Chapter 40

7/18 This is the third post of the day.

That night.

I lay on my bed, feeling uneasy.

After delivering the materials to Rodi, I went to Amanda to report the details of the party invitation I received that day.

Since they said they would report it to the guild, I didn't want to be put in a bad position unilaterally, so I told them that I declined because I didn't need a party right now.

I also reported that I was bothered by the condescending way I was invited.

Amanda checked who had invited me, and when I told her it was Adent, the leader of a three-person party with spears,

"It's obvious they're after Loki's combat power... or rather, the rewards. They probably rushed to invite you before you were taken by another party,"

she dismissed it, which made me feel a bit relieved.

However, she also suggested that they might continue to invite me persistently in the future.

If I keep refusing, there's a possibility they might harass me.

There's also a possibility that other parties might think the same way.

Hearing this, my unease only grew.

Amanda said that it's possible to make them understand through strength—following an old hunter tradition—but if I accidentally kill someone, it could lead to serious trouble, so it's not recommended unless there's a significant skill gap.

In other words, she clearly told me it wasn't suitable for me, and while the guild would give Adent's party a warning,

I wasn't sure if that would settle things.

In the end, it's just 'let it be' as usual.

I don't want to join a random party and drastically reduce my rewards and other benefits, and I don't want to go back to hunting in the Palmeira Great Forest.

I can endure and compromise as an adult, but I have no intention of compromising on my own growth.

Sigh... I opened my status screen casually.

Name: Loki (Miyako Yuto) <Salesman>

Level: 9

Magic Power: 58/58 (+6) +50 from Sword Magic Boost

Strength: 32 (+1)

Intelligence: 33 (+7)

Defense: 31 (+21)

Magic Defense: 31 (+6)

Agility: 31 (+7)

Skill: 30 (+8)

Luck: 36 (+1)

Blessing: None

Title: None

Acquired Skills: [Staff Mastery] Lv1, [Fire Magic] Lv1, [Earth Magic] Lv3, [Wind Magic] Lv1, [Perception] Lv3, [Foreign Language Understanding] Lv3, [Charge] Lv3, [Gathering] Lv1, [Hunting] Lv1, [Dissection] Lv1, [Divine Oracle] Lv1, [Divine Communication] Lv1, [Poison Resistance] Lv5

(Finally level 9...)

I moved to the Rokker Plain and leveled up from level 1 in four days.

Considering the rate of leveling and the weakness of the enemies, I can predict that I've already surpassed my level cap.

If I keep grinding in the Rokker Plain, I'll probably reach level 11 or 12.

At that point, the experience bar will barely move, so it's a matter of how much I can improve my skill levels by then.

Additionally, I learned that [Wind Magic] gives an agility bonus, and [Dissection] gives a skill bonus, which I apparently accumulated without noticing.

[Wind Magic] is fine since I can see the details without checking, but [Dissection] is detailed as follows:

[Dissection] Lv1: Dissection skills are improved, allowing for faster and more accurate dissection. Always active, no magic consumption.

To be honest... I can already predict the content of this type of skill.

Like [Gathering] and [Hunting], I don't particularly seek it out, but it's nice to have.

The bonus value of [Poison Resistance], which reached level 5 a few days ago, is as expected and stands out significantly.

Comparing it to my notes, the increase at level 5 is +10 to my stats.

The increase is larger than I expected, so I think I'll reach level 6 the day after tomorrow, and thinking about how much it will increase from there makes me feel better.

Tomorrow, I can start serious spot hunting, and considering my current magic power, I can set up three 3-meter stone pillars, or four if I consider recovery during movement.

If I aim for one pillar every 3-4 hours, I might be able to fill my basket if everything goes well... hehehe.

I feel like my stamina has improved recently, and I still have plenty of pills, so I can continue hunting at this pace for a while.

Immersed in happy fantasies to forget my unease, I suddenly felt a noise in my head and involuntarily shook my head.

(Huh!? What's this...?)

"Loki, can you hear me? This is the Goddess of War, Rigar. I looked rather unseemly the other day. It's not often that we lower deities have the chance to speak directly with mortals. In the midst of the commotion, the time for [Divine Communication] ran out. You haven't used [Divine Communication] since then, but are you okay? Everyone has reflected and is looking forward to hearing from you. If you have the time, please contact us whenever you can. We're waiting."

...Oh, I forgot about that skill.

I had completely forgotten about it for the past few days.

By the way, [Divine Oracle] can be used even by someone other than the dying Alicia who gave it to me.

Wow, what a surprise.

...What should I do?

If I hold a short sword in bed, I can ensure at least 50 magic points.

So, I can use the [Divine Communication] skill if I want to.

However, if it turns out the same as last time, I was thinking of using the remaining magic to cast a small [Fire Magic] spell to level up the skill.

I thought that would be a more productive use of my magic, but... hmm.

They're reflecting? Is that really true?

It seems unlikely that those strong-willed goddesses would feel 'regret' or 'reflection.'

But Rigar's words were concise and clear, and they contacted me at a convenient time for me, so...

...I'll give it a try.

I'll try it again, and if it's the same, I'll reseal it.

I'll trust the goddesses this time.

[Divine Communication]

"Hello? This is Loki. I heard Rigar's [Divine Oracle] and am using [Divine Communication]. Can you hear me?"

"I can hear you. I am Riste, the Goddess of Commerce, and I was worried when I didn't hear from you."

"Thank you for your concern. I'm Loki. Nice to meet you. Should I speak out loud or just think it?"

"[Divine Communication] is fine if you just think it. However, until you get used to it, your thoughts might all be transmitted to us, so it's okay to speak out loud for now."

"I see... Thank you! Riste, you're very helpful!"

(Riste is great.)

"Whaaat!! (Ouch!!)"

"Is there anything you want to ask or any problems you're having?"

(You can hear my thoughts even when I speak out loud!!)

"Well... I have a problem that just came up, but that's aside. I can use magic for the first time today. But I don't understand why I couldn't use it before and suddenly can now..."

"You mean you had the skill but couldn't use it before, and now you can?"

"Yes."

"There are a few possible reasons... You might not have had enough magic power, the required skill level was too high, or you didn't have a clear image of how to use it after acquiring the skill."

"Hmm, I don't think those were the issues."

"Then... Well, since no other such phenomena have been confirmed, it might be because you're Loki."

"Huh?"

"Magic is assisted or performed by spirits that float throughout this world in exchange for magic power. However, you might not have been recognized or acknowledged by the spirits."

"Oh, so because I'm an outsider in this world. That means I can use magic now because the goddesses acknowledged my existence?"

"That's a high possibility. Spirits are servants of the gods."

So, if I hadn't been kidnapped by those three, I might never have been able to use magic... That was close.

And the fact that the goddesses didn't even give such instructions to their servants...

"Are you okay?"

"Ah, sorry, I'm fine. I was just complaining about something I can't say."

"Ah, I see."

"Thank you, it feels much better. So, as a thank you, and something I just thought of..."

"What is it?"

"The boss of the goddesses, isn't it Felsa?"

"Yes. Felsa is the one who created and manages us lower deities."

"Rigar and Alicia mentioned consulting with her, but you might not want to trust her too much. Just a possibility, though."

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"Well, since I have a mysterious skill, the one I can't say might be a higher deity. I don't know what Felsa looks like, but... the one I can't say was a boy, no, a 'man.'"

"A man..."

"Well, since she's the boss of the goddesses, she might be able to change her appearance freely."

"......"

Ah, time's up.

Hmm, I meant to be helpful, but maybe I said too much.

However, if Felsa, the boss of the goddesses, is the acorn, and she might have brought me to this world for some reason...

I don't know the details, but she might have called me here.

There's also the possibility that this world is abandoned, as Reia mentioned before, which could be the reason.

But such a big issue isn't something a commoner like me should get involved in, so I'll leave it to the goddesses to decide.

As long as I can enjoy a life of daily growth, that's enough for me.

Still, even if I spoke quickly, one minute is really short.

It seemed like the other goddesses could hear too, but by talking one-on-one, I was able to resolve a mystery that would have remained unsolved.

I even learned that using magic requires the power of spirits.

So, this skill is probably extremely important, right?

Depending on the goddess you talk to, it could be a godly skill.

...I'll level it up.

Checking the details of the [Divine Communication] skill, it shows 1/10, and I can level it up with skill points as expected.

Since it's a skill that only divine children can have...

I can assume that monsters can't have it.

Yeah, that makes it even more valuable.

Okay, let's do it.

(I'll spend 4 skill points to level up [Divine Communication] to level 2...)

[You have obtained [Divine Communication] Lv2]

[Divine Communication] Lv2: A dedicated blessing skill for the profession <Divine Child>. Allows communication with the goddesses. Can be used once a day, with a 2-minute limit. Magic consumption: 60.

The increased magic consumption is a bit painful, but 2 minutes at level 2.

I have 20 skill points left, so I could level it up one more time...

But I'll stop here and see how it goes.

The next level will cost 12 points, which is quite heavy.

And the magic bonus... Oh! It's suddenly (+14)!

So it's +8 higher.

Hmm... It seems the bonus values for [Divine Oracle] and [Divine Communication] are different, but I'll note that down too.

Just as I decided to take out my notebook to write it down, it suddenly hit me.

(Guh!? What's this fatigue... drowsiness...? I can't... stand... anymore...)

With my consciousness clouding, I lost consciousness on the bed.

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