Chapter 58 - Side Story: The Fairy's Tutorial
There were mountains of things the newly summoned girl did not understand.
Common sense, currency, monsters. But the most important thing here was probably the 'Game System'.
"That's right, I have to teach you various things."
"Please do..."
"I'm going too since I'm your guard, so don't worry about it."
This was the time for the helpful fairy to shine. It was Elenoa's duty to provide thorough support so that the Hero would not stumble at the very start.
And so, they decided to go to a nearby place first. Outside the Holy City of Kalgina, so-called 'tutorial' monsters that were the easiest to defeat in the game wandered about, and inexpensive medicinal herbs grew wild.
Thanks to Alois's guidance, they were able to arrive while the sun was still high.
A forest path with deep shadows, where the blue of the sky was blocked by a tunnel of trees.
After the two humans and one fairy had walked a few steps, the grass on the right rustled.
What appeared were three short-statured monsters with skin the color of mixed gray and green. They walked on two legs, holding wooden sticks or axes in one hand. Although their clothes were rags, the fact that they were dressed made them appear intelligent at first glance.
Elenoa stretched her wings taut and sat on the girl's head. The young knight raised his sword.
The girl was frightened. Wooden sticks were one thing, but she had never had an axe pointed at her. Born and raised in a safe world and educated that "violence is wrong," the girl was bewildered in the face of monsters that were only half her height.
But the fairy would not allow her to remain frozen in place.
"Can you see it? Strange letters are floating there, saying 'Goblin: 500', right?"
"...Yes."
"That shows the monster's name and its stamina converted into a numerical value."
"Y-yes."
"It's a display that appears when the target has hostile intent toward us and must be defeated right now. Remember it well. When this happens, you need to fight. There are monsters that can use magic, but for those kinds, their magic power value is displayed after their stamina."
"Monsters can use magic too, can't they?"
"That's right. For now, Mr. Knight, could I ask you to handle it?"
"Don't call me 'Mr. Knight'."
"I've decided not to call humans by their names so easily."
"Don't tell me you..."
The boy swallowed his question of "Do you hate humans?" regarding Elenoa,
"...Oh well. Here I go!"
He lowered his sword stance and ran forward.
Boldly charging toward the goblin in the center, he slashed upward from below. Green blood splattered.
Elenoa slapped the hands of the girl, who tried to cover her eyes, and scolded her.
"No good. Watch properly."
"B-but..."
"Please, Hero-sama."
After rebuking the pale-faced girl, Elenoa returned her gaze to the goblins. All three had already been defeated by the young knight.
Elenoa looked at what had fallen from the goblin's hand.
"Look, the goblin dropped a wooden stick."
"Y-yes."
"Pick it up."
"...Eh?"
"Pick it up."
She was instructing her to go near that corpse and take it.
Elenoa, who gave such instructions, was aware of her own cruelty. The reason she could force this upon a pitiful young girl was because she was a 'Helpful Fairy Character'.
Even this teary-eyed girl was merely a 'character' to her. And above all, she was the Hero who had the role of defeating Elenoa's husband. Considering that, she could feel sympathy, but she could also become heartless.
In the first place, it was Elenoa herself and Louis who had proposed 'Let's start the game'.
"...Yes."
With the fairy on her head, the girl walked over to the goblin's corpse. She gave a weak smile in response to the boy's concerned gaze, and with a cowering posture, she picked it up. It was a flimsy wooden stick soaked in goblin blood.
Upon confirming it, Elenoa raised her voice with a "Fanfare!"
"Hero-sama has obtained Wooden Stick D."
"Huh?"
"'Wooden Stick D
It's shabby as a weapon, but it's better than bare hands. It's best to let companions who have no weapons hold this for now.
Attack Power: 2
Defense Power: 1
Sell Price: 1 Kuran'
This is a rather mediocre item, but if you collect them like this, you will eventually be able to obtain good weapons and valuable items."
"...Yes."
"Next, I will explain your status. You can ask me about this too. So first, please hold my hand."
"O-okay."
The girl lightly touched Elenoa's hand. She was slightly afraid that it was so small it might break.
Elenoa, as expected, tried to fulfill her duty.
"'Name: Hasumi Konata
Age: 17
Level: 1
Occupation: Apprentice Adventurer
HP: 15
MP: 10
Attack: 17
Defense: 18
Magic Attack: 10
Magic Defense: 15
Skills: None'
Something like that. For now, you are categorized as an adventurer, but if you accumulate training, I think you will be recognized as a Hero."
"T-those are pathetic numbers. I'm not strong, am I?"
"To be honest, you're still at the level of an ordinary person."
"I thought so, I knew it... Could you tell me Elenoa's status?"
"Sure."
And so, Elenoa conveyed her status.
However, she did not use the surname Stylus, set her level to five, and greatly falsified all her status information, including HP and MP.
—It's truly an impossible game when the character who checks status doesn't give correct information.
Finally, she asked, "Do you have any questions?" If this were a game, several basic questions would be displayed in a row. The girl hesitated,
"What does the last part, 'Affection: --', in Elenoa's status mean?"
"Ah, that."
It was the only part where she had not lied about the numerical value.
Elenoa was set as uncatchable, but this was originally a game with romantic elements.
"I think you will meet many people from now on. Many men too. Among them, it is a supplementary tool for deciding a spouse. Some people might think to marry you to add prestige. There might even be people who try to deceive and toy with you.
So for that reason, we quantify their feelings toward Hero-sama.
No matter how handsome a man is or how sweet his words are when he approaches you, do not believe him at first. Ask me. The larger this number is, the more genuine that person's feelings for Hero-sama are."
"Wait. I have no intention of getting married in this world!"
"I understand. That's why this is for emergencies, okay?"
"...I will keep that in mind. So what does '--' mean?"
"This is proof that you cannot date or marry that person. In my case, it's because I am female. It's definitely not because I dislike you."
"I see, that's good."
"Also... what was it again? Ah, yes. From now on, people who will travel with you, like that knight over there, will surely appear, but the leader is ultimately Hero-sama. Hero-sama is the one who gives instructions, from equipment to the arrangement of the vanguard and rearguard. I will help you until you get used to it, so let's do our best."
"Um, will I be okay? Someone like me..."
"You'll be fine, you can do it, you can do it!
If it were fine for me to arbitrarily organize your party with my 'Recommendations', I would, but I have decided to have you equip weapons and armor in order of higher effectiveness.
But you see, the monsters that appear differ depending on the situation. For example, there are times when weapons with fire attributes are more advantageous, and situations arise where defense against poison or paralysis is necessary. So for those times, I think it is better to think about your equipment in advance. Also, be careful because the weapons and armor you can equip differ depending on your occupation."
"Uuuuuugh..."
"Yes, no groaning! Now, I will explain the vanguard and rearguard that came up briefly earlier."
"Wait, wait, I give up, I give up, I give up!"
In addition to this tutorial, having Elenoa along helps find items and such.
She is a very convenient helpful fairy.