MAEPG: Episode 5

Episode 5 First Contact

A silent attack from a falling beast.

I barely managed to react thanks to noticing it just in time.

Crack—!

"Ugh... What the hell is this?!"

I rolled on the ground, holding the metal rod I was carrying for self-defense in the mouth of the beast that had pounced on me.

Even with my enhanced physique, I couldn't shake off the beast that was pressing down on me with its weight.

"Grrrr..."

Drool dripped from between its teeth as it gnawed on the metal rod.

It must have thought of me as nothing more than a meal.

'Ah... This is so gross.'

The bulletproof vest and arm guards I was wearing were already tattered from the beast's claws, and I had wounds all over my body, but I calmly looked for a way to respond.

I was startled by the sudden appearance, but for me, who had filtered out fear and pain, it was like a realistic game.

Thanks to that, I was able to respond immediately without making any mistakes due to tension.

I twisted my two hands that were holding the metal rod sideways, creating a brief opening, and quickly grabbed the handle at my waist with one hand.

Stab—

"Kuh-huh—"

Without hesitation, I plunged the knife into the beast's neck.

Perhaps because I had used "Magic Affinity" to pour all my meager magic power into the knife, the blade pierced through its thick hide and sank deep.

With one hand, I pushed the metal rod, keeping its mouth shut, and with the other, I continued to stab its neck with the knife.

Fortunately, I was able to hold on somehow thanks to the beast losing strength after being stabbed in a vital spot.

How long had I been struggling like this?

I could feel the beast gradually losing strength.

"Huff... Huff... It's finally over."

I got up from my spot after confirming that it was dead with a final blow.

The beast was a black panther.

It was so hard to see in the dark night that it was a stroke of luck that I had noticed it in advance and responded.

I took my eyes off the panther and checked my condition.

My clothes and equipment were tattered, and I could see bloodstains from the wounds all over my body.

I was a mess.

Fortunately, the wounds were healing in real time.

The protective gear was damaged, but thanks to it, I didn't suffer any major injuries.

'I don't think it's a good idea to stay here.'

I had made a commotion while fighting the panther, and the smell of blood would spread, so it was best to get out of here quickly.

I poured water on the bloodstains on my body and hurriedly left the area.

It wouldn't wash off completely, but it was better than leaving it as it was.

As I was hurrying along, was my luck still holding?

I saw a light in the distance between the trees.

As I carefully approached and looked, it looked like a small village of slash-and-burn farmers.

'I was in the forest and thought it was just night, but it's not time to sleep yet. I see people moving around.'

It was my first encounter with the people of this world.

I was a mess, but I tried to look as presentable as possible and headed for the entrance of the wooden fence surrounding the village.

It was late, so the gate of the wooden fence was closed and there was no one guarding it.

As I was wondering what to do, a man's head popped up over the fence.

"Who is it?"

Relieved that there was someone, I cleared my throat and answered.

"Hello. I got lost while traveling through the forest and ended up here. Is it possible for me to spend a night in the village?"

"...You're saying you came through the forest alone at this late hour? Through that forest teeming with monsters?"

Uh... I only encountered one black panther, was it really that dangerous of a forest?

I breathed a sigh of relief, realizing how lucky I had been.

"Ah... Yes, I managed to get out safely after much hardship. I'm a mess because of it, though. Hahaha."

As I laughed awkwardly and hurriedly replied, the middle-aged man scanned my battered body and then disappeared beyond the fence, telling me to wait a moment.

'They're quite wary. Well, it's understandable for a slash-and-burn village in a forest like this.'

It was natural for them to find me suspicious.

Even though I was in a tattered state, my clothes themselves were out of place.

After waiting for a while, the man who had disappeared reappeared with an old man who seemed to be the village head.

"So... I heard the story, young man. You got lost while traveling and ended up here?"

"Yes, that's right, elder."

I replied politely, trying to make the most harmless expression I could, and the old man, who had been looking me up and down, smiled kindly and opened his mouth.

"Those of us who are struggling should help each other out in times of need. Stay and rest comfortably."

Creak—

The middle-aged man who had come with the old man immediately opened the gate of the wooden fence.

I thanked him and entered, bowing politely again.

"Thank you again for your kindness."

"Don't mention it. It's late today, so go in and rest. There are a few empty rooms in my house, you can stay there."

The old man smiled kindly and accepted my greeting, but the middle-aged man didn't react much.

'What a grumpy fellow.'

I followed the old man and had a conversation with him.

As I had thought, the old man was the village head.

And I learned that the forest I had passed through was even more dangerous than I had thought.

It was fortunate that I had only encountered one black panther in such a forest, and that the village was close enough to find quickly.

"My name is Malcolm. So, what's your name?"

"Ah! My name is Hans."

We arrived at the village head's house while talking.

It didn't take long since the village was small.

"You can rest in this room. You must be tired, so rest well."

"Thank you so much. I don't know how to repay this kindness..."

"Well, if you're grateful, you can chop some firewood for me tomorrow."

"Yes! I'm really confident in my physical strength. Just leave it to me!"

Soon, the village head left and I was alone in the room.

It was a bit dusty since it was an empty room, but it was heaven compared to sleeping in the forest.

"Hoo..."

Finally able to relax completely, I put down the bag on my back and took off my tattered clothes.

My top was beyond repair, and the equipment damaged by the beast's claws was in the same condition.

I wouldn't throw them away, though, since they were better than nothing.

'I knew it, but... it's amazing to experience it firsthand. I was unconsciously understanding and using their language.'

As I thought about this and that, I wet a towel and wiped my body, and I realized that all my wounds had healed without a trace.

"Super Recovery" was a truly helpful ability in many ways.

"Magic Affinity" was also quite useful.

After finishing cleaning up, I spread out my sleeping bag on the old bed and lay down.

It hadn't been long since I arrived in this world, but I had already fought a beast and met and talked with the people of this world.

'Yeah, I'm doing well. The conversation wasn't awkward, and the village head's reaction wasn't bad either.'

I lay still, staring at the ceiling, and then smiled softly, the corners of my mouth turning up.

I don't know if "Mind Hub" was helping here too, but I was able to smile quite naturally.

I smiled at the ceiling for a while, then stopped smiling and closed my eyes.

To be honest, I wasn't sleepy since it hadn't been long since I came to this world, but I needed to adjust to the time difference in this world, so I decided to rest even if I had to force myself.

I gradually entered a dormant state.

________________

I opened the package, took out the chicken, and took a bite.

"Chicken is the truth."

I ordered chicken as soon as I sent the avatar to another world, but it didn't arrive until he had finished his journey and entered the village, entering a dormant state.

Well, it couldn't be helped since it was only about 20 minutes in Earth time.

'Anyway, this is really nice. I can take a shower in warm water, eat chicken, and comfortably travel to another world.'

Another avatar, 'Heinz', entered extreme training mode after 'Hans', who was sent to another world.

I had to prepare him in advance in case he was ever deployed.

After quickly finishing the chicken and cleaning up, I could feel that morning had come in the other world where the avatar was in a dormant state.

"Well... then shall I gather some information on how the world works?"

I casually walked over to the computer and started browsing various websites.

I could fully enjoy traveling to another world while browsing the internet.

______________________

Although I was in a dormant state with my eyes closed, I wasn't completely blocking out all my senses.

I opened my eyes and got up when I felt the presence of people starting to move as it got brighter outside.

Of course, the avatar also needed to get real sleep to rest its brain, but since last night was just to adjust to the time difference, this was enough.

"Good morning, village head."

"Yes, Hans, did you sleep well?"

"Yes, thanks to you, I was able to spend the night comfortably."

I greeted the village head, who happened to be coming out of his room, and went to the backyard to wash up briefly.

"It's nothing fancy, but eat a lot."

"Thank you so much for giving me food."

"Hahaha, we all help each other out. Just help out with some village chores later."

Although it was just boiled potatoes, hard bread, and soup, I was able to eat it with satisfaction, thinking it was my first meal in this world.

It didn't seem like it was cooked at home, so I asked about it, and the village head replied.

"Since I'm an old man living alone, the people around here take care of my meals. I'm grateful for it."

It seemed that the villagers were closer than I thought.

Or maybe it was because he was the village head and received special treatment.

As we talked, we naturally started talking about me.

"By the way, your clothes and equipment are all things I've never seen before. Did you come from far away?"

"Hahaha, I like unique items. I've been wandering around and collecting them one by one."

"Oh... Isn't it hard to travel alone?"

I vaguely brushed it off with my pre-prepared wandering adventurer setting and said that I had gotten lost while traveling aimlessly.

And I naturally asked if there were any other cities nearby.

"Hmm... What would an old man who only lives in the mountains know? I think I heard there's a small city if you go east."

Unfortunately, the answer wasn't clear, but I decided to head east for now.

It was better than wandering around aimlessly.

I decided to leave the village the next day, and for that day, I decided to follow the village head and help him with various tasks in the village.

I needed to gather at least some information before I started moving in earnest so that I could grow safely.

For me, who still didn't know much about this world, it was an opportunity to naturally approach the natives and gather information.

I filled the water tank in the backyard, chopped and stacked firewood, and even helped repair the village's wooden fence.

"Mr. Hans, could you please pass me that rope?"

"You have good stamina. What kind of work did you do before?"

I also worked with the other men in the village, trying to strike up conversations naturally and engage in various conversations.

"I see. So the hunters are in charge of all external communication? Is there a safe route or something?"

I wasn't particularly tired because I had plenty of stamina, and I worked non-stop, thinking of it as an opportunity to train further.

"You've worked hard today. You should get some rest if you're leaving early tomorrow. Let's have one last drink."

After finishing the day's labor, which also served as information gathering, I washed up and entered the house, and the village head brought out a bottle of alcohol along with dinner.

It was quite strong, but not enough to threaten my liver, which was recovering in real time, and it tasted better than I expected.

We enjoyed the pleasure of drinking alcohol from another world, and before I knew it, quite a bit of time had passed.

If it got any later, it would be difficult to wake up the next day, so I reluctantly finished up and went to my room, getting into my sleeping bag.

Unlike the previous day, I had adjusted to the time difference, and with the right amount of labor and alcohol, I was able to fall asleep soundly this time.

And I stopped the game I was playing, closed my eyes, and focused.

__________________

Heinz, who was working out his lower body with squats at the gym, also stopped and closed his eyes.

...The connection with the avatar, Hans, in the other world, was cut off.

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