■■■■■■■■■■
010 Carelessness
is a Great Enemy
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Translator : PolterGlast
"Gah!"
I was sent flying by a
Grey Rat Lv2's tackle and slammed into the wall.
"Fire!"
I heard Anneliese's
voice, and then my vision was drenched in red. I felt a stinging heat on my
cheeks.
Having hit my head
when I struck the wall, my vision was unfocused, and I couldn't stand up as I
wanted.
"Are you
alright?"
Anneliese helped me,
who was awkwardly sprawled on the floor, to a sitting position. I was ashamed
of myself for being helped by such an old woman.
"You were
careless, weren't you?"
"...I have no
words."
I never thought that a
mere 1-point increase in AGI would make it that fast. My overconfidence and
carelessness led to this result.
"If Anneliese
hadn't been here, it would have been bad. Thank you."
"It's fine. Just
don't be careless from now on."
Looking at my status,
my HP had decreased by 21 points. That's enough damage to kill me if I took
three hits.
My only armor was a
breastplate. Perhaps I should have equipped myself even more.
I can equip items on 8
locations: head, both ears, neck, torso, both arms, both legs, right hand, and
left hand, but my right and left hands are occupied by the Mithril Two-Handed
Sword. With only my torso equipped out of the remaining 6 locations, I must be
almost defenseless.
"I've learned my
lesson from this. I won't be careless against any opponent from now on."
"Yes."
There was pain
immediately after being tackled, but it subsided after about a minute. I also
felt dizzy right after hitting my head, but that also subsided quickly.
Perhaps because it's
managed by HP, such things seem to resolve quickly.
"Was that
Anneliese's magic just now?"
"Yes. I can use
Fire and Null-attribute magic. This time, I defeated the Grey Rat with
Fire-attribute magic."
"That was an
incredible amount of heat. Meaning it has high power, right?"
"Since I'm Level
21, I won't have any trouble on this first floor."
Right, I know.
"Are Mages strong
even at Level 1?"
"I think they're
reasonably strong. However, since you have a Mithril sword, Master, I think you
have about the strength of a Level 10 Mage, not even a Level 1."
If I'm equivalent to
Level 10, as long as I'm not careless, I shouldn't fall behind the monsters on
this first floor.
"Alright, let's
go."
"Yes."
I was leaving the
scouting to Anneliese's Magic Sense, but I stopped relying on her entirely.
Even if I didn't understand everything, I would not let my guard down.
"Monster
detected. Distance 30."
"Understood."
Distance 30 means 30
people. Her Magic Sense has an effective range of about 50 to 60 meters.
Next time, no, from
now on, I won't be careless.
Calmly check the
level. It's a Grey Rat Lv1.
Whether it's Level 1
or 2, it's the same. Just swing the sword without being careless.
"Hup!"
I defeated the Grey
Rat Lv1 with one blow. I could see its movements clearly. I want to believe
that solidified my resolve.
A Grey Rat Lv2
appeared for the 10th monster. It was time for revenge.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap.
The Grey Rat's footsteps made a pleasant rhythm.
It's faster than a
Level 1 Grey Rat. It feels about 10 to 20 percent faster. But I won't be
careless anymore.
"Ha!"
As it pounced, I swung
my Mithril Two-Handed Sword horizontally. The Grey Rat's bisected body vanished
as if blocks were exploding.
"Rare drop."
Anneliese picked up a
drop item, and there was a sharp tooth in her palm.
"It's a sharp
front tooth."
Just as it sounds,
huh?
"This is used for
arrowheads and such."
"Hm? You said
explorers don't use bows, right?"
"The army is
different."
"Army?"
"The nobles' and
the country's army. Bows are effective weapons."
"Is there an
Archer job?"
"Yes, there is.
Archers are excellent as a military branch."
Archers in the army
apparently receive slightly better treatment than Swordsmen or Lancers. The
reason given is that becoming an Archer requires considerable expense. In other
words, it seems the sons of wealthy families become Archers.
"Children of
commoners become Swordsmen or Lancers and put their bodies on the line to clash
with enemies, while children of the wealthy shoot arrows at enemies from afar.
Swordsmen and Lancers are more likely to die, and Archers are more likely to
survive. There are such unspoken circumstances, apparently."
"...That's a
cynical reason."
If a unit of Swordsmen
or Lancers collapses, Archers apparently flee immediately. One might wonder if
that's acceptable, but Anneliese says that Archers are weak at close range, so
they shouldn't needlessly throw away their lives. Is it okay for commoners to
throw away their lives, then?
"It's fine for
commoners to become Archers too. The point is whether they have the financial
means for it."
I'll say it again,
it's cynical.
However, in the case
of nobles, many also become Knights in addition to Archers. Knight here refers
to the job, not the social status. The Knight job is said to be excellent in
both offense and defense, making it a prestigious job. Even among front-line
jobs, prestigious ones are popular.
"Master, if you
change to a Swordsman and reach Level 10, you might receive an invitation from
nobles to join the army."
"Is Level 10 the
line for joining the army?"
"The army doesn't
do much actual combat. Levels do increase with training, but only slightly
compared to real combat. That's why they scout high-level individuals from the
start."
"Level 10 is
considered high-level?"
"A Swordsman at
Level 10 is equivalent to a Villager at Level 30 or higher. Because of skills,
even with such a level difference, a Swordsman is overwhelmingly
stronger."
Come to think of it,
Detailed Appraisal also said Villagers are weak.
"Weren't you
invited to the army, Anneliese?"
"I was invited,
but I chose to continue as an explorer."
So that's why her
level went up to 21.
"Is the army's
treatment better?"
"It depends on
the dungeon floors you explore, but you would likely earn more as an explorer.
However, joining the army provides a stable income. Unlike explorers, you're
not constantly fighting, so the risk of injury also decreases."
"But there are
wars, right?"
"Wars haven't
happened in over a decade. Considering that, many explorers choose
stability."
If wars don't happen,
then stable income is better, I suppose.
"Speaking of
which, there are bandit subjugations, aren't there?"
"Between
Swordsmen or Lancers and Bandits, Swordsmen and Lancers are clearly stronger.
If you match the numbers with the bandits, they're not much of a threat."
It's easier for the
army to match numbers, and if necessary, nobles can cooperate to subjugate
bandits. The nobles of this country are quite friendly and apparently cooperate
in times of emergency.
I shouldn't talk too
much in the dungeon. I proceeded deeper into the dungeon, seeking more
monsters.
"Monster. Right
after turning left at the crossroads."
"Understood."
***
On this day, I
defeated 20 Grey Rats and gained one level.
Villagers gain
experience evenly, but since it's not a combat job, the experience gained from
combat isn't that much. Combat-type jobs seem to level up more easily.
"Master, the fact
that you could defeat 20 Grey Rats on your first day is thanks to that Mithril
sword. Normally, you would surround them in a party and attack them many times
to defeat them."
I know, but hearing it
directly like that makes me lose confidence... However, it kept me from getting
conceited, so I should be grateful to Anneliese for telling me such things.
When I returned from
the dungeon to the surface, I inhaled the air deeply, feeling a sense of
release.
No matter what you
say, a dungeon is a confined space, so seeing the sky again brings a sense of
relief.
I went to the
Explorer's Guild to sell the drop items.
20 pieces of mouse
meat and 1 sharp front tooth—since Anneliese defeated one, it was items from a
total of 21 monsters.
The total amount
exchanged was 1,100 Grill. The meat was 50 Grill per piece, so 1,000 Grill for
20 pieces. The front tooth was 100 Grill.
One day's work earned
me the equivalent of 11,000 yen. I think that's a lot for a part-time job, but
I have an old woman to provide for.
I don't know how much
the inn costs, but I probably wouldn't have much left after paying for lodging
and meals. It's late to say this, but I'm grateful to Golteo-san for covering
the inn fees.
However, in a month,
I'll have to pay for the inn myself. I need to earn more.
Besides the purchase
cost, equipping myself also incurs maintenance fees. The Mithril Two-Handed
Sword has auto-repair, so its durability recovers, but normal equipment doesn't
have such a convenient effect.
If durability reaches
0, the sword or armor breaks and becomes unusable. So, I need to send them for
maintenance at the blacksmith. That costs money, but getting equipped is a
decided matter. It's genuinely scary to take damage that could kill me in just
three hits.
When I left the guild,
the sunset had already sunk quite far below the horizon. There were hardly any
streetlights, so walking the streets at night was difficult. I guess I'll head
back to the inn. Tomorrow, I'll go buy some armor.
I had dinner at the
inn, returned to my room, and wiped my body with water. Anneliese wiped my
back. I also wiped Anneliese's back, but I felt no excitement with an old
woman.
Anneliese offered to
wash my clothes, so I asked her to. I can cook, but I can't do laundry, so it
was a great help.
Meanwhile, I decided
to check my status. My level had increased, but there was no visible increase
in my abilities. It made me want to grumble that this isn't what you call a
level-up.
"Hey,
Anneliese."
"Yes?"
"My abilities
aren't increasing at all even though my level went up?"
The hand that was
washing stopped abruptly, and Anneliese slowly turned her gaze to me. Are her
eyes dead?
"You can see your
abilities?"
"Yeah, I
can."
"Master, can you
use Appraisal?"
"I can,
but?"
"...Haa."
Anneliese let out a
deep sigh.
"Master, you have
Appraisal in addition to the Item Box, don't you?"
"That's
right..."
"As I said
before, unique skills are rare."
Anneliese continued in
a bewildered tone.
Villagers don't have
skills, so the fact that I have Appraisal automatically means it's a unique
skill, right? But something feels off...?
"Please hide your
unique skills as much as possible."
"O-okay."
"You don't have
any other unique skills, do you?"
"Just two."
Hearing my reply, her
hands resumed washing.
"Villagers'
abilities hardly increase even when their level goes up. You might notice it when
you reach Level 4 or so, but that's just how it is."
Watching Anneliese's
back as she talked while washing, she looked like a hardworking old grandma.
However, I had heard
that Villagers hardly grow, but I never imagined it would be this bad. I want to
change jobs to Swordsman as soon as possible.
Hm? What's this?
As I was checking
jobs, I saw a job called Explorer.
The acquisition
condition seemed to be to defeat 20 monsters alone when first entering a
dungeon.
"It's good that I
defeated 20 monsters..."
"Did you say
something?"
"No,
nothing."
Since Explorer is a
job that can level up in combat, I changed my job from Villager to Explorer.
【Job】 Explorer Lv1
【Skills】 Dungeon Move (Minor), Treasure Hunt (Minor)
【Unique Skills】 Detailed Appraisal (Low), Item Box (Low)
Dungeon Move allows me
to shortcut through the dungeon. However, I can't move to a location I haven't
been to before. I think it's convenient, but since I haven't even defeated the
boss of the first floor yet, it's only moderately useful. As I progress through
more floors, I think it will become a god-tier skill.
On the other hand,
Treasure Hunt seems usable. It apparently allows me to sense the presence of a
treasure chest nearby. I want to see a treasure chest soon. No, I want to see
the treasure inside.
Ah, I just realized
what that strange feeling was!
If I can see my
status, I can check my abilities without using Detailed Appraisal, right? Why
did Anneliese think it was Appraisal?
"H-hey..."
"Yes?"
"Do you know
about 'status'?"
I asked timidly. I
wondered why I was so jumpy myself.
"I've never heard
of it."
"I-is that
so..."
Am I the only one who
can use status? Maybe those summoned classmates can use it too?
She'll just sigh
again, so I'll keep quiet to Anneliese for a while. Timing is important for
these things. Yes, I'll do that.
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