Chapter 3 - I’m a Hero!? 3 (2/2)
“Hoo-ahhhp!”
[Ggoo-ehhhhk!]
However, unlike Artpe worries, the wooden branch swung by Maetel fell with exquisite strength and speed, impacting the goblin’s arm. The goblin dropped the club, and it fell over while screaming in pain.
A level 3 monster was defeated by a level 1 hero! This was a shameful event for the entire goblin race.
[Maetel]
[Level - 1]
[Swordsmanship Lv1]
“Artpe. Somehow I feel stronger!”
“Ahh, I know. ”
Until now, Maetel had only swung a branch during her roleplay as a hero. She didn’t have any real battle experience, yet she learned swordsmanship so easily.
Still, Swordsmanship wasn’t as impressive as Mana Sensitivity!
Artpe gave an apathetic reply as he picked up another rock.
From just one swing of the branch, Maetel had earned courage and skill. She bravely attacked the remaining goblin.
“Scary monsters! Don’t torment Artpe!”
[Kwahh, it is a scary human! Ggoo-ehhk!]
This strike was much stronger than before. She was only a level 1, yet she possessed Mana Sensitivity. Maetel instinctively brought out the heat from within the wooden branch. She burned the goblin’s club and hit the goblin square in the head!
The goblin couldn’t resist the terrible pain and died.
It was hard to tell which one was the scary monster!
[Maetel]
[Level 2]
[Mana Control Lv1]
“Ohh, oooh!”
When the fire was brought out from the wooden branch, it consumed all the mana contained within. It turned into ash in Maetel’s hand, and the ash was dispersed by the wind. Somehow, it was a sad sight for her.
“I really killed them.”
It was as if Maetel had poured out all of her energy, she sat in place as she looked down at her hands.
It was a very short fight, but she had never experienced something so powerful. She had went back and forth between the boundaries of life and death, ending lives with her own hands! She wouldn’t be able to forget this shock easily.
Artpe also knew what she was going through. He understood it.
However...
“Artpe, I… I won?”
“No.”
Artpe gave a cold reply and threw the rock he had pick up a moment ago, which had taken in a lot of his Mana in a short amount of time. The rock brushed near Maetel as it flew by like the wind. Before it could swing its club towards Maetel, the goblin’s head exploded.
Maetel saw the goblin’s body stumble to the ground. She finally became aware of its presence.
“Kyahhh!”
“You haven’t won until all your enemies are killed. You should keep that in mind.”
“...I forgot.”
The goblin she attacked first had only suffered a broken arm from her first strike. It had dropped its club, yet it was still alive, Maetel had forgotten about the first goblin when she faced the other one. On top of that, she had been intoxicated by the fact that she had killed a goblin. The battle hadn’t ended, yet she had been out of it!
Maetel was looking at Artpe blankly. He spoke icily towards her.
“Wake up, Maetel. We are no longer children who live within the fences of a village.”
“Artpe······.”
Other 12 year old girls could act like this right now, but a hero didn’t have that luxury. Even if Maetel’s goodwill towards him decreased, he wanted her to have a mean streak.
The hero in his previous life was too soft.
She had been softer than a cheese matured for half a year! Instead of giving her a curriculum for the gifted, he needed to make a hero who was cold and spiteful!
“...is too cool.”
“Huh?”
However, his intentions was off by a little bit. Maetel’s cheeks were flushed as she ran towards Artpe. She grabbed both of his hands and started yelling excitedly as she jumped around.
“Artpe is too cool! You really are like a hero!”
“You are the hero! Ah, I guess I’m also a hero now...”
Even as he said it, his words gave him goosebumps. Artpe couldn’t think of anyone else in this world who was as unsuitable for the role of a hero as him! On the other hand, it seemed like Maetel viewed Artpe as a cool hero.
“I want to be like Artpe!”
“No, you won’t.”
Artpe spoke with a serious face. Maetel’s spirit was finally dampened a little bit.
“Anyways, you should never put down your guard until all of your enemies are dead. Even fallen enemies should be checked. I want you to double check even if the enemy’s throat was cut, do you understand?”
“Yes, I understand. I’ll bear it in mind!... So the enemy doesn’t die even if its throat is cut?”
Artpe clicked his tongue at Maetel’s naive question. It wouldn’t be called a monster if it died so easily!
“I’m not sure about these small fishes, but later on, there are bastards who survive even after being cut into 17 pieces. The criteria for finding out if a monster is dead is to use Mana.”
“Mana?”
“You’ve handled Mana not too long ago, and you’ve also acquired skills… I’ll teach it to you slowly.”
“Yes!”
“However, there is something else I have to teach you first.”
Artpe approached a dead goblin and tapped the corpse. Suddenly, a yellow coin fell from its body. When she saw this, Maetel’s eyes turned round.
“Why do monsters have money!?”
“That is a very good question.”
Artpe kicked the remaining two goblins and picked up the coins. He let out a fresh smile as he spoke.
“I don't know the answer either!”
This was the moment when the hero learned of Looting.