Shaura, a level 10 player who used a sword as his main weapon.
The Indian man, with bronze skin, a shaved head, and rugged muscles, let out a sigh as he looked over the barren land of Rundel.
“This raid won’t be easy.”
It had been his decision, as the party leader, to enter Area 2 a day early instead of spending the day on maintenance.
He had decided to claim a hunting ground ahead of the other parties and push hard to level up.
But the rugged terrain, the beasts that targeted party members from the sky at every turn, and even the settlement where he had absolutely no confidence he could live—
As if agreeing with him that this would not be easy, the other party members shook their heads as well.
“Wouldn’t it be better to just keep our residence in Staria?”
“If you’re confident you can climb up and down this place every day, then do that.”
“I was lying. Just wanted to complain a bit.”
“Let’s go for now. The inside might be all right.”
As Shaura said, now that they had come this far, there was no other choice.
The party descended the slope and arrived at the entrance to Rundel.
They had expected it to be gloomy, but the atmosphere of Rundel as seen up close was not as bad as they had thought.
“What’s this? Are they having a festival or something?”
Boisterous laughter rang out from inside, and a delicious smell pierced the party members’ noses.
At that moment—
- Growl.
They were already terribly hungry from having climbed the mountain all this time.
They still had no idea what the point was of implementing even physiological functions in a game, but the four men entered Rundel as if possessed.
And what they encountered there was a brilliantly blazing bonfire, and people dancing around it.
“W-wait! That person…”
“It’s them. Ian!”
“What the hell, when did she get up here?”
“But was her outfit always like that?”
And there was Ian, being carried and held aloft on a litter as if they were worshipping a god.
Ian’s eyes went wide when she saw Shaura’s group.
“P-please put me down right now!”
Of course, no such thing happened.
***
After barely managing to escape from the people, Ian was finally able to talk with Shaura’s party.
When the four men heard her story, they burst into laughter as if on cue.
Ian, her face bright red, glared at them.
“Stop laughing.”
“Wahaha! Shtop laaaughing, she says.”
“Dammit. I said don’t laugh!”
But the men’s laughter showed no signs of stopping.
After all, the story was one thing, but…
“That outfit sure is fiery, huh? Looks cool and breezy. Wahaha!”
“I-I told you not to.”
“I-I told you nooot to. Pffft!”
Ian’s face in front of them was as red as if someone had placed a carrot there.
The men burst into laughter all over again.
Ruffling her hair into a complete mess, Ian recalled the moment she had been invited into the old man’s house.
That afternoon, in the old man’s house.
“I am Halbar, the chief of this village, Savior.”
The old man’s identity was the chief who governed the village, Rundel.
But Ian was extremely flustered by the overly gracious treatment she received from Halbar and the villagers.
“N-no, why am I the Savior?”
Ever since she had met Halbar, the villagers had kept calling Ian the Savior and looking at her with eyes full of reverence.
Thanks to that, she could not help suspecting that a hidden-camera culture might exist even in this world.
At Ian’s reaction, Halbar gave her a benevolent smile.
“Hoho. I understand. You must be confused.”
After taking a sip of tea, Halbar began to explain.
“We are a clan that serves the god of the earth.”
Originally, this rocky mountain—this region they called Baltor—had not been a bad place for people to live until ten years ago.
Though they were not affluent, they had lived by raising crops and animals under the god’s protection.
But for reasons unknown, the god of the earth disappeared.
The protection that had covered all of Baltor vanished as well.
Amid all this, trade with Staria had been completely cut off, so the people thought there was no longer any hope for Rundel.
However—
“A few days ago, I had a dream.”
Even though time had passed, Halbar remembered the contents of that dream clearly.
It was a dream that a girl from Staria would lead Rundel to salvation.
She would recover the lost protection of the god of the earth and bring abundance back to this place.
“It was a divine oracle. And I was certain that the person worthy of that oracle was none other than the Savior standing before my eyes.”
“N-no, based on what?”
“Because you look exactly like the person who appeared in my dream, Savior.”
“Huh?”
The old man clasped Ian’s two hands tightly.
“Savior! Please save this land! We will reward you with anything!”
Facing the old man’s desperate gaze, Ian was dumbfounded.
Calling her a savior or whatever based only on the contents of a dream was hard for her to accept.
But—
[You have received a quest.]
[Rundel’s Crisis]
Ten years ago, Rundel fell into crisis due to the disappearance of the god of the earth.
Uncover the truth and restore protection to Rundel.
[Will you accept?]
Looking at the window that appeared before her eyes, Ian thought.
‘Could this be an opportunity?’
In truth, viewed calmly, the current situation was not all that bad.
Unlike Area 1, where she had needed to put in considerable effort to receive a quest, in this area she had been able to take on a quest right from the start.
‘Judging from the contents, it looks related to this area’s boss, too.’
On top of that, the NPCs were favorable toward Ian.
If she made use of this, she was confident it would not take very long to find the boss.
But why did it have to be her, of all people?
That question would not go away.
‘Could this be Arca’s doing?’
No matter how vividly they resembled real people, these were NPCs based on AI.
If it was Arca, who was also an NPC, wouldn’t she be able to interfere?
‘No. Let’s not think too deeply.’
Ian emptied her mind.
Whether it was Arca’s scheme or something else, it did not matter.
Deciding to make the most of the current situation, Ian nodded.
“All right. I just need to help you, right?”
“Ahh… thank you. Thank you.”
[You have accepted the quest.]
How much effort had it taken to soothe Halbar, who had begun shedding tears again?
After barely managing to calm him down, Ian let out a quiet sigh.
“So what should I start with?”
“First, we have prepared a welcoming ceremony.”
“…Excuse me?”
“Old woman! Come in!”
At Halbar’s voice, the door opened.
The person who appeared there was an elderly woman.
And behind her followed two women.
They bowed toward Ian.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Savior. I am Ingrid, wife of Village Chief Halbar. I have come to help adorn you, Savior.”
“A-adorn me?”
“Girls, prepare yourselves.”
“W-wait! Wh-what are you doing right n—!”
There was no time to say anything.
Ian was seized by the women in an instant and had no choice but to submit helplessly to their hands.
And the completed appearance of Ian was truly shocking.
“Wh-what is this?!”
A bra top that left her stomach and chest plainly exposed, and a waist covering that was practically underwear.
In that state, she participated in the welcoming ceremony and encountered Shaura’s group, causing Ian’s sense of shame to reach its maximum.
Thanks to that, Ian understood for the first time what it felt like to want to die.
“Oh, what a miserable life I lead…”
***
Ian, who had woken up early in the morning, let out not a yawn but a sigh.
Because when she thought about her future activities in her current outfit, her head naturally began to ache.
[Savior’s Token (Bound)]
Clothing given to Rundel’s Savior. An outfit modified to suit the user from the belongings of Ragna, the great warrior who once protected Baltor.
Strength +3, Agility +3, Stamina +3, Physical Defense +10, Magic Defense +10
Can only be worn in the Baltor Mountains. Cannot be removed until the quest is cleared.
Equipment that increased a total of 9 stats.
Judging only by its specs, it was clothing that could not be considered Area 2 equipment.
The problem was that the surface area of the clothes was far too small.
Even a person who was originally a woman could not try wearing it in their right mind, yet Ian, who possessed a man’s mind, had to wear it.
“I swear, I’ll find it within a week no matter what.”
And she resolved to avoid meeting people as much as possible.
In particular, she absolutely did not want Emily’s party to see her like this.
That was also why she had woken up early in the morning.
She had judged that if she moved quickly, she could leave Rundel without being seen by anyone, but—
When Ian stepped outside, she heard a familiar voice.
“Good morning, Savior.”
“H-Halbar? What are you doing here so early in the morning…”
“Old people have no morning sleep to begin with, you see.”
With her plan collapsing from the very start, Ian clutched her forehead.
At least it was Halbar, who looked at her with reverence; otherwise, she might have run away.
But then—
“Who’s that beside you?”
Ian’s gaze turned to Halbar’s side.
Judging by the fact that he wore clothes similar to Halbar’s, he seemed to be from the same village, but he was a man she had not seen even at yesterday’s festival.
“That person is…”
“That’s right. She is the Savior who will save us.”
The man approached Ian and struck his own chest with his fist.
“I am Hakon.”
A man with short brown hair and a massive build like a bear.
Feeling intimidated by his size, which was about twice her own, Ian gulped.
“I’m Ian. But why did you bring this person with you?”
“He will assist you at your side from now on, Savior. He is the village’s greatest warrior, so he will be of great help to you.”
“It is an honor to be able to fight alongside you, Savior.”
“Assist… me?”
Ian fell into thought.
‘Should I refuse?’
Ian had resolved not to form a party with anyone.
That was why she had refused Emily’s offer and come all the way to Rundel alone.
But now, a party?
Even if the other party was an NPC, would it be all right to form a party?
While she agonized over it, Hakon, whose eyes met Ian’s, spoke.
“Are you troubled?”
“…A little?”
Of course, it was not because she found Hakon unreliable.
This was Ian’s own problem.
On top of that, it was a question of whether she could exclude NPCs from it.
At that moment, Hakon opened his mouth.
“Then how about this?”
“How?”
“Have a match with me.”
“A match?”
While Ian tilted her head, Hakon continued.
“I am Rundel’s great warrior. Among the warriors here, I am the strongest.”
—Thud!
Hakon slammed down the spear he carried on his back.
“To treat someone like me as weak… As expected of the Savior.”
“N-no, I wasn’t treating you as weak…”
“Therefore!”
Hakon leveled his spear at Ian.
“I will prove it. Savior, I challenge you to a sparring match!”
Hakon’s voice rang throughout all of Rundel.
“If I lose, I will do as you wish, Savior.”
However!
“If I win…”
His eyes were burning with fighting spirit like flames.
“I will follow you.”