Female Swordswoman

A month later, they stopped in a small town. It would take at least another month to reach their destination, perhaps three months if they traveled slowly.

Mel Carlo was somewhat puzzled. They had been traveling normally for the past month, yet they had suddenly stopped in a town like this.

"Mr. Freli, when are we setting out?"

"The road ahead is a little difficult, and we may encounter monsters along the way. So I plan to hire an adventurer. It would be even better if there are adventurers heading the same way, since that would save us the extra expense." Freli tied the carriage outside the Adventurer's Guild.

Claire followed behind Mel Carlo. The two could still talk from time to time, but Mel Carlo was not really a child, so they did not have that many common topics.

"Kids, can you watch the carriage for me? I'll go inside and ask if there's anyone heading to Oak City."

After Freli entered the Adventurer's Guild, Mel Carlo stood where he was and rolled his neck. He really wanted to go in and see what the Adventurer's Guild was like. After all, in all kinds of otherworld stories, adventure was the main theme.

But someone needed to watch the goods. Claire could not leave, and she was only a little girl. It was better for him to stay here.

"Mel, why do you always ignore me?" Claire slowly moved closer to him.

"It's just that I don't know what to say to you. If I truly disliked someone, I wouldn't even spare them a glance." Mel stretched lazily as he explained to Claire.

Over the past month, they had gotten to know each other somewhat. The month had been dull and peaceful. After all, merchants could occasionally sell some goods while traveling.

The proficiency of [Back Hop] increased by 1,500, bringing it to 3,101. [Stealing] had only been practiced 150 times in total, and its proficiency was now 470. They needed to conserve their strength at all times, since they had no idea whether they would encounter bandits or the like during the journey.

Current Effort Points: 33457.

If he spent it all on draws, even ten pulls would only cost 100 Effort Points. But the current prizes were practically useless to him. He neither dared to sell them nor eat them openly.

Normally, the system of an otherworld protagonist should have prompted some kind of update by now. Yet he only had this menu bar, with no response whatsoever.

He could only save them for now in case of emergency. Of the supplies he had drawn before, only the instant noodles had been used up a little.

"Mel, will you join the Demon King's Army someday?"

"I don't know. To me, joining anyone would be the same. I can't say what the future will be like either. I know too little about this world."

"Yeah, me too. There are too many things in this world that I don't know." Claire nodded. She did not know what her future would be like, so she could only live on with hope.

Those who often complained that they could not see the future were precisely those who had seen their own future.

Not long after, Freli came out with a female swordswoman beside him. Her outfit alone showed how capable she was. Her short clothes, bare arms, muscular build, and the sword hanging at her waist all made it clear that she was an adventurer of some skill.

Level: ?

It seemed this female swordswoman was at least 10 levels higher than him.

After training for so long, Mel Carlo had discovered that his level had not increased. He had never hunted any monsters before.

Diligent training was his only cheat. At the very least, his efforts would definitely yield results, providing the most straightforward feedback.

"This adventurer will be traveling with us to Oak City."

"Hello, I'm Kate. I'll be traveling with you from here on out." The female swordswoman greeted them warmly.

Mel Carlo gave the female swordswoman in front of him a slight nod. She had black hair like his. It seemed that black hair and black eyes were quite common in this world too.

"Hello, Miss Kate. We'll be relying on you to look after us along the way." Claire responded enthusiastically as well.

"No, I should be thanking you. I wanted to go to Oak City, but I've been waiting for a long time and no merchant caravans or travelers were heading there. I heard that the recent increase in monsters has made the road much less traveled." Kate hurriedly waved her hands.

During their travels, Mel Carlo had also confirmed something: most ordinary people were only Level 1, regardless of their status.

And aside from adventurers, ordinary people did not seem to discuss levels much either. After all, levels did not determine everything. Nobles were born nobles; it was decided by bloodline.

"Is this your son?" After getting into the carriage, Kate looked at Mel Carlo with some confusion.

"No. He's my employer. He hired me to take him to Oak City."

Hearing that, and considering Mel Carlo's age, she had a bold thought. Could he be some young master from a noble family who had run away to seek adventure?

After all, she had secretly run away to become an adventurer herself.

"Miss Kate, is something bothering you?"

"No, no." Kate hurriedly looked away, appearing slightly embarrassed because she had been staring at him.

But after only a short while, Kate turned her gaze back to Mel's face and asked quietly, "Little brother, did you secretly run away from home?"

"Hm?" Mel Carlo froze. What kind of question was that?

But he quickly realized that she might have assumed he was a young master who had run away from some family.

"No, I'm an orphan. Miss Kate, you're the one who secretly ran away, aren't you?"

"Of course not!" Kate immediately denied it.

But the faster she denied it, the more it proved that she had indeed sneaked away on her own.

This world simply did not have the saying about silver buried beneath one's own house.

"Still, going to Oak City is indeed a good choice. I heard the monsters there are much weaker. For adventurers who want to grow gradually, that is a very good place." Seeing Kate's embarrassment, Mel Carlo took the initiative to change the subject.

He was still a little doubtful. The muscles on Kate's body did not look like the physique a noble could possess in this world. But exceptions were possible. After all, some noble young ladies were proficient in everything from horseback riding to archery.

"Don't underestimate me. I'm very strong, you know." Kate looked at Mel indignantly. She always felt that this child was looking down on her.

"Of course. I know you're very strong. May I ask if you're level 10 now?"

"No, I'm not telling you. Adventurers traveling outside can't reveal their limits so easily. Little brother, I know that much." Kate crossed her arms, looking extremely confident.

Before leaving home, she had made thorough preparations. She was not some sheltered young lady who knew nothing of the world!

"I just wanted to see what skills you have so I could learn from you."

He had not yet fully confirmed whether skills beyond his level could be learned through someone else's instruction.

At least, he could not master the skills Anke had taught him beyond his level. After killing someone and running away, Master Anke would probably have a headache for quite some time.