episode_0026

“Miss! I understand your courage, but it’s too dangerous to face as a civilian…!”

“I will definitely finish this bastard off! Just try to come one step closer…!!”

“No….”

Damn it. What kind of opportunity is this right now?

It’s not like it’s a level 1 or level 2 slime; it’s about to defeat a level 10 monster. Should I give up here?

No way. Even if I were to fight here and die, I absolutely cannot give up this opportunity.

Already stripped of the chance to grow due to all sorts of constraints, this was the release.

Of course, even if it’s not now, if I endure patiently, someday another opportunity might arise.

If I can build trust with the head maid and successfully obtain permission for a holiday outing, I should be able to easily catch a few slimes or shell beetles on the hill behind.

But what’s the point of that?

At best, defeating monsters worth 10 or 20 experience points in one go, struggling with the dreadful abilities of this release, what’s the point of that?

On the other hand, the experience points of that level 10 monster in front of me exceed 200, ten times more than that. Just by defeating one, it surges by over 200.

Now, there’s only one step left!

Even if I were to fall to a blind arrow shot by a guard at this moment, I absolutely cannot tolerate missing this final blow in this situation.

Whatever happens, absolutely not.

“Grrrrr…!”

The hooked fangs glaring back at me, perhaps because of the commotion caused by arguing with the guards, are now focused on me again.

Yes, you probably would rather settle things with me than fall to those guards.

If we both understand each other, like confirming each other’s intentions, our eyes met.

Not long after, the hooked fangs approached me to make a final attack.

“Grrrrrr!!”

“Miss, it’s dangerous!”

“Lilith…!!”

“Li-Lilith, miss…!”

The sounds around me felt like they were fading away in the tense scene.

Even in such a situation, I remained calm until the last moment, gripping the last iron rod with both hands.

Just before the hooked fangs could sink into me, I mustered my remaining strength and leaped high into the sky.

“Grrrrr…!”

Slipping between the two open fangs of the monster, I thrust the iron rod squarely into its forehead.

With a sensation of piercing through something solid, the iron rod penetrated the head of the large boar.

…And then, right after that.

-Boom!

“Aaargh…!!”

“Lilith!!”

Simultaneously failing to dodge the monster’s final body slam, my body flew through the air.

To deliver a decisive blow with the final attack, it was an unavoidable decision.

Receiving a body slam from the hooked fangs with a level 2 body would be quite a painful blow, but this game called “Luminor Academy” had been designed to allow me to withstand it at least once.

Thinking that somehow I would manage, my body, hit by the attack of the level 10 monster, bounced off and fell to the ground.

“Lilith…! Snap out of it…!”

“Li-Lilith, miss…!”

…Ah, seriously. Stop calling me ‘miss.’

After hearing voices from Isabel and Katarina, as well as other citizens and guards, I didn’t have the luxury to listen to what they were saying.

In the fading consciousness, I observed the hooked fangs in front of me until the very end.

“Grrrrr….”

“……”

“Grrrk.”

With a thud, the creature lost balance, falling sideways and taking its last breath.

A feeble 2nd-level release with no extraordinary attack skills trying to catch a level 10 Hookfang.

If this were an actual game, there wouldn’t be such hardcore content for hardcore players.

“……!!”

“…, …!”

Even as Isabelle and Katarina’s voices faded, my vision gradually darkened.

Feeling a slight warmth, I drifted into a deep slumber.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

“Lilith has reached level 3!”

“Lilith has reached level 4!”

“Lilith has reached level 5!”

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

And the next morning,

“….”

Surely, I must have fallen asleep on the streets of Blackwood City, yet I woke up in a strange bed for some reason.

It was definitely not the second-floor bed used by Isabelle and me at the Blackwood Manor.

Judging by the faintly clean scent of this room, I could vaguely imagine where I was.

“It must be the church.”

…Well, I guess I didn’t die.

I’m not sure how death is implemented in this world, but surely resurrecting people left and right in a church like a typical game would be out of the question.

If that were the case, Harold’s wife, Tanashia, being dead would be an absurd story.

In fact, even in the “Luminor Academy,” when characters fell, they would say “incapacitated” instead of “dead.”

While the game system might prevent dealing additional damage while incapacitated, there was no guarantee that such a thing wouldn’t happen in reality…

“If such a thing really happens, it’s as good as dying.”

Although this place resembles a gaming world in many ways, assuming it perfectly mirrors the gaming world is a risky thought.

Just by waking up from the church bed, I could sense that I had almost died.

If this world truly mirrored the game world, a simple prayer would have brought me back to life with a sparkle sound.

Without needing nursing care until I woke up on the church bed.

“…But who paid the church offering?”

Certainly, the money from Lilith, the indebted maid, would have been far from enough, unless it was given by Isabelle or Katarina?

Confirming the items on the bedside cabinet with the same thought, I was relieved to find out that my guess was wrong.

From the leather pouch containing a hint of fairy tale and the letter left for me to read, I could roughly grasp the situation.

“To the brave maid, Miss Lilith Rosewood.

We express our gratitude for your assistance in driving away the Hookfang that appeared in the heart of Blackwood Commercial District. As the Chief of Security of Blackwood Territory, I sincerely apologize for Miss Lilith Rosewood’s near-fatal encounter while she was just an ordinary citizen.

The amount enclosed is the reward for the Hookfang you eradicated. We disposed of the materials without Miss Lilith Rosewood’s consent due to the urgent circumstances, so we seek your understanding in this matter.

Furthermore, the donation for Miss Lilith Rosewood’s injuries was covered by the Blackwood Territory Security. We genuinely hope for your swift recovery and once again extend our heartfelt thanks for safeguarding the security of the Blackwood Commercial District on our behalf.

Chief of Security, Ser Blacksong.”

“….”

The Chief of Security, was he the knight with the black hair who told me to retreat back then?

I had anticipated his considerable competence since he persuaded me not to recklessly confront the monster, but he was indeed a person of respectable abilities.

Something about this letter reeks of someone who’s learned a thing or two.

Well, if they’ve made it to the position of Chief Security Officer of the Blackwood Territory Guard, they must have at least graduated from the academy, so they should naturally possess some basic manners.

…Come to think of it, before I collapsed, I’m pretty sure I yelled something at this guy.

“Enough already, just buzz off!”

“I’m definitely going to finish this guy! Just take one more step closer…!!”

“Ah.”

In a moment of overwhelming embarrassment, I grabbed my head on the bed.

No matter how worked up I was, I really cursed without any sense.

The fact that the other person was gentlemanly was a huge relief; otherwise, picking a fight over this matter wouldn’t have been surprising.

“…I should apologize when I get the chance later.”

Of course, he wasn’t a major character in the game, so I might not have another opportunity to meet him again.

If he’s as gentlemanly as he seems, he’ll probably forget the curse spat out by an inexperienced maid like me in no time.

Yeah. That’s probably how it will go. It has to.

Deciding not to attract attention, I immediately started hunting monsters in the commercial district and even cursed at the approaching security guards.

“In many ways, not attracting attention is already out of the question.”

Well, I had already messed things up, so worrying about it was foolish.

After all, what was important now wasn’t the petty issue of whether I caused a scene or not.

It was time to confirm the gains from catching Galgomni with my actions rather than worrying about the reputation I lost with Lilith.

I needed to check the resource far more valuable than a few coins in this leather pouch – the ‘experience points.’

“…Phew.”

With a bit of tension, I quietly clasped my hands on the bed.

At the same time, Lilith’s information window appeared before me like a large screen.

『Name: Lilith Rosewood

Title: Brave Junior Maid

Gender: Female

Age: 18

Occupation: Maid

Affiliation: Blackwood Family Servant

Attack: 3 → 12

Defense: 5 → 17

Intelligence: 4 → 13

Charm: 12 → 40

Luck: 0 → 1

Current Level: 2 → 5

Remaining Experience Points: 83

Current Skills >>

Current Health: 15 / 15 → 47 / 47

Current Mana: 282 / 282 → 855 / 855』

Ah.

Yes, this is leveling up.