their abdomens with a knife to drain the blood and pulled out green, lump-like objects.

"This is the poison gland, the part we need to defeat. Be careful not to break it; it can cause a severe rash on the skin."

"Uh-huh. So, what about the meat?"

Sora, with a face that looked like she was about to drool, watched the dead caterpillars with the blood drained.

Having grown up in the countryside, she had no aversion to eating insects.

"Of course, we'll take it back. Why do you think I borrowed that thing?"

"Oh, that thing? I thought it was for me to ride on when I got tired."

"No way. You'll be the one pulling it."

Thor, who had playfully nudged Sora, lifted a long, flat board that was leaning against the base of a tree.

It was about as tall as his navel and as wide as his shoulders.

Short boards were attached to the sides to prevent the load from falling off.

Two sliding boards were attached to the bottom, and a thick leather rope was tied to the front for pulling.

It was a sled, sized perfectly for a child to ride on.

Thor lifted the sled and brought it to the monsters, placing it upside down for some reason.

In the middle of the underside, a silver, disc-shaped object was embedded.

Next, Thor took out a small, transparent stone from a pouch on his belt.

It was a magic stone that had just come from the goblins they had defeated earlier.

Thor loosened the screw in the center of the disc, inserted the magic stone into the gap, and securely fixed it.

The moment he returned it to its original position, Sora let out an exclamation of amazement.

The sled was floating slightly in the air.

"Wow, this is amazing! It's floating, Thor!"

"It's called a repulsion plate. Okay, hold the legs for me."

Thor forced the short legs of the giant caterpillar, which was lying sideways, onto the sled.

He then pulled the other one up and placed it on top.

"Oh, it's touching the ground."

"Let's try pulling it."

"Leave it to me. Hey! Wait, what?"

Sora, who had handed her staff to Thor and pulled the leather rope with all her might, stumbled forward due to the unexpected lightness.

Although the sled looked heavier than Sora, it felt as light as a single child when pulled.

"Wow, it's so light. How does it work?"

"It repels the ground. The magic stone only lasts about an hour, so we need to hurry."

While keeping an eye on their surroundings, the two started pulling the sled towards the town.

They stopped a couple of times to change the magic stone and to let a cart carrying wood pass by, but they managed to reach the outer gate before sunset.

The guard, Karlus, who looked relieved, exchanged his usual banter with Thor, who raised his hand in greeting.

The other, older guard remained silent and turned away.

Pulling the sled with the caterpillars across the square, the two finally reached the Adventurer's Guild.

Enna, the receptionist, who was no longer flustered, efficiently completed the appraisal.

Today's earnings were 420 copper coins from 17 goblins and 8 magic stones, plus 40 copper coins from the two giant caterpillars. The skill points earned were the same as for the goblins, 2 points each.

Additionally, the sale of the poison glands fetched 1 large copper coin, making the total 6 large copper coins and 60 copper coins.

Next, they pulled the sled, now without magic, to the buyback shop.

Sargon, the clerk with a horn on his forehead, greeted them happily.

"Oh, Thor. You've got a big catch today."

"One is for sale entirely, and the other, just half."

"Understood."

They also returned the borrowed sled and received a bundle of the heavy, green meat, which sold for 1 large copper coin per caterpillar, earning them 1 large copper coin and 50 copper coins.

The rental fee for the sled was 1 medium copper coin.

Since the magic stones were found, their cash earnings for the day were 7 large copper coins and 60 copper coins.

They also had five bundles of bitter herbs, five spotted mushrooms, and three 10th-grade magic stones, as well as a bag full of giant caterpillar meat.

"Is this meat different from what we brought?"

Sora, looking at the meat that had been disassembled and wrapped in leaves, asked curiously.

Thor, recalling the same question he had when he first became an adventurer, slightly relaxed his lips.

"Mostly, it's from the day before or the day before that. Apparently, the meat becomes more flavorful when left for a bit."

The buyback shop receives most of its deliveries in the evening, so they first disassemble the monsters and remove the organs.

Then, they hang them in the warehouse overnight and proceed with skinning and cutting the meat the next day, as Thor had learned from a close staff member.

"So, if no one hunted anything yesterday, there wouldn't be any meat?"

"That's quite common."

While it's rare in the Goblin Forest, it's a common occurrence in deeper areas where fewer adventurers venture.

"In such cases, you receive a voucher. With this voucher, you can exchange for the item when it becomes available."

"Wow, it's well thought out."

Vouchers are not only used when the item is unavailable but also when ordering equipment. By handing over the voucher, you can get a discount on the materials, and the store, which usually has to bid for materials at wholesale markets, can exchange them at a fixed price, making the system very useful.

"Let's hurry back and get the meat cooked, Thor."

"Not so fast. We have a stop to make today."

"Where are we going?"

"Yeah, we have a lot of meat. They'll definitely be happy."

"Who are 'they'? Thor's friends?"

Thor, smiling slyly at Sora's question, started walking with a slightly excited pace.