Chapter 3

Fortuitous Encounter (2)

What was the most dangerous thing in the wilderness?

The three great poisons—poisonous plants, venomous insects, and venomous snakes?

Correct.

Or perhaps mushrooms, the ultimate gamble?

Also correct.

Maybe starvation or dehydration?

That was correct too.

Beyond the protective boundaries of civilization, everything in the wilderness was dangerous.

Even the ground beneath your feet could not be trusted.

And when judged individually, humans were incredibly weak creatures.

Without tools, a person probably could not even defeat a large dog.

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

"Woof! Woof!"

A pack of massive dogs was barking viciously in front of me.

The problem was that they were not merely large dogs.

They were almost as big as cattle.

As expected of a fantasy world, even the stray dogs had absurdly high specs.

'At least they can't come any closer because of their size...'

Taking their enormous bodies into account, I had deliberately entered a densely wooded area.

The place where I had found the herb had also been decent, but it was open on all sides.

The trees there were thinner too.

So I had fled in a hurry.

I had not forgotten the sword and bundle of food I received from the Heavenly Demon.

Now, I was holding my ground with my back against a gigantic rock wall.

The wild dogs did not seem willing to force their way between the trees.

They merely watched me from outside.

In other words, they were intelligent.

They knew I currently had the advantage.

'What should I do?'

Was my only option to remain here?

I sincerely hoped those damn dogs would give up and leave.

However, one should always prepare for the worst.

I immediately accessed the gallery.

Since they had not attacked yet, I planned to ask for help.

Title: Urgent—How Do I Deal With These Damn Dogs?
Wild Grylls

(A picture of enormous dogs glaring between the trees.)

What am I supposed to do with these bastards? Anyone have a method?

└ Aren't those Mad Dogs? Why are they so huge?
└ Even a Sword Expert would have trouble fighting those things.
└ Farewell. I'll pray for your soul.
└ The moment one bites you, you'll probably die of rabies, lmao.
└ Wild Grylls: Stop answering my question with more questions, you bastards.

These people were completely useless.

I frowned.

As time passed, these Mad Dogs would continue looking for an opportunity.

I had to come up with something.

└ Heavenly Demon: No! You must not die! Please survive long enough for this lady to repay her debt!
└ Why does she sound so desperate? LMAO.
└ Anyone would think they were lovers, lol.

The Heavenly Demon's not-quite-encouragement was somewhat comforting.

It did not provide any practical help, though.

Still, the growing number of comments meant more people were seeing the post.

Hopefully, at least one useful person would appear.

I did not know what a Sword Expert was, but I could tell that these creatures were monsters by my standards.

└ Don'tAbandonTheHero: Ah! I've encountered those monsters many times! Their noses are their weak point. If you stab one in the nose with a sword, it should lose consciousness for several seconds!
└ How does the head admin know that?
└ Aren't those monsters difficult to encounter?
└ Don'tAbandonTheHero: Because I'm the Hero! I know how to deal with every monster and demonic beast!

Fortunately, the passing head administrator kindly explained their weakness.

Just as I was about to feel encouraged—

└ Sword Master: But to actually do what the head admin suggested, wouldn't you need to be at least a high-level Sword Expert? As far as I know, anyway.
└ The most useless theory in the world: "As far as I know," lmao.
└ What happens if he fails?

└ Sword Master: They'll enter a berserk state, smash through the trees, and then he'll die.
└ Don'tAbandonTheHero: That's why you have to cut off their heads or stab their hearts before that happens! I can do it!

Holy shit.

The head admin was apparently a monster wearing human skin.

And how did Sword Master know all this?

└ Wild Grylls: Fuck, is there no method for an ordinary person? All I have is the sword the Heavenly Demon gave me.
└ Ordinary people never encounter those things. ;; OP, are you really in the Forest of Four Seasons? Are you perhaps a criminal?
└ No, that can't be it. They gouge out criminals' eyes before throwing them into the Forest of Four Seasons so they can't use the gallery.
└ That's insanely brutal. ;;

└ Doesn't gallery access stop working inside the Forest of Four Seasons?
└ It's "doesn't," not "don't."
└ Yeah, I heard the mana there gets tangled and blocks access.

└ Just hit them in the head. No matter how big they are, dogs are still dogs.

A great deal of useless nonsense appeared, but the conclusion was simple.

Hit them in the head.

Truly valuable information.

It was about as insightful as saying, "Humans die if they do not drink water."

└ Heavenly Demon: This lady's sword is a masterpiece among masterpieces. Severing the heads of those wild dogs should be effortless. Trust this lady.
└ Sword Master: How good is it? Better than Durandal or Excalibur?

└ Heavenly Demon: What are those? In any case, this lady's sword was forged from Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron.

└ Ten-thousand-year cold iron, lmaoooo.
└ Does Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron grow on trees or something? LMAO.

Thus spoke the Heavenly Demon:

Her sword was a masterpiece among masterpieces.

After reading her words, I looked down at the weapon.

It certainly did not look ordinary.

I could tell that it had been meticulously maintained.

I also had the advantage of the terrain.

I should be able to fight them.

'It's do or die.'

I looked at the largest dog standing in the center.

There were three of them in total, and the one in the middle was by far the biggest.

It was probably the leader.

Without hesitation, I charged toward it.

"Woof! Woof!"

The two dogs guarding either side of the leader immediately began squeezing through the gaps between the trees.

"It was a trap, you bastards!"

I had only pretended to target the leader.

Instead, I turned toward one of its subordinates.

The one on the left came first.

More than half its body had already emerged between the trees.

I swung the sword down vertically toward its head.

I knew absolutely nothing about swordsmanship, so rather than cutting, I simply struck downward with all my strength.

Swish—

"Hmm?"

Something was strange.

I had definitely swung the sword, yet the blade seemed to pass straight through the dog's head.

For a moment, I wondered whether I had struck an illusion.

But the result appeared soon afterward.

Split!

The dog's head suddenly split vertically down the middle.

Thud!

It collapsed with its tongue hanging out.

Even its tongue had been divided cleanly in half.

I stared down at the dog in bewilderment.

I had felt almost no resistance in my hands.

At most, it had felt like cutting tofu with a knife.

The sheer unreality of it left me dazed.

"Grrrwoof!"

Ah.

Right.

There was still another one.

The instant I heard the sound behind me, I swung the sword reflexively.

It had come from so close that my body moved before I could think.

Splatter!

Fortunately, the dog never managed to pounce on me.

Instead, its head and torso separated and fell to the ground.

Just like before, I barely felt the blade cut through anything.

I stared blankly between the two corpses.

Whatever else might be true, I had realized one thing.

The Heavenly Demon was a god.

And this sword was invincible.

"Grrrr...!"

"Ah. You were still here."

Only the leader remained.

It glared at me warily, every muscle in its body tense.

A taut silence stretched between us through the thick trees.

Which of us would retreat first?

Naturally, it was the leader.

It glanced back and forth at the corpses of its subordinates, then slowly began to back away.

It must have realized that as long as I had the sword, it was the one at a disadvantage.

Smart bastard.

"Phew!"

The danger had finally passed.

I let out a long breath filled with all the tension that had built up inside me.

What would have happened if I had not received the Heavenly Demon's sword?

Or if I had never happened to discover that herb in the first place?

I still did not have a compass, so wandering around recklessly was difficult.

I would have to wait until the Heavenly Demon sent one.

'Ah. Before that, I should thank her.'

Without delay, I wrote a post on the gallery.

Title: The Heavenly Demon Is a God
Wild Grylls

(A picture of the dead dogs on the ground and my hand gripping the sword tightly.)

And this sword is invincible.

└ Holy shit, he actually killed those things?
└ That sword really is insanely good, lmao.
└ Sword Master: Those were extremely clean cuts. Even with an excellent sword, achieving that would be difficult.
└ Don'tAbandonTheHero: You're alive! What a relief! It seems there will be nothing to mourn today!

└ Heavenly Demon: Are you injured anywhere?
└ Wild Grylls: I'm fine, thanks to you. Thank you for the excellent sword.
└ Heavenly Demon: That is a relief. This lady feared that something terrible had happened to you.

└ Heavenly Demon: This lady is proficient with every weapon. If one had to be chosen, however, it would be the sword.

Come to think of it, Sword Master also seemed rather old-fashioned.

Unlike most users, they used proper punctuation and spacing.

I generally did not care about such things, but when the other person showed me courtesy, I tended to respond in kind.

At least halfway.

Concern practically dripped from the Heavenly Demon's comments.

How could such a warmhearted person possibly be the Heavenly Demon?

It made no sense.

Her manner of speaking also reminded me of my late grandmother, which made her feel even more familiar.

Leaning against the rock wall, I began browsing the gallery while resting.

└ Sword Master: If you have nothing else to do, would you be interested in learning swordsmanship? You seem to have talent.
└ Heavenly Demon: Silence! This lady shall personally bestow a secret manual upon him! How dare you interfere!
└ Sword Master: Come on, don't be so strict. Do you use a sword as well, Heavenly Demon?

└ Wild Grylls: I need survival supplies more than swordsmanship right now...
└ Sword Master: That is true. I'll give it some thought and return later.
└ Heavenly Demon: This lady shall descend the mountain at once. The items you requested will be delivered without fail.

That was enough gallery browsing for now.

I rose to my feet.

If I remained here too long, other beasts might be drawn by the smell of blood.

It had not exactly been a fierce battle, but the tension had drained a considerable amount of my strength.

It would be better to keep moving.

'I need somewhere to hide until the compass arrives...'

Rrrrrrrumble!

Without warning, the ground began to shake.

I blinked, then hurriedly sprang upright.

A natural disaster immediately after a beast attack?

What kind of absurd cosmic persecution was this?

But something was strange.

The moment I pulled my back away from the wall, the vibrations seemed to weaken.

Before I could identify the source of that unnatural sensation, the wall behind me began to change.

Grrrrrrind!

"...Oh, dear God."

The wall was rising.

Literally.

The entire wall was lifting into the air.

A gigantic slab of rock tore itself from the ground like an uprooted tree.

It did not take me long to realize that the "rock wall" I had been leaning against was actually a leg.

I stared as what had appeared to be an ordinary rocky hill transformed into a two-legged giant.

Then I accessed the gallery.

└ Holy shit, isn't that a Stone Guardian?
└ Why the fuck is a Guardian there? LMAO.
└ Isn't that thing difficult even for a Sword Master to kill?
└ Dude, what are you doing? Run!

Everyone was screaming at me to flee.

I immediately turned and ran.

But I did not forget the bundle of food on the ground.

It was a gift from the Heavenly Demon.

I could never abandon it.

Title: What the Hell Is This Thing?
Wild Grylls

(A picture of an enormous stone giant towering above the forest.)

└ You get fifty thousand gold if you kill that thing, lol.
└ Wild Grylls: FUcKyOUiDoNtNeEdIt
└ He's still browsing the gallery while running. ;;
└ Someone translate that.
└ Doesn't it say, "Fuck you, I don't need it"?
└ Seems right, lmao.
└ This lunatic, hahaha.

I barely managed to escape.

To catch my breath, I leaned against a tree.

I could still hear heavy thuds in the distance, but they were gradually fading.

It was not coming after me.

'This is driving me insane.'

The moment I overcame one crisis, another appeared.

What kind of ridiculous forest was this?

'This can't actually be the Forest of Four Seasons, can it?'

I desperately hoped not.

After all, they had said the gallery could not be accessed from inside the Forest of Four Seasons.

I took several ragged breaths, then opened the gallery again.

The notifications had been ringing nonstop even while I ran, so I could not help checking.

└ Sword Master: Defeating that creature is simple. Cut off one of its legs and it will lose its balance. Then drive your sword into the core in its chest.
└ Why are you explaining it like a recipe for instant noodles? LMAO.
└ "See? Easy, isn't it?"

[You Can Do It Too! Advanced Swordsmanship Lecture 15] — 2 hours ago

[You Can Do It Too! Advanced Swordsmanship Lecture 14] — 1 day ago

[You Can Do It Too! Advanced Swordsmanship Lecture 13] — 2 days ago

Sword Master was also surprisingly far from normal.

What exactly did this person do?

Just as I had with the Heavenly Demon, I searched through Sword Master's posting history.

"..."

Oh, fuck.

They were obsessed with swords.

Every single post was a swordsmanship lecture.

They were insane in an entirely different way.

They had fewer posts than the Heavenly Demon, but unlike her endless stream of shitposts, every one of these was filled with effort and detail.

An unnecessarily diligent lunatic.

There was no better way to describe Sword Master.

Among all those posts, one stood out above the rest.

Title: Looking for a Life Partner
Sword Master

Requirement: Must be stronger than a Sword Master.

└ How hard do you hit?
└ Sword Master: Not telling.

There was not a single normal person in this gallery.