Translator: Cryus

There are many parties who go to the forest as their hunting grounds.
There are even more monsters in the Western Forest. There are no lack of hunting spots for us.
But it was especially crowded for a while.
Right now, there are many players who are hunting Wild Dogs in the plains, so it should be relatively empty here.
That means that now is a good time to earn some money.
But as long as we stay on the highway, we won"t encounter a lot of Wild Pheasants (F).
I"ll leave those few encounters to the girls.

Since it"s 4v1, hunting becomes easy for them.
But they didn"t come out of it completely unscratched.
The monster summons have their HP reduced since they"re on the front lines.
From what I saw, they were reinforced with Physical Enchant: Fire and Physical Enchant: Earth.
But they still got hurt.
That"s to be expected for beginners.
It"s not a problem since they could be easily cured with potions.

Once the girls got used to fighting Wild Pheasants (F), I let them explore the forest on their own.
They"ll get used to this too.
Even though they"re in the rear, they suffered some damage, but endured it and continued hunting.
It doesn"t seem like they"re used to fighting with bows, but their arrows are still hitting their targets.
They"ll manage eventually.

As for their monster summons, they"re pretty reliable in combat.

Mii-chan has pretty strong attacks.
It"s a tiger, so that"s to be expected.
It"s physically stronger than Volff.
Despite the superior strength in its attacks, it doesn"t seem as alert in its surroundings compared to Volff.
Simply put, tigers are more suited to combat than wolves.

Toggle is a little more unique in its fighting style.
It approached the Wild Pheasants (F) quietly, wrapping itself around the pheasants" legs to stop them from moving before biting their necks.
That"s my preferred fighting style.
It"s good at ambushing the enemy.
But as a front line fighter, it"s not good at being a tank.

Mii-chan can hold back a few monsters at once, but Toggle can"t.
As a Summoner, Irina will have to consider letting Toggle take some damage.
Alternatively, she could practice making Toggle approach enemies more silently.

Just as they killed a few Wild Pheasants (F), I heard a loud sound coming from their direction.
Oh no.
It"s a Lost Horse.
Well, I"m glad that it appeared, but I wish it wasn"t there specifically.
I head straight towards Irina.

Will I make it?
I can"t.
I won"t be able to cast a spell in time.

『A horse is coming! Run away!』

I warn them through Whisper and approach the Lost Horse while riding Zangetsu.
There"s still something I can do.
Helix.

The Lost Horse is standing on its hind legs. Right before it tramples them using its front hooves, Helix makes it there.
The horse stomps its front legs, but missed Irina.
She didn"t move at all.

Helix struck its eyes, causing the Lost Horse to flinch. Zangetsu rammed straight into its body.
Irina wasn"t hurt.
While it"s knocked down, I cast Wind Cutter to prevent it from getting back up.
Following that, Zangetsu begins trampling on its body with her front legs.
Her hooves. .h.i.t the Lost Horse straight in the belly.

The Lost Horse continues resisting for a while.
More than half of its HP is gone, but it"s still struggling wildly.
It really is tough.
Adele and Irina are joining in on the a.s.sault.
Alright, that"s good.
I focus on preventing the Lost Horse from getting back up, allowing the girls to finish it off.

《【Cooperation】Level Up!》
《【Horsemanship】Level Up!》

That scared be for a bit.
It"s difficult for Helix to see when we"re in the forest too.
Taking the Sense Danger skill into consideration, it"s probably better to summon Volff and Obsidian if we"re going to continue hunting in the forest.
We should regroup in Legias.

「I"ve gotten another Wild Horse Hide.」

Oh, that"s good.
She picked a bald spot and showed it to me.
I"m not bald though.
But since Grandpa was bald, I"ll probably become bald eventually.

「There"s also some horse meat.」

Huh?
Horse meat?

【Material】Wild Horse Meat　Raw Material　Grade C+　Rarity 2　Weight 2
Wild Horse Meat. Moist and fatty meat of rather high quality.

This is…
Horse sashimi.
What else could it be?

「Let"s head to the village.」

「「Okay!」」

It"s probably a good idea to visit Fiona and get better weapons.
Especially arrows.
They"re using Bronze Arrows and Beginner Arrows, which are fine on Wild Pheasants (F) but don"t work as well against Wild Horses.
I have some item drops from last night anyway, and I also have 2 Wild Horse Skins with me.
I"ll prioritize reinforcing my equipment.

We"ve arrived at Legias.
It"s still early for lunch, and there are still many stalls in the middle of setting up.
This include Mio and Yuka.

「h.e.l.lo.」

「Oh, welcome.」

Looks like Fiona is tending to the stall today.
There"s an unfamiliar male player here.
His clothes are even less familiar. He looks like a young monk.

「Go on, introduce yourselves.」

「I"m Fudo, a Blacksmith. Pleased to meet you.」

「I"m Keith, a Summoner. The pleasure is mine.」

Fiona is looking at Adele and Irina.
As for the girls, they"re mesmerized by the smell of the yakisoba on an iron plate.
Come on, you guys.

「Hey, you gluttons. Introduce yourselves first.」

「「Sorry!」」

They"re back in reality.
They"ve already revealed an ugly side of themselves. Are they going to be okay?

「Um, I"m Adele, a Summoner! This is Mii-chan!」

「I"m Irina, and I"m also a Summoner. This is my partner Toggle.」

「I"m Fiona, and I"m a Merchant.」

「I"m Fudo, a Blacksmith.」

Both cooks are still busy preparing the yakisoba.

「Sorry about this! I"m Mio, and I"m a Cook as you can see!」

「I"m Yuka, and I"m a Cook as well.」

Now the introductions are done.
Fiona and Irina are already absorbed by the food.
Mii-chan and Toggle are the ones acting calm and collected instead.

「It"s rare to see 3 Summoners at once.」

「We"ve just started playing today.」

「Keith has kindly taught us a few things.」

「Oh, is that so?」

Don"t give me that look.
I know what you"re thinking, Fiona.
I"m only a beginner myself, so what do I have to teach, right?

That"s exactly it.

「Keith is rather cunning, if that"s the way to put it.」

「Is that a compliment?」

「As long as you understand, it"s fine.」

Fiona is giving me a look of resignation.
That"s where it hurts.

「Anyway, there are some things I"d like to sell. I have some hides too, and there"s something I"d like to discuss.」

「Hides?」

I show her the 2 Wild Horse Hides.
I put the other things I"m planning to sell in a separate stack.

「There"s nothing to be gained just by selling these, so I"d like to use them for equipment.」

「Saki is making your saddle today, so she"s busy. Do you mind waiting for a while until she comes here?」

「I"ll wait. There"s something else I"d like to talk about too.」

「What is it?」

「It"s about these girls. They need better equipment.」

「Hmm.」

Don"t give me that look either.
It"s not what you think, Fiona.
I"m not thinking about anything indecent! It"s part of a quest!
I"m doing this on behalf of Master!

「Aight! Here"s some yakisoba!」

The food on the plate that Mio serves is yakisoba without a doubt.
At least, its appearance is.
Instead of soy sauce, it smells like fish sauce.
There seems to be olive oil in it.

Are the small red rings actually Hawk Talons?
There are also long and thin meat slices and vegetables resembling cabbage inside.
It"s still early for lunch!
We"re going to eat it anyway!

【Food】Wild Style Yakisoba (Mimic)　Satiety +25%　Grade C+　Rarity 2　Weight 1
A simple dish consisting of noodles, vegetables, and boiled Striped Boar Meat fried on a grill.
The meat is fried with Hawk Talons and b.l.o.o.d.y Burdock, giving it a spicy and rich taste.

It looks like she put in a lot of effort.
She really is a good cook.
You don"t have to give me such a smug face!

「Burdock again? And the meat too. Wait, this is horse meat!」

「Yeah. Adele, Irina, take out the contents in your rucksacks and organize them.」

「「Okay.」」

Most of their item drops are Wild Rabbit Meat, Skins, and Horns, as well as Wild Pheasant Wings.
They"re separating their items.
I"m presenting my Evil Ant Stings, Obsidian Ores, Bat Fangs, and Steppe Hawk Wings separately.
Fiona is looking at my items.

「Are you sure you"re not going to sell them?」

「Oh, you knew?」

「You"re going to offset the processing fee, right?」

「If possible, yes. If it"s not enough, I think I have enough money.」

「Using Wild Horse Hides as materials and selling them makes a huge difference. But maybe the horse meat could work.」

It looks like she"s starting to calculate again, so I"ll refrain from talking.
For now, I"ll focus on finishing the yakisoba.

「Oh, Mio, give them some noodles too.」

「I already did!」

Hey! That"s fast!
And it looks like the girls have already finished their noodles!

「Fiona, do you mind recalculating?」

「I already am.」

I think that her smile is helping me a little.
Still, Adele and Irina are getting used to things here a little too quickly.
Are girls like that?
As his name suggests, Fudo seems untouched, showing only a slight smile.
1
I guess it"s rather heartwarming to watch.

「Hey! I"m here!」

Reina joins us and begins talking nonstop with Mio and Adele.
It"s a full-on girls" talk.
I can"t jump into the conversation now.

Everyone in Fiona"s manufacturing party besides Saki is here.
Yuka and Rick are tending to the stall when the occasional NPC visits, but the group conversation is still going on.
I need to ask Reina about bows and arrows, but I can do it later.

「We can"t go deeper into the Western Forest. It"s too dangerous.」

「But the loot there is good. I"ve managed to harvest some burdocks.」

「No, that"s not harvesting.」

I see. They"ve been hunting in the forest.
If they"ve gotten some burdocks, that means they killed b.l.o.o.d.y Woods.
I thought they only appeared around Master"s house at night. I didn"t know they were here during the day as well.

「Reina! Mio! There"s something we need to discuss!」

Fiona calls out to them and stops them.
That helped.
I just can"t do it myself.

「Let"s start with Mio. you need some ingredients, right?」

「Of course!」

「Then we"ll buy the horse meat. I"ll leave it to you, okay?」

「Bring it on!」

Mio is talking weird.
They"re going back to their girls" talk again.
Len-Len is rather talkative too.
Yuka and Irina seem quiet, but most of the girls are chatty.
I don"t get this at all.

「Now, let"s talk about bows and arrows.」

「Hm? You don"t use them, right Keith?」

「It"s for the girls.」

「Hmm.」

Oh no.
Reina is giving me the same look as Fiona did.
It"s not what it looks like!

「I"ll take the arrowheads and feathers. As many as possible.」

「Okay. Are you paying for them, Keith?」

「That"s fine for the time being.」

「I"m already doing the calculations, including the offsets.」

「Alright, I"ll start making some right away.」

Reina begins making the arrows here.
Shinohara is helping her with production.
I think he"s also a Woodworker.
There"s a bundle of bamboo shafts in the stall.
They"re quickly making the arrows using the materials they have here.
Well, they"re mostly just arranging and combining the materials.

「You can make them even if you"re not in the workshop?」

「Yeah. The location doesn"t really matter.」

「And you"re using wooden materials for the shafts?」

「Yup. Any kind of wood is fine, but we prefer using bamboo. It"s easy to process.」

They have no problem working while talking.
Reina is working while making idle chat with Fiona and Rick.
I"m using【Appraise】on the arrows while joining the conversation.
They"re all Grade C+.
Nice job.

Shinohara"s arrows are Grade C+ as well.
Reina is slightly faster in her work, but he"s also doing a good job.
I"ve also been working hard in making potions and bottles.
But I"m a little worried about getting the Grade consistent after skipping out on work for a while.

We"re chatting idly while waiting for Saki to arrive.
Fiona leaves the conversation to tend to NPC and player customers when they visit the stall.
Most of them are bow users, so they"re buying the arrows in the stall.
Look like Reina"s and Shinohara"s products are selling pretty well.
They"re also proactively buying arrow materials from the players.
It"s how business works, I guess.

「Sorry Fiona, I"m late.」

「It"s fine.」

「Hm? It"s quite the crowd today.」

「We have some customers.」

She finally notices me.

「Oh, are you here for your request, Keith?」

「I just changed my hunting ground.」

「Oh, is that so? I"m working on the skins right now. I"ve tanned them, so it should be ready by tomorrow.」

「Thanks.」

Fiona points to the Wild Horse Hides on the table.

「Ah, that"s good. What will it be?」

「First, I"d like 2 pairs of boots.」

「Apparently, it"s for the girls here.」

Saki notices Adele and Fiona, who are busy talking.

「Are they in your party, Keith?」

「No, we"re in a『Union』. I"m sort of helping them.」

「Hey, isn"t this a crime?」

「I had my doubts too. I still do.」

Fiona and Saki are being mean!
It"s a quest.
I"m too mentally weak to hold my ground.

「Understood. You"ll still have leftover hides, you know? More than one, at the very least.」

「I see. How about using the leftovers for armor?」

「That won"t be quite enough.」

Oops.
It"s not going as well as I thought.

「Can I leave it with you for a later time?」

「That"s fine. I"ll do what I can with these materials. It looks like it"ll be good for leveling up.」

「Thanks.」

「You"re welcome. Now, I"ll measure their foot sizes.」

Saki is joining the girls" talk.
Looks like the only option is for me to join them.
It seems like Saki is guesstimating their foot sizes.

「This is it!」

Reina and Shinohara have finished making their arrows.

「Watch out for the Obsidian Arrows! It"s heavy, so it may fall off if you don"t glue it properly!」

「Roger.」

「Well, we have lots of arrows, so the Obsidian Arrows may not get their chance to shine!」

「Oh, I can make bows too. Please tell them that.」

「Okay. I"ll tell them.」

I respond to Shinohara"s sales talk in a businesslike manner.
Building win-win relationships like this is a good thing.
Adele and Irina should get some experience on their own though.

「Right, do you have this sort of thing too, Fiona?」

I take out a Blue Spinel.
It looks like it"s used to help magic users in combat, but I don"t really know what to do with it.

「Ah, that"s a good find.」

「Good, you say?」

「Yes. It can be used with something else to increase the user"s magic attack.」

「Huh.」

「But there are no Jewelers in my guild. It"s a shame.」

「Jewelers?」

「Yeah. Jewelers are the only ones who can process raw minerals and ores. They"re probably even more rare than Summoners.」

「Really?」

「Yes. But you could probably take it to an NPC Jeweler.」

「Where can I find one?」

「I think they"re in Remut and the port town. But I think you need an introduction letter to see them.」

Oh no.
It"s going to be a bother.

「There are very few Jewelers because only characters with Jewelers as their Parent Cla.s.s can be one. Same with Summoners.」

「I see.」

「It"s probably because of the fact that they handle expensive items.」

Is that how it is?
Looks like the Blue Spinel is useless to me for now.

「Anyway, as for Item Boxes, where can I get one?」

「Huh? I thought you had one, Keith?」

「I"m just borrowing it.」

「I think you should"ve gotten one if you spent Bonus Points during character creation.」

I froze for a second.
Was there such a menu?

「Did you skip something, perhaps?」

「I don"t know.」

Now I"m depressed.
There"s a limit to how dumb I can be.

I"ll sell the other items and let them do the calculations.
I didn"t earn much out of it.
Well, that can"t be helped.

I"m done here for now.
At least, I should be.
When are the girls going to stop talking?
They never run out of things to talk about. Honestly, I"m impressed.

「Adele, Irina, let"s go hunting.」

「Eh?」

「Oh, okay.」

They"re both too into it.
I let them hold on to the arrows and exit the stall.

Protagonist　Keith
Race　Human　Male　Racial Lv5
Job　Summoner Lv4
Bonus Points Remaining 17

Skill Sets
Staff Lv4　Punch Lv2　Kick Lv2　Joint Lock Lv3　Throw Lv3
Evade Lv3　Block Lv2　Summon Magic Lv5
Light Magic Lv2　Wind Magic Lv3　Earth Magic Lv2　Water Magic Lv3
Fire Magic Lv1　Dark Magic Lv1
Alchemy Lv3　Pharmacy Lv2　Gla.s.smaking Lv3
Cooperation Lv5（↑1）Appraise Lv4　Identify Lv4　Cold Resistance Lv2　Grab Lv3
Horsemanship Lv4（↑1）Precise Manipulation Lv3　Jump Lv1　Heat Resistance Lv3

Equipment　Kaya Wood Rod　Wild Rabbit Breastplate+ Series　Snow Ape Armguard
Wild Horse Boots+　Snow Ape Helmet　Rucksack
Item Box ×2

Items　Survival Knife

t.i.tles　Old Summoner"s Temporary Pupil, Livestock Protector

Monster Summons
Volff　Wolf Lv4
Zangetsu　Horse Lv3
Helix　Hawk Lv3
Obsidian　Owl Lv3

Companions
Adele & Mii-chan
Irina & Toggle