Chapter 11
The story of "The Straw Millionaire" is something everyone might know, right?
To put it simply, it's a tale where someone becomes rich through a series of exchanges, starting with a single piece of straw.
And in games, there are often quests that follow a similar pattern.
I call these kinds of quests "pass-around quests."
Because, even though it starts as a simple errand, before you know it, you're being sent all over the place, only to end up back where you started.
It wouldn't be wrong to say you've been passed around, would it?
"Tanuki?"
"Speaking of tanuki around here, do you mean the hidden tanuki?"
"Yes."
To prove the merchant's prowess to Nel, we need to complete the essential quest for building a merchant character, called "Rookie Merchant."
"Ah, kid, I get your enthusiasm, but those things are weak yet hard to find. Even if you find them, they'll run away."
The quest requires a monster called the hidden tanuki. While its combat ability is higher than that of a mochi, it has the trait of fleeing immediately when combat starts.
Depending on your stats, you can prevent it from escaping or take it down before it runs.
It looks like an ordinary tanuki, with a leaf-like pattern on its forehead.
"Don't worry, leave it to me!!"
"Where does that confidence come from?"
He seemed to imply that a kid wouldn't be able to defeat it, but don't underestimate an FBO hardcore player.
I know how to take down a hidden tanuki even with level zero equipment and no gear.
"Nel, come here."
"What?"
Nel is the main character this time.
I'll focus on hunting mochi later, but only if there's time to spare.
Today and tomorrow, I'll help Nel with her quest.
Fortunately, the pelt dropped by hidden tanuki has a 50% drop rate, so taking down two or three should suffice.
So, as long as Dent is with us for safety, there shouldn't be any issues.
I beckon Nel over and hand her an item I prepared.
"What's this?"
"A paper gun."
"Paper gun? What do you do with it?"
It's a toy made from folded paper that makes a loud popping sound when swung hard.
"Hold it like this, then swing it as hard as you can."
She didn't seem to understand how to use it.
Well, it's quicker to show her before handing it over.
I hold the handle, make sure it's folded correctly, then swing it down hard—POP!! A sharp, crisp sound echoes.
"Whoa!?"
"Hey, don't make sudden noises like that, you'll scare the horses!"
"Sorry."
Nel was startled, and Dent scolded her.
After calming the horse, Dent looked at the paper gun with interest.
In this world, there's a skill called origami, which automatically folds paper, but you can also do it manually if you have the knowledge.
"With this, we'll scare the tanuki hiding in the trees, make it fall, and then take it down while it's stunned."
"Can we really do that?"
"Will it work that well?"
The quality is better if your skill level is high, but since we're dealing with hidden tanuki, even an amateur-made one will do.
Nel's eyes sparkled with excitement, but the veteran Dent was skeptical.
"Well, just watch."
We moved further from the hill to a small forest.
Beyond this point, we're outside the mochi area, so there are some active monsters that will attack on sight.
At level zero, it's dangerous, so I wouldn't want to do this unless absolutely necessary.
But with Dent with us, we can safely use this strategy.
While surely doubting me, who must be grinning like a mischievous kid, Dent followed us, thinking it should be fine in this nearby forest.
"First of all, it's not like hidden tanuki are that easy to find—"
"Found one."
"Where!?"
"Shh."
The hidden tanuki is literally a tanuki hiding in the forest.
There's a bit of a trick to finding them.
Nel was looking around, but unfortunately, there were no hidden tanuki on the ground.
I quieted Nel, who was looking around in surprise and about to shout, by putting a finger to my lips and pointing subtly to a tree.
"????"
It was just a tree.
To Nel, it looked like any other tree in the forest, and she tilted her head in confusion. Dent also stared intently.
"You found it well. Even F-rank kids wouldn't notice that."
"There's a trick to it."
Dent seemed to have noticed.
"Where? Where is it? Hey! Liberta!"
There was just a small bump, otherwise, it looked like an ordinary tree.
The hidden tanuki has a camouflage skill that allows it to blend its body color with the tree and leaves.
Some reptilian monsters, like chameleons, also have this skill, and it can be quite troublesome if they're active monsters.
Only Nel still didn't understand, and her mood was gradually souring.
She tugged at the hem of my clothes, wanting an answer.
"See? There's a slight bulge at the base of that tree branch, right?"
"There?"
"Yes, keep your eyes on that spot."
So, I leaned my face next to Nel's, aligning our gazes, and instructed her to watch closely.
After confirming her nod, I slowly prepared the paper gun.
"Ready...!!"
Then, with even more force than before, I swung the paper gun down.
POP!! A sharp cracking sound echoed, and the bump jumped up, slipping off the tree branch.
"Ah!"
The confused hidden tanuki fell from the tree, landing headfirst on the ground, where it stopped moving.
"Got it!"
I quickly stabbed it with a bamboo spear.
Its durability is higher than a mochi's, but the bamboo spear can still deal enough damage, especially to a stunned monster.
"Critical hit!!"
A critical hit landed, dealing double damage ignoring defense.
"Wow, that was clean. One hit, impressive."
"Thanks... No drop, though."
With the spear's reach, I could attack the fallen hidden tanuki quickly.
Even so, Dent praised my efficiency, and I pulled the bamboo spear out of the ground, which had pierced through the tanuki.
The hidden tanuki turned into black ash, leaving nothing behind.
Even with a 50% drop rate, sometimes you get nothing, which was a bit of a blow.
"Amazing!! Amazing!! Hey, can I do that too!?"
But that blow was quickly healed by Nel's admiring gaze and her excited demeanor.
"I used a spear, but you can do it with a dagger."
I wondered if she had any resistance to attacking monsters, but judging by her reaction, it didn't seem like she was the type to shy away from it because it was cute.
"Want to try?"
"Yes!"
"Then, let's find a tanuki first. If you make too much noise, it'll wake up and run away, so be quiet."
"Got it."
So, not to dampen her enthusiasm, I quietly handed her the paper gun.
She cautiously took it and closed the folded part.
"Probably, the noise scared them off around here, so let's move."
I warned Nel not to grip the paper gun too hard, or it would warp, and urged Dent to move.
"Then, this way."
With that, he started walking slowly, matching our pace while keeping an eye out.
The monster levels around here are low, so Dent alone is more than enough, but it's helpful that he understands our intentions and acts accordingly.
The shopkeeper really introduced us to a good person.
After seeing our method, Dent seemed to judge that as long as we dealt with the dangerous monsters, taking down the tanuki wouldn't be a problem.
And after walking for a few minutes.
Dent suddenly stopped.
"Found one."
"???"
Dent had found a hidden tanuki.
This time, it wasn't on the ground but up in a tree, which he was carefully scanning.
"Ah."
Then, she let out a small exclamation.
It seemed she had found it without needing my guidance.
Her eyes darted between me and the tree, sparkling with excitement, and I nodded quietly to her, who was thrilled to have found it.
If we hadn't agreed to be quiet, she would have surely shouted in excitement.
Having seen my nod, Nel steeled herself and slowly approached the tree, then swung the paper gun up.
"Hey!!"
Despite her cute shout, the swing was powerful, and the paper gun snapped sharply.
POP!! A clean cracking sound echoed.
And just like before, the tanuki slipped from the tree and fell headfirst to the ground.
Stunned from the confusion, Nel pounced on it.
I knew Nel was a fox beastman, but her movements fully utilized her beastly reflexes.
She swung her dagger in a wide arc, striking the tanuki's body.
A deep stab to the neck was a clear critical hit.
The tanuki immediately turned into black ash.
"I did it!! I did it!!"
She held up the small tanuki pelt and jumped up and down.
"Amazing, girl."
"Yeah, really amazing."
Maybe she has a talent for combat.
For a game beginner, it usually takes a while to get the hang of such movements.
The tanuki's stun lasts five seconds.
If you hesitate, it'll escape immediately upon recovery.
But Nel's movements were smooth and fluid.
"See, see!! Liberta, did you see!?"
Holding the pelt, she came over with a smile, asking for praise, though her head was unfortunately protected by a leather hat.
"Yeah, that was amazing. To move like that on your first try."
"Of course!! I watched Liberta's example, so I could do it!!"
So, I praised her honestly, and her mood lifted.
"Alright! Let's go for the next one!!"
With renewed vigor, she went off to find the next target.
After that, for a while, the dry sound of POP echoed through the forest, and each time, Nel gleefully took down a tanuki with her dagger.
I don't think foxes and tanuki are exactly enemies, but they're not the best of friends, right?
In the end.
"Mmm! Delicious!!"
"Ms. Teresa's cooking is always good, but this is especially tasty."
"You kids are lucky. Eating such delicious food every day."
"Right!!"
"I'm single, so I can't help but envy you."
Nel kept hunting tanuki until I called it time for lunch.
Having moved around a lot, Nel was hungry and obediently listened to me. Now, she's energetically munching on the sandwiches Ms. Teresa prepared for us.
"But, girl, you're amazing. This amount of pelts, even with the kid's method, a rookie adventurer wouldn't be able to gather this much."
Switching topics from the sorrows of a single man being too early for kids, Dent pointed at the pile of tanuki pelts we'd gathered just that morning.
There was a small mountain of tanuki pelts.
Yeah, compared to my terrible drop rate, Nel's drop rate is ridiculously high.
Even in the game, there were players with insane real-life luck, but her drop rate is on par with theirs.
"Of course!"
"If this were normal, my life would be a lot easier."
"Even for beginner's luck, this is abnormal."
Nel thinks this is normal, but Dent's reaction shows it's not.
"So, what's next? If you're done, we can head back early."
"Eh!? I want to go back into the forest!! Hey, Liberta, it's okay, right!?"
I thought this luck would eventually run out, but Dent checked our plans for the rest of the day.
We've achieved our goal, so we could head back, but Nel wants to have more fun.
Dent asked me because my decisions so far haven't caused any issues, and Nel has been following my lead.
Even in a temporary party, being treated as the leader makes things easier.
"Hmm, then, Dent, can you take Nel into the forest until it's time to go back?"
"Huh? Kid, you're not coming? Tired?"
"Eh!!? Liberta, come with us!!"
So, I was thinking of splitting up in the afternoon, but Dent was genuinely concerned about me, a kid, and Nel expressed her dissatisfaction.
"No, I'll stay here and hunt mochi. I want the items they drop."
"From them? Not magic stones, right? They drop rice water and... could it be the key you're after?"
"Correct."
"That's quite the rare item you're aiming for. It could fetch a decent price. These guys are safe to hunt, so alright, in the afternoon, it'll be me and the girl."
"Ugh!"
I was impressed that Dent immediately figured out why I wanted to hunt mochi without leveling up, but he probably thought it was just a money-making scheme.
He couldn't imagine what I had in mind for the key.
However, Nel was clearly unhappy that I wasn't joining them in the afternoon, puffing up in frustration.
"Hey, Nel, I have something I need to do too."
"No!!"
"We've achieved our goal, right?"
"No!!"
This is troublesome.
I thought I'd have to give up, but just then, a white object wandered into our eating area.
A mochi.
It's harmless, so we could leave it be, but for some reason, Nel couldn't take her eyes off it.
"Uh, Nel?"
"If the key drops, will you come with us?"
"Huh?"
"Will you come!?"
For a moment, I didn't understand what she was trying to do, but it seemed she wanted to help me so we could go into the forest together.
"Sure, I'll come."
The key Dent mentioned has a 0.3% drop rate.
It's not something that drops easily.
"Hey!!"
Before I could say it wouldn't happen, Nel swung her dagger at the approaching mochi.
"Eh"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, seriously?"
And then, when normally nothing would drop, a silver key appeared, leaving me stunned and Dent in disbelief.
"Now we can go into the forest together!!"
"Ah, yeah."
The sheer terror of Nel's real-life luck left me no choice but to nod and accept the key she handed me.