Chapter 14

I woke up to the sound of the bell, went to the restaurant to eat, and then set off. This is the basic cycle of my life.

However, it seems I woke up a bit earlier than usual today. I woke up fine, but it wasn't because of the bell. I decided to go downstairs and see.

"You're up earlier than usual today. The restaurant is probably still preparing breakfast."

The innkeeper, who was cleaning, said this to me. I wonder when she sleeps.

"Is there a good restaurant that's open at this hour?"

I decided to ask just in case. I have enough money, and I want to enjoy a quiet meal at a restaurant other than the one next to the inn (this is important; I don't want to be exposed to the loud voice of the restaurant owner every morning, though I don't go out of my way to avoid it, but I do want to enjoy a quiet meal occasionally).

"I think the restaurant near the guild is a good choice. It's a bit expensive, but it's a restaurant for adventurers with irregular schedules. It's not as good as the one next to the inn, but it's still pretty good. I recommend the adventurer's set meal; the contents vary by day, but it's always a good choice."

The restaurant near the guild, or a set meal place? I decided to go and check it out.

I arrived at the guild. Indeed, one restaurant was open, so I went in. I wasn't sure if it was the one the innkeeper recommended, but there were no other restaurants open, so it was probably this one.

"Welcome!"

I felt a bit betrayed. It was indeed different from the restaurant next to the inn, and the owner was a woman. However, the volume of her voice was no different, and it seemed to be even worse. The owner's voice was lower than a typical woman's, and she looked more masculine with her tall stature and good figure, but she was still a woman. Her voice was higher than the restaurant owner's, so it felt more piercing at the same volume. I wanted my peace of mind back.

"Ah, I'll have the adventurer's set meal, please..."

With my spirits completely down, I ordered the innkeeper's recommended menu. The price was 100 tel. The response, of course, was:

"Here you go!!"

She even added two exclamation marks. I wished she would have been a bit more reserved. As always, the food came out quickly in this world, but it didn't comfort my broken heart. I tried the food. The menu consisted of some kind of stir-fried meat and vegetables and bread. It was indeed better than the inn's restaurant, but not as good. The bread seemed to be the same as the one served at the inn, or maybe even the same. They might be buying from the same bakery.

My stomach was satisfied, even if my heart wasn't, so I paid and left the restaurant.

"Thank you for coming!!!"

That's enough. My life points are already at zero.

I decided to pull myself together and go herb gathering. I planned to gather herbs until midday, then eat and go to pick up my equipment.

Gathering herbs in the forest is indeed a peaceful experience. Thanks to the touch panel, I don't need to be on guard.

I gathered herbs with the anticipation of a good meal. When I found herbs, I ran over, squatted down, and picked them from the root while standing, then moved on to the next one. This process took about 3.5 seconds. I was quite skilled at this, but my speed was slightly slower due to my low spirits.

I continued gathering Zunana grass. After about an hour, I found something interesting.

It was Zunana grass, but not just any Zunana grass. It was about 12 cm long, which would fetch a lower price but could still be sold.

However, there was no ▼ mark. It might not be Zunana grass, but it could still have some use. I decided to identify it without picking it.

Zunana Grass (Immature, Useful)

Description: Immature Zunana grass. Has hemostatic and enhancing effects.

The enhancing effect probably means it makes other medicines more effective when mixed.

If there are useful ones, there might also be useless ones. I wanted to see the useless ones, so I imagined the shape of immature Zunana grass. I decided not to pick immature Zunana grass to avoid over-harvesting small ones.

The number of ▼ marks increased. There were about ten times as many as the Zunana grass. I identified the nearest one that wasn't the one I was looking at.

Zunana Grass (Immature, Useless)

Description: Immature Zunana grass. Causes diarrhea and abdominal pain when ingested orally.

Hmm? Is this the description of Dokuzunana?

However, the identification window says Zunana grass. I don't know what to believe.

Do useless immature Zunana grass turn into Dokuzunana? Or are they a different species that become useful when mature?

Considering the guild doesn't buy Zunana grass under 10 cm, it might be the latter.

Dokuzunana might have started growing with poison due to a sudden mutation and avoided being eaten by animals, leading to its proliferation. I don't know why the stem is square.

Let's stop the speculation here. I came to gather Zunana grass. I changed the ▼ mark display to the image of normal Zunana grass. My spirits seemed to have returned, and my speed increased slightly.

After a few hours of continuous herb gathering, the sun was almost directly overhead, signaling noon.

I sat down and took out bread from my item box. A peaceful meal is indeed a good thing.

The forest, which had been ravaged by the herb-gathering demon just a moment ago, now had a calming atmosphere that soothed my heart.

With my spirits restored, I decided to go back to the guild to pick up my equipment. I climbed the gentle slope of the forest and headed to the guild as usual.

Although Zunana grass doesn't weigh much, it's better to turn it in quickly.

When I entered the guild, Sally was at the counter. One of the two counters was being used by another adventurer, but fortunately, Sally's counter was free.

"Hello, I've come to turn in the herbs. I only gathered until noon, so it's a bit less today."

I said this and took the Zunana grass out of my item box and placed it on the counter. The item box displayed 252.

"Yes, it's less. Just 252. That's 7560 tel."

Sally processed the Zunana grass as usual and handed me the coins. I felt apologetic as I put them in my item box. I should have gathered more. I left the guild with this thought.

I needed to pick up my staff. I headed to the staff shop, the one run by the lolita mage.

"Excuse me, is my staff ready?"

I called out to the lolita mage, who was there.

"Pfft, hahaha..."

Laughing at someone's face is quite rude. I'll let it slide because she's a lolita.

"Ah, sorry, I couldn't help it. Your staff is ready. It only increases your magic speed by 2.5 times, so it's still better to run up close and use it as a melee weapon."

The lolita mage took out a small staff from a box. It was about 20 cm long, straight, and had a size similar to a single nunchaku stick. It was a bit awkward.

"Thank you, that's enough."

I said this and took the staff. It was heavier than it looked, with a seam running down the middle. It probably had an iron core.

I still had some time before I could pick up my armor. I decided to test the staff's power.

I remembered there were some slaying requests at the guild, but I didn't want to spend too much time hunting.

I decided to go into the forest and gather herbs while going a bit deeper. If I found a green dog, I could test my magic on it.

I equipped my shield, grabbed the staff, and went into the forest.

I tried casting a rock spear. It flew much faster than before, probably around 100 km/h.

If I used a staff like the one the lolita mage had, would the magic hit instantly?

I might want to have a longer staff just in case, but I can get one later.

I thought about casting a rock spear directly inside a monster, but it didn't work. Even if part of the generation area overlapped with the monster, it was impossible. It was disappointing, but knowing what doesn't work is also a gain.

I continued gathering herbs with my right hand open. The touch panel detected a green dog. There was only one.

I immediately cast a rock spear at its head. The rock spear, the same size as before, flew much faster but still shattered on impact.

*Crack*

I leveled up. The green dog died in one hit, but from the external injuries, it seemed the increased speed didn't increase the power.

It was getting dark, so I decided to head back to town. My MP had increased by 500.

Name: Suzumiyakae

Age/Race/Gender: 20/Human/Male

Level: 4

HP: 141/141

MP: 2011/2512

STR: 28

INT: 60

AGI: 37

DEX: 49

Skills: Information Manipulation Analysis (Hidden), Complete Foreign Language Mastery (Hidden), Magic Aptitude, Martial Arts Aptitude, Otherworlder (Hidden), All Attribute Affinity (Hidden), Fire Magic 3, Earth Magic 3, Water Magic 3, Pressure Magic 1, Perception Magic 4, Healing Magic 2

Thanks to my increased AGI, I felt I was running faster on the way back to town. I arrived quickly, probably because I didn't go too deep into the forest.

I heard the bell ringing. Perfect timing.

I showed my guild card and entered, heading for the armor shop.

"Hello, I've come to pick up my armor."

"Sure, it's ready. Try it on."

I put on the armor as instructed. It was a typical leather armor, different in structure from the clothes I wore in Japan, but I somehow understood how to equip it.

I put on the leather armor smoothly and checked if I could move in it. It felt comfortable.

"It's fine. It fits well."

"Great, come back if you need anything. Of course, I'll charge you."

"Sure, thanks."

I said this and went back to the inn with the armor equipped. I decided to try something that had been on my mind.

I tried to store the armor I was wearing in my item box. It worked.

Next, I tried to equip the armor directly from the item box without taking it out. It worked.

I could do the same with the shield. This would allow me to move lightly and quickly equip for battle, like a magical girl.

Of course, magical girls have battle gear that also allows for faster movement.

I put all my equipment (except my clothes) in the item box and went to eat.

The restaurant owner's loud voice wasn't as bothersome in the evening. I ate with a relaxed mind, went back to the inn, and went to sleep.

Tomorrow, I'll take on a request to seriously fight monsters.