* * *
On a cloudy afternoon that felt unexpectedly cool despite it nearing summer, I found myself wandering the mountain alone, a rare occurrence apart from Master.
<It would be great if you could find some nice prey!>
Yes, I am out hunting by myself!
This happened because, after finishing our usual training and trying to invite Master to go hunting with a glance,
“…………”
He shook his head, refusing.
It seems he was about to prepare some medicine.
I thought I’d offer my help with that, but apparently, it’s still too early for me, and I wasn’t allowed. Tch!
So, with Master cooped up in his room and some free time on my hands, I ventured out for a solo hunting trip!
…Oh.
<Ah, Emi, to your front left, behind the rocks…>
Yeah, I’ve noticed, Extra-sama.
“Fugi… Fugi”
“Guyu-gyufu-gigi”
“Fugii! Fugii!”
There, making strange noises while devouring something, were three pieces of meat.
<They’re not meat yet, Emi. Those are Yahajiki boars.>
Yahajiki boars are omnivorous and ferocious boar monsters!
They always move in groups of three or more, and it’s said that a charge by the group can tear apart even a human’s hut!
Their fur is abnormally hard, and ordinary arrows are deflected, making it impossible to inflict even a scratch!
(From: Extra-sama’s viewing of “The Hunting God’s Isekai Broadcast”)
<They aren’t very big. All three are about Emi’s size.>
The size of the group isn’t large, so maybe they’re young, recently independent from their mother’s group, with little experience?
<But don’t let your guard down.>
Of course!
I further strengthen the 【Presence Concealment】 I always have activated in the mountains and carefully approach the prey.
Then, using 【Grasshopper】 to leap, I descend from the sky straight towards the neck of a Yahajiki boar… and with 【Mantis】, I make a swift cut.
I beheaded it.
This is the method Master used against Electricia.
I’m not as good as Master, but I’ve become somewhat capable of doing it too.
The reactions of the remaining two were completely opposite.
“Fugiiiiiiiiiiiiii!”
One of them, enraged, attempted to charge at me.
However, it was too close to gain any momentum.
Their charges become a threat only after they’ve accelerated to full speed.
Being so close to me, it didn’t have enough distance to cause any damage.
In the end, all it (he?) did was move its neck into a position easier for me to hunt.
I strike down hard on the boar’s head from above.
It’s not just a regular punch.
A strike infused with magical power, capable of shattering rocks.
That’s 【Magic Strike】.
The boar’s head bursts, creating a dark red stain on the mountain surface.
I swiftly dodge the headless boar’s body charging at me with its momentum and turn to look at the other one.
The remaining one, it seems, chose to flee.
Turning its back to me, it ran away as fast as it could.
But you see, little boar,
I’m really hungry.
Every day is filled with rigorous training, pushing both my physical and magical energy to their limits.
I need to eat lots of delicious meat to replenish my vigor.
I am a carnivorous girl!!
I thrust my hand into the ground, grabbing a handful of soil.
Then, I apply 【Solidify】 to the soil in my hand, transforming mere clumps of earth into something harder than pebbles, and launch them with 【Stone Throwing】!
The speed of 【Stone Throwing】, enhanced by my improved 【Body Strengthening】, is too fast to catch with the eye.
The last boar, pierced by the stones I hurled, falls and twitches a few times before becoming still.
Now, thanks to 【Solidify】, as long as there’s ground, I can continuously perform 【Stone Throwing】 even without actual pebbles.
I’ve named this 【Infinite Pebbles】.
It was Extra-sama’s idea to name it.
<…Even so, Emi, you’ve become quite strong in just half a year…>
Ehehe! Really? Yeah, maybe!
All thanks to Master!
<…Yes, indeed. You certainly met a good master, but even so, this rate of growth… truly is>
…? Truly is?
<…Nothing. …No, Emi, I’m just a bit frustrated!>
Frustrated?
Why?
<I’ve been with Emi ever since she reincarnated into this world for six years, always together. And to help her survive, I’ve tried to make her stronger by teaching her various things.>
Yes.
<Yet, despite the six years of teaching, she has become far stronger in the half-year taught by that person than by me. It makes me wonder what I’ve been doing all this time…>
Awawa… don’t be so down, Extra-sama.
I’m always super grateful to you, and without you, I would have died a long time ago…
Besides, I think the reason I can keep up with Master’s training is because of the foundation you’ve helped build!
【Body Strengthening】, 【Presence Concealment】, and 【Magic Perception】… You taught me all of those, right?
And you also help me think through Master’s tasks!
I am who I am because of you, Extra-sama!
<…Ufufu, thank you, Emi.>
Ehehe! You’re welcome! Let’s keep it up, Extra-sama!
…Now! Let’s quickly take care of the boar! It would be troublesome if other monsters came and stole the meat!
<Yes, indeed!>
And then, as I approached the boar carcasses, my attention was drawn for the first time to the black object that the boars had been voraciously consuming.
What is this?
A piece of black cloth?
…A robe?
I casually grabbed it and pulled.
Something rolled out.
Seeing it, I left the boars I had hunted and ran at full speed towards Master’s cabin.
I had to report.
This was an emergency.
Something was happening.
What the boars had been devouring was a lump of flesh, cut so cleanly through the bone by something sharp.
What rolled out when I pulled the cloth was the severed head of a woman I didn’t recognize.
In these deep mountains, where I had never seen another human being besides Master and myself,
a human had been killed.
However, by the time I reached Master’s cabin, the situation had already begun to unfold.
Master and a bald man donning a black robe were facing each other, their killing intent clashing.
And distracted by this scene,
I failed to notice another man approaching silently from behind.