Huff* Huff*
Around 12 years old, a girl was running with heavy breath in a dried forest.
She wore an extravagant purple-coloured furry cloak and trousers and a silvered-coloured bob cap. From her appearance, even a commoner can identify her as noble.
Nerviness was visible, and her eyes started getting watery; the girl looked behind as if looking for something.
"Catch her!"
"Follow her footsteps! She won't be able to get very far!"
As she heard the rough voices of men, she knew that her chasers weren't far away. If she were to continue running straight, the chasers would catch her. They were following the footmarks on snow, so tailing the little girl won't be hard.
'What should I do…?' The girl looked elsewhere to look for someone for help or somewhere where to hide.
Luckily she found a rockery surface.
She could have immediately gone there, but her chasers weren't stupid to leave her like that. She first turned left, ran a little more before stepping on the flat plain, and then turned to the Right. She ran a little more before finally finding a hollow tree.
She jumped and hid in the hollow tree. She didn't know if her pursuers had taken the bait, but for now, she was safe.
"How dare they put their hands on me?! I will kill all of them. Just let me get away!" The girl gritted her teeth and cursed those filths who tried to kidnap her.
For now, her fundamental objective was to find her family knights or get to the central city.
The anger turned gloomy, and she looked at the sky, "Please, god. Help me."
----
Like any fantasy RPG game, "Treasures" and "Monsters" are divided into several classes.
[[Basic]]
Treasure: Pencil, tools.
Monsters: Rats and other ordinary animals.
[[Common]]
Treasure: Horn of Horned Rabbit, Fur, Ears of Surface Goblins, Slime cores.
Monsters: Horned Rabbit, Surface Goblins, Slimes.
[[Rare]]
Treasure: Core of Dungeon Monsters like Goblins. Lessor Magic Potions.
Monsters: Basic Dungeon Monsters like Goblins.
[[Unique]]
Treasure: Core of Chief Goblin, or Hobgoblin, Normal Magic Potions.
Monsters: Chief Goblin, Hobgoblins.
[[Epic]]
Treasure: Rare Artifacts like Fire Sword, Rune Sword, or High Magic Potions.
Monster: Wyverns, Elemental Trolls, High Orcs.
[[Legendary]]
Treasure: Artifacts of Heroes like Durendal, Excalibur.
Monster: Lessor Dragons.
[[Mystic]]
Treasure: Ancient Artifacts like Shied of Aegis, Thor's Hammer.
Monster: Dragons, Giants, Titans.
[[Null factor]] Anything or anyone that cannot be ranked. It can either be a universe erasing bomb or a grain of sand.
===
There is another category, but I don't need to explain it for now.
So 'The Predictor' is also one of that treasures.
Although it was rumoured to be Legendary Class Treasure, the item was a Null Factor.
It had two distinctive abilities.
First, as the name suggests, it could predict 'What If' situations accurately in percentage. There were many Bad Ends in the game, so this item plays an important part.
Second, it can grant players a game-like holographic screen where the player can see their stats, parameters, and skills. Adventurers' Guild or the academy would provide similar items, but I had no intention of going to the academy or waiting to turn 14 to join Adventurers' Guild.
In the game, the female lead comes to Dallas City on a mission and accidentally obtains this Treasure in whatever route she chooses.
That's why I have been searching for this Treasure for a long time. I had already searched the location per game, but the item was missing. It could either be in someone else's possession or not in the area where the protagonist was supposed to find the Treasure.
"Uncle Russo, are you serious? You are not joking, right?" I asked the person sitting in front of me.
The person I called Uncle Russo was a mysterious person. I only knew that he deals in business affairs in the capital. He also gave me hints like where to hunt or whom to trust. It's like he knows many things or has some kind of ability.
However, I had no choice but to trust him. He taught me to read and write the native language and helped me with financial problems. I also helped him with some economic structure of a business and developed some products, but our mutual trust remains.
"When did I ever lie?"
"Every time. You still owe me my commission. Don't forget the wig on your head."
"That's not it!" He choked a little and added, "I mean, I have never been wrong, right? Lil Ivan, you need to follow the clues."
I nodded and looked elsewhere to see if someone was spying on me.
After confirming that everything was clear, I asked, "You didn't tell anyone else, right?"
"Well, of course, I didn't. I promised Lil Ivan, didn't I? Just as I heard about its clues, I came to tell you."
I looked at him briefly and nodded. For now, I could trust him. Whatever the case might be, the item is a must for me. There is a similar item in-game, so I will help the protagonist in the future.
"Then?"
"Oh, you want to know its clues, eh? Very well, listen carefully." Uncle Russo said and cleared his throat, "Right from here, to the west, lies a cave on a hill. It is an old goblin lair. Although the place is abandoned, there is a rumour that a purple gem shines on every full moon at the lair."
That's the item I was looking for. It is a purple rectangular gemstone that shines in direct moonlight.
"However, I will be warning you, Lil Ivan. I could see that this path would change your fate forever. Nothing will go as your plan."
I got scared a little as his tone was serious. I probably should have given up, but only I know the value of that item. I will likely face dangers anyway, so that I might take this chance.
"I will get going," I said and was about to leave when he stopped me.
"Then can you leave my wallet here?"
Ah, shoot.
"I was not trying to steal it. I was going to return it in the future. That's all." I said and put a coins-filled pouch on the table.
What? I was going to borrow for a while!
"Bye," I said and left the avenue.
"Bye, Lil Ivan." I heard his farewell before my leave.
---
"O Lil Ivan, you are a strong child," Russo said and shook his head as he saw the running figure.
"Waiter, can I have the bill?"
"Ah, yes, sir, but… pff!"
"Why are you snickering?"
"It's just… your bald head is reflecting sunlight."
!!!
Russo widened his eyes and touched his head but didn't see a speck of hair.
He then realized why Ivan left so quickly.
"DAMN YOU, IVAN!"
---
I hoped Uncle Russo to be okay. He was pretty anxious about his losing hair. I heard he was scammed by a merchant and used some kind of potion. Instead of getting his hair back, he lost the rest of his hair. Now he has a shining scalp.
Anyway, on next day, I was walking on my way towards the old goblin lair. I had no idea that it was so close to the city.
"So I have to walk another 24 meters…." I said as I looked at the map. I had already covered 200 meters, and another 24 meters needed to reach the designation.
It was also getting dark, so I had to rush. Thankfully, I had prepared for camping in advance and was also equipped with some lethal weapons for any unexpected guests.
Dallas Army regularly clears harmful monsters every month, so chances of facing any monster like goblins or ogres were slim.
I had to say, Flareottems might be the territory of villainess' papa, but he was good at maintaining order. Dallas is just 2 kilometres away from Keene, the central city of Flareottems, so the rate of crime here was also low.
"Help!"
It was then that I heard a feminine cry for help. It was dim, but my keen senses could perceive the call.
Six meters or 8 meters, I could ascertain that the person was near me.
I had to check the person since I couldn't just leave her. However, I couldn't be careless too. As a soldier in my previous life, one shouldn't let their guard down even if dealing with harmless-looking individuals.
I carefully equipped my quiver containing several arrows tipped with lethal poison and hung the bow around my arm.
I already had a dagger on my belt, so I was ready to go.
Slowly, I slinked to the position where I heard the girl's cry.
There I saw three individuals, dressed in black, surrounding someone. Because of them, I couldn't see the girl or the person crying for help.
"Haha, she is one hell of a brat!"
"Let's see where you would run!"
Cliché distinct lines that I ignored.
However, as they moved, I was able to see the girl. She was an 11 years old girl with almond-like eyes, sharp and firm. She also possesses snow-like fair skin that couldn't hide her beauty even as a child. She was also wearing purple winter clothes just like…. A noble?
Wait, now that I took a closer look, she resembled a character from the game.
What the hell was villainess doing here?!