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The New Gate:Volume 2 Chapter 3

2017-05-26T03:52:43Z

Xiani:

Shin and Schnee entered the forest at a quick pace.

While avoiding the adventurers who were moving into the plains, they turned their route toward Tsuki no Hokora. On the way, because the set-up base had been abandoned, he stopped, broke it down, and collected it all including the interception item. Wilhelm seemed to have given priority to evacuating and since Wilhelm wouldn’t do such a foolish move like collecting items in that situation, it was only to be expected that the base was neglected.

Shin’s feelings wouldn’t be hurt or even bruised if the items themselves were left. He removed them in this situation, because there was a danger of them changing into a permanent fort without its owner. In fact, many Skull Faces might have already fallen victim to it, as there were signs that the interception magic had activated. They seemed to have been individuals, those killed here, because it was not very far from the plains.

“Now that I think about it, didn’t you receive a request? Is it completed?”

Shin asked Schnee as he finished collecting the items.

“It is not quite finished yet, but my job is almost done.”

“Job?”

“It’s the safekeeping and distribution of the items. My work now is to manage all of it to prevent infringement, since multiple countries had joined together to form a joint military unit.”

“…Is this perhaps related to the recent uproar?

“Of course.”

“Seriously…”

Shin sighed. Although it was not intentional, he had meddled in another large affair again. He was utterly ignorant toward serious matters, he didn’t realize that the countries had started working on calming the situation down. Although he was a little regretful that he had done it in such a flashy manner, the damage was already done.

While asking Schnee about what kind of situation it was in detail, he wracked his brain to recall if there were any eyewitnesses. After grunting “uh-huh” for a while, he concluded that as far as he could tell, no one could have seen him, except for Schnee. Even the green markers he had protected should not have seen him or which way the fireballs came from, given how massive the Skull Faces were.

“Well, never mind about that. So, does Schnee not have to show up for the distribution? I think you should at least go to the meeting place or should I say headquarters for you to finish your request.”

“It will be alright for a while. Even if I distribute it evenly, it doesn’t work on the basis of first-come, first-served. I am supposed to do the allocation after all the corps have gathered. It will take about one week at the earliest, until there can be a meeting. If I think about the range of each unit’s progress, there is no problem even if I don’t hurry that much.”

As he had given up on thinking about the eyewitness case, because nothing could be done any further, he confirmed Schnee’s timeline. If she was serious, Schnee could travel faster than the others, so she could afford to spend some time with Shin

Whether it was Shin or Schnee, there were a lot of things they wanted to ask each other. While heading toward Tsuki no Hokora, they decided to explain to each other their own situation.

“Since I have a lot of questions I want to ask, you can ask me anything before that.”

Shin decided to accept questions from Schnee first, considering the longer time she had spent here. Actually, it still hadn’t even passed one month since Shin came into this world, so he might only be able to answer a little.

“I understand. Then I will ask several things that I’ve been anxious about for the time being.”

“Go ahead.”

Schnee asked Shin three things.

First, where was he until now?

Second, why did his combat ability rise?

Third, what will he do from now on?

“Then the first one. About where I was until now. To tell you the truth, I personally haven’t even been here for one month, today, since I went to the last dungeon.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“It’s true. Remember the time when everyone saw off me to challenge the Origin?”

“Yes.”

“I defeated the Origin and it should have been the end accordingly. But afterwards, in the deepest depth of that dungeon, 【Gate of the Otherworld】, there was a big door in the boss’ room. It opened soon after the Origin fell.”

Shin recalled that moment while explaining it to Schnee. The scene where the heavy door he thought was just a decoration opened up while making a sound.

“Door…?”

“Yes. After that, I lost consciousness, and before I realized it, I’m laying down on a grassy field. After that, I went to Tsuki no Hokora and heard the outline story. I was really surprised when I heard that more than 500 years had passed. That’s the reason why I haven’t been around for 500 years.”

“So that’s the reason, huh?”

Schnee seemed to understand the situation as she listened to what Shin said. It was different from the time when they met earlier; she had an expression of relief, like her chest wasn’t constricted anymore.

“Schnee?”

“Fufufu, it’s nothing.”

“Then, that’s good.”

Though Shin had a question mark dancing above his head because Schnee, for some reason, was in a good mood, he didn’t think about it too much because it was boorish to be a wet blanket; especially when with someone who is in such a joyful mood.

Now then, for the next one. My abilities and stats went up because of the titles I acquired after defeating the Origin.”

“Titles? What kind of titles?”

“There are three of them. 【Limit Breaker】, 【Accomplished One】 and 【Liberator】. The first two are related to the growth of my stats. Though I heard them for the first time when I got them, do you remember hearing any of them before?”

No, I’ve just heard all of those titles for the first time as well. What kind of effect do they have?”

Shin explained each of the titles’ effect in answer to Schnee’s question. Even though there was not a stat raise for the title 【Liberator】, since he felt like it had some kind of meaning, he explained it in one go. (E/N: 【Liberator】 – Immune to all binding and restriction effects, be it items or magic skills. 【Accomplished One】 – All ability points doubled. 【Limit Breaker】 – The upper limit for all stats has been removed, and all stats will rise according to how many ability points were discarded prior to limit removal.)

“…That’s absurd, isn’t it.”

“Totally. I also thought it was a joke until I looked at the stats.”

Shin too, could understand the feeling of Schnee who was at a loss for words. If a chosen one acquired these titles, the power balance of the world would likely collapse.

“However, I think it is not necessary to worry about it to that extent.”

“Why is that?” Shin asked.

“It is the acquisition requirement. Although monsters exist in this world, the phenomenon of re-spawning in the same place with completely identical unique monsters doesn’t happen. I don’t think there is a person who can meet the acquisition requirement anywhere else, because the Origin might be the only one. Also, the dungeon that Master went to has completely disappeared.”

“I see. That does make it impossible.”

According to Schnee, several days after Shin left to conquer the dungeon, Shin’s support characters became exasperated when Shin didn’t come back, so they gathered together and followed their Master’s path. However, not even a shadow or shape was there, even the outlines were gone.

When they stopped the search temporarily and went back to Tsuki no Hokora, the support characters of other players were making a racket saying, “My Master has disappeared!”. Schnee heard it and was convinced that Shin had cleared the dungeon. But they still doubted that he disappeared with the other players, and started to investigate the story on their own. She also thought of the possibility that Shin was still in this world, just like her and the others were.

However, the earth’s crust changed, and a state of confusion followed on the continent afterwards. While helping the people who were in trouble, Schnee remained in Tsuki no Hokora, and the rest of his support characters separated to continue searching for Shin, or moved to protect their own race.

Somehow, Shin had expected that they would do that.

“But wait? Didn’t the Dusk of the Majesty occur right after I defeated Origin?”

Shin had noticed that there was an unusual time lag for the support character to make a racket.

“Master, if you think about the former location of Tsuki no Hokora, of course it would take some time for the information to circulate. Where did you think it was?”

“…True.”

Schnee was saying that since numerous boss monsters existed in the area near Tsuki no Hokora, one could say it was a remote outpost. In a situation where the support characters couldn’t use the chat function, information couldn’t be shared right away.

“That’s why I believe that a person who has Master’s titles or at least similar titles will likely never appear. If such a person does appear, well, please do something about it.”

“So it falls to me, huh?”

“Of course. Only someone of Masters’ standing can oppose them, if a person with a power similar to our class obtains those titles. Therefore, I leave all of it to you Master.”

“Well, that is right.”

The stats double, so that mean that the higher the original stats were, the stronger the titleholder would became. If a chosen one with a high ability obtained the title 【Accomplished One】 or in even【Limit Breaker】, even Schnee wouldn’t stand a chance against that person.

However, since there were strict requirements for the acquisition conditions, and Shin had beyond maxed stats, Schnee believed that the appearance of any enemy that would be able to get a solid hit in, was very unlikely in the present state.

“By the way, Schnee.”

“Yes, what is it?”

“That, ‘Master’ calling, can you do something about it?”

While talking, Shin by all means felt bothered. Though he didn’t mind it during the game, simply because she was an NPC, it was very awkward when she called him that in the current situation.

“Is there a problem when I’m calling Master, ‘Master’?”

“No, there’s no…problem, but isn’t Schnee famous now? If such a person calls me ‘Master’, it will absolutely turn into an uproar.”

“Mu, that’s certainly the case, but…”

Shin well understood the influence of Tsuki no Hokora. And, it was certainly Schnee who made it so. It was impossible that nothing would happen if a person such as Schnee appeared to have a master whom she looked up to.

“Don’t you think so? I would especially like to avoid becoming the center of the attention. Therefore, I request that you do not call me ‘Master’.”

“But, then what should I call you?”

“Eh? Wouldn’t using my name normally be enough?”

“Uh!? T-That…”

For some reason, the surprised Schnee looked downward with her mouth mumbling. After a short time, she raised her face to stare straight at Shin as if she had made up her mind.

“T-Then…Shin.”

“Ah, there we go.”

Schnee said it in a whisper. Her cheeks were dyed a faint, pink color and her ears were bright red.

As for Shin, he had quite the response of ‘Eh, what is that reaction!?’ and strangely enjoyed the embarrassed feeling.

Schnee’s reaction was certainly seen in a lot of mangas and games. Though Shin well knew of this situation, the problem was whether or not he could return the reaction directly.

Though he was not well-versed, it didn’t mean that he had never experienced love before.

To tell the truth, Schnee had never changed her expressions to be this shy in the game, so the very action of calling his own name with somewhat upturned eyes was terrific, and considerably very ―――― ‘Moe’.

“How should I say this…that has destructive power…”

“Eh!?”

“No, it’s nothing. Yeah, it’s really nothing. From now on, please call me Shin.”

“I understand. Then, after this I will call you S-Shin.”

Schnee tried to act calm, but the flushed cheeks and ears vividly expressed her state of mind. Shin, who knew her usual calm appearance, was worrying about the too extreme gap.

(Is this the true ‘Gap Moe’? Indeed…the destructive power is worthy of comparison with the gap of Celica-san, which I felt in the guild.)

After that, they walked without saying anything to each other for a while. After confirming that the ears of Schnee, who was fidgety, returned to their former color using side glances, Shin resumed the conversation.

“Ah, though we got off topic, should we continue with the questions?”

“Yes, I showed an unsightly side. But I’m alright now.”

Though he felt that her voice still sounded somewhat excited, he ignored it, because the conversation would not advance if he pointed it out.

“Let me see…Errr, I’ve already talked about my abilities. Then about the last question. First of all, I intend to go around collecting information around here and there after this.”

“Information?”

“Yes, first I will learn about this world. For the time being, I have investigated a little in the kingdom’s library, and I intend to go to the Sacred Land later. Has Schnee been there before?”

“Yes. But because it was only a simple internal investigation, I still don’t know what’s going on in the center of the city.”

“Is that so?”

Whether the key to returning to his former world lies there or not. The only way is to go there directly.

“Um…Shin.”

“Hmm?”

Schnee called out to Shin, who was thinking on whether he wanted to go the Sacred Land next. Her voice had completely changed from a while ago and was a little bit stiff.

“If you find the way…are you going to stop and return?”

“…Ah.”

He went silent for a while and replied. Though he hesitated on how to answer Schnee’s in this state, it wouldn’t change the conclusion even if he lied. He didn’t mean to give up if there was still a possibility.

And there was no meaning in vague answers, either.

He didn’t want to lie.

“That should be expected, huh?”

“…Sorry.”

“No, When I listened to your talk earlier, I already thought you wanted to do so.”

Schnee nodded while showing an innocent smile, seemingly understanding in some respect. At the expression that resembled a look of relief, Shin felt a faint sense of incongruity.

“Hey, Schnee. How much do you remember from the game?”

Shin asked, in an attempt to change the sense of incongruity.

“Everything.”

“Everything..?”

“Yes. From the time I descended down from that place to be together with you.”

Everything until this very moment now.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 The moment when he ran through a field for beginners.

The time when he was depressed due to losing in PvP.

The eagerness to improve his stats.

The friends he had in the guild.

The loud laugh after defeating a large army of players.

The dungeon where he risked his life.

The tears he shed for not being able to protect someone’s life.

The assassin’s dagger he wielded.

The promise he made to a certain person.

The last time seeing his back.

“――I remember it all.”

Schnee said while calmly putting her hand above her chest.

“Although it was useless to ask you to forget it too, please say…”

“I’m not saying~”

The smiling face was too radiant as she answered bluntly. It was a facial expression that he hadn’t seen when she was an NPC, and when his fellow made this sort of face, Shin became a little glad.

“But, if that was the case. Though you only talked in pre-set sentences, were you in a state of awareness?”

“No, it was after Shin and the others entered the situation known as the death game, that a type of self-consciousness became clear. Until then, it felt like watching a moving picture. It is very hard to explain it, but it’s like looking at myself from a bird’s-eye view.”

Though it was her memory, Schnee said that it was like the memory of another person. To be frank, he didn’t understand it well, because he thought it was rather painful that her consciousness became aware while in a state where her body moved without permission, so he didn’t question it further.

“I see. In short, you know all about the logout stuff and the other things beyond that point as well.”

It was possible to say that that might be the reason why she had retained her memories of the game.

“Yes. At that time, it was because all of the adventurers sometimes used those words after the life and death fights began. If I am not mistaken, another world, different from this one, is the real world, right?”

“That is correct…so anyways, after I left, you guys searched for me and then separated, huh?”

“…Yes.”

While smiling as if she had been in trouble, Schnee affirmed it.

The last fight of the death game. If Shin won the fight, Schnee and the others would disappear. If Shin lost, Schnee and the others would lose their master. Either way, it couldn’t become a happy ending. Therefore, they took several actions, due the mysterious situation where they didn’t disappear even though Shin should have won.

“If only you all could have told me beforehand, though that might not be possible to say.”

“Then, wouldn’t Shin have been troubled by it? You had to do the best that you could at that time.”

“Is that so…”

Though it was decided that it was okay and he had been in high spirits when he left Tsuki no Hokora; when he learned about the circumstances that his support characters had concealed among themselves, Shin felt miserable.

Nevertheless, even if he had known, he would not have doubted himself, and would have done what he did, so he did not say anything.

“In those days, independent action was not completely possible yet, and the talk of freedom, like the present day, was more or less not even imaginable. Either way, it would have been impossible to talk about.”

“Well now that you mention it, when the death game began, I thought it was weird that the NPC’s were strangely acting like human beings. Now knowing that it was self-awareness, I realize ‘Ah! so that’s it’.”

“You have a difficult personality as always, Shin.”

“Shut up!…Leave me alone.”

He muttered at Schnee, who smiled wryly while he was embarrassed. He was pondering his past actions, thinking about if or when the programs had began self-consciousness or something, wondering ‘Did I treat them decently?’, as Schnee’s remark actually hit the target.

“Well, you would have gone to battle even if you had known, Shin.”

“…That’s probably true.”

Compared to the lives of ten thousand humans, the support characters were no more than data. Even if the data had been somewhat self-consciousness, it was still not comparable.

“Besides, didn’t you make a promise?”

“…Yeah.”

Even though it wasn’t much, many people returned to reality.

In fact, it was due to that promise which Shin had exchanged with a certain person.

Since they knew about it for sure, neither Schnee nor the other support characters would have said anything.

“Now then, let’s put a stop to this solemn atmosphere. Especially since we are able to meet again after so much effort and a long wait.”

“…That’s right. “What am I saying now, it’s quickly become depressing! Let’s stop it!”

In order to completely change the mood that had become depressing, Schnee behaved cheerfully and clapped her hands in an exaggerated manner. Shin also joined in by raising his voice.

“First of all, to celebrate the reunion, let’s go all out with a party. If it’s about food ingredients, I have a lot left in the Item Box.”

“Let’s do it. Please let me demonstrate my cooking skill that I have raised over the years.”

“By the way, what is your cooking level?”

“It became Ⅸ about one month ago.”

“Seriously!?”

Shin was surprised that it had grown to the level where she could cook even a high level monster. Even if she made the lowest grade meal, a simple soup, with this level it transformed into a dish that generated a lot of bonus stats. It was said that a skilled cook was found to be as useful as a skilled blacksmith in major guilds. There were enormous bonuses when a dish was made using rare ingredients. If one of two players with the same level, job, and about the same ability ate the dish, the player who ate it would end up with a complete victory in combat.

And Rokuten, where Shin had been a member, was able to overpower other player’s skills and stats because there was a cook skill of level X. So, with a dish that gave a bonus of temporary adding to their maxed stats, they were able to exceed the limit, though it was only by a little. (E/N: Even though their stats were maxed at 999, with that food they could go above 1000)

By the way, only Shin and the other members of Rokuten, who had reached the maximum stats, knew of that information. All of the members, including Shin, started to notice the increase in damage from the bonus effects, and the information was not circulated in order for only the six members of Rokuten to benefit from it.

“Though I’m not like Cook-sama, you can anticipate it.”

“Yosh! Leave the ingredients to me!”

While expressing “Fufufu”, he took a look at the ingredients in the Item Box. Even though the ingredients were stored since the time it was just a game, he himself had already confirmed that it was okay to eat them.

“By the way Shin, may I ask one more question aside from the questions earlier.”

“Yes? What is it?”

Schnee asked him the question while looking at the top of Shin’s head.

“That one, what is it?”

“This one? …Ah.”

He realized what she was talking about.

It was Yuzuha who was sleeping soundly on top of Shin’s head.

“Though since only its name and level are seen, did you use Taming on it?”

“Yeah, there were some minor circumstances, and we made a partner contract due to them. Its name is Yuzuha. I will be honest since it is Schnee. It’s race is the Element Tail.”

“…When I looked at the tails, I thought it was not a mere Demon Fox race. So it is an Element Tail, huh?”

Schnee became stiff momentarily, right after she heard the race of Yuzuha. But she promptly regained herself as if she thought, ‘Well, it is Shin after all.’

“You found out through the tail?”

“Perhaps Shin didn’t notice it? I could understand that it was not an ordinary Demon Fox because there are 3 tails.”

Shin tilted his head due to what Schnee was saying. There should be no such feature in Yuzuha’s tail.

“…Three…tails?”

Then he suddenly noticed it. Now that he thought about it, there was a sense of tails hitting his ears and the back of his head.

First, he grabbed a tail with his right hand. Yep, nice and soft.

“Hmm.”

Next, he grabbed a tail with his left hand. This one was also fluffy.

“…Hmm.”

Finally, he concentrated on the sense of touch on the back of his head. There was a faint light touch.

“…Hmm.”

For the time being, he released the tails from his hands, gripped the body of Yuzuha from above his head and brought it in front of his face.

“Kuu?”

“They had certainly become three.”

Yuzuha woke up after being moved from overhead. And then the tails that had increased to 3 swung side by side accordingly.

When looking at its level, it had unexpectedly gone over 400.

“…Well, I guess its level rose too much.”

Even if the former level was over 200, it had gone up too suddenly. It hadn’t killed many monsters while they were power-leveling Rashia. And it was indeed impossible for it to level up almost 200 levels just from the fight with the Lord.

“I think something else happened.”

Shin thought that there was something that he personally didn’t know. The growth extent of a monster partner or something similar was something he had heard from a member of Rokuten; Cashmere. Therefore, he understood that such a straightforward growth was nearly impossible.

The first thing that came to Shin’s mind was that a hidden quest had been completed when the requirements were fulfilled. He had experienced it several times during the game, so he had grown accustomed to it. If he remembered correctly, there was a quest with a monster partner, too.

“Schnee, how do you take up a hidden quest in this world?”

“As far as I know, I haven’t heard talks of any such quests being generated. The world voice I had heard before, it too was never heard from again after Shin vanished. And I have not heard of any story like this either.”

The world voice Schnee mentioned was probably the announcement system in THE NEW GATE.

Unlike the quest which could be accepted in a guild, when the conditions for the generated hidden quest were met, the player was notified of what kind of quest it was via an announcement as the hidden quest began.

In this case, since there was no sort of announcement at all, Shin didn’t notice Yuzuha’s level up. Also, judging from Schnee’s story, the system feature of announcements was likely gone.

“Still, for the number of tails to increase, is this because the level rose?”

Shin spoke while facing Yuzuha.

Because there were no Element Tail kit’s in the game era, he was uncertain about how they grew up.

It might unexpectedly just be a mere growth spurt rather than a quest and the like.

“Kua~…Good morning, Master.”

Without knowing that Shin was worried, Yuzuha yawned loudly… and greeted him like it was only natural.

“Wait a minute, Yuzuha! Did you reach the point where you are able to talk?”

“Kuu? When the black things disappeared, my head felt refreshed.”

“Black things?”

When he heard about the black things, he was thought of the Lord’s core that was sliced in half just a while ago. If he recalled back, it was only Skull Faces that had surrounded the Shinto shrine where Yuzuha was rescued from. And it was not strange to regard the Lord that appeared this time as the boss.

“It was black, roundish, and inside the bones. And Master cut it.”

“It’s the Lord’s core, no mistake about it.”

It seemed like it matched Shin’s expectations. There was some kind of relation that connected Yuzuha and the Lord, Shin’s intuition as a gamer told him so.

Was some portion of its power absorbed? Or was it sealed? It was regrettable that he had no way of confirming it after defeating it.

“For now, you are prohibited from talking in public. Since ordinary Demon Foxes can’t talk.”

“Okay.”

“If it’s just the two of us, it should be fine, but don’t expose yourself to other people.”

“Hmmm, then do I only talk directly into your mind?”

“Telepathy? If so, it should be fine.”

Since there was telepathy, it was still possible to communicate. It seemed that Yuzuha also understood it intuitively, as it nodded obediently.

“But Shin, since the number of tails have increased, will it still be known as a Little Fox?”

“That’s right…”

Actually, there were various types of Demon Fox races, and so naturally there were ones with multiple tails. Indeed, it was possible to say that that most of them had multiple tails.. But generally it became a slightly dangerous existence for a commoner if the number of tails exceeded 2.

As for Demon Fox races with 3 tails, there was Flame Tail, Tail Leader and so on. Even if it was young, their levels were still at least 250. They were not the kind of monster that one would just take as a pet in this world.

“Its still a child, so entering a country might be possible, but…”

“Well, it will become an adult sooner or later, too. That’s right…say, Yuzuha. Can’t you do things like transform?”

“Kuu? There are things that I’m able to do, and things I am not able to do.”

“Can you change the three tails into one?”

“Easy~”

Yuzuha said, while its three tails splendidly turned into a single tail with a pop sound.

“Oh!”

“That’s nice.”

Shin and Schnee both opened their eyes wide in surprise.

Rather than an illusion, they seemed to have really become one tail. Even touching it seemed natural.

“Is this good??”

“It’s okay. Won’t it make you tired?”

“It’s alright!”

“Then from now on, can you merge them into one tail in places where people can see? Because that will save us some trouble one way or another.”

“Yes, I can do that~”

Yuzuha agreed easily. It didn’t hide any resistance.

“…It was somehow solved easily.”

“Yeah, that’s true. If it’s like this, it won’t be discovered easily.”

Schnee too, assured. It seemed like Shin was relieved by this.

“Yuzuha is excellent?”

“Yes, yes, good job.”

“Kuu~~”

With Yuzuha held against his chest, he patted its head for its good job.

“…Cute!”

“Hmm?”

“Ha! It’s nothing.”

“…Do you want to pet it?”

“Sure!!”

Even though she was so strong, Schnee was still a woman and seemed to like cute things. Petting Yuzuha indeed felt really good, too.

“Still the same as ever, Shin never fails to surprise me.”

“Hmm?”

“No one has accomplished taming an Element Tail before.”

Schnee’s declaration contained something of amazement while stopping her petting. The Element Tail was set to be impossible to tame since the beginning of the game era. It was no wonder that she was surprised.

“You don’t look surprised while saying that though?”

“Well, since it’s Shin I’m really not surprised. No high level individual like you has ever tried doing that before.”

“Indeed. We, the Rokuten, weakened the opponent while going easy, even if the difficulty was high.”

Shin recalled. Having every attribute of magic, aided by strong physical attacks from its fangs and claws, it was a monster that had a nimble and agile nature which didn’t match its large body. Even the maxed stats players could not let their guard down. That was the original appearance of the Element Tail.

Yuzuha, which was curled up while being held by Shin’s arm, did not show such a threat at all.

“Kuu?”

“Yosh, let’s run at full speed now. In fact, there are some companions ahead of us. and they might cause an uproar soon.”

“If that’s the case, we better hurry. We might catch up in time.”

If someone thought about the travel speed of Shin and Schnee; they could easily overtake a horse that ran at full speed by a large margin. However, Wilhelm had the buff given by Shin, which made him run faster. It was likely that he would lengthen the distance in this case. If those two people arrived at the kingdom and informed them about the situation, it would be troublesome for Shin in various ways.

“Let’s get serious. It’s too bothersome to be marked by the guild any further.”

“What you said just now, can you explain it later?”

“That is that and this is this.”

Would it be possible to put it off after Schnee made such a face, Shin couldn’t say.

“Yosh, let’s go!”

He put Yuzuha on top of his head, and began to run with Schnee.

It didn’t take too long for the two people to catch up with Wilhelm and Rashia.

After about half a day since Shin and Schnee began to run and not much time had passed since the sun appeared from beyond the horizon, the figures of Wilhelm and Rashia were perceived.

–

“Oi! Now tell me everything, like what on earth happened back there?”

“What’s up with this sudden contentious attitude…”

Wilhelm was cautious of the surroundings while protecting Rashia, who was asleep. Though they joined up safely, Wilhelm was losing his temper and flared up at Shin with a threatening tone.

Meanwhile Rashia continued to sleep, probably because of fatigue.

“Well, to put it simply, Schnee took the trouble of defeating the Lord.”

“Hyun!”

Shin, who answered, was pushed away by the devil spear. It was not serious, but there was some speed put into the devil spear.

“Wait! That’s dangerous!!”

“I’ve never seen anyone that could do anything like that and have their magical power leap to that degree. You are dangerous after all!”

“Why are you so persistent!?”

“What else do you expect!! What was your intention when you saw us off with such an exaggerated skill, and then easily caught up with us! Even with such a margin in time! And I was fucking desperate to return!!”

“Wait, wait, calm down! Though it was a bad joke, isn’t『Venom』too much!?”

The devil spear was continuously thrust out, but it didn’t hit Shin even once.

“Tsk”

“What the heck are you clicking your tongue for!? It was just a little joke.”

“What joke? That face seems like it wants to say something, but you yourself didn’t do anything. Explain it precisely and I don’t want another joke.”

As one would expect, the joke seemed to have gone a little too far.

Wilhelm looked at Shin with a serious expression.

“Shin, let’s cut to the chase now.”

Schnee, who looked at Shin and Wilhelm messing around, stepped forward.

“You are..? Don’t tell me, you stood behind him.”

Wilhelm said it with some kind of profound meaning.

“It’s been a long time since I last saw you. If you understand, then the explanation is unnecessary?”

Apparently, the two people communicated with only those words.

“Hey, I want you to tell me in a way that I understand.”

Shin had no idea at all of what they were talking about.

“You don’t know, huh? Schnee Raizar is famous for not yielding or kneeling to anyone. I guess even to the Royal family and the Pope.”

It was somehow very stout-hearted.

“Isn’t that disrespectful?”

“I kneel to no one except to my Master.”

Somehow, Shin felt bad about her making the royal family an opponent, but it seemed like Schnee would never waver.

“Well, to begin with, there is no fellow who would dare pick a fight with her.”

“So that is the reason it was tolerated, huh?”

Let alone punishing her, there were only a few people who could even rival her.

When Shin heard that, it seemed as if that was not the only reason. Her tone and attitude were both polite. If a strong monster appeared, she lent her power. She kept neutrality without belonging to any organization, and didn’t bother picking any unnecessary fights.

The achievements from over 500 years were not just for show.

Though there were people who had secretly tried to draw her into becoming their ally, because she had such a great power, it seemed like none had ever succeeded.

“I understand the feeling of wanting to win her over to be an ally.”

“Wait…then if she is obediently following a guy like you, that means…”

“Ah, so you figured it out, huh?…”

Shin didn’t know how well Schnee and Wilhelm were acquainted, but it seemed like Wilhelm had already seen through it.

“A High Human, huh?”

“He is also my Master.”

“Yeah, that’s more or less it.”

“That’s not just more or less. But if that’s the case, I understand. That level of magic power was no joke.”

“Sorry, but that was still me in ‘easy’ mode.”

“I see…the Master of Schnee Raizar, huh? Indeed, the story was more than I expected…Oi, then the animal that you, a High Human, put on your head is not just an ordinary fox?”

Wilhelm shifted his attention to Yuzuha while feeling relieved and shrugging his shoulders. Surprise and amazement began to mix into his tone of voice. There was no sense of fear here, probably because he got to know Shin without any preconceived notions.

“Kuu?”

“It might not be a Little Fox. Its level exceeded 400 after the fight a little while ago.”

“…Again, I’m not really surprised.”

Wilhelm sighed while glaring with scornful eyes. Even though he was surprised by the truth about Yuzuha, which had the appearance of a small animal as well as a level exceeding 400, he was way past being shocked, so he ended up feeling “Like hell such a thing could exist!”.

“So that is why you vaguely answered about being a chosen one earlier, huh?”

“Right. In my case, I was not strong since birth, though my power is higher than a chosen one. I thought such guys were rare in this world, don’t you agree? Therefore, I decided to go with being a chosen one.”

“I see. Then, if you two act together from now on, it’s only a matter of time before it comes to light.”

Wilhelm’s point was justifiable. Generally speaking, Schnee and Tsuki no Hokora were famous. So if Schnee appeared to be close to a man, certain groups of people would try to gather information.

“For that situation, there are magic skills that easily allow me to deceive others. I can earn some time if I make full use of illusion magic.”

“I don’t think the illusion magic you talk about is similar to the one I know. I would not be surprised if you transformed into a monster.”

“What kind of treatment is this…”

Shin could do nothing but smile wryly.

“If you are going to do that, then you will be a walking disaster. A guy like you could easily go out and erase a country if he felt like it in the same day. If I were the King, I would lose my mind.”

It was meaningless to try and act violently, so Wilhelm sat down as he added another point. He then urged Shin and Schnee, who were still standing and talking, to sit down while he mended Rashia’s bed sheet.

Rashia was sleeping soundly as her breathing could be heard. According to Wilhelm, when the people were told that high ranking adventurers were around, they seemed to calm down at last. Regarding Shin, he seemed convinced that there was no need to use the illusion magic skill immediately to that extent.

“Which reminds me, are any documents relating to us, High Humans, still remaining?”

He had returned empty handed when he visited the library before, but how were player matters circulated? Shin only had the unclear information that he had heard from Tiera. If he thought about it now, he wasn’t certain if it was unconsciously avoided. No one would bother with such a dark history, and they would pretend like it never even happened, naturally.

“There might be some left. Well, the things that I know of are; they have absurdly powerful-like strength and each had their own field of expertise in which they possessed an abnormal ability. They were treated like Gods in their particular field.”

“There are various legends that have been passed down among other people, right?”

Schnee chimes in.

“Uhee, this is gonna be troublesome again. Because Rokuten certainly was a former production guild first, we felt like we wouldn’t lose to others when it came to our individual fields of expertise.”

“Ha? Since you were strong at the beginning, did you waste time on craftsmanship? Like Schnee here.”

“Wilhelm, didn’t I only cook to pass the time??”

There seemed to be some kind of different history between the two people.

Even though every member of Rokuten certainly had amazing stats, the main reason they first gathered together was to be production guild.

“It’s different from that. Even if the levels are the same, humans are weaker than other races. In my case, I compensated with blacksmithing. It was really difficult to raise its level at the same time as combat skills.”

“You just ran from place to place many times when you first started adventuring, right?”

Schnee grunted “uh-huh” and nodded. When Shin first played, he was very weak compared to the present.

“These kinds of things, I guess, are not normal.”

“That’s what ‘High players’ did.”

Schnee casually said a word that only players would understand.

“It was called ‘High Human’ though.”

“Hai pu…what?”

Wilhelm could not understand the net term.

“Anyway, I made weapons to raise my level in blacksmithing. I equipped them and defeated stronger opponents to raise my level. Then I made a stronger weapon with the material from the opponents I defeated. And again, defeated another stronger enemy. It was this loop.”

To begin with, the world of blacksmithing was not sweet enough to be able to make an advanced weapon as easily like Shin said. Though ‘blacksmith’ was an example of a production skill system that was somewhat easier to raise than the combat system skill, THE NEW GATE was not a lenient enough of a game to allow it to be maxed that easily.

For this reason, there were divisions for production and combat system guilds. The majority of players who worked on both sides stopped halfway and quit, although it’s also difficult to master just one of the two systems. No similar person accomplished this.

In the systems above, players with a combat job had to be able to make a lower class recovery item, like a class 10 Potion, and production job players had to be able to handle a battle. But it was still only at a ‘better than nothing’ standard.

“Amazing. I guess you are the real deal.”

“How rude.”

“It’s absurd no matter how much I think about it. I can’t even think about standing both jobs together.”

“If you think about it, it seems like it would favor the long-lived species such as elves and pixies. But they are not able to do it.”

If the Pixie and Elf species existed in reality, they would not be suited for being blacksmiths in the first place.

In other words, raising two jobs together and so on was an unbelievable act of sheer madness for the residents of this world. Shin was able to do it because it had only been a game. Using items every time to gain a proficiency bonus and learning skills from using secret books, there stood Shin today only because he had spent the time to strengthen himself.

And even that took a tremendous amount of time. It was impossible to do the same thing in the daily life of this world.

“I’m aware of it. The members of Rokuten are strong in various ways. It is quite normal that even I am not a match for them, except for in blacksmithing. Cain could build a castle in a day, Cook could make a dish from dragons, Cashmere raised a monster ranch before anyone knew it, Hecate produced Elixirs and Philosopher stones, and made a load of low grade potions by mood. Also, Reed’s puppets were able to exchange blows with divine beasts.”

“Shin has produced several holy swords and cursed sword types. And if you don’t like an 《Ancient》 grade sword, he and Filma will melt it down to avoid complaints.”

Schnee expressed a wry smile as she remembered those days. It didn’t matter if it was a 《Legend》 grade or a 《Mythology》 grade, he would just do it over again if he was not satisfied.

By the way, Filma was Shin’s no. 2 support character. Incidentally, Shin, who recalled that time, was strangely discouraged.

“That sure is a damn dramatical way to improve oneself. I mean, your specialty is blacksmith, huh?”

“That’s right. Do you want me to restructure your 『Venom』 ?”

“Are you kidding me?!”

Kukuku. Shin, who now had a suspicious voice with a grinning face, forced Wilhelm to reply right away. He seemed to give off a bad feeling somehow or another.

“Please tell me if you’re not satisfied. If it’s Wilhelm, I will reinforce it for a bargain price.”

“Oi, Why are you making a face like a shady merchant?”

“Iyaa, how should I put it, it’s just my blacksmith’s blood getting excited?”

“…Oh, your profession is certainly a craftsman. That face looks like a dwarf’s boss in a hot-iron room, now that I think about it.”

In any world too, it seemed like people with similar occupations all resembled each other in speech and action. The face of some dwarf craftsmen when they saw 『Venom』 appeared in Wilhelm’s mind clearly.

They have the eyes of children that have just found their new toy as it glitters, much like the eyes of Shin just now.

“Even so, you need a blacksmith’s forge to showcase your skills, don’t you? Though you are different than the others, a weapon cannot be made using secrets or a lost secret arts thing, you know?”

“I’m not like some fake blacksmith!! I only intend to hold a hammer after such a long absence from Tsuki no Hokora.”

“I know you will be able to make something. From the story of a craftsman, whom I am indebted to, the longsword produced by Rokuten’s blacksmith was of 《Normal》 grade, but was on equal terms with a 《Legend》 grade sword.”

Of course, Wilhelm was not a child to believe such a story. In a sense, 《Normal》 grade and 《Legend》 grade have different performance standards that couldn’t be compared with each other.

“It is indeed…no, wait. Now that you mention it, there was a time when I tested how far I could strengthen a 《Normal》 grade weapon.”

“Oi…you are joking, aren’t you?”

When Wilhelm reflectively asked that question in return, Schnee also opened her mouth to talk.

“Wasn’t that the experiment you conducted that was suggested by both Reed-sama and Hecate-sama?

“That’s right. If I’m not mistaken, only suitable and prepared iron can be enchanted. It’s the kind that could only be made by using the best facilities available at that time. I put it in the store by mistake, I wonder if the buyer was surprised and spread that information.”

“…What the heck is that!”

By the way, the buyer bought it as a present for a beginner who had just begun to play the game. And it was discovered by players passing by, as monsters that should not able to be defeated by a beginner were being killed in one hit. When watched from the side, the monsters gave off a feeling of being awfully weak. The buyer thought it was just a normal longsword and didn’t notice it because they didn’t check the stats on the weapon.

“I was astonished that an amazing thing could be made at that time. However, because the material was iron, the durability is inferior by all means. I made several of them, and started to test them, or should I say crossed swords. They broke after striking each other about 10-20 times.”

“I would think, it’s damn weird, when it was possible to exchange blows at that time.”

As if to say he couldn’t comprehend Shin’s common sense, Wilhelm held his head with one hand. The grade of the weapon should not be sweet enough that even a blacksmith’s skill could enhance it this way.

“Ah, I understand it well. You are definitely a High Human. The common sense here just continues to break down since a while ago.”

“Because it is my Master, the current common sense does not work.”

“Kuu~Kuu~”

“No, that’s not a compliment.”

To the proud looking Schnee and the agreeing Yuzuha, Wilhelm retorted while being astounded. He seemed to still be a little confused as he didn’t notice how Yuzuha had reacted, as if it understood the words.

Schnee seemed to be boasting, probably because it was about the legend of Shin.

“Nh…Ngh?”

When Wilhelm was about to sigh, Rashia who had been sleeping on the side woke up. They apparently had made too much noise. It was too loud for her to continue sleeping.

“Eh?…Shin, san?”

“Yo.”

“Ah! Hello…why are you here!?”

Rashia, who was still half asleep, recognized someone with a glance before raising her voice. She was certain that this man had remained with the flock of monsters to let them get away. Even Yuzuha, who was on top of his head, was still the same as before.

“I somehow made it here.”

“Eh…?”

Rashia looked like she wanted to say, “What is he saying?” as she faced toward Wilhelm.

Wilhelm caught the gaze and responded.

“Apparently, an ally happened to pass by.”

Wilhelm said that while glancing at Shin and Schnee, as if his eyes said to Shin “Don’t you dare tell this girl.”

Because Shin also intended to conceal the fact about him being a High Human from Rashia, he gave a small nod. Unlike Wilhelm who had some connection to Rashia, who was a commoner, she couldn’t guess the identity of Shin from Schnee’s attitude. Though there was no problem if it was known, it was still dangerous just to know that valuable information. A possible information leak may cause Rashia misfortune..

So Wilhelm decided to modify the story to one where just an ally happened to pass by.

Incidentally about Wilhelm, Schnee was the companion who had handed over the letter of introduction to him, so he didn’t have to worry.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Schnee Raizar. I am the acting manager of Tsuki no Hokora.”

“Thank you for the polite words. I am called Rashia Luzel…um, what did you say just now?”

Rashia asked Schnee again as if she had heard something impossible.

Of course she had heard it, she just couldn’t believe it.

“Because it’s Schnee Raizar. You know. It’s that Schnee Raizar.”

“…That?”

“Oh, it’s you!”

Schnee raised her eyebrow a little.

“Though it sounds like the meaning is not very positive for some reason.”

Even though her name meant a good thing in this world, it was still a mystery how it could also have a strange meaning when people kept saying it.

“Just make up your damn mind. Look! Rashia, come back to yourself!”

“E-Errr, I’m Rashia! It’s an honor to meet zuu! ….uu”

“Yes, I hope to get along with you.”

Schnee replied as if Rashia biting her tongue didn’t happen.

“I was only able to defeat those monsters thanks to Schnee helping out. You don’t have to worry about anything.”

“Did you defeat all of the monsters!? A-As expected from the 『Saint』-sama.”

“Saint?”

Shin was trying to emphasize the achievements of Schnee, but had a question about the unfamiliar word.

“Ah, I’m sorry. Schnee-sama never accepted it.”

“Didn’t accept it?”

Shin looked at Schnee unintentionally.

“I received a communication acknowledging me as a Saint from the church headquarters previously. Although I declined it.”

“Was there any problem in accepting it?”

“Yes. I don’t have any intention to be affiliated with influence somewhere just because I served with the High Humans. However, when the title of Saint arrived, because there is the possibility that I would naturally end up with some church influence, I didn’t accept it. I thought it was already forgotten about because it has been more than 100 years, but it seems they still haven’t given up yet.”

It was indeed unexpected, Schnee sighed as she was disgruntled.

Although the church recognized her as a Saint, it was meaningless if she didn’t accept it.

For Shin to meddle in the church’s internal politics would be more than a petty complication, it was completely contrary to his goal. Religion was something which was troublesome through all the ages. When thinking about these kinds of things, Schnee smiled at Rashia.

“You can call me Schnee, it’s no problem.”

“S-Such a thing! It’s too much.”

“You’re too tense!”

“Will, that is too much, too!”

Though it was somewhat exaggerated, Shin thought it was the correct reaction.

Shin, personally, was Schnee’s long-time acquaintance, and Wilhelm had a character that didn’t hold much back. Therefore they could talk normally. However, as Tiera said before, even children knew the name Schnee; she was very popular.

If that person was in front of someone normal, they would probably react this way, too.

“Oi, come on! Don’t we have to go soon? There’s no need to rest here, right?.”

Shin and Schnee hadn’t taken much of a break, and Wilhelm understood that much.

“That’s right, we should go then.”

Shin spoke while standing up with Schnee. They were able to leave without any problems, and since there were orphanage matters too, it was better to rush.

Rashia began to tidy up the bedding in a hurry as well. Though Rashia didn’t understand the significance of the details of the incident, for the time being she understood the explanation about how it was solved by Schnee. It didn’t mean that she had forgotten the fear of when they were surrounded by monsters, but Rashia might believe that there was nothing impossible for this person.

According to a commoner such as Rashia, Schnee Raizar was a living legend. A heroine and a saint, who had been protecting this land for more than 500 years.

There was a trust that was close to faith.

“Well, the reliance is greater than I thought.”

Shin talked to himself, as he saw the expression full of trust in Schnee on Rashia’s face. It was easy to imagine that it would become outrageous if Schnee walked together with him. It might be difficult even if it was only to buy something.

He sighed and decided to carefully make the disguise.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 Wilhelm carried Rashia, as Shin and Schnee maintained their speed to match up with them. No matter how much her level had risen, it would be a significant burden on Rashia if she had to run with all her effort.

That speed couldn’t be compared with a horse. Even though they took a break on the way, the four people arrived at the location where they were able to see the kingdom’s town before sunset.

They walked from there because it would be difficult if they caused others to be cautious of them as they were going to a place with public eyes.

“Ugh, I feel like vomiting…”

“Come on, I carried you on my back, so endure it.”

Rashia, who was not used to high speed travel while being carried by someone, had her complexion worsen, like she was having motion sickness. Since it was cruel to let her walk as it was, Wilhelm carried her on his back.

“Are you alright?”

Schnee called out kindly.

“Don’t worry, I will put up with it…”

“That’s serious.”

Shin let out a small sigh.

Because potions didn’t work on motion sickness, the party proceeded after she said so.

Schnee had already changed her appearance using a magic skill before being perceived by the public. Her blue eyes turned red, her silver hair changed to blonde, and she now had a ponytail hairstyle. Several other skills were applied besides that.

Since Shin personally applied the magic, it would never be discovered unless in an extreme circumstance. From the beginning, just transforming a woman’s hairstyle and her impression made her significantly different. If her hair color and eyes were changed, even humans who were used to seeing Schnee would not notice it immediately.

“Just to confirm, it’s okay if we separate in front of the gate?”

“I don’t mind. The request was originally until she learned the skill. There’s no need to bother walking us to the church, too. If something does happen at the church, it’s for us to manage.”

“That tone that doesn’t match with your honest side is the same as always.”

Schnee showed a wry smile while speaking to Wilhelm.

“Dammit, leave me alone!”

They joked around while approaching the gate. Even though Wilhelm said that something might have already happened, Shin expanded his perception range to the orphanage, and confirmed everyone was safe. Of course, there were no signs of any uninvited guests either.

“Then, we will walk together up until we get there. I will give you this just in case. Please contact me if anything happens.”

When they arrived at the gate, Shin presented the message card and the letter paper.

However, Wilhelm who saw that, tried to refuse.

“This is the item that transfers a message, huh? If it turns into a situation where I need to use this, I won’t choose to do so. What if I involve you and something happens?”

“Moreover, it only puts you at a disadvantage.” those were the words left unsaid, but expressed through Wilhelm’s eyes as he told Shin, and his intention to have Shin stay out of it could be sensed.

No matter how similar Shin was to a chosen one, or as a similar fellow who was recognized by Tsuki no Hokora, Wilhelm didn’t intend to involve a companion who had merely received the request. There were possibilities of Shin being marked by the church when he received enough requests. If the message card was handed over and used, that alone was unjustifiable. He had already expected that Wilhelm would say that.

If something were to happen without Shin being involved, like the situation earlier, there was the high possibility that it couldn’t be solved, or it would become more disastrous. Even still, that man couldn’t approve of it.

Rashia, who was being carried on Wilhelm’s back, didn’t say anything either.

They themselves were going to challenge the enemy; who had power, money, and ability.

Schnee Raizar and her master. It should not be shameful in any way if they requested help from a companion with unparalleled power and fame in this world. But in this case, they kept their problems to themselves till the very end.

Though the request for 【Purification】 was just recently put out, it was already over, too. If possible, Wilhelm would settle it by himself from here-on. That belief became a wall that stood between Shin and Wilhelm.

“It’s fine. Take it.”

Shin forced the message card onto Wilhelm. He was saying to ignore the invisible wall between them.

“I will feel bad if I neglect you both from here on.”

“But――”

“Besides!”

Wilhelm tried to say something, but was interrupted by Shin.

“When I first came here, those children only tried to protect each other and their friends. I will not abandon them. Thus, when the chips are down, I will help.”

“You…what are you saying…”

“You can contact me without worrying about a thing. Take it quickly! It’s becoming a little embarrassing to say anymore!!”

He felt embarrassed about the lines which he had never uttered before, even in the real world. It was guaranteed that he would groan in agony once he thought about it later. Am I such a passionate guy? No doubt he would question himself.

But remorse would not do either.

Even if this world was a different world for him, there was nothing wrong with his choice. Believing so, Shin handed over the items.

“Then, I shouldn’t hold back?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it.”

Wilhelm, who was broadly grinning, received the message card at last.

“Shin too, still the same as ever.”

“Is that so?”

Schnee said while seeing Wilhelm and Rashia off toward the gate. It was because there was a situation resembling such a thing before.

Though Shin showed a reaction of not remembering, Schnee clearly recalled the figure of Shin that had helped some strangers before, like just now.

They were a little girl whose eyes were swollen with tears, a young boy who was dumbstruck, and an old man who was going to sacrifice himself and desperately tried to go ahead of the young boy. There was no discrimination at all.

‘It’s impossible for me to save everyone, but there is no other way but to try to do it.’

When Shin talked like that.

Schnee was able to recall clearly, even now, the figure that was almighty, but didn’t act like it, and continued to protect the weak.

“What’s the matter, Schnee? Let’s move on.”

“I’m sorry, I was lost in my thoughts for a moment. I’m coming now.”

Schnee walked while looking at Shin’s back. After advancing for a while, they almost came to their destination.

Shin tilted his head when he looked at Schnee with side glances, but without pointing it out, the two people moved one step closer to Tsuki no Hokora.

Schnee’s face, when captured in Shin’s line of sight, had a very calm and gentle facial expression.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 After they had walked for a while, a familiar sight appeared in front of Shin and Schnee. Needless to say, it was Tsuki no Hokora.

Because the wooden sign at the door said 『The storekeeper has left home』, it seemed like the store was already closed. Naturally it was locked, but Shin was the owner, and Schnee was registered as an employee. So the lock automatically opened when Shin put his hand on the door, and the door swung open.

The store hadn’t changed much from the last time that Shin visited, and there was a faint scent of dinner in the air.

“It can’t be helped, my stomach is grumbling.”

“I’m hungry~”

Shin held his belly, and Yuzuha, who had been silent for a long time, also raised its voice. Whether it could read the mood or not, it appeared to be bored because it had hardly barked while they had traveled with Wilhelm and Rashia. Now it was being carried by Shin.

“It’s just the right time, let’s have dinner first.”

They both nodded at Schnee’s proposal as she canceled her disguise, and then the sound of a person running loudly, probably from the main room to the counter’s interior, was heard.

“Master!!”

[[image:Surprised-tiera.png|thumb|“Master!!”]]

It was Tiera, who was tending the store. She had probably heard the sound of the bell chime when they entered the store.

She appeared to be out of breath while holding a kitchen knife. She might have been in the middle of cooking as not even a little sense of danger came from her.

“Calm down. You are too flustered.”

“S-Sorry. But, as I wrote in the message card, a person came and told me he was master’s acquaintance, and then he left some amazing things behind!!”

Though the person in question was right in front of her, it seemed like she hadn’t noticed yet, probably because of her panicked state.

“Is this person the one?”

“AHH! T-That’s certainly right, but…Eh? Why are Shin and master together?”

Tiera became aware of Shin’s existence only after Schnee stepped sideways. But now the question of why the two people were together came out from her mouth.

It was because Tiera thought that her master should still be in the Wraith Plains and had no clue as to why the two of them were together. Aside from Schnee, Shin should still be in the plains when one thought about it with this world’s common sense.

“Just some various things have happened. Can we have dinner before we move on to the detailed story?”

“Because we had a bit of a complicated situation yesterday, it might take a long time to explain.”

Sigh “I understand…then Shin too, is gonna eat with us?”

Tiera, who didn’t know the circumstances, responded to Shin who talked like it was only natural.

“Of course he will.”

“Eh? Of course…what?”

“…Come to think of it, no one has told you yet, right Tiera? This person here is the ‘Manager’ of Tsuki no Hokora, Shin.”

Schnee smoothly dropped a bomb there.

“The man..a..ger?…Ah, the manager…THE MANAGEERRR!?”

It took a while for the word, “manager” to register in Tiera’s brain.

Tiera’s reaction when she finally understood what Schnee meant was as followed; she opened her eyes wide, her mouth formed an ‘O’ shape, and she almost dropped the kitchen knife she was holding. She was indeed easy to read.

“Isn’t she is a bit too surprised?”

“Because the common knowledge among the general public is that you don’t exist anymore, it’s no wonder that she is so surprised.”

“Who wouldn’t be surprised!? The manager, the… legendary manager!?”

“Eh? What? Am I known as the legendary manager?”

“That’s not it!! I mean a High Human!!”

“But, didn’t I tell you that when we first met?”

“Normally no one would believe it…”

The scene of Tiera losing her composure alone was amusing, but Shin was beginning to think that this might be the normal response. Like Tiera said, normally if someone said “I am High Human” or something like that, no one would take them seriously. But the best witness, Schnee Raizar, was here. Because she wouldn’t mistake the person she had actually served, it could be said that her testimony about Shin being the real deal, a High Human, was the definite proof. In the meantime, Tiera’s face turned pale.

“I’m terribly sorry, I didn’t realize you were the manager!!”

“Yes?”

“Kuu!”

She was completely transformed from the shock. Tiera bowed vigorously.

This time, it was Shin’s turn to be surprised.

What was she thinking of, because Yuzuha put its paw on the lowered head of Tiera, and Shin also stopped her immediately.

(This is…that, huh? That feeling when the other party casually speaks to their superior. Even though I experienced that shock, I still got flustered.)

The partner with whom Shin got along with, at his old part-time job, was in fact the shop manager, so he could understand a bit of Tiera’s feelings. Though it wasn’t a straight comparison, the partner who unbeknownst talked overly familiarly with their superior, often fretted and felt embarrassed when they found out.

Seeing Tiera in a flustered state made Shin unconsciously feel some pity.

“Don’t worry about it. I understand your feelings.”

“Eh? Oh, yes.”

While nodding, he put his hand on Tiera’s shoulder.

Of course, Tiera didn’t know that Shin’s thoughts expressed understanding, and his action caused her to become even more confused.

“No, really, don’t mind it. It’s weird and embarrassing for me too, if you obey respectfully at this point.”

“R-Really? You won’t say something like, ‘Get out of here’?”

“I won’t say it!?”

What kind of unreasonable action was this!? He wanted to retort.

After that, they talked for a little while, and it concluded in the same manner as before. Aside from Shin being Schnee’s master, because there was more trouble when Yuzuha was introduced and could talk, Tiera had a similar reaction as before, so the rest of the story was omitted.

“Then, shall we eat?”

After a short period of discussion, all three people and one animal sat down together at the dining table. Needless to say, they had taken a bath prior to eating because they were covered with dirt.

They appeared to be in unity as they clapped their hands while saying “itadakimasu”. Elves didn’t seem to have such a custom, but because Schnee did it, Tiera too, did the same.

And Schnee was certainly imitating Shin.

“But, as expected from Schnee. All of them look delicious.”

It was only natural that Shin praised her. The dishes that were arranged on the table were something that was not very often seen, even by Shin.

Even if the pinnacle of chefs, Cook, was in Rokuten, they didn’t eat homemade dishes every day. Moreover, the skill level Ⅹ of ultra high-class cooking was not meant to be eaten at every meal. It was sometimes made only by experimenting, and there was the possibility of serving a terrible failure of a dish, too.

However, the dishes in front of Shin were not that inferior when compared to Cook’s high class dishes. As she compensated her skill with special flavors that were from this world, the dishes rivaled the best menus in a row.

In front of that type of meal, that even the royal family might not be able to eat, it was no wonder that the sounds of gulping in his throat resounded.

“Kuu~ A feast, a feast!”

“I have never seen Master cooking like this until now…Master is serious.”

“Of course I am.”

Yuzuha, who saw the dishes lined up, was also in high spirits.

Tiera, who lived together with her for a long time, was also astonished at Schnee’s enthusiastic attitude.

“When it comes to a great dish like this, it’s worthwhile to supply the ingredients.”

“Amazing~”

“Hey, though I heard a little, just what on earth did you supply? There is a weird aura coming out of the dish.”

“Ehh?”

“Kuu?”

When Tiera said that an aura came from the dish, Shin stiffened. Yuzuha tilted its head.

Even though nothing was displayed in Shin’s eyes, he recalled the ingredients which he handed to Schnee. And it was not strange that Tiera, an elf, said that the dishes radiated an aura.

“Th-That right. The main meats are Thermal Leo, Orc King, and parts of Elmora. The vegetables are Blood Radish, Karma Onion, and Baocha Potato or something like that. The fruits are the Topaz Pear and Fruit of Idea. The others are somewhat proper. I guess you used the ingredients you had stocked up after that?”

“Indeed. I have used a few high-class ingredients because today is special. Though I didn’t have enough time to do anything special.”

Schnee’s words seemed like she was indirectly saying “I’m not serious yet”.

And speaking of Tiera, who just heard the name of the ingredients.

“W.. WH.. WHAT’S THAT!? Almost all of the ingredients are extremely hard to obtain!! I’ve never even heard of some of them before until now. Moreover, when you say Fruit of Idea, it’s the fruit of dreams that only bears fruit once every 100 years. Though I was told that the real deal didn’t even exist anywhere…”

She was at her wit’s end after hearing the names of the ingredients which left Shin’s mouth.

Thermal Leo and Orc King, were both acknowledged as monsters of calamity. As soon as they were discovered, there was such a degree of danger, that the guild conveyed an urgent summons for all of the adventurers. Even though Tiera hadn’t heard of the name Elmora, because it was treated on the same rank as the previous 2, she could imagine that it might be a similar one.

Blood Radish was a vegetable similar to a half monster that grew by sucking out demon essence from the air, and Baocha Potato was a tuber vegetable that exploded from a certain amount of pressure, just like a landmine.

As for the Topaz Pear, its surface glistened like a jewel, and about the Fruit of Ideas, there was no need to say anymore.

Once they were put together, one did not expect them to be used for cooking.

“Hey, Schnee. What aura does Tiera refer to?”

“It’s similar to the remains of the life force and magic power from the ingredients. Because we elves and pixies have senses unlike other races, such things can be perceived. It can be sensed more easily from a strong monster or a rare plant and so on.”

“Is that so?”

Since elves and pixies were originally a race that had a high sensitivity, he was able to understand what she said.

“Tiera too, calm down. Let’s eat soon or the special dishes will get cold.”

Schnee urged.

“Y-Yes.”

“That’s right. Then, let’s eat at once.”

Shin agreed as he nodded.

““Itadakimasu””

“Kuu? Itadakima~”

After clapping their hands for prayer, Shin took the knife and fork.

Soup, potato salad, hamburger, and his favorite rice and bread were lined up on the table. For the celebrated occasion Schnee’s treasured drink, 『Moonlight Sake』, was poured into their glasses.

If one looked only at the menu, excluding the drink, they were similar to dishes served in a family restaurant. But he could recognize the skill of the cook directly due to it being a dish he was used to eating.

The meat juices that overflowed when he cut into it with the knife and the aroma of the sauce that was singed on the iron plate caused him to salivate before he even tasted it.

As he put it into his mouth, the meat juices overflowed even more as he chewed, and combined with the texture of the tender meat, only the single word ‘delicious’ could come out.

Then his mouth was filled with white rice, and there was no need to say anymore.

The corner of his mouth raised as he started grinning. A smile escaped him.

When one ate a really delicious dish, that person couldn’t help but smile.

When he tilted his glass, the rich scent and deep flavor of the 『Moonlight Sake』 increased his appetite even more.

“…!…!…”

“…………”

Shin and Tiera silently savored the food. As for Yuzuha, the word ‘undivided attention’ was embodied in its whole body.

While observing two people and one animal smiling, Schnee ate the meal fully at ease.

“Ha!! I unintentionally ate in silence!?”

Shin was stunned while sitting in front of his empty plate.

“Can I have another serving?”

“Sure!!”

Such interactions between Tiera and Yuzuha were repeated several times. As if she foresaw that, Schnee prepared it without missing a beat.

Even if the pace slowed down in the middle, they became a happy circle sitting together while listening to how Schnee and the others had spent their time until now.

“――Even so, those guys live quite freely.”

Those words leaked from Shin’s mouth as he heard about the other support characters. There was a fellow who became a King, one who wandered from place to place, and one who was missing in action. They seemed to be stubbornly searching for a clue on Shin’s whereabouts. Though they might have stayed in this world, because they didn’t imitate him by wasting their lives for that reason, he felt a little relieved.

He understood once he thought about their personalities. Up till here, only the devoted Schnee was special.

“‘Shin is somewhere’ was the only wishful thought I had to the end. Everyone might understand that it was not good to needlessly worry.”

“That will save me trouble. I didn’t want to keep you all looking for an imaginary guy who does not even exist.”

“Even if one of us chooses to do so, it is our own choice. Shin doesn’t have to worry about it.”

“You are right.”

Wouldn’t worrying when a person has gone missing make us human? Thinking about such things would indeed be a useless action. Well, even if said ‘people’ didn’t worry, because Shin was the master, it was just idle thought and meaningless speculation.

“Master, sad?”

“I’m okay, I’m okay.”

Shin returned a smile to Yuzuha who was looking at him with concern.

“Geezz~ Why ish Schhinn woarryingg soo muchhs~”

“…Hey, Tiera. I think you’re drunk.”

Her tone was slow and some enunciation didn’t come out well. Her remarkably white skin stood out, in stark contrast with her black hair, which was now dyed in a slightly pink color. It was considerably reddened when he thought about her original snow-white skin.

Thus, that reminded him of how many sake bottles had been emptied so far. He got carried away as he had also drank a large amount up til now.

“Hey Schnee. How many 『Moonlight Sake』 were emptied?”

“Approximately 5 of them.”

“Incidentally, what is the alcohol percentage?”

“It is around 35 percent.”

“That’s HIGH!!”

Because he thought it was just a type of wine from the taste and easiness of drinkability, the alcohol from this fantasy world’s common sense was more than expected.

“Tere arre twuoo Masterrs~”

“This is really dangerous. Is Tiera weak to alcohol?”

“She’s never got drunk like this when she drank before, but quantity is quantity.”

“But I don’t feel very drunk.”

Whether it was about alcohol tolerance or not, Shin felt a little tipsy, but not more than a certain degree of loss of awareness. He wasn’t slurring and didn’t stagger around either. When he thought about the alcohol percentage, he himself would certainly be down for the night if this was in the real world, and it was a good thing that it became difficult to expose shameful behavior with alcohol. There was no need to be troubled by some strong alcohol, even though he normally should be.

“Though I’ve had this body for one year, what’s happened to my real body… Well, now might not be the time to think about it.”

While Schnee took Tiera to her room, Shin tidied up the tableware. Shin suddenly thought of these kind of things while wiping the table. He didn’t know whether it was possible to return either, so it was no use even if he thought about it.

After the tidying-up was finished, Schnee returned.

“That was quick.”

“Because I’m used to doing this.”

Since he lived alone in the real world, he had to do the dishes on his own. Certainly he didn’t do it during the game, but he remembered how to unexpectedly.

“Yuzuha is sleepy…”

Yuzuha was falling into a doze on top of the desk.

“That’s right. We too, should go to sleep soon.”

“Let’s do so. Since Shin’s room was left as it is, it can be used immediately.”

“I appreciate it.”

After leaving the living room, Shin headed toward his own room while carrying Yuzuha. It was the room for Shin and the other support characters in Tsuki no Hokora, though there was also an extra room for more guests and customers to use. Even though a guest or customer room and the like was not needed, it was the result of the obsession from Cain and Shin; which could be said to have made useless additions in that construct, the Tsuki no Hokora. The place was thoroughly discussed about and they fussed over such pointless things; as it was the expected outcome when Japanese people get excited.

“It really hasn’t changed.”

He entered his own room and looked around inside. The inside area of the room was approximately 16 tatami mats big, with a bed and a desk. There were multiple shelves where trophies and items obtained from various events were displayed. Not many things were there. It was a plain room. The room might have been cleaned regularly, as dust hadn’t accumulated.

Moonlight entered naturally from the window, but the light that night was terribly weak. He proceed to change his clothes without turning on the light, because he had the skill 【Night Vision】. Because there were no such things like pajamas in this world, he chose equipment with a jersey-like material.

Yuzuha had jumped onto the bed the moment they entered the room and it was already curled up next to the pillows.

“Somehow here is the best place to let myself relax.”

Was it because he had lived here since the game time? He could relax his mind and didn’t have to set up barriers because it was already fully equipped with a very powerful security system. He didn’t have to consider the possibility of a guy attacking him while he was sleeping, quite unlike the time during the death game; so he was able to genuinely relax for the first time since he came into this world again.

Of course, when there was an assailant, he would deal a serious blow, for it was deserved.

“Yuzuha…did you fall asleep? That won’t do, I should sleep too.”

As the alcohol set in, he lay down on the bed with a good feeling enveloping him.

When he closed his eyes and gradually felt his consciousness getting blurry, something soft suddenly clung around his right arm. Normally, he would jump up to his feet and shake it off in that situation. However, Shin’s body’s awareness told him that he didn’t feel any danger at all.

“?”

Was it embracing him rather than twining around? There were only two people in the Tsuki no Hokora who could do such a thing, and one person was already down for the count.

There was no reaction from the continuous activated skill for an anti surprise attack. Shin’s own intuition didn’t signal it as an enemy either.

Because it somehow had no particular movement, he turned his neck and looked at his right arm.

Beside him lay the figure of Schnee, who was already asleep, clinging to Shin’s arm. His right arm was wedged in between Schnee’s breasts. The identity of the softness he first felt was this.

(Seriously…is such a development even possible?)

With a different meaning from the time in front of the dishes, a gulping sound resounded in the room.

Even Shin was a man. He didn’t know about NPCs, but the Schnee in this world was undoubtedly the real deal. As a matter of course, there was no way he didn’t feel anything.

And frankly speaking, Schnee was created by combining Shin’s preferences. If he had picked her up, taken her into the room, and laid her on the bed, then he could lie down next to her with a gentleman’s behaviour. However, Schnee’s body-temperature was transmitted to his right arm, which was currently embraced closely, and the softness of her breasts put a hold on his reasoning power. His left hand stretched toward Schnee unconsciously, even though he was aware of it.

(This is…bad.)

He didn’t mean to do it, but due to the influence of the alcohol, by any means, he couldn’t take his eyes off of the defenseless sleeping face.

He understood it. Yes, he understood this was not good.

He desperately tried to cool down his head that was overheating, but his reasoning didn’t act like he expected.

He was entranced by her.

Her extremely defenseless face, innocent, and seemingly sad somewhere.

It was just by a little, but he wanted to leave his arm there a bit longer before excusing himself from Schnee.

It was at that moment. When the moon that was obscured by the clouds finally appeared.

The moonlight that was obstructed until now shone inside the room gracefully. It reached the edge of the bed, the place where Schnee just lay down.

“…!?”

When illuminated by the moonlight, Schnee’s body faintly shone. The silvery hair, which was spread on top of the bed, reflected the moonlight and emitted a mysterious shine. And then, a stream of bright sparkles from her closed eyes slammed into Shin’s eyes.

“Schnee…”

The flowing sparkles were tears that she shed.

It was flowing from the closed eyes in a straight line and dampened Shin’s clothes.

“…………”

The moment he saw it, the haze that enveloped Shin’s consciousness cleared up.

The excited heat of desperation was cooled and disappeared instantly.

It was because he had seen a sad sleeping face.

What did she think about that made her cry? Shin had no idea.

Were they happy tears caused by their reunion? Were they tears for the upcoming parting?

He wiped her tears, and gently patted her head.

“Ah…u…i…”<ref>T/N: She probably says “Aruji”, which means ‘master’</ref>

Even though he wasn’t able to understand it, was it “Master” the word that leaked faintly from her mouth? Moreover, she might not have gotten used to calling him “Shin” yet.

(I…)

Looking up at the night sky, while aware of Schnee who was sleeping on his right arm, Shin thought of the question.

Until his consciousness sank into the darkness, no answer emerged.

---'''(Extra content from LN; Warning: might or might not contain a spoiler, read at your own risk)'''---

Let’s rewind time to go back to just over half a day into the past.

It was around the time when Shin and Schnee were dashing at near full speed for the sake of meeting up with Wilhelm and Rashia.

Right now, the Wraith Plains have become an ordinary large plain. Every one of the knights and adventurers that had gathered to investigate realized that the battle had ended. The light from the magic power that had spread through the sky had already faded away, so the mages were illuminating the place. Even though they had the choice of waiting until dawn before starting their duty, it was decided that an urgent investigation was necessary for the current situation.

From the fact that Schnee Raizar, who should have participated in the battle, had left, it was thought that at least there was no danger left.

“What the heck is that?”

While the knights and adventurers were busy moving around, one woman muttered as she looked at the deep crater newly created in the plains. The name of the woman with hair like golden threads swaying in the wind was Rionne Strail Bayreuth. She was the second princess of Bayreuth Kingdom.

Several hours before that, there was an incident in the forest when the knights were fighting the Skull Faces. Suddenly a wailing like voice, like a shriek, was heard reverberating from far away in the night sky.

Simultaneously, a group of Skull Faces with strength that never seen before appeared. A fresh enemy sprang up from the ground, in front of Rionne’s eyes, an enemy whose strength could not be compared to that of the Skull Faces she had fought until then.

At first, she felt fear. It was not a fear of being killed. She understood the opponent’s strength, so instead she felt a strong fear as she could imagine the tragedy it could cause. ‘I must not let that get away from the plains’, was the only thought she had in her head.

After her subordinate released her restraint, she faced off against the Skull Face with her sword. From the weight of a single blow that transmitted through her hands, its agility could be mistaken for an advanced level knight. She herself was said to be superior even among other chosen ones, and it was abnormal to exchange blows with her on equal terms.

Still, because the Skull Face’s equipment was the same as an ordinary Skull Faces’, she was able to win due to the difference in their equipment. A few days ago, all of a sudden, a white greatsword pierced on her room’s wall. The greatsword was bestowed with a light attribute, the weak point of all undeads, and it caused the Skull Faces to be weakened steadily. But unfortunately, they were too many in numbers. It couldn’t be helped since the other knights had to fight on their own.

Thereupon, Rionne, while at the same time letting the messenger return to their country, launched herself at the Skull Faces. Even if it only attracted a small amount of the attention of the enemy, she could gain more time. It was for the sake of stopping the crowd of monsters from leaving this place. With only one subordinate accompanying her, she charged into the middle of the battlefield.

[[image:Rionnestrail.png|thumb|She charged into the middle of the battlefield]]

Then, a Skull Face ranked higher than before appeared in front of her. Possibly, it was a Queen or King class in front of her; as the one earlier was a Jack class Skull Face. It was supposed to be impossible to defeat, as encountering one would be hopeless. The calamity caused by a single King class that appeared once still remained strongly in people’s memory. As such multiple enemies appeared and filled up the plains. It might become an unprecedented disaster.

They actually felt death surrounding them, as they sensed the Shinigami’s<ref>T/N: god of death</ref> breath on their skin. They reprimanded their bodies that trembled, and when they grasped their swords again, a red cannonball came flying from the sky. As the sphere hit the Skull Faces, it caused their whole bodies to be riddled with holes. No matter if it was the shield, sword, armor, arms, legs, or even their cores. Its appearance was similar to the flame system magic skill 【Fire Ball】. But 【Fire Ball】 had no such destructive power and homing nature like that flame ball in front of them. To begin with, a flame arts that didn’t explode was unusual and the light it emitted upon impact eliminated its target as if it scraped off only that part.

Even though they were wondering why it didn’t hit them, they understood that they were being protected. As they felt gratitude to whoever released the fireballs, they prepared their swords again to fight the Skull Faces that surrounded them.

This time, blue lightning passed through in front of them. This was the specialty of the person who helped out numerous countries, the lightning system magic skill. It was the skill that crossed the line from the art, as it had superior power and boasted of being the strongest skill ever.

The person they expected, appeared at the same time that the lighting had disappeared. With silver fluttering hair, it was the acting manager of Tsuki no Hokora, Schnee Raizar. Her appearance seemed unchanged since the last time Rionne had seen her, with her calm voice, Rionne felt death becoming distant. As if the Shinigami was blown away by the blue lightning.

“I will take over from here on out. Please escape through the forest.”

Her words were returned with unhesitating nods. The Skull Faces that were scattered like wood chips were visible to their eyes.

And then, as they defeated the Skull Faces that were found here and there in the forest, the surroundings suddenly became as bright as if it was daytime, and the Skull Faces became ashes instantly without them doing anything.

Thereafter, the Skull Faces they encountered had sluggish movements and were smashed into pieces by a single blow of their swords. Though the opponent was supposed to have equal skills to Rionne, they were weakened to the point that even the ordinary knights could defeat them. It seemed like it was caused by the light that shone onto the plains. A gentle and graceful light. It became clear that the damage they had received was recovering.

They couldn’t help but think: ‘If it’s Schnee-dono, such a thing is possible’. After a while, the wriggling Skull Faces dissolved and became demon essence all at once. From watching that, they could comprehend that the situation was resolved.

Now, Rionne was looking at the traces of the battle that might be left from Schnee. There were deep fissures remaining in the earth and he ground was ripped apart. Something that continued for hundreds of mels; there was even a place where the earth was totally molten.

At the location where they apparently clashed, there were bizarre traces of high voltage burns and deep slashing attacks. How much power was released when they clashed? They couldn’t even imagine anymore. The first princess, who was the elder sister, might be able to do something similar with magic, but it was impossible for her to do close combat if she plunged into a crowd of Skull Faces.

“This… is this the power of a person who was recognized by the High Humans?”

Once again, that power was recognized. Even though Rionne’s battle capability alone was said to be equal to 100 people or more, she felt like a dull, ordinary knight when compared to Schnee.

“Although it’s still dusk, can you see here a little?”

The one who started talking was the subordinate that went to survey the surroundings. The man wore red armor that wrapped around his big body and his name was Gadras Jarre. He was the leader of the knights in Bayreuth Kingdom, and was the commander of the strongest knight squadron,【Red Wolf】, in the kingdom. The reason why he became a mere battle assistant and accompanied Rionne was to prevent her from going on a rampage, but he hardly ever accomplished his role, not even this time.

Gadras too, had to directly face against the Skull Faces. He was the only chosen one in the knights squadron who could handle a close range battle with Rionne, and although he usually had the role of a watchdog, this was the only time that he had to fight as hard as he could. There were numerous cuts on his armor as proof.

In Gadras’s hand was a katana. Its handle was worn-out and darkened, the blade was cracked, and its edge was chipped here and there.

“This is?”

“This thing was found at the end of the fissure in the ground. I collected it, since it was stuck between the two sides of the fissure.”

He also noted that the katana's placement matched the directional line of the fissure.

“It’s just a hunch, but I think this katana is what caused the fissure. But I don't know what skill they used to accomplish it."

“Hmm, is there a possibility of that?”

Was Schnee with someone else on the battlefield? Rionne thought it might be possible, if it was Schnee.

“That katana here, what do you see?”

Gadras pointed at the katana.

“…Something like a bird?”

“Right. I once heard a story from a well-informed acquaintance of mine. The design on this sword is a falcon, just like that story."

“Is there something wrong with that?”

“Not really. I just have an idea of the blacksmith who carved it into the katana. Of course, it’s only one of many possibilities, but…”

“You have an idea? That doesn’t mean that there's only one blacksmith who can draw falcons, don’t you agree? Why are you making such a fuss?”

Rionne abruptly cut in and gave Gadras a puzzled look. He appeared to be strangely restless.

“You will understand if you look at this.”

Gadras spoke as he lifted the tattered hilt and raised the katana above his head. Then he swung downward, straight to the ground.

“…I see, so that’s the reason, huh?”

Rionne’s expression showed understanding.

The ground in front of her now had a deep gouge. Regardless of how much people praised Gadras as a chosen one, he couldn’t unleash such a powerful slash with a chipped katana. In other words, despite the fact that Gadras had swung the katana down with all his might, the katana still maintained its fractured shape.

“If it was a normal katana it would have broken apart when I smashed it into the ground. But it hasn't done that, even though I used all my strength. It's obvious. No ordinary blacksmith could have forged this.”

“Certainly…if it was in a perfect state, how much power could it have released?”

“Also, speaking of the blacksmith who would make such a katana carved with this crest, there is only one person, as far as I know.”

“Fumu, who is it?”

Rionne replied as calmly as possible. Furthermore, Gadras’s voice was filled with excitement.

“A High Human. It was said that the blacksmith, who had mastered all the smithing techniques, was called the 【Dark Blacksmith】.”

“That may be true. I can see how this katana must have been forged by someone was well-versed in smithing, especially if it was a High Human. But, that High Human should not be in this world anymore. However, if it’s Schnee-dono, who was under that High Human's direct command, it wouldn't strange for her to possess such a weapon. Moreover, if you saw the skill that was protecting us and that light from before, there's the possibility of the 【Crimson Alchemist】, too.”

Of course, the alchemist whom Rionne spoke of was both the mage and alchemist of Rokuten, Hecate. Because Rokuten’s production aspect was famous, they were often called by a name that was related to their job. The color that was attached before the job’s name was the color of the clothes that each of them liked to wear.

“Well, there is no conclusive evidence, but…anyway, it's simply amazing that a weapon made by a High Human would be lying around. Besides, I don't think Schnee-dono would simply discard her Master's weapon. Instead, I think we're dealing with someone who can afford to use and throw away a weapon like this."

“But this time, the scale is different from the battle so far. Do you understand the light that illuminated the night? If it was such an intense battle, even Schnee-dono might not think about wasting a weapon…Still, it is true that there was someone else here besides Schnee-dono. Who on earth is that person?”

“What could have caused Schnee-dono to be placed in such a predicament, it’s unimaginable.”

As she listened to Gadras’s words, Rionne thought about it. Truthfully, since she had seen Schnee’s figure easily kicking aside the Skull Faces, Rionne wasn’t convinced by her own words either. It was due to the magic skill user who took the trouble to protect them in the beginning. Judging from the power and scale, it was probably not a High Human, but for certain it was not in the class of a chosen one either. After they went into the forest, did Schnee Raizar join to fight with that person? If it is true that there was a powerful person at this place, then who was it?

“No way, really?”

Was there a High Human in that place?

The katana which Gadras held, it might even be a higher grade than the weapon Rionne had, if it was in a perfect state. For a being to be able to use and dispose of such a weapon, she couldn’t fathom they existed.

“No, it’s impossible.”

Rionne shook her head in denial. High Humans should have disappeared like many other people did after the Dusk of the Majesty. Since the unusual event that was said to still be a mystery, until now, no one had ever returned. However, maybe. Just maybe.

There was, as far as the legend goes, a story that it was High Humans that crushed the people who were called heroes and brave men altogether. If the High Human has returned, it would be not strange.

“…I better stop, I will never understand it even if I think about it.”

She didn’t know who was in that battlefield, but if that person was related to Schnee, then that person could not be a dangerous character. Even though it would be necessary to spare a number of men to monitor Tsuki no Hokora to some extent, Rionne thought it would not be a serious problem.

“As soon as the investigation is over, I will go back to our country. I would like to talk to Schnee-dono if possible, but…”

“It will be difficult, right?”

From Gadras’ words, Rionne nodded as she understood too. Once her request was finished, Schnee Raizar wouldn’t stay too long. This was because the invitations came from many places and had grown out of control, so it might be complicated this time.

“Gadras. If I’m not mistaken, Dark Blacksmith was the owner of the Tsuki no Hokora, right?”

“Yes, that should be right, though…?”

“Fumu, then try to visit Tsuki no Hokora right away when you return.”

“Though that is what I want to say, is it because you think that a High Human has really returned?”

“I am certain that there was at least one other person on that battlefield. Well, in fact, someone should be confirming it. If one really has returned, I certainly would like to have a match. I assume that he would be perfect as a marriage partner.”

“A-Again without warning, what are you talking about, huh?”

Gadras became flustered by Rionne who had suggested an unexpected thing. When he thought about it calmly, if the High Human was won over to their side by the dedication of Rionne alone, it would be good for the country. Even Gadras understood that much.

The problem with this princess, Rionne, was that it was said that a portion of her brain might be made up of muscles. Though it was not the truth, “If you want to be my husband, you have to show your own power and defeat me.” was considered to be what she said up until now. All of the vassals including Kings, if he thought about it, how many times did she reject them…if they were uninteresting.

The princess’ situation was understandable, and there was the feeling of having to think about the nation, as well. In the future, he understood that she expected for her marriage to not be forced, either.

This time too, even if it became a situation where the Skull Faces began to overflow from the Wraith Plains, there was no question about her actions either. The princess was outside of their territory, and in addition to that, showed up on the battlefield.

Rionne and Gadras were chosen ones, therefore it was not a big problem for them. They cooperate in moments of peril at the same time without sparing any effort in attitude, which was displayed even in a strange land.

Under the pretext of that power and her beautiful face which raised the knights morale, she had participated in this investigation and exterminatory battle. Although the latter role has been taken away by Schnee, she has accomplished her given role well.

One point. If the one point of an oddball character was nonexistent, she would be perfect. Though it was not the whole head, there was the reason she was said to have a part of her brain muscle.

“Just to be clear when I say a test of strength; what if it turns out to be an impostor who stabs at my back without warning? If not, the day when a High Human turns into an enemy, our country will disappear.”

“You have a point there.”

“Heh, I don’t want to hear that from you. Well though, I wonder if a High Human could become a really good partner.”

Even though he was supposed to be wise, for some reason, the slightly abrupt answer from Rionne caused Gadras to be weary. Consequently, the excitement from when he discovered the katana had also left him.

---'''(Extra LN Content END)'''---<ref>T/N: The 2nd princess wasn’t supposed to appear in this volume of WN yet. This is one of the extra content from the LN, which I deemed is important to the storyline. On the side note: Pls buy the light novel to support the original author. And no, the light novel is not available in English, only in Japanese</ref>

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==Translator's Notes and References==
<references />

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| Return to [[The New Gate|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[The New Gate:Volume 2 Chapter 4|Volume 2 Chapter 4]]
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The New Gate:Volume 1 Chapter 3

2017-05-25T01:56:56Z

Xiani:

Shin walked for 25 minutes after leaving the guild.

In front of him was a signboard with a bear’s paw painted on it. According to Celica, this should be the Bear Point Pavilion.

“There’s no doubt about it, it’s here.”

He confirmed it again and placed his hand on the door. The laughter from inside grew louder as he slowly opened the door.

Inside the Bear Point Pavilion was large number of people seated around a counter, and seven tables. Five of the tables were filled with adventurers making loud noises while drinking beer.

As Shin surveyed the scene, a shadow appeared in front of him. Something was blocking the light, and he felt a presence behind his back, so he turned around.

“Hmm?”

He saw an arm that took pride in its thickness, around thrice that of Shin’s, and an apron with embroidered flowers.

“Welcome, please come in! Is it just one person?”

Hearing the voice from above, Shin lifted his head and saw a person with a stern, rock-like face smiling viciously.

“Deke…”

The sound just burst from Shin's lips. Shin was 180 cemels tall, but the man in front of him was probably 230 cemels or more. He was a giant.

“What’s wrong, sonny? Are you feeling sick?”

“I’m feeling fine! Um, you are?”

The man's words brought Shin back to his senses. Although the man didn’t give Shin the answer he'd expected.

“Me? I am the popular boss and shopkeeper of Bear Point Pavilion. I’m Douma Bear.”

“…Boss…you say?”

Shin thought there would be a pretty poster girl in the inn.

“Yeah! People gathered for that popular guy, the popular boss! To some extent, popular boss――”

“That is a poster girl!<ref>T/N: ‘看板親父’(kanbanoyaji) is a parody word to match ‘看板娘’(kanbanmusume) which means a poster girl, Shin made a pun out of it.</ref>”

“――nuu”

Shin retorted after he noticed the pun.

“Umu. Nice rebuttal!”

And then for some reason, the self proclaimed popular boss gave him a thumbs-up.

“Did I enter the wrong shop?…”

“Don’t be shy, young man.”

“No, I’m not shy! I just happen to look like this!”

Somehow, it evolved into a comedy dialogue.

“Good!! Nii-chan!”

“Do it some more!!”

Shin sighed because of all the shouts from the drunken group. It was a conversation livened up by alcohol.

“Haa, another――”

“Hey! What are you doing?!!”

“――one?”

Just as Shin thought about searching for another inn, he heard a female voice resound from the bar.

The voice seemed to come from behind Douma. Shin couldn’t see her because of the gigantic body in front of him.

“Dad? Didn’t I always tell you not to say weird things? What if strange rumors spread?”

The voice said. Even though the voice was calm, it was clear that it was said while suppressing its anger.

“No, it’s this, a form of――”

“Shut up!”

“…Yes”

Even his excuses were rejected right away. Judging from the remarks earlier, it could be said that the voice might belong to Douma’s daughter. Somehow the position was reversed.

“I will take over from here. Dad, go to the kitchen and help Mom.”

“I…I understand.”

Douma went back into the kitchen, feeling disheartened. Somehow, Shin’s impression of him had diminished.

“I’m sorry for the sudden, weird things you saw. Are you here to eat? Or to stay overnight?”

Douma could no longer be seen, as such, Shin could finally see Douma’s daughter after she reprimanded her dad to the kitchen.

It was a girl with a short brown hair. She might have a business smile, but she was still attractive. The word cute suited her more than beautiful.

“Ah, I will be staying. Even so, just now, is it always like that?”

“Though I want you to forget that, yes, it happens sometimes. My dad is in a good mood when he is with adventurers but turns bitter when he is with merchants.

By the way, staying overnight is 2 J silver coins including breakfast and dinner. To enter the bathhouse, you have to request for it. The charges are 4 J copper coins. The breakfast will be provided until 9 bell rings. If that’s okay, you can register at the inn’s registry.”

“Okay.”

Shin was unsure if 2 J silver coin for the inn was expensive or cheap. Since he didn’t have any problem with it for now, he accepted the offer.

“I don’t know how long I will stay, will that be okay?”

“If so, do you want to pay everyday? Or you can pay for a certain number of days and extend it as needed. Just to be sure, you are an adventurer, am I right?”

“Ah, yes, I just registered today. I was recommended by Celica to go here.”

“Celica’s recommendation!? You should have said that sooner. Then, I will offer you 1 J silver coin and 90 J copper coin. For adventurers, I recommend paying in advance. It’s normal to leave the inn for a few days whenever there is a request. Be warned that all personal items inside the room will be disposed of if the bill isn’t paid.”

A long term request was not rare for an adventurer, so the room might be empty for several days. There was also the risk of dying during a dangerous request. If that happens, it would not be possible to pay everyday.

“Then do you want to pay in advance? Or is it fine for now?”

As she said so, Shin took out 1 J gold coin from his Item Box (he pretended it was from his chest pocket) and handed it to her.

“This will be enough for 50 days, what about the change?”

“Can you subtract the fee for using the bathhouse from it?”

“Understood. Then I will let you know when it becomes insufficient. For now, write your name in the inn register. It will cost another 2 J copper coins if you need to write a name on someone else’s behalf.”

“No, it’s alright…will this do?”

“…Yeah, okay. Shin-san, here’s the key, the room number is 201 and its on the second floor. Do you know where the box for valuable things are placed?”

“Box? No, never heard of it.”

When the registration was confirmed, a room key was handed to him.

However, Shin tilted his head as he never heard about the box she mentioned before.

“Then, if you don’t know, that would be a loss. Because an inn with boxes is proof of it being an excellent shop. In other words, the box is something like a safe wherein valuables are kept. The box can only be opened by the person who locked it or the innkeeper. Besides, the box is immune to magic, skills, and physical attacks. Even if the inn is completely destroyed, the contents inside the box will be safe as the box itself is a magic item. How is it? Isn’t that great! Because it’s not possible to find an inn like this in the neighborhood.”

While explaining about the box’s indestructibility, some advertising was added. At least it was certainly better than the surrounding shops. Without the parody going on earlier, it would have been perfect, thought Shin.

He went up to the second floor after he received the key. He didn’t have any luggage, but he wanted to check the room.

Room 201 was the first room on the second floor.

The room was about 10 tatami big. It was a simple room with a single bed and a chair with a desk. If the bed included drawers and so on, it would be enough to live comfortably alone. There was a box for leaving valuable things in the inner part of the room. Besides that, there was nothing inappropriate in that room. (Editor’s note: The size of a tatami is about 15 square meters or 164 square feet.)

There was a toilet in addition to the furniture. It was even had a flush toilet.

Shin was surprised by it.

It’s not really surprising that there was a toilet. In Shin’s case, the circumstances were slightly different.

To begin with, toilets didn’t even exist in THE NEW GATE. Even though the game pursued reality, nobody among the producers wanted to do the excretion act in the game.

It would spoil the mood if one got attacked by a monster in the middle of the act.

Without realizing it, Shin hadn’t seen a toilet for one year after the game turned into a death game. Especially, a flushing toilet.

It could be said that each room had a toilet and that it’s natural due to the quality of Bear Point Pavilion. But Shin got a mixed feeling of surprise and nostalgia from it.

“Believe it or not, just seeing a toilet brings memories from the past…”

Shin was surprised and had an indescribable feeling that no one knew.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 After checking the room, Shin locked it with the key and proceeded to go downstairs for the purpose of eating and gathering information. He had not eaten since he had at the guild. Also, it would be a waste if he didn’t go eat the meal, as dinner was included in the room charge.

On the first floor, the adventurers were still making noises. From 【Analyze • Ⅹ】, the average adventurer level was 120.

Subsequently, Shin recalled the level of the knights he saw in Tsuki no Hokora. Though he didn’t see many details, the knights should be around 100 ~ 110. And he wondered about the relationship between adventurers and knights in this country.

Then he found a seat, ordered a dish, and he decided to listen to the surrounding clamors until the dish came. He used 【Noise Cancellation】 so only voices could be heard and 【Listen】 so that voices and sounds from a certain range could be clearly heard. Thanks to the skills, he could even hear the muttering of other parties on remote seats.

It was easy to listen when using it, the menu filtered both voices and sounds alike, so that he could choose what to listen to. Almost none of the conversations were meaningful to listen to.

However, the information to be obtained in this place shouldn’t be taken lightly. Even in the game, unexpected information would become available in this place since there were a lot of conversations going on. Though he didn’t know whether it would be useful in this world, Shin didn’t even have a shred of the common sense of this world in the first place, so he would have to hear it even if it was trifle. And there was no loss for him anyway.

“Have you heard? Wilhelm seemed to have quarrelled with hordes of demons.”

“I’m hungry～. It’s a meal, a meal”

“Did you hear the rumor? A Skull Face appeared in the Northern Forest.”

“Recently, Hillock Herb can be harvested nicely.”

“This beer is delicious!”

“What should I order～?”

“Popular boss you said…?”

“Tsugumi-chan, bring the alcohol～, Douma, get hold of yourself ーーーーー”

He waited for the dish while organizing the information he heard in his mind.

There was one man who flew through the air but no one reacted to it. Shin also looked at it as if it was a usual thing.

Because he heard some words to be worried about, he took note of them in his mind. The most noteworthy was Skull Face.

This was the undead-type monster, Skull Face. The word Pawn, Jack, Queen, and so on showed the class among the monsters. Because the level of the monster would be different depending on the class, an individual would encounter hardships or annihilation if they didn’t make sure to confirm it.

“Sorry for the wait, here’s the food you ordered.”

Shin came back to his senses after hearing the voice. He seemed to concentrate too much on using different skills to assess the state of the area.

Douma’s daughter was putting the dish on the table when he turned around.

“Are you, by chance, deep in thought?”

“Ah, just lost in thought. Um…”

“Oh, I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Tsugumi Bear. If there is some business, because my father is often in the kitchen, let me know”

“I understand. I wonder if you already know, but my name is Shin. I’m more or less an adventurer.”

“More or less?”

“I haven’t gotten my guild card yet.”

“I see. By the way, what were you thinking about just now? How to quickly raise your rank?”

Tsugumi asked with interest as she sat facing Shin on the table after the meal was served.

Are rookie adventurers rare, Shin wondered.

“I will raise my rank leisurely. Because I came to this country from a faraway village, I’m not really familiar with the practices here. I was referred here as I looked around.”

“I see. I don’t know much, but people from other countries said there’s not much difference.”

“Is that so? Well you should be careful not to trust them, probably.”

“Well, you sure are an unusual person. A rookie adventurer should want to become stronger and raise their rank quickly. Furthermore, low rank adventurers seem to be made fun of frequently.”

“I guess that’s true. Because I am such an oddball, I will give an appropriate response if I were being made fun of.”

Shin said with self-confidence and a wide grin on his face. Although he didn’t know much of the image of adventurers, he was confident in his numerous skills. This was his idea to act a bit like an adventurer.

“Huh, are you that confident with your skills?”

“As it suits the occasion. When it is dangerous, I will run away quickly. I don’t want to die.”

To begin with, Shin had no intention to caused a commotion, so it was expected that he say that.

“Rather than sitting here casually, don’t you have other tables to attend to, miss waitress?”

“I will be called if there is an order so it is all right. Look, my mom is here, too.”

He followed Tsugumi’s line of sight and he saw a woman who had the same hair color as Tsugumi, and was receiving orders at other tables.

From there, Shin was convinced that Tsugumi took after her mother. It made Shin think that Tsugumi would become a beautiful woman when she grew up.

“Goofing around, aren’t you…”

“I’m not goofing around. I’m gathering information, I repeat, gathering information.”

“About a rookie adventurer?”

“It might not have a promising future. But I have the eyes for people based on the various adventurers I have seen.”

Tsugumi said with a confident expression while putting her hand on her chest.

“Oh, then what about me?”

“Hmm…I wonder, 85 points maybe.”

“…Should I be happy about that?”

Though it might be as high as it sounded, it would depend on the grading criteria standard.

“It’s a place where I can expect a little.”

“So strict. What caused the minus points?”

“First point, your lack of ambition. You can’t succeed if you don’t have the will, besides, you are overconfident in your abilities. Though my rules are learned on experience.

“Ambition, huh. Well, there are steps for that.”

Shin didn’t register to become an adventurer for fame originally, so he didn’t have the motivation to work hard. Somehow it didn’t meet Tsugumi’s ideals.

“You sure are an easygoing guy. Hmm, now that you mentioned it, it really suits you. Well then, I will return to work or I’m gonna get scolded soon. Good luck, but don’t overdo it.”

Tsugumi said as she winked before leaving to take orders. The number of customers seemed to have increased. Without having noticed it, all tables were already filled.

He quickly finished his meal as he was alone at one table and went back to his room. When the amount of people increased, trouble increased too. He decided to dutifully follow Tsugumi’s advice about how rookie adventurers were being made fun of.

He had nothing to do even if he went back to his room. If he was asked about it, he would just say he was organizing his luggage. After that, he went to the the bathhouse. After sweating lightly and removing a portion of his equipment, it became easier to sleep.

He erected a barrier inside his room before going to bed since it was his routine during the game. Although he didn’t receive surprise attacks very often because of the detection system, he still took precaution.

As for the bed, it was soft and fluffy, and it was really comfortable. He was thanking Celica in his mind while letting his body fall asleep.

In the middle of his sleep, he suddenly remembered something that he had forgotten.

That reminds him,

“Message…sent?…Have…”

He cursed in his mind because he had completely forgotten about the message.

He woke up and saw an unfamiliar ceiling.

He recalled yesterday’s events, from the last fight, being transported to a different world, lifting Tiera’s curse and the events at the guild.

Though he didn’t wish to have that dream, he could not help but wish to be able to log out safely and wake up in a hospital or in some other place.

“Such convenience, it won’t go as I want.”

He muttered that and looked at his surroundings.

The room was still dark, so he knew it was before dawn.

There were signs of people starting to move on the first floor. Apparently the people of this world were considerably early risers.

“No abnormality in both barrier and detection system. The former me would have woken up first and checked his surroundings.”

He smiled wryly and wondered when the last time he slept without being cautious was.

When he opened the window, fresh air from the outside entered the room. While feeling chilly from the cold air, he looked down from the window and he could see the figures of people walking on the street. The pedestrian traffic was sparse, but he felt it was gradually livening up.

Since Bear Point Pavilion was bigger than the surrounding buildings, he could see the townscape outside very well. It was different from the game or program as he was captivated by the townscape.

Because he fell asleep early, there was no sleepiness and he felt refreshed. While looking outside, the sun, which began to rise slowly and the ramparts that covered the town, could be seen.

He watched the town as it was gradually getting enveloped in warm light.

After a while, the sun was up and the number of people on the street started to increase.

Shin also took out equipment such as a jacket and trousers from the Item Box, and changed into them. He went downstairs after locking the room.

On the first floor, there were people who come to eat breakfast like Shin, people who already had breakfast, people who leave and enter the store, and so on.

Based on their appearances, almost everyone here was an adventurer. It seemed that it was not unusual to start mobilizing at sunrise.

“Good morning. Did you have a good night’s sleep yesterday?”

It was Tsugumi who greeted him. She was carrying a tray with a dish.

“Good morning. I woke up perfectly fine today.”

“Then that’s good. Breakfast right? I will prepare it soon so please have a seat.”

“Oh, thank you.”

He took a seat at the table, different from yesterday since he wasn’t eager to gather information early this morning.

The breakfast served was a stew with brown bread. The brown bread was neither too hard nor too soft, like a French bread. The stew was full of colorful vegetables and meat, it was voluminous than it looked.

He looked around and saw everyone dipping the bread into the stew.

“Delicious!”

It seemed to be cooked well. The ingredients of the stew mixed in harmoniously and the taste firmly permeated in the mouth. When combined with the bread, it’s was still delicious.

The unexpected taste made him refill his plate twice. He reflected a little after having eaten too much.

“You sure eat a lot in the morning.”

“So was yesterday, the food here is delicious.”

“You don’t have to say such wonderful words. It’s just a little service for Shin. By the way, you should wait a little more before going to the guild to pick up the guild card.”

“Is there anything going on at this time?”

“It is crowded especially in the morning. When you are a low rank, you might get interrupted and forced to enter a party so you better be careful.”

“That’s sound dangerous. Doesn’t the guild staff stop it?”

“Though they will stop it if they saw it was done in the open, the adventurers who does it has a method to prevent it from leaking out.”

“I see, it’s a situation that I need to get informed about.”

He decided to delay his time while thinking that those who were doing that were definitely petty people. It was not a big deal but he himself didn’t want to get in trouble with them.

“Just don’t rely too much on the guild staff, when in case of emergency, it may not be reliable.”

“I agree.”

“Well, as long as you take your time then it’s good.”

Tsugumi said as she went to take order for a waiting customer at another table.

He was thankful for Tsugumi’s consideration. He decided to kill time for a moment while drinking fruit juice. Because he had some spare time, he continued gathering information like yesterday, this time he observed the equipment and tools of the adventurers.

He noticed that he was casually using rare tools this morning. Nevertheless, he recalled the reason he had forgotten the message before going to sleep. While he was changing clothes and opening the Item Box, it suddenly reminded him of the weapons and tools lined up in Tsuki no Hokora.

There were equipment used by beginners to a few high-grade ones. The equipment for an intermediate person could be counted with one hand. Shin knew an advanced equipment was also included so he was a little regretful. Because of that, he directed his attention to the equipment and forgot about the message.

Although he already saw a lot of adventurers last night, it was easier now since many adventurers were going in and out.

“…………”

While drinking the fruit juice, he glanced at the other side of table.

It seemed that most of the weapons were made from iron and copper. The armors were mostly made from leather or metals like steel, only a few of them had enchantment done.

The quality of the equipment and tool might have also deteriorated since the game era. Shin couldn’t help to think that the equipment was terrible, though it was bad for the adventurers in this world.

It was also his reason choosing the low rank equipment when changing clothes. At present, Shin was wearing ‘Mud Lizard Jacket’ and ‘Demon Spider Thread of Trouser’. Both are using the material from monsters that could be hunted even at level 70. However, the performance for both equipment was 4 times higher than normal, because it was reinforced until the limit was reached.

On his waist hang a katana named ‘Several Strokes’. Several Strokes was the initial weapon that could be obtained when changing job to samurai. Naturally, its performance was low. Most players would sell it or put it in a warehouse when the players level up or even if it was strengthened. Still, the katana had better performance than any of the nearby adventurers that one could easily guessed its quality.

The equipment that Barlux had might be considerably valuable, Shin thought.

Afterwards, 30 minutes already passed after killing some time and gathering information, Shin left the Bear Point Pavillion.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 While walking on the road to the guild, he observed the town’s appearance. There was not much pedestrian traffic compared to yesterday.

Various stalls started to open at the edge of the road, crowding with people having breakfast and buying lunch. Also, there were a lot of stalls that seemed useful to adventurers – selling armor, magic items, and various tools.

It was an incredible scene as the sun was only been out for two hours.

After window-shopping at the stalls, he walked to the guild. Since a lot of adventurers had weapons, Shin’s weapon didn’t attract attention.

Still, 【Search】 was used to search enemy as a habit and for caution. Shin probably didn’t stop using the skill because there was the matter of the letter of introduction, too.

After walking for 40 minutes, he finally saw the signboard of the adventurer guild. Time taken to reach the guild was increased from yesterday probably because he was avoiding the crowded areas.

As he entered the building, a group of adventurers came out from the door. Though a lot of time passed, he sensed that there were still many people inside.

Celica and an elf lady were at the receptionist desk. He was certain because he could see a pointed ear like Tiera’s. Shin approached the receptionist desk and talked to Celica.

“Good morning. I’m here to get my guild card.”

“Good morning, Shin-sama. Please wait a moment while I go to get your guild card. And, this is Els whom you were looking for. Els, this is Shin-sama whom we talked about just now.”

When Celica introduced him, the elf lady which sat in next to receptionist desk came toward Shin.

“Good morning, Shin-sama. My name is Els Balter. I’m told that Shin-sama has a business with me.”

Els possessed a classic example of elven beauty, and her appearance looked like she was around 24 years of age. Her vivid green hair reached her waist like the trees in the forest. Blue eyes as reminiscent of lakeside. Her height was about 170 cemels. A style and good looks which would put models to shame. Though he had no idea about the preferences of adventurers in this world.

Since he couldn’t stare for too long, Shin immediately averted his eyes.

“This, it’s probably addressed to you.”

Shin said and passed the letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora to her after he took it out from Item Box. The anti-theft measure had been removed.

“Addressed…to me…?”

While cocking her head and looking puzzled, she looked over its contents.

Then, her eyes widened momentarily as she read the letter of introduction. It could be said that she had read some unbelievable things in the letter.

“It can’t be…no, but”

Celica looked a little worried over her colleague’s state. And Shin was also anxious about the content because he didn’t know what was written. Though the content must be related to Tiera’s curse, it didn’t concern Shin that much as Tiera seemed to be secretive about it.

Els was very surprised that she mumbled and whispered something, like she had forgotten Shin and Celica was there. Then she returned to her senses and turned her attention to Shin.

“Umm…what?”

Shin flinched at her gaze. His heart was getting restless as he thought of the reason why she was staring at him.

“You…Tiera…thank you. I’m truly grateful.”

As soon as she said that, Els gave a quick bow. For some reason her speech became somewhat different.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t understand the situation…”

It was too abrupt and incomprehensible for Shin.

“I’m sorry, I seem to be a bit shaken. Celica, please take over for me just for a while. I apologize but this conversation will be confidential from now on. Because we will continue at the back room, that I’m asking you to take over.”

“I understand. I will call another staff to handle the reception for you.”

“Thank you…”

Shin didn’t have any problem with Els’s proposal so he agreed while slightly feeling discouraged.

Shin enter the same room as yesterday. After both of them entered the room, Els closed the door and locked it with a room key and then she sat on the sofa after she had done a ritual.

“Once again let me say thank you. For lifting the Tiera’s curse, thank you very much.”

“Oh, so that was the reason.”

Apparently, Els seemed to have known about the curse of Tiera. It seemed to be written in the letter of introduction.

“Please raise your head, I never intend for it to go out of hand like this.”

“But, I was looking for a solution and still haven’t found a clue. And you did it. So it’s only natural to be grateful.”

There was an item that could remove the curse but it seemed to be that it was hard to obtain. Perhaps she was going to an adventure to find the solution for the curse.

“If possible, please do not exaggerate it too much. Do you normally talk like that?”

“I understand. I will not leak this information in the name of Spirit of the woods. To be honest, not much of subject can be discussed openly. Also I find it most comfortable talking like this. It was written here that the person would not mind it, did that offend you?”

“No, it is good as it is. Was that the only reason why I was brought to this room? Just now what ritual were you doing?”

“That was an eavesdrop prevention magic. Even the guild staff cannot hear my story that I’m going to tell you now. And I have to ask you personally as well.”

Although Shin understand Els had various question from her state, he didn’t want to abuse his advantage as well.

“I’ll say this just in case, I don’t have the answer for everything.”

“I know. However, I could not stand it when I had looked for the solution for the curse for more than 50 years and had not found a single clue.”

It seemed that it was out of curiosity. Not only that, envy and earnest desire feeling seemed to mix in Els’s eyes.

50 years. The time spent was twice more than the time Shin was alive. Even if it was solved, one would indeed want to know the method used.

Besides, there might be another person who would get the curse.

“It wasn’t written in the letter of introduction?”

“It seemed to be written in haste so it wasn’t included. Well, how about this. I will do anything for you as a reward. Will you tell me, please?”

Els leaned forward as she step closer to Shin. Although Shin didn’t feel bad about being approached by a beauty, somehow there was a bloodthirsty aura emitting from her.

Shin didn’t want to hastily open the topic about 【Purification】since he at least not yet have the basic common sense of this world.

However, Els knew about Tiera’s curse, and Tiera wrote it in introduction letter to inform Els. Shin thought it would not be a problem if he told her.

“I understand so please sit down. Before I tell you properly, please calm down for a bit.”

Els sat down again on the sofa while Shin adjusted his sitting posture.

“The method to remove the curse is using the skill, 【Purification】. There are other methods, but this is the most reliable method I know.”

Though he knew that there was an item that could remove the curse, he didn’t say it as he still couldn’t confirm if it existed here.

“【Purification】?…for that skill to have such an effect.”

He could understand the look of frustration on Els.

Because based from Tiera’s story, only high rank priests could acquired the 【Purification】 skill.

“【Purification】 acquisition…no, inherited in this case, how many people have inherited it”

“I don’t know. In the church, only a person with position knows the condition to use 【Purification】 on a body. Moreover, not all of its effects are known. In the first place, it is unheard of a person who is not from the church that can use 【Purification】.”

“What…really?!”

Shin dropped his shoulder as he heard that from Els. He could imagine that it would be quite bad if the church knew he had that skill. That skill, if he were to stand out, it would attract a lot of enemy who would want to inherit that skill.

(I have a bad premonition about this…)

“Please don’t tell it to anyone.”

“Of course. Because I am a skill holder too, the guild is compelled to help me, or I will leave the guild. Therefore, I want you to feel relieved.”

Els said like it was nothing. Shin thought it would be difficult to against humans or organizations but it seemed like he didn’t have to worry.

“Well, as long as I am careful, it will be okay.”

“Even so, it’s a weight off my shoulders thanks to you. Although it was safe, living in that house for years is cruel.”

“I thought so. It was the same reason why I dispelled the curse. Which reminds me, how did you know about the curse? Tiera was even quite hesitant to talk about it.”

“Me and Tiera are from the same village. I became an adventurer and went around the world, it was when I’m on my way back home that I knew about that incident. She was an ordinary elf at that time. She was a girl with beautiful silvery hair.”

“I see.”

“When I came back to the village after hearing that Tiera was cursed, she was already banished. To be honest, I never thought she would still alive after hearing about the curse until I met Schnee.”

A curse that attracted strong monsters, it was almost impossible to survive all alone. In fact, if Schnee didn’t protect her, the survival rate would have dropped to zero.

“She got the curse, and was helped by Schnee…, wasn’t it? Is she lucky or what?”

“It is for Tiera to decide. However, the curse was removed, thanks to you, and I think she can find happiness from now on.”

“You are right. It not for us to be the judge. So the story ends here. Is there anything else you want to ask?”

“None, what I wanted to ask, you had already answered. I’m sorry if it had taken your precious time.”

“It’s okay. Els’ feelings, I can understand it a bit.”

He wasn’t too conscious of the time as 30 minutes had elapsed while he was listening quietly to Els’ story.

When they left the reception room and returned to the receptionist desk, Celica and another miss receptionist was talking. The receptionist rose when she noticed Els and went up to the second floor after making a quick bow.

“Are you done?”

“Yes, we have finished our conversation.”

“I’m sorry, Celica. And thank you for this favor.”

After saying her thanks, Els started to attend to the request brought by adventurers at the receptionist desk.

“Then, Shin-sama, this is your guild card. Please be careful not to lose it, because it also serves as a proof of your rank. And a fee of 10 J silver coins is needed to reissue the card in case it gets lost.”

“I understand.”

Shin accepted the guild card from Celica. The card had his name, rank, affiliation, party described on it. He recalled Cilica’s explanation that the description couldn’t be seen unless a specific tool was used.

“Do you want to take on a request now?”

A bulletin board with requests posted on it was seen. As for rank G requests, something like collecting stuff and other miscellaneous duties were often found. They were less dangerous and therefore less rewarding. Still, the average reward was 1 J silver coin, which seemed to be highly paid.

“How about this? Can I take this request?”

He tore off a request posted on the bulletin board and took it to the receptionist desk. Shin intended to raise his rank by at least one. Still, Celica didn’t say anything about how he had the lowest rank even if she had the information of his rank.

“This request please.”

“This is to collect Hillock Herbs. Because this request is always given, there is no time limit. The reward will be 1 J silver coin per 30 pieces.”

“If I gather 60 of them, will I get 2 J silver coins?”

“Yes, There is always a demand for Hillock Herb, because it’s an ingredient in a potion. Are you okay with this request?”

“Yes, please. Oh, is there a picture book that shows the Hillock Herb?”

“Yes, there is. Please wait a moment.”

Actually, he already saw it in the game, but he decided to confirm its appearance to make sure. The book that Celica brought over from the bookshelf behind the reception was as thick as a dictionary.

She placed the book on the reception desk and exhaled in a small voice.

“Phew, this is a plant encyclopedia. And Hillock Herb…here it is.”

He confirmed the Hillock Herb while thanking Celica who took the trouble of opening the book and find it for him. The plant’s appearance didn’t seem to have changed. Its height was about 10 – 15 cemels with jagged leaves. He was hoping that it wouldn’t be difficult to gather 30 grown plants.

“It grows in the eastern and the northern forest.”

According to the book, Hillock Herb grew in the eastern and the northern forest, especially in the depths of the forest.

“Please be careful as people have been lost in the depth of the forest while searching for Hillock Herbs. You might also get attacked by ferocious monsters if you advance too far.”

“I’ll be careful.”

There were some things better left unsaid. When he went to ‘Tsuki no Hokora’, he had already crossed the eastern forest. The ferocious monsters that he had slaughtered were used to pay for his stay at the inn.

“Take care.”

Said Celica as Shin departed from the guild.

Shin walked toward the east gate, while wondering whether or not he should buy a map .

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 ――In the guild’s lounge room.

Els and Celica had just finished tidying up some documents and were talking about Shin while drinking tea.

“Celica, do you know who that person is, just now?”

“Come to think of it, I don’t know much about him yet. Although one might say I know him, I don’t have much information about him either.”

Shin had only arrived at the guild yesterday, so Celica didn’t know much about him yet. Since he held the letter of introduction, she told Els about his match with Barlux.

“Are you saying the ‘Blue Wolf’ was dealt with easily? Though, even I can understand that he is a considerably strong person.”

Because Celica was her colleague, she talked with her in a comfortable tone. She was originally like that, so it was not a problem for Els to communicate with in her this way. But she had to make sure not to talk like that in public, only when the two of them were alone.

By the way, ‘Blue Wolf’ seemed to refer to Barlux.

There was not much known about that person――Shin.

As Celica introduced Shin to her, Els said something related to her ‘Official Title’.

“Indeed, no wonder I couldn’t see it.”

Els nodded as she understood the story from Celica.

“Is it true, that it wasn’t seen?”

Celica looked at Els in disbelief.

Els was one of the executives with power next to the sub-master within the guild. Els was a skill 【Analyze • Ⅶ】 holder, and at the same time, she held the title ‘Observer’. Therefore, she could even see through the name and level of people whose levels were higher than hers. A fake name could be seen through immediately by her. In fact, Barlux’s level was seen through at the first glance.

When Els said she couldn’t see through Shin, one would wonder who on earth he was.

She didn’t even know if his name, Shin, was true.

“Well, there is no need to worry about it too much. I don’t think Tiera would have handed a letter of introduction to a bad person.”

“Blue Wolf also had the same opinion. Just a little different.”

Celica muttered while remembering the mysterious sense of security she felt from Shin.

“Different…is he? Certainly, his ability and the atmosphere around him don’t match, it’s actually odd…”

“Indeed. How do I say this? It felt somewhat like a sense of security.”

Both of them stopped talking, with a good mood around them.

“I don’t know (I guess)…”

The more they thought about Shin, the more his image became blurred.

In the past, even when they felt uneasy, there was never a time when both of their hearts got riled up.

After he left the guild, Shin went toward the east gate without stopping. At first, he went along the main road, then he changed his path and entered the woods. The eastern forest was a place where rookie adventurers entered routinely. It looked like a place where almost none of the ferocious monsters came forth.

When he happened to pass through the gate, Beid informed him about this. He said that several rookies went to the eastern forest today. Beid was a guard at the south gate yesterday, but apparently the guard would rotate after a certain period of time. He seemed to be guarding the east gate now for a while.

Easy quests could be done in 30 minutes in the game. He planned to finish this quickly, and then go to a library afterwards. Shin hastened his pace.

Even if the place was said to be fine for rookies to enter, the forest was dark and filled with trees. Beid said that there were only low-level demons or wild beasts, but it was still frightening for Shin as he was not yet accustomed to it.

Without putting too much trust in the information, he looked for the Hillock Herb cautiously.

If Shin’s memory was correct, it should grow in places the sunlight easily gets to.

Since he heard that the Hillock Herb could be harvested easily, he thought that he could finish quickly.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 “…This isn’t it.”

He had entered the forest 3 hours ago.

“…This isn’t it either!”

Number of harvests… zero.

“…Noooo!!”

Not a single Hillock Herb was found yet.

It had been a while since he entered the forest triumphantly. Despite walking with the reliance of his memory, he wasn’t able to find even one herb.

“It’s strange…No matter how much I look for it, not even one can be found.”

It was strange because he had been slowly going deeper into the forest to find some. There were no signs of adventurers around so it was not likely that someone picked them all before him.

“Should I go a little deeper?”

The information from the encyclopedia stated that it was easier to find them deeper in the forest. Naturally, the surroundings became darker and the signs of wild animals could be felt everywhere.

He devoted himself to search for the plant without any encounters with monsters. As he advanced a little more, he went towards places monsters didn’t go to, and looked at the surroundings.

Even with a full search, he couldn’t find an open place where the sunlight hit the ground. Though he searched for likely places one after another, there were no signs of them, instead there were bushes and tree roots everywhere.

“I’m feeling hungry…”

The sun was already high in the sky, so it was about afternoon. He had walked forever and his stomach was growling because he hadn’t eaten lunch.

“Should I eat some food?”

Because his hunger was near the limit, and as a change of mood, he decided to have lunch.

He put his lunch from the ‘Item Box’ on a stump and began to eat. On the menu was hot dog and cola. The food items stored in the ‘Item Box’ do not rot as time progresses. He entered the forest without buying food beforehand, because he could store food items in his ‘Item Box’.

Though the food originally had special effects such as stats rise or HP recovery and so forth, somehow those areas were unavailable, so the effect couldn’t be felt.

In addition, there were various other luxurious food items but they seemed to be treated as normal food. Even if it had special effect, there might be no time to eat the food while fighting a monster.

“Mmm, myum, fuu… Well then, shall I search for it?”

Without wasting any time, he finished his lunch. A characteristic of junk food was being able to eat it fast. He ate it quickly because he could be in trouble if a wild animal and a monster came, tempted by the smell.

Though he went to search for the Hillock Herb again, it still could not be found.

Another 3 hours later, after he ate lunch, it was rather refreshing; he had still found nothing. The Hillock Herb might just have been picked exhaustively, thought Shin.

After one more hour, Shin decided to return to the inn because he was tired. Though it was possible to go on physically, he felt mental fatigue after not being able to find what he was looking for.

When he arrived at the gate, the guards had been changed. It seemed that the guards took turns and patrolled in a rotational fashion.

He found Beid among the soldiers who returned from patrol and exchanged a few words while he confirmed Shin’s guild card.

“Yo, you look tired. Did you find what you were looking for?”

“The thing is, I went to the eastern forest to gather Hillock Herb, but I have searched for it all day long and haven’t found one…”

“Oioi, that herb can be found easily if you look for it properly. I saw several rookies return with it today. It was harvested well.”

“WH…WHAT…?”

Other rookies were harvesting well. Shin was shocked as he was struck by the words.

“I think everyone returned in the morning…You, surely you weren’t searching for it for a full day, right?”

“…Yes…”

He covered his face with his palms and dropped his shoulders. Shin was an SS rank adventurer during the time of the game. His pride was shattered here even if he knew this was a different world.

“Well, that, what can I say. Cheer up.”

“Ku, your encouraging words sting my eyes.”

Since Beid too didn’t know Hillock Herbs couldn’t be found there, without knowing, only mundane words came out.

“Well, this is just your luck, I guess. I don’t think today is your day, but you can try again tomorrow.”

“It is so…should I go deeper into the forest tomorrow?”

“Don’t go too far into the forest. Though you won’t do such blunder, a lot of rookies die easily because they advance too far into the depths.”

“I understand. See you.”

He understood Beid’s worry, too. And there was no need to hurry as there was no time limit. Yet, there was this psychology of person who wanted to find something when it was not found before. When it came to this, Shin had begun to make a plan regarding his trip to the northern forest tomorrow.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 The next day.

Shin awoke at dawn and immediately started to mobilize.

He checked his equipment, had breakfast in the Bear Point Pavilion and pushed his way through the crowded area. On the way, he stopped by at a secondhand shop and purchased a simple map that showed the area around the kingdom. Yesterday he thought he was going to return quickly, so he didn’t buy one. Even though it was a map depicting the kingdom and the surrounding area, it was only a rough sketch. Because he didn’t want to explore the kingdom yet, he decided to purchase it only if the map had a record of the northern forest.

After leaving the secondhand shop, Shin walked towards the gate. He saw a crowd there. “Is something going on over there?” Shin thought as he approached.

There was a barely identifiable vehicle which looked like a carriage. A coachman entered from the gate and several adventurers followed behind the carriage. Though the coachman seemed to be unhurt, the adventurers seemed to suffer from serious injuries. They helped each other as one of the less heavily injured adventurers lent his shoulder to one missing an arm. Anyone would agree that they had barely escaped with their lives based on their appearance.

“What happened?”

This kind of crowd loved to watch the strange group, but no one tried to be concerned. He only stared at the guards listening to the story from a distance.

(Their levels are 131, 129, 118, and 134.)

The knight leader was level 188. Assuming the ability of the knight leader was rank A, they would probably be rank C or D adventurers.

There were scratches on both the adventurers’ armor and on the carriage, one could guess it was done with sharp tools. But it would be too hasty to conclude they were attacked by thieves or robbers, because there was a huge cut on the roof of the carriage.

After a while, the curious spectators started to scatter, and the adventurers were left to be treated.

As Shin approached the gate, he talked to Beid.

“Hey Beid, what happened to that group just now?”

“Hmm? Oh Shin. They were attacked by a monster and escaped.”

It wasn’t an attack by thieves or robbers after all.

“I see. Did you ask what they were attacked by?”

“I was told not to speak carelessly. Well, I think it will be alright if it’s you. But anyway, it will be known soon.”

“Is he an important person?”

What kind of monster it was that caused the guard to be alerted, he would have to wait for Beid’s words to make sure.

“…It’s a Skull Face. You’ve heard the rumors too, right?”

“Ah, I certainly have…if I’m not mistaken, it appeared at the northern forest.”

“Yes, it has. Because there were hardly any eyewitness reports, it was thought to be a Pawn class, but, apparently, it was a Jack class. “

“Jack class…How many people were in that party?”

“Two parties with full members, 12 people in total. As you can see, only four survived.”

“I see…”

The level of a Jack • Skull Face was around 150 ~ 250. The average level of the adventurers’ party earlier was probably around 120. If 12 people couldn’t defeat it, despite the adventurers’ equipment, it was reasonable to think that the Jack • Skull Face was beyond level 200.

“All high-ranking adventurers are out now. Depending on the case, the guild master or the knight leader will come out.”

“If you think about the level, it’s an adequate move. Hmm? Will the princess go out as well? She is pretty strong.”

He recalled that the second princess exceeded level 200 and asked Beid.

“I hope not…No matter how strong she is, this is royal family you’re talking about.”

“No, when I heard about the princess, I thought of someone who is crazy about fighting. Even the Horn Dragon will be defeated by her.”

“Ah…that…”

In contrast to yesterday, it was now Beid’s turn to do a facepalm and drop his shoulders. Apparently, it was a topic that should not be touched.

“For now, just avoid approaching the northern forest, right?”

“I expect you to understand but be careful.”

He hurriedly left toward the eastern forest. A worker of the kingdom also had hard times.

He crossed the range of his search in the eastern forest yesterday, and proceeded to the depth of the forest at once. Even though he knew monsters were wandering around from 【Search】, he didn’t worry about it as the monsters could be easily defeated by him.

He strolled into the depths of the forest looking for Hillock Herb. According to the information from the encyclopedia, it should be easier to find in the depths of the forest. And he already discovered several pieces of them growing. The current number in possession was 13 pieces. Still, he hadn’t reached half the goal yet.

After strolling for about two hours and still couldn’t find more than 13 pieces, he decided to go to the northern forest. It could be said that the eastern forest and the northern forest were connected with one main road. So he entered the northern forest and went straight to the depth via the route to the west.

He saw a road after walking for a while. Two carriages could pass by another, as that was the width of the road.

The adventurers were probably attacked by the Skull Face around here, Shin guessed. The roof from the cutout was lying on the side of the road. And puddles of blood and pieces of armor were seen everywhere. No corpses were found as the wild animals and monsters already disposed of them.

“In this world, is a Skull Face a powerful enemy?…”

He muttered while looking at the remains of the carriage. It would no longer be a habitable place for humans if a Jack class Skull Face was that strong, Shin thought.

“It’s no use to think about it now.”

He discarded the thought he had in his mind and entered the northern forest.

As for the northern forest, the trees grow denser together here than in the eastern forest. The sunlight was decreased by more than half, so it was fairly dark despite it being daytime. Just going straight required Shin to be cautious. As Shin walked deeper, he sighed seeing how he would have a hard time looking for the Hillock Herb. Unlike the eastern forest, a lot of monsters lived in the northern forest.

The map had a function that displayed a red or yellow marker. When he combined the search operation skill with the map, Shin could know how many monsters were hiding in a certain radius around him.

He didn’t want to kill unnecessarily, but he would counter-attack if monsters attacked him. He wondered how long he would last while fighting with 【Limit】.

Unlike the situation when he fought against Barlux, he, without taking any consideration, dealt a single blow to a monster and sent it flying. Although he wasn’t surprised because it also happened when he went to ‘Tsuki no Hokora’, he didn’t know the extent that his maximum offensive power had risen to. He only understood his stats from before he got transported here, but not since his stats had doubled.

He had no choice but to use a support skill, 【Limit】 at maximum level Ⅹ.

【Limit】 was a skill that was made so that a beginner and a high level player could play together. If the skill level was raised by one(from level 2 to level 3), the skill would limit the stats to 1/3 of their original value, instead of only halving it. As a result, the players could still play together despite the difference in level and stats.

Even though there was a method to check the changes of physical strength according to the stat rises, he couldn’t take action as it could destroy the surrounding area. Incidentally, the limitation was also executed as a danger-preventative measure for the accomplishment of the request.

Currently, the maximum stats value for Shin’s STR was 223, which was 1/10 of his original STR, because of 【Limit】. The others stats value were still intact. This was the STR stats value of a human without any reincarnation at level 255.

By the way, 【Limit • Ⅰ】 didn’t restrict the stats as it was 1/1 from original stats. The lowest level of this skill provides no change, while the highest level restricts a stat to 1/10 of it’s original value.

Why only STR? It’s because he was experimenting on how much damage a monster could deal to an ordinary human. It was also to avoid suspicion from other members if he joined a party.

…To prevent himself from carelessly changing the surrounding terrain by using an all out attack, was also one of the implications.

Since there were numerous monsters, he only fought them while searching for Hillock Herb because it was useless to hunt all of the monsters. While thinking that, he wished he had the skill to search for an item.

As he went further into the depth of the forest, he was able to find more Hillock Herbs.

Currently, the number in possession was 29 pieces. Only one more was needed to complete the request. Alright, just one more! Shin was getting fired up as he walked carefully in the forest. At that time, he detected a marker which made a strange move on the map that progressed to the edge of the map view.

The color was red. And that was the color that indicated a hostile existence.

But, the red marker didn’t move much from the place, instead it was moving in zig-zag line in a range of 10 mels.

“What is this?”

He was drawn to the current movement of the marker which had awakened his curiosity. He started to advance towards the direction of the marker with the help of the map, so that he could take a look at the situation.

The movement of the marker stopped for a few minutes while Shin moved closer. Then he waited and looked from the shadow of a tree.

Shin stood still as he was at a loss for words when he saw the figure.

Before his eyes, there was a figure of Jack • Skull Face. While its big body was only bones, it was twice as big as the Pawn class, its height was about 3 mels or more. It was fully equipped from gauntlet to armor and wore a helmet on its head. In addition, it had a round shield with diameter of 1 mel equipped in its left hand, and held a 2 mels long greatsword in its right.

The equipment it was wearing was all in one color, solid black, except for the greatsword. It couldn’t be compared to the Pawn class which was equipped with a rusted sword and worn-out gauntlets.

A dim purple flame could be seen in each of its bony eye sockets, and its whole body emitted a black smoke which could be called a negative aura.

It had the presence of an undead military commander who had returned from hell. It was a Skull Face of the Jack class.

The dwellers of this world would be frozen in fear if they looked at this existence.

However, that was not the reason why Shin stood still and was at loss for words. To begin with, a Jack • Skull Face was just small fry for Shin. Then why did he look at the enemy without starting to attack?

It was because,

“Why is the Skull Face breakdancing?”

Shin’s words spoke for themselves.

Undead monsters held grudges towards all living things, they were existences that would drag any living things to the dead side. Its appearance made any person who saw it feel fear, its body didn’t feel fatigue so as to lavish death upon its surroundings. There existed a group of undead monsters in THE NEW GATE, and the Skull Face was said to be its representative.

It was never an existence that was meant to breakdance in the depth of the forest.

“It’s surreal…too surreal. Do you like to dance that much? You?”

Around the Skull Face, there were no trees, and if seen from above a big hole opened in the forest. Which was not surprising, as the Skull Face wore armor and the breakdance was done while equipped with both sword and shield. Hence, the grass was mown down by the shield, the big trees were cut down by the greatsword, and the ground was scooped out by the ruggedness of the armor.

In the first place, there was the question of whether it was possible to breakdance while wearing armor, but that question was dismissed as the Skull Face had done it.

Shin revealed a trace of pity on his face.

Somehow he even felt indescribably guilty for having looked at something that he shouldn’t have.

However, such thoughts of Shin’s dissipated instantly after the Skull Face revealed its true color.

The sound of liquid splashing reached Shin’s ears. As he shifted his attention to a big tree there, the trunk of the large tree was stained with red 《・・・》 liquid.

Shin immediately observed the appearance of the Skull Face. The greatsword that resounded while cutting through the air, the armor that covered its skeleton body, the shield that mowed down the grass, all of them were stained in the same colored liquid as the tree-trunks.

As he shifted his line of sight a bit, there were corpses of monsters that were sliced in half lying around. The Skull Face was his opponent after all, no more discussion needed.

The Skull Face that appeared in the northern forest. Attacked adventurers. Dry blood that stuck to the greatsword and blood that was still dripping. There was no need for a conviction. Even so, Shin was not so optimistic as to think that the Skull Face wasn’t attacking the adventurers, so letting it roam free wasn’t possible.

He regained control of his thought process. His blurred face tightened, and the atmosphere changed from slacked to sharp.

“I don’t want to be fooled in this situation.”

He muttered while not neglecting the task of gathering information on the opponent. It was dangerous to think that the world remained unchanged since the game ended.

In fact, 30 cemels wide big trees were slashed – that didn’t seem like a joke. There was no point in lowering his guard either.

“Should I start?”

Shin unsheathed his katana and waited for the right timing. And the moment the Skull Face’s back was facing Shin, he took his stance and decreased the distance between them in a split second.

He drew his katana as the distance between them shrank, and targeted a brandish skill at the Skull Face’s defenseless back.

Moderate damage could be dealt by surprise attacks from behind, though Skull Faces generally had a tolerance for slashing attacks.

However, his expectations failed him.

The moment Shin’s katana swung toward the back of the Skull Face, as if it sensed the danger, the Skull Face flung its left arm against the ground and accelerated its rotation with the force of the recoil. Then the Skull Face began to counter-attack with its greatsword.

“What is this!?”

Shin ran past the Skull Face without losing momentum, and escaped from the range of the counter-attack.

It was no wonder that Shin was astounded. A level 250 Skull Face wouldn’t do a strange movement like the one just now. The flowing defense and the counter-attack with its sword. Moreover, it didn’t break its pose even after that. It was a movement that was not possible during in the game.

But the Skull Face’s appearance was that of a skeleton to begin with, so it’s movements weren’t restricted by joint or muscle.

Shin couldn’t hide his surprise at the unimaginable fighting power of the Skull Face.

“What is that movement? Those are not the movements of a Skull Face.”

The breakdance in itself was weird, but now he couldn’t make any sense of it.

“Even its level is strange. Besides, that sword is not supposed to be with a Skull Face.”

He looked at the Skull Face while fixing his posture. According to 【Analyze • Ⅹ】 , the Skull Face’s level was 359. Let alone Jack class, it jumped over Queen straight to King class.

In addition, the sword that it held was the problem. Humans wouldn’t be able to handle the greatsword if they weren’t using both of their hands. Besides the dazzling ornaments on the hilt, the sword blade emitted a silver shine and a blue line traveled along its center. It was likely a demon steel that was harder than iron and was combined with mithril which had good compatibility with magic. A portion of the blade’s edge shined with a strong, white light.

The white light revealed the sword’s light attribute. It had the atmosphere that could be compared to a holy sword.It was not a weapon that an undead monster would hold no matter what, as it had the opposite attribute.

“I think it’s reasonable to think of it as a unique monster.”

He raised his alertness level by one stage. Unique monsters often had a different attribute and ability from the original. But even Shin hadn’t heard of a monster that had the attribute of its own weak point.

The Skull Face now stood with both feet on the ground as it recognized Shin as a powerful enemy. Pulling its weapon and shield backwards slightly, it took on a stance. That was obviously the movement of a person who had mastered fencing, but there was a clear distinction as the Skull Face could only do repeated attacks.

“That dance didn’t seem to be a joke either!!”

While muttering he again charged toward the Skull Face, this time directly to its left side which held the shield.

Again, he closed the distance instantly with the unsheathed katana and aimed at the opponent’s left ankle.

“Seissh!!”

[[image:Skullfacesd.jpg|thumb|Again, he closed the distance instantly with the unsheathed katana and aimed at the opponent’s left ankle.]]

A flash was seen on the Skull Face’s left ankle.

Even though the Skull Face also reacted to attack by defending with its shield, it couldn’t prevent the calamity because of the differences in their physique and the size of its shield.

“Kin!” The sound of metal rubbing against metal resounded in the air, metal resounded, and Shin distanced himself from the greatsword. The Skull Face would begin attacking Shin with its greatsword while ignoring its own defense when it couldn’t dodge.

The greatsword was swung down in the place toward Shin, and he dodged as he judged that it was too dangerous to take the blow head on. The ground was split about 3 mels by the slashing of the greatsword.

“I’ve never heard of that weapon before, is it rare or unique grade?”

The attack range of its weapon was increased with magic. From Shin’s view, this was an ordinary attack, but the weapon of the monster originally didn’t have this ability. Not to forget that the Skull Face could also make acrobatic moves.

As for the Skull Face, it didn’t care about the dubious Shin and started its revenge with its greatsword. Its left ankle was cut in half from the blow before, however it wouldn’t be a serious problem for it since it didn’t feel any pain. As if there was no ankle from the start, it just thrust its left foot on the ground and let out a strong side sweep.

Shin ran toward the Skull Face and invoked a sword skill, 【Dazzling Blade Sink】. The katana hit the blade of the greatsword near the hilt, as he eluded the side sweep.

Then he activated a martial art skill for fencing, 【Crushed Blade】 in a flash.

The skill was usually used to deal damage to opponents that have slashing attack tolerance. And the attack crushed the Skull Face’s armor.

――Again, it was not as he expected.

“Seriously!?”

It was understandable that Shin was astonished.

The katana attack from Shin was successfully dodged by the Skull Face. Just as the blade was about to hit, the Skull Face did a back step and the katana missed its body. Though the attack broke the armor, it didn’t do much damage to its body.

It moved as if it knew that the katana attack was a powerful slash. Even if Shin didn’t take it seriously, it was already abnormal for it to follow his movement up until then.

“GeeEEEEaaaaAAAAAAAA――――――!!!!”

The scream that resounded from the Skull Face could be misinterpreted as the crooked groan of a beast. It was the voice of resentment that would make any person feel discomfort when they heard it.

Even Shin frowned after being screamed at from close range. There was no special effect, but the loud sound would instigate fear on all living things.

He immediately resuscitated himself and jumped backwards. The HP gauge of the Skull Face only decreased a little, since the attack only hit the armor so the damage was only minimal. If the attack didn’t reach the core of the Skull Face, heavy damage could not be dealt.

“Man, why do I meet a strange monster this early?”

He muttered a half astonished and half praising sentence following the Skull Face’s movement.

As he look at his own katana, he noticed several cracks on its blade.

A durability value was set to weapons and armor. When it dropped to zero, it would make the weapons and armor unusable.

Currently, Several Stroke’s durability was already below 30%. Since Skull Face’s weapon was strong, it probably damaged the katana’s blade when they clashed.

“I can only do one more attack at most. Then, I will try this!”

Shin and Skull Face. The lone man and his surroundings, cruelly destroyed by the Skull Face. He changed his posture into a different one from earlier.

He put his left foot in front and bent slightly forward. He pulled his katana while lowering it to his waist.

And he muttered.

“【Limit • Off】”

The suppressed ability or stat was released from the skill’s effect.

Even ordinary people could sense the transformation in Shin.

The katana he held in his hand was channeled with energy and “Gishiri” sounds were made.

“GuUUuuuUUuUuUUU――――――――”

It seemed that Shin’s transformation caused the Skull Face to be vigilant. As it groans in deep tone, it hold the shield in front, and took a posture that emphasized defense.

Shin admired the Skull Face’s movement while he was charging energy into his katana.

“Shhh!!”

While exhaling short breaths and concentrating energy in his katana, he brandished it.

He left an afterimage as he rushed into the Skull Face and struck a single blow.

Two sounds were heard, “Ki” and “Gin”. Then Shin’s figure vanished from in front of the Skull Face.

Two changes took place.

One, Shin’s katana was shattered, left only its hilt.

Two, the greatsword of the Skull Face was blasted away and disappeared into the sky.

Among the two sounds echoing in the surroundings, the “Ki” sound was the blow of Shin hitting the shield. The clear “Kin” sound was made when he cut through the core of the Skull Face together with its armor. And the following “Gin” sound was produced as Shin’s katana and the Skull Face’s greatsword clashed together.

The greatsword was not broken as it durability value was very high, but Skull Face’s hand couldn’t withstand the impact, so the sword was thrown up into the sky.

The core was cut in half and Skull Face’s HP gauge was drained entirely, and left were mere bones. It hard to associated the scattered bones with the intense combat just a few minute ago.

“I knew this weapon wouldn’t last long.”

He sighed while staring at Several Stroke’s hilt. It was a powerful single blow, but it still wasn’t his maximum power. Though the big trees behind the Skull Face fell down just now as an aftereffect of the attack, he placed the hilt inside the ‘Item Box’ like it was only natural.

“The greatsword from a little while ago seems good.”

He looked up in the direction the sword flew, but all he saw was a clear, wide and blue sky and he didn’t know where the sword flew to.

Though he didn’t expect that the sword would be blown off too far, he could only pray that it didn’t hit a person.

“…Should I return?”

Anyway, he wasn’t in the mood to search for Hillock Herbs anymore after all that.

Because there were jewels among the bones, so he collected them before he left.

After Shin got out of the forest, he began to walk toward the gate and thought that he had better to report about the Skull Face case to the guild.

Without knowing that the greatsword caused a commotion in the kingdom,

Shin left the northern forest and had returned to the east gate.

He noticed that the gate area was noisy as he walked closer.

“Is there something going on?”

No curious spectators gathered like yesterday, it was just the guards who seemed to be asking for information from the passerby. Seemingly, only the people entering the country got questioned.

Although he could enter without waiting in line as adventurers have guild cards, he wanted to listen to the story one by one. So he lined up and waited for his turn to come.

When the distance to the gate gradually decreased, he could listen to the guards’ and adventurers’ voices.

“Northern forest…eastern forest…shadow, flew…?”

Only a fragment of the conversation could be heard, but he couldn’t expel the bad feelings from his mind.

As the distance diminished, he summarized the story he heard clearly together. The residents of the town witnessed a mysterious object flying in the sky. Furthermore, it seems to have fallen into the royal castle. The eyewitnesses saw it was flying, but couldn’t determine if it came from the northern or eastern forest and no one knew what circumstances behind it as the investigation proceed.

(Mysterious flying object…it is the sword after all…)

He remembered the greatsword that was blown away. But he didn’t know which way or in which direction it flew as he concentrated on the battle.

His feet were getting heavier the closer he got to the gate.

“Yo Shin.”

“Yo Beid, has something happened?”

He replied to Beid as if nothing had happened. He wanted to believe that the mysterious flying object was not the greatsword.

People called this an escapism.

“To tell you the truth, a sword has flown toward the royal castle. From the investigation we had, it was either from the north or from the east. Didn’t you go to eastern forest? Did you saw anything?”

“…No, I didn’t see it. Were there any injuries?”

From the story, no people were hurt, as the sword fell and stuck to the castle wall. Good grief, it was absurd that a sword flew over the rampart.”

“It’s a good thing that no one got hurt.”

He breathed a sigh of relief at the words of no human injury.

“Let’s confirm the direction firmly.”

He made a promise to himself at that moment.

“Huh? What?”

“No, It’s nothing. May I go now?”

“Ah, Please tell the soldier who does the investigation if you remember anything.”

“Roger that.”

He left the gate with a quick pace while maintaining his poker face. He walked until the gate was out of sight and loosened his pace as he let out a sigh.

“Haa, why did it land at the royal castle out of all places?”

Already on the third day in this different world, he had a hunch that the country was already determined to be his opponent. It was very likely that he was gonna be charged with treason for attacking the royal family. Frankly speaking, it was very bad.

Even though there was no evidence that lead to Shin, when he reported about the Skull Face to the guild, the doubt would be shifted toward him somehow.

“Why did it happen this way…”

It wouldn’t always go the way he wanted in life.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 Shin set aside his worry and headed toward the guild. Though the rumor about the Skull Face was true, they hadn’t heard about it. In addition, the Jack • Skull Face basically has several Pawn class subordinates, so he couldn’t assert that it became safe just because the Jack class was subjugated.

Shin had been searching for enemies in the surrounding area when he left the battle location, but there were no signs of other monsters in the surroundings. Did it act alone? Or were its subordinates swallowed up by the dance and sliced into pieces? It was very likely the latter if one looked at the Skull Face’s actions. It was not a movement that could distinguish between friend or foe.

Even a normal adventurer of this world could handle a Pawn class monster, so there was no problem if it was revealed to be Pawn class. But the story was different in case of a unique monster like the Jack class. From Beid’s way of speaking, he seemed not to worried, because a Jack class monster didn’t came forth very often.

Nevertheless, would it end with only a mere unique monster appearance this time? It was the anxiety of Shin, who was ignorant about this world.

That said, the current Shin didn’t understand it no matter how much he thought about it. He thought about whether he should ask Els or Celica again about that situation and opened the guild door.

The guild was the most crowded place Shin had ever seen. The place where adventurers assemble, was crowded with adventurers who were armed with swords and spears, and wore armor and robes.

Besides the anxious feelings, the place generally had a feeling of excitement to it. There were some unusual people who didn’t seem to be agitated.

“This is somewhat imposing.”

Although there were many people, the receptionist desk was not crowded, so he decided to report it at once. Conveniently, Celica was at the receptionist desk. Shin was saved from trouble because the contents of his report were more or less better told to a person he knew.

“Hello. I have something I need to report.”

“Thank you for your hard work, Shin-sama. The report?”

“It was about the Skull Face. However to be sure, how much is known by now?”

“Tsu!…the Skull Face is known to be Jack class, it’s been reported from surviving adventurers that the Skull Face holds a weapon that is stronger than normal. Every individual confirmed it in general. The Pawn class subordinates are not confirmed yet. Currently, subjugation requests have been issued. It became top priority, because the place in question is near the kingdom. Various A and S ranks are all out because of the situation, and are getting ready to set up a front party with B ranks and below.”

It seemed that its battle style was not known. But it was the information regarding the weapon that Shin was anxious about.

“The weapon is stronger than normal?”

“Rather than a common greatsword, the Skull Face’s sword is around twice as big.”

“…It’s a greatsword, huh? Any other information about the sword?”

“No, that’s all we know for now.”

The information about the sword had already circulated after all. As expected, the adventurers who survived the battle did not forget the weapon of the enemy. However, the greatsword which that Jack class was using should have been charged with light magic of the light attribute. Why was there no information about that?

“…In summary, it is a Jack class with a larger than usual weapon, right?”

“Yes. The level is presumed to be at least 200 or more.”

“…………”

Hmm, Shin pondered. That was not the answer Shin wanted to hear, he wanted to know whether or not the greatsword was charged with light magic. But from Celica’s story it seemed like the weapon of the Jack class was just a mere greatsword. Because he expected that a magic bestowed weapon would be rare, he was in danger of being suspected to have a connection with the sword that flew into the royal castle if he unskillfully mentioned it.

The idea of a totally different Skull Face appeared in Shin’s mind, but the idea of two Skull Faces would only make uproar if he mentioned it. Besides, was there such a thing like two Jack • Skull Face with similar greatswords appearing at the same time in the same place?

“Uhm, Shin-sama?”

“Ah, sorry. Just slightly lost in thought.”

Celica was slightly worried, because Shin had pondered while his facial expression showed a serious look. According to Celica’s judgment, Shin was one of the few people with fighting power equal to the S class. If such a person was making a serious face when hearing the information about the Skull Face, it couldn’t be helped that she became uneasy.

“What are you thinking about?…”

“Well, I was thinking about what kind of items Skull Faces drop.”

Shin thought about the greatsword, about whether or not it was charged with light magic and what kind of questions he should ask to find out, but could not say it. Instead, he decided to ask about the item drop.

“Item drops? Uhm, If I remember correctly, it drops a jewel, worn-out armor and a sword, which can be sold at moderate prices, I think…”

“Oh, is that so. Iyaa, I completely forgot about that, hahaha”

Shin behaved cheerily so that the lie he told wouldn’t be exposed, but by all odds, he behaved suspiciously.

However, Celica didn’t notice Shin’s strange behavior because a Skull Face of the Jack class was a formidable opponent, so she wasn’t worried about the item drop. In the guild, a senile looking man laughed unnaturally as he replied to a woman, which was an out of place scene.

“That reminds me, what kind of case would Shin-sama like to report?”

“Oops, sorry. It’s an important matter. I want to report that the Jack • Skull Face in the northern forest was killed by me. Ah, this is the jewel which I recovered at the time.”

“Really? Skull Face…Skull…that…?…uhm, was it Pawn class?…”

“No, it was a Jack class. It had a greatsword too.”

“…………”

Celica’s movement became awkward as she tried to take out the document like usual after hearing Shin’s words. Somehow she managed to return a question about whether she misheard Shin’s words, but said question was denied plainly. It was so surprising that no words came out.

“…………”

“…………”

“…Errr, Celica-san?”

“Eh? Ah!? So-sorry! I was surprised for a moment.”

Celica pulled herself together and apologized in a hurry. That caused her tone to return to normal.

“Is it that surprising?”

“No, not at all!? At least an A rank with considerable ability is necessary to subjugate the Skull Face of Jack class alone. Please do not say it like it was a trivial thing!”

“Uhm, sorry?”

“I knew Shin-sama was a strong person…but subjugating it alone on the day the request is issued is unheard of.”

“That encounter was a coincidence though…”

“Still, normally a person would return first and report it to the guild, then attack after they firmly prepared. I think only few people would think of attacking it on the spot.”

“I see. No, but certainly my weapon is like this.”

The sword, which was mostly just a hilt, was shown. During the fight, when he heard the crack, the katana’s blade was already in a sorry state. In other words, its state was currently worse than a bamboo sword.

“Ha!? Has it shattered!”

“I only managed to keep this little part.”

“What kind of absurdity did you do!?”

“Wha!? Celica-san, too close! Too close!”

He held Celica’s shoulders to stop her from approaching any closer and climbing over the counter while her expression changed. Because of the sudden action, their faces approached each other until they were around 20 cemels apart.

Shin was experiencing a trivial, internal conflict about whether he should praise or scorn himself for reacting to Celica’s unexpected action.

“Eh…Ahh, I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to do such a strange thing. I was worried that you got injured or rather I got too excited…Wait, what am I saying!?”

The shaken Celica was amusing to Shin as he watched her. Shin almost retorted as he looked at her. She appeared to be so surprised that the Jack class was defeated by him alone.

“An intellectual, cool woman who is both shy and nervous…? Somehow this is…someone is coming!”

It’s better for me to come, but don’t give off some half-baked calmness. You are kinda conspicuous.”

“Huh? Oh, Els”

Is this gap moe?…Shin nodded alone as Els called from behind him. Apparently, Shin and Celica’s conversation was attracting attention from the surrounding people without them knowing it.

“Excuse me for intruding. Besides, just now the embarrassed Celica-san was so cute.”

“Cu-cute!?”

“Though I agree there, I would like you not to bully your colleague too much.”

“Agree!?”

“I’m sorry. But it was not intentional, the explanation still remains.”

“I know. Because I also saw her.”

“If that’s the case, what about my opinion…”

Els and Shin who hastened their conversation, ignoring all of Celica’s words. If Els was there from the beginning, Shin felt that the situation would not become like this.

“Don’t say that. I have even prepared in various ways and was gathering information.”

Els’ attire was not the miss receptionist look like what Celica was wearing. Instead she was wearing hunter-equipment that was made for easiness of movement. She wore a slightly long leather jacket which seemed to be made from a durable material, together with a pouch to store small items and compression shorts that went to her knees, which were covered by long boots. The bow on her back was the fundamental equipment of a hunter, while a dagger was tied to her left thigh. Her long hair was tied up and the atmosphere around her was different from before. It was ‘the hunter who was aiming at something’ presence.

“About the Skull Face?”

“Yeah, it’s the monster that appeared in the northern forest. Quite some time has passed since the rumor started circulating. However, this time it holds a stronger weapon than a Jack class usually does, and for the first time harm has been inflicted to someone.”

“Oh, about that, I also saw it, too. Certainly, it swung a greatsword around.”

“I thought Celica was surprised about the appearance of the Skull Face and the sword together, but it seems to be different matter.”

“More precisely, it was really combined, even though I killed it.”

Shin uttered the killing part in a low voice. When he talked to Celica, he had to say it out loud, because the surrounding noise was loud.

“…If that’s true, I understand why Celica was flustered.”

“That’s right. It’s not funny.”

Els who joked around, stopped Shin’s words. The Celica who just returned her composure, barely responded with agreeing words.

“Even though it’s hard to doubt you, do you have any proof? It’s not possible to trust you completely, even if you subjugated it.”

“I only collected a jewel though. To begin with…what is the proof part of a subjugated monster? I don’t know what is it for Skull Face.”

From the remnants of the game, Shin hadn’t collected drop items that were common. He recalled the proof part for the guild and had completely forgotten that he could not prove that he subdued it if there was no proof.

“Did you collect the armor and the sword? Jack class certainly have good equipment, there are people who have sold it to increase their funds, and those who use it themselves.”

Shin racked his brains about how to overturn the not trusting response of Els. Anyway, beside the greatsword that vanished in the sky, he didn’t think that the helmet and the armor could be collected now.

“I wonder how much value such things have.”

“Those don’t seem like the words of an adventurer…”

“Exactly…”

From Shin’s expression, Celica and Els understood that the words he muttered carelessly were the truth. Shin was strange. Though Els was said to be modest, she needed a considerable amount of funds to buy the same or equal quality equipment as the Jack • Skull Faces in this world. At least A and B ranks would not easily get their hands on it. It was natural that Shin, who treats it like that, was seen as strange. Because he implied that he didn’t need it, and it was hardly said by other adventurers.

“Well, if the jewel get examined by an appraiser, it will be alright I guess. Because the jewel it dropped had the magical power of the monster charged, it should be revealed that it belonged to a Skull Face.”

“Is that so?”

Els decided not to think too deeply, and let the jewel speak for itself if it turns out to be evidence. Though it takes time and was more difficult than the finding of other proof part, if he could prove that he had really subdued it, there was no problem even if some time was lost to some extent.

“But it will take a while, so the jewel will be kept here as it’s being appraised. Though it’s possible to sell it right away.”

“Ah, this time I will pass. Because I don’t mean to sell it for the moment.”

“Alright then. I will contact the person in charge at the inn as soon as they finish appraising it. The inn is Bear Point Pavilion, correct?”

“Yes. Well then, thank you.”

Celica took over from Els’ speech and skillfully conveyed that it will take time. She was in complete working mode.

“That reminds me, why did the Skull Face appear so easily in the northern forest? I’ve heard that rumor before.”

“Originally the undead monster group was born because grudges and regrets of the living meets with magic power. Moreover, though ferocious monsters inhabit the northern forest, there was no end to the people who set foot in there, because there are precious medicinal herbs and materials to be collected. Subsequently, numerous people had lost their life because they were attacked by monsters. Therefore, the condition for the undead to be born was set. However, the appearance of a strong magical individual like the Jack class had not naturally occurred in that environment. Because normally in the northern forest, the Skull Face is a Pawn class.”

Els added that she thought Shin might have mistaken it for a Pawn class. Moreover, it seemed that no one has actually fought it for it to be confirmed its authenticity. Nobody tried to verify it expressly because it was no more than a rumor.

“By the way, what is the range level of a Jack class?”

“It is confirmed that the lowest is 150, and the highest is 250. It is classified as Queen and King class for levels beyond that.”

Apparently, the upper level limit for every monster did not seem to have changed somehow.

“Then. Will it be an exception this time?”

“What do you mean by that?” “What?”

Two people reacted to the words from Shin. As expected from staff of the guild and an adventurer, it was a split second reaction.

“The Jack class which I fought had a level exceeding 250.”

“That, is that true?”

“No doubt about it because I saw with 【Analyze】. I think it is probably a unique, or special monster. There were no Pawn class followers in the surrounding area unlike the normal one, too.”

“Just to confirm, what was its exact level?”

“It was 359. I think it was already a King class if my memory is correct.”

“359!?”

Jack class certainly appeared in 【Analyze】, and in the first place, Queen and King class Skull Faces’ physique and equipment don’t match. When the level was excluded, the weapon and the movements were nonstandard, but there was nothing strange besides that.

“…………”

Again, two people became speechless from Shin’s words. There were various questions that popped up inside their heads, such as ‘Should I believe it?’, ‘Is he mistaken?’ and so on.

“…Is there something wrong?”

“Rather than unpleasant…no…I seem to be confused. Celica, I guess there is probably a method that can roughly examine the opponents strength in the jewel, right? Then how about we try that?”

“――tsu! Then I will hasten the appraisal of the jewel. Els, I’m sorry, but please take care of the rest.”

As she replied to Els’ words, Celica bowed to Shin and took the jewel in his hand and headed for the other side of the reception desk.

As for the easygoing Shin, he felt admiration about the convenient method.

“Good grief, what a guy you are.”

“What?”

“If it’s true what you said about the level, your strength can be compared to at least an entire A rank party. But if it’s a lie, then you’re a great braggart.”

“Well, If it’s wrong, that means I saw it wrongly. Besides, isn’t my rank G? No one will believe if I said that I subdued a Jack class.”

“Though that is certainly so, if they don’t know the circumstances.”

“Then, that’s nice, I guess. Though I don’t mean to attract attention with the words I said until now.”

Although it felt like his words were contradicting his actions, Shin chose to not stand out because he didn’t want to be troubled by the attention towards him. Shin’s only purpose was to return to his former world, and joining the guild was an effective way to gather information.

“I reported it because if one would wander aimlessly to search for it and that would be bad, I guess. If possible, I don’t want it to be known that it was my doing.”

“Although I want to comply with your will, I think there will be people who investigate it even if I hide it. Because normally it’s natural to introduce oneself as the one who did it, right?”

“You have a point…”

Though Shin understood that, he felt it was bothersome as she said it clearly. There would be a commotion only for this. The adventurer that defeated it would be considerably famous, but it was too unnatural if the person chose not to divulge his name. It would be inevitable that people wanted to know the reason that he didn’t appear.

When it was revealed, it surely would attract attention if he was a G rank adventurer. It was troublesome no matter how it turned out.

“Sorry to trouble you, but it seems that I’m not able to help you with much.”

“I don’t intend to put a burden on you there, so it’s fine. For the time being, I have to find a meal to eat.”

The problem wasn’t solved from worrying meaninglessly. He decided to have lunch as a change of mood. Inside the guild was so crowded that hardly any seats left, so he decided to go outside the guild, to eat lunch.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 Since Els stayed in the guild, Shin walked on the main street alone. He headed for the restaurant which Els and Celica, who returned from the interior of the reception desk, recommended together.

After walking for a little while, the restaurant that hung out the signboard where a sword and fork were drawn, came into view. It was said that every chef were a former adventurer, and seemed to be offering exotic dishes such as dishes with rare ingredients and so on.

“Is it a fighting chef?…like Cook?”

He remembered the woman who did the cooking in the ‘Rokuten’, and a wry smile leaked out. She was particular about securing materials by herself, therefore she was an oddball whose stats were said to be on the verge of the maximum value.

To begin with, there was no oddball in the ‘Rokuten’, but the figure that handled a handiwork kitchen knife in both hands while preparing to cook a dragon left a strong impression in Shin.

“Just by remembering it makes me hungry…”

Because his stomach started to growl, he quickly opened the door. The restaurant was crowded, probably because he arrived during lunch break.

“Welcome. I’m sorry. You will have to wait a bit!!”

The voice which likened a bell resounded in the noisy restaurant. There was only one waitress who went back and forth between table and counter. Although he was hungry, he felt sorry for rushing it in this situation.

Shin stood quietly beside a door and looked at the restaurant interior. Was it because it was near the guild?, or because the restaurant manager was a former adventurer? Most of the people inside the restaurant were equipped with armor and weapons. They were probably the people who gathered because of the Skull Face, Shin guessed.

“Thank you for waiting. Let me guide you here…Isn’t it Shin-san?”

“Yep? well, errr…Celica-san? No, is it Cilica-san?”

Although Shin was surprised at the sudden words, he could see properly that the hair was in a ponytail not like Celica’s, so he noticed it was Cilica. He thought about whether Celica had changed her clothes again for an instant.

“That’s correct. Is it because of a recommendation from Onee-chan that you have chosen this restaurant?”

“Yes. I’m grateful in various way.”

“…Isn’t it too early for an ordinary person to be recommended here.”

“? Did you say something?”

Cilica muttered something with serious face for a moment. Though Shin felt inclined and asked, she just smiled and said nothing. Since pursuing it would be strange, the conversation stopped there. He didn’t want to have a long conversation beside a door, too.

He was guided there when a group seemed to leave by chance, so one table was vacant. Shin felt awkward to use the table alone, but unfortunately the table for one person was filled. He gave the consent to Cilica that he wouldn’t mind sharing the table when other visitors came, and then he ordered a dish.

“Uhm, Shin-san. Because a new visitor came, share the table, please. Thank you.”

“Ah, yes. I understand.”

Cilica turned up after Shin ordered a dish almost without pausing and requested for him to share a table. The one who came over was a man who was also an adventurer with a spear which emitted a poisonous-looking radiance.

“…Is that ‘Venom’?”

Shin muttered as the spear that could be said to be ominous was seen.

Devil spear ’Venom’―― 《Legend》 grade that had the ability that could be compared with 《Mythology》 grade, was a weapon that had a clear distinction from 《Rare》 and 《Unique》 grade.

“Sorry to bother you.”

“No, you saved me from trouble. I was hesitant to occupy the table alone”

While greeting lightly, Shin looked at the man. His height almost the same as Shin. His eyes were red and gathered his raven-black hair roughly behind his head. His skin was white like the skin of a sick person. Though he thought that the man had a good-looking face, Shin had the impression which stood contrary to his appearance. The man was like a wild beast. He had a sharp glint in his eyes, indicating that the man has made it through violent situations. In addition, he had the same composure to kill as a beast.

[[image:Wilhelmfirstshow.jpg|thumb|“Uhm, Shin-san. Because a new visitor came, share the table, please. Thank you.”]]

His level was 188. This man could probably defeat the normal Jack • Skull Face alone.

“I am Shin. This must be fate or something, too. Although it’s only for a short time, nice to meet you.”

“…There is still a guy who has not yet heard about me, huh? I’m Wilhelm Avis. Are you a new face among adventurers?”

“That’s right, it’s my third day today.”

Shin observed the man as he greeted him, and Wilhelm told him his name. Shin answered the question while looking puzzled to Wilhelm’s words.

Suddenly Shin noticed that all the visitors in the restaurant paid attention to him, although the surroundings were still noisy. But Shin was still a rookie adventurer. So it would be Wilhelm who attracted attention. Even though Shin did not understand the reason why Wilhelm attracted attention, he decided to leave it alone because there was no harm for the moment.

“Third day? That equipment is quite good for you. Are you employed as a mercenary?”

“No, well, you might say that it’s because I have traveled from a faraway country, I think. So I lack a little knowledge about the common sense here.”

“No wonder you don’t feel nervous when hearing my name. A normal adventurer and me wouldn’t share a table, I guess.”

“I don’t feel nervous? …What on earth did you do?”

Shin calmly asked about it, despite of the intimidation situation which seemed to caused some person break out in a cold sweat. The surrounding adventurers were thinking: “Why is this guy speaking with him overly familiar”, their hearts were all screaming together.

As for Shin, he didn’t feel the intimidation, not even in the slightest. It was just a somewhat over-familiar question because he thought the man he saw had more or less never committed any crimes.

“No big deal particularly. I only killed undead monsters for quite some time. So people don’t always approach the place I fought. It was said that I continue to fight to the point where I can absorb the undead’s power.”

“What is that?…I don’t understand the meaning.”

Shin didn’t believe it was only that simple. He wondered whether or not it was a joke.

“I am the same, too. Well, a guy with a low ranked who believed this is a fool. The true reason is because I have this.”

As he said so, Wilhelm grabbed the spear which leaned against the wall – the devil spear ‘Venom’.

“This guy is ‘Venom’. It is a weapon of the 《Legend》 grade, and it has the ability to absorb the vitality of the opponent it wounded, and share it with the user. Though it is a convenient thing, 《Legend》 or higher grade weapon means it possesses a power that can blow anyone away. But even if I use it, I don’t understand the ability of this guy either.”

“You use it, and you don’t understand it either?”

“I noticed that I became the guy who was being detested. Additionally, the ability of my weapon is absorption <Drain>. Even allies were nervous at one time because of the absorption.”

Because naturally there was no weapon description column in the game, he did not seem to know exactly what kind of effect the weapon had. Though it would actually be an absurd case if Shin knew the effect, it was because he wasn’t from this world. At the same time, he was satisfied with the reason as to why the surrounding visitors were paying attention to them, then the 【Appraisal】 skill question emerged.

“Do you know it can get appraised?”

“Well, I have attempted to get it appraised you might say, but only the name and the grade was discovered. The current ability used can’t be confirmed.”

“What is skill level of the person who did the appraisal.”

“It was Ⅶ.”

Shin was convinced he knew why it was impossible from Wilhelm’s reply. The lowest skill level necessary for confirming the ability details of weapons of 《Legend》 grade was Ⅷ, Ⅸ in 《Mythology》 grade, and maximum level Ⅹ for the 《Ancient》 grade ones. When playing the game, merchants or blacksmiths could be requested immediately by players for appraising skills, but apparently in this world, it didn’t seem to be that easy.

The dish which he ordered was served as Shin was going to give up the topic. Wilhelm seemed to have already ordered his dish, as there was a dish that Shin didn’t remember ordering.

“For the time being, shall we eat?”

“Sure, let’s eat!”

After saying “Itadakimasu”, they immediately dig in. The dish Shin ordered was the grilled thigh with bone of the Aburidori monster. Shin’s nose was tickled as an indescribably fragrant aroma was shrouded as it made a sizzling sounds.

A fragrance of the spices mixed with meat juices impacted and filled his mouth the moment he bit in it. Crispy skin and the feel of the meat coming loose softly was irresistible for the hungry Shin.

“Delicious! This is delicious!!”

“…Settle down a little and eat.”

Wilhelm was a little amazed at Shin who was vigorously wolfing it down. Though he couldn’t say that himself, because Wilhelm was greedily ate the dish with a speed matching Shin’s.

For a while, they continued to eat in silence, and then each of them sipped a cup of black tea after the meal.

“I ate Aburidori for the first time after a long absence. Even it’s name made me think that oneself is warmed.” (T/N: Aburareru means warm; grill/scorch which is almost similar to the monster’s name, Aburidori)

“It was a little charred here though.”

It was a playful name, but still, the level range of the monster was about 100. It couldn’t fly although it was a bird type monster, and it was not alert and agile, but it could breathe out flame as it was the biggest characteristic according to its name. It was the monster which was strangely popular during the time of the game.

“That reminds me, was it okay to tell me the information on your weapon thoughtlessly? Isn’t it supposed to be concealed?”

“What I said earlier, it was widely known a long time ago. It won’t change anything even if I have only told a rookie now.”

“You have a point there.”

“I’m already done eating. See you then, newcomer”

“See you~”

Just like he said it to a friend, Shin saw Wilhelm off. The surroundings were noisy, but Shin didn’t mind it now.

Shortly after Wilhelm left, Shin left his seat, too.

The first meeting of a High Human Rokuten and a white figure welding a devil spear, was in fact a plain and simple one.

<noinclude>

==Translator's Notes and References==
<references />

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| Return to [[The New Gate|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[The New Gate:Volume 1 Chapter 4|Volume 1 Chapter 4]]
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</noinclude>

The New Gate:Volume 1 Chapter 2

2017-05-25T01:50:29Z

Xiani:

Extinction. That's what Tiera had said.

The High Human race was extinct.

“…Then, there aren't any more humans around?”

“No, humans are still around. You saw the knights just a little while ago.”

“Really!?”

Shin had misunderstood what she'd said about the Human extinction and had automatically responded.

“Only the High Humans went extinct, not all humans.”

“Is there a difference?”

“Yes, there is a difference. The High Human race consisted of only 6 people who ruled the Redmond continent. Even 10,000 humans couldn’t win against them. Their strength was in another dimension.”

“The continent was ruled by 6 people?”

Shin remembered such a place that'd been ruled by 6 people. He had a feeling he'd heard such an episode before.

“Can you explain in more detail?”

“Even though most people know this... all right then, I’ll tell you. Around 500 years ago, High Humans ruled the continent. Though there were only 6 of them, the other races couldn’t even touch them because of their overwhelming power.”

“…………”

“However, their reign suddenly ended.”

“Ended?”

“Yes, ended. It wasn't just the High Humans. Many other races such as High Elves, High Lords, High Beasts, and High Dwarfs also disappeared. Many influential people like Kings, Elders, Heroes, and Generals disappeared as well. It’s said that the disappearance was sudden. According to Master, numerous influential and strong men disappeared. The day of the disappearance was called the ‘Dusk of the Majesty’.”

“The Dusk of the Majesty…”

“It is said that all High Humans disappeared during then. And there were only 6 of them.”

A sudden disappearance. Shin had a theory about that.

A phenomenon which caused many people to disappear.

(It’s that day. The day I defeated ‘Origin’, and everyone logged out. There is no conclusive evidence, but ‘Dusk of the Majesty’ might be the result from that day.)

The Kings, Heroes, and Elders were probably guild masters. Tens of thousands of people were expected to be released from the game. Shin didn’t know the exact number, but there were at least 10,000 people stuck in the game. It probably looked like a sudden disappearance for the people in this world.

(To think that 6 High Humans had ruled the continent before that…)

Finally, Shin understood. Those 6 High Humans. Without a doubt…

(She's talking about…us…)

Back when THE NEW GATE was still a good VRMMO, back before it'd turned into a death game, there was one guild that was said to be the strongest in the game.

The guild was named ‘Rokuten’<ref>T/N: I used the romaji name, Rokuten『六天』 not ‘Devas’ in the manga, Rokuten means six heavens/six skies</ref> since it was formed with the 6 High Humans. The small guild had defeated major guilds one by one, until its name was known to all players in only one month. They had a reputation of ‘PK’ing players who tried to oppose them.

Shin had been a member of Rokuten since the beginning. Back then, it was a stupid idea to choose a human character when playing for the first time. Humans were despised by other races and Shin had accumulated a dark history because of that.

Needless to say, all members of Rokuten were High Humans who'd almost maxed their stats. Even the weakest member had HP and MP maxed, while the rest of the players averaged around 900 for their stats.

When competing with other major guilds, their battles looked unbelievable ― it was 6 people against thousands. Every battlefield had been burnt to crisp by wide-range fire magic. Rokuten had surprised enemy leaders with ambushes, and settled them quickly.

Since then, no one dared to provoke the Rokuten guild. Even the ones who hated humans had decreased their outward hostility. Not only had Rokuten clearly displayed the combat power of High Humans, but they'd also demonstrated their unusually high resistance to magic. Most magic had no effect on them. Moreover, Poisons, Paralysis, Confusion, Enchanting, Burn, Frostbite, Confusion, Petrifaction... all of them were more or less ineffective against a High Human. Even if they were affected, it only took a few seconds to completely cure their status.

It was rather fortunate (or unfortunate) that Shin was the only member of Rokuten who'd gotten stuck in the death game. If there'd been another member with him, then they could've finished the death game at least three months faster.

“…………”

“What’s wrong? Why did you suddenly get so quiet?”

“No, it’s nothing. Do you mind if we change the topic to currency?”

Shin felt he'd be digging his own grave if he continued talking about High Humans, so he deliberately changed the topic back to currency.

“No, it’s alright. Is this the currency you've been using up 'till now?”

“Yes.”

“Ah, to be able to bring out such valuable item! Maybe you aren't lying about being a High Human."

Apparently Tiera didn’t believe that Shin was a High Human.

Tiera sighed and took the gold coin. She studied it, as if trying to confirm whether or not it was genuine.

And Shin doubted what Tiera’s meant by ‘valuable’.

“Is is valuable? It‘s only 1 G though.”

1 Geyl was equivalent to 1 Yen in the game. But in reality, was actually worth around 1/1000 Yen. It was the lowest currency in the game. Incidentally, Shin’s Item Box contained one hundred million Geyl. It was a mystery why it displayed ‘G’ as ‘Geyl’ not ‘Gold’ with the gold coin.

“The Geyl gold coin is often abbreviated to G gold coin. But nowadays it’s really hard to obtain. You might not know this, but the Geyl gold coin is an item that can amplify magic. It's occasionally found in ruins. Whenever a Geyl gold coin appears in an auction, the bidding can reach a billion Jul or even higher. The Jul is currently the most commonly used currency. Or the J gold coin<ref>T/N: 1 J gold coin = 1,000,000 J and 1 J silver coin = 10,000 J. E.g. If you have 2 J gold coins and 87 J silver coins, you’ll have a total 2,870,000 J</ref> or the J silver coin… J means is the current method of counting.
“So this one is worth 1 billion…”

“Some magicians would kill to get even one of these, since the price is enormous and most can’t afford it. Once, Master showed me one, but this is my first time seeing one after that. After all, 1 billion is the minimum you need to pay amount you can get, the price can reach 10 times more than that.”

“For this one Geyl gold coin to be worth that much…by the way, how rare are they?”

“Very rare, but I can’t say exactly how rare. Even when new ruins were discovered, the chances of finding it are still very low.”

“Is that so? Looks like I have to be careful when buying goods.”

Shin thought about converting it to increase his funds, but he decided against it after realizing how valuable it was.

“That’s a wise decision, but you were doing the opposite just now.”

“That’s an awful joke. But I'll be more careful next time.”

“Are you going to sell something? I told you that if you have any good materials or items, I'll buy them from you."

“Well, how about this?”

Shin took out several item cards from the Item Box that he'd collected while traveling. In the game, it was possible to change an item into a card with an image of the original item on its surface. It was the same in this world, too. Materials would automatically turn into cards and could even be stored in the Item Box. The card could be materialized anytime.

Shin put his item cards on the counter. The items varied from Tetra Grizzly, Twinhead Snake, Flame Boar fangs, claws, furs, meats and to raw materials such as sparkling jewels.

In the game, materials could be sold and processed in various places. The jewels especially would fetch high prices, because blacksmiths could use them to imbue equipment and weapons with special effects. Monsters sometimes dropped jewels when they were killed, but the rate of drops was low. The jewels that Shin had brought out were Grade 7, which was the lowest grade.

“Item cards…”

“Hmm? What is it? Is there something strange?”

“No. If you have an Item Box, that would be natural, wouldn’t it? I don’t know if you already know this, so I’ll say it just in case. Because item cards are also expensive to a certain degree, it’s better not to take them out recklessly.”

“That sounds troublesome. Should I purposely carry them around as materials?”

“That’s the normal way! You're really weird!”

“Ah, I see… I see. I understand, so please calm down.”

“Mou~, you made me mad again.”

Tiera said as she focused on her job. She materialized the item cards and began to appraise them. Even though she was surprised by the item cards, she still knew how to use them.

“From Tetra Grizzly to Twinhead Snake and Flame Boar. These materials aren't just from ferocious monsters ― you can't even find these monsters unless you go deep into the woods. Just who are you?”

“I just defeated them on my way here. Although the fight wasn't as ferocious as you're making it out to be.”

“But it takes several knights to kill one of these monsters… well whatever, as long as you defeated them. I’m not that surprised after everything that's already happened.”

It seemed that these monsters were unexpectedly dangerous. Shin had thought they were beginner monsters.

“Well, don’t worry about it. Leaving that aside, how are the items?”

“That’s right. The raw materials are still in good shape, thanks to the item cards. The materials' price is 1 J gold coin and 27 J silver coins, so the total is 1,270,000 J. The jewel is Grade 7 with a high purity, so the price is 25 J gold coins, so the price is 25,000,000 J. All together is 26,270,000 J.

“I don’t know whether it’s expensive or cheap due to the conversion of currency…”

“It’s a little lower than the original price, but the price of jewels can go up and down depending on the market. This grade and purity is usually worth about 20,000,000 ~ 23,000,000 J.

“Oh, I’m lucky. I gained more than 2,000,000 J.”

“How is it? If you are fine with the price, I’ll buy it.”

“That's my pleasure. I’ll sell it. Thank you. And I’ll give you this too.”

While saying that, Shin pointed to the Geyl gold coin on the counter.

“…Is this a joke?”

“Why would it be!?”

“Didn’t you hear me earlier!? A Geyl gold coin is worth billions! No one in their right mind would freely give it away!”

“Here's one.”

Shin pointed at himself.

“Are you sure? …I’m not going to return it even if you ask for it.”

“Yup.”

Tiera quickly snatched the Geyl gold coin and held it to her chest. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at the Geyl gold coin. Meanwhile, Shin’s eyes were glued on Tiera’s chest, with an expression like a sad man’s destiny.

“Ah, it’s like dream come true… a G gold coin…”

Tiera’s expression had completely changed into a delighted face with enchanting eyes. Shin suddenly felt a strange seductiveness from her, and his cheeks turned slightly red. He shook his head to banish the dirty thoughts.

“Well, I’m glad you like it. Elves should find it useful since you can use ma――”

“Wait a moment!”

“――gic.”

Tiera interrupted Shin and stood up abruptly. Her expression had a look of someone who'd seen something unbelievable.

“…What is it?”

“Just now…did you say elf?”

“Ah, yes. …oh? You're not an elf?”

Shin remembered that elves and High Elves had pointed ears, so he'd thought... but he was puzzled. Maybe she was actually a race he'd never seen before.

“I should look like a cat girl with red hair and black eyes.”

“Cat girl with red hair and black eyes?”

Cat people were one of the more popular Beast races among female players and a certain group of male players. There were various derivations in Beast races. For cat people, there were Persian cats, Calico cats and so forth. In addition, players were divided into different animal models. Some players had animal faces, arms, tails, wings etc., while some only had a small portion of their body in animal form.

But in Shin’s eyes, Tiera was a beautiful black-haired and golden-eyed elven girl. There was no cat person with red hair and black eyes.

“I can only see a beautiful elf girl with black hair and golden eyes in front of me.”

“That…”

He tried to emphasize her beauty, but it seemed she didn’t hear it.

“How? Master already cast illusion magic on me.”

“Illusion magic?”

Speaking of illusion magic, it was usually used to confuse or show hallucinations. It was a magic that had left a strong impression on Shin, because one Rokuten's members had specialized in it.

“Uuu…to be exposed like this…”

Tiera was looking down with an expression that looked like the world was coming to an end. Tiera’s sudden depression caused Shin to desperately try to resolve the situation, since he didn’t know much about her and what caused her to be dejected.

“Um…Tiera?”

“Wha…what is it?”

He intended to talk gently, but Tiera was nervousness exaggerated her actions.

“I noticed that you're an elf only because of one of my qualities.”

“A qua…quality?”

“Yes. Illusion magic is the magic that shows hallucinations to and confuses people. However, it might be not effective towards those who have a strong resistance against magic. That’s why I see your true form.”

“But…even with strong resistance, for the magic that Master cast to be broken…”

Even with Shin’s explanation, Tiera was still in disbelief. If Shin remembered correctly, Schnee, Tiera's Master, was a Lv. 255 High Elf. The magic she used was surely strong, because High Elves were a race that specialized in magic. Even still, her stats couldn’t compare to Shin’s. Even other High Humans couldn't match Shin’s stats, so no illusion magic could affect him.

Shin sighed after a long pause.

“You saw it.”

“Hmm?”

“You, you saw my true form, right?”

“I saw a beautiful elven girl with black hair and golden eyes, did I make a mistake?”

“…………”

No response. Shin became discouraged and demoralized.

“…Aren’t you scared?”

Shin, who was thinking that he'd said something strange, heard Tiera’s soft voice. A voice was like a child who was frightened by something.

“Scared of what?”

Shin immediately relaxed his thoughts and responded in a calm manner.

Was he scaring her?

Tiera's a trembling voice, brought to mind a certain Rokuten member’s face.

Shin was proud of the login time he wasted online, because he'd been having fun. But that member had been hospitalized because of his excessive playing time.

He'd heard the story during an offline meeting among members. Shin had a feeling that something similar was happening with Tiera.

She was scared that her true self had been revealed.

But no one in Rokuten had cared about those things. Shin remembered that the member was very relieved.

Since Shin had experienced something like this before, he could listen to Tiera while maintaining his expressions, and without feeling shaken.

“…You don’t know this either, do you?…Black-haired Elves are a symbol of bad luck.”

Tiera spoke while looking down.

“A symbol of bad luck?”

“Yes. Every elf is born with white hair. As they grow up, it turns gold, silver, green or blue-green colored. Can you believe it? My own hair was originally silver.”

Tiera's expression looked like she was punishing herself.

“But now my hair is black. There's never a time when an elf’s hair turns black.”

“Never turns black?”

“Yes. Elves with black hair bring misfortune. It happened to me all the time. Strong monsters suddenly attacked my village many times, and I was expelled from my village because of that.”

“…………”

“Master took me in after she found me wandering aimlessly. This store has a strong barrier to prevent the monsters from attacking, so I haven't left this store for more than 100 years.”

“100 years?…That’s a long time.”

“Yes. But since I can live without inconveniencing someone, this is good for me.”

There's no way that's a good thing, Shin wanted to shout. However, he refrained from saying that, because nothing would change even if he did. He clenched his fists in anger.

It hadn't even been a full day since they'd met, but Shin knew why he was angry at himself.

“…Tiera, I want to confirm something.”

“…Confirm what?”

“Your hair was originally silver, so why is it black now?”

Shin had a feeling that the answer would give him a hint.

“It just suddenly turned black one day.”

“Suddenly?”

“Yes, suddenly. I woke up in the morning as usual, and it was already black. I was really scared at that time, because I didn’t understand what had happened.”

As Tiera recalled the events, she trembled and hugged herself tightly. Shin listened to her explanation as his mental gears ground at full steam for relevant information.

“Suddenly, hair color changed…Attacked by monsters…The color of the hair…Changing color characteristic…Monsters…Attacked multiple times…Encountered many times…Possibly strong…The characteristic of color change…Vulnerable to monsters…Such a thing!?”

While Shin murmured something, something flashed through Shin’s mind. If his memory served, a possible condition was met.

“There…there's a way if the conditions are met!!”

“Eh? What is it?”

Shin was shouting at Tiera. Tiera was shaken by Shin’s sudden shout.

Despite that, Shin’s eyes remained fixed on her.

“I wonder why I'd forgotten. However with this…hmm? This is strange, why isn't the status displayed? It should be automatic.”

The reason Shin keep staring at Tiera was because he wanted to see her status. If Shin’s prediction was correct, then a certain status should appear.

“Uhm… ‘Skill Window Open’…Analyze…Analyze…ah, here it is. Display player and monster except when turned off. If I turn this on…”

Shin looked at Tiera again after applying the setting. Tiera felt a little uncertain as Shin was glaring into empty space while moving his finger.

“Okay, now I can see the status. Name, level, race…good…and…Ahhhhhh!!”

Shin unintentionally made a victory pose when he found what he'd been looking for. Tiera stayed on guard as she watched Shin's eccentric behavior.

“Be delighted, Tiera! I just found out what causes your bad luck.”

“Eh?”

“Believe me. I’m sure because the status appeared. The color of your hair, the multiple attacks by monsters, they're all caused by 【Cursed Gift】.”

“【Cursed Gift】?”

Tiera was dumbfounded because she didn’t understand it.

【Cursed Gift】 was a curse that'd suddenly occurred in THE NEW GATE. It was literally bad luck.

Originally, players could obtain a【Title】 or 【Gift】 from regularly clearing the quests. On occasion, you could gain support abilities and items from it. Depending on the【Title】, your stats could be strengthened, especially as your gained more and more new skills.

Then suddenly the 【Cursed Gift】 appeared to all players. The curse had negative effect such as random status degradation, all kinds of glitches, random encounters with strong and unique monsters, and so on. It could only be cured with the magic skill 【Purification】or by using the item 【Holy Water】.

The specific negative effect was random, but all the players with 【Cursed Gift】had some part of their body turn black. Their status screens also showed an image of a laughing reaper.

Subsequently, Shin had confirmed that there was a laughing reaper on Tiera’s status screen.

“Alright, to make this quick, Tiera, I want you to step out from behind the counter and stand at the center of the store.”

“Eh…okay…”

As Shin said that, Tiera stood at the center of the store without much resistance. She was confused at the situation.

“Here I go. Activate 【Purification】!!”

In order to eliminate the curse, Shin extended his right hand toward Tiera and activated his magic skill 【Purification】. Shin had acquired the skill the mainly used by a priest due to a certain circumstance.

Golden light began to gather on Shin’s right hand. At the same time, Tiera’s whole body was wrapped in golden light.

“It’s…it’s warm…”

Although Tiera was surprised by the light, she didn’t feel any danger from it. Instead, she felt comfort and warmth as the purification process took place.

After about 5 minutes, the light gradually dimmed and disappeared.

Even after the light disappeared, the absentminded Tiera took awhile to come back to her senses.

“…Was it successful?…”

Muttered Shin as he felt baffled. The laughing reaper’s icon slowly faded from Tiera’s status screen as Shin watched. However, the hair that should have returned to its original color, was still mostly black. A silver highlight could be seen amongst the mostly black hair.

The atmosphere between the two became silent, because it was hard to determine whether the curse had disappeared.

“So, how is it?” Tiera asked.

“The curse is gone…it’s…it’s…but…your hair wasn’t completely restored…”

He had a hard time saying it.

“Hair?”

“Ah…I’m sorry, only part of your hair returned to its original color. But just in case, please confirm it.”

Shin said while feeling discouraged. He took a mirror out from the Item Box and passed it to Tiera. She snatched the mirror from Shin after she heard the word hair and held it in front of her.

Tiera’s face was reflected in the mirror. The face itself was unchanged. But one portion of her hair was now a shining silver.

It was obviously the color of Tiera's hair, before the curse.

“…Sob…sob…”

Tears started to flow from Tiera’s eyes.

Then, her tears burst like a broken dam.

“Uu…sob…uu…”

While wiping her tears with her sleeve, Tiera cried quietly.

And in front of Tiera, there was a man who was totally confused.

Needless to say, it was Shin.

The girl who cried in front of him was not a little child, but an adult woman. Yet due to Shin’s limited reasoning ability, he just stayed still.

“Sob…just a moment…hick…need to…catch my breath…”

“Ah, I understand. Just take it slow.”

Shin passed her a towel as he returned to his senses and dragged a chair from behind the counter, so Tiera could sit while she wept.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 About 5 minutes later, Tiera raised her face from the towel. No tears remained, but her eyes were still red.

“I’m sorry, I’m alright now.”

“Is that so?”

“Why are you using honorifics?”

“No, well. Even though I removed the curse, your hair is mostly unchanged so I felt apologetic for that…”

While Tiera was crying, Shin was afraid that she might get angry again because of the hair.

However, judging from Tiera’s expression, she hadn’t shown any signs of being angry. At this time, Shin became timid. And just a while ago, the position was the exact opposite.

“I’m good about the hair…Please don’t use honorifics towards me. After more than 100 years of having black-colored hair, even if it’s only a little that has returned, I’m glad.”

Tiera smiled and looked very happy as she said that. And all the frightening feelings that Shin had, dissipated after seeing Tiera’s smile.

“Really? I am glad too.”

But, Shin thought. His mother and his younger sister always said that the hair was very important to women. That’s why Shin felt unsatisfactory for her.

“Yes, I’m really good, so don’t worry about it. But is the curse gone for real?”

“Ah, it should be, no doubt about it. I think it will be clear if you go out from the store.”

Since Tiera said it’s good, Shin convinced himself not to fuss about it.

Tiera’s curse, which was random encounters with unique monsters, couldn’t be proven to have disappeared unless she went outside the barrier. Because high level unique monsters couldn’t creep inside the barrier.

THE NEW GATE pursued reality in the game, so unbreakable objects were almost nonexistent. And the player’s stores, like Shin’s, were often aimed at by thieves player.

Therefore, many skills barrier system existed to prevent intrusion to the store. Which were applicable to monsters, too.

“Honestly, it is a little scary. What if the curse wasn’t dispelled?”

“It’s okay. Since I was cured from the curse too.”

“Eh? Eh!! You got cursed too!?”

“Ah, yes, my curse type was random encounters with high level unique monsters too, but I cured it with 【Purification】skill.

When Shin was cursed, the unique monsters thoroughly tried to attack Shin repeatedly, until Shin was tired of it. And there was a time when Shin used them to raise his level.

“Is that so. Then, what was the highest level of monster that has attacked you?”

“Horn Dragon was probably the strongest. I think it was around level 200.”

“Is that the higher rank species of Lesser Dragon?”

“You know?”

“Ah, only a little.”

Horn Dragon was a higher rank species of Lesser Dragon, their size was twice as large and they had horns on their heads. Lesser Dragons were only around Lv. 100, but Horn Dragons were around Lv. 200. Tiera’s level was 57 from what Shin saw in the status screen, so there’s no chance of winning against the dragon.

In THE NEW GATE, the maximum level of a player was 255, and the maximum level of monsters was 1000. It was about four times more than the players. This was solved by reincarnation like Shin or other high level players. Especially Shin, or Rokuten similarly, could easily beat boss monsters and never get tired from it. But even Shin couldn’t let his guard down, as a boss monster was usually Lv. 1000. So Shin didn’t even feel any danger from Lv. 200 unique monsters.

“However, it is said that several elite forces of knights are needed to take on a Horn Dragon.”

“Elite forces? Why do they need the elite group for something like that?”

“Shh..They are the real elite, you know. Did you see a huge rampart next to the store before you came here?”

“Ah, I think I saw it.”

“That’s the reinforced rampart that surrounds the Kingdom of Bayreuth. Well, the captain of the elite force of the knights group in this country is only level 158. And the Horn Dragons are about level 200, so the captain needs 40 more levels to fight it head on. And only those with a screw loose in their head will take on that monster alone, so no one can brag about it.”

“158…that’s…?”

“Yes, it is absurd to even challenges the Kingdom’s no. 2 strongest alone.”

It seems that Tiera thought Shin was surprised by the captain’s high level. But actually, the level was too low. Shin thought it was absurd to have that level. And the level had barely reached the intermediate class in the player’s standards. Particularly, player’s standards like Shin’s.

If a monster that had a higher level than Horn Dragon appeared, it might annihilate two or three countries. Shin thought.

“Well then, let’s leave the store so that we can see whether the curse is gone.”

“Wait, didn’t you hear my story?”

“I heard it. It’s better to find out now if there are any more problems.”

“Not gonna happen. What if a Horn Dragon attacked us?”

“Oh.”

“…….Hey, just to make sure, what is your level?”

“I’m level 255?”

“…………”

Both of them went silent. Shin said it honestly, but it seems that Tiera doubted him.

“Tiera?”

“255…? Same as master?”

“Ah yes, my level is 255, same as Schnee.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“Is it really true?”

“It is true.”

“Really hone――”

“Yes! yes! I’ve said it many times!”

“――st…”

The conversation stopped before it became a truth battle.

“Are you able to use 【Analyze】? If you can, then you can see my stats too.”

“I can’t. Only the skill successor can use it.”

“What’s a skill successor?”

“…I begin to doubt your common sense.”

If he was a resident of this world, he would know that too. But Shin, who arrived in this world just a while ago, didn’t know anything about common sense. Rather, he just assumed it was the same as in the game and went with the flow.

“Even if it’s said to be common sense, I do not understand it well because I lived far from human villages for a long time.”

Since he couldn’t say that he was in a game before coming here, he decided to say that he lived as a hermit. It was the most likely excuse for his ignorance of this world, thought Shin.

“I understand. I will tell you everything you need to know, just ask if you have something you don’t understand.”

“Thank you.”

Shin bowed his head to express his gratitude while Tiera said “Somehow…”.

“First of all, the skill successor. Because the people who can read the symbols are lost along with the skills. Skills can only be inherited nowadays. A lot of skills were lost during the ‘Dusk of the Majesty’ and currently, less than 100 skills still remain.”

“Less than 100, huh?…”

Shin unable to hide his surprise for that number. THE NEW GATE was known for its numerous skills, and the number coming out of Tiera’s mouth was not even 1/10 of the total amount of skills.

“Nowadays, skills are used to gain personal benefit. The people who make a living by fighting, such as adventurers and knights, are using weakened skills which are called Arts. Though it has the same name with as the original skill, its power and effect only amounts to 1/3 of the original. The magic my master showed to me was ‘Magic Skills’, but I can only use ‘Magic Arts’. And naturally the power gap is huge.”

“I see, the skills that turned weak are called arts. Is there a separate level in arts?”

Some level in skills have their own setting. Shin activated 【Analyze • Ⅹ】. He immediately understood the skill right away, because the letter of Ⅰ~Ⅹ was attached after the skill name. The lowest was Ⅰ, and the highest was Ⅹ. This setting system was almost nonexistent in combat skills, and most support skills were using this setting system.

“As far as I know, arts do not have levels like skills.”

“It will be hard to fight using arts…”

Shin couldn’t help to think that it’s difficult to fight using arts, as skills were more favorable than arts.

“You can use skills, right? What skills are you able to use? Just now you used one, didn’t you? How many skills can you use? 2? 3? No way!! Is it 4!?”

“Indeed, one digit is too few. I’m certain that I can use at least 1000 or more. Although I don’t know the exact number, because I never counted them.”

“What? 1000? Did I hear it wrong?”

Tiera tilted her head and thought whether Shin was making a joke or not. It felt like a joke, because it strayed too much from this world’s common sense, even though the joke was the truth.

“Do you have the【Analyze】skill by chance? I can lend it to you, although the skill is only level Ⅰ, so it can’t see my limit break level, but it wouldn’t hurt to have it either. Well, I’ll use the skill 【Secret Books Creation】.”

“?”

Tiera looked puzzled as Shin once again moved his hand in the air.

“Creation successful.”

“…”

“Wha, what is this?”

Shin handed a scroll to Tiera. Various potential derivation of skills mastery could be learned and benefited if the skill proficiency was raised to a certain level. One of the benefits of 【Secret Books Creation】 was that it was possible to creates items. 【Secret Books Creation】 was able to make scrolls. When 【Secret Books Creation】 was used, it was possible for other player to learn the skill from the book.

Although it’s reasonable, various restrictions were imposed to the skill, such as the number of skills that could be made was fixed, players couldn’t learn the skill if the acquisition condition were not met, and so forth.

To begin with, 【Secret Books Creation】 also had some skills that were impossible to make. As there were only few strong skills that could be created by 【Secret Books Creation】. High class skills from 【Secret Books Creation】 were limited to low-level, and there was a level restriction too.

【Analyze】wasn’t technically seen a skill. Even the restrictions from 【Secret Books Creation】 were kept at a minimum. So Shin could share the skill with other players unlimited because of this. It was one of the reasons why he made that scroll.

“The secret book of 【Analyze】. If you read this, you will be able to use this skill.”

Because 【Secret Books Creation】was usable for a support character, Shin thought of making good use of it. However, he intended to apologize if it didn’t work. These kind of things wouldn’t be understood if he didn’t try it.

“Can the skill be used after this? But I don’t have anything of equivalent value to this.” “Equivalent value?”

Shin was going to give it for free, but Tiera seems didn’t get it. Apparently, skills were a substantially valuable thing in this world.

“I told you, didn’t I? Skills are valuable too. Anyhow, one would need a large sum of money for an apprentice like me to get a skill from a master. And you will give this to me for free?”

“Eh, It is, even though I was going to say it. Did I do something wrong?”

“For the time being, please refrain from raising this matter to anyone. Because it could become a serious matter. Depending on the situation, one life might be targeted.”

“To that extent!?”

Shin decided to instruct only the fellows he trusted with the skills from 【Secret Books Creation】, as he never thought that his life could be targeted by someone.

“Well, don’t get too scared. I think Tiera will be safe, so have you read it yet?”

“No, after I use it, will there be any compensation claims?”

“No!!”

Am I an evil swindler!? Shin wanted to retort. However, because there was the possibility of one life getting targeted, it was normal to be cautions.

“Giving away a skill for free is your modus operandi, isn’t it?”

“If that’s the case, then I should have made a high-class skill to deceive you.”

“To me, even this skill is very valuable. It must be a great feeling to have several skills.”

“But I cannot use arts. And I thought this is natural, so I have no feelings about it, because I think I possessed all the skills.”

“What a ‘luxurious agony’…well, whatever. I’ll receive it without reservation then.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it. It would be rather embarrassing if you didn’t take it.”

Tiera took the scroll and seemed convinced for the time being. Shin urged her to read it, so she opened it and took a look at the scroll.

When she began to read it, a light wrapped Tiera’s body and faded after 10 seconds. This was the effect when a skill was acquired. And apparently the skill learning process had been completed.

“How is it?”

Shin was anxious because he didn’t know if 【Secret Books Creation】 would work in this world. That’s why he needed to test it.

“Somehow it is a mysterious feeling. 【Analyze】 showed up in my head after I opened the scroll, and something like flows special effect coming out. However, there is no unpleasantness.”

“Eh, is that so?”

Shin was relieved as the skill was successfully learned. From here on, he would keep that in mind in case he used it again.

“I can see your name, but the other stats have a weird symbol on them.”

“As expected, the name is visible. Well, the weird symbol is called question mark. It will only show when the level difference is huge. So it’s common not seeing the stats.”

“Eh, originally the name is not visible. But now that I gained a skill, I can see it, although your stats are hidden because of the level difference. This skill more or less shows that you are indeed strong.”

“Will you believe me now? I will keep you safe from monsters when you go out of the store.”

“I have no choice but to consider what we have done till now, so I’ll believe in you.”

Tiera seemed more willing to believe in Shin thanks to the skill 【Analyze】 that she had learned. There might be some uneasiness of course, since Tiera had constantly been attacked by monsters up till now.

“I’ll go out first to check the surrounding area just in case. After that, please come out.”

“Okay, sure.”

Shin went out of Tsuki no Hokora and looked at the surrounding area to make sure there were no monsters around. 【Search】 also confirmed that there were no monsters in the vicinity.

“All clear, you can come out now!”

Tiera peeked outside the door as she looked at the surroundings.

At Tsuki no Hokora, there were skill barriers – 【Barrier • Ⅹ】 and 【Wall • Ⅹ】 set by Schnee. The 【Barrier • Ⅹ】 could prevent monsters from Lv. 900 to 1000 (Depends on the user’s levels) from attacking the store, and even if they attacked, the invisible wall could counterattack.

And 【Wall • Ⅹ】could prevent player intrusion (Also depends on the user’s level) from level 230-255. Because both of them were of the highest level, the invasion was impossible even with 【Cut Through】.

By the way, for 【Wall • Ⅹ】, it’s necessary to set the setting permission so that general guests weren’t mistaken for invaders. Players were prohibited using weapons and combat skills in Tsuki no Hokora. When Shin was the store owner before, he went into details, such as preventing players from equipping weapons.

At present, the radius of the barrier skills were around 20 mels. (T/N: In case you forgot, 1 mel = 1 meter)

“Come, over here.”

“Ehh, okay…”

When Shin beckoned her, Tiera approached slowly. That was because Shin was standing about 1 mel from outside of the barrier.

“…………”

“…………”

Shin watched the surrounding area while Tiera was silent because of the nervousness.

For about 5 minutes, there was no change in the surroundings, except warm winds that stroked their hair.

“Nothing is happening.”

“Yup, nothing happens.”

Furthermore, after 5 minutes, Shin judged that there was no problem. It was because the curse would make monsters to attack once in every 10 minutes.

“There is no monster coming.”

“Indeed.”

In the first 5 minutes, Tiera was nervous and couldn’t stop checking the surroundings.

“The curse is finally gone, right?”

[[image:Tieracry.jpg|thumb|Tiera replied to Shin’s question while looking up at the sky]]

“It sure is.”

Tiera replied to Shin’s question while looking up at the sky.

The sky was so vast and blue, it made Tiera’s eyes open wide. It was not compressed by the store’s windows she always saw it from.

She could feel the wind, the sunlight and smell the scent of the forest. Such nostalgic feelings spread to Tiera’s mind.

Shin felt relieved as he saw Tiera looked up at the sky. While it was still necessary to be frightened by monsters, at least she no longer needed to worry about her surroundings or troubling people. It was possible to go outside the store freely from now on.

“The sky is so wide.”

“Oh.”

Tiera muttered as she just remembered.

Then Shin looked up at the sky with Tiera for a while.

The corner of Tiera’s eyes shined as she looked at the wide sky, and Shin didn’t say anything.

“Let’s go back soon.”

Said Tiera, while Shin turned his gaze from the sky to Tiera.

“Let’s go then.”

There was no objection since they only came outside the store to confirm that the curse was dispelled from Tiera. After that, the two walked back to the store.

“Still, to really dispelled the curse.”

After she returned to the counter, Tiera muttered heartily. She still hadn’t caught up with reality.

“That was more or less because of the skill 【Purification】. If anything, I was having a hard time and went through a lot of trouble to learn this rare skill.”

“Any curse can be purified with 【Purification】, right? To think that it was hard to get this curse dispelled.”

“Why is that? Don’t priests have this skill? It would be strange if they don’t have one like it.”

“That’s not it. Because 【Purification】 can only be used by high-ranking priests, so I can’t really ask them to meet me. Also, due to the nature of the curse, I can’t come to meet them with all the monsters around.”

“However, that would have been different somehow if the curse effect was stats degradation.”

Tiera just said something dangerous without her realizing it. As for the stats degradation, the curse would make stats drop to 1/10 from the original. Even combating with small fry monsters would be difficult.

“Now that it is dispelled, it’s useless to think about it.”

“That’s right. After all, you are able to roam freely again.”

“Yes, although the elves dislike black hair, if the hair is not completely black-colored, it might be different story.”

“Hmm? If the hair is all black-colored, it’s no good?”

“Yes. I couldn’t even conceal my hair when I was cursed before. The dye would turn black after some time. But now that the curse is gone, I can dye my hair again.”

“Is that so.”

Because the act of dyeing hair was not possible in the game, Shin didn’t understand such things. To begin with, as soon as players got cursed, they immediately used items or found a priest to purify it. So the players never needed to dye their hair.

“Ah right, this is your reward for the materials and the jewel.”

Tiera placed a bag on the counter. It was swelled considerably, because there were more than 50 pieces of gold and silver coins.

“Can this fit into Item Box?”

When he tried to put it in Item Box, he saw Geyl gold coin slots in the display screen. And it also showed up 26 J gold coins and 27 J silver coins. Somehow, every coin was displayed, separated by type. It was indeed convenient.

“The coins disappeared? That’s convenient.”

Shin couldn’t say anything but smile wryly because Tiera already said what he wanted to. That was yet another use for Item Box for items. And there was no need for a wallet.

“For the time being, I need to find an inn to stay at for today.”

“Are you perhaps going to enter the Bayreuth Kingdom?”

“Yes, there are various places I would like to explore. Is there a good place to gather information?

“Well. Wait a minute, I will give you something good as an extra service.”

After Tiera said so, she went to a room located behind the counter. If Shin’s memory was correct, there was a private room there.

Tiera entered the room, and 3 minutes later she came out, handing a piece of paper to Shin.

“This is?”

“A letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora. With this letter, you can enter the country without having to wait in line for inspection.”

Apparently there was a waiting line to enter the country. Shin, who wanted to find an inn today, was feeling grateful.

“I appreciate it. I didn’t want to be homeless and sleep on the street when I came here. But is this okay? To give an introduction letter to someone who you just met today.”

Although Shin thought that he was not qualified, Tiera unexpectedly shook her head.

“The curse that stayed for more than 100 years was dispelled. Besides, you meet the qualifications. Moreover, I think you are a good person. There is no problem…Even with this, I still haven’t returned all your favors.”

“A good person…what did you say just now, I couldn’t hear the latter half?”

“Geez, I don’t care! I said there is no problem and please leave obediently.”

Tiera said so, while pushing the letter of introduction to Shin. Although her face looked downward to conceal her reddened face, it could be seen from her ears which turned slightly red.

“All right, all right. I will take it without reservation then.”

Again, Shin didn’t notice it. While another person would have noticed it, he himself was a dense person.

“Then I’ll go now. In addition, please take care of me the next time when purchasing the monsters I hunted.”

“I understand, please don’t force yourself too much. Because I’ll get nothing if you die.”

“See you then.”

“I’ll look forward to your next visit.”

Tiera lowered her head and Shin waved his hand lightly while exiting the Tsuki no Hokora.

 
◆◆◆◆

 Shin came out of Tsuki no Hokora and crossed the woods until he was in front of the ramparts and started to walk along it. Since he didn’t know which way the town entrance was, he went along with his feeling. He somehow knew that he would reach the town entrance sooner or later if he just walked while following the ramparts.

“Anyway, these ramparts look really sturdy. “

Shin thought as he saw the ramparts again. Because【Analyze】 was originally a skill to see the details of players and monsters, he didn’t know much about its magic bestowal beyond skill level Ⅴ. But from Tiera’s story, all skills were valuable and he could guess that there were excellent skill successors out there.

After walking for around 15 minutes, he could see a line formed in front of the rampart. It seemed like there was a town gate nearby.

And there were various people wearing all kinds of clothes. Furthermore, there was a human boy who wore tattered clothing, a female beast equipped with an armor and a dwarf who was accompanied by a small dragon. The person who wore a robe might be a magician, and the guy with a big wagon might be a merchant. Shin looked around while seeing the line moving slowly. Since all players in the game had a neat appearance (though there were some people who dressed in strange clothes), Shin was astonished by the scenery.

A soldier who was equipped with an armor just like a townsguard, was checking something like an identification card. Besides that, they also checked the luggage in the wagon briefly. Shin walked straight to the gate since he had a letter of introduction from Tiera.

About 20 mels from the gate, a guard noticed Shin who wasn’t waiting in line, and Shin had a suspicious look on his face.

One of the guards approached Shin as he was about 10 mels from the gate.

“Hey you! If you want to get into the town, get in the line! I can’t let you enter if you don’t line up.”

Said the guard, while pointing at the end of the line. The line was so long that the end of the line couldn’t be seen.

“Well, um, I was told I could enter the town if I show this.”

He took out the letter of introduction from Item Box, while pretending to take it out from his chest pocket.

The guard took the letter from Shin, looked at the contents, and revealed a shocked look. Not to mention, his hands were trembling afterward.

“…Letter of introduction…from Tsuki no Hokora…”

“Yes, I got it from the sales clerk.”

Shin didn’t know why the guard was surprised, or what were the effects of a letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora.

He was even worried about the guard whose hands were trembling.

“I need to confirm whether this is the real thing. Come with me.”

“Okay.”

The guard gathered other guards and began to discuss something like ‘Is it genuine?’ Or ‘how do we decide whether it’s the real thing?’

At the same time, Shin saw a horse that was 1.5 times bigger than a normal horse, stopped at the front gate.

While Shin was looking at the horse, the guard returned.

“I’m sorry to have kept you waiting. This way.”

“Ah, I understand.”

The guard’s manners changed completely and he became very polite. It was so sudden that it felt out of place.

(Is the letter of introduction that great?)

The road was opened for them while Shin felt stares from the people in the line. Besides that, the place was filled with people and several large wagons going in and out. Along the edge of the street, there were various stalls standing in a row, selling things like food, armor, accessories, strange items, and so on.

“I will be your guide to the adventurers’ guild. Will that be all right for you?”

“Huh? Oh, yes. Thank you very much.”

Another guard talked to Shin. It seemed like he took over the task of the guard who spoke to Shin previously.

“Do you have any plans to go somewhere else beside the guild? I’ll guide you if you don’t mind.”

“No, because there is no other plan, I would like to head toward the adventurers’ guild, and please don’t use honorifics with me.”

“Still…to be rude to those with a letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora.”

“No problem, just act like usual.”

“…Well, if you said so. I underst…”

“Honorific!”

“I understand, I understand<ref>T/N: The guard actually said “understand” in a polite tone. Then said it again in an informal tone.</ref>, it’s just hard to adjust.”

Shin didn’t mean to act big just because he got the letter of introduction by chance. Meanwhile, the guard with the guide’s role, mixed up the formal and informal tone in his speech.

“I’m glad you understand.”

“Geez, for someone to have a letter of introduction and not wanting me to be polite?”

“Well, it just felt wrong. By the way, I’m Shin. Nice to meet you.”

Shin was formerly a student. He wasn’t accustomed by an older man using honorifics toward him.

“I’m Beid. I’ve lived in this town my whole life. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”

Beid laughed after saying that. He gave an impression of a bear because of his brown hair and beard. According to 【Analyze • Ⅹ】, Beid was level 100. It was said that the strongest knight was level 158, so Shin couldn’t judge whether Beid was strong or not.

“Then, I want to ask you something. Why was I being led to an adventurers’ guild?”

Even though he intended to go to the adventurers’ guild, he didn’t remember saying it to the guard. But then he recalled where he had asked Tiera for any good places to gather information.

“It was written in the introduction letter. I have to do it since it is stated in the letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora.”

“I see. Ah, just to confirm, is the letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora such a big deal?”

“Did you show it without knowing about it!?”

For some reason he was surprised.

“No, this is my first time coming to this country and it was a coincidence that I went to Tsuki no Hokora.”

“Coincidence? And got a letter of introduction? You are something…”

“I’m just a wanderer.”

“Unbelievable! No, never mind then. I don’t know about other countries, but with the letter of introduction, it’s possible to have an audience with the King. Some people have even tried to forge the letter of introduction.”

It seemed the letter of introduction was a rather big deal around here.

“Tiera…this is more than an extra service…”

Shin murmured as he regretted not knowing this awesome stuff earlier. Actually, he thought it was just a simple border pass. If Beid’s story was true, it was only natural that the guards were surprised.

“I’d say, it would be a problem if it got lost…”

“…Just now, someone passed it to the other guard.”

Shin who just realized it, tried to get it back. But as Shin made a U-turn, he was stopped by Beid.

“It’s okay, if it is the letter of introduction, I have it. How many guards can even carry it normally. It was returned before it could be left to idiots who are up to no good.”

“Beid, good job!!”

Shin unconsciously gave Beid a thumbs-up. Shin’s original image of him as a crude person was instantly erased, giving him a better impression of Beid.

Shin then placed the letter of introduction in the 『Important Things』 zone in the Item Box. This zone had an anti-theft function attached . Skills like 【Steal】 or 【Robbery】 were not effective in this zone, so Shin didn’t have to worry about it getting stolen or robbed.

“Oh, I almost forgot, when you arrive at the adventurers’ guild, give the letter of introduction to a receptionist named Els.”

“Els?”

“The miss receptionist of the guild, and at the same time, an elf adventurer. There are some kind of ancient elven runes written on that letter. And she is the only elf in the adventurers’ guild. So it is probably addressed to her.”

“I understand. I’ll give it to her in the guild.”

Shin didn’t know that Tiera had another elf as acquaintance, yet he firmly memorized her name.

As the matter of the introduction letter was settled, Shin heard Beid’s explanation about the town.

“That reminds me, this is your first time coming to this country. I will explain to you about this town. So first, this street is the rough division of the town. The gate you entered just now is the south gate. There are gates in the south, north, east and west, but only the south gate is used most often.”

“Why is the south gate used mostly?”

“The reason is that the south gate is the connecting point of the districts. There is also a commercial district in front of the south gate. Besides that, the king’s castle is in the center of this country, and the wealthy town residents, such as nobles and rich merchants, surround it. It is surrounded by the four districts.”

“Hmm…I see…”

“The south commercial district, as said just now, generally has everything you need like foods, items, miscellaneous goods and so forth. The guilds are in the east district. Many headquarters of guilds are located there, such as adventurers’ guild, merchants guild, blacksmiths guild and so on.

The west is a residential district. Almost all of the town’s population live there. The inn is also a place for adventurers to replenish their stock from merchants, besides being the place to stay overnight. Finally, the north district…is in development for the time being.”

Beid hesitated as he talked about the north district. Shin had an idea about it, so he asked Beid daringly.

“Is the development only a name, or is it a slum area?”

“As expected, you understand indeed. Yes, it is. Although I said it’s in a development zone, eventually those with no place to go started to move in one after another. Though each of them have their own motives. Anyway, its security is at the worst, and it’s better to stay away from there.”

Beid advised Shin with a bitter expression.

However, it was not only this country, but most big countries also have such places.

Meanwhile, Shin observed the town situation as he listened to Beid. In the commercial district, various people were coming and going, Shin saw a man with an appearance of an adventurer. The man was carrying a large sword and wore a full body armor.

Shin was excited and almost called out to him , especially after he saw the man was carrying a Dragon Sword. Beid said it was a weapon from an island country called ‘Hinomoto’, which is in the east of the continent.

In the meantime, Shin arrived at the adventurers’ guild. The building was larger than the neighboring building, and had a signboard with a sword and a spear crossed were painted. Somehow, this was the representation of the adventurers’ guild.

“My duty ends here. Don’t work yourself too hard in there.”

“Oh, thank you for guiding me here, and for the information as well.”

Shin went into the adventurers’ guild building after seeing off Beid who lightly waved his hand.

He opened the guild’s door and entered.

From the entrance door, the receptionist desk could be seen on the right side, and the bar on the left side. At the center hall, there was a bulletin board which had many requests posted on it.

Since rowdy NPCs often hung around in adventurers’ guilds when he played the game, Shin had that image when entering the guild. Nevertheless, no garbage could be seen on the floor, nor adventurers shouting at each other, nor glares from other adventurers.

It was merely a group of adventurers who had just finished their tasks and were having a toast. The bar seemed to be just a normal bar.

Shin went straight toward the receptionist desk, even though he felt hungry after seeing the bar.

“Welcome to the adventurers’ guild, how can I help you today?”

The beautiful woman who was the receptionist greeted Shin as he approached. She had light brown hair that reached her shoulders. Apparently, the reception desk of guilds were always filled with beautiful women.

There was also a tall man with a height of about 2 mels and scars on his face next to the receptionist. It goes without saying, Shin casually detoured to the woman’s side at the reception.

“I would like to register as an adventurer.”

“For that, please go upstairs on your left and head over to the second room. One J silver coin is required for the initial registration, is that alright with you?”

“Yes, it’s alright. Thank you.”

He voiced his gratitude and went up the stairs. Without stopping, Shin was thinking that there was no such procedure during the game. Then he saw the second room and entered it.

Shin approached the desk on the middle, as there were only three desks.

“We provide registration for adventurers here. You want to register as an adventurer, is that correct?”

“Ah, yes, I want to register as an adventurer.”

He replied to the receptionist with a bewildered look. Shin was confused, as the receptionist’s face and that of the receptionist below, were like two peas in a pod. The only difference was that this receptionist had her hair in a ponytail.

“Is something the matter?”

“No, you just look identical to the receptionist below.”

“That is my older sister. Because we are twins, I am often mistaken as her. I will be helping you register today. My name is Cilica Lindt. Please treat me well.”

“I am Shin. Please take care of me as well.”

“First, you will need to pay the initial cost of one J silver coin.”

“Okay.”

He took out one J silver coin from Item Box. Shin thought it looked a little unnatural since he took it out from his chest, but Cilica received the coin without any suspicion.

“Then, please fill out this form.”

In the document, there were entries to be filled up such as name, race, main weapon, able to use magic or not, and so on.

“Do I have to fill out everything?”

“No, only your name and race are required. While it would be easier to receive support if you fill it all out, we won’t force you as this is not compulsory. No one will treat you differently because of it. So please rest assured.”

“Okay.”

Since there was an entry for place of birth, Shin just had to skip it, because he was not from this world. The race was filled as a human just in case.

Main weapon was sword, able to use magic, and because there was entry for age, one year of the death game was added in his true age, so he wrote down as 21 years old.

It was a bit late to bring it up now, but the document was written in Japanese. The spoken language was Japanese, so it was only natural that it was also being used in the document. Shin was thankful because of it. He was worried in the beginning, as he thought it would be written with characters like wriggling earthworms.

After that, he gave the document to Cilica, and she just skimmed it through. She was probably checking if it was incomplete.

“Your name is Shin-sama, is that right?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

“Then the document is complete. Next, please drip one drop of blood on this card.

Cilica handed Shin a needle and a silver card.

Shin pricked the tip of his finger and dripped the blood on the card. The card didn’t reject the blood and absorbed it like a sponge.

“With this, the procedure is complete. The card will take one day to process, so it will be ready by tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

It seemed that he would need to wait until tomorrow before receiving his card.

“Would you like hear more information about the guild?”

“Yes, please.”

“First of all, adventurers are divided by ranks, from the highest SS to S, A, B, C, D, E, F, and the lowest G rank. Because Shin-sama just registered, your rank is G. Whenever a request is completed, the point is added and your rank will rise accordingly. If a request is failed or abandoned, the point for the request is subtracted from the current point. The rank will drop if the points are below a certain standard. In addition, you must pay the cancellation fee twice of the reward offered. You can receive requests up to two ranks above you. You can only receive requests one rank above you if you become rank C and above. You can form a party with two or more members. It is also possible to participate in the request of the top three or more rank. Depending on the members, you will receive the request according to the members of the top rank.”

“What is the maximum number of members allowed in a party?”

Shin asked since he was interested. The maximum number of people in a party was six people during the game.

“One party can be formed by up to six members. It becomes a form called joint work, where you cross multiple parties when you receive a request for further numbers of people. This is usually seen on subjugation requests of strong monsters, or fairly large-scale requests.”

It seemed that the number of party members remained unchanged. However, the request (it was called Quest in the game) for further numbers of people seemed different from the game, there was no joint work or multiple parties.

“There are various kinds of requests such as miscellaneous duties, fishing, subjugation, escort, and so forth. Please be warned that the guild won’t take responsibility for taking a request without the guild’s approval. An unsuitable request for your ability is likely to receive or sustain severe injuries or even death.”

“What will happen if the request and the contents are different? If a subjugation request is received and upon getting there, the monster is stronger than the request said.”

“In such case, it’s fine to abandon the request. You need to report it, so that the penalty will not occur. Even if the guild verifies all the risky requests, please do not take it without precautions, as not all requests can be covered.”

‘The management seemed to lack of efficiency. But since the information network wasn’t developed, it couldn’t be helped’, Shin thought.

“The guild will buy the raw materials from subjugated monster. It’s a good source for extra income. Next――”

The explanation from Cilica lasted for about 20 minutes. Even if Shin heard everything, he could not memorize all of it.

“――That’s all for today. I’ll explain again about the guild card tomorrow when you receive it. Do you have any questions?”

“Can I receive requests now?”

“After the guild card is issued, you can accept requests right away. Because the guild card also acts as a border pass, I advise that you spend the night in the town.”

“I see. I don’t have any more questions.”

“Well, that’s it for today. I wish for Shin-sama’s success.”

Cilica executed a graceful bow, and Shin left the counter.

Shin went down the stairs and spoke with the receptionist who guided him before.

“Thank you for the help a little while ago.”

“The procedure was completed, I see. Well then, again, Welcome to the Adventurers’ Guild. My name is Celica Lindt, I am responsible for the request procedures. My best regards in the future.”

“I am Shin. Same here. Are you the elder sister of Cilica from the registration counter?”

“So it was Cilica in charge. Well, yes, I am the older sister of Cilica. Because we are twins, we look very alike.”

“I was surprised. I thought you could teleport instantly.”

“It is possible for a person coming here for the first time to have that curious look on their face when they return, just like that person over there.”

Shin followed Celica’s gaze after she said that. It was the figure of a new adventurer, who left the guild while tilting his head. He was the person next to Shin when he received an explanation earlier.

“And I often get mistaken for my sister, even in the guild. I hope Shin-sama won’t mix us up, too.”

Shin momentarily felt the pressure from Celica’s smile. As a matter of fact, Shin probably thought it was troublesome to pay attention to it.

“Still, I will do my best. Ah, can I ask you a question?”

Shin asked as he just recalled what Beid said to him. However, the big man next to Celica threw a glance at Shin a couple of times for some reason. Shin’s intuition was sounding alarms, but he decided to ignore it for now.

“Yes, feel free to ask.”

“I heard that adventurer named Els works here as receptionist.”

There were only two people (Celica and the big man) in the receptionist desk. Shin wanted to say ‘Miss’ before the receptionist, but was unable to, due to the big man next to Celica.

“I’m sorry, Els just received a request and is out-of-town right now. She will return today if no trouble occurs. Please ask again when you receive the guild card tomorrow. If she is not available, then I will pass her a message.”

Apparently, Shin got the wrong timing. Since she was an adventurer, she might not always here.

Shin was hoping for a better luck tomorrow.

“I see, then I will come again tomorrow.”

Celica bowed slightly and then Shin headed to the bar. He hadn’t eaten since he was transported to this world.

There were several guests in the bar besides the group of adventurers before. The average level was around 90.

Shin found a seat in a less crowded area. He then read the menu. Although the menu was written in Japanese, he didn’t understand what kind of dish would be served, so he just asked for today’s recommended set.

“Today’s recommended set, Shin-sama.”

“Oh, ah, yes…?”

Shin turned around and faced the waitress. He didn’t know why the waitress knew his name, then he saw the waitress’s face.

It was Celica with whom he just parted a while ago.

“EH!…weren’t you the receptionist just now?”

“Yes.”

“But you are wearing a different dress.”

“Yes, I wear the uniform of the guild at the reception desk.”

“Did you change your clothes?”

“Of course.”

“Isn’t that too fast? And why a waitress?”

“It’s normal to change clothes like this. Sometimes, I work here to help when the receptionist desk isn’t crowded.”

That’s not normal…Shin wanted to retort. It had only been 3 minutes since he left the receptionist desk, and then Celica appeared. He couldn’t help but think it was impossible.

After a while, a dish was served which consisted of a steak with a thickness of about 3 cemels, a salad of raw vegetables, and a soup. It was not a dish that could be cooked in a short time.

In the meantime, no one seemed to go to the receptionist desk since Celica left, so only the big man was there. Shin could sympathize with the adventurers who were taking requests at this time.

“Please help yourself to the dish.”

“Well, itadakimasu.”

Shin said so and started eating. For some reason, Celica settled herself on the seat in front of Shin.

(Wha…what is this development?…)

It couldn’t be helped, but it was uncomfortable to eat while being stared at.

Anyway, the dish was delicious, especially the steak. The salad had a pleasant texture, the stewed chicken meat was crispy and the soup was quite good.

However, the situation was quite uncomfortable. He couldn’t enjoy his meal.

“Is it okay for other customers to be left waiting, Celica-san?”

“It’s alright, another waitresses can serve them.”

It seemed that she didn’t want to leave.

“Though it’s hard to eat while being stared at…”

“Please don’t mind me.”

“That’s impossible, you know…”

She just replied with a smile. She said not to mind her, but Shin still felt uncomfortable.

“Haa, what is it, really? Is this harassment against newcomers?”

“Actually, there is something I want to confirm.”

“Then please say so from the beginning.”

“I just wanted to see what kind of person you are before that.”

Still, Shin thought he was being made fun of.

“Well? What is it that you want to confirm?”

Shin said so, and Celica answered in a lowered voice.

“Yes, I received a report that Shin-sama has a letter of introduction from a certain place.”

Shin only heard the words ‘letter of introduction’, and he could understand. Apparently, this was more important than Shin thought.

“Ah, is that so? I certainly have it.”

“Would it be okay for you if we go to another room to confirm the letter of introduction?”

“If I can finish my meal first, then it’s okay. Although I have to decline unless the guild master is there.”

“…………”

Shin said that as a joke, however Celica had become silent unexpectedly. In addition, he could felt her gaze wander around.

“…Well, it was a joke”

“…I’m sorry, I was asked by the guild master to take you there.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes”

From her firm voice, Shin could confirm that it was the truth. He felt disheartened, as he had to meet the highest authority in the guild on his first day.

“…Can’t we do it tomorrow?”

He secretly sighed, because it was an abnormal event to meet a guild master on his first day after coming to this world.

“Again, I’m sorry, but…”

Celica looked behind Shin after she said that.

The guild master was there behind Shin.

(Fuh, want me to turn around…ehhhhh!!!)

Shin knew there was someone behind him, but he didn’t think it was the guild master. He turned around reluctantly, and regretted his futile decision.

The person who stood behind Shin was an unexpected person.

“…………”

“I couldn’t wait anymore. I am sorry to disturb you while you’re eating. Hahaha”

It was the big man from the receptionist desk who just talked and laughed.

It was the big man who was throwing glances at Shin.

It was the big man who made Shin’s intuition send warning signs.

In other words, it was the big man.

“Hey, it’s you?!”

He was surprised that he used an informal tone unconsciously.

“I heard the report and I wanted to meet you immediately.”

The big man, who was said to be the guild master, talked with a smile.

“Barlux-sama. If you could just wait a little longer…”

“Not this one. After all, this is a thing to be worried about. Shin-kun, right? I’m Barlux. It may be a bit sudden, but can you come to my room?”

Apparently, Barlux was the name of the guild master. Speaking of guild master, Shin was surprised as he imagined a person of old age. The guild master’s appearance looked like a man in his late 30s to early 40s. There was a big scar on his face, if combined with his large stature, he gave of the feeling of intimidation right away. Despite that, he had this friendly smile which reduced the intimidating feeling by half.

Yet, his level was 228, the highest level he had seen in this world.

“Haa, though I don’t mind, please let me finish my meal first.”

“Of course, sorry about that. I’ll be waiting in my room.”

Barlux went back to his room after he said that.

“As a guild master, he looks pretty young. I thought some old man would be the leader in this place. Ah, so in this case, is an old man’s experiences not significant here?”

Shin talked based on the images he had in games and novels.

“I understand your thought. What Shin-sama said is not entirely wrong. In fact, most of the guild masters in other cities are elderly persons. Nevertheless, Barlux-sama is a former S rank adventurer, so his experience and connections are not inferior to the other guild masters.

“Former S rank, huh?”

Shin was still ignorant about this world’s common sense, but he could still imagine that the road to rank S wasn’t easy. If viewed from that level, that person would be considered a guild master.

He finished his meal while thinking about such things.

At the same time, he felt glances from everywhere after the appearance of the guild master. And then, he proceeded to the reception desk, guided by Celica.

There were rooms behind the reception desk, the room which Shin was guided to had complete furniture for a guest such as sofa, table, desk and bookshelf. Although Shin didn’t know its price, it gave the impression of first-class goods.

“Welcome to the adventurers’ guild. I’m sorry, I was rude earlier. I am Barlux Heim, the guild master.”

When Shin entered the room, Barlux shook Shin’s hand while he introduced himself.

“I am Shin. My best regards to you.”

Shin could feel that the hand he shook was stiff and rugged, and it was definitely powerful.

“Please take a seat.”

Shin sat on the sofa while Celica served tea on the table.

“Shin-kun. Although it’s a bit sudden, I want to see the letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora.”

“Here.”

The letter of introduction was taken out from Item Box, and he gave it to Barlux. At the same time, Barlux placed another paper on the table. Then, a pattern of a crescent moon that was drawn on the center of the letter, shined in silver.

“This is…?”

“The letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora is a little special. The magic of the introduction letters will resonate if brought near each other. The crest will shine like this. In other words, this letter of introduction is genuine.”

From Barlux’s explanation, it seemed to be the method of confirmation for the letter of introduction. And it appeared to be impossible to produce an imitation, as it would be found out right away.

“So it had this feature…”

Although he was astonished at the unexpected function, Shin couldn’t help but think that he should had gotten an explanation when he received it.

“No one told you about it?”

“I received it as an extra service, as a border pass.”

“Service…? Was it Schnee who gave it to you, or Tiera?”

“It was Tiera. Schnee was away.”

“Tiera huh. I think something outstanding must have happened, that she forgot to explain this, but she has good eyes for people though. Even I too, have seen a lot of people but she is always one step ahead.”

Barlux said as he laughed.

And it was true that something outstanding happened to Tiera, like a more than 100 years old curse was dispelled.

Still, were the eyes for people acquired through the wisdom of age?

“Fuh!”

As Shin thought about age, dread chilled up his spine.

The smiling face of Tiera with a background of flames came into his mind.

(Let’s stop thinking about age, I think it will be fatal…)

Because he had a bad premonition, he stopped thinking about it.

“? What’s the matter?”

“Ah, nothing.”

“Is that so? Then let’s continue the story from where I left off before.”

Said Barlux as he corrected his posture. It looked like this would be where the main subject would start.

“Because you haven’t heard the explanation, I’ll explain the uses of the letter myself. With the letter of introduction, it is possible to enter most countries without inspection. If it has information, it will be treated as final information. Each guild will even accommodate it differently. Also, in Bayreuth, you can even have an audience with the king. It will also serve as reliable identification.”

There was no doubt that what Beid was saying before was true. Although he didn’t talk about the guild or the information.

“The letter of introduction has that many uses. So naturally, there will be someone who will intend to snatch or steal it from you.”

“That makes sense…”

It could be misused for terrorism, smuggling of dangerous material, assassination and so on. Judging from a criminal’s and a crime syndicate’s viewpoint, they would desire it very badly.

“Therefore, I want you to tell me if you have the capability to protect it. If you can’t protect it, I suggest that you destroy it now.”

“…………”

Shin was thinking. With this letter of introduction, there would be advantages and disadvantages.

As for the advantages, it would become easier for him to cross the countries. And he could obtain trust from the country easily.

However, the disadvantage would be the danger from getting targeted of certain individuals or organizations.

At least, the advantages were indispensable for Shin. At the time of explanation of the guild by Cilica, he heard that entry to every country would become relatively easy if he had a guild card.

However, he considered that there was a difference in a moment of peril, and that there should be one that could strongly guarantee his identity in the case of an emergency.

There was also a demerit, as he was already known to the guards when he came to the town, and also to the people who were lining up at the southern gate. Besides, he was already known to the guild. He didn’t know the extent of protection of confidential information here, even if it was already exposed. Rather, it would be better if he acted just like normal.

(I will put it in the 『Important Things』 zone in my Item Box just in case, and avoid taking it out generously.)

From Tiera’s story, only a few people have an Item Box. In the 『Important Things』, even members of ‘Rokuten’ could not remove items he placed inside.

Although he didn’t have any way to confirm it.

“I can protect it.”

He concluded after thinking about it for a while.

“Is that your decision?”

“Yes.”

“You won’t regret this, will you?”

“Of course I won’t. Though I know that if I make mistakes, it will be bad for me and the store. If I was entrusted with this important thing, then I’ll make sure to fulfill that trust.”

Shin said confidently.

After all, he had decided on the answer before he thought about the issue of advantages and disadvantages.

Some might think that what Shin was doing was reckless and dangerous, but unfortunately, Shin’s life was targeted a lot. Shin obtained experiences that could deal with assassination and surprise attacks from surviving one year in THE NEW GATE, which had turned into a death game.

Even though his true intention was that he didn’t want to destroy the letter.

“Whew, well said. As expected from someone who holds the letter of introduction.”

“Though it was a bit exaggerated.”

“Too much modesty is not good. Once you hesitate, you will lose in life.”

“What does that mean?”

That was the guild master’s view, it seemed. That person could not be made light of.

“Hmm, how high is your level? I had to overcome numerous battles myself, until I almost reached the limit, yet I still can’t declare what you just did. I can understand that you are considerably strong.”

Indeed, he was a former S rank. He seemed to possess the ability to see through other’s capability, even if he didn’t have the skills.

“…must I answer it?”

“I’m sorry, but the guild needs to have a grasp on the level of an adventurer. Just the range of your level is sufficient. I cannot allow low-level adventurers to do dangerous requests.”

It appeared that Barlux said that not just out of curiosity.

He might need to confirm it not only as a person, but also for the guild, as the expectation of ability correlates to some degree if the level was known.

“I understand. My level is more than 150.”

“Hmm. Shin-kun, as I said just now, modesty is prohibited.”

Barlux raised one eyebrow after hearing Shin’s level. As expected from the guild master, he seemed to know if the level was too low.

“Is it not good enough?”

“It is not good, the level you said just now is far lower than your original level.”

Even though he didn’t want to say it smoothly because he heard the No. 2 was level 158, he was unable to deceive him.

“So you can tell without using【Analyze】”

“I’ve seen many adventurers as a guild master.”

“There’s no helping it, huh. My level is more than 200.”

Still, Shin didn’t want to admit his true level. He just added 50 levels to what he declared earlier.

“Hah!”

“Amazing…”

Barlux visibly showed an impressed smile as Shin told him his level again. Celica, who stood near the wall, unintentionally voiced her amazement.

“Is it something to be surprised about?”

Shin knew that Barlux was also above level 200, so that should not have surprised him.

“Although it was written in the document, you are 21 years old, correct?”

“Yes.”

“It’s not very often you meet a person who surpasses level 200 in their youth like you. I wonder if you and this country’s no. 1 can fight evenly.”

Although level 150 seemed to be too low, 200 in contrast, seemed too high.

“What is the current no. 1 person’s level?”

“It’s 230. She is the second princess of this country.”

“Are you serious?”

A strong princess!!! Shin wanted to retort.

(The princess is stronger than the captain of the elite forces…)

Because Barlux said the No. 1 of the country, he thought it might be the king or prince, or even a royal guard, but never a second princess.

“Isn’t there too much of a level difference with the knights? I heard from Tiera that the captain of the elite forces is level 158.”

“Captain of elite forces? Ah, you mean the leader of the knights? His level rose to 188 now. Maybe Tiera hasn’t heard about it since she is in the store all the time.”

“Still, the princess is No. 1…”

“It is because the second princess is in the fighter faction. Besides, she is quite popular and often makes an appearance in the town.”

“Is it safe for a royal family member to come into town?”

“The levels of the hooligans around there can’t even be compared to her level.”

It seemed that the strongest in the kingdom wasn’t just for show. The Horn Dragon that went out with Tiera’s story would had been killed if she fought it.

“Well then, Shin-kun. Actually, there is one more thing I want to confirm, if it is okay with you?”

“…It will depend on the subject”

Shin had an unpleasant foreboding about this.

“It’s simple. I want you to have a match with me.”

“I’m sorry, may I return now?”

“Unfortunately, you can’t.”

“I can’t?”

“It’s regrettable, but you don’t have the right to deny my request.”

Barlux told him plain and simple. He probably wanted to see Shin’s capability . He knew that it wasn’t necessary to be capable, even if Shin was a high level person.

“Somehow, my foreboding feeling came true.”

“I’m so sorry. I want to confirm it for the guild personally. No, I have to see it for myself.”

Shin frowned as his premonition came true.

Because of the glances he received at receptionist desk, he only felt a combative intention from Barlux’s eyes.

But somehow, he ignored Barlux’s intention. Though Shin also wanted to see the capability of a former S rank adventurer.

“…Yes, sir. I can understand that you won’t have a peace of mind if you don’t confirm my capability.”

When it was made public that Shin possessed a letter of introduction, Shin had to show that he had the capabilities to protect it.

“Where will we fight?”

“There is a training room that only guild members can use. That’s where we’re gonna fight. Do you need time to get ready?”

“No, I’m ready anytime.”

“Well then, let’s go there immediately.”

He arrived at a room about the same size as the one earlier after following Barlux. There was no furniture in the room, only a crystal about the size of a soccer ball, floating in the center of the room.

It resembled the transition point Shin often saw during the game.

“There is a training area in the basement. We can go there from this transition point.”

Apparently, the transition point seemed intact. It could be used by touching the crystal and saying the location.

Subsequently, they arrived in a place that had a considerable area like a Colosseum. It had a resting place, a training area inside the plaza, and an audience seating, except there were currently no adventurers around.

“There is no one here, is it always like this?”

“No, this is the second training area that is used for a special case like this. Common adventurers are training in first training area. Outsider can’t enter here without permission.”

“Is that so…”

It appeared that Shin didn’t have to worry about his surroundings. It was a great help, since Shin didn’t want to stand out.

“Then, shall we begin?”

As he said that, Barlux’s whole body was wrapped with blue light. The light disappeared after one second, and Barlux was equipped with light blue armor and gauntlets. The light blue armor appeared to be much thinner the a common light armor, it seemed to emphasize the easiness of movement. On the contrary, the gauntlets were heavy blue armor, that covered the fingers to the elbows.

It seemed that the equipment items for the arm showed a glove of Japanese style, the displayed gauntlet was of Western style. It might not be a significant difference, but there were slight additional bonuses for glove to AGI and gauntlet to VIT. The purpose of Barlux in wearing gauntlets might be to compensate for the thin armor.

According to 【Analyze】, Barlux’s job was, not surprisingly, a fist fighter. Shin was more surprised by the sudden equip of the armor and gauntlets, like a transformation hero.

In THE NEW GATE, the armor and gauntlets were equipped in the same way, too. The light formed and materialized after that. The reason was so it could perfectly fit into the avatar’s physique. Hence, this is why Shin had been avoiding wearing armor like Barlux, because it was flashy.

“…(There was such an item, huh?)”

“What the matter?”

“No, nothing.”

He had nothing to say about Barlux’s equipment scene, as it was a common scene anyway.

Shin didn’t have anything particularly to be equipped. To some extent, he wouldn’t use weapons since he understood the power of his opponent to some degree.

“Then, here I go!!”

In an instant, Barlux’s figure became blurry. Though the distances between the two of them was about 10 mels, he closed up to 5 mels in a blink and charged towards Shin.

“Those equipment are good and fast.”

If Shin had been without the bonus speed he obtained from Human reincarnation, he would lose against the equipment’ speed.

“Whew!!”

“Whew!”

The sound of wind cutting could be heard as they unleashed their fists towards each other. Barlux’s equipment was confirmed.

Light armor 【Light Blue Crystal Armor】 and gauntlet【Blue Fang Gauntlet】, Shin thought. It was definitely not a mistake, as Shin had sold both of them in the store before.

“Those are good equipments.”

“I had a hard time…obtaining…and put it on as it is…!”

Barlux said, while frowning, as he unleashed his fists to Shin, but Shin eluded them.

【Light Blue Crystal Armor】 was a rare armor with high AGI.

And the 【Blue Fang Gauntlet】 was a special unique weapon with high offensive power. It was made from the raw material of a unique monster of Lv. 600 named Blue Mitt Hound. 【Blue Fang Gauntlet】 was often equipped by high level players that used bare hands martial arts.

[[image:Barluxfight.jpg|thumb|Barlux said, while frowning, as he unleashed his fists to Shin, but Shin eluded them]]

“As expected, to be able to fend off my attacks easily.”

Barlux momentarily stopped his vigorous attack and distanced himself from Shin. He was talking while smiling wryly, but his eyes remained sharp to ascertain Shin’s next move.

Whereas, Shin didn’t actively attack the distanced Barlux, because he was wary about the ability of the gauntlet.

Besides high offensive power, its other ability was【When defending an attack using the gauntlet, the attacker receives 1/10 of his attack damage】. But there was a limitation in the gauntlet, it would only execute this ability if the wearer’s STR values was 100 or more, higher than the opponent’s.

Shin was watching the【Blue Fang Gauntlet】 and noticed the effect wasn’t activated.

(I might know his equipment better than he does. As both of our levels are more than 200, added with some bonuses, the STR didn’t reach the 100 difference. Besides, prying about it is troublesome. I want to end it in one shot.)

Shin was not in the mood to respond to the guild master’s talks.

“What are you thinking about?”

“I’m thinking how to attack, since you are strong.”

“Fuh, just from the fighting just now, you seem to know my equipment already. Only a few people who know about it still remain.”

“Well, what to do.”

While they were exchanging banter, Shin was thinking what to do next.

What he understood from the earlier fight, was that Barlux was a bare handed type. Although his range of attack was short, Barlux’s bare handed style excelled in attack speed, and the attack speed would rise with the effect from 【Light Blue Crystal Armor】. Therefore making it more difficult to defeat him.

(That gauntlet is troublesome…should I give it a try?)

He checked his skills and took a stance.

Barlux reacted to his movement, but Shin stepped forward quicker.

Shin left an afterimage after dashing towards Barlux. His steps shattered the soil as Shin jumped onto the air.

“Shuss!!”

In one breath, the distance of his right hand reached the target. Because it was an attack without a feint, Barlux reflexively defended with his gauntlet.

(He’s taking it!)

Shin began with conviction.

On the verge of his fist hitting the gauntlet, Shin changed the direction of his momentum and executed a sweep kick with his left leg.

“Guh!”

Though Barlux tried to reduce the damage by moving to the left, his reaction was delayed by Shin’s fist.

As a result, Barlux flew into the air.

【Blue Fang Gauntlet】 effects didn’t activate, because Shin didn’t hit it directly, so he didn’t have to worry about his damage being reflected.

Shin gripped Barlux’s gauntlet, which was defenseless now, and used the martial art skill 【Willow Throw】.

【Willow Throw】 was a technique of super low damage for capturing monster. So Shin didn’t have to worry about Barlux receiving fatal wounds. He used the skill without any hesitation.

The body of Barlux was thrown in the air and slammed onto the ground almost instantly. And then, Shin locked Barlux’s joint so he could not move.

“Phew. For now let us stop this, shall we?”

After confirming that Barlux couldn’t move, Shin asked. The match would not end quickly if they had the same stats.

“No way, to be easily suppressed like this. Though, I wonder about the last technique you used?”

“That’s a secret. It’s not a good idea to reveal too much of one’s ability.”

“Hahaha, that is certainly right. It’s my defeat. You have shown me your abilities. And I don’t need to be worried anymore.”

Barlux stood up and extended his right hand to Shin.

“?”

“The handshake earlier was as a guild master. And this handshake is for the people who are recognized by Tsuki no Hokora.”

“I see.”

Shin nodded and returned his handshake. Although it should be the same hand, Shin felt somewhat different.

“If there is anything you want, let me know, and the guild will try to cooperate to a certain extent.”

“Is this okay? To favor an individual?”

“No problem. It is a cooperation, so even a rank G adventurer is still a member of the guild.”

Be it one individual or a guild, Barlux didn’t seem to have any trouble lending power personally.

Returning into the room with the transition point, Celica who waited, welcomed the two of them by giving them potions.

Shin tried to refuse at first because he was unhurt, but decided to get it as Barlux insisted he take it.

“I hope for your success as an adventurer. Well then, see you again.”

After separating from Barlux, Shin walked to the passage to return to the guild hall with Celica.

“How was the match with Barlux-sama?”

“It was tough. I pray that there will be no second match.”

Because they were walking silently, Celica brought up the match with Barlux as the topic. He was a little anxious because the match ended quicker than the desired time.

“Because it’s not that often that one is able to fight with a guild master, it should be okay.”

“I have a feeling that I will be invited the next time as a practice partner…”

Shin sighed, as he promised not to repeat the situation where he would fight with a guild master in the future. While walking with Celica, a warrior with a level about 200 passed by them.

High level adventurers often wore an intimidating atmosphere, different from a commoner’s. Even for Celica, who, because of her job, had met a lot of them, she still unconsciously would get tense. However, no such presence could be felt from Shin. Rather, Celica felt something like a sense of security.

(A mysterious person…)

Celica was thinking about such things as the two of them arrived at the hall.

“Thank you for your hard work. Please take your time, since you can get the guild card anytime after tomorrow.”

“I will do that. Ah, could you recommend me to a good inn? I just arrived today, so I don’t know the area well.”

Shin asked while lowering his head a little. He felt ashamed because he couldn’t differentiate between the good or bad inns in the area. But he didn’t want to stay in the poor quality inns from day one.

“There is a good inn in the residence district named Bear Point Pavilion. I think you will like it, because the meals are delicious. With the guild on your right hand side, go straight down the street, until you see a signboard with a bear’s paw painted on it.”

“I understand. Bear Point Pavilion it is.. Thank you very much.”

Though Shin had a slight uneasiness about the word ‘Bear’, he believed that it would be all right, because Celica recommended it to him.

After expressing his gratitude to Celica, he exited the guild’s building.

Then, Shin began to walk leisurely towards the inn.

<noinclude>

==Translator's Notes and References==
<references />

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| Return to [[The New Gate|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[The New Gate:Volume 1 Chapter 3|Volume 1 Chapter 3]]
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</noinclude>

The New Gate:Volume 1 Chapter 2

2017-05-24T23:40:17Z

Xiani:

Extinction. That's what Tiera had said.

The High Human race was extinct.

“…Then, there aren't any more humans around?”

“No, humans are still around. You saw the knights just a little while ago.”

“Really!?”

Shin had misunderstood what she'd said about the Human extinction and had automatically responded.

“Only the High Humans went extinct, not all humans.”

“What’s the difference?”

“There is a difference. The High Human race consisted of only 6 people who ruled the Redmond continent. Even 10,000 humans couldn’t win against them. Their strength was in another dimension.”

“The continent was ruled by 6 people?”

Shin remembered such a place that'd been ruled by 6 people. He had a feeling he'd heard such an episode before.

“Can you explain in more detail?”

“Even though most people know this... all right then, I’ll tell you. Around 500 years ago, High Humans ruled the continent. Though there were only 6 of them, the other races couldn’t even touch them because of their overwhelming power.”

“…………”

“However, their reign suddenly ended.”

“Ended?”

“Yes, ended. It wasn't just the High Humans. Many other races such as High Elves, High Lords, High Beasts, and High Dwarfs also disappeared. Many influential people like Kings, Elders, Heroes, and Generals disappeared as well. It’s said that the disappearance was sudden. According to Master, numerous influential and strong men disappeared. The day of the disappearance was called the ‘Dusk of the Majesty’.”

“The Dusk of the Majesty…”

“It is said that all High Humans disappeared during then. And there were only 6 of them.”

A sudden disappearance. Shin had a theory about that.

A phenomenon which caused many people to disappear.

(It’s that day. The day I defeated ‘Origin’, and everyone logged out. There is no conclusive evidence, but ‘Dusk of the Majesty’ might be the result from that day.)

The Kings, Heroes, and Elders were probably guild masters. Tens of thousands of people were expected to be released from the game. Shin didn’t know the exact number, but there were at least 10,000 people stuck in the game. It probably looked like a sudden disappearance for the people in this world.

(To think that 6 High Humans had ruled the continent before that…)

Shin finally understood. 6 of the High Human race. Without a doubt…

(It’s…us…)

Back when THE NEW GATE was still a good VRMMO, before it'd turned into a death game, there was one guild that was said to be the strongest in the game.

The guild was named ‘Rokuten’<ref>T/N: I used the romaji name, Rokuten『六天』 not ‘Devas’ in the manga, Rokuten means six heavens/six skies</ref> since it was formed with the 6 High Humans. The small guild defeated major guilds one by one in THE NEW GATE, until its name was known to all players in just one month. They had a reputation of ‘PK’ing players who tried to oppose them.

Shin was a former member of Rokuten at the beginning. Back then, it was stupid to choose the human race when playing for the first time. Human were despised by other races and Shin had a dark history because of that.

Needless to say, all member were composed of High Humans and had almost maxed stats. Even the weakest member had HP and MP maxed, while the rest of the players averaged around 900 for their stats.

While in competition with every other major guild, the battles that took place looked unbelievable as it was 6 people against thousands of people. At that time, each field was burnt up by an expanding wide-range fire magic. The leader who was surprised got ambushed and it was settled.

Since then, no one dared to provoke the Rokuten guild. Even the ones to hold derision against human had decreased. Not only was the combat power of High Human shown, their unusual magic resistance was also demonstrated. Most magic didn’t have effect on them. Moreover, Poisons, Paralysis, Confusion, Enchanting, Burn, Frostbite, Confusion, Petrifaction, all of them were ineffective against a High Human. Besides, it only took a few second for them to completely cure their bodies.

It was rather fortunate (or unfortunate) that only Shin among the Rokuten got stuck in the death game. At least three months or more could be reduced if another person from Rokuten was there, thought Shin.

“…………”

“What’s wrong? Why are you suddenly silent?”

“No, it’s nothing. Do you mind if we change the topic to the currency?”

Shin felt he would be digging his own grave if he continued to talk about High Humans, so he deliberately changed the topic to the currency, which they talked about before.

“No, it’s alright. Is this the currency you have been using?”

“Yes.”

“Ah, to be able to bring out such valuable item, maybe you being a High Human isn’t a lie after all.”

Apparently Tiera didn’t believe that Shin was a High Human.

While sighing, Tiera took the gold coin and looked at it. She seemed to be confirming whether it was genuine.

And Shin doubted what Tiera’s meant by ‘valuable’.

“Is is valuable? It‘s only 1 G though.”

1 Geyl was equivalent to 1 Yen in the game. If converted, it’s value would be worth 1/1000 Yen in reality. It was the lowest currency in the game. Incidentally, Shin’s Item Box contained one hundred million Geyl. It was a mystery, as why it was displayed ‘G’ as ‘Geyl’ not ‘Gold’ with the gold coin.

“The Geyl gold coin is often abbreviated to G gold coin. However, now it’s hard to obtain. You might not know this, but the Geyl gold coin is a magic item that can amplify magic. It is occasionally found in ruins. When a Geyl gold coin gets exhibited in auctions, it can reach a billion Jul or even more. The Jul is the current commonly used currency on how many J gold coin<ref>T/N: 1 J gold coin = 1,000,000 J and 1 J silver coin = 10,000 J. E.g. If you have 2 J gold coins and 87 J silver coins, you’ll have a total 2,870,000 J</ref> or how many J silver coin…J means to be used as a method of counting.
“So this one is worth 1 billion…”

“A magician would kill to get even one as the price is enormous and most can’t afford it. Though master had shown me one, it is my first time to seeing any other than that. After all, 1 billion is the minimum amount you can get, the price can reach 10 times more than that.”

“For this one Geyl gold coin to be worth that much…by the way, how often it can be found?”

“Rarely, but I can’t say. Even when new ruins were discovered, the chances of finding it were still very low.”

“Is that so? Look like I have to be careful when buying goods.”

Shin thought about converting it to increase his funds, but he canceled it after realizing how valuable it was.

“That’s a wise decision, but you are doing it just now.”

“That’s an awful joke. However, I will be careful next time.”

“Are you going to sell something? I told you I’d buy if you have good materials or items.”

“Well, how about this?”

Shin took out item cards, which he got whilst traveling, from the Item Box. In the game, it was possible to change an item into a card. It was the same in this world, too. The materials turned into cards automatically and could even be stored in the Item Box. Once the item became a card, a picture of the item was drawn on the card. The card could be materialized anytime.

Shin put his item cards on the counter. The item cards varied from Tetra Grizzly, Twinhead Snake, Flame Boar, and their fangs, claws, furs, meats and so forth to raw materials such as sparkling jewels.

In the game, the materials can be sold and processed in various places. The jewel would especially fetch a high price, because it was able to give attributes or additional effects to equipment and weapons, and only if it was done by blacksmiths. Jewels could be found as monsters drop them after being killed, though the drops’ probability are low. The jewels which Shin showed were Grade 7, which was the lowest grade.

“Item cards…”

“Hmm? What is it? Is there something strange?”

“No, if you have an Item Box, this is natural, isn’t it? Though I don’t know if you already know this, so I’ll say it just in case. Because an item card is also expensive to a certain degree, it’s better not to take them out recklessly.”

“It’s troublesome. Should I purposely treat them as the materials?”

“That’s the normal way! You are really weird!”

“Ah, I see… I see. I understand, so please calm down.”

“Mou~, you made me mad again.”

While saying that, Tiera still focused on doing her job. She materialized the item cards and began to appraise them. Even though she was surprised, she still knew how to use the item cards.

“From Tetra Grizzly to Twinhead Snake and Flame Boar. Not only are these materials of ferocious monsters, none of these monsters can be found unless you go deep into the woods. Just what kind of person are you?”

“I just defeated them on my way here. The fight was not so ferocious as you described though.”

“But it takes several knights to kill one monster…well whatever, as long as you defeated them. I’m not that surprise after all that occurred before.”

It seemed that the monsters were unexpectedly dangerous. Shin had thought they were beginner monsters.

“Well, don’t worry about it. Leaving that aside, how are the items?”

“That’s right. The raw materials are still in a good state due to the materialization of the card. The material’s price would be 1 J gold coin and 27 J silver coins, so the total would be 1,270,000 J. The jewel is Grade 7 with a high purity, so the price is 25 J gold coins, so the price is 25,000,000 J. All together would be 26,270,000 J.

“I don’t know whether it’s expensive or cheap due to the conversion of currency…”

“It’s a little less than the original price, but the price of jewels can go up and down depending on the market. This grade and purity is usually worth about 20,000,000 ~ 23,000,000 J.

“Oh, I’m lucky. I gained more than 2,000,000 J.”

“How is it? If you are fine with the price, I’ll buy it.”

“It is my pleasure. I’ll sell it. Thank you. And I’ll give you this as well.”

While saying that, Shin pointed to the Geyl gold coin on the counter.

“…Is this a joke?”

“Why would it be!?”

“Didn’t you hear me speak a while ago!? A Geyl gold coin is worth billions, no one in their right mind would give it freely in this world.”

“Here.”

Shin pointed at himself.

“Are you sure?…I’m not going to return it even if you ask for it.”

“Yup.”

Tiera quickly grab the Geyl gold coin and held it to her chest. Her eyes were sparkling while looking at the Geyl gold coin. At this time, Shin’s eyes were glued at Tiera’s chest, he was like a sad man’s destiny.

“Ah, it’s like dream come true… a G gold coin…”

Tiera’s expression changed completely to a delighted face with enchanting eyes. Shin suddenly felt a strange seductiveness from her, which caused his cheek to turned slightly red. He was then shaking his head to remove the dirty thought.

“Well, I’m glad you like it. Elves should find it useful since you can use ma――”

“Wait a moment!”

“――gic.”

Tiera interrupted Shin’s speech and stood up abruptly. Her expression had a look of someone who saw something unbelievable.

“…What is it?”

“Just now…did you say elf?”

“Ah, I said it…oh? Wasn’t it elf?”

Shin remembered that the facial feature of elves and High Elves were pointed ears, so he wanted to confirm it…Shin was still puzzled, because it may be a race he never seen before.

“I should look like a cat girl with red hair and black eyes.”

“Cat girl with red hair and black eyes?”

Cat people was one of the popular Beast races among female players and a certain group of male players. There were various derivations in Beast races, as for cat people, there are Persian cat, Calico cat and so forth. In addition, players were divided from their animal model, some players had the same face, arms, tail, wings and many more, while some only a portion of their body.

But in Shin’s eyes, Tiera was a beautiful black-haired and golden-eyed elven girl. There was no cat person, red hair, and black eyes.

“I can only see a beautiful elf girl with black hair and golden eyes in front of me.”

“That…”

He tried to emphasize her beauty, but it seemed she didn’t hear it.

“How? Master already cast illusion magic on me.”

“Illusion magic?”

Speaking of illusion magic, it was usually used to confuse or show hallucinations to the other party. It was a magic that had left a strong impression on Shin, because one of the magic’s users was from Rokuten.

“Uuu…to be exposed like this…”

Tiera was looking down and her face looked like the world was coming to an end. Tiera’s sudden depression caused Shin to desperately try to resolve the situation, since he didn’t know much about her and what caused her to be dejected.

“Um…Tiera?”

“Wha…what is it?”

He intended to talk gently, but Tiera was nervous that it was exaggerated.

“I noticed Tiera is an elf only because it is one of my quality features.”

“Qua…quality?”

“Yes. Illusion magic is the magic that shows hallucinations to and confuses the other party. However, it might be not effective towards the guys who have a strong resistance against magic. Therefore, that’s why I see the true form of Tiera.”

“But…even with strong resistance, for the magic that master cast to be broken…”

Even with Shin’s explanation, Tiera still wore the face that showed disbelief. According to Shin’s memory, Schnee, who was the master of Tiera, was a Lv. 255 High Elf. Furthermore, the magic used was surely strong, because High Elves were a magic specialized type. Though the status couldn’t be compared to Shin’s. Even other High Humans virtually could not match Shin’s stats, so no illusion magic could affect him.

Shin sighed after a long pause.

“Saw it”

“Hmm?”

“You, you saw my true form, right?”

“I saw a beautiful elven girl with black hair and golden eyes, did I make a mistake?”

“…………”

No response. Shin became discouraged and demoralized.

“…Aren’t you scared?”

Shin, who was regretting that he said something strange, heard Tiera’s soft voice. Her voice was like a child who was frightened by something.

“Scared of what?”

Shin immediately relaxed his thoughts and talked in a calm manner.

Still, is he frightening her?

When Tiera said in a trembling voice, Shin remembered one of the Rokuten member’s face.

Shin was proud of the login time he wasted for gamer class as he was having fun. But that member was hospitalized because of his excessive playing time.

The story was confessed during the offline meeting among members. Shin had a feeling that it was the same atmosphere at that time, as now with Tiera.

He was scared that the his true self was known.

But there was no one in Rokuten that cared about such things. Shin remembered that the member was very relieved.

Because there was such a situation, Shin was able to listen to Tiera without feeling shaken and changing expression.

“…You don’t know this either, do you?…Black-haired Elves are the symbol of bad luck.”

Tiera spoke while looking down.

“The symbol of bad luck?”

“Yes, Every elf is born with white hair. As they grow up, it turns gold, silver, green or blue-green colored. Can you believe it? My own hair was originally silver-colored.”

Tiera’s face looked like she was punishing herself.

“But now my hair is black. There is never a time when an elf’s hair turns black.”

“Never turns black?”

“Yes, elves with black hair bring misfortune. It happened to me all the time. Strong monsters suddenly attacked my village many times, and I was expelled from my village because of that.”

“…………”

“I was picked up by master after wandering aimlessly. And this store has a strong barrier to prevent the monsters from attacking. So I have not left this store for more than 100 years.”

“100 years?…That’s a long time.”

“Yes, but since I can live without inconveniencing someone, this is good for me.”

It’s impossible to be good, Shin wanted to shout. To be confined in the store for 100 years could never be good. However, he refrained from saying that, because nothing could be changed even if it was said. He clenched his fists in anger.

Although not even a day had yet passed since their meeting, Shin personally could properly comprehend why he was angry at himself.

“…Tiera, I want to confirm something.”

“…Confirm what?”

“Ah, though Tiera’s hair was originally silver-colored, why is it black-colored now?”

Shin had a feeling that it would give him a hint.

“It suddenly became black-colored on a certain day.”

“Suddenly?”

“Yes, suddenly. I woke up in the morning as usual, and it had become black-colored. I was really scared at that time, as I didn’t understand what had happened.”

As Tiera recalled that time, her body was trembling while hugging herself tight. From Tiera’s explanation, Shin was thinking at full steam for relevant information or knowledge.

“Suddenly, hair color changed…Attacked by monsters…The color of the hair…Changing color characteristic…Monsters…Attacked multiple times…Encountered many times…Possibly strong…The characteristic of color change…Vulnerable to monsters…Such a thing!?”

While Shin murmured something, a moment flashed in Shin’s mind. If his memory was correct, a possible condition was met.

“There…there is a way if the conditions are met!!”

“Eh? What is it?”

Shin was shouting while staring at Tiera. Tiera was shaken by Shin’s sudden shout.

Despite that, Shin’s eyes remained fixed on Tiera.

“I wonder why I had forgotten. However with this…hmm? This is strange, why is the status not displayed? It should be automatic.”

The reason Shin keep staring at Tiera was because he wanted to see her status. If Shin’s prediction was correct, then the status should appear.

“Uhm… ‘Skill Window Open’…Analyze…Analyze…ah, here it is. Display player and monster except when turned off. If I turn this on…”

Shin looked at Tiera again after applying the setting. Tiera felt a little uncertain as Shin was glaring into empty space while moving his finger.

“Okay, now I can see the status. Name, level, race…good…and…Ahhhhhh!!”

Shin, who found what he looked for, unintentionally posed a victory pose. Tiera, who was watching Shin’s eccentricity, stayed on guard.

“Be delighted, Tiera! I just found out what causes your bad luck.”

“Eh?”

“Believe me. I’m sure because the display status appeared. The color of hair changes, the multiple attacks by monsters, they are all caused by 【Cursed Gift】.”

“【Cursed Gift】?”

Tiera was dumbfounded because she didn’t understand its meaning.

【Cursed Gift】 was a curse that suddenly occurred in THE NEW GATE. It was literally bad luck.

Originally, players could obtain 【Title】 or 【Gift】 from regularly clearing the quests. On occasion, support abilities and items could be gained from it. Depending on the 【Title】, stats could be slightly strengthened as more new skills became available.

Then suddenly the 【Cursed Gift】 had fallen to all players. The curse had negative effect such as random status degradation, gained all kind of abnormalities, random encounters with strong, unique monsters and so on. It could only be cured with the magic skill 【Purification】or by using the item 【Holy Water】.

Although the negative effect was random, the players with 【Cursed Gift】had some part of their body turn black. Their status screens also showed an image of a laughing reaper.

Subsequently, Shin had confirmed that there was a laughing reaper shown at Tiera’s status screen.

“Alright, to make this quick, Tiera, I want you to step out from behind the counter and stand at the center of the store.”

“Eh…okay…”

As Shin said that, Tiera stood at the center of the store without much resistance as she was confused at the situation.

“Here I go. Activate 【Purification】!!”

In order to eliminate the curse, Shin extended his right hand toward Tiera and activated his magic skill 【Purification】. Shin acquired the skill that mainly used by a priest due to a certain circumstance.

Golden light began to gather on Shin’s right hand. At the same time, Tiera’s whole body was wrapped in golden light.

“It’s…it’s warm…”

Although Tiera was surprised when she got wrapped in the light, she didn’t feel any danger from the light emitted. Tiera felt comfort and warmth instead, while the purification process took place.

After about 5 minutes, the light gradually dimmed and disappeared.

Even after the light disappeared, the absentminded Tiera took a while to come back to her senses.

“…Was it successful?…”

Muttered Shin as he felt baffled. The laughing reaper’s icon slowly faded on Tiera’s status screen as Shin looked at it. However, the hair that should have returned to its original color, was still mostly black. A silver highlight was seen among the black hair.

The atmosphere between those two became silent for a while, because it was hard to determine whether the curse had disappeared.

“So, how is it?” Tiera asked.

“The curse is gone…it’s…it’s…but…the hair wasn’t completely restored…”

He had a hard time saying it.

“Hair?”

“Ah…I’m sorry, only part of your hair returned to its original color. But just in case, please confirm it.”

Shin said while feeling discouraged. A mirror was taken out from Item Box and passed to Tiera. Tiera snatched the mirror from Shin after she heard the word hair, and held it in front of her.

Tiera’s face was reflected in the mirror. There was a face that never changed. But one portion of her hair changed into a shining silver-color.

It was obviously the color Tiera once had.

“…Sob…sob…”

Tears started to flow down from Tiera’s eyes.

After that, tears started to burst out like a broken dam.

“Uu…sob…uu…”

While wiping her tears with her sleeve, Tiera cried quietly.

And in front of Tiera, there was a man who was totally confused.

Needless to say, it’s Shin, after all.

The girl who cried in front of him was not a little child, but an adult woman, yet due to Shin’s limited reasoning ability, he just remained still in that situation.

“Sob…just a moment…hick…need to…catch my breath…”

“Ah, I understand. Just take it slow.”

Shin passed a towel as he returned to his senses and dragged the chair from by the counter to let Tiera sit while she wept.

 
◆◆◆◆◆◆

 About 5 minutes later, Tiera raised her face from the towel. No tears remained, but her eyes were still red.

“I’m sorry, I’m alright now.”

“Is that so?”

“Why are you using honorifics?”

“No, well. Even though I removed the curse, your hair is mostly unchanged so I felt apologetic for that…”

While Tiera was crying, Shin was afraid that she might get angry again because of the hair.

However, judging from Tiera’s expression, she hadn’t shown any signs of being angry. At this time, Shin became timid. And just a while ago, the position was the exact opposite.

“I’m good about the hair…Please don’t use honorifics towards me. After more than 100 years of having black-colored hair, even if it’s only a little that has returned, I’m glad.”

Tiera smiled and looked very happy as she said that. And all the frightening feelings that Shin had, dissipated after seeing Tiera’s smile.

“Really? I am glad too.”

But, Shin thought. His mother and his younger sister always said that the hair was very important to women. That’s why Shin felt unsatisfactory for her.

“Yes, I’m really good, so don’t worry about it. But is the curse gone for real?”

“Ah, it should be, no doubt about it. I think it will be clear if you go out from the store.”

Since Tiera said it’s good, Shin convinced himself not to fuss about it.

Tiera’s curse, which was random encounters with unique monsters, couldn’t be proven to have disappeared unless she went outside the barrier. Because high level unique monsters couldn’t creep inside the barrier.

THE NEW GATE pursued reality in the game, so unbreakable objects were almost nonexistent. And the player’s stores, like Shin’s, were often aimed at by thieves player.

Therefore, many skills barrier system existed to prevent intrusion to the store. Which were applicable to monsters, too.

“Honestly, it is a little scary. What if the curse wasn’t dispelled?”

“It’s okay. Since I was cured from the curse too.”

“Eh? Eh!! You got cursed too!?”

“Ah, yes, my curse type was random encounters with high level unique monsters too, but I cured it with 【Purification】skill.

When Shin was cursed, the unique monsters thoroughly tried to attack Shin repeatedly, until Shin was tired of it. And there was a time when Shin used them to raise his level.

“Is that so. Then, what was the highest level of monster that has attacked you?”

“Horn Dragon was probably the strongest. I think it was around level 200.”

“Is that the higher rank species of Lesser Dragon?”

“You know?”

“Ah, only a little.”

Horn Dragon was a higher rank species of Lesser Dragon, their size was twice as large and they had horns on their heads. Lesser Dragons were only around Lv. 100, but Horn Dragons were around Lv. 200. Tiera’s level was 57 from what Shin saw in the status screen, so there’s no chance of winning against the dragon.

In THE NEW GATE, the maximum level of a player was 255, and the maximum level of monsters was 1000. It was about four times more than the players. This was solved by reincarnation like Shin or other high level players. Especially Shin, or Rokuten similarly, could easily beat boss monsters and never get tired from it. But even Shin couldn’t let his guard down, as a boss monster was usually Lv. 1000. So Shin didn’t even feel any danger from Lv. 200 unique monsters.

“However, it is said that several elite forces of knights are needed to take on a Horn Dragon.”

“Elite forces? Why do they need the elite group for something like that?”

“Shh..They are the real elite, you know. Did you see a huge rampart next to the store before you came here?”

“Ah, I think I saw it.”

“That’s the reinforced rampart that surrounds the Kingdom of Bayreuth. Well, the captain of the elite force of the knights group in this country is only level 158. And the Horn Dragons are about level 200, so the captain needs 40 more levels to fight it head on. And only those with a screw loose in their head will take on that monster alone, so no one can brag about it.”

“158…that’s…?”

“Yes, it is absurd to even challenges the Kingdom’s no. 2 strongest alone.”

It seems that Tiera thought Shin was surprised by the captain’s high level. But actually, the level was too low. Shin thought it was absurd to have that level. And the level had barely reached the intermediate class in the player’s standards. Particularly, player’s standards like Shin’s.

If a monster that had a higher level than Horn Dragon appeared, it might annihilate two or three countries. Shin thought.

“Well then, let’s leave the store so that we can see whether the curse is gone.”

“Wait, didn’t you hear my story?”

“I heard it. It’s better to find out now if there are any more problems.”

“Not gonna happen. What if a Horn Dragon attacked us?”

“Oh.”

“…….Hey, just to make sure, what is your level?”

“I’m level 255?”

“…………”

Both of them went silent. Shin said it honestly, but it seems that Tiera doubted him.

“Tiera?”

“255…? Same as master?”

“Ah yes, my level is 255, same as Schnee.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“Is it really true?”

“It is true.”

“Really hone――”

“Yes! yes! I’ve said it many times!”

“――st…”

The conversation stopped before it became a truth battle.

“Are you able to use 【Analyze】? If you can, then you can see my stats too.”

“I can’t. Only the skill successor can use it.”

“What’s a skill successor?”

“…I begin to doubt your common sense.”

If he was a resident of this world, he would know that too. But Shin, who arrived in this world just a while ago, didn’t know anything about common sense. Rather, he just assumed it was the same as in the game and went with the flow.

“Even if it’s said to be common sense, I do not understand it well because I lived far from human villages for a long time.”

Since he couldn’t say that he was in a game before coming here, he decided to say that he lived as a hermit. It was the most likely excuse for his ignorance of this world, thought Shin.

“I understand. I will tell you everything you need to know, just ask if you have something you don’t understand.”

“Thank you.”

Shin bowed his head to express his gratitude while Tiera said “Somehow…”.

“First of all, the skill successor. Because the people who can read the symbols are lost along with the skills. Skills can only be inherited nowadays. A lot of skills were lost during the ‘Dusk of the Majesty’ and currently, less than 100 skills still remain.”

“Less than 100, huh?…”

Shin unable to hide his surprise for that number. THE NEW GATE was known for its numerous skills, and the number coming out of Tiera’s mouth was not even 1/10 of the total amount of skills.

“Nowadays, skills are used to gain personal benefit. The people who make a living by fighting, such as adventurers and knights, are using weakened skills which are called Arts. Though it has the same name with as the original skill, its power and effect only amounts to 1/3 of the original. The magic my master showed to me was ‘Magic Skills’, but I can only use ‘Magic Arts’. And naturally the power gap is huge.”

“I see, the skills that turned weak are called arts. Is there a separate level in arts?”

Some level in skills have their own setting. Shin activated 【Analyze • Ⅹ】. He immediately understood the skill right away, because the letter of Ⅰ~Ⅹ was attached after the skill name. The lowest was Ⅰ, and the highest was Ⅹ. This setting system was almost nonexistent in combat skills, and most support skills were using this setting system.

“As far as I know, arts do not have levels like skills.”

“It will be hard to fight using arts…”

Shin couldn’t help to think that it’s difficult to fight using arts, as skills were more favorable than arts.

“You can use skills, right? What skills are you able to use? Just now you used one, didn’t you? How many skills can you use? 2? 3? No way!! Is it 4!?”

“Indeed, one digit is too few. I’m certain that I can use at least 1000 or more. Although I don’t know the exact number, because I never counted them.”

“What? 1000? Did I hear it wrong?”

Tiera tilted her head and thought whether Shin was making a joke or not. It felt like a joke, because it strayed too much from this world’s common sense, even though the joke was the truth.

“Do you have the【Analyze】skill by chance? I can lend it to you, although the skill is only level Ⅰ, so it can’t see my limit break level, but it wouldn’t hurt to have it either. Well, I’ll use the skill 【Secret Books Creation】.”

“?”

Tiera looked puzzled as Shin once again moved his hand in the air.

“Creation successful.”

“…”

“Wha, what is this?”

Shin handed a scroll to Tiera. Various potential derivation of skills mastery could be learned and benefited if the skill proficiency was raised to a certain level. One of the benefits of 【Secret Books Creation】 was that it was possible to creates items. 【Secret Books Creation】 was able to make scrolls. When 【Secret Books Creation】 was used, it was possible for other player to learn the skill from the book.

Although it’s reasonable, various restrictions were imposed to the skill, such as the number of skills that could be made was fixed, players couldn’t learn the skill if the acquisition condition were not met, and so forth.

To begin with, 【Secret Books Creation】 also had some skills that were impossible to make. As there were only few strong skills that could be created by 【Secret Books Creation】. High class skills from 【Secret Books Creation】 were limited to low-level, and there was a level restriction too.

【Analyze】wasn’t technically seen a skill. Even the restrictions from 【Secret Books Creation】 were kept at a minimum. So Shin could share the skill with other players unlimited because of this. It was one of the reasons why he made that scroll.

“The secret book of 【Analyze】. If you read this, you will be able to use this skill.”

Because 【Secret Books Creation】was usable for a support character, Shin thought of making good use of it. However, he intended to apologize if it didn’t work. These kind of things wouldn’t be understood if he didn’t try it.

“Can the skill be used after this? But I don’t have anything of equivalent value to this.” “Equivalent value?”

Shin was going to give it for free, but Tiera seems didn’t get it. Apparently, skills were a substantially valuable thing in this world.

“I told you, didn’t I? Skills are valuable too. Anyhow, one would need a large sum of money for an apprentice like me to get a skill from a master. And you will give this to me for free?”

“Eh, It is, even though I was going to say it. Did I do something wrong?”

“For the time being, please refrain from raising this matter to anyone. Because it could become a serious matter. Depending on the situation, one life might be targeted.”

“To that extent!?”

Shin decided to instruct only the fellows he trusted with the skills from 【Secret Books Creation】, as he never thought that his life could be targeted by someone.

“Well, don’t get too scared. I think Tiera will be safe, so have you read it yet?”

“No, after I use it, will there be any compensation claims?”

“No!!”

Am I an evil swindler!? Shin wanted to retort. However, because there was the possibility of one life getting targeted, it was normal to be cautions.

“Giving away a skill for free is your modus operandi, isn’t it?”

“If that’s the case, then I should have made a high-class skill to deceive you.”

“To me, even this skill is very valuable. It must be a great feeling to have several skills.”

“But I cannot use arts. And I thought this is natural, so I have no feelings about it, because I think I possessed all the skills.”

“What a ‘luxurious agony’…well, whatever. I’ll receive it without reservation then.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it. It would be rather embarrassing if you didn’t take it.”

Tiera took the scroll and seemed convinced for the time being. Shin urged her to read it, so she opened it and took a look at the scroll.

When she began to read it, a light wrapped Tiera’s body and faded after 10 seconds. This was the effect when a skill was acquired. And apparently the skill learning process had been completed.

“How is it?”

Shin was anxious because he didn’t know if 【Secret Books Creation】 would work in this world. That’s why he needed to test it.

“Somehow it is a mysterious feeling. 【Analyze】 showed up in my head after I opened the scroll, and something like flows special effect coming out. However, there is no unpleasantness.”

“Eh, is that so?”

Shin was relieved as the skill was successfully learned. From here on, he would keep that in mind in case he used it again.

“I can see your name, but the other stats have a weird symbol on them.”

“As expected, the name is visible. Well, the weird symbol is called question mark. It will only show when the level difference is huge. So it’s common not seeing the stats.”

“Eh, originally the name is not visible. But now that I gained a skill, I can see it, although your stats are hidden because of the level difference. This skill more or less shows that you are indeed strong.”

“Will you believe me now? I will keep you safe from monsters when you go out of the store.”

“I have no choice but to consider what we have done till now, so I’ll believe in you.”

Tiera seemed more willing to believe in Shin thanks to the skill 【Analyze】 that she had learned. There might be some uneasiness of course, since Tiera had constantly been attacked by monsters up till now.

“I’ll go out first to check the surrounding area just in case. After that, please come out.”

“Okay, sure.”

Shin went out of Tsuki no Hokora and looked at the surrounding area to make sure there were no monsters around. 【Search】 also confirmed that there were no monsters in the vicinity.

“All clear, you can come out now!”

Tiera peeked outside the door as she looked at the surroundings.

At Tsuki no Hokora, there were skill barriers – 【Barrier • Ⅹ】 and 【Wall • Ⅹ】 set by Schnee. The 【Barrier • Ⅹ】 could prevent monsters from Lv. 900 to 1000 (Depends on the user’s levels) from attacking the store, and even if they attacked, the invisible wall could counterattack.

And 【Wall • Ⅹ】could prevent player intrusion (Also depends on the user’s level) from level 230-255. Because both of them were of the highest level, the invasion was impossible even with 【Cut Through】.

By the way, for 【Wall • Ⅹ】, it’s necessary to set the setting permission so that general guests weren’t mistaken for invaders. Players were prohibited using weapons and combat skills in Tsuki no Hokora. When Shin was the store owner before, he went into details, such as preventing players from equipping weapons.

At present, the radius of the barrier skills were around 20 mels. (T/N: In case you forgot, 1 mel = 1 meter)

“Come, over here.”

“Ehh, okay…”

When Shin beckoned her, Tiera approached slowly. That was because Shin was standing about 1 mel from outside of the barrier.

“…………”

“…………”

Shin watched the surrounding area while Tiera was silent because of the nervousness.

For about 5 minutes, there was no change in the surroundings, except warm winds that stroked their hair.

“Nothing is happening.”

“Yup, nothing happens.”

Furthermore, after 5 minutes, Shin judged that there was no problem. It was because the curse would make monsters to attack once in every 10 minutes.

“There is no monster coming.”

“Indeed.”

In the first 5 minutes, Tiera was nervous and couldn’t stop checking the surroundings.

“The curse is finally gone, right?”

[[image:Tieracry.jpg|thumb|Tiera replied to Shin’s question while looking up at the sky]]

“It sure is.”

Tiera replied to Shin’s question while looking up at the sky.

The sky was so vast and blue, it made Tiera’s eyes open wide. It was not compressed by the store’s windows she always saw it from.

She could feel the wind, the sunlight and smell the scent of the forest. Such nostalgic feelings spread to Tiera’s mind.

Shin felt relieved as he saw Tiera looked up at the sky. While it was still necessary to be frightened by monsters, at least she no longer needed to worry about her surroundings or troubling people. It was possible to go outside the store freely from now on.

“The sky is so wide.”

“Oh.”

Tiera muttered as she just remembered.

Then Shin looked up at the sky with Tiera for a while.

The corner of Tiera’s eyes shined as she looked at the wide sky, and Shin didn’t say anything.

“Let’s go back soon.”

Said Tiera, while Shin turned his gaze from the sky to Tiera.

“Let’s go then.”

There was no objection since they only came outside the store to confirm that the curse was dispelled from Tiera. After that, the two walked back to the store.

“Still, to really dispelled the curse.”

After she returned to the counter, Tiera muttered heartily. She still hadn’t caught up with reality.

“That was more or less because of the skill 【Purification】. If anything, I was having a hard time and went through a lot of trouble to learn this rare skill.”

“Any curse can be purified with 【Purification】, right? To think that it was hard to get this curse dispelled.”

“Why is that? Don’t priests have this skill? It would be strange if they don’t have one like it.”

“That’s not it. Because 【Purification】 can only be used by high-ranking priests, so I can’t really ask them to meet me. Also, due to the nature of the curse, I can’t come to meet them with all the monsters around.”

“However, that would have been different somehow if the curse effect was stats degradation.”

Tiera just said something dangerous without her realizing it. As for the stats degradation, the curse would make stats drop to 1/10 from the original. Even combating with small fry monsters would be difficult.

“Now that it is dispelled, it’s useless to think about it.”

“That’s right. After all, you are able to roam freely again.”

“Yes, although the elves dislike black hair, if the hair is not completely black-colored, it might be different story.”

“Hmm? If the hair is all black-colored, it’s no good?”

“Yes. I couldn’t even conceal my hair when I was cursed before. The dye would turn black after some time. But now that the curse is gone, I can dye my hair again.”

“Is that so.”

Because the act of dyeing hair was not possible in the game, Shin didn’t understand such things. To begin with, as soon as players got cursed, they immediately used items or found a priest to purify it. So the players never needed to dye their hair.

“Ah right, this is your reward for the materials and the jewel.”

Tiera placed a bag on the counter. It was swelled considerably, because there were more than 50 pieces of gold and silver coins.

“Can this fit into Item Box?”

When he tried to put it in Item Box, he saw Geyl gold coin slots in the display screen. And it also showed up 26 J gold coins and 27 J silver coins. Somehow, every coin was displayed, separated by type. It was indeed convenient.

“The coins disappeared? That’s convenient.”

Shin couldn’t say anything but smile wryly because Tiera already said what he wanted to. That was yet another use for Item Box for items. And there was no need for a wallet.

“For the time being, I need to find an inn to stay at for today.”

“Are you perhaps going to enter the Bayreuth Kingdom?”

“Yes, there are various places I would like to explore. Is there a good place to gather information?

“Well. Wait a minute, I will give you something good as an extra service.”

After Tiera said so, she went to a room located behind the counter. If Shin’s memory was correct, there was a private room there.

Tiera entered the room, and 3 minutes later she came out, handing a piece of paper to Shin.

“This is?”

“A letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora. With this letter, you can enter the country without having to wait in line for inspection.”

Apparently there was a waiting line to enter the country. Shin, who wanted to find an inn today, was feeling grateful.

“I appreciate it. I didn’t want to be homeless and sleep on the street when I came here. But is this okay? To give an introduction letter to someone who you just met today.”

Although Shin thought that he was not qualified, Tiera unexpectedly shook her head.

“The curse that stayed for more than 100 years was dispelled. Besides, you meet the qualifications. Moreover, I think you are a good person. There is no problem…Even with this, I still haven’t returned all your favors.”

“A good person…what did you say just now, I couldn’t hear the latter half?”

“Geez, I don’t care! I said there is no problem and please leave obediently.”

Tiera said so, while pushing the letter of introduction to Shin. Although her face looked downward to conceal her reddened face, it could be seen from her ears which turned slightly red.

“All right, all right. I will take it without reservation then.”

Again, Shin didn’t notice it. While another person would have noticed it, he himself was a dense person.

“Then I’ll go now. In addition, please take care of me the next time when purchasing the monsters I hunted.”

“I understand, please don’t force yourself too much. Because I’ll get nothing if you die.”

“See you then.”

“I’ll look forward to your next visit.”

Tiera lowered her head and Shin waved his hand lightly while exiting the Tsuki no Hokora.

 
◆◆◆◆

 Shin came out of Tsuki no Hokora and crossed the woods until he was in front of the ramparts and started to walk along it. Since he didn’t know which way the town entrance was, he went along with his feeling. He somehow knew that he would reach the town entrance sooner or later if he just walked while following the ramparts.

“Anyway, these ramparts look really sturdy. “

Shin thought as he saw the ramparts again. Because【Analyze】 was originally a skill to see the details of players and monsters, he didn’t know much about its magic bestowal beyond skill level Ⅴ. But from Tiera’s story, all skills were valuable and he could guess that there were excellent skill successors out there.

After walking for around 15 minutes, he could see a line formed in front of the rampart. It seemed like there was a town gate nearby.

And there were various people wearing all kinds of clothes. Furthermore, there was a human boy who wore tattered clothing, a female beast equipped with an armor and a dwarf who was accompanied by a small dragon. The person who wore a robe might be a magician, and the guy with a big wagon might be a merchant. Shin looked around while seeing the line moving slowly. Since all players in the game had a neat appearance (though there were some people who dressed in strange clothes), Shin was astonished by the scenery.

A soldier who was equipped with an armor just like a townsguard, was checking something like an identification card. Besides that, they also checked the luggage in the wagon briefly. Shin walked straight to the gate since he had a letter of introduction from Tiera.

About 20 mels from the gate, a guard noticed Shin who wasn’t waiting in line, and Shin had a suspicious look on his face.

One of the guards approached Shin as he was about 10 mels from the gate.

“Hey you! If you want to get into the town, get in the line! I can’t let you enter if you don’t line up.”

Said the guard, while pointing at the end of the line. The line was so long that the end of the line couldn’t be seen.

“Well, um, I was told I could enter the town if I show this.”

He took out the letter of introduction from Item Box, while pretending to take it out from his chest pocket.

The guard took the letter from Shin, looked at the contents, and revealed a shocked look. Not to mention, his hands were trembling afterward.

“…Letter of introduction…from Tsuki no Hokora…”

“Yes, I got it from the sales clerk.”

Shin didn’t know why the guard was surprised, or what were the effects of a letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora.

He was even worried about the guard whose hands were trembling.

“I need to confirm whether this is the real thing. Come with me.”

“Okay.”

The guard gathered other guards and began to discuss something like ‘Is it genuine?’ Or ‘how do we decide whether it’s the real thing?’

At the same time, Shin saw a horse that was 1.5 times bigger than a normal horse, stopped at the front gate.

While Shin was looking at the horse, the guard returned.

“I’m sorry to have kept you waiting. This way.”

“Ah, I understand.”

The guard’s manners changed completely and he became very polite. It was so sudden that it felt out of place.

(Is the letter of introduction that great?)

The road was opened for them while Shin felt stares from the people in the line. Besides that, the place was filled with people and several large wagons going in and out. Along the edge of the street, there were various stalls standing in a row, selling things like food, armor, accessories, strange items, and so on.

“I will be your guide to the adventurers’ guild. Will that be all right for you?”

“Huh? Oh, yes. Thank you very much.”

Another guard talked to Shin. It seemed like he took over the task of the guard who spoke to Shin previously.

“Do you have any plans to go somewhere else beside the guild? I’ll guide you if you don’t mind.”

“No, because there is no other plan, I would like to head toward the adventurers’ guild, and please don’t use honorifics with me.”

“Still…to be rude to those with a letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora.”

“No problem, just act like usual.”

“…Well, if you said so. I underst…”

“Honorific!”

“I understand, I understand<ref>T/N: The guard actually said “understand” in a polite tone. Then said it again in an informal tone.</ref>, it’s just hard to adjust.”

Shin didn’t mean to act big just because he got the letter of introduction by chance. Meanwhile, the guard with the guide’s role, mixed up the formal and informal tone in his speech.

“I’m glad you understand.”

“Geez, for someone to have a letter of introduction and not wanting me to be polite?”

“Well, it just felt wrong. By the way, I’m Shin. Nice to meet you.”

Shin was formerly a student. He wasn’t accustomed by an older man using honorifics toward him.

“I’m Beid. I’ve lived in this town my whole life. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”

Beid laughed after saying that. He gave an impression of a bear because of his brown hair and beard. According to 【Analyze • Ⅹ】, Beid was level 100. It was said that the strongest knight was level 158, so Shin couldn’t judge whether Beid was strong or not.

“Then, I want to ask you something. Why was I being led to an adventurers’ guild?”

Even though he intended to go to the adventurers’ guild, he didn’t remember saying it to the guard. But then he recalled where he had asked Tiera for any good places to gather information.

“It was written in the introduction letter. I have to do it since it is stated in the letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora.”

“I see. Ah, just to confirm, is the letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora such a big deal?”

“Did you show it without knowing about it!?”

For some reason he was surprised.

“No, this is my first time coming to this country and it was a coincidence that I went to Tsuki no Hokora.”

“Coincidence? And got a letter of introduction? You are something…”

“I’m just a wanderer.”

“Unbelievable! No, never mind then. I don’t know about other countries, but with the letter of introduction, it’s possible to have an audience with the King. Some people have even tried to forge the letter of introduction.”

It seemed the letter of introduction was a rather big deal around here.

“Tiera…this is more than an extra service…”

Shin murmured as he regretted not knowing this awesome stuff earlier. Actually, he thought it was just a simple border pass. If Beid’s story was true, it was only natural that the guards were surprised.

“I’d say, it would be a problem if it got lost…”

“…Just now, someone passed it to the other guard.”

Shin who just realized it, tried to get it back. But as Shin made a U-turn, he was stopped by Beid.

“It’s okay, if it is the letter of introduction, I have it. How many guards can even carry it normally. It was returned before it could be left to idiots who are up to no good.”

“Beid, good job!!”

Shin unconsciously gave Beid a thumbs-up. Shin’s original image of him as a crude person was instantly erased, giving him a better impression of Beid.

Shin then placed the letter of introduction in the 『Important Things』 zone in the Item Box. This zone had an anti-theft function attached . Skills like 【Steal】 or 【Robbery】 were not effective in this zone, so Shin didn’t have to worry about it getting stolen or robbed.

“Oh, I almost forgot, when you arrive at the adventurers’ guild, give the letter of introduction to a receptionist named Els.”

“Els?”

“The miss receptionist of the guild, and at the same time, an elf adventurer. There are some kind of ancient elven runes written on that letter. And she is the only elf in the adventurers’ guild. So it is probably addressed to her.”

“I understand. I’ll give it to her in the guild.”

Shin didn’t know that Tiera had another elf as acquaintance, yet he firmly memorized her name.

As the matter of the introduction letter was settled, Shin heard Beid’s explanation about the town.

“That reminds me, this is your first time coming to this country. I will explain to you about this town. So first, this street is the rough division of the town. The gate you entered just now is the south gate. There are gates in the south, north, east and west, but only the south gate is used most often.”

“Why is the south gate used mostly?”

“The reason is that the south gate is the connecting point of the districts. There is also a commercial district in front of the south gate. Besides that, the king’s castle is in the center of this country, and the wealthy town residents, such as nobles and rich merchants, surround it. It is surrounded by the four districts.”

“Hmm…I see…”

“The south commercial district, as said just now, generally has everything you need like foods, items, miscellaneous goods and so forth. The guilds are in the east district. Many headquarters of guilds are located there, such as adventurers’ guild, merchants guild, blacksmiths guild and so on.

The west is a residential district. Almost all of the town’s population live there. The inn is also a place for adventurers to replenish their stock from merchants, besides being the place to stay overnight. Finally, the north district…is in development for the time being.”

Beid hesitated as he talked about the north district. Shin had an idea about it, so he asked Beid daringly.

“Is the development only a name, or is it a slum area?”

“As expected, you understand indeed. Yes, it is. Although I said it’s in a development zone, eventually those with no place to go started to move in one after another. Though each of them have their own motives. Anyway, its security is at the worst, and it’s better to stay away from there.”

Beid advised Shin with a bitter expression.

However, it was not only this country, but most big countries also have such places.

Meanwhile, Shin observed the town situation as he listened to Beid. In the commercial district, various people were coming and going, Shin saw a man with an appearance of an adventurer. The man was carrying a large sword and wore a full body armor.

Shin was excited and almost called out to him , especially after he saw the man was carrying a Dragon Sword. Beid said it was a weapon from an island country called ‘Hinomoto’, which is in the east of the continent.

In the meantime, Shin arrived at the adventurers’ guild. The building was larger than the neighboring building, and had a signboard with a sword and a spear crossed were painted. Somehow, this was the representation of the adventurers’ guild.

“My duty ends here. Don’t work yourself too hard in there.”

“Oh, thank you for guiding me here, and for the information as well.”

Shin went into the adventurers’ guild building after seeing off Beid who lightly waved his hand.

He opened the guild’s door and entered.

From the entrance door, the receptionist desk could be seen on the right side, and the bar on the left side. At the center hall, there was a bulletin board which had many requests posted on it.

Since rowdy NPCs often hung around in adventurers’ guilds when he played the game, Shin had that image when entering the guild. Nevertheless, no garbage could be seen on the floor, nor adventurers shouting at each other, nor glares from other adventurers.

It was merely a group of adventurers who had just finished their tasks and were having a toast. The bar seemed to be just a normal bar.

Shin went straight toward the receptionist desk, even though he felt hungry after seeing the bar.

“Welcome to the adventurers’ guild, how can I help you today?”

The beautiful woman who was the receptionist greeted Shin as he approached. She had light brown hair that reached her shoulders. Apparently, the reception desk of guilds were always filled with beautiful women.

There was also a tall man with a height of about 2 mels and scars on his face next to the receptionist. It goes without saying, Shin casually detoured to the woman’s side at the reception.

“I would like to register as an adventurer.”

“For that, please go upstairs on your left and head over to the second room. One J silver coin is required for the initial registration, is that alright with you?”

“Yes, it’s alright. Thank you.”

He voiced his gratitude and went up the stairs. Without stopping, Shin was thinking that there was no such procedure during the game. Then he saw the second room and entered it.

Shin approached the desk on the middle, as there were only three desks.

“We provide registration for adventurers here. You want to register as an adventurer, is that correct?”

“Ah, yes, I want to register as an adventurer.”

He replied to the receptionist with a bewildered look. Shin was confused, as the receptionist’s face and that of the receptionist below, were like two peas in a pod. The only difference was that this receptionist had her hair in a ponytail.

“Is something the matter?”

“No, you just look identical to the receptionist below.”

“That is my older sister. Because we are twins, I am often mistaken as her. I will be helping you register today. My name is Cilica Lindt. Please treat me well.”

“I am Shin. Please take care of me as well.”

“First, you will need to pay the initial cost of one J silver coin.”

“Okay.”

He took out one J silver coin from Item Box. Shin thought it looked a little unnatural since he took it out from his chest, but Cilica received the coin without any suspicion.

“Then, please fill out this form.”

In the document, there were entries to be filled up such as name, race, main weapon, able to use magic or not, and so on.

“Do I have to fill out everything?”

“No, only your name and race are required. While it would be easier to receive support if you fill it all out, we won’t force you as this is not compulsory. No one will treat you differently because of it. So please rest assured.”

“Okay.”

Since there was an entry for place of birth, Shin just had to skip it, because he was not from this world. The race was filled as a human just in case.

Main weapon was sword, able to use magic, and because there was entry for age, one year of the death game was added in his true age, so he wrote down as 21 years old.

It was a bit late to bring it up now, but the document was written in Japanese. The spoken language was Japanese, so it was only natural that it was also being used in the document. Shin was thankful because of it. He was worried in the beginning, as he thought it would be written with characters like wriggling earthworms.

After that, he gave the document to Cilica, and she just skimmed it through. She was probably checking if it was incomplete.

“Your name is Shin-sama, is that right?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

“Then the document is complete. Next, please drip one drop of blood on this card.

Cilica handed Shin a needle and a silver card.

Shin pricked the tip of his finger and dripped the blood on the card. The card didn’t reject the blood and absorbed it like a sponge.

“With this, the procedure is complete. The card will take one day to process, so it will be ready by tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

It seemed that he would need to wait until tomorrow before receiving his card.

“Would you like hear more information about the guild?”

“Yes, please.”

“First of all, adventurers are divided by ranks, from the highest SS to S, A, B, C, D, E, F, and the lowest G rank. Because Shin-sama just registered, your rank is G. Whenever a request is completed, the point is added and your rank will rise accordingly. If a request is failed or abandoned, the point for the request is subtracted from the current point. The rank will drop if the points are below a certain standard. In addition, you must pay the cancellation fee twice of the reward offered. You can receive requests up to two ranks above you. You can only receive requests one rank above you if you become rank C and above. You can form a party with two or more members. It is also possible to participate in the request of the top three or more rank. Depending on the members, you will receive the request according to the members of the top rank.”

“What is the maximum number of members allowed in a party?”

Shin asked since he was interested. The maximum number of people in a party was six people during the game.

“One party can be formed by up to six members. It becomes a form called joint work, where you cross multiple parties when you receive a request for further numbers of people. This is usually seen on subjugation requests of strong monsters, or fairly large-scale requests.”

It seemed that the number of party members remained unchanged. However, the request (it was called Quest in the game) for further numbers of people seemed different from the game, there was no joint work or multiple parties.

“There are various kinds of requests such as miscellaneous duties, fishing, subjugation, escort, and so forth. Please be warned that the guild won’t take responsibility for taking a request without the guild’s approval. An unsuitable request for your ability is likely to receive or sustain severe injuries or even death.”

“What will happen if the request and the contents are different? If a subjugation request is received and upon getting there, the monster is stronger than the request said.”

“In such case, it’s fine to abandon the request. You need to report it, so that the penalty will not occur. Even if the guild verifies all the risky requests, please do not take it without precautions, as not all requests can be covered.”

‘The management seemed to lack of efficiency. But since the information network wasn’t developed, it couldn’t be helped’, Shin thought.

“The guild will buy the raw materials from subjugated monster. It’s a good source for extra income. Next――”

The explanation from Cilica lasted for about 20 minutes. Even if Shin heard everything, he could not memorize all of it.

“――That’s all for today. I’ll explain again about the guild card tomorrow when you receive it. Do you have any questions?”

“Can I receive requests now?”

“After the guild card is issued, you can accept requests right away. Because the guild card also acts as a border pass, I advise that you spend the night in the town.”

“I see. I don’t have any more questions.”

“Well, that’s it for today. I wish for Shin-sama’s success.”

Cilica executed a graceful bow, and Shin left the counter.

Shin went down the stairs and spoke with the receptionist who guided him before.

“Thank you for the help a little while ago.”

“The procedure was completed, I see. Well then, again, Welcome to the Adventurers’ Guild. My name is Celica Lindt, I am responsible for the request procedures. My best regards in the future.”

“I am Shin. Same here. Are you the elder sister of Cilica from the registration counter?”

“So it was Cilica in charge. Well, yes, I am the older sister of Cilica. Because we are twins, we look very alike.”

“I was surprised. I thought you could teleport instantly.”

“It is possible for a person coming here for the first time to have that curious look on their face when they return, just like that person over there.”

Shin followed Celica’s gaze after she said that. It was the figure of a new adventurer, who left the guild while tilting his head. He was the person next to Shin when he received an explanation earlier.

“And I often get mistaken for my sister, even in the guild. I hope Shin-sama won’t mix us up, too.”

Shin momentarily felt the pressure from Celica’s smile. As a matter of fact, Shin probably thought it was troublesome to pay attention to it.

“Still, I will do my best. Ah, can I ask you a question?”

Shin asked as he just recalled what Beid said to him. However, the big man next to Celica threw a glance at Shin a couple of times for some reason. Shin’s intuition was sounding alarms, but he decided to ignore it for now.

“Yes, feel free to ask.”

“I heard that adventurer named Els works here as receptionist.”

There were only two people (Celica and the big man) in the receptionist desk. Shin wanted to say ‘Miss’ before the receptionist, but was unable to, due to the big man next to Celica.

“I’m sorry, Els just received a request and is out-of-town right now. She will return today if no trouble occurs. Please ask again when you receive the guild card tomorrow. If she is not available, then I will pass her a message.”

Apparently, Shin got the wrong timing. Since she was an adventurer, she might not always here.

Shin was hoping for a better luck tomorrow.

“I see, then I will come again tomorrow.”

Celica bowed slightly and then Shin headed to the bar. He hadn’t eaten since he was transported to this world.

There were several guests in the bar besides the group of adventurers before. The average level was around 90.

Shin found a seat in a less crowded area. He then read the menu. Although the menu was written in Japanese, he didn’t understand what kind of dish would be served, so he just asked for today’s recommended set.

“Today’s recommended set, Shin-sama.”

“Oh, ah, yes…?”

Shin turned around and faced the waitress. He didn’t know why the waitress knew his name, then he saw the waitress’s face.

It was Celica with whom he just parted a while ago.

“EH!…weren’t you the receptionist just now?”

“Yes.”

“But you are wearing a different dress.”

“Yes, I wear the uniform of the guild at the reception desk.”

“Did you change your clothes?”

“Of course.”

“Isn’t that too fast? And why a waitress?”

“It’s normal to change clothes like this. Sometimes, I work here to help when the receptionist desk isn’t crowded.”

That’s not normal…Shin wanted to retort. It had only been 3 minutes since he left the receptionist desk, and then Celica appeared. He couldn’t help but think it was impossible.

After a while, a dish was served which consisted of a steak with a thickness of about 3 cemels, a salad of raw vegetables, and a soup. It was not a dish that could be cooked in a short time.

In the meantime, no one seemed to go to the receptionist desk since Celica left, so only the big man was there. Shin could sympathize with the adventurers who were taking requests at this time.

“Please help yourself to the dish.”

“Well, itadakimasu.”

Shin said so and started eating. For some reason, Celica settled herself on the seat in front of Shin.

(Wha…what is this development?…)

It couldn’t be helped, but it was uncomfortable to eat while being stared at.

Anyway, the dish was delicious, especially the steak. The salad had a pleasant texture, the stewed chicken meat was crispy and the soup was quite good.

However, the situation was quite uncomfortable. He couldn’t enjoy his meal.

“Is it okay for other customers to be left waiting, Celica-san?”

“It’s alright, another waitresses can serve them.”

It seemed that she didn’t want to leave.

“Though it’s hard to eat while being stared at…”

“Please don’t mind me.”

“That’s impossible, you know…”

She just replied with a smile. She said not to mind her, but Shin still felt uncomfortable.

“Haa, what is it, really? Is this harassment against newcomers?”

“Actually, there is something I want to confirm.”

“Then please say so from the beginning.”

“I just wanted to see what kind of person you are before that.”

Still, Shin thought he was being made fun of.

“Well? What is it that you want to confirm?”

Shin said so, and Celica answered in a lowered voice.

“Yes, I received a report that Shin-sama has a letter of introduction from a certain place.”

Shin only heard the words ‘letter of introduction’, and he could understand. Apparently, this was more important than Shin thought.

“Ah, is that so? I certainly have it.”

“Would it be okay for you if we go to another room to confirm the letter of introduction?”

“If I can finish my meal first, then it’s okay. Although I have to decline unless the guild master is there.”

“…………”

Shin said that as a joke, however Celica had become silent unexpectedly. In addition, he could felt her gaze wander around.

“…Well, it was a joke”

“…I’m sorry, I was asked by the guild master to take you there.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes”

From her firm voice, Shin could confirm that it was the truth. He felt disheartened, as he had to meet the highest authority in the guild on his first day.

“…Can’t we do it tomorrow?”

He secretly sighed, because it was an abnormal event to meet a guild master on his first day after coming to this world.

“Again, I’m sorry, but…”

Celica looked behind Shin after she said that.

The guild master was there behind Shin.

(Fuh, want me to turn around…ehhhhh!!!)

Shin knew there was someone behind him, but he didn’t think it was the guild master. He turned around reluctantly, and regretted his futile decision.

The person who stood behind Shin was an unexpected person.

“…………”

“I couldn’t wait anymore. I am sorry to disturb you while you’re eating. Hahaha”

It was the big man from the receptionist desk who just talked and laughed.

It was the big man who was throwing glances at Shin.

It was the big man who made Shin’s intuition send warning signs.

In other words, it was the big man.

“Hey, it’s you?!”

He was surprised that he used an informal tone unconsciously.

“I heard the report and I wanted to meet you immediately.”

The big man, who was said to be the guild master, talked with a smile.

“Barlux-sama. If you could just wait a little longer…”

“Not this one. After all, this is a thing to be worried about. Shin-kun, right? I’m Barlux. It may be a bit sudden, but can you come to my room?”

Apparently, Barlux was the name of the guild master. Speaking of guild master, Shin was surprised as he imagined a person of old age. The guild master’s appearance looked like a man in his late 30s to early 40s. There was a big scar on his face, if combined with his large stature, he gave of the feeling of intimidation right away. Despite that, he had this friendly smile which reduced the intimidating feeling by half.

Yet, his level was 228, the highest level he had seen in this world.

“Haa, though I don’t mind, please let me finish my meal first.”

“Of course, sorry about that. I’ll be waiting in my room.”

Barlux went back to his room after he said that.

“As a guild master, he looks pretty young. I thought some old man would be the leader in this place. Ah, so in this case, is an old man’s experiences not significant here?”

Shin talked based on the images he had in games and novels.

“I understand your thought. What Shin-sama said is not entirely wrong. In fact, most of the guild masters in other cities are elderly persons. Nevertheless, Barlux-sama is a former S rank adventurer, so his experience and connections are not inferior to the other guild masters.

“Former S rank, huh?”

Shin was still ignorant about this world’s common sense, but he could still imagine that the road to rank S wasn’t easy. If viewed from that level, that person would be considered a guild master.

He finished his meal while thinking about such things.

At the same time, he felt glances from everywhere after the appearance of the guild master. And then, he proceeded to the reception desk, guided by Celica.

There were rooms behind the reception desk, the room which Shin was guided to had complete furniture for a guest such as sofa, table, desk and bookshelf. Although Shin didn’t know its price, it gave the impression of first-class goods.

“Welcome to the adventurers’ guild. I’m sorry, I was rude earlier. I am Barlux Heim, the guild master.”

When Shin entered the room, Barlux shook Shin’s hand while he introduced himself.

“I am Shin. My best regards to you.”

Shin could feel that the hand he shook was stiff and rugged, and it was definitely powerful.

“Please take a seat.”

Shin sat on the sofa while Celica served tea on the table.

“Shin-kun. Although it’s a bit sudden, I want to see the letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora.”

“Here.”

The letter of introduction was taken out from Item Box, and he gave it to Barlux. At the same time, Barlux placed another paper on the table. Then, a pattern of a crescent moon that was drawn on the center of the letter, shined in silver.

“This is…?”

“The letter of introduction from Tsuki no Hokora is a little special. The magic of the introduction letters will resonate if brought near each other. The crest will shine like this. In other words, this letter of introduction is genuine.”

From Barlux’s explanation, it seemed to be the method of confirmation for the letter of introduction. And it appeared to be impossible to produce an imitation, as it would be found out right away.

“So it had this feature…”

Although he was astonished at the unexpected function, Shin couldn’t help but think that he should had gotten an explanation when he received it.

“No one told you about it?”

“I received it as an extra service, as a border pass.”

“Service…? Was it Schnee who gave it to you, or Tiera?”

“It was Tiera. Schnee was away.”

“Tiera huh. I think something outstanding must have happened, that she forgot to explain this, but she has good eyes for people though. Even I too, have seen a lot of people but she is always one step ahead.”

Barlux said as he laughed.

And it was true that something outstanding happened to Tiera, like a more than 100 years old curse was dispelled.

Still, were the eyes for people acquired through the wisdom of age?

“Fuh!”

As Shin thought about age, dread chilled up his spine.

The smiling face of Tiera with a background of flames came into his mind.

(Let’s stop thinking about age, I think it will be fatal…)

Because he had a bad premonition, he stopped thinking about it.

“? What’s the matter?”

“Ah, nothing.”

“Is that so? Then let’s continue the story from where I left off before.”

Said Barlux as he corrected his posture. It looked like this would be where the main subject would start.

“Because you haven’t heard the explanation, I’ll explain the uses of the letter myself. With the letter of introduction, it is possible to enter most countries without inspection. If it has information, it will be treated as final information. Each guild will even accommodate it differently. Also, in Bayreuth, you can even have an audience with the king. It will also serve as reliable identification.”

There was no doubt that what Beid was saying before was true. Although he didn’t talk about the guild or the information.

“The letter of introduction has that many uses. So naturally, there will be someone who will intend to snatch or steal it from you.”

“That makes sense…”

It could be misused for terrorism, smuggling of dangerous material, assassination and so on. Judging from a criminal’s and a crime syndicate’s viewpoint, they would desire it very badly.

“Therefore, I want you to tell me if you have the capability to protect it. If you can’t protect it, I suggest that you destroy it now.”

“…………”

Shin was thinking. With this letter of introduction, there would be advantages and disadvantages.

As for the advantages, it would become easier for him to cross the countries. And he could obtain trust from the country easily.

However, the disadvantage would be the danger from getting targeted of certain individuals or organizations.

At least, the advantages were indispensable for Shin. At the time of explanation of the guild by Cilica, he heard that entry to every country would become relatively easy if he had a guild card.

However, he considered that there was a difference in a moment of peril, and that there should be one that could strongly guarantee his identity in the case of an emergency.

There was also a demerit, as he was already known to the guards when he came to the town, and also to the people who were lining up at the southern gate. Besides, he was already known to the guild. He didn’t know the extent of protection of confidential information here, even if it was already exposed. Rather, it would be better if he acted just like normal.

(I will put it in the 『Important Things』 zone in my Item Box just in case, and avoid taking it out generously.)

From Tiera’s story, only a few people have an Item Box. In the 『Important Things』, even members of ‘Rokuten’ could not remove items he placed inside.

Although he didn’t have any way to confirm it.

“I can protect it.”

He concluded after thinking about it for a while.

“Is that your decision?”

“Yes.”

“You won’t regret this, will you?”

“Of course I won’t. Though I know that if I make mistakes, it will be bad for me and the store. If I was entrusted with this important thing, then I’ll make sure to fulfill that trust.”

Shin said confidently.

After all, he had decided on the answer before he thought about the issue of advantages and disadvantages.

Some might think that what Shin was doing was reckless and dangerous, but unfortunately, Shin’s life was targeted a lot. Shin obtained experiences that could deal with assassination and surprise attacks from surviving one year in THE NEW GATE, which had turned into a death game.

Even though his true intention was that he didn’t want to destroy the letter.

“Whew, well said. As expected from someone who holds the letter of introduction.”

“Though it was a bit exaggerated.”

“Too much modesty is not good. Once you hesitate, you will lose in life.”

“What does that mean?”

That was the guild master’s view, it seemed. That person could not be made light of.

“Hmm, how high is your level? I had to overcome numerous battles myself, until I almost reached the limit, yet I still can’t declare what you just did. I can understand that you are considerably strong.”

Indeed, he was a former S rank. He seemed to possess the ability to see through other’s capability, even if he didn’t have the skills.

“…must I answer it?”

“I’m sorry, but the guild needs to have a grasp on the level of an adventurer. Just the range of your level is sufficient. I cannot allow low-level adventurers to do dangerous requests.”

It appeared that Barlux said that not just out of curiosity.

He might need to confirm it not only as a person, but also for the guild, as the expectation of ability correlates to some degree if the level was known.

“I understand. My level is more than 150.”

“Hmm. Shin-kun, as I said just now, modesty is prohibited.”

Barlux raised one eyebrow after hearing Shin’s level. As expected from the guild master, he seemed to know if the level was too low.

“Is it not good enough?”

“It is not good, the level you said just now is far lower than your original level.”

Even though he didn’t want to say it smoothly because he heard the No. 2 was level 158, he was unable to deceive him.

“So you can tell without using【Analyze】”

“I’ve seen many adventurers as a guild master.”

“There’s no helping it, huh. My level is more than 200.”

Still, Shin didn’t want to admit his true level. He just added 50 levels to what he declared earlier.

“Hah!”

“Amazing…”

Barlux visibly showed an impressed smile as Shin told him his level again. Celica, who stood near the wall, unintentionally voiced her amazement.

“Is it something to be surprised about?”

Shin knew that Barlux was also above level 200, so that should not have surprised him.

“Although it was written in the document, you are 21 years old, correct?”

“Yes.”

“It’s not very often you meet a person who surpasses level 200 in their youth like you. I wonder if you and this country’s no. 1 can fight evenly.”

Although level 150 seemed to be too low, 200 in contrast, seemed too high.

“What is the current no. 1 person’s level?”

“It’s 230. She is the second princess of this country.”

“Are you serious?”

A strong princess!!! Shin wanted to retort.

(The princess is stronger than the captain of the elite forces…)

Because Barlux said the No. 1 of the country, he thought it might be the king or prince, or even a royal guard, but never a second princess.

“Isn’t there too much of a level difference with the knights? I heard from Tiera that the captain of the elite forces is level 158.”

“Captain of elite forces? Ah, you mean the leader of the knights? His level rose to 188 now. Maybe Tiera hasn’t heard about it since she is in the store all the time.”

“Still, the princess is No. 1…”

“It is because the second princess is in the fighter faction. Besides, she is quite popular and often makes an appearance in the town.”

“Is it safe for a royal family member to come into town?”

“The levels of the hooligans around there can’t even be compared to her level.”

It seemed that the strongest in the kingdom wasn’t just for show. The Horn Dragon that went out with Tiera’s story would had been killed if she fought it.

“Well then, Shin-kun. Actually, there is one more thing I want to confirm, if it is okay with you?”

“…It will depend on the subject”

Shin had an unpleasant foreboding about this.

“It’s simple. I want you to have a match with me.”

“I’m sorry, may I return now?”

“Unfortunately, you can’t.”

“I can’t?”

“It’s regrettable, but you don’t have the right to deny my request.”

Barlux told him plain and simple. He probably wanted to see Shin’s capability . He knew that it wasn’t necessary to be capable, even if Shin was a high level person.

“Somehow, my foreboding feeling came true.”

“I’m so sorry. I want to confirm it for the guild personally. No, I have to see it for myself.”

Shin frowned as his premonition came true.

Because of the glances he received at receptionist desk, he only felt a combative intention from Barlux’s eyes.

But somehow, he ignored Barlux’s intention. Though Shin also wanted to see the capability of a former S rank adventurer.

“…Yes, sir. I can understand that you won’t have a peace of mind if you don’t confirm my capability.”

When it was made public that Shin possessed a letter of introduction, Shin had to show that he had the capabilities to protect it.

“Where will we fight?”

“There is a training room that only guild members can use. That’s where we’re gonna fight. Do you need time to get ready?”

“No, I’m ready anytime.”

“Well then, let’s go there immediately.”

He arrived at a room about the same size as the one earlier after following Barlux. There was no furniture in the room, only a crystal about the size of a soccer ball, floating in the center of the room.

It resembled the transition point Shin often saw during the game.

“There is a training area in the basement. We can go there from this transition point.”

Apparently, the transition point seemed intact. It could be used by touching the crystal and saying the location.

Subsequently, they arrived in a place that had a considerable area like a Colosseum. It had a resting place, a training area inside the plaza, and an audience seating, except there were currently no adventurers around.

“There is no one here, is it always like this?”

“No, this is the second training area that is used for a special case like this. Common adventurers are training in first training area. Outsider can’t enter here without permission.”

“Is that so…”

It appeared that Shin didn’t have to worry about his surroundings. It was a great help, since Shin didn’t want to stand out.

“Then, shall we begin?”

As he said that, Barlux’s whole body was wrapped with blue light. The light disappeared after one second, and Barlux was equipped with light blue armor and gauntlets. The light blue armor appeared to be much thinner the a common light armor, it seemed to emphasize the easiness of movement. On the contrary, the gauntlets were heavy blue armor, that covered the fingers to the elbows.

It seemed that the equipment items for the arm showed a glove of Japanese style, the displayed gauntlet was of Western style. It might not be a significant difference, but there were slight additional bonuses for glove to AGI and gauntlet to VIT. The purpose of Barlux in wearing gauntlets might be to compensate for the thin armor.

According to 【Analyze】, Barlux’s job was, not surprisingly, a fist fighter. Shin was more surprised by the sudden equip of the armor and gauntlets, like a transformation hero.

In THE NEW GATE, the armor and gauntlets were equipped in the same way, too. The light formed and materialized after that. The reason was so it could perfectly fit into the avatar’s physique. Hence, this is why Shin had been avoiding wearing armor like Barlux, because it was flashy.

“…(There was such an item, huh?)”

“What the matter?”

“No, nothing.”

He had nothing to say about Barlux’s equipment scene, as it was a common scene anyway.

Shin didn’t have anything particularly to be equipped. To some extent, he wouldn’t use weapons since he understood the power of his opponent to some degree.

“Then, here I go!!”

In an instant, Barlux’s figure became blurry. Though the distances between the two of them was about 10 mels, he closed up to 5 mels in a blink and charged towards Shin.

“Those equipment are good and fast.”

If Shin had been without the bonus speed he obtained from Human reincarnation, he would lose against the equipment’ speed.

“Whew!!”

“Whew!”

The sound of wind cutting could be heard as they unleashed their fists towards each other. Barlux’s equipment was confirmed.

Light armor 【Light Blue Crystal Armor】 and gauntlet【Blue Fang Gauntlet】, Shin thought. It was definitely not a mistake, as Shin had sold both of them in the store before.

“Those are good equipments.”

“I had a hard time…obtaining…and put it on as it is…!”

Barlux said, while frowning, as he unleashed his fists to Shin, but Shin eluded them.

【Light Blue Crystal Armor】 was a rare armor with high AGI.

And the 【Blue Fang Gauntlet】 was a special unique weapon with high offensive power. It was made from the raw material of a unique monster of Lv. 600 named Blue Mitt Hound. 【Blue Fang Gauntlet】 was often equipped by high level players that used bare hands martial arts.

[[image:Barluxfight.jpg|thumb|Barlux said, while frowning, as he unleashed his fists to Shin, but Shin eluded them]]

“As expected, to be able to fend off my attacks easily.”

Barlux momentarily stopped his vigorous attack and distanced himself from Shin. He was talking while smiling wryly, but his eyes remained sharp to ascertain Shin’s next move.

Whereas, Shin didn’t actively attack the distanced Barlux, because he was wary about the ability of the gauntlet.

Besides high offensive power, its other ability was【When defending an attack using the gauntlet, the attacker receives 1/10 of his attack damage】. But there was a limitation in the gauntlet, it would only execute this ability if the wearer’s STR values was 100 or more, higher than the opponent’s.

Shin was watching the【Blue Fang Gauntlet】 and noticed the effect wasn’t activated.

(I might know his equipment better than he does. As both of our levels are more than 200, added with some bonuses, the STR didn’t reach the 100 difference. Besides, prying about it is troublesome. I want to end it in one shot.)

Shin was not in the mood to respond to the guild master’s talks.

“What are you thinking about?”

“I’m thinking how to attack, since you are strong.”

“Fuh, just from the fighting just now, you seem to know my equipment already. Only a few people who know about it still remain.”

“Well, what to do.”

While they were exchanging banter, Shin was thinking what to do next.

What he understood from the earlier fight, was that Barlux was a bare handed type. Although his range of attack was short, Barlux’s bare handed style excelled in attack speed, and the attack speed would rise with the effect from 【Light Blue Crystal Armor】. Therefore making it more difficult to defeat him.

(That gauntlet is troublesome…should I give it a try?)

He checked his skills and took a stance.

Barlux reacted to his movement, but Shin stepped forward quicker.

Shin left an afterimage after dashing towards Barlux. His steps shattered the soil as Shin jumped onto the air.

“Shuss!!”

In one breath, the distance of his right hand reached the target. Because it was an attack without a feint, Barlux reflexively defended with his gauntlet.

(He’s taking it!)

Shin began with conviction.

On the verge of his fist hitting the gauntlet, Shin changed the direction of his momentum and executed a sweep kick with his left leg.

“Guh!”

Though Barlux tried to reduce the damage by moving to the left, his reaction was delayed by Shin’s fist.

As a result, Barlux flew into the air.

【Blue Fang Gauntlet】 effects didn’t activate, because Shin didn’t hit it directly, so he didn’t have to worry about his damage being reflected.

Shin gripped Barlux’s gauntlet, which was defenseless now, and used the martial art skill 【Willow Throw】.

【Willow Throw】 was a technique of super low damage for capturing monster. So Shin didn’t have to worry about Barlux receiving fatal wounds. He used the skill without any hesitation.

The body of Barlux was thrown in the air and slammed onto the ground almost instantly. And then, Shin locked Barlux’s joint so he could not move.

“Phew. For now let us stop this, shall we?”

After confirming that Barlux couldn’t move, Shin asked. The match would not end quickly if they had the same stats.

“No way, to be easily suppressed like this. Though, I wonder about the last technique you used?”

“That’s a secret. It’s not a good idea to reveal too much of one’s ability.”

“Hahaha, that is certainly right. It’s my defeat. You have shown me your abilities. And I don’t need to be worried anymore.”

Barlux stood up and extended his right hand to Shin.

“?”

“The handshake earlier was as a guild master. And this handshake is for the people who are recognized by Tsuki no Hokora.”

“I see.”

Shin nodded and returned his handshake. Although it should be the same hand, Shin felt somewhat different.

“If there is anything you want, let me know, and the guild will try to cooperate to a certain extent.”

“Is this okay? To favor an individual?”

“No problem. It is a cooperation, so even a rank G adventurer is still a member of the guild.”

Be it one individual or a guild, Barlux didn’t seem to have any trouble lending power personally.

Returning into the room with the transition point, Celica who waited, welcomed the two of them by giving them potions.

Shin tried to refuse at first because he was unhurt, but decided to get it as Barlux insisted he take it.

“I hope for your success as an adventurer. Well then, see you again.”

After separating from Barlux, Shin walked to the passage to return to the guild hall with Celica.

“How was the match with Barlux-sama?”

“It was tough. I pray that there will be no second match.”

Because they were walking silently, Celica brought up the match with Barlux as the topic. He was a little anxious because the match ended quicker than the desired time.

“Because it’s not that often that one is able to fight with a guild master, it should be okay.”

“I have a feeling that I will be invited the next time as a practice partner…”

Shin sighed, as he promised not to repeat the situation where he would fight with a guild master in the future. While walking with Celica, a warrior with a level about 200 passed by them.

High level adventurers often wore an intimidating atmosphere, different from a commoner’s. Even for Celica, who, because of her job, had met a lot of them, she still unconsciously would get tense. However, no such presence could be felt from Shin. Rather, Celica felt something like a sense of security.

(A mysterious person…)

Celica was thinking about such things as the two of them arrived at the hall.

“Thank you for your hard work. Please take your time, since you can get the guild card anytime after tomorrow.”

“I will do that. Ah, could you recommend me to a good inn? I just arrived today, so I don’t know the area well.”

Shin asked while lowering his head a little. He felt ashamed because he couldn’t differentiate between the good or bad inns in the area. But he didn’t want to stay in the poor quality inns from day one.

“There is a good inn in the residence district named Bear Point Pavilion. I think you will like it, because the meals are delicious. With the guild on your right hand side, go straight down the street, until you see a signboard with a bear’s paw painted on it.”

“I understand. Bear Point Pavilion it is.. Thank you very much.”

Though Shin had a slight uneasiness about the word ‘Bear’, he believed that it would be all right, because Celica recommended it to him.

After expressing his gratitude to Celica, he exited the guild’s building.

Then, Shin began to walk leisurely towards the inn.

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==Translator's Notes and References==
<references />

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