by Yuu Tanaka
Let’s put those healing spells to good use.
His health was terribly low when I looked at his stats. Fortunately, it didn’t look like he had any missing limbs or negative status effects.
Just use a normal Heal on him.
“Healing Light, Circle Heal.”
Circle Heal was a Level 7, area-of-effect healing spell. The other two adventurers were hurt too, so Fran must’ve wanted to heal their wounds while she was at it. What a nice girl she was!
“This little girl can use Circle Heal?”
“Wha… But that’s an intermediate spell!”
The eyes of the fighter and archer bulged in surprise.
“And is that an enchanted sword?”
Oh, they noticed me. Well, I did look more elegant than your run of the mill factory sword, so it was hard not to be noticed, really. What’s a talking sword to do?
“N-never mind that. Eustace! Are you okay?”
“Are you still with us?”
“Huh? I’m…fully healed?”
The injured mage seemed fine now too.
If you ask Fran any weird questions or try to use her, I thought to myself, I’m going to be very upset, understand?
“You okay?”
“Y-yeah. You saved us.”
“Thank you. Come on, you too!”
“Huh? Uh, thanks?”
They weren’t like the idiots we had run into the other day.
“Are you…an adventurer?”
“Yeah.”
“Um, can I get your name?”
“Fran.”
The adventurers traded meaningful glances with each other.
“Ring any bells?”
“No. If I knew someone as strong as her, I’d remember.”
“Right?”
“Don’t look at me.”
That was probably the gist of their silent conversation.
“My name’s Crull. This is Lily, and that’s Eustace.”
The fighter introduced his crew politely, but Fran had already lost interest in them.
“Hi. Bye.”
She wanted to get the pleasantries over with so she could check her stats.
Are you sure? We could get a reward for saving them.
“Poor things.”
I suppose. These guys were just starting out too. We couldn’t expect much even if we asked them for money. We might as well be robbing them if we forced them.
But Crull, their leader, stopped Fran from disappearing into the woods.
“W-wait.”
“Huh?”
“You’re the one who killed these goblins.”
“What? This little girl? You’re talking crazy.”
“Will you just shut up!”
“You already saved our lives. We can’t accept any more charity than that.”
He had a good heart, this one. It’d be bad manners on our part to turn him down.
We’ll just take the materials of the high-rank ones.
“Okay. I’ll take the high-rank materials.”
“Huh? There were some high-rank goblins in there?!”
Come on, you couldn’t tell? I mean, sure, they all looked the same, but these ones had bigger bodies and horns, you know.
“Hm.”
Fran left the three to their stunned silence and calmly carved up her prize. The adventurers looked shocked upon confirming the existence of the soldier, thief, and archer.
Fran took their horns and proceeded to put them in her item bag. It was a front, of course—she was actually putting them in her Pocket Dimension.
“Three high ranks?”
“Wait, isn’t that supposed to be bad? We have to tell the guild…”
“Okay, let’s calm down. Are we sure they’re high ranks?”
“Pretty sure. Look at the size of those three.”
Something was amiss here.
“What is it?”
“Well, if there really are three high-rank goblins, then we have to inform the Adventurer’s Guild!”
“Why?”
“You mean you don’t know?”
“What?”
“If there are high-rank goblins here, that means a King’s not far behind.”
The adventurers proceeded to explain the situation.
The presence of a Goblin King increased the goblins’ fighting prowess by way of his majesty’s leadership. I was already aware of this fact.
The more this united front hunted together, the more likely they were to take down stronger monsters with fewer casualties on their side. This vicious cycle allowed them to multiply at a rapid rate. When the crew got big enough, it would produce a Queen, something the goblin crew in the grasslands lacked, likely due to the fact that they were surrounded by immensely strong monsters.
The crucial part of all this was that a Goblin King and Queen produced hobgoblins as offspring. Worse, a hobgoblin mating with a regular goblin would produce nothing but hobgoblins.
Hobgoblins were F-Rank monsters, one rank higher than the goblins. A crew of goblins with a Goblin King would be at D-Rank. It didn’t take an astounding leap of logic to deduce that a Goblin King leading a pack of hobgoblins would be a C-Rank threat.
“We wouldn’t be able to manage them at that point. It’d be a monstrous disaster.”
“I don’t even want to think about how many villages would get wiped out.”
I see. It was a matter of life and death to the local adventurers. We should take care of them as soon as we could.
“We’ll go to the Adventurer’s Guild to inform them of this matter.”
They picked up the corpses of the high-rank goblins as they left. Even if they didn’t have the parts we’d carved off, their carcasses should make for more than enough proof.
“Okay.”
“If you’ll excuse us.”
“Thank you so much.”
“It looks like you saved my life. Thanks!”
We got some goblin materials and helped some promising youngsters in the process. I’d call that a good day.
Let’s absorb those crystals.
I began absorbing crystals once I was far enough from the newbie adventurers. I already had all the skills the goblins had to offer, but every crystal counted toward my evolution. Plus, they were really tasty.
“Could you show me my stats?”
All right, all right. I’m throwing it up now.
“’Kay.”
Name: Fran
Age: 12
Race: Beastman; Black Cat Tribe
Class: Spellsword
LV: 4
HP: 31; Magic: 29; Strength: 28; Agility: 49
Her stats had gone up quite a bit. Her Strength and Agility especially, which went up by four points per level up, thanks to her being a Spellsword. I relayed the information to Fran.
“Good.”
Yeah. Let’s keep at it and level up more.
“Yeah.” Fran was so cute when she pumped her fists in the air with a blank expression on her face.
All right, time to go hunting!
It had been an hour since we parted ways with the newbie group.
We were now neck-deep in goblins.
“Double Slash!”
“Gyaah!”
“Gyoo!”
The skill produced quick diagonal slashes which cut through two goblins.
Fran is now Level 5.
“I leveled up again.”
I know. We can check your stats later.
I kept blasting the goblins away with magic while Fran’s Sword Arts cut them in two.
There was no end to the horde. I initially thought we would snuff out the goblins for some easy EXP, but they kept coming in one after another. There must’ve been more than a hundred of them. We never thought we’d be going up against this many goblins in one day. I might have underestimated the goblin horde through my greed for EXP.
Their cave must’ve been nearby. No matter how fast we cut them down they kept on getting reinforcements. There
were even some high-rank goblins mixed in.
Incoming!
“Got it!”
The goblins had taken position in the forest and unleashed a hail of rocks and splinters at Fran. They had us completely surrounded. We couldn’t possibly dodge all the projectiles.
“Teacher!”
I got it. Fire Wall!
A dome of fire covered Fran, protecting her from the rocks and splinters. But the goblins weren’t finished with their assault.
They’re coming!
“Right!”
Fran braced with me in hand, waiting for the flame barrier to dissipate.
“Graargh!”
“Gyogyoga!”
“Gyaroo!”
Ten goblins mobbed Fran all at the same time. Two of them jumped the gun, still on fire from charging through the Fire Wall.
“Heavy Slash!”
She dodged their attacks and swung me in a huge arc to cut through five goblins at once.
“Gyaha!”
“Guh…”
“Raargh!”
“Ow!”
She couldn’t keep dodging the goblins, however, and blood had begun seeping through her armor. A sword cut the tip of her shoulder and a spear had pierced her back. Fran withstood the sharp pain and kept swinging her sword without missing a beat. I wanted to equip Painkiller, but it had the side-effect of dulling her sense of touch; she could end up being less nimble because of it.
“Hyaaaaaa!” Fran screamed as she killed her tenth goblin, a sound I didn’t hear too often considering her quiet disposition. It joined the mound of forty-odd goblins that she’d slaughtered throughout this battle. Yet it didn’t look like the number of the goblins surrounding Fran was decreasing.
Great Heal!
Fran panted heavily.
Fran! Talk to me!
“I’m fine,” she huffed.
Let’s get out of here. There’re easier ways to farm for EXP.
We’d underestimated the fight with the goblins. I was all right since I couldn’t feel pain. Even if something chipped my blade, a few moments of Self-Repair would put me back to normal. I could go up against anything except the strongest of monsters. But it also meant I had no real sense of danger, for better or worse. As much as I wanted to tell Fran something was too dangerous for her, I’d believed deep down that she’d be fine so long as she had me around.
Which is why we got into this mess with mere goblins. But it was too late for second thoughts. We had healing spells and self-regeneration skills at our disposal. We even had a skill that would prevent us from dying from a would-be fatal attack. We would win this fight if we kept going, but I didn’t know how much pain Fran could put up with. She couldn’t have been ready for such a difficult battle right out the gate. The last thing I wanted was for this fight to traumatize her.
They’re coming in hot! There’s still time to get out of here!
We could maneuver through the air using a combination of Float and Air Hop. Breaking through the goblin ranks should be easy.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
Fran, you don’t have to be a hero! We can go hunt some bigger monsters for better EXP! This fight is a lost cause!
Was she getting stubborn?
“It’s not a lost cause,” Fran muttered, bracing herself against me. She had a look of determination on her face.
“I won’t die if you’re with me, Teacher. I’ll take on this pain. That’s the only way I can get used to fighting. That’s the only way I can get stronger.”
Fran…
“The only way to get stronger is to fight to within an inch of my life. This battle is perfect that way.”
Her lips curled in a savage smile. I had underestimated her. She’d been ready a long time ago; I was the one who wasn’t ready. I didn’t want to see her hurt.
Sure, I could make her stronger. All she had to do was wield me to gain a few levels. But could you call that real strength?
No, real strength was a matter of experience and mental fortitude. All the levels in the world were worthless if you’d never actually been in a real fight.
Fran understood that.
“Teacher, you’re on support.”
Her resolve was nothing like mine; I was the one who was raised in air-conditioned Japan.
But, all right. I’ve got your back, Fran! And I wouldn’t romanticize this whole adventuring business anymore.
My User wasn’t a weak kitten who needed taking care of. She was a savage cub whose fangs needed teething.
Leave the healing to me!
“Okay! Here I go!”
Fran charged right into the heart of the goblin horde.
“Haaa!”
“Gyogyaa!”
She immediately began swinging her sword. The force of her swing was so great that it split the goblins’ helmets along with their heads. The goblins didn’t expect such ferocity and speed, and she stabbed them in the hearts before they could react.
She was experimenting with her swordsmanship, the surrounding goblins her test subjects. She wanted to know her limits through this fight. It was more about the experience she gained than the number of goblins she killed.
She wanted to be stronger, faster, better.
Fran cut through every goblin, a picture of her ideal self in the back of her mind. Each kill was a step she took toward evolution.
The goblins got a few hits in on her at times, however. The pain slowed her down which created an opening for a goblin to stab her left arm with a spear. A short sword had also cut through her leg.
The goblins were just as prepared to die as she was. They bit her, and some even threw the innards of their fallen comrades at her as gruesome clubs.
But Fran stood her ground.
The goblins’ attacks became second nature to her. She’d figured out the methods of the goblin horde’s assault. She did her best not to be bested by the same tricks twice. No matter how many cuts or bruises they inflicted on her, she wouldn’t stop moving. Most importantly, she didn’t take her attention away from the horde for a second.
I could see the resolve in Fran’s eyes as I fought with her. I was going to play support until Fran had enough on-ground experience. I would help with her slashes until she adjusted to my weight.
But then I noticed something during the fight—
“Ha! Raah!”
Her movements were becoming quicker. She hadn’t used Triple Thrust, but the speed was roughly equivalent.
Again, she launched an attack which was as fast as Double Slash—no, those slashes were even faster than Double Slash.
I thought she was getting used to using her Sword Arts, but it looked like she wasn’t using them at all.
Was that even possible?
Her mind and body couldn’t have adjusted to a high-level Sword Mastery in such a short period of time. She had only been fighting weak monsters, and most of the fights were over before they even started so the problem never actually came up.
In an all-out fight to the death, Skill and body became as one.
Up till now, her sword arm benefited from her instincts and speed. The enemies she faced before this had broadcast their attacks, which made them trivial to dodge.
But it was different now.
Every time she dodged a goblin’s attack, the more precise her own attacks became. She was getting rid of the inefficiencies in her movements. Sword and body were now one. The battle showed me how much Fran had grown in both body and spirit in such a short time.
Two hours later…
“Huff… Huff…”
You did it, Fran!
“Yeah…”
Goblin corpses littered the ground. Blood and entrails soaked the earth. It looked like a scene straight from hell. Fran stood in the middle of it all, struggling to stay upright.
There wasn’t a scratch on her, thanks to Healing Magic. Her exhaustion was so great that she heaved a heavy sigh. Her entire body was covered in blood and dirt; there wasn’t a clean
spot on her. Her newly-bought armor was now tinted a reddish brown. Her dress armor was so beat up that we were going to need to fix it right after this.
I could’ve made the fight easier if I had gone on the offensive, but Fran needed this fight. She was only at Level 8 now, but the battlefield experience was invaluable. She had learned to target the goblins’ weak points—their crystals—in the middle of the frenzied fight.
Stamina Heal.
I healed her stamina along with her physical wounds, though the spell didn’t help much with her mental exhaustion.
Get some rest. I’ll stay on lookout.
I needed to gather up materials and absorb those crystals anyway.
“I’ll help.”
Whoa, hey. Are you sure?
“The sooner we get out of here the better.”
I guess you’re right… We haven’t run into the King yet. We should leave before reinforcements arrive.
“Yeah.”
I’ll leave the carving and looting to you. I’ll take the crystals.
“Got it.”
Thirty minutes later…
I think that’s all of it.
“Big haul.”
You can say that again. We got close to 200 crystals from that.
The high-rank goblins notwithstanding, we took down more than a hundred normal goblins.
Good thing the other monsters aren’t getting in the way.
“Easy pickings.”
Wild monsters should’ve been swarming the place with how much blood there was. They got close but turned tail when they saw the gory battlefield. They may have lacked intelligence, but they knew to steer clear of anything that could kill a goblin horde. It was nice to see Fran excited over our loot though.
We got some new skills too. They look interesting.
Fran was the big winner of this fight, no doubt about it. She had gained so many levels and got a ton of actual battle experience. But we got a huge amount of loot on the side too. There were about fifty cracked pieces of weapons made of either steel or bronze. We also got some armor pieces, but most of them stank to high heaven so we had to leave them behind. We got a bunch of magical items though. I’d have to research them later.
As for the new skills we got: Speedcasting; Acrobatics; Kick Arts; Necromancy; Absorb Poison; Poison Magic; Axe Mastery; Steadfast. The ones we got off of the four hobgoblins that led the pack: Hobgoblin Dark Mage; Hobgoblin Necromancer; Hobgoblin Grappler; Hobgoblin Gladiator…which posed a difficult problem.