The demon snake Naga writhed at Minori's feet, cold sweat pouring from its scales as it twisted in agony.
It felt as if its heart were being devoured by countless ants—no, crushed slowly by an unseen force. An oppressive, suffocating sensation engulfed its entire body.
"So, the Naga have some resistance to curses… but not much."
Minori narrowed his eyes. The black aura of the curse was still faintly flickering across the wound he had inflicted with a broken iron sword. He extended a hand toward the Naga's chest, gripping the air.
A thread of black energy pulled free from the wound, unraveling like mist and dissipating into the forest air.
The Naga gasped as the pain lessened. Its coiled body collapsed limply onto the bloodstained ground, chest heaving.
Minori had grown much more proficient with curses. Over the past few weeks, he had refined the applications of the power stored within his Curse Knight class. Field tests on wild beasts and monster types had yielded one conclusion: attacks that landed closer to the heart were dramatically more effective.
"It seems we can communicate properly now," Minori muttered calmly.
The Naga's reptilian eyes trembled in panic, yet it forced itself upright, still breathing raggedly.
"I-I surrender…!" it said, fear saturating its voice.
It had met humans before—arrogant, fragile, powerless. But this one… this one could kill him. The agony he had just experienced was no illusion. It had clawed at the edges of death.
Minori tossed aside the broken iron sword and casually pulled his black longsword from the ground.
The motion made the Naga flinch violently. Its tail curled inward, defensive and trembling.
"No need to misunderstand," Minori said, forcing a smile to appear more friendly—though the effect was the opposite. "This is a negotiation. Cooperation."
The Naga didn't believe a word of it. Humans were sly and deceitful, and this one was terrifying. But its heart pounded—not just with fear, but with confusion.
"Have you ever thought of ruling the entire Tob Forest?" Minori asked casually. "The Western Lord—Naga, was it?"
"…Rule the forest?," the Naga muttered after a pause, eyes still locked on him.
"Right," Minori nodded. "I've already cleared out Ogre Guu's territory. Every powerful monster, every ogre horde—gone. You could move in now and take it over easily."
The Naga blinked in disbelief.
That… matched the strange silence on his way here. No resistance, only bloodstains and devastation. It hadn't dared to think it was because someone had cleared the place.
"My land is to the far west. We're separated by the Forest King's territory," the Naga murmured.
Ruling the whole forest? He'd never considered it. He wasn't as strong as the Wise King of the Forest, nor as brutishly dominant as Ogre Guu. But now…
"I can help you take care of them too," Minori added, still smiling.
This time, the Naga's eyes lit up with unrestrained greed and ambition. The dream was right there, offered to him like a fruit. All thoughts of escape evaporated.
But he sobered quickly. Why would a powerful human help him for nothing?
"What do you want in return?"
Minori tilted his head, smiling as he gestured toward the silent, regenerating Ogre Guu near the cave entrance.
"I admire intelligent partners. I need you to raise goblins."
"…What?"
The Naga thought he'd misheard.
"That's right. Goblins. The more, the better."
Minori's tone was as casual as if discussing the weather, but his mind was far ahead. He already knew that monsters didn't respawn like in a game. If he kept killing high-level creatures, he'd eventually draw attention from powerful native factions—maybe even Dragon Lords.
But goblins? Goblins reproduced like wildfire.
"You're… serious?"
"I am."
The Naga looked lost. Minori almost laughed. He was thinking long-term. Farming goblins to raise his level steadily without destabilizing the world. It was a sustainable method for a Player in a reality-bound system.
"I can tell if someone is lying," the Naga suddenly said, his slit pupils staring at Minori.
"Can you now?" Minori raised an eyebrow. "Originally, I planned to use Ogre Guu. Ogres are strong and ideal for controlling goblins… but he failed as a partner."
"I'll do it. I'll serve you," the Naga said, eyes flickering with both terror and anticipation.
"No. This is cooperation," Minori corrected again, smiling.
"There's a goblin faction in the forest—calls itself the Gigu Tribe. Dominate them. You can use them to gather others."
Then his smile faded. His tone darkened.
"But there's one condition. You cannot tell anyone about our deal. As a precaution, I left something small behind—at your heart."
The Naga's eyes widened in terror.
"Aghhhh!!" The pain returned in an instant, as if a nest of fire ants had erupted inside his chest.
Then, it vanished.
Minori turned away, leaving the serpent gasping. That final flare had been bluster; the curse energy was gone. But the Naga didn't know that.
"Serve me for four years," Minori said calmly. "After that, I'll remove the curse myself. You can verify—I'm not lying, right?"
"…I am willing… Lord of the Great Tob Forest…"
The Naga prostrated itself, trembling.
After sealing the pact, Minori sent the snake slithering back to its own territory—to call the other strong monsters.
He had no intention of wasting potential experience points. As for whether the Naga would betray him… it didn't matter. Loyalty was a tool, not a requirement.
Back at the cave, Minori returned to his potion experiment. He placed the filled blood barrel into his item box and replaced it with another under Ogre Guu.
"A waste to let this go unused," he muttered.
Ogre Guu's regenerative blood might yield a better version of his potion—perhaps one even capable of restoring more than limbs.
"Ah, I forgot to take some of that demon snake Naga's blood last time…"
Minori muttered to himself as he walked."Wonder what effect an alchemical potion using that would have?"
"Next time, then."He made a mental note.
Fire Month, September 25th.
It had been more than half a month since Minori last set foot in the Tob Forest.
Now, once again, he was hovering mid-air above the dense green canopy that blanketed the domain of the so-called Wise King of the Forest—Hamsuke.
A thin, translucent aura of magic power coated his body. Minori raised a hand, and with a flick of his wrist, five ogre corpses materialized beside him and plummeted down.
Boom!
The bodies smashed into the forest below, sending birds screeching into the sky and triggering beastly howls deep within the trees.
"That should get his attention."
All the goblin corpses he'd once stockpiled had already been distributed to the ogres under his control. Now, his Item Box held over two hundred ogre corpses.
He hadn't brought the little evil dog with him this time. The creature wouldn't be useful in the fight to come, and more importantly, it was better employed watching over the ogre Guu back at the hideout.
The charm effect on Guu wouldn't last forever.
Instead, Minori had crafted several [Charm of All Races] scrolls, sacrificing some of the [Fourth-Tier Angel Summoning] scrolls he was originally planning to produce. He'd given those charm scrolls to the evil dog. Once the magic wore off, the dog would simply bite and trigger a scroll to keep Guu under control.
Rustle.
Rustle.
Movement.
Minori, still hovering, narrowed his eyes. A large grayish-white shape moved with shocking speed beneath the canopy, heading directly for the ogre corpses.
There you are.
In the underbrush below, the Wise King of the Forest—Hamsuke—glided like a fat bullet through vines and branches. Despite his size, he was incredibly fast.
"Corpses?"
The massive hamster reared up on his hind legs, covering his nose with a claw in mock disgust.
"Ugh, that stench… Why are ogres dead here?"His glowing eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"Wait… could it be… that human? The one who flew?"
"Tch! I hate flying things the most!"
Boom!
A sound tore through the sky. Hamsuke's ears twitched. He looked up, but the thick forest blocked his view.
Then—
Slice!!
A brilliant arc of magical energy shredded through the leaves above, crashing downward like a guillotine.
Clang!
Hamsuke reacted instantly. His metal-colored claws clashed with the incoming magic slash. The impact sent wind surging outward in a sharp gust.
Leaves and broken branches rained down. Hamsuke shook his body, clearing the debris, and looked up once more.
The hole left behind by the slash opened a gap in the foliage.
And through it, he saw—
"YOU!! YOU DISGUSTING HUMAN!!"
The Wise King roared furiously as he spotted Minori suspended above the treetops.
"So it really is you! You dared come back!"
"That blow was blocked so easily?"
Minori frowned slightly, holding his magic sword in his left hand.
"Stronger than the ogre Guu or the demon snake Naga… Good."
"This will be fun."
Without warning, Minori leaned forward and shot down like a bullet, breaking through the canopy in a blur.
"Quick Slash!"
With both hands gripping the hilt, he delivered a lightning-fast blow from above.
"RAAH!! I won't let you escape this time!!"Hamsuke snarled, claws lashing out to meet him mid-air.