Novel:
Author: Karumi Ayumu
Chapter 9: Beginner’s High
Although they were almost attacked by a demon in the middle of their journey, the hero and Cynthia didn't realize it, instead mentally cornering the demon and safely arriving to the north gate. The gatekeeper came out to greet them.
"Welcome, welcome, Miss Cynthia. And that must be the usual Sir Hero, right?"
"Yes. He's a bit on the peculiar side, so please deal with him carefully."
"Pleased to meet you, Mister Gatekeeper. I'm Hero Yuuto."
"Hahaha, I'm the one who's pleased to meet you, Hero. I'm Gordon, the guy in charge of guarding this gate."
Gordon heartily clapped the hero's back. Then he made a blank face, as if realizing something.
"Pretty delicate for a hero, huh? Isn't he weaker than our rookies?"
"Unfortunately, it seems like we couldn't get an invincible savior. But he does have a certain cold vigor about him, almost as if he's mad, so I suppose he's more than enough if you just consider personality. I think he'll have some trouble but please look after him for a while."
"What, can't you just go 'the hero's going to save us so it's all right, wonderful, wonderful'? Alright! Would you practice with me for a while, Hero?"
"No, it's fine. But please let me fight the demons, I think that's probably going to be faster." The hero held his wood stick with a confident face. He was irritatedly thinking, 'this tutorial really is long.'
"You're gonna fight with that stick?"
Gatekeeper Gordon looked rather dubious, so Cynthia supported the hero. "He defeated a demon that had invaded the palace with that stick."
"Seriously? They do say you gotta start with the basics, but still."
The hero fidgeted, like a child waiting his turn for a ride in the amusement park. "Well then, I'll be heading off now. Here's my permit."
"Well then, hero, excuse me here. I have to return to King George, since there are more demons that may invade the palace."
"Alright. Thank you very much, Cynthia."
The hero started quickly walking out. The gatekeeper was about to stop him, but Cynthia stopped him.
"Hey, does the hero think he can go alone?! I can't let that…"
"Please let him go, he extremely hates asking for help. But please alert a medical team here for whenever he comes back, since he really is the definition of 'reckless'."
With a smile on his face, the hero disappeared into the forest.
"I'll just see how it goes and get back quick. But ah, I've gone through this moment where I first get to fight freely so many times but it still gets me so excited…"
"He's smilin' like a child. I get it, he really is crazy…" Gatekeeper Gordon seemed to have given up.
In the forest, the hero said, "Ahaha, I don't have any teleportation magic or items so I shouldn't go too far."
"Hehehe, you got some guts to go in this forest alone!"
The hero encountered three jelly amoebas.
"They're here! So they really are the slime types."
The hero boldly smiled. The demons were bewildered.
"This guy looks like he's been looking for us…"
"Calm down, eldest son! He's weak either way!"
"Listen to the second son, he doesn't have armor or a sword either…"
The hero attacked. Jelly Amoeba C received 8 damage.
"Gah, ouch!"
"How dare you attack the third son!"
Jelly Amoeba B attacked, the hero received 8 damage.
"Hmph!"
The hero attacked! Not responding to the attack from Amoeba B, he aimed for Amoeba C. Jelly Amoeba C received 7 damage and was defeated.
"He's trying to decrease our numbers!"
"The third son's enemy!"
"Wait, second son!"
Amoeba B leapt in, and the hero countered it. Jelly Amoeba B received a critical attack! Jelly Amoeba B took 13 damage and was defeated.
The hero leveled up! He became level 3.
The hero learnt the skill 'heavy attack' to deliver huge damage to an enemy.
"I'm getting experience points as I kill more enemies and level up. But my wounds don't heal, huh?"
"Eep! He really is used to fighting! I didn't want to resort to this method, but… Gah…"
"Hm?!"
'I'll throw away my pride as a demon and survive, that's the fundamental part of living!' With a do-or-die resolve, Amoeba A did a ritual!
Amoeba A looked at the hero with big round eyes. "Please – help me – I'm not a – bad amoe—……"
"Haaagh!"
The hero dealt a heavy attack! Jelly Amoeba A received 16 damage. The monsters were defeated.
"So this is skill…"
The monsters turned to dust and disappeared. From within the dust came out the lost items of the people they had eaten.
The hero got 30 gold.
"Felt like he was trying to be friends with me but… But there's no way a monster would try to be friends with me with a tutorial like this, I haven't even met a monster tamer and I don't even have a wagon."
After that, the hero battled the amoebas that stuck around near the north gate for 30 minutes. By the time he returned to town, he was level 4.