Chapter 25

“AHHHH! M-monster!”

“R-run away!”

The commotion caused by a monster’s unexpected presence in the shopping district immediately engulfed the surrounding area in chaos.

Catherine and Isabel, who were returning with me to the city entrance, also expressed their emotions, pointing in the direction of the voices.

“M-monster?! What’s going on?!”

“AHHHH! L-Lilith! Over there…!”

“….”

…Yeah, that definitely is a monster.

They’re a challenge to deal with, even for your average Joe.

“Grrrrrr…!”

A monster that looks like it was born with tough bristles, resembling a wild boar, with a voice like an enraged pig.

If I recall from my past life, that creature is what’s known as a Hooked Tusk, a beast with, obviously, hooked tusks.

The beast is most optimally farmed at around level 10. If you played as the protagonist, that level would typically be reached shortly after the story’s beginning. So, in the actual game, it’s not that threatening of a monster.

Of course, that confident analysis only applies to “Academy Aspirants,” and the general public would feel very differently.

“Please, help!”

“Guards! Somebody call the guards!”

No matter how vast the fiefdom is and how high-leveled its knights are, the fact remains that they’re just knights.

A Level 10 Hooked Tusk poses a significant threat to the town’s citizens, who are only used to seeing slimes because they live within well-defended walls.

The same applies even for Lilith, who only has Clean, which she can use at level 2.

‘But seriously, why and how did this get here?’

This isn’t some frontier settlement or outskirts village; it’s quite odd for that beast to wreak havoc inside the walled territory. The monsters that could appear within the walls would, at most, be slimes that are naturally generated the day after it rains. Moreover, most of them are creatures that rarely venture out from the mountains or forests.

The question that naturally arose in my mind was answered by the worn-out scroll that had fallen near it.

‘That’s a Monster Sealing scroll…!’

In this world, scrolls were typically used to store something. They couldn’t be used to seal material things; instead, they were primarily used for sealing magic or special techniques. However, there was just one exception, and that was the scrolls used to seal wild monsters.

‘Perhaps it was a technique developed by a professor at the academy to simulate real combat.’

Among the scrolls, the only one capable of sealing material things was precisely the “Monster Sealing” scroll. It seemed that one of them had been summoned after the seal was broken in the middle of the town.

It didn’t matter whether it had become too worn out, causing the seal to weaken, or had been accidentally torn during transportation.

‘…Perhaps this is an opportunity.’

Finally, it was a chance bestowed by the heavens to level up and move forward.

Ideally, it would be better to gradually raise my level by dealing with low-level monsters like slimes or beetles, but those methods only apply to ordinary folks who can freely roam outside.

For Lilith, who couldn’t even leave the mansion without permission, let alone go to the hunting grounds, this opportunity was too perfect to pass up.

‘Since the monster was trapped in the scroll, it should be much easier to deal with.’

To seal a monster in that scroll, the monster had to be weakened first.

Even a level 10 monster can be reduced to a weakened state if not on the brink of death.

From that fact alone, it would have been insane to face someone over five times stronger than Lilith, but the fact that it emerged from the scroll meant that its health was at around half or less.

It’s evident that the conditions for fighting this beast were aligning too perfectly.

“GRAHHHHHH…!”

“Uh, ah, it’s a mo-monster… W-what do we do…?”

“Li-Lilith! Let’s run quickly! We need to call the guards first!”

“…Isabel, you should go ahead with Senior Catherine.”

“…Huh?”

“…I, I have a quick errand to run.”

“Wait, wait! Where are you going, Lilith…?!”

A Hooked Tusk that’s been trapped in a scroll and, apparently, freed, had begun to rampage through the center of a shopping district.

The townsfolk panicked as they tried to evade the level 10 monster that had suddenly popped out of nowhere.

Without hesitation, I swiftly moved towards it.

“… I’ll pay you back later.”@@novelbin@@

“Wh-what?! Miss, it’s dangerous!”

There were no weapons around, and I didn’t have any offensive skills on hand, either.

So, I grabbed three metal-skewered barbecues from the first stand that came into view.

Still unable to grasp the situation, I shouted at the rampaging Hooked Tusk to get its attention.

“HEY!!! YOU FAT, UGLY PIG!!!”

The sudden eruption of my voice immediately drew the attention of the people around me.

However, I couldn’t afford to pay attention to those stares. What mattered now more than anything else was diverting the monster’s attention toward me.

I had to start and finish the fight as quickly as possible.

…I had to do it somehow before the fiefdom guards caught wind of it and got there first.

“OVER HERE, YOU FAT PIG!!!”

“Oink?!”

I purposely waved the skewered meats to provoke the creature, which immediately turned toward me.

Nothing as simple as a loud voice and food to get a monster’s attention.

As the creature was drawn to my voice and the skewered meat, it started rushing towards me.

I watched its movements closely until it was right in front of me.

“Lilith! Be careful, it’s dangerous!”

Isabel urgently called my name from behind.

She was told to go ahead, so why was she risking staying behind?

Although her decision was somewhat concerning, I had to focus on the monster ahead.

Just before the teeth protruding from its jaws were about to pierce me, I quickly rolled to the left to evade the first attack.

Whoosh.

The massive monster brushed past me with the sound of a fierce wind.

As its head whizzed past my side, I plunged one of the three iron skewers in my hand into its nape.

The monster, with the skewer embedded halfway into its throat, squealed like a pig being slaughtered.

“EEEEEEK!!”

Since I targeted its weak spot precisely, it was guaranteed to take some damage regardless of the difference in level.

It was a bit disappointing that I couldn’t push it all the way in, but under the current circumstances, even that strike alone was a commendable attack.

Whatever the number was, even if I was approaching 300 mana and with no usable offensive skills, it remained a fact that one hit would leave me defeated.

Fighting while taking hits was impossible, so my safety was the number one priority. Delivering the killing blow would come second.

“EEEEEEEEEEEEK!!”

With the pain of being stabbed in the nape as it rushed towards me, the monster returned with a furious roar.

Nevertheless, its speed was noticeably slower, thanks to the damage inflicted by the first attack.

Considering it was initially trapped in a scroll, it couldn’t have been in the best condition to begin with.

“Let’s end this.”

After chewing on one of the two barbecues in my hand, I swallowed about half of it. I wasn’t particularly hungry; it was to embed the second strike a bit deeper.

To drive the second blow in as deeply as possible with just a moment’s strike, it was necessary to minimize any elements that could hinder friction.

Timing it as the slowed monster approached me, I, once again, rolled away to dodge its second rush attack. As he brushed past me, I swung the second skewer into his side, driving it as deep as I possibly could.

“EEEEEEEEEEEEK!!”

Shit. That’s really fucking loud.

Anyway, judging by how loud the wailing was and its significantly slower movements, the battle was practically over. If I could land just one more blow to its throat or face, without a doubt, that would be it…

“…Miss, get the hell out of there!”

Ah, dammit.

Why is the security in the Blackwood fiefdom so good?

The guards appeared to deal with the monster not even five minutes after it showed up.

Someone who seemed to be the highest-ranking among them shouted for me to step back.

“Our guards will take care of the rest, so miss, please run away quickly, hurry!”

“………What?”

Our guards will take care of the rest?

This monster that is nearly defeated, hanging on the brink of death, and that I’ve managed to strike it twice with my life on the line?

After dodging twice and barely making it out alive, these assholes are trying to steal my finishing blow?

“Miss! If you don’t step back quickly, you’ll be in danger…!”

“That’s enough, get out of here!”

“Huh…?”

“I’m going to finish this guy off; don’t you dare take one step closer…!!”

This is a level-up opportunity that’s come after who knows how long, and I’m supposed to surrender it to those guards?

Even if it means a knife to my throat, I absolutely cannot allow that.

…This might be my last chance to level up, so I have to take it no matter what.