Chapter 9: Alchemist’s Combat Method…?

Chapter 9: Alchemist’s Combat Method…?

“…But now that I think about it, how should I fight?”

I don’t know any proper combat methods, let alone weapons.

In the first place, even if I hunt, there’s the problem of processing, such as butchering…?

*I’ll do the processing as a special service. And for fighting… shouldn’t you just beat the crap out of them?*

“Seriously?”

*I don’t think any animal’s bones would be intact if you sincerely hit them in your current state?*

That’s definitely a valid point. Even more so, seeing that if I act without thinking, the things around me are all smashed or cracked.

…I know because I broke one cup, one window, and so many potion bottles that it’s hard to count in the last two days.

I vividly remember when I first made a potion and tried to put it in a bottle, it just shattered, and I wondered if the bottle was defective.

So much so that I’ve been carrying spare potion bottles in the pocket attached to my clothes ever since.

I’m so tired of breaking so many that I’m even getting tired of going in and out of the drawer where the bottles are stored.

No, it really happens if you succeed once out of 15 attempts.

After understanding the system’s intentions, I walked to the nearby forest for 20 minutes.

“…But what am I going to catch?”

*You’re asking that so late.*

I realized that I still didn’t know what to fight.

***

To put it bluntly, it was never about hunting strange predators or beasts.

I hate those guys because they’re disgusting in the first place.

Therefore, a moderately edible, but clearly harmless ani… not an animal, but an edible monster was selected as the prey.

“But do I really have to do this? There are many other ways to solve a meal…”

*Shouldn’t you be proficient in combat anyway? Are you going to use only the basic materials provided forever?*

“No, I can just buy the ingredients at the market…”

*Do you have the money to do that? In the first place, there are many high-quality ingredients that are hard to find in the market, right?*

……Because the system only said the right things, I couldn’t say anything.

To be honest, now that there are signs that I’m already deeply involved with the main characters, I need to quickly secure a house or land in a war safe zone.

My home, which is a hideout and residence where I can run away no matter what happens, is urgent!

…Of course, the dream of owning my own house, which is terribly difficult even in the original world, was not easily achieved in this world, so I really had to earn a lot more money.

And to do that… I had to make and sell potions with better performance.

Naturally, better ingredients were needed to make high-quality potions.

*There’s one over there. Get ready.*

“Huh? Where… Pfft!”

The reason I laughed? It’s nothing special. It’s because it looks funny.

The name of this prey, ‘Stupid Bird’.

It’s so stupid that it’s a monster, so its species name has become Stupid Bird, but… that’s why they’re more harmful.

Because they have no learning ability, they don’t even know they’ve been hit, so they do the same thing again.

They say they’re the main enemy of farmers who chase birds. No matter how much you chase and hit them, they come back and eat the crops.

And… it really lived up to its species name.

It looks like a round chicken with dull eyes and a slightly protruding tongue, so it really looks like it has low intelligence.

The problem is… those guys are so stupid that they’re not looking at me no matter what I do, they’re just pecking at what they’re going to eat.

Even so, they have at least a minimum of intelligence, so if you get too close, they fly away with a loud noise!

*…Why don’t you just throw a stone you see around you?*

“Then there’s no romance. I’m not some Stone Age caveman.”

*I don’t know what the difference is compared to trying to hit them with your fists and feet…*

“Anyway! And I’m an alchemist, so isn’t there some kind of alchemist-like attack?”

If the prey was even a little stronger, or even just looked a little more menacing, I would have thrown a stone without hesitation.

But… when I look at those guys, even the sense of urgency that was about to arise disappears.

No, it looks so funny and stupid that I think it would be good to see it when I want to laugh.

Therefore… the tension of hunting something disappeared, and the awareness that I was an alchemist, which had been dormant for a while, came back to me.

Along with trivial thoughts that didn’t need to be awakened again.

“…It would be nice to have a potion with an attack effect.”

*There is. You just can’t make it now.*

“…No, have some empathy! I just fell into a new world and got alchemy skills, but hunting with stones and fists! Something feels off!”

I’m not living life once… but I think it’s right to live happily if possible.

And, in that sense, throwing stones to catch those guys… was neither fun nor anything else.

“…Is there really nothing?”

As I was rummaging through my pockets, I quickly brightened up at the feeling I felt on my fingertips.

…I found it. The thing I need.

***

The ‘Stupid Birds’ are eating peacefully… not peacefully, as always.

Towards the birds that are always fighting each other because they forget what kind of fruit they were eating and peck at the fruit next to them… something flew quickly.

Clang!

With a strong sound, not only the bird that was directly hit by the object, but also the birds that were stabbed by the fragments that flew as the object broke, all fell to the ground.

…The birds next to them were still fighting over the fruit despite this commotion.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

…That was until an unknown object flew at the birds and hit them directly three times in a row.

The moment the creatures’ unique survival instinct was turned on, the ‘Stupid Birds’ quickly began to fly.

…Staggering even in the air while colliding with each other.

“Oh, this is effective? Potion bottles are a better throwing weapon than I thought? Especially since it damages the surroundings when it breaks…”

*…With that much power, you can use anything as a useful throwing weapon.*

“Again, again! Do you have to spoil the mood like this?”

*Shouldn’t you just not do these strange things in the first place…?*

And a girl is coming from a little further away to where the ‘Stupid Birds’ fell.

Talking to the air seemed like… something above her neck was a little painful, but fortunately, there was no one watching the girl here.

…It was fortunate that no one witnessed the girl’s strange act of throwing empty glass bottles to catch birds.

If someone saw a seemingly weak girl smiling brightly and throwing a bottle lightly that exploded like a bomb…

Well. Who knows, but a new urban legend might have been created in the forest.

***

“By the way, is this enough?”

*…Yes.*

“Hey, why are you so reluctant?”

*I’m just… wondering if it’s right to catch them like this.*

It seemed like the system didn’t like the hunt that ended quickly by throwing the spare potion bottles in my pocket.

No, to be honest, I didn’t even think there would be potion bottles in my pocket because I was too lazy to take them out of my clothes.

And since it was a system that did its job even while saying that, the ‘Stupid Bird’s’ body was instantly separated into meat, skin, and bones.

Really neatly.

“This is amazing.”

*…By the way, I didn’t explain it, but the system basically provides a very small inventory.*

It was the text that came up when I had already put the parts of the separated ‘Stupid Bird’ into a half-prepared bag.

…It was also a very deliberate timing.

“You should have told me about such a good thing sooner!”

*I forgot. You do so many things in a day.*

“…I can’t say anything because this is also a fact. By the way, where else can I get the potion bottles that the system basically provides?”

It seemed like it would be my main throwing weapon for a while, so I thought it would be good to get them in advance.

…It’s also for the potion making process where I fail to control my strength and see the remaining potion bottles decrease in real time.

*That? You can buy it at the ‘System Store’ if you pay with money from this world.*

“…What’s that again?”

*It’s a VIP feature. If you faithfully pay the revival fee, it will be unlocked naturally.*

For a moment, I stared at the system, which shamelessly said that only VIPs can use the store.

…Is this company really okay?

“…The one that rips you off after saving you?”

*Rip off? We’re not a charity, so we’re just charging a small operating fee. It also gives you a reason to work hard.*

“That’s the same thing. I know it well because I usually package things like that.”

*…Knowing that, were you doing nonsense and bullshit and packaging it?*

I pushed away the system that was subtly saying something again and quickly went back home and had the meal that was the original purpose.

…By the way, the meat of the ‘Stupid Bird’ was quite delicious. It tasted just like chicken.

After finishing the meal, the system suddenly displayed text in a serious tone.

*…Since the story about the revival fee came up earlier… would you like to try ‘early payment’ once?*

With a topic that was not welcome at all.

It’s already a headache that I’m starting to get involved with the main characters, and now I have a system that tells me to pay money.