Chapter 12: Skills Revealed
“You might not have noticed since you were unconscious, but this house is mine, standing alone in the Forest of Enchantment.”
First, he explained the geography of the area. The Forest of Enchantment, as it is called, occupies about one-sixth of the northeastern part of this continent. It is so vast that the ecosystem of the monsters within it remains a mystery, and powerful monsters dwell here, which is why it is feared and referred to as the Forest of Enchantment.
By the way, the Arclight Kingdom, where we were summoned, is a fairly large country located to the southwest of the Forest of Enchantment. The Demon Tribe’s country, Bergstein, lies beyond the mountain range to the north of the Arclight Kingdom.
“By the way, this house is located on the western side of the Forest of Enchantment, but even so, it would take at least twenty days on foot to reach the Arclight Kingdom.”
“Wait, what!? You live all the way out there by yourself?”
Yuzuki-san looked shocked, but for me, the reality that it would take twenty days to traverse the forest was even more shocking.
“Haha, I have a fair amount of confidence in my strength. I’ve been living in the Forest of Enchantment for over fifty years now.”
He shrugged nonchalantly.
“Um, Mr. Welter, how old are you?”
“Ah, well… I stopped counting after three hundred.”
Yuzuki-san asked hesitantly, but he didn’t seem offended; instead, he furrowed his brow, struggling to recall. Over three hundred years old… Demon Tribe members really do live long lives. No wonder we look like children compared to him.
“Well, that’s how it is…”
“Honestly, I don’t feel like the two of us can make it through this forest alone.”
“Yeah, I figured as much. Seriously… heh heh heh, eating Desmeg Fruit and writhing in nausea… ha ha ha!”
It was a bitter memory of nearly dying, but it seemed to tickle Mr. Welter’s funny bone. I mean, I guess if you knew the story, it would seem ridiculous.
“Well, at least you were able to spit it out quickly.”
After a good laugh, he turned serious and continued.
“That’s right.”
“Ah, the black part on the lower half of that fruit is where the bugs that ate it have accumulated.”
“Ugh.”
Just imagining it made my stomach turn.
“And those bugs are from the Forest of Enchantment, right? They’re crawling with all sorts of poisons.”
“Seriously…?”
Just hearing about it made my blood run cold. I might have actually died.
“Well, the white part on top is delicious, though.”
“Wait, you can eat that!?”
Yuzuki-san’s face turned pale, but she trembled in shock.
“As long as you don’t leave any of the black part behind, you’ll be fine. Just make sure to separate it properly.”
“Ha ha… now that you mention it, I might have eaten some with a bit of black still on it.”
“Yeah, I figured.”
This was no laughing matter. The Forest of Enchantment was terrifying. I couldn’t take it anymore. I wanted to go home… but where to?
“By the way… I heard that if we defeat the Demon King, we can return to our original world, but based on what you’ve told us, Mr. Welter, that sounds like a lie.”
“I’ve never heard such a thing.”
He said that it was impossible to gain such powerful abilities that would allow us to return to our world by defeating the Demon King. I asked out of desperation, but this completely shattered any faint hope I had left. It seemed we truly had no choice but to survive in this world.
“I see…”
Yuzuki-san slumped her shoulders, looking down and trembling.
“There are spatial magic spells, but I’ve never heard of one that can cross worlds.”
Spatial magic! I had heard there were eight types, but it seemed there were more than just those. Or maybe those eight were just the basics.
“Such magic exists, huh…”
“Yeah… Now, back to the main topic…”
“Yes?”
“I could escort you until you exit the forest, but… how about I train you both right here instead?”
“Huh?”
I let out a foolish sound at the unexpected proposal. Honestly, having him train us would be even more beneficial than just getting a ride. Even though he lived in a remote area, Mr. Welter was knowledgeable. Learning about this world would surely increase our chances of survival.
“Why…?”
Yuzuki-san seemed to be thinking the same thing and asked Mr. Welter. It was true that there was no benefit for him in this. It would be much easier for him to just leave us behind.
“Heh heh heh, you two have some interesting skills, don’t you?”
““Huh!?””
Both of us froze at his shocking words. Wait, what does he mean? Did he just say skills? Not jobs?
“You can tell what skills we have? …Not jobs?”
“Yeah, I can tell. I have the ‘Appraisal’ skill.”
Now that he mentioned it, I remembered there was an Appraisal option when we were choosing our skills with the deity. It made sense that if we could choose, there would be others who had it too.
“Especially your appraisal results are quite amusing, monk. Poison resistance, hunger resistance, and fainting resistance—it’s clear you’ve wandered around the Forest of Enchantment and eaten Desmeg Fruit.”
“Wait, what!?”
Mr. Welter revealed this shocking truth while bursting into laughter. I had no recollection of acquiring such skills. Was this for real!?
“Wow, you really are something, monk. Tenfold Experience Acquisition, and your growth rate is tenfold too, right? The more you train, the more skills you’ll learn, won’t you? Ah, and you, young lady, have fivefold Experience Acquisition and fivefold growth rate. Your magic growth rate is even a hundredfold? You’re completely specialized in magic. This is getting interesting.”
With each shocking revelation and Mr. Welter’s excited expression, we found ourselves responding honestly, “We look forward to your guidance!”