"I'm hungry… Someone, please help me… I finally found some high-grade herbs, but at this rate I'm going to die, Mom…"
Maal, who had gone missing, was barely curled up inside a hollow in a tree just small enough for a small child to fit in.
This was deep in the Eastern Forest, a region recommended for Bronze Rank or above.
A habitat primarily occupied by wolf-type monsters.
When Maal had been gathering herbs for her mother as usual in the shallow outskirts of the Eastern Forest, she noticed there were almost no traces of monsters.
If that was the case, maybe she could venture a little deeper and find even better herbs.
She timidly made her way a bit further into the forest, but there were still no monster presences at all, so she pressed on deeper and deeper.
She was lucky enough to find some high-grade herbs, but this time she lost track of the way back.
So she happened upon a hollow in a tree and planned to rest for the night while figuring out the route home, when she spotted a large white wolf wandering around.
If she was found, she'd definitely be eaten.
That's why she couldn't move from that spot.
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I was blazing through the Eastern Forest using [Shrink Earth] at full speed, but there were hardly any monsters around.
This area was supposed to always have two or three wolf-type creatures roaming about, if I remembered correctly.
It was nice that I could make good progress, but was something going on here?
Thinking that, I arrived at my destination.
There, a girl was sitting perfectly still inside a tree hollow.
"Maal?"
"Huh… Who are you, mister?"
"I was asked to come find Maal."
"Thank you! But I'm too hungry to move... and besides..."
Food first, I guess.
I pulled bread and soup from my magic bag and gave them to Maal.
After she finished eating, I gave her a small amount of stamina potion.
Her sickly complexion improved right away.
Come to think of it, people in this world generally have way better physical abilities.
Back in my previous life, going three days without food or water would've left me too weak to barely move, so I guess that just means the modern humans of my past life had lost that much of their wild edge.
As I watched Maal and thought about that,
"B-Brother, behind you!"
I spun around instinctively and saw something large and white charging straight at us.
If I dodge... this kid gets crushed.
Fine then—
Black Steel
Shield to absorb the charge and shove it back.
It stumbled after I shoved its face away with the shield, then came at me again, slashing with razor-sharp claws.
I severed the front legs clean off with my sword, and it let out a piercing howl.
Using Divine Eye, I could see the creature—big, white, with a magnificent coat of fur—was a White King Tiger Wolf. Mithril-class.
A mutant variant of the King Tiger Wolf.
I see.
I finally understood why Maal had been able to make it this deep into the forest.
This creature had slaughtered its own kind and undergone a sudden mutation.
That was why I hadn't spotted any of the wolves before I got here.
The monsters around here were Silver-class at best.
This was a serious problem.
For all I knew, some adventurers had already been killed.
And once a creature that had undergone this kind of mutation realized it couldn't grow any stronger, it would often start gathering members of its species and venturing beyond its usual territory.
Right now, there were no others like it nearby, so if I took it down here, the town wouldn't be affected.
And so, the decision was made: this big dog glaring at me would be put down.
Swiftly,
I closed the distance,
slipping inside its guard and slashing upward from the neck.
The White King Tiger Wolf, its head severed in an instant, went flying through the air with the same fierce glare still frozen on its face.
Then the headless body toppled sideways to the ground.
I stored the dog—big enough to make you crane your neck—in my magic bag and secured Maal's safety.
Maal cried out, "Amazing, big bro!" in excitement as I tucked her under my arm and escaped from the eastern forest.
On the way back, I used Flash Step to zip along at full speed, which left Maal in high spirits, exclaiming, "Waaaay faster than a carriage!"
Being from another world sure makes you tough.
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Skills: [Reverse][Divine Eye][Sword God][Phantom Thief Gentleman]
Thank you always for reading!