Chapter 15 – Monsters attacked
After eating breakfast, I applied for an extension at my inn again, as my accommodation was soon going to expire.
I don’t think I will want to stay at a different inn for as long as I’m in this city, and since I’m planning on staying here for a while, I decided to pay for a month’s worth of rent this time around.
I had to use some small gold coins for that, and for some reason, the inn’s receptionist seemed extremely surprised by that.
Did they think that I wouldn’t have this much money on me? Well… It’s not like I have a lot of money in the first place. This was about half of everything I own.
In any case, I went to the guild, got another request for collecting herbs, then left town.
It was the third day already, so I was quite used to the whole process.
The gatekeeper also seemed to have gotten used to me, as he saw me off with a smile this time around.
Once I reached the forest, I headed to the spring once again.
It’s not like I have to always make my potions at the spring, but I left my mortar and some other things there, and it’s also convenient to have a source of water right next to me while I’m making the potions.
The only issue is that I’m always attacked by monsters when I go there.
Today it was a wolf-like monster pack that attacked me. Forest Wolves. A type of monster that lives in the forest and tends to attack in groups.
They are good at sneak attacks, but Aria easily noticed their presence and pointed them out to me.
I never notice the monsters until Aria tells me about them though… How does she always detect them?
In any case, after taking care of the Forest Wolves, I was able to safely arrive at the forest while collecting the herbs I found along the way.
The mortar and other things that were left behind are still there, so it seems like nobody came here.
Well, I guess there aren’t many people who would bother with coming all the way here?
In any case, let’s start making today’s batch of potions.
I lightly washed the inside of the mortar, then took out some medicinal herbs from my Storage, and put them on the mortar-
Ah, wait, hold on. I should make some bottles first.
Yesterday it took quite a while for the glass to cool down, so I had a lot of free time in the second half of the potion-making process.
Therefore, I decided to make the glasses first today.
I used the small furnace I made yesterday to start making the glass. It takes a surprisingly large amount of physical strength to get it done, but I can put up with it because it’s pretty fun.
… I wonder if I should build up my stamina though.
I mean, after spending a whole year immersed in research, I ended up having no stamina nor physical strength at all. Even stuff like using a stick to shape the glass already takes a lot of effort and makes my hands start trembling.
The process was too unstable, so I used physical strengthening magic halfway through in order to make it smoother, but I wonder if it isn’t a better idea to solve the fundamental problem…
Mmm… Well, making potions is more important right now, so let’s leave that for later.
Besides, even if it’s a short distance, I’m walking back and forth from the city to the forest every day, so I’m sure I’ll be able to gain some strength soon.
And like this, I made several small bottles and put them on top of a flat stone to cool down. By the time my potions are ready, the flasks should be ready for usage.
Now, time for my favorite part, making the potions.
Yesterday my potion was a bit too diluted, so I’d like to try a different concentration of ingredients this time around.
I’ve gotten the hang of how to mix the ingredients up, so I’ll be grinding them down more and more.
And so, as I experimented with the timing, quantity and method of putting in medicinal herbs, the sun started going down in no time.
The day sure goes by quickly while I’m immersed in doing something, doesn’t it?
In any case, I poured my potions into the hardened glass bottles.
Although the effects of each potion are varied, I still managed to make several potions that had the same effect as the potion I bought the other day.
That was possible because I came up with the idea of using Appraisal in the middle of the potion-creation process to see the subtle changes in effects as I added ingredients in.
Like this, I was able to obtain new knowledge while still in the midst of the grinding process, and putting that new information to use immediately ended up giving surprisingly good results.
Appraisal is truly convenient, after all. I wonder how I was able to learn it.
I think it’s cheaty enough to have Storage, but being able to also Appraisal, when both skills are fairly rare, is truly amazing.
In any case, I’ve made potions that I’m satisfied with, so it’s now time to go home.
I put the small bottles in Storage, stood up and-
Wait, let’s bring the mortar and the other things with me too.
I mean, it’s not like I think people will actually come here, but it’s still possible that it might happen.
Moreover, if monsters end up coming to this spring, they might destroy my tools, which would waste all the effort I put into making them.
And well, it’s not like I have to be stingy with Storage. The skill has infinite space within it, after all.
On the way back home though, Aria, who was flying a bit ahead of me, suddenly stopped.
“Monsters again?” I asked.
“Yes, though there seems to be a bit of an extra there too.” Aria replied.
“An extra?” I asked.
I was about to ask what that meant, but then I heard a scream.
I immediately cast body strengthening magic on my legs, then started running with jump-like steps.
That’s not what we call an extra!
After running through the forest for a short while, I saw a few monsters ahead of me.
Withered green bodies holding tattered weapons in their hands. A horde of goblins were surrounding something.
At the center of the horde were two children.
One was a girl, crouching down on the ground and crying.
The other was a boy, standing in front of the girl, seemingly trying to protect her. He was holding a long branch that he probably picked somewhere around here, and he was visibly trembling.
The goblins raised their weapons and were about to attack… I won’t make it in time like this.
Then, let’s try this!
Magic circles appeared in the air one after another, and when I swept my hand forward, each circle shot a water arrow.
The goblins screamed as the arrows hit their arms, forcing them to drop their weapons.
This was a weapon-creation magic with high lethal power. Arrows were among the fastest options available, so they’re ideal for quick attacks.
Now that I have secured the safety of the children, I can aim for the necks of the goblins with ease, so I created water blades, as usual, and beheaded them.
Water blades are an application of the water ball magic, so it’s one of my favorite spells, as it was just a small variation of the first spell I learned.
It’s also fairly easy to make, doesn’t take long to reach its target, and it has a good offensive potential… Water magic is truly versatile.
The arrows are faster than the blades though, so I needed to use them first in this kind of emergency situation.
In any case, I made sure to be careful with my targeting, so the children weren’t harmed even as I beheaded the goblins.
Right now, the children seemed to have started calming down, as they must have realized they’re no longer in danger.
So, I decided to approach the stunned children… The boy there seemed to be particularly astonished once he saw me.
Oh… Right, that’s the boy who advised me to not go to the depths of the forest.
… Why is he here, then?
“W-were you the one who helped us…?” The boy asked.
“Well, something like that?” I replied.
“I see… Thank you. You truly saved us.” The boy bowed his head to me in thanks.
I wanted to say something to him because he was now in the depths of the forest, going against his own advice, but it felt hard to say anything in this situation.
Well, for now… “You’re welcome. Is this child okay?” I asked him, while glancing towards the girl.
“I’m fine… Thank you.” She replied and tried standing up, but…
She immediately frowned, then crouched down again.
Now that I’m paying proper attention to her, I can see that her knee is injured… Did she fall down during the attack and hurt herself like that?
In that case… Let’s try it out.
I slowly approached the girl, took out one of my homemade potions, and applied it to her wound.
For a moment, she cried out in pain, but as she saw the wound quickly heal without even leaving a scar, she opened her mouth agape.
Yeah, just putting it on the wound seems to be effective. I knew that this should work as I saw the effect with Appraisal, but there are things I just can’t be sure about until I personally try it out, so this gave me a bit more confidence.
“H-hey! To use such an expensive thing!” The boy exclaimed.
“Don’t worry about it, I made this myself.” I replied to the boy, before turning back to the girl, “Can you stand?”
“Eh? Ah, yes.” She replied.
Potions are fairly expensive, so I can understand thinking it’s a waste to use them on minor injuries, but as I wanted to test its effects first-hand, this worked out nicely for me.
Moreover, it’s not like I spent any money on this potion in the first place, so I don’t mind using it like that.
I held out my hand towards the girl, she grabbed it and stood up.
That’s a relief. It seems like she has no other injuries.
“Hey, uhn… Thank you very much.” She told me.
“Above all else, I’m just glad you’re safe.” I replied.
“She’s right.” The boy told the girl, “And you understand it now, right? The depths of the forest are dangerous.
“Just because this girl can be fine in here, it doesn’t mean that we can, so don’t come here anymore.”
“Okay…” The girl muttered.
The boy is scolding her… Does this mean that she thought she would be fine here, because I go to the forest’s depths all the time and come back safely?
But when she tried going deeper, she ended up being attacked, and the current situation was the result…?
In this case, I’m also partially responsible for this…
“Hey, uhn…” The boy started muttering.
“Mmm? Ah, by the way, I’m Haku. What are your names?” I asked.
He seemed to be trying to find a way to call out to me, so I figured I’d just introduce myself and ask for their names.
“Haku. Got it.
“I’m Lars, and she is Cyan. Thank you for helping us.
“On top of that, you even had to use this potion for us…” He muttered.
In response to him thanking me again, I told him to not worry about it.
In the first place, I was only able to save them because Aria noticed that they were under attack, otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything.
Moreover, if it was just Cyan here, then she would have probably been attacked before I arrived anyways. I don’t think I would have been able to make it in time if Lars hadn’t stood in front of the goblins, so he too fulfilled an admirable role today.
“So, if you’re alright with it, could we go home together today?
“As long as you’re here, I think we’ll be okay even if we’re attacked?” Lars asked me.
“That’s fine. I was about to go home anyways.” I replied.
“Thanks, you’ve saved us.” Cyan said.
Then, the three of us held hands and started walking towards the forest’s exit.
Wait, before that, I need to collect the goblins.
I quickly put them in Storage to take care of that, so now I was ready to leave.
Lars seemed to be quite surprised by it, but well, this is just the kind of thing you get used to after a while.
That said, both Lars and Cyan are taller than me, so it feels like they’re the ones taking care of me right now.
When I asked Cyan about her age, she told me that she was eleven years old… Eh? We’re the same age?
She’s about a whole head taller than me though… Just how small am I?