"Welp! Guess my adventure starts here!"
Is what I said probably 4 hours ago when I left that field in the 'Umbra Forest' near the Everidian kingdom.
"Hah〜, I'm bored..."
Well, that much was given. I had been walking for a long time. One thing that did catch my attention was the fact that I had walked for so long, yet I wasn't tired at all.
Throughout my life, I wasn't the sports type at all. At sports, like everything else, I was average. But with this much walking, I would probably be collapsing, yet I'm not even breaking a sweat.
"Guess this is due to this?"
I said as I stared at the ominous sword hanging from my belt.
But as I was thinking about my sword, one particular thing came to my attention.
"Aren't these woods supposed to be crawling with monsters?"
Thinking about it properly, I hadn't been able to spot a single living thing since I entered I left the open-field 4 hours ago.
"At this rate, I'm going to star-"
I was frozen when I realized what could possibly be preventing monsters from appearing. Hesitating, I opened my status.
'Status'
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Name: Reiki Ishida
Gender: Female
Age: 18
Race: N/A
Danger Level: A
Class: Oblivion Wielder
Lvl: 5
HP: 350,000/350,000
MP: 0/0
STR: 250,000
DEF: 250,000
SPD: 250,000
MRES: 250,000
Skills: [Oblivion Blessing], [Absolute Oblivion], [Oblivion Presence], [Master Hide Presence], [Master Information Falsification], [Master Appraisal],
Affinities: [Oblivion Flames]
Titles: , [Other worldly Hero], [Oblivion Wielder], [Ultimate Threat], [Ultimate Antihero], [Calamity], [Peerless Beauty],
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"..."
Thinking about it properly I should've seen this coming yet I didn't. The reason why no monsters had come near, and why I had gone up 4 levels was [Oblivion Presence]. Remembering the description, it clearly said that weak monsters and animals would die out of sheer fear.
"Oops"
I carelessly said.
"So I killed without even realizing...?"
That was when I realized what had just left my mouth. I was astonished at how I didn't feel any guilt at all. Back home, I couldn't hurt a fly without feeling guilty, that's one of the reasons I never fought back' But thinking about it logically the answer as to why this was, seemed pretty obvious.
"Could it be...?"
After experiencing such oddities in the last few hours, anything strange that happened to me was due to that cursed thing resting in my belt. 'It's probably due to that'
"Hah〜, this thing is far too troublesome. I guess I'll just activate [Master Hide Presence] for now"
After that, I chanted [Master Hide Presence] and kept walking for at least 1 more hour.
※
I finally made it to what seemed to be a road. According to my the knowledge I was given. This probably was the 'Main Line' a road of trading between several kingdoms which connect the Everidian and Litherm Kingdoms directly. 'If I stay in this road, it's very likely a carriage will pass soon' I could possibly save a lot of time if I manage to board any oncoming carriage, might as well try.
"I guess I'll follow this then..."
※
I had been walking for nearly an hour when I finally heard a galloping sound approaching from behind. I swiftly turned around to see a horse-pulled carriage, however it clearly wasn't just any carriage. In contrast, with what I saw in the Everidian Kingdom, this carriage was white with golden ornaments on it. Furthermore, there were several knights riding strong-looking horses guarding the carriage. The carriage seemed to be of great importance. 'It's probably from a noble or perhaps royalty?'
"I guess I'll try boarding it?"
I muttered to myself. I then stood in the middle of the road raising my hands to signal the carriage to stop. I wasn't really expecting it to stop, yet, to my surprise, it actually stopped. 'I guess if anybody has that many knights, they wouldn't be afraid' I thought as the driver of the carriage jumped down from his seat to approach me. He looked to be of around 20-ish years old and had respectable looking clothes. He also had a weird blush on his face, and so did the knights. 'Are they sick?' The driver finally made his way to me:
"Excuse me young lady, are you perhaps lost?"
He asked timidly. The carriage driver seemed like a good man, yet he had this weird blush which didn't seem natural.
"Uh yes, you see I'm trying to reach the Litherm kingdom. Are you heading there right now?"
"Yes, my lady, we are currently heading to Litherm kingdom. We would very much like to take you with us, however, we would need the approval of our mistress"
'Mistress? Is it she perhaps the nobility sitting in the carriage? Well, she has to be right?' As I was submerged in thought, a beautiful girl suddenly climbed down of the carriage. Everybody turned around to face her, and the carriage driver even bowed.
She was absolutely stunning and she even seemed to be my age! She had red flowing waist-length hair, deep yellow eyes, and light soft skin. Finally, she wore a black and red battle dress, which didn't fit much with her atmosphere but created a respectable and dignified aura around her. She was a complete bishoujo (AN: Japanese word for "Beautiful Girl"), I would even dare to say, that she was more beautiful than Sakura.
"She can come with us"
She said in a sweet voice. 'Oh, is she going to let me ride that easily? I guess being with me being a girl, she doesn't see me as a threat?' I thought. Without hesitation, the driver then replied to the girl's command:
"Very well, mistress your wishes are our orders!"
As he finished that sentence, the girl, looking satisfied, climbed back up into the carriage and the driver faced me once more.
"Very well my lady, please follow me and make yourself comfortable"
He then showed me into the carriage and I sat next to the red-haired girl. I was a little nervous about sitting next to such a beautiful girl but thinking about it properly, I was a girl right now too, so I couldn't do much if I wanted. In the end, after some preparations, the carriage finally started moving again.
I was expecting for the ride to go silently, seeing as I'm a total stranger to everyone here, but as soon as the carriage started moving, the red-haired girl turned to me enthusiastically and exclaimed:
"Hello! My name is Myria! You are so PRETTY! How come I don't know you?! What's your name?"
Her words came completely unexpected to me, so I was caught up and wasn't able to respond immediately. But seeing her question I became worried. I couldn't say my name was 'Reiki Ishida' that is too masculine, and I'm a girl right now. 'I can't simply tell her that name, she might think I'm weird and kick me out of the carriage' I looked back at her staring at me anxiously. 'I need to come up with something quick'
"Well, my name is..."
' 'Reiki Ishida' I want to at least keep some of my name intact.' Reaki? Riki? Reiko? Raiko? I was very indecisive, this would likely become my new name in this world, so it's important. I felt pressured but I finally managed to decide on a name. While it is feminine, it works for me and it isn't too embarrassing... maybe a little.
"...Reika..."
"Huh?"
"My name is Reika..." I bashfully said trying to hide some of my embarrassment of shifting my name in such a way. I then looked at Myria, and she seemed to be confused. 'Eh? Was my name weird? Is it a bad name?!?! Was it wrong?!' I was panicking and starting to become anxious at an alarming rate, but what she then said, while it wasn't negative, didn't make me feel any better.
"THAT IS A BEAUTIFUL NAME!" She screamed with sparkles coming out of her eyes (AN: not literally)
I was on one hand relieved by the fact that she hadn't questioned my name any further, but on the other hand, I felt that my man pride had once again been crushed. 'It might be better to let my pride go, otherwise, it'll just hurt me more, hehe'
*DING*
[Do you accept 'Reika' as your name?]
I was a little hesitant but I accepted. 'I guess Reiki Ishida is gone now...'
[Your name has been updated to Reika]
After that initial question passed most of her other questions were somewhat personal yet, not too intrusive. At one point she even started asking about my 'Boukyaku' but clearly seeing I was unwilling to talk about my sword, she avoided the topic. 'She seems like a good person' were my thoughts on her throughout that day. We became close friends, yet I didn't learn much about her. She kept most of her personal information private, but I didn't mind. I had decided against using [Master Appraisal] on her since I wasn't sure how the skill actually worked and didn't want to run any risks of angering the person who had offered me a lending hand, so I simply didn't use my skill on her. Our conversation became very lively and we talked and talked and talked.
Without realizing, hours went by and in the end night time arrived. We would camp in the open for the night. We had dinner, talked some more with Myria and finally, we all went to sleep in different tents while the knights guarded us.
"I guess this is my first friend in my new life?"
I said happily. I then covered myself, got comfortable and drifted into a deep sleep.
※
I started hearing some distant noises. Screams and metals hitting each other. they seemed so far, yet it felt extremely real. Was it a dream? I wasn't sure. I slowly opened my eyes, only to be met with a knife being pointed at me, by a man I didn't recognize. He had a rugged build and was staring at me with lustful eyes, almost salivating at me. He pretty much wore rags and his knife seemed to be rusted. 'A bandit?'
But as soon as the man realized I had woken up, he seemed to be taken aback, but immediately thrust his knife towards my chest.
I wasn't sure what to do. I was frightened. I could only stare, as the knife made its way to my chest ready impale me.
'Am I going to die again?'