Chapter 23 ~ Aftermath and Belated Arrival
After confirming that the orc was well and truly dead, I tossed aside the overheated flintlock, which had now been reduced to nothing more than a fire poker. Even someone like me, who had a bit of a cleanliness obsession, didn’t care whether my clothes got dirty—I collapsed onto the ground, drained and limp.
This time, the Golden Chalice Gacha really came through for me. I was lucky, sure, but even more so, the credit went to the fact that the orc had been a brawny idiot. I didn’t even need to make a move—he practically handled himself.
No, that wasn’t quite right. Most orcs were the type who couldn’t think their way through a problem to save their lives. If it had been a different orc, they might’ve done something even weirder.
Still, thank the stars this one had both a low IQ and itchy hands. If not, I’d definitely be toast. Or rather—roasted. A one-time use would’ve been the best outcome. The worst case...
Gold Elves had a minimum lifespan of five thousand years. As long as it wasn’t overly damaged, this kind of thing could be passed down as a family heirloom, lasting forever.
I rubbed my little head. It wasn’t like I hadn’t thought through the consequences—that’s exactly why I was so scared after the fact. I knew what would happen if I messed up.
Luckily, the result turned out okay in the end.
But why was there an orc in Coleman Forest in the first place? The forest was near Ruglian, so sure, it had its fair share of filthy things, but those were limited to magical beasts. The Demon Race almost never appeared in this forest. I wasn’t sure of the exact reason. Maybe the Demon Race and the light-aligned races had some kind of peace treaty or agreement in place.
If a student had happened to pass through the forest at this time, they would’ve been done for, wouldn’t they? …Ah, I almost forgot—there was still an injured person lying there.
Dragging the flintlock, I ran back to where the orc had fought the elf girl. As expected, the elf girl still hadn’t regained consciousness.
After checking her breathing, I found that she’d only suffered some surface injuries. She probably fainted from sheer exhaustion, compounded by panic from encountering something like this for the first time.
I opened the Golden Chalice Gacha panel and winced at the lone remaining token displayed on the screen.
Well, that was a wasted week of work.
I pressed the draw button—rarity didn’t matter anymore. I wasn’t hoping for anything fancy. I just wanted something useful this time.
The Golden Chalice didn’t disappoint. A flash of white light glimmered inside the prize pouch, and a small vial of crimson liquid landed in my pale palm, only about as long as my index finger.
【Beginner Vitality Potion】
I knelt on one knee, gazing down at the serene face of the silver-haired elf girl. Her pale elf ears twitched slightly, and her long hair shimmered like a silver moon and stars.
She looked just like Astrid.
I propped the little Moon Elf’s body upright and sat on my knees so her head could rest against my lap. Popping the cap off the vial, I gently fed some of the vitality potion into her slightly parted lips.
“Cough… cough…” The silver-haired girl let out a few weak coughs and slowly opened her eyes. In front of her, a blurry golden silhouette came into view, overlapping with numerous flickering shadows before gradually coming into focus.
Crap.
I immediately covered my ears. To avoid suspicion, I hadn’t reverted to my human form, but I also didn’t want her seeing my elf ears—they were a symbol of my identity.
Thankfully, the elf girl hadn’t fully awakened. She blinked a few times, then her eyes fluttered shut again with effort.
After confirming that she was no longer in danger, I stood up and walked to a tree nearby, removing my hair ornament.
The golden-haired elf girl transformed into a black-haired human boy.
It was said that orc ears could be used as a medicinal ingredient, and their tusks could be turned into bone knives—among the few “spoils” or “drops” orcs provided. But cutting off ears was too brutal, and the tusks required special harvesting tools. Dylin had no interest in fiddling with a demon corpse anyway.
Before leaving, Dylin even found a banana leaf to use as a mat for the Moon Elf girl.
He’d been the one to save her. And to do so, he’d used up two Flash Potions, one Booming Alchemy Flask, two flintlock rounds—and nearly sacrificed himself in the process. If anything had happened to the person he rescued, it would’ve all been for nothing!
“Damn it.” As he walked out of the forest with the flintlock slung over his shoulder, Dylin slapped his forehead and cursed aloud.
What had he come out here for?
To complete his weekly quest.
Why complete the weekly quest?
Because there were tokens to earn.
And where were the tokens?
He’d used them all. Not only that, but even the rewards from those tokens were now gone.
So what had this entire trip been for?! He’d taken all the risk and got nothing in return.
Total bad luck. Should’ve checked the almanac before leaving the house—though come to think of it, this world didn’t have an almanac.
Dylin kept muttering all the way back. What he didn’t know was that just as he left, four elf students in Coleman Academy uniforms arrived right behind him.
They hurried to the edge of the forest.
“Let’s hope we’re not too late... Are you sure Her Highness Astrid’s sister came into Coleman Forest?” asked a tall and handsome Wood Elf youth.
“Yes, I saw her just this morning,” replied the one in front—a Divine Child elf wearing intelligent-looking glasses. “There have been orc sightings in the forest recently. Let’s hope she’s okay.”