* * *
In the wild forest, where many monsters would usually lurk, two individuals with white hair could be seen fighting side by side. They were surrounded by many wolf-looking monsters with long, dark gray fur and sharp teeth that were drooling from the amount of growling they were releasing to intimidate the two human-looking individuals.
"Aya, this time, try and aim right for their face before they can bite you."
"Got it!"
As Hiroki, who had taken his human-looking form, instructed the white-haired girl, he then proceeded to analyze their situation with a rather calm expression on his face while easily killing any of the wolves that would come behind Aya's back with ease.
He would use one of his skills to create a blade made of thin air to easily defeat any monsters that Aya wasn't able to react to fast enough.
'...this is still not enough….'
Hiroki concluded on his head while watching Aya slaughter the wolves that would jump right in front of her.
[ STATUS ]
Name: Hiroki SF: 3,400/3,400
Race: Ghost Points: 899
Title: Monarch of the Undead
INT: 2,871 STR: 0 AGI: 0 VIT: 0 DEF: 0
[ Skills ]
'The previous dungeon was also a disappointment. And my status doesn't seem to be getting any more points anymore….' Hiroki thought in his head. 'Does this mean I have reached my limit as a ghost? Or perhaps, normal monsters aren't strong enough to help me get stronger?'
Hiroki had to think of something that would break him free of the limitations that his status had.
He had a few solutions on his mind. However, they would consume an unimaginable amount of skills and 'SF' just so he could create a new limitless kind of skill. But at the same time, this didn't bring his mood down since he knew that he wasn't someone who would simply give up.
He was summoned to another world as a ghost, where he wasn't able to touch anything at all, with the only instruction being his status, which claimed he could be the hero.
He knew that whoever had summoned him to this world was someone who was very intelligent and someone who knew of the modern world of technology.
The summoner could also be another human from Earth who somehow got this kind of power. That was also a possibility for the thinking ghost.
But right now, Hiroki knew that he must think of an alternative way of increasing his stats much more easily.
Getting other humans as possessions was very dangerous since he didn't want to reveal himself to the public and what he was capable of.
Using a monster as a physical body was also a no for him. It was too dangerous, as the moment Hiroki might let his guard down, that monster wouldn't hesitate to kill anything in its sight.
Also, there weren't any signs of tamed monsters in this world, which gave another reason why he shouldn't use monsters in towns.
And as Hiroki was looking through his status, he finally noticed the title that was given to him by the Litch in the first dungeon he cleared on his own.
[ Status ]
[ Title: Monarch of the Undead ]
[ Information: A title given by the dying Litch as a reward for freeing him from the curse of the body. You will be granted the hidden skills of the dead. Also, you are immune to any attacks of any undead type of skills. ]
'Hm… I think I can work something out with this title….' Hiroki came to the same conclusion before looking back up to see how Aya had been doing.
Aya was standing still around a pile of slaughtered wolves that had attempted to bite her head off. She had managed to defeat all of the monsters even without Hiroki's help, which was a big achievement for her.
"Do you need a break?"
Hiroki asked after seeing the motionless Aya, who was looking at all of the kills she had done.
"No." A confident smile appeared on her face. "I can still fight."
Even though Hiroki wasn't possessing Aya, he could still sense that she wasn't the slightest bit tired from all of the fast movements that she had made, which is why he decided to keep moving forward.
Aya had grown strong, and she no longer needed Hiroki's assistance to keep grinding insanely powerful monsters like they used to together.
But right now, killing monsters in the wild forest isn't the primary goal. Hiroki knew that they had to move forward before the night could fall and make their surroundings much more difficult.
After an hour or so, Hiroki finally indicated to Aya that they had finally reached the place that he wanted to check out.
It was a deserted part of the forest where no monsters could be seen. Many dead trees could be seen all over the place, where their lives had certainly come to an end.
Aya had heard of a place like this, and she knew that there was nothing in here other than poisonous plants that could even kill someone from their smell.
"Are you sure that this is the place you are looking for?"
"Yes, I'm sure."
After seeing the concerned look on Aya's face, Hiroki tried reassuring her once again as he began looking around the dead, leafless trees.
While some humans would suffocate from the terrible smell of this place, Aya seemed to be fine. However, she still felt the uncomfortable sensation in her nose while continuing to follow Hiroki.
Hiroki, however, was distracted by his own gaze, which was appraising everything that his eyes met. He was looking all over the place with a calm, focused expression, as if he were trying to find something specific.
And after a few more minutes of wandering around, Hiroki finally stopped in front of a weirdly looking tree that had taken on a darker and dryer shape than the rest of the other trees.
"There it is."
"What is that?" Aya innocently asked as she used her own clothes to prevent the bad smell from reaching her nose.
"I don't want to make any quick assumptions, but by using the materials of this tree, I might be able to create a drink that will boost anyone's stamina." Hiroki claimed, his eyes still focused on that specific tree.
"Really!?" Aya's eyes went wide in surprise at the sudden statement. "You can make a potion that will increase someone's strength?"
"Yes, but temporarily." Hiroki responded.
"That's…. Amazing… I never knew that you can also make potions."
Hiroki crossed his arms in a confusing way. He knew that potions in this world were a usual thing, and making them shouldn't be something that weird. Especially in the town they live in.
"Well, yeah. Once you know the formula, anyone can make them. "
Aya, however, showed a confused look once again.
"Isn't that how potion-making works?" Hiroki asked to confirm his suspicions.
"I'm sorry, but ordinary people aren't able to create or replicate any sort of potion. It's such a difficult process that even powerful guilds aren't able to get rare potions that easily."
"Hold on for a minute, Aya. I'm sure that I've seen dozens or hundreds of shops that sell potions. So how come you're exaggerating to the point where a guild isn't able to attain a simple position?"
"N-no, that's not what I mean. I'm not calling you a liar or anything." Aya was startled for a bit after seeing the unsatisfied response from Hiroki.
"I'm not angry at you, Aya. I'm simply trying to come to a conclusion about this potion creation business. If you claim that potions are hard to attain, then how come they are so common in our town?" Hiroki inquired, his gaze turning to the white-haired girl.
"I don't know as well, but our town is known to be very productive from the potions that also supply other towns as well. I'm not sure who makes them, but there is a rumor that an alchemist became a merchant, and he is using his knowledge to expand his business."
Hiroki seemed to be thinking in his head for a minute before softly whispering to himself.
"So that's why…"
After coming to a conclusion, Hiroki asked Aya to bring out some of the bags that they had prepared beforehand.
Hiroki gave a small nod before using 'AirBlade' to cut the whole dead brown tree into small pieces so that they would be able to fit them on each of the bags that they had brought.
Carrying those bags by hand was also going to be a hard task, which is why Hiroki suggested using Aya's dimensional storage pockets.
There wasn't any struggle to get them in, as the storage immediately sucked the items in the moment the wearer thought about storing the bags.
The necessary materials were finally gathered. However, Aya was beginning to feel a little sick from the poisonous air in this dead place.
This also gave Hiroki confirmation that it was time for them to head back to the town.