Chapter 3: Part 2

Race : Sand Armadillo, Level 150

Skills : [Sturdy] [Rolling] [Iron Wall] [Earth Magic]

Attributes : HP [B] | MP [C] | STR [C] | INT [D] | AGI [B] | DEX [D] | LUK [E]

As the race name suggests, it's an armadillo monster.

At first, I was afraid of the impact from the armadillo's [Rolling] skill, which was about the size of an elephant. Would I get smashed as flat as a piece of paper if that thing landed on me? Probably.

The armadillo was able to maintain its composure when I set its hard scales on fire with [Ignition], but it was quite bothered and panicked when I tried to damage it with a large volume of [Spring Water]. It didn't fall down in one go, but three shots of [Spring Water] was enough to drown it.

So, depending on the monster, even [Ignition] might not do much. That battle prompted me to think more about skill compatibility based on the type of enemy. I was just glad I could get its three skills: [Sturdy], [Iron Wall], and [Earth Magic], despite only getting a tiny amount of meat from its abdomen.

Race : Soul Eater, Level 170

Skill : [Soul Eating] [Phantom Body] [Summoning Undead]

Attributes : HP [C] | MP [A] | STR [D] | INT [B] | AGI [B] | DEX [D] | LUK [E]

As you could guess from the race, this monster eats souls, and actually has the [Soul Eating] skill. Moreover, because of the [Phantom Body] skill, or maybe from a characteristic of being a ghost-type monster with a transparent body, physical attacks were ineffective.

It's also pretty annoying to fight because it always summons undead type monsters in the surrounding area. However, it seems weak to fire, so it was easy to defeat when I burn it with [Ignition].

Because it's a ghost-type monster, I didn't even expect [Dismantling] to yield anything edible, but surprisingly, its eyeball returned as an ingredient. I cooked it with [Ultimate Cooking], but it took me another two hours to actually put it in my mouth. I was hesitant to eat it because of its grotesque appearance.

However, once I did, it was surprisingly delicious, tasting like a rich, sweet dessert with refreshing complementary acidity, and I also got the [Summoning Undead] skill.

You shouldn't automatically hate something before you actually try it.

Race : Wood Doll, Level 160

Skills : [Photosynthesis] [Close Combat Technique] [Intuition] [Plant Magic]

Attributes : HP [B] | MP [C] | STR [B] | INT [B] | AGI [B] | DEX [C] | LUK [E]

This one… was an instant kill with [Ignition]. It's literally a tree, after all. It was a man-shaped doll only a little larger than me, about 175 centimeters tall, and for some reason it had two fruits on its head resembling an apple and an orange.

[Dismantling] returned no meat, just the fruit attached to its head. When that fruit was cooked with [Ultimate Cooking], it gained a nice candy-like appearance, and tasted delicious. I'd only been eating meat until now, so I hunted them for a while.

The Soul Eater's eye was also delicious, but I didn't want to actively hunt for those because it looked so unappetizing; that's why I only hunted the Wood Dolls. Of course, I also got the [Close Combat Technique] and [Intuition] skills from it.

Race : Sword Reaper, Level 200

Skills : [Swordsmanship] [Soul Eating] [Spiritual Body] [Summoning Undead] [Corrosion Magic] [Transition Technique]

Attributes : HP [A] | MP [A] | STR [A] | INT [B] | AGI [B] | DEX [B] | LUK [E]

It looks just like a grim reaper, with a black cloak, a skeleton's face, and a… sword. I know what you're thinking, I'd also expect a grim reaper to have a scythe, but for some reason it wields a sword. The sword itself also feels very creepy due to the red lines running across the black blade like blood vessels.

Unfortunately, the Sword Reaper is too fast to kill. Even though it didn't have skills like [Intuition] or [Presence Detection], it could sense the darkness when I approached and kept its distance no matter how fast I moved. I gave up and left it alone, because it would become a game of tag if I insisted on pursuing it.

It's been a month since I started traveling down the river. I've been walking for a long time, but still I've seen nothing but forest. Is this Great Borf Forest perhaps bigger than the Amazon Rainforest on Earth? If so, when am I going to find human civilization? Though my heart was ready to break from solitude, I held on, and continued walking by the riverside.

It was almost sunset. Recently, the air was biting cold even in the daytime, so when the sun went down the temperature would drop so much I'd shiver uncontrollably. It's clear that winter is coming soon, but my current appearance is completely primitive.

My hair has grown wild compared to when I first got thrown into the Great Borf Forest, and before long the clothes I was wearing were in such tatters they couldn't even be called clothes anymore. I just wrapped them around my waist to maintain decency, and that's the best I could do.

However, the one thing I'm grateful for is that it doesn't feel cold in the darkness, so I practically live there these days. Not having anyone to talk to for a whole month has left me feeling very lonely.

I wonder if there's anyone in this forest… right now, I'd accept any kind of sapient existence to fill this emotional void, even if it turned out to be a monster. Events in light novels often proceed such that the main character is able to make friends with a monster, such as a slime or Fenrir, so I was hoping for something like that as well.

Come to think of it, are there beastmen in this world? Are there any fantasy races such as elves or dwarves? In the temple where I was summoned, everyone just looked like regular humans, so that aspect was kind of boring, but I think it makes sense to expect other races to exist because this is a different world, full of magic.

What I mean is, I'm definitely going to find some people who have animal ears! I think that I'm allowed to cuddle with something that has soft fur, considering the hardships I've been through so far!

The darkness was so comfortable. Whenever I get sleepy, I go to sleep in there, and keep moving after I've regained my stamina. If a monster comes out, I kill it, and eat it when I'm hungry. Earlier, I ran into another Hell Bear, and I didn't have a hard time like before since I could just sneakily touch its back and use [Dismantling].