Chapter 24

When the battle ended and the tension snapped, Thor felt a slight dizziness.

He seemed to have used a bit too much magic.

"Thor, that was amazing!"

"Hack, hack! What are you doing, Estelle?"

Just as he was letting his guard down, Estelle patted his back, and Thor started coughing violently.

"Why are you so calm? Thor, you just defeated a C-rank monster!"

"Yeah... I'm a bit tired, I guess."

"Being just a bit tired is pretty amazing, you know."

Estelle chuckled.

Indeed, Thor thought it was fortunate that it ended this way.

Thor's strength was slightly superior.

However, Thor's combat experience was overwhelmingly lacking.

If the adult Rockworm had taken unexpected actions, Thor might not have been able to handle it.

For example, if it had suddenly changed its target to Estelle...

Thor shuddered at the thought.

This time, he managed to defeat it almost unscathed, thanks to good luck.

If he faced a similarly strong enemy next time, he might end up with serious injuries.

"First, I need to get some better armor..."

"Yeah, that's right. Defeating a C-rank monster without any armor, anyone would think you're crazy. Only a drunk would fight a monster without armor."

Thor took out water from the "Interdimensional Storage" and drank it all at once. As the water slowly seeped into his body, he felt a bit refreshed.

While Thor was resting, Estelle was stabbing the monster's corpse with her sword.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm extracting the magic stone. Monsters have magic stones inside them. If you take them to the guild, they'll buy them at a good price."

"Is that so? ...Oh, by the way, you didn't take any from the goblins, right?"

"That's because goblins only have junk magic stones. Selling them wouldn't even cover the cost of replacing blood-stained clothes. Most adventurers don't dissect goblins unless they're really desperate for money."

"I see."

Previously, when Thor's clothes were stained with goblin blood, he had to dispose of them all.

He tried washing them with water, but the goblin smell wouldn't come off.

If the clothes were ruined and he only got junk magic stones, it would be a huge loss.

It made sense that few adventurers would bother extracting the magic stones.

As his stamina recovered, Thor also joined in to extract the magic stones.

The Rockworm's magic stone was about the size of a thumb, while the Queen Rockworm's was as large as a baseball.

He put them in a burlap bag and threw it into the "Interdimensional Storage."

"Is there anything else we can take?"

"Hmm. The skin of both Rockworms can be used for armor, but honestly, there's nothing worth selling."

"Sorry about that."

Thor had shredded the Rockworms with the "Magic Sword." Believing that insects had high vitality, he had thoroughly crushed them, but he had gone a bit overboard.

On the other hand, if he had held back, the Rockworms might have counterattacked, thinking they were defeated.

Finding the right balance was difficult for Thor, who had little combat experience.

Unlike the shredded Rockworms, finding unburned skin on the Queen was more challenging. There was no room for holding back in that case.

With more combat experience, he would be able to take the materials while only taking the life. For now, he would have to repeat the same process.

"Taking down a monster while preserving the materials is difficult, huh?"

"That's part of an adventurer's skills. It's a must-have for advancing. You can start learning now. It's part of the groundwork."

After collecting the magic stones, Thor and Estelle started walking back to Finris.

Estelle's legs seemed heavy, probably due to the three days of camping in the forest.

Her usually lively ponytail was unusually quiet today.

Matching her pace, Thor slowed down his walking speed.

"By the way, did you complete the quest, Estelle?"

"Yeah. The recent frequent sightings of Silver Wolves were probably due to the Rockworms. The Rockworms appeared from deep in the forest, and the Silver Wolves, sensing this, moved to avoid them. As a result, the total number of Silver Wolves in the shallower parts of the forest increased, leading to more sightings."

"I see."

"I think the Rockworms appeared here because of the goblins."

"Huh, why the goblins?"

"Rockworms love goblin meat more than anything else."

"Ew..."

Thinking of the terrible smell of goblins, Thor grimaced.

It was hard to believe they could like such a thing.

"I thought goblins were everywhere, but are they only in this area?"

"No, goblins are widely distributed across Ealgard."

"Then, can't we say it wasn't because of the goblins? They might have come from somewhere else."

Estelle gently shook her head.

"No, remember... we recently killed a lot of goblins, right?"

"Oh, right..."

Previously, Thor had defeated a large group of goblins.

The smell of their corpses had attracted the Rockworms to this location.

"If we had burned the goblin corpses, this might not have happened..."

Estelle looked dejected and weakly shook her head.

It was unclear what the guild would decide if they reported the entire sequence of events.

However, Thor felt the same way.

Thor had involved the Queen in the collapse of the stalactites but hadn't finished it off. He had blocked the entrance as a precaution, but the Queen had survived the collapse and escaped from the cave.

If Estelle was to blame, then Thor, who hadn't reported the presence of the Queen and Rockworms to the guild, was equally at fault.

Of course, there was no such ridiculous talk. As a non-adventurer at the time, Thor had no responsibility as an adventurer.

For the same reason, Estelle had no responsibility for the aftermath of the goblins Thor had defeated as a non-adventurer.

"Still, encountering a large group of goblins during a goblin hunt and then a Rockworm during an investigation... Ha, I must be really unlucky..."

"Well, you're an adventurer, so it happens sometimes, right?"

"Yeah. But meeting Thor was a stroke of luck. If I hadn't met him, I wouldn't be here now."

Contrary to her earlier complaints about bad luck, Estelle smiled purely.

Seeing her smile, Thor felt embarrassed and turned away.

When they reached the edge of the forest, Estelle suddenly slumped down.

"...Sorry. I relaxed, and my legs gave out."

Estelle's face was very pale. Her eyes were vacant, and her head was drooping.

In the sunlight, it was clear that she had dark circles under her eyes.

They had wandered in the forest for three days. She must have hardly slept.

"Let's take a short break."

"Sorry. I'd appreciate it if you could let me take a nap for an hour. Can you keep watch?"

"Of course."

Thor started keeping watch. Estelle lay down and closed her eyes. She must have been very sleepy, as her snoring could be heard almost immediately.

Thor confirmed that Estelle was sound asleep and then opened his skill board.

○ Status

Thor Minasaki

Level: 15 → 20

Race: Human, Class: Swordsman, Subclass: Mage

Rank: I, Skill Points: 290 → 340

○ Basics

【Enhancement +5】

【Physical Enhancement +5】【Magic Enhancement +5】

【Natural Recovery +5】【Resistance +5】【Limit Break ★】

【STA Increase +5】【MAG Increase +5】

【STR Increase +5】【DEX Increase +5】

【AGI Increase +5】【INT Increase +5】【LUCK Increase +5】

○ Techniques

＜Swordsmanship Lv4＞＜Magic Lv4＞

＜Perception Lv4＞＜Intimidation Lv4＞＜Thinking Lv4＞

＜Interdimensional Storage Lv4＞＜Casting Without Incantation Lv4＞

＜Language Lv4＞＜Blacksmithing Lv4＞

【Magic Sword Lv1】

"Wow, I'm level 20 now."

Most of the experience points for leveling up must have come from defeating the Queen. Thor checked the screen with a satisfied feeling.

"Points... they're back to 10 points per level. Hmm, I still don't understand the conditions."

Unlike the last time when he suddenly gained a lot of points, this time it didn't happen.

If the points had increased due to defeating the Queen, it would have suggested that "defeating strong enemies earns points," but unfortunately, the points only increased as usual.

"Maybe I should learn a new skill."

As he was thinking, Thor suddenly remembered the incident in the alley a few days ago.

It was lucky that he had managed to win without seriously injuring the opponent. But in the future, things might not go as smoothly.

Is there a skill that can protect oneself without damaging the opponent?

After searching through the countless skills he had stored, Thor finally found the one he was looking for.

"This and... hmm. The battle was close this time. Okay, let's boost everything."

Deciding on his plan, Thor quickly allocated the points.

Skill Points: 340 → 5

○ Basics

【Enhancement +5 → +8】

【Physical Enhancement +5】【Magic Enhancement +5】

【Natural Recovery +5】【Resistance +5】【Limit Break ★】

【STA Increase +5】【MAG Increase +5】

【STR Increase +5】【DEX Increase +5】

【AGI Increase +5】【INT Increase +5】【LUCK Increase +5】

○ Techniques

＜Swordsmanship Lv4 → Lv5＞＜Magic Lv4 → Lv5＞

＜Perception Lv4 → Lv5＞＜Intimidation Lv4 → Lv5＞＜Thinking Lv4 → Lv5＞

＜Interdimensional Storage Lv4＞＜Casting Without Incantation Lv4＞

＜Language Lv4＞＜Blacksmithing Lv4＞

＜Aikido Lv5＞NEW

【Magic Sword Lv1】

The most used skill, 【Enhancement】, still had an unclear effect. But since he had already allocated some points to it, he decided to max it out until the effect became visible, almost out of frustration.

He also evenly boosted the skills he had used in combat.

The new skill he learned was ＜Aikido＞. He thought that with this, he could skillfully deflect attacks from opponents.

This was influenced by the master videos he had seen online in Japan.

A large man can be knocked down just by touching him.

If he could mimic those movements, he could probably handle a certain level of attacker.

Of course, this was not just for self-defense.

＜Aikido＞ is a martial art that uses the body in the most efficient way. It combines the principles of muscle movement, force vectors, and the lever effect from the connection of bones, making it a highly rational and scientific technique.

Thor learned it, expecting that it would positively impact other actions, such as swordsmanship.

The effects of learning the skill were immediately apparent.

He could clearly understand how the trees, flowers, and air around him were moving and where they were heading. It was as if the resolution of the world had suddenly increased.

His subconscious ＜Perception＞ range had expanded.

That wasn't the only change. After allocating the points, Thor slightly shifted his center of gravity. Just that small change made his body feel as if it was firmly rooted to the ground.

He was confident that even a sumo wrestler wouldn't be able to knock him over.

"Amazing... Just one skill and I feel like a completely different person."

The change from Lvl 0 to Lvl 4 and then to Lvl 5 felt like a completely different skill to Thor.

"Does the skill level change from 4 to 5?"

The skill name didn't change, but it might have evolved into an advanced skill.

Or perhaps, reaching a certain level granted new effects or benefits.

There was another change he noticed in his normal state.

"...My thoughts are overlapping."

Thor realized that multiple thoughts were moving in his head. While verifying the skills, another thought was considering dinner.

"I'm a bit hungry. Wait, that's not it. What is this? It's creepy."

It felt like a completely different personality had entered his head.

But all the thoughts were his own. He had raised the skill, and he was the one thinking. It was hard to complain.

It would take some time to get used to it.

With his thoughts spinning at high speed and running in parallel, Thor's mind was moving rapidly.

In the midst of this, his thoughts traced all his memories and led to an unexpected possibility.

"---!"

Realizing the possibility, Thor caught his breath slightly.

"That guy is a bit... unreliable."

"So that's what he meant...!"

Reflecting on the guard's words, they now seemed to have a completely different meaning.

"Maybe he sensed something..."

The guard managed the people entering and leaving Finris. He might have had a vague idea of the situation from the information he gathered from the people coming and going.

However, he had no evidence.

And neither did Thor now.

"...What should I do?"

Thor stared at his skill board and continued to think about his plan of action after returning to Finris until Estelle woke up.