Chapter 20

Stepping onto the shore to dry their clothes, it's convenient that once the equipment is switched, everything returns to normal. I might as well check the durability while I'm at it.

"Kisamara! You pushed it too far~!"

"No, no, it's just your imagination?"

Petoro feigns innocence with a smile.

"I'm so envious of your strong spirit."

"The first one to touch was Ochazuke, right?"

Kikuhime and Shin avoid eye contact with Ochazuke.

"By the way, Petoro, did you set your birthday for April?"

I ask Petoro to change the topic, something I've been curious about.

"It's not that I set it, but I forgot to change it, so it's the default April 1st."

"Hahaha, April Fool's Day!"

"Maybe the compatibility of attributes is determined by your birthday."

"Hmm, what about August?"

"You guys! Don't change the subject so smoothly!"

You noticed!?

"Well, well, the spirit we received as a reward has a recovery effect, so I think it was natural for Ochazuke to get it."

Petoro says with a good smile. I keep quiet, thinking Leo might have healing abilities too.

"Ah, it's true, it's recovery."

"It's a good thing to have more recovery options and people who can heal in emergencies."

Kikuhime and Shin's support seems to have convinced Ochazuke, who grumbles but accepts it. What a relief. I serve them hot coffee to keep everyone in a good mood.

"How is using a spirit different from a spirit user?"

"Um? The explanation says that when the profession is a spirit user, all the abilities the spirit can learn can be used, so I think the spirit will learn more things. Initially, there are few usable abilities, so I think it won't be much different."

Ochazuke answers Leo's question while drinking coffee.

"Our spirits have only learned one ability, right?"

"We got a spirit stone to add abilities, so I think we can add them soon."

Indeed, everyone except Ochazuke received two spirit stones to increase the spirit's abilities. Probably to balance out because Ruru is a strong spirit. Each spirit can only use one stone, but it might be better to keep them until we meet a stronger spirit.

"Wow, it's so convenient."

Ochazuke is in a much better mood now.

We are currently in battle, and in front of us, two deer are engaging in a nasty fight. The male is charmed by Ruru and attacks the female, while the female, in a state of rage, attacks the male. Rage causes indiscriminate attacks, but if they are not retaliated against, they will eventually start fighting each other.

The key to battle is not to build hate with the female. Kikuhime is holding the target of the female to speed up the process, but the male and female are creating a hellish scene on the side. The reason it feels that way is because Ruru uses a seductive technique to charm the male and then puts the female in a rage state.

Why is Ochazuke in such a good mood... Well, maybe it's because the battle is easier.

My level has increased to 21.

I obtained the skill "Quick Attack [Sword]," but I hesitated to allocate points to strength because I've been using a staff for shadow magic and fighting with magic. Instead, I allocated points to dexterity and agility. I also cook, and my movement speed is slow to keep up with Petoro and Leo, so this is fine.

We continued fighting, taking breaks, and gathering materials, then resumed the battle. We planned to avoid battles by judging the strength of the enemies, but we ended up defeating every enemy we encountered.

We gathered herbs and loquats. I might negotiate with Kikuhime to make a loquat tart, or maybe I can do it with the bonus? The cooking method is "Bake," right?

During the first break, I quietly cast "Time Acceleration" on the cheese and brandy. Cooking itself consumes EP, but the cooking skill consumes MP, so it's better to cast it first. With "MP Auto Recovery," our MP will be back to MAX by the time the break ends. I think our party takes more breaks than others because of fishing and gathering, and we use EP to eat rather than eating to recover EP.

At night, a bear appeared. A single Fleur bear... I'll pretend not to notice Ochazuke's dissatisfaction.

With Leo also learning "Ambush," we can easily defeat the bear despite the significant HP loss to Kikuhime. However, because I keep alternating shadows on Petoro and Leo, there's no chance to use other magic or sword skills. As a result, my dark magic has surpassed the levels of some of the spells I learned earlier.

The loot includes bear meat, bear skin, and bear gall. I won't mention what I thought about bear paws.

Petoro found iron sand in the river sand, so we took a break to gather and mine. We continued fighting until around 8 PM and then prepared dinner.

Since we had meat for lunch, we changed the barbecue grill to a flat iron and made trout with coarse breadcrumbs and herbs, topped with watercress and lemon. The side dishes were roasted onions and peppers with "Time Acceleration." I also served bread, salad, and coffee to everyone.

The bread, with two bonuses and low ingredient levels, surprisingly received a rating of 9. Could this be the first dish to get a rating of 10?

"I want white wine!"

No problem. I serve white wine and beer in response to Kikuhime's request.

Incidentally, after peeling the grapes to make white wine once, I can select the added white wine recipe, and the grapes remain in my inventory. Also, it seems that even if I cook without using the "Cooking" skill, the dish will still be made as long as the main ingredients are present, even if a few ingredients are missing. The amount doesn't matter either. That's why my specialty, "Fish [Bake]," is benefiting from the bonus.

"Let's eat."

The rating is higher than 5!

"Wow!"

"Itadakimasu."

"Yay."

"Looks delicious."

"Food~"

"The white wine is great."

"Kikuhime, you're showing your true self."

"It's just your imagination."

"I'm not good at cooking fish, but this is crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and it's delicious."

"The bread is amazing."

"Swallow before you speak!"

Ochazuke tries to give Leo an educational lecture. Yes, I think the bread is especially delicious due to the outdoor effect, which increases the taste by 20%. It's a bit noisy, but meals with everyone are delicious.

"Let's grill meat again during the day. We still have some roast. Or maybe okonomiyaki. I'll check how to cook bear meat while logged out."

"You don't have to force yourself to eat bear."

After serving seconds a few times, I worry a little about the vegetables and other ingredients for later. I bought more than I thought, but at this rate, it might be tight. I might make salt-grilled trout by the campfire for one meal. Ah, I've been making cheese, so I should check how to make butter. I write it in my mental notes and serve dessert.

"Nut pound cake."

"Sounds good."

"I want ice cream as a side dish."

I have whipped cream, but...

"There's a recipe for ice cream and sherbet with berry jam at the restaurant, but it's expensive. I thought it was 2,100, but it was 21,000. I think this recipe might teach me how to freeze things. I failed to make rare cheese, so there might be a recipe to learn how to refrigerate things. Incidentally, whipped cream worked with 'Mix.'"

I've checked recipes from levels 6 to 8 at the market, but from level 6, there are three circles at the end. Level 6 is "Bake," level 7 is "Stir-fry," and level 8 is "Fry," so I can already make variations thanks to my specialty and haven't bought them.

Recipes from levels 9 to 11 are sold at the restaurant, but since I haven't learned them, I don't know what cooking methods they teach. I want the level 9 recipe for corn soup. It costs 9,000 silver.

After a noisy dinner, we sit around the fire. With everyone present, monsters won't come near. We chat while crafting.

I'm considering whether to start alchemy. I bought the recipe and have the materials.

But I wonder if I have a specialty in alchemy? Shadow magic doesn't consume much MP at level 1, and thanks to Ochazuke's precise healing, automatic recovery is enough, so I have plenty of potions. I'll try it when we return to town.

According to Ochazuke's information, if you learn from residents with titles like "Master" or "Craftsman," what you learn is prioritized. If I start alchemy now, I might end up using the first HP potion I make.

Well, what should I do? Cooking consumes materials, and going to gather at night alone is dangerous, but...

"I'm going to gather."

"It's dangerous."

"If you die, you'll be sent back to the fast travel point."

"Want to come with?"

"No, I'll cast shadow on you. Bears are active, but since we can hide during battles, it should work on the enemies around here. Gathering will cancel it, but with presence detection, I should be fine if I'm careful."

"I see."

"There might be something that can only be gathered at night, like Yorimas, but the location is different, so I can't come with you."

"Kikuhime, are you coming?"

"Hmm, I'll process the skin. I want you to take me tomorrow night."

"Understood, I'll go then."

"Be careful."

"Log out in two hours and come back."

With everyone's voices behind me, I start walking. The map and night vision are convenient. I'm heading east with the river at my back. Even if I don't find gathering points, I don't mind filling in the map. It's rare to walk alone in the night forest. The moon visible through the branches is beautiful, and the shadows of the trees cast by the moonlight are also beautiful.

The moon, which looked yellow on the first login night, now looks golden. The small, distant white moon and the large, shining golden moon create a fantastical otherworld.

In this world, a year is the month of Fal, starting in April, and it cycles through the months of Fal and Tasha, with the months guarded by two deities in between.

Sometime in March, the color of the white moon changes without a fixed date. From April to June, it's golden; from July to September, it's red; from October to December, it's yellow; and from January to March, it's orange. Scholars are trying to understand the relationship with magic, but so far, it's only known that the color-changing moon activates the guardian of the month and makes it easier to encounter the guardian's spirit.

I matched the months to April and May, but the actual names are the month of Fal and the month of Val, and I only remember the first few. ...Yeah, when I return to town, I'll buy that book, even if it's a bit expensive.

I see bears quite often, but they don't seem to notice me. I move downwind if I detect them with presence detection, but does it really work? As a result, my route keeps shifting north.

I found something before the gathering point. Well, I found the gathering point too. I send a group message to everyone.

Homura: Sorry, I found another spirit. Can you come in about 30 minutes?

Ochazuke: Where are you?

A short reply from Ochazuke. It's hard to explain the location!

Homura: About 20 degrees north of the river from there?

Should I go back once? But this spirit is moving, and I'm not sure I can find it again.

The spirit disappears and reappears about 10 meters away, bathes in the moonlight for a while, dances gently, and then moves again. After the spirit dances, "High-quality herbs" grow, which seem to be gathering points.

The dance creates gathering points every other circle, and now it's the fourth one, with sparkling points mixed in. It might alternate with mining points.

I gather the "High-quality herbs" and chase the spirit-like being for a while, then I get a reply from Ochazuke.

Ochazuke: It's probably impossible, so just go ahead~

Well, it's 30 minutes away, and the location is uncertain. So I approach the spirit.

Is it a spirit? It's not a monster marker from presence detection. I'm worried about suddenly entering battle, but the spirit has already noticed me, and the party display disappears.

"Bathing in the colored moonlight"

"Dancing in the night forest"

"I play in all the night forests"

"I leave all the morning forests"

"Dance that is only shown to the colored moon"

"Who are you who saw my form?"

The featureless but beautiful young girls. In the center, a beautiful woman with glowing white skin and jet-black hair floats. Her skin stands out because it's white, but on closer inspection, her hair and overall appearance glow white.

I recognize this light.

"My name is Homura."

"You have a fragment of my power within you, don't you?"

"There should be no spirit repository in the land of humans now."

"Ah, I can also sense a fragment of my other half."

"I like that you came alone, I dislike noise."

"Very well, I will bless you."

With that, the goddess of darkness and her followers disappear.

Is it the goddess of darkness...?

[Title [Verna's Blessing] obtained]

[Dark Magic changed to Dark Magic]

As soon as the announcement was made, I received messages from Ochazuke and the others.

Ochazuke: Did you die?

Petoro: It's pitiful for a hero to die.

Shin: At the temple?

Leo: Hahaha

Kikuhime: Did you die?

I'll ignore Leo and let them know I'm safe, even though I was removed from the party during the event. What did I get from the blessing?

□ □ □ □ □

・Increase・

Level +1

Title

[Verna's Blessing]

[Dark Magic] → [Dark Magic]

Skill

[Sword]

□ □ □ □ □

Homura Lv.21

Rank D

Profession: Magic Swordsman, Alchemist

HP: 566

MP: 732

STR: 32

VIT: 22

INT: 42

MID: 16

DEX: 14

AGI: 21

LUK: 12

NPCP: [Galahad][－]

Title

■General

[Communicator][Circulating Power][Mystery Solver]

■Blessings of the Gods

[Val's Blessing][Verna's Blessing]

Skill (1SP)

■Magic

[Wood Magic Lv.3][Fire Magic Lv.5][Earth Magic Lv.3]

[Gold Magic Lv.4][Water Magic Lv.3][☆Wind Magic Lv.3]

[Light Magic Lv.2][☆Dark Magic Lv.4]

■Sword Skills

[Sword Skills Lv.8][Slash]

[Sword Lv.1]

■Summoning

[White Lv.1]

■Spirit Skills

Water Spirit [Rufa Lv.1]

■Talent

[Body Skills]

■Production

[Alchemy Lv.1][Alchemy Alchemy Lv.1][Cooking Lv.4]

■Gathering

[Gathering]

■Appraisal & Concealment

[Item Appraisal Lv.3][Plant Food Appraisal Lv.4]

[Animal Monster Appraisal Lv.4][Skill Appraisal Lv.2]

[Weapon Armor Appraisal Lv.2]

[Presence Detection Lv.3][Presence Dilution Lv.3]

■Enhancement

[Strength Enhancement Lv.2][Intelligence Enhancement Lv.4][Spirit Enhancement Lv.2]

[Dexterity Enhancement Lv.2][Agility Enhancement Lv.2]

[Sword Skills Enhancement Lv.3][Magic Enhancement Lv.2]

■Other

[HP Natural Recovery][MP Natural Recovery][Night Vision][Map][Telepathy]

[Equipment Change]