Chapter 42

Arriving at the Provisional Red Square.

Following the same procedure to pass through the entrance and exit, I proceeded down the green corridor.

It was a cave.

However, unlike the western exit where skeletons appeared, there were no signs of human activity on the rock walls.

The cave continued with a slight downward slope.

The scale of the cave was quite large.

I was concerned about my MP bar, but I summoned Volk to bolster our forces.

We continued forward.

The rock was solid, and there was no worry of a cave-in.

Several spots where groundwater spurted out were visible on the surface of the rock illuminated by the flashlight.

Although the water flow was small, it trickled down from our feet.

The cave became level where the flow ended.

Well.

What kind of monster would we encounter here?

I was a bit anxious, but also excited.

The first prey turned out to be this.

Goblin Lv.1

Monster, Target for Elimination, Active State

They looked weak.

But the number was concerning.

They were a group.

I gave up counting from the start.

However, I confirmed that there was a higher-level one in the group.

There was only one at level 4.

What were these guys doing in the cave?

They were eating the rocks on the wall.

Eating, not digging.

"Keh!" "Guh!" "Gubibi"

They made incomprehensible sounds to threaten us.

"Raa!"

When Volk threatened them, all the goblins fell silent.

Even though there were dozens of them, their mental fortitude was too weak.

Anyway.

I fought the group of goblins.

None of the goblins had proper weapons.

They attacked with branches used as clubs and thrown stones.

I had Jericho rampage in the center of the goblin group.

We formed a battle line to envelop them from both flanks.

This was to protect Adel and Irena in the rear.

Their bows were effective against these monsters.

A few managed to break through the line, but Toguro entangled their feet and knocked them down, so there was no need to worry.

As for me.

I became a killing machine in a different sense.

No, goblins are really weak.

Evil Ants are tougher.

Some even ascend with a single punch from me.

Is the order of the monsters appearing correct?

In any case, it's a relief that we can fight almost one-sidedly without consuming MP with spells.

"Finally, they're all gone."

"Even if they're weak, they're overwhelming in numbers."

"The bows finally came in handy."

Well, everyone had their own thoughts.

When we divided the work and stabbed the skinning knives, an unpleasant fact was revealed.

Rocks.

Only rocks could be skinned.

【Material Item】Pebble Quality E- Rarity 1 Weight 0+

A pebble.

Only usable as a thrown weapon (AP+0 Damage 2 Range 10)

No, really.

I wanted my time spent skinning to be returned.

I think I skinned over ten, but all I got were pebbles.

But if there's a rare chance, it's a different story.

Among the ones Irena skinned, there were two stones that seemed to have some value.

【Material Item】Limestone Raw Material Quality C Rarity 2 Weight 1

A rock primarily composed of calcium carbonate.

It is not marble as it is not crystalline.

Calcium carbonate.

It's a material used in various ways, but it has a decent rarity.

If it was 100% pebbles, I would never skin items again.

But the possibility of getting something better makes it unavoidable.

It's a trap.

A trap set by the game developers.

The possibility of getting something better is also a trap.

The idea that it might be like a wild dog is also a trap.

Which one is it?

We won't know until we try.

What's concerning is always concerning.

This is just my nature.

Let's leave the pebbles and move on.

The cave had side passages here and there, but all of them were dead ends.

It seemed like the goblins had scattered and eaten their way through.

How inconvenient.

We followed the main cave path.

Another group of goblins.

However, their number was much smaller than the previous group.

There was one strange one among them.

It looked like a goblin but had something feather-like on its head.

Goblin Summoner Lv.2

Monster, Target for Elimination, Active State

【Identify】 revealed it was a summoner.

Summoner against summoner.

There are only goblins, but where are the summoned monsters?

No, it seems they were there.

Volk and U-chan noticed.

They were on the ceiling.

The ceiling, illuminated by the flashlight, seemed to glow strangely.

Something was reflecting the light.

Slime Lv.2

Monster, Target for Elimination, Active State

Slime?

In TV games, they're treated as weak monsters, but in tabletop games, they were troublesome opponents.

Which one is it?

Are they weak or troublesome?

The slime fell to the ground and attacked Jericho.

Jericho countered with a punch.

The punch hit, but the monster's HP bar didn't decrease at all.

They are troublesome.

I selected and cast a spell.

But I couldn't cast a spell immediately.

The goblins' mocking cries were painful to hear.

"Restrain the ones in the back."

I whispered instructions to Adel and Irena and headed for the slime.

If they are troublesome, there's a standard way to deal with them.

I don't have a surfactant, but I can create a fire source.

"Pyrokinesis!"

I raised my palm to the slime and set it on fire.

How is it?

It didn't spread, but the slime that was covering Jericho suddenly contracted and fell to the ground, forming an ellipse.

There was a reaction.

But the HP bar didn't decrease at all.

"Fire Shot!"

What?

I heard it from right next to me.

It was Adel's voice.

A flame arrow was stuck in the slime in front of me.

Then the slime started to burn, emitting white smoke and burning vigorously.

The smell was intense.

It seemed to contain something harmful to the body.

I selected and cast the next spell.

My MP bar was almost empty, but I couldn't hold back here.

I kept an eye on the goblins while being cautious of the burning slime.

They didn't seem to be planning to attack us.

"Everyone, don't pursue them."

I whispered the instructions.

I confirmed that the summoned monsters, including Volk, had returned to Jericho's position and then cast the spell.

"Air Current Control!"

I directed the smoke from the burning slime towards the goblins.

How is it?

The goblins suddenly started to writhe and suffer, fleeing deeper into the cave.

It seems they have a good sense of smell.

The standard reaction is also good.

I felt a bit of familiarity with the developers.

Still.

It seems Adel's fire magic had leveled up to level 3.

"Adel, a new spell?"

"Yeah, it leveled up after using an enchantment in the battle!"

"Really? Ah!"

"Irina?"

"I also leveled up my earth magic."

"Great!"

I see.

It seems both of you are steadily getting stronger.

But my fire magic hasn't reached level 3 yet.

The downside of having too many magic skills is hitting me close to home.

A transparent sphere was left behind where the slime had burned.

There was a pattern inside that looked familiar.

Yes, it resembles a cell nucleus.

It's like the microscope image I saw in biology class long ago.

Should I stab it with a skinning knife?

The result of skinning was this.

【Material Item】Modified Rock Salt (Magic) Quality C Rarity 3 Weight 0+

Rock salt imbued with magical power.

It can also be used as regular salt.

It has a decent rarity.

I doubt I would use it just as regular salt.

It's definitely an item intended for use in production.

Well.

How should we proceed?

My MP bar is almost empty.

Adel and Irena have a good atmosphere, but their MP bars are below half.

I want to avoid consecutive battles.

No, consecutive battles are fine, but it's not good if unknown monsters might appear.

The forest labyrinth with known, albeit strong, monsters would be more mentally comfortable.

"I've got a feel for it. My MP is almost empty, so let's head back."

"Back to the village of Legias?"

"It's still early for dinner. Let's earn a bit more by fighting mushrooms and branch golems before returning."

"Agreed!"

Yes.

I'll earn a bit from the mushrooms and branch golems, even though it's bad for them.

We returned to near the entrance of the forest labyrinth.

The Provisional Blue Square.

We fought consecutive battles against mushrooms and branch golems in a position where we could escape towards the village of Legias at any time.

I also tried Adel's fire magic on the branch golems.

Fire Shot doesn't require as much proximity as Pyrokinesis.

The power was incomparable.

It was incomparable.

Just by the feel of it, among level 3 attack spells, it might be the strongest.

No, I haven't tried Confuse Blast from light magic yet.

I had a little more MP to spare.

But I needed to prioritize maintaining visibility.

I'll try Confuse Blast tomorrow or later.

I switched to Noctovision when the flashlight's effect was about to run out.

My dark magic is still at level 1.

I cast the spell in turn on me, Adel, Irena, and Jericho, and as expected, my dark magic level increased.

【Your dark magic has leveled up due to your previous actions!】

Yes.

It feels good.

I know that using Flashlight from light magic increases the encounter rate.

Ideally, I want to attract more monsters to earn more, but with my current low MP, this is more convenient.

Okay.

Let's continue hunting.

I continued fighting the mushrooms as if venting my frustration.

The branch golems could be handled with Jericho at the center.

The throws were working perfectly.

For some reason, I was in high spirits.

But maybe I overdid it.

One of my 【Item Boxes】 became full.

The logs are too heavy.

I could burn them to make charcoal, but I can't manage that.

Adel's fire magic isn't available for continuous use due to MP constraints.

It's too frustrating.

In the end, we decided to return to the village of Legias early.

Hunting is good, but it feels wasteful to not dispose of the prey properly.

Arriving at the village of Legias.

I had the Wood Golem return to the forest labyrinth.

My current companions are only Volk and Jean.

The village of Legias was still bright, so there weren't many adventurers around.

Instead, there were many NPCs.

Everyone was carrying something and moving around.

The same was true for the alleys with stalls and market stands.

There were few adventurers. They were probably hunting outside the village, which is normal.

NPCs were moving around and shopping at the market stands.

The food stalls were quiet.

No, behind every stall, preparations were underway.

Yuka was also in the middle of preparations.

"Adel, Irina, welcome back."

"We're back!"

"We've returned."

"Keith, welcome back."

"Thanks."

I nodded to Ren and Fumino, who were serving NPCs at the market stand.

Riku and Shinohara were organizing items in the back.

Riku and Shinohara invited us to a table behind the stall.

"How was the deeper part of the forest?"

"Let's see. First, let's take out all the prey."

"Please do."

I took out the prey one by one from the 【Item Box】.

The logs were heavy.

Shinohara, the woodworker, was wide-eyed.

There was also a lot of charcoal.

The modified rock salt (magic) might cause some debate, but the main item is something else.

Magic Mushrooms.

"These are..."

"They look a bit dangerous."

"Can we process them here?"

"The farmers are concentrated in Remuto and the port town, which is a pain."

"Pharmacists and alchemists too."

"I'll meet the lumberjack's friend tomorrow. We can discuss it then."

"Riku, what about Fina?"

"I'll send her a message."

The production specialists quickly decided on a plan, and things started moving.

I registered as a friend with Riku and had him send a message to Fina.

Riku's first impression was that he was meticulous, and his actions and words confirmed that.

I decided to sell all the items I brought to Riku.

We also decided to have an early dinner.

I had Yuka serve us ready-made sandwiches to fill our stomachs.

"Keith, what will you do while your MP recovers?"

"Hmm? I might just pass the time here."

"Adel and I would like to help Yuka."

Hmm.

That's right, both of you have the 【Cooking】 skill.

"Of course, that's fine."

"Thank you."

No, there's no need for Yuka to thank us.

It's only natural to help since we've been taken care of in various ways.

While Riku was calculating the buyback price, I waited, petting Volk's throat.

Adel and Irina's summoned creatures also gathered around me.

Surrounded by two wolves, two tigers, a bat, and a snake, I could enjoy the different textures.

Hmm.

Adel was glancing over, but I ignored it.

She likes fluffy things, but my preferences are quite different.

The texture of Toguro, the snake, was the best.

The scales felt good, and the slight coldness was also nice.

I enjoyed petting Toguro, wrapped around my neck, and also indulged in the fluffy creatures.

No, I continued to service the summoned creatures that kept asking to be petted.

Main Character Keith

Race: Human, Male, Race Level 6

Occupation: Summoner (Summoner) Level 5

Bonus Points Remaining: 22

Set Skills:

Staff Level 4, Striking Level 3, Kicking Level 3, Joint Techniques Level 3, Throwing Techniques Level 3

Dodge Level 3, Block Level 3, Summoning Magic Level 6

Light Magic Level 3, Wind Magic Level 4, Earth Magic Level 3, Water Magic Level 3

Fire Magic Level 2, Dark Magic Level 2 (↑1)

Alchemy Level 3, Pharmacy Level 3, Glassworking Level 3

Coordination Level 5, Appraisal Level 5, Identification Level 5, Cold Resistance Level 2, Grappling Level 4

Horse Riding Level 4, Precision Manipulation Level 4, Jumping Level 1, Heat Resistance Level 3

Equipment:

Kay's Rod, Hare Chestplate + Series, Snow Monkey Arm Guards,

Wild Horse Boots +, Snow Monkey Leather Helmet, Backpack

Item Box ×2

Held Items:

Skinning Knife

Titles:

Apprentice of the Old Summoner (Provisional), Proof of Forest Guardian, Seeker of Moderation

Summoned Creatures:

Volk, Wolf Level 5

Crescent, Horse Level 3 (Resting)

Helix, Hawk Level 3 (Resting)

Obsidian, Owl Level 3 (Resting)

Jean, Bat Level 3

Jericho, Wood Golem Level 2 (Resting)

Companions:

Adel & Mii & Uu

Irina & Calico & Toguro