Chapter 4

"Haa~ Fanyarash, I'm already tired."

"Who is Fanyarash?"

We had crossed a vast grassland and were now walking on a road that seemed to be artificially created. It had already been more than a few hours in total.

My level had increased by one after defeating the goblin. It was the first time I had killed a large creature, but I didn't feel much disgust, so I guess I'm that kind of person. During our journey, I talked with Noelle and learned various pieces of information. It seemed that a lot of knowledge had been imparted to me when I was summoned.

First, my smartphone. I was worried about the battery, but it seemed that the mana in the air of this world was replenishing it, so there was no need to worry.

Next, that goblin. It was a monster, and in this world, it was treated like a harmful beast. When it died, it dropped items, just like in a game.

Then, the gacha. The current GC gacha apparently doesn't drop R, SR, or SSR units. That means only UR units. Instead, it contains items that didn't exist, like a camp set or a book of languages.

And about myself. In GC, there was a protagonist unit. It seems I am identified as that protagonist unit. The protagonist unit can change its title, which alters its special abilities, and I have those abilities. Initially, my title is "Leader," which increases all stats of allied units by 10%.

"Indeed. We've managed to get on the road, so shall we camp here for the night?"

"Great! I'm already exhausted from the unfamiliar armor and all."

With Noelle's permission, we decided to end today's journey here. However, we didn't have any camping equipment. When I asked her, she told me to take out the camp set from the item list on my smartphone.

"Wow, this is convenient."

---

● Camp Set

A familiar camping set.

It's a disposable item that disappears after a day, so you can use it with peace of mind.

---

Tapping the camp set, light overflowed from my smartphone, and it began to materialize. It was too flashy; it would be hard to use this in a town. It would draw too much attention. What came out was a triangular tent and firewood. It even included a fire starter, so camping shouldn't be a problem. But disposable? Seriously?

"Hopefully, we can find a carriage along the way."

"Haha, I doubt it will be that convenient."

There was even a chair, so I sat down and took a breather. Phew, so much has happened in just one day, and I'm exhausted. I glanced at Noelle, who seemed fascinated by the tent, exclaiming "Wow" as she entered it. She's so free-spirited... But being with her is quite relaxing, and I'm grateful she was the first to appear. If it had been someone in heavy armor, I don't know what would have happened.

"Muu! This is delicious! I might get spoiled!"

"Wow, I didn't expect such delicious food to come from the gacha..."

We decided to have dinner as night fell. It wasn't a cold season, and the occasional breeze felt nice. The food came from the gacha.

---

● Food (10 uses remaining)

Randomly provides one meal.

The dishes disappear as soil after use.

---

One item provided ten meals. This was very convenient. I used two to get meals for Noelle and me. Out came stew, bread, and drinking water. I was worried about how the food from the gacha would taste, but it was surprisingly delicious. Noelle, upon tasting it, immediately started shouting, "Wow!"

---

"Lord Ohtsuka, you noticed?"

"Huh? What? Is it time to switch?"

"I want you to wake up, not be half-asleep..."

After dinner, we chatted for a while, but since we planned to start moving early tomorrow, we decided to take turns sleeping. I suggested she sleep first, but she said I should because I was weaker and not used to it... How embarrassing. Just as I was about to drift off, Noelle called out to me.

"A little ways away, there are sounds of a struggle. It's probably a monster and a human."

Straining my ears, I could indeed hear what sounded like a monster's roar. I shook off my drowsiness. We had set up camp a bit away from the road. From the direction of the sound, it seemed the struggle was on the road.

"Hmm, they're being attacked."

"Indeed. And there are orcs as well."

We crouched low and approached, hiding in the grass. Ahead, a middle-aged man with a sword was facing off against the monsters, protecting a carriage. He looked more like an adventurer than a knight. Between the carriage and the man, a young man was holding a dagger, trembling.

The monsters consisted of ten goblins and two large creatures, about two meters tall, with pig-like heads. They were orcs, as Noelle said. There were signs that they had been resting by a fire, and they were attacked during their camp.

"Alright, let's help. Noelle, take the orcs. I'll handle the goblins."

"Understood!"

The tutorial goblin fight was easy, and I thought Noelle could handle the orcs. Normally, it would be wrong to push the harder job onto a woman, but I was much weaker than Noelle, so it couldn't be helped.

"Please step back! We'll take care of them!"

We jumped out of the grass and shouted to draw the monsters' attention. The middle-aged man, initially stunned, quickly led the young man to hide behind the carriage. The monsters ignored the retreating men and focused on us. There were several dropped items around the monsters, indicating that the middle-aged man had killed a few.

"Against two orcs, I'm on the edge. Lord Ohtsuka, please take care of the goblins as soon as possible!"

Seizing the moment when the monsters paused, Noelle dashed between the goblins and attacked the orcs. Her surprise attack cut off one orc's arm, and it screamed.

"Help! Everyone, help!"

"Damn, I can't just stand here."

The goblins, who had been stunned, started moving to help the orc. I quickly readied Excalibur and the pot lid and ran forward, swinging the mace to strike the goblins.

"Take this! ...This weapon is strong."

"What the hell! This is bad, bad—"

Before he could finish, my attack shattered the last goblin's head. Even as a complete novice, the mace made the goblins feel like tofu. Even when they tried to block with clubs, they shattered on impact, crushing the goblins. Despite its ridiculous name, Excalibur was a powerful SR weapon. The pot lid, an SR armor, was probably incredibly durable.

"Phew, that was anticlimactic."

"Ah, Lord Ohtsuka, you're done too?"

I was about to help Noelle... but she had already sheathed her sword and was collecting the dropped items. The bag she used also contained the items from the tutorial fight.

"Was it close?"

"Actually, they were weaker than I thought, hehe—Oops! Oops!"

For some reason, I felt incredibly angry. I couldn't help but pull her cheeks again.

"Sorry, I suddenly felt like doing it."

"Ow, my cheeks are going to get rough..."

"Hey, you two."

The men who had been hiding behind the carriage approached, looking confused. Noelle's actions had completely dispelled the tension.

"Ah, sorry."

"No, thank you. You two are quite strong."

"Thank you so much. We really appreciate it."

The two men bowed to us in gratitude. I felt a bit awkward receiving their thanks, as the fight hadn't been much of a challenge. I wondered if we were really needed, but I didn't know the average strength in this world.

"No, it was just the right thing to do. I'm Ohtsuka Heishiro, and you are?"

"I'm Noelle Fanya, Lord Ohtsuka's guardian!"

"I apologize for not introducing myself. I'm Raul, a merchant."

"I'm a adventurer, currently guarding Raul, and my name is Grin."

We shook hands and finished our introductions. Despite my ulterior motives, it seemed our initial concerns were alleviated.