Chapter 4

"Alright, this should be enough for my travel preparations."

It was the morning after the commotion with the cursed equipment. After packing my belongings into a cloth bag, I took one last look at the town of Maharizi, my birthplace.

The town of Maharizi had been devastated by yesterday's cursed equipment incident. The golden man who had caused the Blood Licker丸 to go berserk had massacred all the adventurers gathered in the dungeon and destroyed 90% of the town. Although some people managed to survive, they could no longer live in this town. With the adventurers almost entirely wiped out and the city walls destroyed, there was no way to protect themselves from monsters. It would take a considerable amount of time to rebuild.

I didn't have many good memories of Maharizi, but I felt a sense of sadness as it disappeared. I had no family when I was born, and I had been oppressed as "Zero's Noroa" since I was a child, but I had still felt this town was my hometown.

The town had turned into a pile of rubble, but I wanted to burn its image into my mind one last time. I wouldn't be returning to this town, and I might never have another chance to see it.

Goodbye, my hometown...

"Noroa! Let's loot this merchant's corpse! He's hoarding a lot of money! Oh, and his underwear is made of pure gold! Hilarious!"

"Hey... please don't ruin my sentiment."

There was no sentiment left at all.

But Jujus, the cursed doll, had always been this way. Besides, I couldn't remove the cursed equipment, and I would have to live with this doll until I died. I needed to get used to this to maintain my sanity.

"Jujus, can you stop writing 'Butt Hair Beam!' on that person's butt?"

"Why not! This is way more fun!"

"No one finds corpses funny."

I felt a strong sense of guilt, even though I wasn't the one doing it. The world is so unfair when the person involved is fine with it.

After stopping Jujus's rampage for a while, I finally left the town of Maharizi. As the town gradually disappeared from view, I felt a slight tug of nostalgia.

I didn't have any lingering attachment to the town, but I did have some regrets.

I hadn't been able to properly bury Mr. Yabuki. We weren't particularly close, and he had often treated me with disdain, but he had tried to help me in the end. He had also been willing to talk to me despite the discrimination I faced, and I thought he was a good person.

"..."

"Hey, why the long face? Are you hungry? Your problems are probably just that you're 'hungry,' right...?"

Jujus, perched on my shoulder, asked. I felt like she had just said something incredibly rude.

"No, I have some regrets. About an acquaintance..."

"Wait, don't tell me. Let me guess."

"Please don't turn my problems into a quiz."

Being with Jujus made me feel silly for taking things seriously. If I could live with an empty head like this doll, I would probably be happy.

So, I walked along the forest road. The other survivors were planning to gather and go to the neighboring town, so the road was still empty. In the countryside, there were no people or carriages, and the road, though not very wide, was easy to walk on. In a way, it was fortunate that the town had been destroyed in early summer. The nights were a bit chilly, but not freezing, and the daytime temperatures were just right. If it had been winter, it would have been terrible, especially since the rainy season coincides with winter in this area, making the roads muddy and frozen, and travel impossible.

However, there was the problem of monsters being more common in the summer.

Just as I was thinking this, the bushes ahead rustled. A bad feeling washed over me as I stopped, and a giant bear's face appeared from above the trees.

A towering black bear. Its abnormally large body indicated that this was not just an ordinary beast.

...This is a monster.

"Ah!"

I let out a scream as I looked up at the bear monster.

It was the first time I had seen such a large monster.

My panicked mind searched for information about monsters. I had studied monsters, so I recognized this one even though I had never seen it before.

This monster was called the Evil Bear.

A bear monster about 20 meters long, with high HP and attack power, and surprisingly fast for its size. It was an A-rank monster that a group of B-rank adventurers, on the level of the golden man, could barely defeat.

"No way... an A-rank monster here?"

The Evil Bear looked down at me from a great height. The moment our eyes met, a chill ran through my body.

My mind went blank, and I couldn't help but recall the battle with the skeleton yesterday. Even against an E-rank monster like the skeleton, I had been blown away by its attack and my sword broken. If I were attacked by an A-rank monster, even a glancing blow would be fatal.

"What should I do..."

"Hey, just take out Blood Licker丸."

"Huh? Oh, right."

I had forgotten that I had equipped Blood Licker丸, a powerful weapon, in addition to the cursed doll.

Blood Licker丸 was a very powerful sword with an attack power of 16,300, but the drawback was that it would cause me to lose my mind and go berserk when drawn. Once in a berserk state, I would not return to my senses until I had killed all the living beings in my sight. In other words, I would have to chase and kill every living being I saw in a berserk state. If I lost sight of them, I would remain in a berserk state indefinitely.

However, the golden man had gone berserk to such an extent because there were many humans and monsters around. Fortunately, there were no people around now, so the risk of going berserk was much lower.

Still, the memory of yesterday's tragedy made me hesitant to draw the sword. But the Evil Bear charged at me without regard for my situation.

"Ah!"

I had no choice but to draw the sword in a panic.

The moment the red-black blade was exposed to the air, I felt a sensation as if my blood was boiling. At the same time, my vision turned completely red.

In my fading consciousness, I saw the sword blow the Evil Bear and the trees away—

"—Ah!"

I came to, standing in the middle of a crater.

Looking around, there was no sign of the Evil Bear.

Did I defeat the Evil Bear...?

I, a perennial G-rank adventurer...?

It was hard to believe, but it seemed that was the case.

It was a rather anticlimactic first victory.

"Hmm... No matter how many times I see it, that sword is just incredible..."

Jujus said in amazement.

"This is a bit too much, isn't it?"

"Too much?"

"Everything, everything. It's strange that I, who can equip 9999 cursed items, would meet a cursed item that can be taken away by me, who appeared so dramatically."

"Well, whether or not you were dramatic, it is strange."

"That's not all. A powerful cursed item just appeared from a dungeon that was only recently discovered. A B-rank adventurer, who should have been wary of cursed items, just happened to draw the cursed sword. He went berserk and killed people, but his attacks on you were half-hearted..."

"Come to think of it, that was unnatural."

With so many coincidences, it felt like someone was manipulating things. Especially the last part, which couldn't be explained by chance.

"Well, it doesn't matter. Whoever is behind it, they're not your enemy, right?"

"Is that so?"

I looked at the Blood Licker丸 in my hand. This was a powerful piece of equipment that could destroy an entire town. However, even with such equipment, I still didn't feel any stronger.

"Well, it's just the beginning. Sure, your attack power has increased, but you're still a weakling. If you keep this up, you'll die soon, and 'Butt Hair Beam!' will be written on your butt."

"Except for the 'Butt Hair Beam!' part, I agree."

My HP and defense were still weak. If I were attacked by surprise, I would die easily. To change this situation, I needed cursed equipment that would increase my HP and defense.

"So, get stronger quickly. If you die, I'll be in trouble too. I won't be able to move, and I won't be able to enjoy B-grade gourmet food."

"Is that all you're worried about?"

"Well, anyway, the goal is to get a lot of cursed equipment to get stronger."

"But where can I find cursed equipment?"

"Obviously, in dungeons."

"Dungeons, huh..."

Thinking about it, I had never really considered going into dungeons to get cursed equipment. I couldn't enter dungeons alone, and as a porter, I couldn't act on my own. I had just been waiting for cursed equipment to be mistakenly sent to the armory.

"But aren't dungeons dangerous?"

I remembered entering the dungeon yesterday.

I had been completely defeated by a single skeleton, the weakest monster.

Even with increased attack power, could I challenge a dungeon with low HP and defense? I had managed to defend against the skeleton's slow attacks, but if it had been faster, I would have been killed in one hit.

"You know, it's impossible to be so strong and still be a wimp. If I had that sword, I would have unified the galaxy by now."

"But this sword isn't easy to draw..."

That was the problem. Blood Licker丸 was powerful but difficult to use.

The drawback was that "once the sword is drawn, I would go berserk and kill all living beings in my sight until I returned to my senses." I assumed that "living beings" referred only to humans and monsters with HP, but it was still a harsh condition. It was rare to have the right conditions, and if I drew the sword in a dungeon full of monsters, I would go berserk like the golden man.

So, I rarely had the opportunity to use it...

"No, it's not a problem. Just close your eyes so no living beings are in your sight."

"Really, that simple?"

"Surprisingly, cursed equipment often has loopholes. After all, they were made by humans. I'm a cursed item, so I know."

"I see."

I felt my perception of cursed equipment changing. Perhaps I had been needlessly afraid of them just because they were cursed.

"Are you less worried now?"

"Um, I feel a bit more at ease."

"Good. Then let's go to the dungeon right away!"

Jujus, on my shoulder, raised her fist and cheered.

It seemed that going to the dungeon was now a certainty. "Equipment determines life," they say, but it felt like everything was being decided for me.

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Since I didn't have a chance to explain the equipment ranks in the story, I'll add it here. You don't need to read this to follow the story, but feel free to if you're interested. This is just a reference.

**Equipment Ranks**

- **G Rank**: Everyday items and natural objects.

Technically equippable, but with almost no benefits. Includes everyday items like clothes and stationery, as well as natural objects like branches and stones. Not usually considered equipment since they can be worn without equipping.

- **E-F Rank**: Apprentice equipment.

Made from animal materials and processed natural objects. Generally equippable by ordinary people.

- **D Rank**: Professional equipment.

Begins to use monster materials (strictly, materials containing powerful souls, including rare minerals that can easily absorb souls).

- **C Rank**: Veteran equipment.

Commonly found in armories, as they can still be made today. Equipping this rank and above becomes difficult without combining with other equipment. For a normal person (with 1 equipment slot), C rank is the limit.

- **B Rank**: Elite equipment.

Made only by a handful of genius craftsmen, so most are found in dungeons or ancient ruins.

- **A Rank**: Genius equipment.

Impossible to make today, so only found in dungeons or ancient ruins. Often made from legendary monster materials and have their own stories and legends. Requires multiple high-rank equipment to meet the equipping conditions. Almost impossible to equip without a large number of equipment slots.

- **S Rank**: Catastrophe level.

Cursed equipment that could have a significant impact on an entire city.

- **SS Rank**: Disaster level.

Cursed equipment that could have a significant impact on an entire country.

- **SSS Rank**: Calamity level.

Cursed equipment that could have a significant impact on all of humanity. Indestructible and capable of defying the laws of the world, often the cause of major disasters recorded in ancient texts. However, the drawbacks are severe, and few can fully control them.

- **??? Rank**: World-changing level.

Cursed equipment that could change the world. Defies the laws of the world, making it impossible to rank. However, it is not necessarily powerful (previously: "Rank: Unknown").