Chapter 37
Joshua thought for a moment.
If he followed Rodwell’s suggestion and joined the Order of the Star, he would be safe for the time being.
Given his background, it would likely buy him a few months.
Considering the difficulty of this game, it was a very attractive offer.
‘But in the end, I will still die. And it is not even that good as it seems.’
The moment he went under the command of a knight, he would become a passive human being moving according to someone else’s orders.
In any era, disobeying the orders of a superior was not accepted.
He also had no interest in becoming a noble.
A rise in status would be helpful, but it would not solve the problems that would arise once he became a knight.
Therefore, his answer was decided.
“I will decline. I don't think it fits my capacity.”
“It does not fit your capacity huh…To my ears, that sounds like you are saying you cannot be satisfied with just a knighthood.”
“I did not mean it that way.”
Rodwell groaned softly.
“If you are dissatisfied because I did not offer this on the first day, I would like to apologize.”
“My answer would have been the same back then as well.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
“Do you have some other ulterior motive? Joshua, you have not been renewing your tribute, and in a few days, you will be banned from entering this place.”
Joshua’s face remained cold.
By this point, Rodwell was dying of curiosity to know what could possibly trigger a reaction from him.
“I am thinking of living nearby.”
“You plan to live outdoors alone? That truly is a masterpiece of a thought.”
“I might endure better than you expect. And I intend to continue our exchanges. Call me whenever you need me.”
Rodwell felt as if his insides were burning.
The boy was trying to stand on equal footing with a Knight Captain.
He could understand it to some extent, as boys who realized their talent at that age were always full of vigor.
However, this boy went a step further and forced him to be the one who was clinging.
“I want to punch you once.”
“If Sir Rodwell seriously punched me, I would die.”
“Truly, you refuse to lose even a single word!”
Rodwell grew tired of the conversation with the boy.
He waved his hand in the air.
“You may leave now. It seems you have worked the most out there.”
“Thank you.”
Joshua stood up from his seat.
Luizella, who had been hesitating, followed the boy out.
Once they were far enough away from the knights' room, Luizella suddenly grabbed the boy’s wrist.
“J-Joshua.”
Her voice was agitated.
She also seemed a bit excited.
“Why didn’t you accept the offer! That is an incredible opportunity. I have never heard of a student becoming a knight by accepting a Knight Captain’s proposal. It is unprecedented.”
“It does seem like a great thing.”
“This is not something you should say as if it is someone else's business.”
“I am sorry, but I have no interest in things like becoming the youngest knight.”
“Why?”
“Because honor does not protect one's life.”
* * *
After parting with Luizella, he waited for night to fall at the bottom of the hall.
During the few days he was away from the tower, the number of survivors camping in the hall because they had not been assigned rooms had noticeably decreased.
In addition, the number of injured people had increased.
They grabbed their wounds and screamed.
It was a chillingly desperate sound.
Those who appeared to be their companions only shed tears and wasted their emotions.
What if he used [Heal]?
Would it get a little better if he used [Serenity] at the very least?
Naturally, [Cool] and [Clever] opposed the idea.
They tried to stop him somehow, just as they had done with Gavinu.
He closed his eyes tightly.
He wanted to fall asleep.
It was the path he chose to escape from various worries.
* * *
[Cool] sent a signal.
It was not an urgent signal warning of danger.
It was a notification that it was time to head to the farm.
When he opened his eyes, a warmth he had never felt before enveloped his body.
A blanket had been draped over him.
He recognized it as one used in the accommodations inside the tower.
The faces of the students who followed him came to mind.
There was only one person with such delicacy.
Tania Rainwood.
She had even left a note, which was quite cute.
[You will catch a cold if you sleep outside!]
He stood up with a slight smile.
He wrapped the blanket around his body like a coat.
The Cloak of Fire Resistance he had worn when heading to the research center had turned to ash and disappeared.
He needed to find new equipment.
But there was something he had to do before that.
He confirmed that moonlight was leaking through the window.
It meant it was the perfect time to do that job.
“What, are you planning to go out again?”
He had become acquainted with the guard who stood the night watch.
The guard leaned his body against a spear as tall as himself and slumped his shoulders.
“Yes.”
“Do you have a hidden lover outside? If not, avoid going out at night. You cannot see the monsters. You cannot see people either…”
“Thank you for your concern. But I am fine.”
“Fine. You return alive every time, so I suppose it will be the same this time.”
The guard stretched and pressed the device to open the door.
The entrance of the large gate slowly opened.
He slipped out of the tower before the gap widened completely.
He walked toward the farm.
He did not use magic to light a fire.
This was to avoid being exposed to any enemies that might be present.
Instead, he utilized [Nocturnal].
This trait had the power to make one's night vision brighter than that of an average person.
He focused his eyes and widened his field of vision.
The farm was quite far away.
It was located at the very edge of the village that had become a wasteland.
On a day like today when fatigue was severe, irritation welled up.
It would have been better if it were a bit closer.
However, if it were, the possibility of being discovered by the knights would have been greater.
Either way, there were pros and cons.
He increased his speed as if being chased by the moonlight.
When he arrived near the farm, he investigated whether there were any traces of someone having visited.
Footprints, for example.
[Clever] did not miss even the smallest detail.
The trait sent a signal that everything was fine.
He deactivated the spell cast on the farm entrance and stepped inside.
“Cock-a-doodle-doo!”
The rooster let out a cry as if it were happy to see him.
It quickly approached his feet and pecked at the top of his shoes with its beak.
“In the end, your goal is food as well.”
The feed he had scattered previously was gone.
He must have scattered a significant amount.
Both the rooster and the hen seemed to have gained weight.
“As long as you do your jobs properly, giving you plenty of feed will not be a problem.”
He rummaged through the straw that served as their sanctuary.
There were eggs.
When he pulled them all out, there were thirteen of them.
“You worked hard.”
He showed a smile and scattered a generous amount of the feed the chickens wanted onto the floor.
They rushed over frantically.
They pecked down with their beaks without rest, as if they had been starving for a month.
Watching their behavior made his heart feel warm.
The scenery here felt unfamiliar, as if it were disconnected from the outside world.
Did he have the temperament of a farmer?
Or was he envious of the chickens who were faithful to their instincts without thought?
The sound of the screams that had tormented him before falling asleep gradually faded from his mind.
“...I should not fall asleep yet.”
The night was short.
He had to move busily to organize what he had planned.
He opened his inventory.
Currently, two slots of the inventory were open.
It was somewhat insufficient, but it was suitable for hiding items, and it did not matter the weight or volume as long as he could lift it.
What he had stored inside were his backpack and the Mana Herb Kit.
The kit was what he would use immediately.
When he carefully lifted the opening, artificial seeds were inside.
“Even if I just sold these, people would be lining up to buy them. Even if the world has ended up like this.”
A laugh he could not suppress escaped his lips.
The value of mana herbs made mages go crazy.
If one chewed and ate a fully grown mana herb, their mana would increase.
If the materials supported it and one had extensive knowledge of alchemy, it was also possible to manufacture reagents.
To wealthy nobles, mana herbs were always popular items that were hard to obtain.
“Shall I do some work?”
He rolled up his sleeves and picked up a hoe.
He had to even out the ground in front of the shed.
Thwack! Thwack!
Hoeing was not as simple as he thought.
Because he lacked the knack for it, he used more strength than necessary.
His physical strength decreased rapidly.
He thought it had improved a bit through a few battles, but this wretched body was still a hindrance to his plans.
“Huff, huff!”
He threw the used hoe aside haphazardly.
A field large enough to plant the seeds was prepared.
He poked the ground with his finger and planted them one by one.
He covered them with soil again and sprinkled water.
“Normally, one would just wait from here.”
To make mana herbs grow, one more task remained.
Strangely, this herb took the mana of a mage as nourishment.
[Name: Joshua Pallarion]
[5th Year (18) - Novice]
[Potential Ability - Ancestral Heritage (Holy). Master of Acquisition. Speed Reading.]
[Personality Traits - (Steady Nerves) (Cool) (Clever) (Patience) (Loner) (Nocturnal)]
[Acquired Traits - Leadership (Low) Eloquence (Medium) Charisma (Low) Fire Resistance (Low)]
[Held Coins - 100]
[Inventory - 2 slots open]
[Originality LV2 - Holy Magic]
[Held Magic - Shield. Purification. Flash. Serenity.]
[Stamina: 60]
[Strength: 40]
[Agility: 30]
[Mana: 250]
[Holy Power: (2,000)]
His stats had grown evenly due to the successful conquest of the research center.
He had also gained fire resistance.
But what pleased him more than that was the number of coins he had collected.
100 coins.
Securing this much in the early stages was extremely difficult.
It was an amount that could only be obtained by playing tug-of-war at the edge of a cliff every time.
He was happy, but also felt a bit bitter.
He opened the shop.
It was the first time since he had bought the inventory in Triden Village.
Just like then, what he had to buy was already decided.
It was [Originality - Skill Unlock].
It was an item that allowed him to choose and learn magic related to originality.
The price was 100 coins.
It was a type of shortcut that existed in any game.
Even so, he could not choose top-tier magic.
What he could learn through this item was at the intermediate level.
“For any other attribute, it would be a wasteful item, but for the holy attribute, the story is different.”
He already knew the spells for holy magic.
He simply lacked the experience.
He used the item to learn the spell [Growth].
[Growth] was a spell that promoted the development of animals and plants.
Back when he grew mana herbs while playing the game, it took a week for them to sprout.
It took a month to fully grow.
The growth was relatively fast compared to ordinary plants.
Nevertheless, he felt the need to shorten the time, so he chose this.
He reached out over the spot where he had planted the seeds.
He brought to mind the magic circle for [Growth] in his head.
A warm golden light soaked the earth.
The ground seemed to wriggle for a moment, and then stems grew and leaves sprouted.
“This is a bit too fast huh?”
Recalling his memories, he grasped the extent to which the mana herbs had grown.
It seemed they had grown about fifteen days' worth.
An exclamation of joy escaped him.
“I won't be able to eat them today though.”
There were two restrictions on [Growth].
The first was that the maximum number of times it could be used on the same target was twice.
The second was that it could not be used consecutively in a single day.
The completion of the mana herbs had to be postponed until tomorrow.
“...Come to think of it.”
Joshua returned to the shed.
If it applied to animals and plants, there were more materials to use it on here.
Eggs.
He bent his knees and fired light over the collected eggs.
Cracks appeared in the shells.
Beneath the fallen pieces, yellow fur that looked wet from rain was visible.
He slowly peeled away the eggs.
The hen that was eating the feed approached with surprised eyes.
It must be flustered for the creature.
The eggs it had been brooding until a moment ago hatched earlier than expected.
“I guess I'll have to eat and sleep here today.”
It seemed it would take some time before the chicks fully hatched.
He checked if there was anything wrong with the shed.
He recalled that temperature was important when chicks were born.
He laid out more straw and repaired small gaps.
Now it was time to leave it to the chicken couple.
He leaned his body against the wall.
He wanted to fall asleep while enjoying this extremely satisfying situation.
Unfortunately, he had to think about his plans.
There were several events that would occur at the tower.
Among them, he narrowed down the ones that were guaranteed to happen and were important.
“There is nothing else besides that.”
The summit meeting event where the heads of each survivor group meet.
The head designates two people as guards and visits the meeting place with them.
He had to participate.
He wanted to identify the named characters who were still alive.
And if possible, build relationships with them.
They had to survive for a long time.
Even if only for his sake.
“It's going to be tiring again.”
As expected, it was clear that this world had no intention of letting him live in peace.