Chapter 13
Today was finally the day for monster subjugation.
I was in my room, checking my equipment.
I had the weapon I received at my Baptism set up so I could draw it instantly with Quick, but the one I planned to use as my main was the sword I received from my father as a birthday present.
It wasn’t much compared to the gear I used back in my gaming days, but I felt it would be a shame if a gift like that went completely unused.
I equipped my armor properly, and my preparations were complete.
I met up with Kallion in front of the mansion, and we headed for the Grasslands spreading outside the town.
“The monsters that appear in the Grasslands are opponents that Claude-sama should be able to hunt with ease. Please try to deal with them using only your weapon, without relying on magic,” Kallion advised.
“Understood,” I replied.
After entering the Grasslands and proceeding for a while, I saw two Horn Rabbits hopping about.
They were the type of monster that wouldn’t attack unless we attacked first.
I closed the distance in an instant, drew my sword, and cut one down with a single stroke.
The Horn Rabbit left behind a magic stone and its dropped items—a horn and some meat—before dissolving into black mist.
From Kallion’s perspective, my swordsmanship was efficient and clean, with no wasted movements.
I also showed no signs of aversion to taking a creature’s life, a point Kallion had apparently been worried about.
“Claude-sama. That was splendid. Let’s continue hunting at this pace,” Kallion said.
After that, Kallion and I continued to search for monsters in the Grasslands, steadily subjugating them.
When the sun reached its zenith, Kallion spoke up.
“Claude-sama. It’s about time we had lunch.”
“Yes,” I replied.
We chose a spot with a good vantage point so we could respond to anything that might happen, and began our meal.
Today’s lunch was sandwiches, prepared by the mansion’s head chef so we could eat them easily.
The meat was infused with a secret sauce and was absolutely exquisite.
The ones with vegetables, included for balance, were crisp and had a pleasant crunch.
After lunch, we once again moved through the Grasslands, repeatedly finding and subjugating monsters.
We returned to the town before sunset.
For a first monster hunt, the results could be called sufficient, but in terms of gaining experience, the monsters in the Grasslands were somewhat lacking.
“Claude-sama. Good work today. I was thinking we could try going to the forest tomorrow, what do you think?” Kallion asked.
“Understood,” I replied.
Kallion escorted me back to the mansion. I returned to my room and began removing my equipment.
Finally, I drew my sword, checked that the blade wasn’t chipped, and returned it to its scabbard.
I think I was able to handle things calmly today because I knew the opponents wouldn’t attack proactively.
In the forest, there are monsters that will attack on sight.
Even so, I told myself that with my overwhelming Stats and, above all, the skills I’d honed against the knight order, I should be able to handle them.