-Snap.
A twig snapped under my foot. Leaves crunched with every step we took as Keith and I passed through the thick overgrowth of the forest.
I pushed away a few branches from my face and ducked under the trees to go deeper and deeper inside the forest.
It was then. Under the dim and scant light of the sun that barely tore through the veil of leaves, a single blue creature fluttered from left to right.
Its spherical body contracted and expanded in strange ways as it went ahead.
"Is that a slime?" I asked, taking cover behind a bush.
"Hm? Oh, it's your first time seeing one right?"
I stared at the almost comical black lines passing through the body for its eyes and mouth. Such cutesy monsters did not exist in any gates.
"Do they have any magic stones?" I asked again. It was my first time seeing a monster as Eugene. Though I had raided many gates as a student of the pantheon, as the world-criminal Faceless, and as the mercenary Merci, the sight of a monster sent me excited all the same. It was a monumental moment in my life in this world as the strongest person. If I ever wrote an autobiography, I would probably dedicate a whole chapter to this scene.
"Of course they don't have magic stones!"
"Pets?"
"What are you on, young master? Did you eat a mushroom while I wasn't looking?"
Bastard.
I clicked my tongue and stood up.
"You should probably kill that one," Keith said, pointing at the slime. "You've never killed anything before, right?"
I have. I have killed people too. And I will kill again.
"You'll get some experience."
My ears perked at that word.
"Experience...?" I parroted.
Thinking of it now, my strength was only coming from my backbreaking, blood-boiling, sweat-toiling training. It made sense, generally. But Eugene was the petty villain of an Eroge. I wasn't one to play games since it was a waste of time, but I was sure that the bastard named Albert talked about levels or something.
A cold sweat went dripping down my back.
It would make sense if there was a level system in this world. Then won't I have hit a limit long back without increasing my level?
"Hm? Yeah, you should know what it feels like to take down a monster." Keith then smirked and continued. "Don't be like the kids and think you can absorb their soul or magic and get stronger, ok?"
I sighed a relieved sigh and shook my head. This guy had me shaking my legs in fear. All my four years of hard work would have gone to waste if everything could be solved just by 'leveling up.'
It was time to move on. I snapped my fingers and pointed them like a gun at the slime. A small magic circle formed at the tip of my finger and spun with a red glow, sigils, and emblems forming inside it rapidly.
"[Flame Arrow]"
At my command, a small arrow of fire formed inside the circle and shot out. Beginner-Rank Spell, Flame shot. With the enchantment of the 'fire' element and the endowment of 'momentum' and 'shape,' the arrow blasted through the air. It almost hit the small slime, but the tiny creature jumped to the side right in time.
It was competent as well.
The tiny slime looked at us as the fire arrow dissipated into thin air. I could see sweat shaking off of the blue monster's body as its cartoonish eyes spun around like a knocked-out pokemon.
"You missed?" Keith asked.
I clicked my tongue and started walking again.
"Let's go," I said.
"Young master? Haha! Young master? To think our young master is weak against cute things! What splendid dirt!" Keith hopped as he followed behind me.
I couldn't help it.
The slime's face was too simplistic for me to not understand it.
"Hey, hey, if I stick my tongue out and wear cat ears will you give me some cash?"
"I'll be scarred for life, asshole."
***
The Ediab forest, the place separating the territory of the Marquis of Hall from the territory of the Margrave of Rosen. This forest that stretches out further than the kingdom of Schwarz had a single route passing through it that served as a highway between the two fiefs, and the rest were up to the people to defend. Though its depth had not been explored, the outskirts were relatively safe enough for even children to collect firewood from.
That was why, I, a child, had come deep in. Deep inside here to fight against monsters, and what did I get?
"A goblin. This far in and it's just a fucking goblin."
"Now, now, young master. I know you're a psychopathic brat thirsty for blood, but can't you just drink it from this thing too?"
"Two goblins. I should kill this one closer first."
I heard Keith grinning. Then, he pulled out his zweihander and charged at the goblin.
Before the goblin could even notice the man charging at it, its head was removed from its body and went rolling on the ground. With a simple swing, Keith removed the few drops of blood that had stuck on his sword and turned to me.
"Alright, the path's clear, young master."
I nodded and walked up to Keith. The corpse of the goblin was starkly similar to the goblins I had seen in the gates. Long ears, grotesque fangs, rotting green skin, and a pot belly that stank of the entire microbial system it had growing on it with the hides of a dead animal covering its body. The goblin even had the incomprehensible face that was a standard feature!
I leaned down a bit and looked at the tracks left by the monster.
"It was coming here from the southeast, so let's go deeper to the north." I crossed my arms and remarked. "There'll only be weak monsters the way it was coming from."
"Oh? You do know that a goblin's corpse attracts other goblins, right?"
"And?" I asked, unimpressed.
"They'll not leave you alone."
"You, do you think I know nothing about monsters?"
"Aw sucks," Keith was grinning again. "I thought I could have some fun acting as our young master's teacher too."
He had a bad habit of enjoying nasty things, I would need to straighten him up a bit before making him my subordinate completely.
"Hah."
It only earned a scoff from me. Leaving the corpse behind, I started walking toward the north and Keith followed.
One ant or a hundred, they would never make a difference.