Skills
Throwing: A skill for hurling objects. Increases the power of thrown items and enables the use of throwing sword skills.
Magic Sensitivity: A prerequisite skill for using magic. Without this skill, magic cannot be used.
Shot Mitigation: A skill that reduces the power of ranged attacks, effective against both physical and magical ranged attributes.
Items
Unidentified Jerky: Jerky of unknown origin. Tough and overly salty, but its texture satisfies hunger well.
Alicia's Portrait: A portrait displayed in Baron Baland's mansion. It depicts a beautiful woman, embodying his obsession. Is the source of his madness pure love or twisted desire?
Skeleton Warrior's Spear: A spear wielded by skeleton warriors wandering near the crumbling town. They were once soldiers who fought to protect people from a great enemy, but after death, they were enslaved by dark forces, becoming undead that harm the living.
"Why does Grandpa raise cows?"
"To sell them. They're for meat."
Grandpa always spoke plainly, never hiding anything, and he doted on me endlessly. When I wet the bed at five and got scolded by Dad, Grandpa casually said Dad did the same until he was ten, defending me. Every Christmas, he'd dress as Santa, climb through my second-floor window, and leave a gift by my pillow. The card never said "From Santa"—it was always "From Grandpa."
Every New Year, I'd visit him. Grandma's dumplings and mochi were… unique, too "natural" for my taste, but Grandpa's hot pot was divine.
I was six, about to start elementary school, when I showed off my deep green backpack. Grandpa took me to the mountains he owned, a place steeped in tales of a fearsome monster.
"Listen, Kagari. I'm a cattle rancher now, but our blood comes from the guardians of this land, hunters from ancient times. We worship Yatsume-sama, fear her, and fight with our lives if she descends to harm the village. We pray for her to rest. That's the legacy of our clan."
With his trusty rifle and his massive, mixed-breed hunting dog, Kogoro III, Grandpa set out to hunt a boar. I tagged along. Most families would balk at a six-year-old joining a hunt, but Dad just laughed and sent me off. Though, when we got back, Mom's red handprint was slapped across his cheek.
As we climbed the mountain, Grandpa told me about our bloodline. It felt like a story every family has but often forgets, lost to time, and my young heart sensed its weight.
"Is Yatsume-sama scary?"
"Not to me. She appears as a stunning beauty. But to outsiders entering the mountain, she's a terrifying beast that devours hearts. When she descends to attack the village, she's even worse."
"Sounds boring."
"Boring, huh? I'd rather she showed up as a proper monster for us, too."
"Yeah!"
Grandpa must have met Yatsume-sama. I wanted to meet her, too. They say she appears as a beauty to seduce our womanizing clan, but as a kid, I wished for a breathtaking goddess.
Grandpa soon hushed, raising his rifle. Kogoro III, as if linked to his mind, vanished silently into the brush.
A gunshot rang out. A boar lay dead, shot through the forehead. But oddly, it already had a gaping chest wound, on the verge of death. Grandpa had merely delivered the final blow.
Yet the boar still breathed, bleeding, snarling at Kogoro III, clinging to its fading life.
"Kagari, finish it. To live, we eat, and to eat, we kill. The meat in the hot pot you love? That's boar, taken from this mountain. One day, this mountain will be yours. Prove to Yatsume-sama you're a hunter—one who kills, takes, and devours."
Grandpa handed me a hunting knife, his face as kind as ever. But his eyes were different—eerie, like something I'd seen before, not human.
Something in me changed, too. Gripping the knife, I pressed its sharp tip against the boar's tough neck. My childish strength barely scratched the thick hide.
Then, like an illusion, a beautiful white hand reached from the side, pressing the knife's hilt. It effortlessly pierced the boar's neck.
I don't remember what happened next. Grandpa left me at a shrine in the mountains, and I played with Kogoro III while he processed the boar.
"You're my grandson, alright! Miles better than those idiot sons of mine! You're gonna be something special!"
Grandpa didn't mention the white hand. Maybe it was a hallucination—or Yatsume-sama's hand, visible to him, too. But the truth didn't matter.
I was thrilled to earn Grandpa's approval. The thought that Yatsume-sama might have acknowledged me as her heir sent shivers of excitement through me.
"So what's Yatsume-sama's scary form when she attacks people?"
There was one answer I needed. The thing I saw in Grandpa's eyes felt like Yatsume-sama herself.
In the twilight, pulling my hand, Grandpa grinned with chilling delight.
"A spider. That's Yatsume-sama's true form. And our ancestors, believe it or not, were born from a hunter mating with her."
I'd suspected as much. Grandpa's eyes that day were dark, like a spider's, as if he'd shed his humanity.
I must have had the same eyes holding that knife.
And that was fine. Sharing Grandpa's blood filled me with pride. I thought it'd be the coolest thing to become a hunter like him—worshipping a god, fighting without fear.
"Well, it's just a childhood story."
"That's your first line after waking up? Makes no sense. Here, Diavel's special blend."
"Thanks. Just a dream."
Sitting up, I flex my left hand, no longer severed, testing it while half-glaring at Shinon's annoyed look as I take the mug.
My head's oddly clear. I remember Diavel drugging me (or rather, debuffing me with that knife), but after that, it was just darkness and a hazy dream.
"What kind of dream? Tell us—you owe us after we kept watch for six boring hours."
Diavel's sharp tone suggests something happened while I slept, but the coffee's vile taste tells me he's just pissed about another failed blend.
"Kid stuff. Memories of my grandpa."
"Really? You were a grandpa's boy? That's surprising."
"Rude! I was totally spoiled! Looking back, Grandpa's upbringing shaped me—or maybe our bloodline's just a bit unhinged. Let's skip the old stories."
"Now I'm even more curious. Spill it."
Diavel presses, but I ignore him, sipping the awful coffee (it's got zero coffee flavor).