Chapter 9

It seems my fighting style isn't that of a mage. Perhaps there's some kind of cheat-like benefit from my transfer to this world, beyond just my stats? Or maybe the high stats are the result of a cheat that makes this fighting style possible? I can't tell which, but it doesn't really matter. There don't seem to be any drawbacks, so I'll just be grateful for it. If anything, it makes me stand out.

I'll go with a magic swordsman vibe. Since Dovelaug is making me a weapon, I don't need to focus on one thing, so I can increase my options with both sword skills and magic. Variety is key, and a barrage is power. I want to be able to set up a barrage someday. I can't properly perform sword techniques yet, but from handling a shield, I feel like I have some potential.

"Ah, maybe it's because you have both magical and martial talent?"

"Indeed, I've never heard of someone with both. Still, something feels off with the Zunana grass too... Are you hiding something?"

"I'm not hiding anything! Ah, Zunana grass! Zunana grass! I brought Zunana grass! Here it is!"

I don't want to continue this topic. I might slip and say something weird. To change the subject, I take out a bundle of Zunana grass from my item box. The number "697" is written in the bottom right corner of the photo of the Zunana grass. Since I can't take it all out at once, I do it in three batches and place it on the counter. Sally looked at me suspiciously, but when she saw the bundle of herbs, her expression changed to one of resignation.

"697 stems. I won't comment. I won't comment. When talking to Kaede, I'll just throw common sense out the window. You're in this state at 20, I wonder what you'll be like at 30..."

She brought the box she used to check the herbs last time. I wondered how she counted them. Maybe there's a magic herb counter in the counter. Only in the counter.

"Yes, all Zunana grass. That's 20,910 tel. By the way, you said you defeated a Green Wolf. The Green Wolf hunt is a standing quest. The reward is only 10 tel per wolf, but if you show me your guild card, I can process the payment. If you have the corpse, I can buy that too. The materials will be processed at the other counter."

Sally pointed to the buyback window. That's about 2.1 million yen! You can become rich just from herbs.

If they buy this much at the same price, the Zunana grass shortage must be pretty serious. Or maybe it's the kind of thing where more is always better, even if there isn't a shortage.

"Ah, please."

I handed her my guild card.

"Six. Weren't there five?"

Sally looked at me with a glare. Even a beautiful blonde girl with blue eyes looks good with a glare...

"Ah, one attacked me on the way back."

"I see. Please place the corpses at the other counter."

I placed the seven Green Wolf corpses on the counter, including the charred ones. Three were charred, and four were in good condition.

"...One more?"

The glare is beautiful. I'm not a glare fetishist, but beautiful things are beautiful.

"I defeated one before registering with the guild."

"I see. The charred ones won't sell. You might be able to eat them if you skin and cook them, but they won't sell. The others are fresh, so I'll buy them for 200 tel each. If you don't want them, I can dispose of them. What do you want to do?"

I can use fire magic to cook them in an emergency, and my item box still has plenty of space. I'll keep them.

Skinning and cooking sounds pretty scary for a girl, but maybe it's not that cruel in this world.

"I'll take the charred ones back."

"Understood. The total is 21,770 tel. It's a decent amount, but since you have an item box with that much capacity, you don't need to deposit it with the guild."

Sally handed me two gold coins, one silver coin, and 77 copper coins with a smile. I didn't count, but when I put them all in my inventory, it went from 68 to 145, so it's probably correct. I kind of miss the glare.

"Thank you. See you again."

"Yes, please come again."

I thanked her and left the guild. I didn't feel a chill when I went to the guild, but maybe it was just a coincidence?

While walking to the restaurant, I thought about whether I had been too dismissive of combat, even though I had only been gathering herbs.

I have a shield and plan to get a sword, or at least buy a regular one if the one being tempered isn't ready by tomorrow.

But my main weapon is still magic. However, I'm just using spells I made up on the spot.

My MP exceeded 2000 after yesterday's level-up, and my natural recovery is over 2 per minute. With that much magic power, it seems wasteful to only use spells that don't consume MP.

While it's convenient to be able to cast spells without worrying about MP, I still want strong spells that consume MP.

Teleportation would be useful to escape danger, but I have a feeling I can't use it. Even if I could, I'm afraid of failing.

I don't want to end up "trapped in a stone" or something.

So, I need to figure out what spells I can use. I'll experiment in a shallow part of the forest tomorrow since it's already dark today.

I arrived at the restaurant while thinking.

"Welcome!"

The usual high energy. There were only two other customers, probably because it was late.

A large man with a greatsword and another man with a metal shield and spear were chatting. The armor was leather, but otherwise, they looked like knights. I couldn't hear what they were talking about from here, and I don't have a habit of eavesdropping.

Hmm? Identifying random people? Well, it's just for statistical information, not to remember individuals.

"One Green Wolf set meal."

"Coming right up!"

In a regular restaurant, they might say "Certainly" or something. I don't know how they prepare it so quickly, but it's better to get good food fast.

The menu only has Orc set, Gargon set, and Green Wolf set, so maybe the limited options are why it's so fast.

I quickly finished my usual Green Wolf set and left the restaurant. It's only been two days, but this is already my routine.

I returned to my room at the inn. I'm unusually tired today. I'll go to bed early.

Come to think of it, I've never heard the noon or 6 PM bells in this town. Maybe that's why the restaurant is empty at this time.

I woke up to the sound of the bell. Since I've earned some money, I plan to get some equipment today. I'll pay for three days of lodging just in case I run out of money. If I do, I can always go herb gathering again.

Even if I don't plan to fight right away, I need to be prepared for combat when necessary.

I went to the restaurant, ate a Green Wolf set, and put the bread in my item box.

I was told to go to the blacksmith today, but it might not be open this early. It looks like regular stores are still preparing to open.

So, I'll develop some magic. I want as many attack spells as possible, especially high-damage spells and ones that can hit multiple targets, and maybe some for detection. I'm not sure what detection spells would look like, but maybe wind magic?

I'll think about what spells to use while heading deeper into the forest. I'll stop after walking for about five minutes. The plains on the other side of town have too good a view, and going too deep into the forest might lead to another incident like yesterday. I need to go to the blacksmith today, so I don't plan to stay too late.

I'll start with water magic. There's a risk of fire spreading when studying fire magic, and I want to have a fire-extinguishing spell.

Water magic doesn't seem very powerful, but maybe it can be useful for drowning enemies.

I'll keep my stats visible and consider MP consumption while researching.

I don't think less MP consumption is always better. The power of a spell seems to increase with higher MP consumption, so a spell with low MP consumption, no matter how strong it looks, won't have much power.

The reason a fireball with the same MP consumption as a stone spear can almost one-shot a Green Wolf on a direct hit is probably because the burn damage from a direct hit is magical, while the subsequent burning is a physical phenomenon.

When a stone spear hits a Green Wolf, it shatters but doesn't disappear.

I'll try a water spray like when I extinguished the Green Wolf. It's like a fire hose from an Earth fire truck, but it consumes 1 MP every 3 seconds.

The fuel efficiency is... mediocre. It's fine for me, but a regular mage wouldn't last 2 minutes.

I tried to increase the power by imagining a thicker hose. The diameter doubled.

The MP consumption also increased by about four times. I wondered how thick I could make it, but the MP consumption never exceeded 10 per second, and the water pressure decreased when I tried to make it thicker. Maybe there's a limit to the instantaneous output of magic power?

After the water magic experiment, I still have about 90% of my MP left. A regular mage would run out of MP in 2-3 seconds, but I can manage for about 3 minutes.

I heard that running out of MP only prevents you from using magic, with no other drawbacks. Otherwise, regular people with only 10 MP would be in trouble.

Since I can extinguish fires now and the ground is wet, I'll try to develop a high-power fire spell... but I'm a bit scared, so I'll skip it.

I want to know how to use high-power spells, though. I imagined creating a fireball and adding more magic power.

The image of adding magic power came easily, maybe because of my magical aptitude. I stopped adding magic power after consuming about 3 MP. There was no visible change, but I was using about four times the usual magic power.

I tested it by hitting the ground far away. The explosion radius seemed wider than usual. I tried hitting the same spot with a regular fireball, and it was indeed wider, about 1.6 times. If I need to, I can pour all my magic power into this and destroy everything, but I'd be caught in the blast if I'm too close.

I wondered if I could use the fireball as a light source and tried to move it, but the MP consumption increased rapidly as it moved away.

The distance where the fireball and stone spear are generated is about 30 cm from my body (it's not hot, but I don't feel like sticking my hand in). The further it moves, the more MP it consumes, and at 60 cm, the consumption was about eight times higher.

This is a bit inconvenient. It's not practical for regular use.

It's powerful enough for a surprise attack, but with MP consumption over 10 per second, it's too slow. I'm not sure when to use it.

...Hmm?