My “plus one mistake,” as Izumi is calling it, forces us to spend a hefty chunk of gold. Definitely more than we had planned. Still, I feel like we're on our way to becoming proper adventurers. We lose a few more silvers to a map, rations, and lunch. It's just past high noon by the time we're ready to set out on our way.

Luckily, the forest outside of town is clearly marked and Izumi promises she has a keen sense of direction. Not so luckily, we're too poor for horses now.

"It should take us two or three days to reach Cha if we keep up this pace," Izumi says, holding out the map and pointing to the “x” that marked the city.

I've been on overnight trips before, but this something else entirely. I'm not sure what to expect outside the general idea of making camp and maybe building a fire.

The bushes to our right rustle and something I don't recognize jumps out.

Well, it doesn't so much jump as flow—

"A slime!" Izumi shrieks, drawing her sword.

The strange green creature bobs up and down, as if offended by her words. Two sunken cavities seem to be its eyes, though I can't see anything that resembles a nose or mouth. It moves by rolling forward, slowly and ominously.

Slime (level 1)

Squish!

Izumi swings the sword down and, in slow motion, cleaves it in two. Each half withers and melts into the ground like jelly. It's so unbelievably gross. I toe the pile of what used to be a slime with my shoe, incredulous.

+15 exp

“Exp!” Izumi crows. “Holy shit, exp!”

“Ex pee?” I ask, wincing.

“Experience points, you normie,” she answers.

Tip #24: By fighting monsters and practicing skills, you can gain experience points (exp) to level up. Exp required to level up scales with power level.

Twenty four? How many tips are there?

There are no less than fifty tips. View additional tips?

I shake my head “no” and the prompt disappears.

"I'm a real adventurer now, Hiyori!" Izumi cheers, pointing her sword skyward. Drops of slime-jelly drip from it. "You try next, okay?"

"What do you mean next?"

"Everybody knows that monsters never travel alone."

"Right. Everybody," I deadpan.

When will people stop assuming I have knowledge about other worlds?

The bushes rustle again and this time, two slimes roll out. One is green like the first one. The other is purple. There's something aggressive about the way they jiggle, like they're just waiting to smear us with their disgusting jelly.

The green one leaps up through the air and lunges at me. Fortunately, I've got good reflexes. I whip my shield around and the awful creature splatters harmlessly but messily against the wood. I'm sure I'll never be able to clean it properly.

+15 exp

I draw my axe with my other free hand and swing it down, expecting the same result as with the shield, but I miss the slime by a mile. It jiggles again, climbing up the axe and then my arm. I try to shake it off.

"Gross, gross, gross...!" I wail. I drop my shield and use the free hand to claw the damn thing off. "Gross."

Izumi comes in for the kill, slicing through it slowly but surely.

+15 exp

"Are you okay?"

I nod. "I'll be fine. I just wasn't expecting that. Come on, let's go before any more of them show up."

Analyze?

Curiously, I nod.

Tip #16: Physical contact is required for analysis.

Izumi and I look at each other, then at the defeated slimes. With sour expressions, we reluctantly reach out and each put a single forefinger into their jelly. I suddenly see it differently, distorted and colorful, almost like I’m viewing a heat signature. There’s a whirring sound.

Monster, small

Weak to: Bludgeon, Fire

Strong against: Slicing, Water

We begin walking in silence. Soon Izumi is humming something I recognize as a popular song from last year. She seems lost in her own world within this other world. Everyone seems comfortable here except for me. Whether they've accepted that going home is impossible, or they've taken to their new jobs, their sheer lack of concern for reality is stunning.

What happens if I do defeat the Demon Lord and it turns out we really can't leave? Will I find my niche here, with this axe and shield, alongside my old friend? Will we ever learn the fates of the other girls who've been taken, or find the heroes who are being summoned? How does a world like this exist? How does it sustain itself on a steady diet of people from our world without anyone noticing that something has gone horribly wrong?

Lost in thought, I very nearly walk into a tree. Izumi steers me away.

"Are you sure you’re okay?"

"I'll be fine. I'm still getting used to this."

It's not a lie. I'll learn. I'll travel. I'll deal with it. I'll carve my own path right through this crazy world.

Meanwhile, Izumi seems to have found something. She's crouched down like a professional hunter tracking her prey. She reaches for a gross substance smeared on the grass to the right of the path, lifts it to her face, and grimaces.

"It's another slime."

"But it’s a dead one, right?"

"Yeah. Someone got to it before it could get to us."

"So there's another girl out here doing the same thing?" I ask.

"Another girl. Another adventurer. Someone else is definitely going to Cha, and if we walk fast enough, we'll probably catch up to them." Izumi references her map. "We still have a long way to go, but there's only this one path leading to the big city."

I stop in my tracks, marveling at the state of things. This is a living, breathing world. People are coming and going, back and forth, with their own missions and dreams and hopes—

"Let's catch up to them."

Suddenly, there's a bit more spring in my step. I’m interested in meeting this mysterious person. I’m curious about who else lives here. I want to learn as much about this world as I can so I'm not being left behind by Izumi and the others. Don’t get me wrong: I don’t want to like it. I just want to understand it.

And I want to use that knowledge to finally arrest Sinensis, no matter the consequences.