"You've become cunning like a wolf. Maybe slipping into the pool and hitting your head on a rock is your greatest fortune."
As soon as those words were said, Arlo stood up to leave.
"Hahaha, it might very well be." At his words, Roy laughed and bade him goodbye. "Be careful on your way out."
Roy had changed very, very much. The change was too big to hide. He could fool one or two with his terrible acting, but fooling everyone was impossible. So he didn't bother hiding that he had changed from his maid, his uncle, or the people who surround him in his daily life. Or rather, from the start, he had no intention of hiding his true self behind a facade.
He blamed his personality change on the accident, which nearly took his life.
Since he said so himself, even if someone was suspicious, they had no choice but to believe him.
Arlo left in a hurry.
But he left with a smile.
'Maybe he went to have a talk with my plastic father, or maybe he went to a bar to get drunk like a skunk. Only God can tell...'
What Arlo was going to do wasn't Roy's concern.
Honestly, he didn't care what his uncle did as long as he forwarded his stance on his engagement to the people in question before Rose married that person.
He was 70 percent sure that Arlo would be able to do so.
And his confidence was backed by reasons.
Arlo was very strong.
He was never mentioned in the novel, so Roy didn't know his strengths and weaknesses.
But he was 100% certain about one thing; Arlo was ridiculously powerful.
That was confirmed the moment he used Perception on him but only saw question marks.
Arlo was a low-key person who spent most of his time getting drunk and exercising, but that didn't overshadow the fact that he was strong enough to change the weather with one fucking punch.
Strength spoke volumes in this world.
Because he was strong, Arlo would be able to make Charlotte choke up Roy's demand if they wanted to officially break their daughter's engagement with him.
Roy certainly believed that.
'They'll have no choice but to fill my belly. I will be getting those herbs soon. It won't be long before I get rid of the nasty worm in my body and free myself from the shackles that are making it impossible for me to become a mage.' Roy looked out the window in thoughtful silence as his lips curled into a smile, and his eyes gleamed.
The future was going to be exciting.
Amelia didn't know what he was thinking, but since it made him happy, she determined it must be something good. Seeing him so happy, a smile also found its way to her.
Roy was feeling full of energy because he had restored his stamina using the Stamina Restoration Manual, but the same couldn't be said for Amelia.
She was extremely tired as she had overworked herself today. That was quite evident as she fell asleep moments after her head hit the pillow. Roy called out for her a few times. His voice wasn't loud and more like a whisper as if he was checking something. After getting no response, he walked up to her and found her fast asleep. He picked her up from the joke of a futon, and Princess carried her to his bed, placing her on the soft mattress before putting the blanket on her. This bed was going to be free for a while. It was better for Amelia to sleep on it than an old futon that was sticking close to the floor and absorbing its coldness.
Roy turned around to leave, but someone grabbed the cuff of his shirt.
Who could it be if not Amelia?
"Don't go…."
Roy looked at her carefully. She wasn't awake. She was talking in her sleep.
Just what was she dreaming about to say such things so pitifully?
He felt a bit heavy-hearted.
She was like his family. It wasn't just him who thought that but also her.
'If she woke up and didn't find me, she would feel troubled, right? I better leave behind a letter explaining where I went for her.'
Roy wrote a letter and placed it by the bedside.
It explained that he was just taking a stroll outside soon, and she need not worry about him.
"I'll be back soon."
Roy took down the painting and unlocked the hidden Treasury.
Inside of it was an eye-catching glove. It was enchanted with two runes and had an equal number of empty sockets.
[You've discovered Devil Hand, a high-level runic item.]
[Devil Hand has two special functions. The first is called Mana Burst. It's an offensive spell. The second is called Mana Wall. It's a defensive spell. You can activate them three times a day.]
It was a runic item.
He had never used it in the past. There was a good reason behind it. The recoil of using the offensive spell wasn't something the Old Roy could bear. It would've blasted off his arm. But now, he wasn't a weakling. He has become a level 6 Body tempering trainee. He could endure the recoil. As for the other spell, he never faced the need to use it. And when he did, it wasn't with him. So the Old Roy drowned and this one transmigrated over.
"If not for Amelia, I would have lost this hidden gem."
Amelia was sensible enough to hide its existence from his step-family. It was a runic item with two notable effects, so it was precious, although not rare. They would've long stolen it otherwise.
[Would you like to equip it?]
"… yes…"
[You've worn a High-Level Runic Item. Your strength has increased by 3 points. Your agility has increased by 2 points. You've gained the Mana Burst & Mana Wall Skills.]
NAME: Roy
Age: Sixteen years and nine months old
EXP POINTS: 0
Power Level: Body Tempering Stage 6th Level (0/500 EXP)
Health: 2
Mana: 0
Strength: 32 (29)
Stamina: 26
Agility: 19 (21)
Perception: 7.5
Endurance: 8.8
Physical Defense: 1.76%
Magical Damage Negation: 0.98%
[You've six attribute points remaining.]
The room was restored to its original look.
Roy gently pushed open the door and stepped out.
This was a quiet and cold night.
There was no one around in the garden. It was the same in the training ground.
"I'll be burrowing this for a while."
Roy stole a solid sword from the racks and went away.
Was he a thug or a noble?
He quietly left the Count's Manor by jumping over the wall.
After taking only ten steps, he was stopped by a barrier.
It was dome-like and stopped any intruder from entering or leaving.
The House member each had a Command Emblem that could open a way out of this barrier.
Roy pulled out his own and gently tapped the barrier with it.
A sizeable hole opened up in the barely visible barrier.
Roy stepped out, and the barrier blurred out of existence in his eyes.
The barrier's shape could be outlined from the inside, but it was invisible to mortal eyes.
The streets were exceptionally dark.
He didn't encounter a soul as he travelled through them.
Without anyone knowing, he took to the snowy mountain behind the County.
It was the Outskirts of the Great Forest that ran through the Empire. Powerful monsters didn't inhabit this part of the forest. Coming across a monster above level 10 could be counted as a person's fortune or misfortune. For Roy, it might be the latter.
The cold wind roared fiercely, but Roy rushed into the depths of the snow-capped mountains fearlessly. It was either do or die.
The further inside he went, the lower the temperature.
In the depths of the snowy mountains, one would shiver uncontrollably due to the cold, but Roy didn't show a single sign of discomfort.
The bodily warm of a 6th stage Body tempering trainee and the layers of thick clothes were doing their part to ward off the cold.
[Your stamina has decreased by a point.]
[Your stamina has increased by half a point.]
As he was using extra force to move about in this place, his stamina decreased rapidly, but he was offsetting half of it using the Stamina Restoration Manual.
It couldn't have been more than 3 minutes since he entered the depths, but a tingling feeling crawled up his spines. The hair on the back of his head also stood up. It was impossible for him not to guess what was going on.
"Danger!"
A faint and indistinct cold light shot out from the darkness behind him.
Just as it was about to reach him, Roy spun around, his broad sword swinging through the air in a perfectly horizontal slash. No one knew when the sword left its scabbard. That was just how fast he pulled it out. It was out in the open in the instant of a second.
Pah!
The surface of the sword slapped something solid. It was sent flying away. Roy's arm shuddered violently as if Thor's hammer had struck him, but he didn't let go of his sword. He was willing to have a broken bone rather than lose his life.
[You've attacked a Monster. It lost -5 HP!]
It smashed into the tree 5 meters away. It lacked leaves and was covered with snow.
Thud!
Roy's eyes turned to the source of the sound.
"Arrowhead snake..."
The creature that attacked him had a head shaped like an arrow. Roy recognized it as the Arrowhead Snake. The maximum stage this type of beast could reach was 10. The number of lines on its body determined its level. This beast only had 6. So It was a level 6 beast. Its arrowhead had a deep dent on it, and blood was dripping out its mouth.
[Name: Arrowhead snake
HP: 5/10
Mana: 10]
"Hiss…"
The Arrowhead Snake was pissed off at Roy. He had smacked its face too hard, disfiguring it. It wanted to do nothing more than devour him whole.
It directed a venomous gaze his way.
In return, Roy angered it further by showing his teeth.
It curled its body.
"It's coming…."
An instant later, it shot out like an arrow, aiming to claim his life. They were eight meters apart, but It covered that distance in an instant and appeared before Roy with a mouth wide open. But this time, he was ready for it. Its jaw snapped into empty air. Roy had sidestepped its attack.
It landed three steps away and turned around to attack Roy again, only to see a great sword barrelling through the air right towards the spot three inches below its head.
Whoosh!
A great sense of danger assaulted it and a mighty wave of pressure pressed down on it.
It felt like a mantis before a cicada.
There was no doubt in its mind that it would be split apart if it didn't dodge this.
It curled its body, ready to dart away.
But how could Roy let it leave?
The speed at which his sword was descending doubled.
It fell short by a step.
The Great Sword drew a horizontal line on its body.
Its body separated from its head. It dropped to the ground, dead. Blood gushed out, dying the ground red.
[You've killed a Level 6 Arrowhead Snake. You get +60 Experience Points, +2 Health Point, and +3 Agility.]
Roy had completed his first hunt!