The goddess, dressed in revealing clothing and blessed with extraordinarily prominent features, became a hot topic of discussion among the otaku community at the time.
“I want to get on top of Lady Goddess.” That double entendre quickly became a popular catchphrase.
When he was younger, Shinki had also fantasized about meeting a goddess like that.
But after the initial excitement faded, he could only laugh it off.
If I obtain it, it is my fortune.
If I lose it, it is my fate.
If something could be pursued, then he would pursue it.
If no matter what he did it remained unattainable, then it was simply a matter of fate.
There was no point forcing it.
That being said, the mission required him to reach Level 5 within five months.
In Shinki’s opinion, that was asking a bit too much.
In the original story, the genius girl Ais, known throughout Orario as the Sword Princess, had spent an entire year reaching Level 2.
Even Bell Cranel, the protagonist himself, had needed a month and a half to become Level 2.
As for the average standard in Orario, the vast majority of adventurers spent their entire lives lingering at Level 2.
Reaching Level 3 already placed someone among the elite adventurers.
From this alone, it was clear that Orario was nowhere near as powerful as the anime made it appear.
Along the journeys into the Dungeon, countless adventurers had already perished, their bones buried in its depths.
“Still, maybe it’s worth trying.
There’s no penalty anyway.” Compared to the sixteen years he had spent in the Himejima household, five months was already a very short period of time.
Besides, Shinki’s foundation was already solid.
With the enhancement brought by his bloodline transformation, leveling up rapidly wasn’t entirely impossible.
“First things first, I need to find a suitable Familia to join.” Shinki began making his way through the forest.
Without question, Hestia was the most suitable deity for him to choose.
Partly because he already had a favorable impression of Hestia, and partly because of his own unique circumstances.
Joining a powerful Familia like the Loki Familia or Freya Familia would certainly grant him abundant resources, but for someone who preferred acting alone like Shinki, it wasn’t an ideal choice.
“But where exactly is Orario?” Standing halfway up a hillside at the edge of the forest, Shinki gazed out over the endless sea of trees and fell into a brief daze.
Where exactly was he?
Judging from the fact that he had crossed over in his teenage form, this transmigration had definitely been random.
If he had appeared inside Orario, things would have been fine.
Even if he wasn’t familiar with the place, asking for directions was something anyone could do.
But if he’d been dropped into some remote corner of the world, trying to find his destination in completely unfamiliar territory would be nothing short of a fantasy.
There were no convenient things like smartphone navigation here.
Still, there was no helping it.
Shinki continued forward, heading toward the direction where the sun rose.
…
Based on the position of the sun, an entire morning had already passed.
Yet the endless forest still stretched before him, causing Shinki to wonder whether he had gone the wrong way.
“…” He didn’t know whether he had taken a wrong turn, but he did encounter a group of unwelcome guests.
They were spider monsters with eight legs and compound eyes, capable of shooting silk threads from their mouths.
There were roughly twenty of them.
Their fanged jaws opened and closed while their lidless eyes stared at his flesh, as if considering whether he would make a good meal.
“My meat isn’t enough to fill the stomachs of this many monsters.” Shinki let out a helpless sigh.
In the world’s setting, although monsters had largely been driven back into the Dungeon, countless descendants of those creatures still existed throughout the world outside it.
Their strength was far weaker than Dungeon monsters, generally no more than Level 1 or Level 2.
While Shinki was still thinking, the spider monsters charged all at once.
The nearest one spat out a strand of white silk that wrapped itself around his arm.
He gave it an experimental tug.
The material was surprisingly flexible yet tough.
Unfortunately, that meant nothing.
Flames erupted from his arm, and the silk instantly became a fuse as the fire raced along its length.
A few seconds later, the spider at the other end had turned into a charred fireball.
Weaker than even a Low-Class Devil.
Even an ordinary adult could kill one in a one-on-one fight as long as they were careful.
Their only advantage was their numbers.
“I wonder if you’ve ever heard the saying: things with lots of hair are weak to fire.” Shinki had no interest in wasting time with monsters incapable of communication.
Illusory flames flickered around his fingertips before shooting into the enemy ranks.
A casual flick of his hand was enough to reduce several spiders to ashes.
As a result, within less than thirty seconds, the monster count had dropped to zero.
Flames spread through the forest, leaving blackened scorch marks everywhere, yet strangely there was no scent of roasted flesh.
Shinki extinguished the remaining fire and looked with interest at the glittering objects scattered among the ashes.
They were cloudy, semi-transparent purple crystals.
Holding one up to the sunlight, he could see strange streams of light flowing inside.
According to what he knew of the setting, these were special crystals dropped by defeated monsters.
They contained a certain amount of energy and could be used as materials for equipment and various other items.
Adventurers typically exchanged them for a currency known as Valis.
Besides that, Shinki also collected several spider thighs, a few venom sacs, and several bundles of white spider silk.
Monsters dropping items and money after being defeated really did feel a lot like a game.
He tried roasting one of the spider thighs over a flame.
Despite having no seasoning, it actually tasted surprisingly good.
Then he continued on his way.
And soon, he encountered humans.
More precisely, a group of humans.