Returning to the inn, I reported to Alelia that I had become an adventurer, and then immediately headed for the guild.

'Are you all right after the final exam? I replied that I was fine because I had a good night's sleep, and they said, 'You're still Yuki.
I don't know what he meant.

'Since I've become an adventurer, I'd like to earn more money by killing more demons.

'Well, you won't get many requests to kill demons at E rank. Most of the requests are for gathering. They want you to understand how the guild works with simple requests.

'That's kind of disappointing. The reward for this request is... one silver coin. That's terrible.

'It's normal for ordinary villagers to make more money than E rank adventurers. Let's try our best to become a D-rank adventurer so that we can accept the request to kill them.

'Speaking of which, how many ranks does Arelia have?'

'The same as Yuki, E rank!

'I see. Does that mean you can't ask Aleria to accept your request?

'I'm sorry for being useless ......'

'No, it's fine. How many collection requests do I have to complete to move up to D rank?

'You should be able to move up quickly after 10 requests. I've heard it's hard to move up from D to C.''

'I see, so I'll just take 10 requests for now.

'You're taking on ten at once?

'Of course I'll be selective. If it's something that can be obtained nearby, or if it's the same thing that needs to be delivered, it's more efficient to accept multiple requests and proceed with them simultaneously. Well, it's just a little technique.

In the netgear, I was thinking about how to complete tedious daily quests in a short time.
It's also a good strategy to choose requests that are easy to complete rather than short-term rewards.

'As expected of you, Yuki! That certainly seems to be more efficient!

'Then it's decided. Let's take all the requests that can be collected in the Calron Plains near the Royal Capital. The requests are this one and ...... this one and ...... this one and ...... this one.

I peeled off the 10 requests posted on the board and received all of them.

The requests I received were all for plants used to make potions.
The type and number of plants to collect vary depending on the request, but they can be summarized as follows

Holy Flower x400
Blue herbs x 200
Red herb x200

It's quite hard according to Aleria.

In the Karlon Plains, there is a king.

The Karlon Plain surrounds the royal capital.
It's easy to get there by stepping out of the gate.

'The Carulon Plain is too big to understand.

'The guide says that the approximate growing area is just north of here. ......'

Adventurers who receive a request for the first time are provided with a thick booklet containing a map of the area around King's Landing and information that will help them with the request.

I checked the page for E rank adventurers that had the information on the request we received. .......

'It's too general, isn't it? North is too wide a range. Hmm, I wonder if there's a more efficient way.

I flipped through the pages of the guide.

'Come to think of it, there should be information on items to collect, right?

'I'm sure it does, but I don't need to look it up, it's supposed to be for making potions, right?

'No, that's not what I'm interested in.

Look up 'Holy Flower', 'Blue Herb', and 'Red Herb' in the index.

--------------------
[Holy Flower] ...... grows wild throughout the kingdom. It receives magic power and grows. It can be used to make potions.

Blue herb] ...... grows wild throughout the kingdom and is especially common in forests. It is used to make magic potions.

Red herb] ...... grows wild throughout the kingdom and is especially common in forests. It is used to make Life Force Potions.
--------------------

I'm sure that's what you meant.

'Aleria, we're heading for the forest. The closest one from here is the Karlon Forest.

'Why the forest?

'The guide says that blue and red medicinal herbs are often found in the forest, and as for the holy flower, it says that it grows by receiving magic power.

'Ah, that's true!

Aleria seemed to have noticed.

'There are more demons in the forest than in the plains. --Or rather, there are no demons at all in the plains. So it's more efficient to head to the forest, which is full of demon magic, rather than the plains, which receives less magic power.

I've just learned about demon magic, but I'm sure this is correct.
In the game, some items that are hard to get in the early stages become easy to get in the later stages.

So I decided to collect only the items at the hunting grounds in the latter half of the game.
Well, I heard that there are not so many strong demons in the Karlon Forest because it is relatively close to the royal capital.

'I'm impressed with you, Yuki! But why does the guide say to collect them in the plains? ......'

'It was said that E rank adventurers can't receive requests to kill monsters, so they must have thought of a way to accomplish the requests without fighting. Ordinary adventurers would just believe what they read in the guide.

'It's true that we came here first, too. ...... But...'

Aleria's expression became uncomfortable, as if she remembered something.

'I ...... was robbed of my weapons by bandits, and I'm still here. I thought it would be okay if I didn't fight.

Yes, Aleria had no weapons now.
She assumed that since the Karlon Plains only had demons that didn't attack her, she would be fine.

'Oh, that's not true. Don't worry about that. If you stay close to me, the enemy will never be able to attack us. That's the kind of magic I have.

I have warding magic Lv2.
No adventurer of rank C or higher could break through it, so it should be safe against the monsters of the Karlon Plains.
You can prevent all attacks from the enemy and collect the items calmly.

I believe you when you say so.

It's a 30 minute walk.

30 minutes on foot. We arrived at the Karlon Forest, though it was quite far from here.

'Wow, that's a lot of ......! There are so many! Holy flowers and medicinal herbs! Isn't it all you can get?



'I knew it was what I thought. All right, let's pick them up by the roots!

'Yes!

On the way, we were sometimes attacked by demons, but thanks to the warding magic, we were able to concentrate on gathering.
Realizing that they couldn't get close to us, the monsters eventually gave up and left.

'Alright--that's all we've got for the request. I'd like to collect a few more, but--'

''I've learned the new skill 'Alchemy'.''

'What's the matter, sir?

'No, it's nothing.

The name of this skill gave me an idea.
Could it be that you can make potions that are more powerful than normal potions ......?
Okay, let's gather as many ingredients as we can!

Aleria and I were gathering more than the requested amount when...

A flash!

The sky shimmered for a moment.
The flashes occurred in succession, and with increasing frequency.

'Is it a lightning strike ......?'

'It's a lightning strike, but ...... it's a bit strange. The frequency is too high.'

'Oh, the lightning has stopped. It's ......, but the black clouds are still there.'

And the next thing you know...

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo .............

I heard a high-pitched scream.
The warding magic makes it sound like a scream, but without it, it would be a roar.

'I'm a little curious. I'm going to go check it out, but what do you say, Aleria?

'I'm curious, too. But if it's a powerful demon ......, then ......'

'Let's check from as far away as possible. I don't think there are any strong demons near the royal capital,......'

I took out the magic sword Berserk from the item slot, just in case.
After storing all the items I had collected in the item slot, I set out to uncover the identity of the scream.