Chapter 5

Passing through the castle gate, the view was nothing but an endless expanse of grassland.

There is a stone-paved road, but the grassland stretches out as far as the eye can see, almost entirely covered in green.

This is the first time I've seen such a sight since my trip to Hokkaido.

However, the vastness of the sky and the visible horizon are a first-time experience.

I can't just play around here; I have to act like it's normal to be a hero.

"Shall we warm up by fighting some weak monsters around here, Sir Hero?"

"Yeah. This is my first time in battle too. I'll do my best to see how much I can fight."

"Please do your best."

"Huh? Aren't you going to fight, Mina?"

"I need to gauge your strength before I fight, Sir Hero."

"Ah, right."

Thinking about it, Mina has more experience, and I don't know how much I can do.

I'll fight the monsters Mina thinks are safe.

After walking through the grassland for a while, I see something that looks like an orange balloon.

"Sir Hero, there they are. That's an Orange Balloon... It's a very weak monster but quite aggressive."

What a terrible name. It's called an Orange Balloon because it looks like an orange balloon?

"GAH!"

The aggressive sound and the two menacing eyes convey hostility.

A scarecrow-like balloon from a field notices us and attacks.

"Please do your best, Sir Hero!"

"Right!"

I'll show you my cool side.

I hold my shield in my right hand and punch the Orange Balloon like a blunt weapon.

*SMACK!*

*BOUNCE!*

It bounced back right where I hit it. It's surprisingly elastic!

I thought it would break immediately...

The Orange Balloon bared its fangs and bit me.

"Ah!"

*CLANG!*

I hear a hard sound.

It doesn't hurt or itch.

The Orange Balloon is biting my arm, but it seems to have no effect.

A faint barrier seems to be protecting me from the shield.

I look at Mina silently.

"Please do your best, Sir Hero!"

...I don't take any damage, but I can't deal any either. There's nothing I can do.

"ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA!"

I kept hitting the Orange Balloon like a martial artist.

Five minutes later...

*POP!*

With a light sound, the Orange Balloon burst.

"Haa... haa... haa..."

A sound like *PING* and the number "EXP 1" appears.

So, I gained 1 experience point.

However, after all that fighting, just 1... I'm worried about the future.

Also, this thing is so hard. There's a limit to what I can do with my bare hands.

*CLAP CLAP CLAP.*

"You did well, Sir Hero."

Mina is clapping, but it feels kind of empty.

*STOMP STOMP STOMP!*

I hear footsteps.

Turning around, I see Ren and his companions running by.

I thought about calling out to them, but they're running with serious expressions, and I don't have the nerve to call out to them.

Ah, three Orange Balloons appear in front of Ren.

*SWISH!*

Ren slashes with his sword, and the Orange Balloons burst with a *POP*.

One hit!? Come on... how much of a difference in attack power is there?

"..."

Mina waves her hands in front of me several times.

"It's okay. There's a way for you to fight as a hero."

"...Thank you."

From my first battle experience, I seem to have very high defense, as I was unharmed even after the Orange Balloon bit me for five minutes.

I pick up the remains of the Orange Balloon. A sound like *PING* comes from the shield.

As I bring it closer to the shield, it is absorbed with a faint light.

"GET: Orange Balloon Balloon"

Such text appears, and the Weapon Book lights up.

Checking inside, I see an icon for an Orange Small Shield.

It's not enough to change it yet, but it seems to be a necessary material.

"Is this the power of a legendary weapon?"

"Yeah. It seems to be good to absorb a certain amount of things to change it."

"I see."

"By the way, how much are the spoils from that battle worth?"

"About one copper coin."

"...How many do I need to get one silver coin?"

"About 100 copper coins."

Well, from the looks of it, Ren is dealing with a very weak monster, so it can't be helped.

"Then, it's Mina's turn, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

While saying that, two Orange Balloons are approaching us.

Mina draws her sword from her waist and swings it twice.

With a *POP*, the Orange Balloons burst.

Wow... I'm so weak...

My name is Masahiro Iwata. I'm a 20-year-old college student, and I'm covering my mouth with both hands.

I was summoned to another world and became a hero two days ago.

In five minutes of battle, I learned about the appropriate monsters and roles.

"Hero Adaptation Test"

It's very popular as four people have passed it, and the results are immediately known.

CHECK!

>> What is your suitable hunting ground?

I got a bit confused.

Anyway, I, or rather my shield, is clearly weak.

In this case, it would be more efficient for Mina to fight.

"Then, Mina will attack, and I'll defend. Let's go as far as we can."

"Okay."

Mina answered with a nod.

After that, we continued walking through the grassland until just before sunset, bursting Orange Balloons and their yellow counterparts, Yellow Balloons.

"A bit further, and stronger monsters will appear, but we should head back to the castle before it gets dark."

"Hmm. I wanted to fight a bit more..."

I don't take any damage, and defending against the Balloons is easy, so I think it's fine.

"Let's go back early today and check the weapon shop again. If you buy my equipment, we can go further tomorrow than we did today."

"...Right, that's true."

It seems I won't level up for a while, so it's probably better to stop here for today.

By the way, it seems the shield has absorbed enough, and the balloons are still in my hand.

The rest... it seems it will change when I level up.

Anyway, we ended our first day of adventure on hold and headed back to the town below the castle.