Chapter 35

7/17 This is my fifth post of the day.

Last night, I pushed the existence that was draining my mental strength to the farthest corner of my heart and headed for the northern exit of Bezato for the first time.

Today, I finally start hunting in the new area, the Locker Plains.

I took a two-day break to fully recover, and I double-checked everything I needed.

Still, it’s natural to feel a bit excited.

Will the monsters be as strong as I expect? What skills will I gain?

What’s the daily pay?

How will the new equipment I bought perform?

How crowded will the hunting grounds be?

I have both expectations and concerns.

But as a role-playing enthusiast, this thrilling and exciting feeling is irresistible.

(Ah, real perspective, real perspective...)

Dangerous, dangerous.

Even though I know this isn’t a game, I can’t help but overlap it with the most enjoyable time of my life.

I wonder if I can ever get rid of this habit... It’s really severe.

While thinking about such things and looking at the scenery along the way, I noticed that the road surface near the northern exit has more shops, and the houses lining the street feel a bit larger.

Although they are wooden houses, the plots of land are wider, and some have large gardens, which suggests that this is a wealthy area.

(Ah, a horse... or rather, a carriage!)

As I approached the exit, I could see carriages in the distance.

There must be a designated area for carriages, as several of various sizes came into view.

Being born in the Heisei era, or even the Showa era, it’s not common to see carriages, even if you’re used to seeing cars.

As a Japanese person, I’ve only seen a rickshaw once in Asakusa, so just seeing a carriage in front of me is a bit moving.

(There are many stalls, and many people... This is the northern exit, after all...)

Perhaps the food shortage in the forest still lingers.

I can’t help but follow the stalls with my eyes, checking if there’s any delicious food.

Even though I had breakfast at the inn, I remembered that lunch would be horse manure substitute and bought two small sausages, like little frankfurters, on a stick.

I packed them in case I couldn’t find lunch and set off.

I greeted the gatekeeper at the northern exit, told him I was going to the Locker Plains and that it was my first time, and received a rather vague advice to follow the hunters who veer to the right.

Well, in this civilization, there probably aren’t any prominent landmarks... The countryside is just fields.

Walking north on the road for the first time, it seemed to be everyone’s commuting time, and at least 30 people were walking within my line of sight.

They were carrying farming tools, loads on their backs, or swords and staves.

Various carriages pulled by horses passed by these people.

(Wow, this is a different world. A real different world!)

The Palmera Great Forest has monsters, so it’s certainly a different world, but seeing couples with pots on their heads picking grass and children running in and out makes it feel a bit different.

However, the scene I’m seeing now is exactly the kind of different world I imagined.

Starting from a place like this.

Someday, I’ll go to the capital and take on high-difficulty quests...

While thinking about such things, I slowly ate the frankfurters I bought and followed the multiple groups veering to the right, heading for the Locker Plains.

▽ ▼ ▽ ▼ ▽

"Wow..."

After stalking the hunter groups for about 30 minutes, the cultivated fields suddenly ended, and beyond a simple wooden fence, a grassy area with grass up to knee height stretched out.

If there were cows here, it would look like a peaceful pasture.

Two parties were already hunting nearby, and two more in the distance, with about 10 monsters visible within my line of sight.

Compared to Palmera, where you can see distant monsters, this area is much easier for hunting.

However, there is one concern.

(There are only a few rocks, and there’s nothing that can serve as a landmark... Not to mention, there isn’t a single tree taller than a person.)

The environment might change after an hour or so.

But based on the current information, I realized that while it’s easy to find monsters, there’s nowhere to place a basket.

Even if the materials from the monsters are small, how long can I keep carrying them while hunting...

Facing a different problem from Palmera, I pondered for a while.

If there were only a lack of landmarks, I could use the compass function to solve the problem to some extent.

In fact, in the Palmera Great Forest, I could efficiently hunt monsters and place materials in the basket even with poor visibility.

However, that was possible because I could place the basket in a fixed location and do stationary hunting.

The rocks are only about waist-high, so placing the basket on them would risk it being destroyed by monsters, and it would be noticeable to the nearby hunter parties.

If I placed the basket on a rock, it would be the most prominent object in the area, and it would be obvious to everyone.

Even if I could claim it as mine, it’s uncertain whether it would be accepted.

If it came to a violent situation, I would be outnumbered by the 3-4 people in each hunter party I can see.

Even one-on-one, I’m not sure I could handle it, and if they tried to steal my materials, I would definitely be at a disadvantage.

Whether or not it’s a world where stealing others’ loot is common...

That depends on the people present at the time, so it’s hard to say.

Should I go deeper into the area where there are fewer hunters?

Ideally, I’d like to get used to this hunting ground and these monsters first.

The deeper I go, the longer I’ll have to pass through monster-infested areas when I return.

If I run out of poison potions, it could be life-threatening for me as a solo hunter.

(Hmm... I can’t push myself too hard right away. For now, I’ll have to carry the basket and put it down when I get close to a monster, and repeat that process...)

Deciding on the safe option, I decided to observe the situation for the day and opened my status screen.

I currently have 15 unspent skill points.

The [Swordsmanship] skill has only increased by 20% from the sword-wielding goblin I killed in the Palmera Great Forest, so it’s still unlearned.

I’ll try fighting first and see how it goes. If it’s too difficult, I’ll level up the [Swordsmanship] skill.

Even though it’s a bit wasteful, I’ll have to level it up from the monsters eventually, so it won’t be completely wasted.

(Ah... right...)

The short sword and leather armor I bought from Paiser both had enchantments.

(The short sword increases magic power... Wow! My maximum magic power has increased by 50!! I don’t plan to use it! I have no plans to use it at all!! But it still feels incredibly powerful!?)

The special skill from the goddess, which claims to be unique in the world, [Divine Power], only gives a +3 bonus to magic power at level 1.

Compared to that, this is amazing.

If it were +50 strength, I’d be crying.

(And the leather armor... I remember it increases natural magic power regeneration, but I can’t see any difference in the status screen...)

I checked the status screen for skills related to [Increased Magic Power Regeneration] and [Increased Maximum Magic Power], but they are still unlearned and I can’t see the details.

The enchantments on the equipment are likely these skills, so it seems the equipment’s enchantments don’t stack with my own skills but are separate.

Even if there’s an equipment with [Stealth Detection] or something, if the effects overlap, it would be redundant, so I’ll assume it’s not necessary.

Paiser made this equipment for his son, a magician, so both have enchantments related to magic power.

So far, I’ve only been doing close combat, and I don’t have any other options, so these enchantments aren’t necessary for me...

But they contain Paiser’s and his son’s feelings.

Believing that this equipment will help my growth, I finally stepped into the Locker Plains.

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