After jumping through all the hoops necessary to purchase my very own horse, I am then endlessly bombarded about how to drive a carriage. Most of the information is cataloged in the back of my mind, while anything I feel unsure of can be picked up through diligent practice later. I pretty much get the gist of it though. I am a quick learner.

I chose the black mare in the end since I would rather not upset the balance. The horse salesman seemed quite ecstatic about my selection. However, much to his chagrin, I managed to haggle the price down from the asking price of thirty Rox to only ten Rox, additional bits-and-bobs included. This brings the price of my stagecoach to a grand total of eighty Rox. From my calculations, this is at least a thirty percent profit, apart from the fact that the horse is a dud.

Just how much of a pain is the horse, you ask? Well…

Imagine a five or six-hundred-pound toddler, with the attitude of a spoiled teenager, and the strength of a dozen-or-so full-grown-men. This is what I am dealing with; A monster, plain and simple. Just walking down the street is causing me deep psychological trauma.

It is kind of obvious but, I am not a person who would make a good caregiver. In fact, being in my care would most certainly have detrimental consequences. I can barely keep myself under control, let alone take care of someone else.

Having to drag this stubborn horse down the street, kicking and flailing, is utterly torturous. It clearly has a grudge against humanity, since it snorts at anybody who walks by. Thankfully it has yet to do anyone physical harm, but from the way things are going… I make no guarantees.

Spite, bitterness, pride, and resentment; I can sense all of these twisting emotions from this child. Just what happened to her that would cause her to act this way?

Unfortunately, I have neither time, nor patience to put up with this. I really should hammer this nail, before it becomes any more of a burden. It is just a matter of breaking in the reins, nothing complicated. But first...

“Hmmm… Though you are turning out to be quite a nuisance, I should give you a proper name nonetheless.”

Technically, this child already has a name, but I would prefer to name it myself. It is one of the few hobbies I have, so indulge me on this.

“You do not strike me as a Bree anyways.”

A strong, prideful horse… It reminds me of unpleasant things…

“Let us not dwell on the past anymore. We have things we must accomplish, and you are going to help me do it. For the sake of progress, I am going to name you Tomorrow. What do you think?”

She only gives a quick peek at me, before she turns her head away, spitefully snorting in protest. Hmph… Too bad for you, horse, I am sticking with that name. I only asked out of courtesy.

“Good, now that you have a name, there is a great task before us. You could call it an adventure, or a wild goose chase, but all the same, it is something I must do.”

I am being ignored, but I wonder why I feel like this child is understanding me somehow. I will just continue…

“Yes… There is a long road ahead, and regrettably, it is likely filled with strife and peril. Although I would like to avoid such situations, I am in need of information, and the surest place to acquire it is right from the enemy’s doorstep.”

Graves, while being an excellent place to find some leads, is obviously under the control of the Guild of Wisdom. What that means for me is anyone’s guess, but it is the best plan of action I currently have, so that is where we are headed. No matter how stealthily I travel, if I receive no information on Gwyn’s whereabouts, I am simply wasting time and energy.

“I am looking for an important person to me. Do you understand? I cannot afford to mess this up. Well, maybe you do not understand what I am saying. But know this, I need your help, whether you like it or not.”

It has almost been two weeks since I crossed over into this world, and only today do I even have anything to show for it. It feels like the last week or so was all a transitional phase, and now the jetlag is finally wearing off. What have I been doing all this time?

‘Sigh’

As I look down at my left wrist, I shake away the sleeve of my white button-up shirt, to reveal a clunky, brass-colored watch. Like most other devices in this world, it features visible clockwork gears. I commandeered this beauty from the man I crossed paths with as I entered the grocer earlier.

The man himself was a boring thing, and I have no memory of his appearance. That said, the watch I glimpsed on his wrist as he opened the door was something I could not help but notice.

Of course, I have no eye for the brands of this world, or even Earth’s, for that matter. I really cannot care less about such things, to begin with. I simply liked the design and was sorely in need of it. There being no room in my budget for something like this, I decided then and there that I would pilfer it.

Is it wrong to steal? That is a pointless question. I will not say that what I did was justifiable, nor am I going to say that I needed it more than he did at the time. I stole it, plain and simple. Whether it was right or wrong does not interest me in the slightest.

Putting that aside, time in this world is much the same as back on Earth. Twenty-four hours in a day, sixty minutes in an hour, and sixty seconds in a minute. I was mostly certain of this fact even before receiving this watch, going by the sun and my inner clock. Having physical evidence of it is still reassuring though.

“5:00 PM?! How the hell did it get so late?”

Just walking across town and back to get this horse sucked up most of my day. I may have taken care of transportation, but I still have to pick up my provisions, a few other things, and also practice driving this thing.

While it is true that I do not sleep, and thus could keep going even during the night, Tomorrow will need to sleep eventually. I will have to do something about that. Like I thought, horses are bothersome.

“Guess I should start with the food…”

With just these words, Tomorrow’s ears perk up. I see… Before the stick comes the carrot.

“I have food prepared at the grocer’s, you know. What do you say about cooperating with me till we get there?”

I am not technically lying; I could simply add a few more horse related things when I get there. Although I already bought a bag of grain for her from that equiphile, I guess this child forgot all about it. How about we use this momentum and see where we go from there.

Picking up the reins, I give her a gentle flick. With that, I easily guide her out of the workshop’s lot. It seems that bribery works just fine, as she follows my lead and pulls the moderately-sized stagecoach without any trouble.

It is impressive that a single horse can so effortlessly pull such a heavy object. I mean, when I was trying to hook her up to it, I attempted to maneuver it a little myself, but it was seriously heavy. It is wrought with iron and heavy timber, and weighs at least a half-ton, by my estimate.

The cabin has enough room for about four passengers, or more along the lines of what I was going for, a large load of provisions. While it may seem harsh, I do not plan on picking up any passengers. The more that people hover around me, the less I can do, so hitchhikers are a definite no.

If I see that kind of flag, I will break it; I am not a good person. Even though I myself caught a ride not that long ago, I cannot make any exceptions. Who knows what trouble it will bring. When I calculate all the possibilities… It is far too risky.

After unsteadily making my way back to the grocer, I watch over the young men as they literally throw my food into the cabin. Then I pick up an extra bag of yellow, carrot-looking things called “bleddels” as a treat for Tomorrow. Honestly, I have no idea what they are. I just hope they are something like parsnips.

Horses can eat parsnips, right?

“Do you want one?”

I grab a bleddel out of the bag and hold it out to Tomorrow, who greedily rips it from my hand. I guess that answers that. Well, at least it was worth the extra money.

Leaving the grocer, I head to a metalsmith and buy myself some utensils, plus a handy looking hunting knife. It comes with a holster; One of the ones you would wrap around your waist. Having on such a clunky thing felt unpleasant though, so I wrapped it around my right leg instead. That way I can hide it beneath my pants.

Packing the utensils I have purchased into the cabin, I hop onto the driver’s seat and attempt to urge Tomorrow into action, only receiving a snort in response.

“…”

I gave her that treat only a short while ago, right? Why is she ignoring me already? Honestly, this stubborn horse.

‘Tch’

It appears the time has come that she be made well aware that I will not tolerate disobedience. I tried to play it nice, all for naught. Perhaps I should feel sorry for doing this; But, I believe this to be the most efficient way of going about this problem.

She is a sturdy horse, so she should be fine…

------------

We are finally on the road, heading south from Fort Wayfield. I am going to practice my driving skills, as well as my riding skills. You never know what could happen on the road.

When it comes to close-combat, I am sufficiently confident. Besides that, I have the ability to regenerate. However, if an aggressor were to have a pistol or some other high-speed projectile, I would be unable to defend myself. Such things are unlikely to kill me though. Still, I refuse to let my chance of a successful outcome drop below eighty-five percent, at least if I can help it. In which case, I must secure the possibility of escaping on horseback.

A similar strategy to that of a starfish, leaving limbs behind to live another day. Except in this case, “a limb” is more like most of my worldly possessions. It cannot be helped, life is an unforgiving wasteland, and I will just have to bite the bullet if and when the time comes.

“It will soon be dark, so we should get started.”

Ever since I let Tomorrow know that I am a very serious person, she has become far more agreeable. Unfortunately, as a side-effect, I am once again affected by what I will call [Cooling Down].

Upon further testing, I have discovered I can somehow regenerate from almost any wound. Repairing bones is an unpleasant ordeal, depending on how much damage there is, but tissue damage literally heals within seconds… It is quite unsettling, to be honest.

Because of this, I am potentially able to utilize minute amounts of the [Black Corona] in small enough bursts to not cause me permanent harm. The problem is, tapping into that vile power has significant drawbacks.

Apart from dampening my functionality overall, I am also stuck with weird side-effects. Overall intensification of the specters that haunt me and warping of people’s appearances are two of the most notable. From the small amount of testing I have done so far, it can also cause nausea, confusion, and even temporary blindness.

No matter how I think about it, I just cannot feasibly use this power, except as a very, very last resort. Even then, I should not use it in any type of battle situations. On the off chance it fails to finish them off, I would be left with considerable handicaps.

In the end, it is better to avoid confrontations altogether. As long as I am constantly calculating preemptively, I should be able to avoid anything unnecessary. In Tomorrow’s case, I only needed the tiniest fragment of power. Horses spook easily, you know.

I am thankful there was no need for anything too tedious to scare her straight. Nonetheless, I still feel like crap. I did use [Corruption] after all. Now I am stuck with a beastly migraine, though not so much that I am unable to practice my driving skills.

Eventually, it should wear off though. Over the course of a few hours, my mind should stabilize once again. This is exactly why I dubbed it [Cooling Down]. I am starting to become more and more like an RPG character. Best not to pay any attention to such things.

The whole horse driving thing is rather simple when you get down to it. Use the right rein for right, the left rein for left, pulling harder for sharper turns. It really feels quite natural. Perhaps this horse is smarter than I give her credit for?

On the empty side road acting as my sandbox, I have traveled up and down the stretch, over and over. Only switching up my speed as time passes. I cannot see me needing much more practice than this. It is about time we head back to town.

(I guess horseback riding will have to wait for Tomorrow. Heh…)

I should check on that crook clothier to see how far he has come. He is unlikely to have finished, but I want to make sure nothing is out of the ordinary.

------------

In the end, I decided to park my stagecoach near the edge of the forest outside of town. The clothier seemed to be working at a steady pace, so I left him to his task.

Under the cloak of night, I should be undisturbed, so I can continue my experimentation while Tomorrow gets some sleep. I am dubious as to how much sleep she will get if she just stands there awkwardly though.

I once read that horses can sleep standing up. But this looks more like she is keeping her guard up against something. Maybe I was a little too thorough in my discipline. What can I say…

Unlike her, I will be using my time wisely. No matter what I try, eventually there will come a point when I have to fight. Whether I plan ahead or not, it would be naive to think that such an occasion can be avoided entirely. Especially with the introduction of a force like the Court of Guilds. It is inevitable that those fellows will come snooping around. The longer I stay in this world, the higher the chances become.

In that case, I should prepare for any situations that may occur. One of which is a direct confrontation. This is why I need to hone my martial prowess. I cannot rely on such a volatile power as the [Black Corona]. If I constantly drop bombs to deal with any ants that should provoke me, the world will be unable to keep up, nor will my mind.

Focusing on my breathing, I take a stance in front of a sturdy looking tree at the edge of the forest. I have decided to stray a safe distance from my newly purchased stagecoach since I would rather not disturb Tomorrow’s well-deserved rest.

“I guess this will work fine.”

Thinking about all of my predecessors before me, as I turned my gears all these long nights, I have become aware of a few things of note. I suspect these things are possibly the most important factors standing in my way as of yet.

One is endurance. This is the most important aspect which will be the deciding factor in how I am to interpret my own abilities. No matter how durable I am, as soon as I run out of stamina, I can easily be incapacitated. In order to avoid capture, I must be able to escape. To outrun any pursuer, I will need a large amount of endurance.

The second is agility. Even if I can run forever, if I am slow then I will still be caught. Not only that, an agile opponent is much harder to deal with in a brawl than one who is not. Speed will determine whether I can reach their weak spots, and dexterity will determine whether I can dodge an incoming attack. Both of these are what makes agility so important.

To train endurance, I could run since it will also increase my agility in a way. However, what I am looking for is more along the lines of maneuverability in a battle-oriented sense. To accomplish this I will need both lower and upper body strength. Running does not fulfill both these needs perfectly. Luckily, I have I idea...

“Now then...”

With a firm leap, I grasp onto the trunk of the tree in front of me. It is a pretty wide tree, so it takes both leg strength, and arm strength to stay attached. Using a shimmying motion, I carefully begin to make my way up to the top.

(This is way harder than I thought it would be. I am so unfit…)

Obviously… When I was back on Earth, I barely left the house. There is little wonder as to how I ended up this bad. My goal of being able to defend myself is looking further and further away.

No, I must trim any useless thoughts. I can just work on it now. If I spend all of my nights like this, I can substantially increase my overall fitness in a very short amount of time. I have nothing better to do anyway…

------------

I have wandered quite a ways from my stagecoach, heading further and further into the woods in search of wildlife that I might be able to use as test subjects. Since it is pitch black in the woods, I have detached one of the lanterns from the front of the stagecoach to light my path.

The purpose of the test is to measure my relative strength in comparison to the fauna of this world, but it is also partially out of boredom. Having practiced climbing trees for a few hours, I somehow perfected it.

Apparently, my pills were also dampening my ability to learn. I had not noticed this until today. It only took me about twenty minutes to get the knack of it. All the while, it kept getting easier and easier. The rest of the time was spent ingraining the motions into my muscle memory.

After some devout meditation, I decided to go hunting in the forest for the rest of the night. I did not want to leave my stagecoach, but there was no way to bring it with me, so it had to stay behind. I doubt it will be robbed in this darkness. It is just food anyways.

Thus, I began scouring the woods for test subjects, to no avail. Despite the sound of nightlife all around me, the animals must have either heard me coming or spotted the light from the lantern.

(Oh well… Other than the depressing turnout, the walk was refreshing.)

It is then that I catch sight of the dimly glowing light in the distance. My first thought is that it could be another person, so I quickly extinguish my lantern. Upon further inspection, however, I realize that the unwavering light comes from the window of a little cabin.

‘Tch’

“Just my luck…”

This seemingly quaint little building, surrounded by kilometers of forest, may not appear menacing, but I smell danger; It is far too suspicious. Why would they need to live out here in the woods, instead of inside the walls of Fort Wayfield where it is much safer.

“Suspicious…”

Did I somehow trigger a flag without noticing? I was being so careful too…

‘Sigh’

“For now… Escape!”

I made sure to memorize the path I took to get here. Besides, I have been cutting arrows into the trees along the way, so I can just follow the trail of damage.

Spinning on my heels, I am about to relight my lantern and make a mad dash back to my camp when I feel a small tug on one of my belt loops that makes me freeze momentarily. It is one of those tugs that a poor homeless child would use as an attempt to reel in a passing meal ticket.

I am sorry troubled youth, but empathy is not my strong suit. If I stay in this poison environment even one second longer, I do not even want to imagine what kind of trouble will attach itself to me… No offense.

Leaving behind my prayers without even turning around, I continue making my escape, only to be yanked backward by an unnaturally strong force. Flung like a ragdoll, I land on my back, cracking my skull quite brutally against a sharp rock.

My consciousness is swimming, my vision blurry, and my ears ring like sirens, as I lay paralyzed in the dirt. Gazing up through my concussive daze, I vaguely manage to make out a glimpse of a certain empty-eyed girl standing over me.

Even with her vacant expression, I can tell she is not particularly enthused. With her arms crossed in front of her, and her brows ever-so-slightly furrowed; Classic identifiers of an upset princess. After leering at me for a few seconds, she finally turns her head to the side in spite.

“{…}”

She must be shy… I am going with that…

Damn, she really did me over here. I cannot repair this damage so easily. But I guess she took that into account, did she not? My consciousness is fading into darkness.

“… I was right, after all…”

The last thing I remember is seeing a friendly bear in a field of snow…

------------

I dreamt of that day again… Of my sister’s death. How ironic…

“What time is it…nn!?”

Checking the stolen watch, and realizing the time is 5:37 AM, I throw off the blankets, jumping into action.

“Wait…”

Blankets…?

Something is wrong, but my brain is foggy and I cannot place it. What was I doing again? Hmm... I bought a horse, food, and a stagecoach… Then…

Ah, right…

”Hehehe… I saw them.”

…

‘Sigh…’

(So this must be that cabin, huh…? I guess I can’t skip this cutscene.)

I had no reason to come here, so I had tried to avoid it, but the situation has changed. In light of new factors, I am apparently going to hang around for a short spell. Then, I will make a break for it. Though I have something I should take care of first.

Somehow, I have slept for about four hours. Frankly, I feel much better. This is good, considering I have got to hike for tens of kilometers before the occupants of this house wake up.

Taking care not to make a sound, I slink my way through the three-room house. I was probably taken to a spare bedroom, going by the general layout of the house. My “benefactor” must have slept in the main bedroom.

The cool, early morning air causes a pleasant tingling sensation on my skin, as I begin the long trek back to my camp with a hurried pace. I wish I could just leave it, but I have to do something about Tomorrow’s breakfast. I wonder if she misses me?

Following my path of scarred trees, I begin working out how I should deal with the problem I have been ferried unto. As pointless as it was, I have been taken care of in my time of need by the resident of that house. It is highly unlikely that I would have encountered danger had I stayed there unconscious, but I should not deny their sentiments; Or rather, she will certainly not allow it.

I hope I will not have to do too much damage control because of this. Just so you know, contrary to what that clown might believe, I do not revel in the misfortune of others. I only dislike being around them. Being around people causes my stress to build up very quickly, and nobody needs the consequences of that.

As a side note, it is very weird that I have not seen a single living creature since I entered these woods. I can hear them if I concentrate, but I still have yet to see anything.

This is somehow vexing. Just when I actually want an encounter, they are avoiding me for some reason. Am I leaking killing intent or something?

Undisturbed, I trek through the woods lackadaisically, until I finally reach my camp. After checking the surroundings for any signs of theft, I take a quick peek at Tomorrow’s condition, then enter the cabin to get some feed.

If I let her roam freely, she could probably graze upon this field, but I have little faith she would stay put. In the case that I was to be present, I might think about it. Unfortunately, I must return to that place, so she will have to remain tethered. Life never waits for you to catch your breath, you know.

When I am certain she has enough food handy, I give her a quick pat, before once again traversing the woods to reach that lonely cabin. On my way back, I pay close attention to my surroundings. Just like I thought, the animals are being overly cautious of my existence. What it means, I can only guess.

Some larger ones seem to watch from a safe distance away, while the smaller ones retreat well beyond my range of detection. I am in dismay. If all the animals run before I can get near them, how will I level up?

Noticing it is already nearing 7:50 AM, I quit messing around, making haste the rest of the way there. As with before, I settle into the guest room bed and wait for the residents to awaken.

The house is in silence, so I assume they are asleep. Still, I keep my guard up. I may be humoring them this time, but do not think I would trust them just because they did me a meaningless favor. So far. I have only met crooks, dunces, and unsightly mustaches in this world. It is only natural to be wary. Well, that is just part of the reason…

It is precisely 8:00 AM, and from the other room, I can hear an alarm going off. It makes a very sharp sound, like a bell, so it is likely one of those old-fashioned types. Though I guess that is not considered old-fashioned in this world, is it?

As time passes, the alarm ceases, and I begin to hear sounds of movement from the main room. Shuffling footsteps. The person these footsteps belong to is either physically impaired or elderly. How they managed to move me into this back room is a mystery.

Once the unsteady gait completes its business, it heads to the guest room. Just in case, I have my knife in hand beneath the covers. I am oddly tense for such an ordinary situation. I have seen anime characters go through this very scene in at least twenty different stories, but I just cannot seem to calm down.

While I prepare for an attack from any direction, the door opens, revealing a haggardly old woman in a robe. It is uncanny how much she resembles a fictional character with her dried, weathered skin, and a hunched posture.

There is no way this hag is not a witch. Oh yeah… That clown mentioned there was a witch in this town, right? That settles it, this woman is most definitely a witch. I have no doubt.

She gazes over the room before realizing that I am no longer unconscious. With a quick gasp, her aged and wrinkled face shows a warm, gentle smile.

This expression… This woman is genuinely overjoyed at my recovery. Just what is there to be so emotional about? I have only bumped my head.

“I see you’re feeling better this morning, young man.”

“Horrence, m-my name is H-Horrence.”

Young man… Tch… I have bad memories of that phrase. I will give out an alias just so I never have to hear that phrase again. It is not that this old hag is anything like that man, but I still feel sick hearing it, so I would rather not.

“Is that so, well then, it’s nice to meet you Horrence. My name is Viriana. However, do call me whatever you’d like.”

“Mmhm.”

Why can I not skip this text? I am a busy person, you know.

“A-are you the one who t-took care of me in my u-unsightly state? I g-give you my thanks.”

“My, there’s no need for that. I simply heard a commotion, and when I found you unconscious, I brought you here. You appeared unharmed, so I assumed you were only sleeping. It was certainly a sight. Oh ho ho…”

As I thought, I was already fully healed when she arrived. From the amount of blood and gore I saw earlier, I would say I was injured quite grievously. Despite this, not only do I feel fine just a few hours later, thanks to the lengthy rest, I feel even better than before.

I do not dare mention the blood though, lest I cause suspicion. Like I need this witch woman snooping around my affairs. Let us settle this and be on our way.

“Anyways, would you like some breakfast dear? I was just about to prepare it.”

Hmmm… Even if I am not immune to poison, I am still able to repair any structural damage it may do to me. Neurotoxins might be a little unpleasant, but I suppose I should test out the effects at least once.

Wait… Now that I think about it, if I regenerate constantly, does that not mean that one day I will cease aging altogether?

Eh…? So essentially, I am never going to die…? Ever?

“Gwyn…”

“What was that dear?”

“Er… When… When w-will the food be r-ready? I’d like to d-do my m-morning routine.”

What am I, a pro athlete? Honestly, now I am just floundering.

“Oh, it’ll take a good fifteen minutes dear, so go ahead and do what it is you need to do. I’ll call you when it’s ready. Don’t push yourself though, you did just recover and all.”

I can do without your baseless concerns. Besides, I do not even have a morning routine!

After faintly bowing to the witch and leaving the house, taking care to remain out of sight of the windows, I begin banging my head on a tree repetitively. The sheer futility of the fact that the skin heals immediately after each strike only adds to my perturbation.

It is that, right? It is always like that. I had been overly optimistic about this whole regeneration thing and failed to realize the gravity it entails. To begin with, proper regeneration is not something you just carelessly throw around. It fundamentally changes things.

For instance, I can no longer die of old age, you know. Why? Because my cells will not undergo the customary decline in reproduction typical in the aging process. Then how am I to die...? Simple, I do not.

After last night’s events, it is now apparent that my brain can in fact regenerate. And at a similar rate to that of my bones, no less. That means I fulfill all criteria for immortality. I am essentially an immortal. Go figure…

This is fucking bullshit. I cannot believe that out of all the abilities I could possibly be stuck with, it ends up being the one I want the least. There is literally no end to my suffering.

Besides that, it means that this world has basically been given the death sentence. If I am never going to escape this [Black Corona], then there will eventually come a time when I can no longer hold back. In other words, it is game over.

I feel numb. My heart is shriveling up inside my chest. An all-encompassing sense of apathy washes over me. As I lean my back against the tree, I stare blankly into the dull sky. Any negative thoughts I had been thinking have now been wiped clean from my mind.

This changes nothing. What difference does it make whether I am immortal, or not? I will still be going to save Gwyn either way, so I might as well just ignore it. The only thing I need to focus on is my goal; Everything else is just a distraction.

At least I can factor this into my calculations when I plan ahead for the future. It might raise my chance of success in difficult situations. However, I do not know whether I can trust its reliability.

Think about it… Unless I know why I am regenerating in the first place, there is no way I can feel any sense of assurance in this ability. I wish I had a status screen, or menu, or something. Flying blind is just unnerving.

‘Sigh…’

“While I am out here, I might as well do some kind of training. I am getting a free meal after all.”

Moping around is not going to give me the answers I am looking for, so I shall spend my time fortifying my skillset. Since I have already practiced climbing trees last night, today I will work on my skills with a blade.

Taking the knife into my right hand, I securely grip the handle with my fingers. The weight feels pleasant, and the blade itself seems to be quite balanced. I suppose it is a pretty decent weapon. Now, let us try it out…

“Toh!”

The knife cleanly slices its way through the air. I put a large amount of force into the swing, and it looked to be enough to cause serious injury. If this were to strike someone’s vitals, their life would be forfeit. Whether I could even strike said vitals is the problem.

I should visualize an attacking party. That way, I can practice how to efficiently strike my target. To start with, a bandit would be good. If I am going to travel safely, then I should at least be able to fend off a few bandits.

Carefully concentrating on an image, a bandit appears before me. His burly form stands about a meter away, ready to attack at a moment’s notice. With such a feeling, I engage my phantom aggressor.

While avoiding his thrust, I dive into range for an attack. Closing in like this allows me to strike more easily while making it more difficult for the enemy. His throat is torn asunder in little more than seconds. Then I push him aside, as I prepare to counter another bandit.

It is not long before I am able to skillfully defend against three phantom bandits at once. My learning speed is mind-boggling. How should I put this… I do not feel human...

When I was a kid I was heralded as a genius, though I did not see it that way. Back then, I only thought about being the best brother I could be. I read everything, practiced everything, did everything I could possibly do, just so she could be proud of her brother.

I had no purpose in life. The world was full of hideous monsters, and she was the one shining light in the void. But all was for naught; I still fell into ruin. When that light was snuffed out, I was left alone in the darkness, weary and broken.

What use was the knowledge I had gathered, the talent I had amassed, when I was left without purpose? It is a sob story, I know. However, I will never feel gifted by this prowess. I may once have been considered a great man... But now I am wilted, like the leaves that fall from these trees.

‘Toh!’ ‘Toh!’ ‘Tototoh!’ ‘Toh!’ ‘Toh…’

As the leaves slice apart, I feel parts of my accumulated stress go along with them. Maybe I should have a morning routine. It feels good to exercise my body in the cool of the morning air.

“My, my! You certainly are talented, Horrence.”

My eye twitches, as I am interrupted from my trance by the witch who has intruded upon my piteous outburst. Should this hag not be brewing her poison? I have training to do, you know. Why do the people of this world always have to disrupt my plans?

“Is t-that so…?”

Get to the point already. Do not bore me with your trifles…

“Hmm… Say, you’re a witch, are you not?”

…

This hag… If I had let my guard down even a bit, my poker-face might have been done in by that blow. Luckily, I have not once let my guard down from the start. Although, she did just manage to sneak up on me…

She is quite spry for her old age. It must be a witch’s magic…