Chapter 5: The Lich Makes a Genius into an Ordinary Person #2

Chapter 5: The Lich Makes a Genius into an Ordinary Person #2

I used to frequent the mansion like my own home while grinding the Lich.

Naturally, I memorized the geography of the surrounding forest in the process.

Honestly, it wasn’t very useful knowledge.

But you never know what the future holds.

The geography I remembered without much thought has now become the deciding factor in this battle.

“What are you waiting for, deer? You have to kill me again.”

I provocatively beckoned to Golden Horn with my finger.

The creature’s black eyes, filled with an eerie glow, stared intently at me.

-Prrr…

A sense of foreboding washed over me.

‘Don’t tell me this bastard is going to figure it out at the last moment?’

No. That’s impossible.

Even as a field boss, it’s just an animal.

How could a beast like you understand human schemes and the cunning behind them?

“Come on, you bastard. Scared? Chicken?”

I gave it the middle finger, feigning nonchalance.

Golden Horn’s gaze shifted instantly.

Does even a deer find a middle finger offensive?

The creature lowered its stance and began stomping the ground repeatedly with one hoof.

‘That’s right. That’s the way.’

Thud, thud.

Golden Horn charged, kicking up dust.

Welcome.

I greeted the creature with my arms spread wide.

This will add another death to my record.

But.

“You’re no different this time.”

Crack-

With an impact like being hit by a truck, my body flew into the air.

Glancing down, I saw its horns lodged in my belly, mangling my insides.

I winced at the gruesome sight, far worse than I imagined.

‘Ugh, damn… I won’t be able to eat sundae anymore.’

However, Golden Horn must have realized by now.

That something was different from before.

It must be curious.

Why am I flying, it must be wondering.

The answer is simple.

Because the place I was standing was right at the edge of a sheer cliff.

“Deer. You die too.”

Golden Horn flailed its legs desperately in mid-air.

Don’t be upset about being tricked.

The impact of falling is fair to everyone.

To humans, and to beasts.

***

「Trait: Immortality has been activated.」

「As a side effect of Immortality, some of your stats will be permanently lost.」

「However, as your stats have already dropped to the minimum, they will not decrease further.」

I regained consciousness.

“Eek-!”

As soon as I opened my eyes, Golden Horn’s head was right in front of me, staring directly at me, and I was startled.

It was as if a lover who had a good night together.

It felt like it was watching me with eyes dripping with affection, as if saying, ‘Did you sleep well? Good morning.’ from the bedside.

My heart almost leaped out of my chest.

Calming my racing heart, I looked again and saw that the creature was clearly dead.

Its eyes were rolled back white, and its blood-stained mouth had its tongue sticking out.

“You’re giving me a scare.”

I gave it a hard kick out of frustration.

After a series of struggles, I finally defeated the formidable foe, so it’s time to reap the rewards.

First, I collected the magic stones that came out of its corpse.

As I picked up a magic stone that looked like a translucent black crystal, the scattered magic stones gathered and formed a single lump.

「Acquired 450 Magic Stones.」

‘A great deal.’

A character who has just started the game can only get one magic stone at most from defeating a monster in the early stages. Two at most.

Moreover, magic stones only drop when you defeat monsters; ordinary beasts like wild rabbits or squirrels don’t drop them.

‘I need to get to the village quickly.’

It’s urgent to enhance my stats at the village with the magic stones I’ve collected.

I don’t want to experience the humiliation of being killed dozens of times by a mere deer again.

However, even with just the magic stones, I was satisfied with the reward.

“Oh.”

A large, firefly-like blue flame flickered over Golden Horn’s corpse.

Is this for real?

This is dropping?

This is a “Soul,” which only drops when you hunt boss-level monsters.

My heart, which had calmed down, began to beat a little faster.

The moment of getting a great drop that any gamer would feel joy from.

‘If it drops a Soul, I’m willing to die dozens of times.’

This deer is such a good creature. Such a grateful creature.

I stuck out my tongue and gently stroked the head of the Golden Horn with its tongue hanging out.

A “Soul” gives the acquirer one of three random rewards.

The first is a permanent stat enhancement.

The second is an enhancement of existing skills or the acquisition of a “Soul Skill.”

The third is a “Soul Item.”

‘No matter what I get, it’s a gain.’

I savored the anticipation like a child saving the best side dish for last, pausing for a moment.

Which of the three would be best?

Strictly speaking, the answer is already decided.

If I think about it carefully, stat increases are generally good, but they conflict with the “Immortality” trait.

“Immortality” causes you to lose stats upon revival after death.

It would be ideal if I could reach the ending without dying even once from now on, but there’s no guarantee I can do that.

Skills aren’t bad either.

The skill granted by Golden Horn’s soul is “Horn Charge.”

It’s a skill where you create a magical horn above your head and charge. The attack power is quite good, and it’s decent.

However, “Horn Charge” is a useful skill for warrior characters…

It feels a bit ambiguous. It’s hard to decide on a warrior build solely based on this skill.

‘It would be best if I got an item. Golden Horn’s Soul Item is quite useful.’

I licked my lips and brought my palm to the soul.

The desired outcome is one of three. A 33.3% chance.

The probability of a Soul dropping when hunting a boss-level monster is usually only about 5%, but I’ve already overcome that low probability.

Compared to that, 33% is quite achievable.

What will it be? Let’s see…

Whoosh-

With a dazzling light, the soul began to transform into a new form.

「Acquired Golden Horn’s Soul.」

「Golden Horn’s Soul is being converted into a Soul Item.」

「Golden Horn’s Cloak

-Armor Item

-Durability 25/25

-Increases physical defense when equipped

-Increases resistance to cold and fire when equipped

-A fur cloak imbued with the power of the sacred beast Golden Horn. It is light and durable.

-Additional Options: “Secret Pocket” “Size Adjustment”」

A soft, cream-colored cloak appeared before my eyes.

‘That’s right.’

I couldn’t help but clap.

This is it.

Today is my lucky day. It was worth risking a fierce battle.

With this alone, I won’t have to worry about cloaks until the mid-game. Its performance is good enough to be used even in the late game if nothing better comes along.

I immediately put on the cloak.

It feels a bit too large for my small frame.

But that’s not a problem.

「Enchanted with ‘Size Adjustment’ magic. It’ll be readjusted to fit the user’s body shape.」

From looking like a child wrapped in a blanket, it automatically adjusted to fit my body perfectly.

And the other option is quite useful too.

「Secret Pocket

-You can store other items in the subspace of equipment with this option.

-Until the equipment is destroyed, the items inside will retain their original properties.

-The “Golden Horn’s Cloak” can store 2 items. 」

It’s not as spacious as “Bag of Holding” or “Ring of Storage,” but it’s enough to help me right now.

Most importantly, I have an item that I must cherish above all else.

‘First, I’ll put this in.’

「Stored Estel’s Reliquary in the Secret Pocket.」

Now, I won’t have to worry about the tissue box getting wet from a sudden downpour and me dying in vain.

‘What should I put in the other slot?’

After a moment of thought, I cupped my palm and collected Golden Horn’s blood.

「Stored Golden Horn’s Blood in the Secret Pocket.」

The blood, now an item, automatically clumped together and was sucked into the cloak.

It’s a contingency plan.

A tool for escaping danger, usable only in this forest.

I hope I don’t have to use it before I reach the village.

***

Thanks to falling off the cliff, I inadvertently took a shortcut.

If I had taken the normal path, I would have had to go around for a long time.

‘It’s not a method I can use often, though.’

The mansion gradually receded, and I reached the outskirts of the forest.

It’s a relief to have obtained the cloak now that I’ve left the deep forest.

Until now, I was only wearing rags that could hardly be called clothes.

I won’t go into detail about how torn they were or how much of my skin was showing,

but suffice it to say, it was just barely within the bounds of public indecency…

It wasn’t attire suitable for a girl like Estel, unlike a barbarian.

It was fortunate that I could cover myself with the cloak.

Still, it only put out the immediate fire. I still need many things.

‘I need to get clothes when I get to the village. Especially underwear. Top and bottom… it’s so breezy.’

The thought gives me a headache.

Did the world of ‘Nine Stars’ have women’s underwear?

I think it did.

And I needed shoes too. My feet were hurting so much because I was walking barefoot.

As I walked with those thoughts.

“Who’s there?”

I heard a voice calling out to me.

This is the first human I’ve met since entering the world of ‘Nine Stars’.

“…”

I hesitated for a moment.

Should I answer, or not?

From my experience, sometimes humans are more dangerous than beasts.

It was like that in reality.

And in ‘Nine Stars’, it’s no different.

However, there seemed to be no other choice right now.

Even if I wanted to keep my distance, if the other party harbored ill intentions, Estel’s legs wouldn’t be able to outrun them.

“What is it? It’s a girl.”

“It’s dangerous to wander alone in the forest.”

There were three men in light attire.

I felt a flicker of unease and watched the men approach.

“Oh dear. Are you lost?”

One of the men said with a gentle smile.

…It’s too early to decide how to respond.

However, staying silent isn’t a good strategy either.

Even if I’m wary, I shouldn’t show it.

I quietly nodded.

“The way to the village is that way.”

The man crouched down to my eye level and smiled broadly.

“I can’t bear to let you go alone. Let’s help her. What do you all think?”

“Can’t be helped.”

Are they planning to escort me to the village?

How kind of them.

“There are many dangerous animals roaming this forest. You shouldn’t come in carelessly unless you’re a hunter like us.”

I walked with the men without saying much.

I know the way to the village well, but…

“What’s your name?”

“…Yuria.”

I gave a pseudonym.

“Oh, Yuria? That’s strange. I met a woman with the same name just the other day.”

“All ladies named Yuria must be beautiful.”

The men laughed, talking amongst themselves.

I silently observed the men’s attire.

They said they were hunters?

Interesting.

Hunters who don’t carry any hunting tools.

No bows, no traps, no bags to carry prey.

The only weapons they carried were daggers at their waists.

What kind of animals were you hunting in this forest?

There were old bloodstains on their sleeves.

Whose blood could it be? A raccoon, a squirrel? Or…

“We’re almost there.”

Strangely, one man walked very close to me, and the other two blocked the front and rear.

As if to prevent me from escaping.

I gave a wry smile.

It was something I could have expected after falling into the world of ‘Nine Stars’.

I see.

After beasts, it’s time to deal with humans.

But don’t you know? You guys are making one mistake right now.

Who do you think is being hunted, me or you?