“Heave-ho!!”

Crack!

With three times the force, the heavy axe cleaved straight through the thick log, sending pale wood chips flying in every direction beneath the morning sun.

“Phew… I never thought I’d find myself chopping wood in another world.”

It was my third day in this world.

After asking around and doing some investigating, I’d gotten a general idea of how this world worked and how its combat strength was categorized.

Like in a lot of online games, the weapons used by combatants like soldiers and adventurers varied wildly, from bows and swords to pitchforks. There were all sorts of job classifications, too—“swordsman,” “shadow dancer,” “radiant warrior,” “moonlit knight,” and plenty of other strange titles—but broadly speaking, they fell into three main classes.

[Warriors], who relied on powerful physiques and combat skills, fighting with swords, axes, and bows.

[Mages], who crushed their enemies with mysterious magic, like walking artillery platforms on the battlefield.

[Priests], pure believers in the gods who’d been entrusted by their faiths with the sacred duty of protecting the divine, and who could wield miracles.

There were plenty of sub-classes, like swordsmen, spearmen, archers, battle mages, battle nuns, and all sorts of other messy classifications, but those were the three main ones.

“Seems simple enough… I wonder if they have assassins and thieves, too.”

I sighed, stretched, and took a look around.

Wooden houses of all sizes made up a fairly large village. The sprawling crops and livestock made me feel like I’d returned to the countryside.

Drew Village, tucked away in the northeastern corner of the kingdom.

This village reminded me a lot of the ones from medieval Central Europe in movies and TV. They still had to light fires with dry wood shavings, but the place looked surprisingly clean, which was a relief.

“Yoo-hoo! Ojer! You’re up early!”

I looked behind me. A red-haired girl in hunter’s clothes, a longbow slung across her shoulder, was bouncing over my way. Her curves were impossible to miss beneath the taut bowstring, and her flame-colored hair gleamed in the morning sun.

“Morning, Linda.” I straightened my helmet and waved.

“Going rabbit hunting today?”

She was a ranged combatant among the [Warriors]: an [Archer].

Though most of the time, she worked as a hunter…

“Heheh~~ A restaurant ordered a whole deer! So I’m going after some big game!!”

“I see. Be careful out there.”

The girl, her hair braided into one huge plait, gave me a few silly grins, then glanced past me at the firewood piled up into a small hill.

“You really don’t have to do this. You’re already paying for your lodging.”

I stretched my arms. Seeing how shy she looked, I used Information Gathering.

“Ascertain.”

【Linda】

【Race: Human】

【Age: 17】

【Class: Hunter; Black Obsidian-rank Adventurer; Archer】

【Level: LV19 (Never misses within a hundred paces; beyond that, every arrow’s a shooting star)】

【Combat Power: Unlock the [Combat Power Assessment] system to view】

【Current Status: None】

【Note: Acting village chief of Drew Village】

Linda was a spirited seventeen-year-old, the daughter of Drew, the village chief, and the acting chief of this little village for the time being. She was the one who’d rescued us two nights ago and brewed herbal medicine for Eileen.

“I get up early, and I’ve got nothing else to do. Besides, I’ve caused you so much trouble, so think of it as a workout.”

After getting Eileen settled that night, I’d used the MAX lying skills I’d honed in the war zone to convince Linda that I was a traveler and the girl was my younger sister. We’d been staying in the neighboring village, I told her, until a Necromancer attacked. We couldn’t hold them off, so we fled here.

【Shameless】

[Artificially Stupid AI]

Paper-chan was always calling me out in real time whenever I lied. But I knew next to nothing about this world, so all I could do was rely on its seemingly vast database to figure out what to do next.

Besides, that night, beside the wrecked carriage, I’d found not only plenty of clothes, teacups, and other goods for sale, but also a decent amount of money.

I’ve got… two gold and twenty-seven silver coins. These coins are pretty crudely made, though. The gold ones seem to be gold-plated, too.

By the way, a night’s lodging here costs four silver coins. One gold coin seems to be worth a hundred silver, and one silver coin a hundred copper.

This really feels like a Western fantasy RPG…

“Hmm… All right. My father and the others might not be back for a few days. Should I go let them know first?”

“N-no, no need!!” I hurriedly stopped her.

The village chief and quite a few of the able-bodied villagers had gone to help with the rescue efforts in the neighboring village. They’d only just left when we arrived. We’d happened to run into this trusting girl, who never questioned who we were. Otherwise, we might still be sleeping outside and feeding the mosquitoes.

“Well, I’m off! Oh, and you can use the kitchen however you like. Just don’t go overboard with the ingredients.”

“No problem. Be careful while you’re hunting.”

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Linda waved to me and jogged lightly into the forest.

“An adventurer, huh…”

I watched her go and murmured to myself.

One of her stats had said “Black Obsidian-rank Adventurer.” Looks like this world had those classic RPG elements, too—adventurers and an Adventurers' Guild.

Tch. I might have to go back to my old line of work… I really don’t want to…

Yesterday, I’d chatted with the villagers. All kinds of weird stories and romance novels from Earth quickly drew quite a crowd to listen to me ramble, and my cool black armor had a few of the boys looking up to me.

But those conversations had also given me a good deal of information. It still wasn’t enough, though. There was precious little useful intel. So far, all I knew was that the nearest city was half a day’s walk to the north.

The border fortress of Saileda.

Only once I got there would I learn what this world was really like.

“Whatever. I’ll make some food first, then figure out how to get into the city.”

I clapped my hands and carried an armful of firewood into the kitchen.

“Mmm… That smells good…”

It was 9:40 in the morning, and the sun was already high. I sat beside the silver-haired girl’s bed, sulking as I fanned faster and faster, hoping the aroma would lure her out of her dreams.

“Why isn’t this girl up yet…? Did I mess up the food? No way. I’ve hardly seen any of this world’s seasonings, but the flavor should still be fine.”

【Maybe you mixed up the sugar and salt.】

“No way! Even I wouldn’t—”

【Can you prove that? You don’t even have a sense of taste.】

“……”

Forget it. I’m not arguing with this artificially stupid AI.

“Mmm… Is it morning already…? Ah!!”

“Hey, morning. You’re finally up.”

The girl sleepily opened her eyes and started to stretch. But when she saw me in full armor, she quickly curled back up, looking frightened.

I set the food out on the table and handed her something that looked like a toothbrush.

“There’s a well behind the house. Draw a basin of water, wash your face, brush your teeth, then come eat.”

“Huh? Oh, okay… I understand…”

She scrambled out of bed, washed up, then sat down at the table.

The rich aroma filled her senses. Her eyes sparkled as she stared in disbelief at the delicious spread on the table.

“C-can I really eat this?!”

“Of course. I mean—hey! Slow down! No one’s going to steal it!”

I hadn’t even finished speaking before she started wolfing it down, nearly choking herself.

I sat with my legs crossed and watched her for a while. This girl was eating at twelve times the speed of a normal person. Had she starved to death in her past life or something?

“Why are you eating like you’re starving to death? How long has it been since you had a proper meal?”

I hadn’t expected my words to affect her so deeply. Her knife and fork clattered onto the table. She suddenly stopped eating and looked at me through tear-filled eyes, as if reliving her past.

“It’s been a long time… I’ve almost forgotten what bread tastes like. Before that merchant caravan captured me, I ate whatever I could find. I also had to hide from some really scary people, and from the men who looked at me with filthy eyes. Sometimes I’d go three or four days without eating…”

“I’ve been a Necromancer for less than half a month, and I’m always getting beaten up. The food I get is pretty awful, too. The last time I had a meal this good was probably over a year ago…”

If it had been anyone else, I might’ve thought she was trying to cast herself as the heroine of some tragic drama to win my sympathy. But the girl before me had such a heavy fog in her eyes that my jaw fell slack. For a moment, I didn’t know what to say.

So she spoke first.

“Um… are you going to be my master from now on…?”

“Uh, I don’t like being called ‘master,’ but… well, you can think of it that way.”

“I see…”

She smiled shyly, then began eating politely, as if that unladylike display a moment ago had come from someone else entirely.

“Oh, and when we’re around other people, call me ‘big brother.’ We’re supposed to be siblings now. Got it?”

“Okay. I’ll remember.”

“Good.”

“Um…”

“Is there something else?”

She carefully lifted her bowl and asked me shyly,

“Could I… have a meal this delicious once in a while from now on? Once a month would be enough!”

“Pfft.” I laughed.

“You can have it every day, as long as you behave.”

“Really?!”

“Really.”

“Really, really?!”

“Yeah, really.”

“Yay!!”

“Heh. What a silly girl…”

What a silly girl…

Memories washed over me. The smell of gunpowder and the drone of flies circling around came back to me.

She reminded me so much of her…

『Hey, big brother! What’s this dish called? It’s so good!』

『West Lake fish in vinegar sauce. The conditions here are awful. Once we’re back home, I’ll take you to Hangzhou for the real thing!』

『Really?! You’re not lying to me?!』

『Really.』

『Yay! I love you most, big brother!』

『Heh. What a silly girl…』

In a shabby restaurant far from the war zone, the brown-haired girl smiled happily at me, bits of rice stuck to her face.

If only I’d tried a little harder back then…

Then she wouldn’t have…

But now, I couldn’t even call her “silly girl” anymore.

If she’d come to this world, too, and been here with me…

Then I…

“Mr. Ojer?”

“Ah…!!”

The girl’s soft voice pulled me back to reality.

“Are you feeling unwell? Can skeletons get sick?”

“No, I was just spacing out.” I waved a hand, my expression a little downcast.

No matter what, my most important goal now was to complete the task Paper-chan had given me. Even if it took decades, I’d ascend to godhood!!

Resurrect Karina!!

“By the way, you really aren’t afraid of me, are you? Aren’t you scared to have a skeleton as your master?”

Eileen blinked and swallowed the meat in her mouth.

“Mmm… I was scared at first, but once I got used to it, it didn’t seem like a big deal…”

“Besides, you’re really gentle with me. You’re so much better than those bastards who look human on the outside but are demons inside…”

“I see.”

A monster…

I tilted my head back and gazed thoughtfully at the wooden ceiling, its growth rings running across it.

One was a skeletal monster, feared and hated by people.

The other was a half-elf girl cursed by the gods.

Heh. Maybe our party makes a pretty good match after all.

“By the way, Eileen, later, do you want to—”

BAM!!

“Ojer!!”

I was just about to say something else when the door was suddenly kicked open. Startled, I hurriedly put on my helmet.

Linda, who’d gone hunting a few hours ago, came running in, gasping for breath, and handed me a letter.

“What’s this?” I took it from her.

“My dad, haha… they sent someone… whew… to deliver it. They said it was urgent… huff, huff…”

“…Then why are you giving it to me? I’m an outsider.”

“But I can’t read!!!” Linda shouted, as if that were perfectly obvious.

“……”

Right…

Damn, I can’t read either…!!

Paper-chan has to translate this country’s language for me before I can understand it!!

Oh no! I’m screwed! I won’t be able to get anywhere if I can’t read!!

“You’re a traveler, so you can read, right? Hurry up and tell me what this says!”

“Uh, I, well…”

I panicked.

“What’s wrong? You won’t even help me with this tiny favor?”

“No, it’s just—cough, cough—Linda, hear me out…”

Just as I was frantically trying to figure out how to fool her, Eileen timidly raised her hand, her ahoge spinning in circles like a compass needle.

“Um… I can read…”

Linda, who was gripping my collar, and I both turned to look at Eileen, who wore earmuffs and looked adorably dazed.

“Huh?”