Zentia is extremely fond of sleeping in. Even when someone tries to wake her up, she often can't get up, and once she gets comfortable, she typically continues sleeping until the sun is high in the sky. She also talks in her sleep a lot, and if there's something next to her, she'll hug it while sleeping.
However, even someone like her will immediately open her eyes if there's something that needs to be done. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to work as a mercenary at all. She only lounges around when the day's schedule is very relaxed.
Yesterday she taught Yuda dagger techniques, and starting today, they would begin activities in the forest and return in the evening. Although they were planning to camp outdoors, since Yuda was still young, there was no rush for that. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she got up, yawned while changing her clothes, washed her face, and then woke Yuda up. It was just as the sun was beginning to rise over the mountains.
Yuda didn't seem to have expected to wake up this early either, but he got up without complaint, had breakfast with her, and set off for the forest. The eastern gate of the city was already open, and a few hunters and herb gatherers were moving sluggishly along the path, overcome with drowsiness.
While the south and west gates led to dangerous areas overflowing with monsters and wouldn't let anyone through unless they were adventurers or knights, the east gate only required a bit of caution as the dangers consisted solely of cliffs and wild animals. The only real problem was the occasional black wolf that came up from the southern forest.
Yuda followed Zentia into the forest, and soon after, she began her lessons.
What she taught was both simple and difficult. First, she showed him the characteristics and effects of commonly found herbs and explained how to use them in emergency situations. Using the notepad feature, Yuda didn't miss any information she taught him.
She told him she didn't expect him to remember everything at once, just to become familiar with them visually. Yuda nodded. As a player characteristic, he could learn skills all at once. He could check his notes later to ensure he didn't forget what he had written down. But his head was still the same. Although his memory might have improved slightly, it was still too much to expect to remember everything after seeing and hearing it just once. After teaching him about herbs, she taught him hunting methods. The hunting itself wasn't anything special.
It was simply about using throwing dagger techniques to kill prey from a distance in one go, or aiming for the legs to slow them down before chasing and killing them. What was definitely helpful, though, were the methods for suppressing one's presence and erasing one's tracks. There were also techniques for tracking beasts that weren't native to the area.
As she said, hunting was enjoyable, but the problem was what came afterward. Skinning and butchering the game was almost like manual labor. With the hunted game, they were able to have dinner and then return home. It had been an exhausting day.
And Yuda had no idea that this would be repeated for two years. He had to collect herbs, explain their effects, and describe treatment methods for emergency situations every day. He mastered the mercenary-style left-handed dagger technique and could now throw daggers accurately enough to hit moving prey from a distance. He became proficient at skinning and butchering.
He also developed some proficiency in erasing tracks and tracking techniques, and through training that involved either tracking Zentia or fleeing from her, he almost naturally developed a skill, but permanently canceled it.
Anyway, although he had gone through such busy days, terribly, his stats barely increased. It seemed that in this world, the first time was what mattered—stats would increase the first time you did something, but repetitive actions didn't result in much growth.
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*Settlement
[Hunted wild beasts while running through mountains and forests east of Serenia Castle. This will surely count as experience. Strength and Dexterity increased by 3, Stamina increased by 4.]
[Learned essential knowledge about herbs, first aid, edible fruits and mushrooms, and other survival necessities from the hunter Zentia. Knowledge increased by 4.]
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「Status Window」
[Name: Yuda Arshe]
[Title: None]
[Level: 9]
[Occupation: Black Claw _ Shadow Magic Swordsman (Hidden_A)]
[Revival Count: 1]
[Strength: 35 (D) / Potential A]
[Stamina: 35 (D) / Potential S]
[Agility: 30 (D) / Potential SS]
[Mana: 37 (D) / Potential B]
[Mana Resistance: 51 (C) / Potential S]
[Knowledge: 17 (F) / Potential B] ◀ Special
[Luck: 79 (B) / Potential A] ◀ Special
[Remaining Points: 8]
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Still, he felt secretly proud. His level had increased a bit from hunting beasts, and he hadn't used the accumulated points yet because he hadn't felt the need to.
These days, Zentia seemed to think there was nothing left to teach him, as she no longer got up early in the morning. She always slept late and lived like someone without a job. As a result, Yuda going to the forest alone had become routine.
He hunted about once every 2-3 days, and strangely, the number of animals never seemed to decrease. Considering that there were many other hunters roaming the area besides Yuda, it almost seemed like they were respawning from somewhere.
In truth, there weren't many hunters in Serenia Castle. There were surprisingly few hunters compared to the population. Hunting wild beasts like boars wasn't very rewarding—the meat often smelled bad and was sometimes very tough. Even after tirelessly running through forests and hills to catch beasts, it was difficult to get proper compensation for the effort. It was much more profitable to kill the black or white wolves in the southern forest and sell their hides and magic stones.
Unlike monsters, beasts didn't even provide magic stones, and crucially, since there were hardly any monsters or carnivorous beasts in the northern forest of Serenia Castle, they raised sheep and cattle there by letting them graze freely.
Since rice, wheat, and meats like chicken regularly came in through merchant caravans, there was no shortage of food whatsoever. Naturally, the hunting profession had declined. The remaining hunters only did it as a hobby, for the sheer joy of hunting.
Yuda opened his minimap. The map appearing in the corner of his vision showed a detailed top-down view of his surroundings. A red circle marked his current position. Even if you got lost in the forest, with the minimap feature, you could find your way or retrace your steps.
'Hmm, is this... near the southern forest?'
It seemed he had come farther than he thought. He usually didn't come this far, and ahead of him, the minimap was dark. That meant it was an area he had never been to before.
Yuda looked up and stared ahead. There wasn't anything visible that could be called a boundary line. But on Yuda's minimap, there was a line drawn indicating that beyond this point was the southern forest. Looking closely at the forest, it gave a dark impression despite the sun still being high in the sky.
The southern forest, also called the Black Forest, was where ferocious black wolves and silver wolves fought each other for territory. If one carelessly entered this area and encountered wolves, they might die or suffer terribly.
'I should go back.'
Although he wanted to try hunting the wolves, he chose safety over the high risk. He didn't have proper weapons or armor. Just as he stretched leisurely and was about turn around without much concern, he felt a chilling sensation creep up from his feet to the top of his head. His hair stood on end.
Grrrr...!
Before he could even wonder about it, he heard a growling sound, as if whispered directly into his ear.
'Wolf!'
Reflexively, he drew the longsword from his waist and the dagger from his belt in his left hand. The dagger gleamed sharply as it was pulled from its leather sheath. Slowly lowering his stance, he looked around but saw nothing. The dense forest was concealing the creature's form.
He took a deep breath, fresh air filling his lungs before leaving. Slowly, he took a step forward. The pleasant atmosphere of the quiet forest, where only the sound of the wind could be heard, suddenly changed. The moment he realized a wolf was present, the serene atmosphere of the forest became as eerie as a haunted house.
This was different from the hunting he had been doing until now. Until now, he had been the hunter, but this time he was being hunted. A new predator had appeared, threatening the position of the existing predator. Although fear made his body tremble at the thought that he might have to risk his life, it soon turned into excitement. And the moment he realized it was excitement, Yuda felt the corners of his mouth turn upward.
'Ha, I've gone crazy.'
Being excited in this situation—he'd really become strange. In his original world, while not exactly a coward, he wasn't this calmly brave. He tried to resolve fights through conversation when possible and avoided them if he could. He always stopped at the point where he wouldn't be disrespected by others.
But it was different here. Whether it was because survival was at stake, or because of the two traits 〈Warrior's Spirit〉 and 〈Player〉, his personality seemed to have completely flipped.
Grrrr...
As if to confirm he hadn't misheard, the growling sound came once more. Along with it was the sound of something stepping on the ground. The creature was circling around, watching him. If it charged, he would kill it with the sword in his hand, just as he had trained.
With confidence, he waited for it to charge first. But the creature refused to show itself. Instead, each time he tried to take a step, it would briefly reveal its presence with a growl.
Even after 10 minutes, the wolf didn't show itself. It was a cautious one. The excitement subsided, and fear began to creep back. The tension of not knowing when the wolf might pounce from behind made his body feel heavy. The sword in his hand felt heavy even though he hadn't swung it.
The dense forest remained unchanged. The wind blew coolly, and the branches swayed as if dancing. Sunlight fell to the ground through the leaves. Such excessive tension only increased fatigue and quickly drained the body. Yuda realized this belatedly and changed his thinking.
'Even if I die, I'll just resurrect anyway.'
Just like when he died to the mercenary. Then there's nothing to worry about.
I'll just return to the starting point. Don't worry, death wasn't even that painful, right? It's okay. I didn't even feel the pain.
He muttered to himself as if brainwashing himself. Thinking this way reduced his tension. He decided to maintain an appropriate level of tension while looking around, ready to do his best the moment the enemy appeared. His body felt somewhat lighter, but only for a moment.
It wasn't as easy. He reacted sensitively to even the smallest rustling sound. It was different from chasing wild beasts in the western forest. Now he was reminded that he was the prey.
'Experience...'
Yes, this too was experience. The experience that Kaseun and Zentia had emphasized as so important. He would have to fight the wolves of the southern forest eventually. These were things he would have had to experience someday. The timing had just been moved up a bit. He had been running through this forest for two years, sometimes sleeping with the ground as his bed, tree roots as his pillow, and leaves as his blanket. There was nothing else. The forest was not the enemy.
It was just a battlefield. As he changed his perspective, his previously limited vision seemed to widen slightly. His body didn't feel heavy anymore. The creature was still lingering around. Suddenly, through a gap in the bushes, he saw red eyes that he presumed belonged to it. He tightly gripped the sword in his hand. Despite being drenched in sweat, the cloth wrapped around the handle prevented any worry of slipping.
There's nothing to worry about.
No need to be afraid.
If I die, I'll just start over from the beginning.
'From the beginning.'
Although it was somewhat terrifying to think about repeating those harsh and tedious days, the ability to resurrect after death was also a reliable insurance. Trusting in that one insurance, Yuda gathered his courage. After all, wasn't this what he had been preparing for by endlessly striking dummies with wooden swords, sparring with Kain, building up his stamina, and learning hunting from Zentia? To survive in this world, he had no choice but to defeat the strong and become even stronger.
'If it won't come to me, I'll have to go to it.'
Yuda slowly inhaled and activated Shadow Sorcery.
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***Author’s Note***
Zentia: Learn humility. Enter the pupil.
What a high-class joke for all of you! Can't help it.
I have no choice but to let you call Zentia by the nickname Tia.
That should be fine, right?
Oh, and I read all your comments!
I check them on my phone right after waking up—that’s how much I love them.
Don’t feel bad if I don’t reply—I’m not ignoring you T_T
I don’t slack on coupons either.
Well, maybe a tiny bit… Look, I posted back-to-back yesterday and today!
P.S. “Dewtorial”… “Tutorial”…
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