CH 4

Chapter 4: The Countess and the Magic Stone.

"That's you."

The first person to speak to me while I was in a daze was a warrior who was guarding the rear of the group and fending off the pursuit of the orcs. As I turned to face the slightly high-pitched voice, I was surprised.

The level 5 warrior was a woman, clad in what looked like a chain mail that medieval knights used to wear, a metal mesh covering her from head to waist, and wielding a spear in one hand.

It was hard to tell from her position on the Chocobo, but she seemed to be as tall as me, if not taller, making her quite tall for a woman. Her hair was also hidden beneath the metal mesh cap, so I couldn't tell how long it was, but her sharp facial features and strong-willed gaze made her probably quite beautiful. I think she was older than me.

"Did you cut down those orcs over there?"

She may not have been able to see where I had defeated the orcs since she was at the back of the group.

At the same time, I noticed that she, with her Western-looking red hair and blue eyes, was speaking Japanese, but her mouth movements and voice sounded slightly out of sync.

I probably noticed the discrepancy because I was staring at her face. If this was a different world, it felt like the language of this world was being automatically translated into Japanese.

While thinking about such things and not answering, she seemed to misunderstand and became a little annoyed.

"Are you listening!?"

But it was the robed man, who was closer to me, who shouted, not her.

It was not a pleasant sight, with the man clinging to the Chocobo and riding with another person. Both of them were probably in their twenties at most, with the stocky man in front bleeding from his face and being an adventurer at level 6, and the skinny little man behind him being a level 4 wizard.

Despite being the lowest level, he had an arrogant attitude and a slightly cunning look on his face. Although he was called a wizard, I couldn't see him using any magic.

"Please stop, Morton. He helped us. Besides, I saw him cut down the orc," said a female level 5 monk, blocking Morton's way.

She had long chestnut hair and wore a tiara-like accessory on her head. She was also clad in leather armor. At first glance, she had a soft and cute look to her. She was around the same age as me. Additionally, based on the way her armor accentuated her chest, she had a sizable bust.

Morton, the man she called, looked frustrated, and judging from the reactions of the others around him, he seemed to be of a higher social standing or perhaps an employer.

"I, Carenna Foro Orbania, the legitimate heir of the Orbania earldom, am grateful for your assistance," said the woman.

So she was a noblewoman? This was indeed a medieval-style world. A stout man spoke up.

"Yes, that's right. I saw it too... What is he, an adventurer? I can't believe it. He's only level 1!"

The man speaking up was a level 6 adventurer seated at the front of a two-seater Truima. He seemed to have noticed my job and level.

So that's it. "Discernment" is a skill unique to adventurers, and not many other jobs possess it.

While thinking about that, I realized that I had to say something or it would be awkward.

"Um... My name is Shiro Tsuzuki, or Tsuzuki Shiro maybe. I'm... well, is this another world?"

I wondered if speaking Japanese would make sense. Was the automatic translation two-way?

"Oh, I see... I'm sorry, please don't look at me like that."

"Um, I came here suddenly from another place and I'm not sure what's going on. Oh, Orcs? They attacked me, so I desperately fought back and may have killed three of them. Yeah, there was one more, but it ran away..."

"Oh come on, you have to give us more information than that."

"Well, I'm really bad at talking to people. I'm a loner at school, and even though I thought I did pretty well on last year's medical school interview, I couldn't say much and it ended up being a disaster. And now they want me to become a doctor? That's irrelevant now, I'm an idiot!"

"It seems that you are a foreigner and have difficulty speaking, but is your name Shiro? Those were Orcs, or rather Orc leaders. I'm surprised you were able to defeat three of them at level 1. How did you manage that...? Well, in any case, thanks to you we were able to avoid being surrounded. I'll give you my thanks as well."

The female warrior's follow-up was helpful. She may look tough, but she might be a nice person.

"Madam Carenna, if possible, we should receive treatment now."

"Yes, we should leave here as soon as possible. I still have enough MP left."

So this Count's daughter named Carenna is probably the leader. In response to the adventurer at level 6, she began chanting an incantation that he didn't understand. Her gentle demeanor suddenly transformed into a serious one. It was a nice change of pace. Then she chanted, "...Oh God, heal us!" and a faint light enveloped the adventurers. After a few seconds, their wounds disappeared, and their complexion improved noticeably.

Wow, this is really a world of swords and magic. That must be a healing priest spell.

One by one, the others were also given the spell, and finally, the healing spell was cast on Chocobo, who was carrying two people on his back.

Chocobo looked exhausted and its back seemed to be weighed down, but after the spell was cast, its waist seemed to stretch out and it felt better.

The Orcs on foot were clinging to the rider, perhaps because Chocobo had been killed, and the two of them were struggling to ride together, making it difficult to run fast. Since Chocobo appears to be smaller than a horse, it might be a bit tough to ride with two people. Alternatively, they may have been injured.

While thinking about such things, Carenna passed by me while controlling Chocobo and began chanting a different spell towards the orc's corpse.

"…Gather the power of evil, 'Purify'!"

Then, the orc's corpse was enveloped in a vague, bright mist, and when it cleared, the corpse disappeared like magic, leaving behind a blackish-red stone on the ground. I was amazed.

Furthermore, when the same thing was done to the corpse of the Orc leader, it became a slightly larger red stone than before.

"Is this all the Orcs you've defeated, Shiro?"

"Carenna-sama, casting any more magic will be too much for your body. We still have to return."

"No, we cannot leave the remains of monsters behind. We cannot call any more evil beings into our territory."

Carenna replied to the female warrior, and her response was to continue the conversation.

"There's another one down by the riverbank..."

"A level one adventurer alone with three Orcs including the leader?"

The level six adventurer seemed to be at a loss for words, but really, I was close to death. If I had tried it ten times, I would have died nine times, and it would have been game over.

When I passed by the rocks on the path, I picked up Rina and secretly put her in my backpack, making sure that her body was in my shadow. It wouldn't be good to be seen with something like this.

Perhaps in another world, it's common for a grown man to carry a young girl's doll, but no, I must not be too presumptuous.

With my guidance, Carenna descended the hill and turned the remaining corpses into stones.

"What are you doing? Pick them up quickly."

The female warrior called out to me, looking exasperated at the question mark floating above my head.

"Don't you know? Magic stones can be sold in the city."

That's right, it's like the treasure drops from defeating monsters in RPGs.

The bigger magic stone of the orc leader would probably sell for a higher price. I don't know how much it's worth, but as someone who doesn't have any currency in this world, I'm just glad to have it. I picked up three red stones and threw them into my backpack.

At that moment, I noticed a file in my backpack that had an entrance ticket that I didn't need. I felt indescribable.

"Are you okay? Did you overdo it?" 

"No, but we should hurry. Monsters may still appear. It's lamentable even in the outskirts of the territory." 

Karina, who seemed to be enduring a headache after casting a spell, responded to the adventurer's call and called the female warrior.

"Cecily, sorry, but can you take him with you?"

"I understand. We should take him to the city anyway."

That conversation took place with me, who didn't understand the situation, in between.

"Shiro, I don't know the situation, but as a lord, I cannot overlook a level 1 person walking around here alone. We'll take you to the city while the sun is still up, and we'll think about what to do next later."

Carenna said that and turned Chocobo back to the path, walking in the opposite direction to where I came from. It seems that I had walked in the wrong direction, away from the city.

"That's just the way it is. I'm always like this. I'm aware that I'm an unlucky man."

But as I clung to Cecily's waist while riding Chocobo, I had a change of heart. Although she was about the same height as me and had a cold attitude, her good figure, which could be seen even over her chain mail, and her beauty, which was even more evident up close, were undeniable.

In many ways, it made me feel better. Keep calm, keep calm. This was lucky.