Through the surge of unpleasaions, Daisuke shifted his focus to the creature’s name, intrigued by its corretion with “Honey.” sulting the Monster Guide Handbook, now seamlessly ied into the System interface, he discovered that Honey Orhabited the Thra’gul Mountains.

  Upon reag maturity, these Orcs permitted Honeys—a winged io inhabit their hollow tusks. In exge for providing a safe haven from predators, the Orcs occasionally received honey. It erfect example of symbiosis—a mutually beneficial retionship.

  Daisuke wasn’t impressed. “Well, I hope I never have the pleasure of crossing paths with one on a straight and narrow road,” he muttered sarcastically.

  “Rawrwu~”

  “You’re right, buddy—let’s dive bato the heart of the matter,” Daisuke remarked, his hand ing up to cup his in ption. “If I could store twenty-five corpses, does that mean I also store the same number of live monsters?”

  In respoo the rhetorical question, Zephyr seized the initiative and darted into the thick foliage in pursuit of prey. Daisuke nodded appreciatively, aowledging his panion’s instinctive a, before reag into his iory to discard a single corpse.

  The Forest Imp quietly materialized on the ground, its still form enveloped in a faint blue glow that dissipated like pixie dust. It was one of the earlier monsters Daisuke had salvaged on his way to Elmridge with Elena and the others. Like food, he hat the corpse hadn’t deposed at all.

  It didn’t take long for Zephyr to return, his jaws firmly gripping a filing Horned Rabbit. It was evident that the effort had taken a toll on the pup t it back alive.

  “Great work!” praised Daisuke, his hand promptly grasping the creature by its long, furry ears. “Now, let’s put that theory to the test.”

  DING!

  [Your iory has reached its maximum capacity for st monsters.]

  “Darn. Well, so much for that idea,” Daisuke muttered, effortlessly dispatg the white-coated fiend with a swift ssh of his bde. “But hold on a sec!” he excimed, a memory of hunting expeditions with Professor Bayley surfag in his mind. “What if I use a magic bag? Could I haul more mobs that way? The real kicker is the cost; they’d likely demand my ans as payment.”

  “Krrk,” Zephyr growled, tugging on Daisuke’s pants with his teeth, harmless yet insistent.

  “What’s the matter?” Daisuke inquired.

  Zephyr twirled around, as if chasing his tail, then darted ahead and stopped to gaze ily at his rade.

  “Do you wao follow you? Is that it?” guessed Daisuke.

  “Arf!”

  “Now that I think about it, you weren’t running away from those Kobolds, were you?”

  Zephyr barked in firmation.

  “In that case, I’m right behind you,” Daisuke said as he ioried the Horned Rabbit instead of the Imp. “Just lead the way.”

  ***

  In the suffog embrace of darkness, a lone girl sat, her skin slick with sweat, her delicate face marred by soot. Memories stirred within her as she slept, flickering like wildfire in her mind’s eye. The ominous rattle of s, the chilling touetal restraints, the monstrous profile of a crazed butcher, futile attempts to escape, excruciating pain, and then, enveloping bess.

  Mana’s eyes snapped open in arm, her chest heaving with ragged breaths. As she sat on a bed of hay against a cavern wall, a wave of nausea washed over her, and her memories felt distant and hazy. Yet, a dull ache and a vague recolle drew her attention to her waist.

  Gasping in horror, Mana’s breath caught ihroat at the sight of her amputated and cauterized leg. A surge of grief twisted her expression, and she began to sob untrolbly, careful to stifle her cries so as not to alert the savage beasts prowling the chamber.

  ***

  Amara felt like a lost mb surrounded by a pack of ravenous wolves. She k inside a half-destroyed chapel, a waning barrier barely keeping her lustful e bay.

  The bandits sprawled across the dimly lit chamber, indulging in food and drink with rowdy abandoe their feast, their hungry gnces would occasionally fixate on Amara—a huhat meat and wine couldn’t satisfy.

  Once a sanctuary for worship, the chapel had been transformed into a base for hooligans and their nefarious agendas. Yet Amara refused to see it as such. Despite her dire circumstances, she g to her faith, spending every moment in captivity devoted to prayer.

  The leader of the bandits abruptly pushed to his feet, brushing off the ckey who was just about done applying the bao his swollen his is the st straw,” he decred venomously, anding the attention of his rades. “That damn goblin has made a fool of us for the st time!”

  The bandits, the gear they had plundered from adventures, surged upright and brandished their ons, their faces refleg their leader’s fury aermination.

  “We’ve amassed enough wealth from this unsavory alliahe man reasoned, his voice filled with vi. “Now rocure all the horses we need and expand our forces.”

  The men raised their ons and roared in agreement.

  “The goblins are nothing without the might of the Orc. While the beast is still outside the vilge, it’s the perfect time to strike. We’ll pay those damn green bastards back for every ounce of humiliation we’ve endured.”

  “YEAH!!” the bandits gave ahunderous cheer, their spirits s with anticipation.

  “What about the girl?” Queried one of the men.

  The leader strode fidently toward the golden barrier and shed out with his knife, but the bde failed to pee the glowing sphere. heless, the sound of impact visibly uled Amara, causing the barrier to fluctuate as her tration wavered.

  The man smirked. “It’s just a matter of time before she runs out of mana and the barrier dissipates,” he informed, a knowing glint in his eye. “Norman. Egga,” he gestured at the two men, “you’ll remain behind and keep our hostage secure. But don’t you dare get ahead of yourselves. I’ll be the first to take that woman; I didn’t get my nose crushed out of simple charity, y’know.”

  Laughter erupted from the group.

  “That only goes without saying.”

  “Roger that!”

  Norman and Egga replied with matg grins, their eyes hungrily trag the girl’s features like a physical caress.

  “Alright, you bastards,” the leader decred, his tone full of resolve. “Let’s go and sughter some shitty goblins! I’ve had just about enough of this bsted pce!”

  “OHRAHH!”

  ***

  Ma herself emerging from her stupor to a cool sensation enveloping her injured leg. Her vision sharpened slightly, allowio dis a lone woman nearby, her haing a soothing white light.

  “…A-Amara?” she muttered weakly, her voice hoarse and barely above a whisper.

  “…I think you have me fused with someone else, dear,” the woman replied with a wan smile.

  Mana’s body te the realization. She attempted to shift her leg away, but the movement only rewarded her with a jolt of excruciating pain.

  “Careful,” the woman cautioned softly, her voice carrying a hint of . “You wouldn’t want to reopen the wound; you’ve already lost quite a bit of blood.”

  “…Who are you?” asked Mana defensively.

  “A prisoner, like yourself,” came the straightforward reply. “I’m Gloria. And you are?”

  “…Mana,” replied the girl, her gaze assessing the nun whose burly disposition almost rivaled Gret’s. “I’m an adventurer,” she began, then gnced down at her leg with a sigh. “Although, with this kind of injury, it might be more accurate to say I’m a former adventurer.”

  “I see,” said Gloria, her attempt to sole the girl falling short as she struggled to find the right words.

  “…Where am I?”

  “We’re inside a goblin’s cave.”

  Closing her eyes, Mana pressed her fiips to her temples, hoping to untahe threads of memory that eluded her grasp. A relentless headache pulsed behind her eyes, plig her efforts to piece together the events leading up to this moment. Even the ordeal of losing her leg felt like nothing more than an i nightmare. A was undeniably real.

  “…That goblin with the staff,” Mana began, her voice quivering with uainty, “it didn’t seem like your typical mo all.”

  As the woman rose to her feet, the faint k of her shackle echoed in the dim cave, the long ected to it disappearing among the rge rocks and hordes of old furniture cluttering the cave.

  “Very perceptive,” Gloria aowledged with a wry smile.

  Using the wall for support, Mana gingerly stood up. Beyond the chaos of the clutter, she glimpsed several crudely made tents illuminated by the soft glow of mana crystals. To the far left, near one of the tents, a group of goblins bored with primitive tools, their movements frenzied yet purposeful.

  “What are they building?” she inquired, her gaze sing the area in a futile attempt to locate her bow and quiver.

  “…Your tent,” Gloria informed ftly, a hint of hopelessaintione.

  Mana’s eyes quivered. At the woman’s ominous words, she felt a sense of dread settle over her. She somehow khat a fate awaited her that was far more painful than the loss of her severed leg, and more terrifying thah itself.