Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Tutorial (1)

Skin green like algae, a skinny frame, hooked nose, fangs.

The moment I saw the goblin, my first thought was Attack!'

Why? Do we really need a reason? Goblins are simply creatures meant to be slaughtered (in games), are they not?

I reflexively raised the club that was rolling on the ground beside and struck the goblin in the head.

The impact of wood on bone felt so real that I couldnt help but flinch for a moment.

But even more surprising was that the goblin, who I thought would be killed in one shot, didnt even get knocked down, and counterattacked instead.

Kyakyak!' screamed the goblin as he swung his dagger. The tip almost carved out one of my eyes.

What? What the hell? This is too damned realistic!'

Taken aback, I swung the club once again. The goblin ducked under it and swung his dagger.

Give and take, give and take, give and take.

That was how the goblin and I exchanged swings and misses, until I finally landed a lucky shot.

The goblin staggered back with a grating kwikwi-.

I seized my chance and rammed into him, sending him down to the ground. Then I started smashing his head without a single speck of mercy.

Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Fffuuuck! Just die, damn it!

I still remember that hard yet moist feel, but the more I hit him, the more it felt like reality than a game.

But that was nonsense, wasnt it?

By then the goblin's head had burst like a watermelon. I calmed down and looked around.

It was dark, and walls that felt like they were made of cement were there at all sides. And above all, the place reeked.

Through the acrid smell, I was able to intuit that this was a sewer. I remembered what she had said.

Ratlings Lets just say that theyre monster rats that live in the sewers. A mutant race created by the goddess Derubo, who loves the cursed and the marginalized.

I looked at my hands. Little pink hands, and arms covered in brown fur.

I touched my face, and I could feel the bristling hair, long whiskers, protruding nose, and sharp fangs.

So I really look like a rat. A monster rat, at that. I wouldve preferred being a handsome blond instead. But man, this really feels real. Technology marches on, indeed.'

It was regrettable, but I wasnt particularly upset. Wasn't this just a game, anyway? Id been informed beforehand, so I wasn't too shocked.

Rather, the difficult part was to decide what to do next.

I didn't have much information about the game, and I couldn't figure out what the hell a monster rat in a sewer should do.

Hunt goblins? Kill adventurers, even? This felt a bit too real, though.

I felt like Id be more comfortable if I had something to do. Like a quest.

Right at that moment, remembering that this was a game, I shouted into the air.

Status window!

Silence.

Status?

Silence.

"System? Jarvis? Friday?

Silence, silence, and more silence.

There's nowhere else to go anyway, so if I follow him, something should happen, right?'

Having come to a conclusion, I shoved myself into the crack too.

Then, to my surprise, my chubby body began to contort to fit into the crack. It didn't hurt at all.

Rather, it easily squeezed in and began to swim freely among the cracks and gaps, as if it knew how to do that from birth.

The ratling's voice urged me forward.

"Hurry! Hurry!"

I followed the sound. Soon, we arrived at a huge empty area. It reminded me of a shelter, and there were a total of twelve rats gathered there.

The ratling whod brought me here said to his fellows.

"New. Kid. Brought here. Met. Just now."

The rats gathered around me. They were smaller than me, but the hungry expressions on their faces gave me goosebumps.

"Big. Looks delicious. Meat. Must be a lot.

Is he young? Eat?"

Eat? Eat?

I doubted my ears for a while. This was our first meeting; I couldn't believe that they were treating me like food. I realized all over again that these were no run-of-the-mill rats. These were monster rats.

Aren't rats ferocious beasts that eat not only their own but also their young?

Hey, you said I was delicious right now, right?

I grabbed my club and the knife Id taken from the goblin, each in one hand.

At that time, the rat whod brought me said.

"Not. Food. Killed. Goblin. I. Saw."

Then, voices of exclamation and denial flowed from here and there.

No. Cant!"

"No way!"

Eat? Eat?

The ratling insisted again and again.

"Really! Knife. Evidence!"

The rats looked at me and noticed. I showed everyone the blade Id taken from the goblin.

"It's real!"

"Really! Really!"

"Not. Food. One of us! Brother!

Are we going to eat? Something to eat?

I was dumbfounded. From being treated as prey, to suddenly being treated as kin? Talk about whiplash.

Seriously, it felt like that. Like I was about to receive a quest. And then the rat whod brought me in, continued.

"Partner! Brother! Together. Goblins. Let's get rid of them!

I knew it!

Editor's Notes:

None for this chapter.