Chapter 3 – I found a new friend while I was digging!
"Still, I've dug quite a lot now…"
According to the Advisor, my current position was about 30m below the surface.
And so I checked my inventory.
◇ Inventory
Rocks x 1230
Iron ore x 21
Copper ore x 19
Gold ore x 0.6
Silver ore x 2
Coal x 15
Limestone x 10
…
Ruby x 0.3
Saphire x 0.2
Crystal x 90
Turtle stone x 6
There were some materials that didn't even amount to 1. Apparently, this was because the mined materials were displayed as ingots.
However, Turtle Stones displayed the number of uses.
Two silver ingots… I had mined that much silver in just a few hours.
What would happen if I continued to mine…
Well, I would have no use for any of it unless I got out of here.
Besides, the ones that interested me the most were the Crystals and Turtle Stones.
I had never seen or even heard of them before.
The Turtle Stones extended your lifespan and were something I could probably use in an emergency.
As for the Crystal, they increased your magical energy.
While my magic was very weak, I was quite confident in my knowledge of it.
And so I had high hopes that they might allow me to use mid-range to advanced magic…
Well, how were these used?
<
The advisor suddenly asked.
Apparently, there was no need to take them out of the inventory.
I nodded, of course.
<
The Advisor said, but no matter how long I waited, I didn't feel any change.
Uhhh…were they used?
Yes, the Advisor answered.
Apparently, the crystals really had been used.
I suppose it was true that just a shift in energy wasn't going to cause any changes to the body.
They did say that brilliant magicians were able to detect the flow of energy inside of people.
But of course, I had no such advanced skills.
So novices like me would have to use magic to find out.
And so I decided to cast Wind, which was minor magic that used the wind attribute. I would clean out the dust that had accumulated in my path.
Previously, whenever I used this magic, people in the palace would mock me and say that it was just a gentle breeze.
I hoped that it would have improved a little, at least…
"Wind! …!?"
As I chanted with my right hand extended in front of me, the dust was blown away in an instant.
The wind roared and did not lose momentum until it escaped through the exit.
"What? …What?"
I couldn't help but look around, but there was no one else there.
Without a doubt, it had been me who had just unleashed Wind.
This was what happened after 90 Crystals collected in just a few hours.
If I gathered more, would I be able to use advanced magic?
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…I can't stop digging now!
Before I knew it, the pickaxe was in my hands again and I was swinging it.
"Alright! I'll continue digging! I'll dig all the way to hell if I…huh?"
As I shouted to myself with excitement, I realized that something like blue liquid was jiggling at my feet.
"What the hell?"
As it was moving, it clearly wasn't any normal liquid.
This thing…I believe they were monsters known as slimes.
I had never seen one before, but it had the exact features I had once read in a book.
They were monsters that preferred dark and damp places.
While they were usually mild-mannered, there were some that were more aggressive.
Would this one attack me?
No, it was just moving around me in a circle while hopping and looking in my direction.
Perhaps it had been alarmed by my wind magic and had come out to see what it was.
If it lived down here, I might be the first human its ever seen.
What should I do with it?
Well, since it wasn't harmful, I could just ignore it and keep mining.
I doubt it would get in my way…
Or I could even think of it as a pet. It was just as I was thinking this, that the Advisor interrupted me.
<
Tame?
I believe it was a skill that made monsters obey you.
All humans had this skill.
However, as almost all monsters were enemies, you were not allowed to tame them.
Furthermore, monsters were not even allowed to be brought into the kingdom of Sanfaris.
And so it was a skill that no one really used.
That being said, there was no one to blame me if I tamed a monster here…
I was a weak person.
I desperately wanted something to help me cope with my loneliness.
Of course, I doubted this slime could even talk.
…Still, I didn't care what it was, as long as it was close by.
And so without hesitation, I gave the order.
<>
A name…
As this was the Sheorl Reef, I could call it Sheorl…hmm, but that was too obvious.
I could change it a little and call it Shiel?
<
The voice rang. However…nothing seemed to happen to me or Shiel.
Shiel just continued hopping about.
"Nice to meet you, Shiel."
I tried talking to it, but Shiel didn't respond at all.
Of course.
It couldn't understand human speech, let alone talk.
However, just having a moving creature nearby was somewhat of a comfort.
And so I left Shiel to its own devices and picked up the pickaxe again.
"Alright. Now, it's time to get back to digging! Rocks will start falling down, so you be careful."
After that, I continued to dig until I was exhausted.
The whole time that I was digging, I would shout with joy about getting 100 Crystals or finding an emerald.
And Shiel just watched me silently from behind..
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Chapter 4 – I saved some goblins!
"Ahh, it feels so good…"
I was currently sleeping near the entrance to the cave while using the slime as a pillow.
3 days had now passed since I tamed this slime…Shiel.
And during those 3 days, I did nothing but dig.
The result…
◇ Inventory
Rock x 4893
Iron ore x 71
Copper ore x 89
Gold ore x 5.8
Silver ore x 8.9
Coal x 88
Limestone 90
…
Ruby x 1.7
Sapphire 1.4
Crystal x 19
Turtle Stone x 39
Well, in short, I had about three times as much of every material as I had on the first day.
The only reason I didn't have more of the magic increasing Crystals, was because I was using them. In fact, I had used about 500 of them already.
And so my magic had become very powerful.
Now, I could just unleash thunder magic into the sea and catch any great fish that I targeted.
And if I was using water magic, I could make it rain enough to fill 5 barrels.
The use of mid-range magic had become very easy for me.
People had mocked my 'static electricity' and 'hand sweat' before. And so it was hard to believe that I had changed so much.
Like this, my food and water problem was solved.
And there was another thing I was grateful for. Shiel learned very quickly.
While it couldn't understand words, it could understand gestures.
Be a bed, carry me through the dungeon, Shiel did all sorts of things.
Furthermore, I was able to tame 10 other slimes aside from Shiel.
However, it seemed that it was harder to communicate with them compared to Shiel. And so currently, they were just wandering around freely.
I did give them all names…but to be honest, I couldn't tell them apart.
It was easier with Shiel, due to the way it moved.
Well, it was possible that Shiel was just special.
"Shiel…do my shoulders here."
I would point at the part I wanted to have massaged, and Shiel would twist its body and massage my shoulders.
"Ahh…there. Yes…"
In short. I was living rather comfortably on the island now.
I had escaped the dangers of death and had discovered a new reason to live, which was mining.
Of course, a diet consisting only of fish would get tiring very quickly, and I was considering doing something with magic…
But to be honest, I was thinking about little outside of mining.
After all, I could mine so many rare materials with just a swing of my pickaxe.
Nothing could be more fun.
Well, to be honest, it's not like I even had any options when it came to activities on this island.
…We'll dig again tomorrow!
And with that, I fell into a comfortable sleep on the cool bed that was Shiel.
…Hmm? What?
My eyes opened as I felt something poking my cheek.
Apparently, it was Shiel who had woken me.
I sat up and looked outside. The sky was still glowing with the colors of the morning.
The waves were calm. It was such a pleasant way of getting up.
"Shiel. Morning… Did you wake me up?"
Shiel stretched its body so that it looked like an arrow. And then it pointed in the direction of the sea.
"Did something happen? Hmm? That…"
There was a wrecked boat near the rocks.
It wasn't the one I had come here on. And there were scattered pieces of wood everywhere.
And around it, lay three figures that were not human.
The green skin… They were goblins.
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As I couldn't see any large ships in the area, they must have drifted here from far away.
The furs they were wearing were in tatters.
While this was just a pile of rocks, it was still land.
It was safer than drifting about on the sea.
And perhaps they had hoped to find food and water.
Unfortunately, it seemed that the waves had swallowed them up…
Judging by the condition of their boat, they must have been moving at a tremendous speed when they crashed against the rocks.
It would not be surprising if they were all dead.
However, I decided to go down and check.
Besides, maybe they had something I could use.
But then again, they might attack me…
Well, I was able to use mid-range magic now. I had nothing to fear.
And so I wasted no time in taking Shiel down with me to meet the goblins.
"…Hey. Are you alright?"
None of them reacted when I called to them.
On closer inspection, they were bleeding.
…Maybe they really were dead.
And so I approached each one to check if they were breathing.
And then surprisingly, I discovered that all three of them were still breathing.
"…So, they're still alive.
I did want to try and help them. But goblins were also monsters.
Goblins lived in tribes, and in general, there was hostility between them and humans.
In fact, humans were educated to kill goblins on sight. And goblins did the same to humans.
However, there were also supposed to be tribes that were on friendly terms with humans.
But it was hard for me to determine which these goblins would be…
Well, I was able to use mid-range magic.
The cave was dark, and the passages were complex.
There would be little chance of them sneaking up and attacking me while I was mining.
If I abandoned them here and let them die, I would be racked by guilt later on.
And so I quickly cast the healing magic, 'Recovery' onto the goblins.
A white light then enveloped them.
That stopped the blood from flowing.
It also seemed like their breathing became calmer.
As I wasn't an expert, I couldn't say for sure. But they seemed to have recovered?
Well, the problem was what I should do after…
They would get wet if I left them here.
And the tide would start to rise.
The sun would grow hotter as well, so it might be best to let them rest inside of the cave.
First…that one looked the lightest.
I picked up the smallest one of the goblins.
This one was about the size of a human child and hard dark green skin.
It was also round and very easy to carry.
After that, I chose a goblin that was slightly taller than the previous one.
Its green skin reminded me of leaves, but as it was also wrinkled, it was probably quite old.
As it was quite thin, it was also easy to carry.
The last one was a different matter.
Goblins were known to be small, but this was one was taller than even me.
Not only that, but it had a strong, muscular physique that seemed much closer to an orc than a goblin.
How am I going to…hmm?
As I wondered about this, Shiel stretched its body and picked up the large goblin. Then it started to carry the goblin up to the cave.
"Ah. Thanks, Shiel."
Shiel was getting more perceptive by the day.
And like that, we finished carrying all of the goblins up to the cave.
So, now what?
I really wanted to continue mining…
I couldn't leave them if they needed to be looked after, but there weren't any visible wounds anymore.
As there were food and water here, they could just help themselves if they woke up.
Before I knew what was happening, the pickaxe was in my hand.
"Shiel… Could you tell me if anything happens?"
Shiel didn't nod when it heard me.
And so I tried to convey what I had just said through gestures.
Perhaps it had worked, because this time Shiel stayed where it was and didn't follow me down to the tunnels.
…Now, I could continue mining to my heart's content!
And just like that, it was another day of my pickaxe hitting the rock walls.