"Now then... I wonder what sort of monsters inhabit this area."

The scene shifted from Middle City to the Eastern Plains. Since Shiori had not researched the local fauna in advance, she advanced cautiously through the grasslands, dagger held ready in her hand.

"...Oh? What is that...?"

After walking for some time, she spotted a wolf.

"Grrr... grrr..."

"A wolf, is it?"

The creature was pure white and roughly the size of a large dog. The words "White Wolf Lv2" floated above its head. It had already detected her presence and growled menacingly.

Shiori readied her dagger with a focused expression and slowly closed the distance.

"Grrr... grrrrr!"

"Ah... fuh!"

When the gap between them narrowed to less than ten meters, the White Wolf suddenly charged and leapt at her. Shiori calmly sidestepped the attack and slashed her dagger across its neck in one fluid motion as it passed.

"Gugyan!? Gugi... gyaaaah...!"

**Obtained White Fur.**

**Obtained 5E.**

The wolf collapsed and vanished in a burst of light, leaving behind a notification window listing the acquired materials and currency.

"As expected of monsters in the starting field—they’re rather weak. Well then, let’s continue hunting."

Satisfied with the smooth combat, Shiori nodded and resumed her hunt across the Eastern Plains, dagger in hand.

△△△△△

**Personal Belongings**

White Fur ×14

Black Fur ×11

Wolf Claw ×8

Money: 169E

△△△△△

"Hmm... this should be sufficient."

After roughly an hour of hunting, Shiori had also encountered and defeated several Black Wolves. With a respectable collection of materials and currency secured, she allowed herself a brief rest.

"I’ve gathered quite a bit... Shall we strengthen my equipment now? I’d also like to redesign the armor eventually, but let’s begin with the weapon..."

She allocated thirty of the collected materials to her dagger.

△△△△△

**[Normal Knife Lv5]**

Type: Dagger

Physical Attack: 10

Skill: "Slash"

△△△△△

With the weapon’s level increase, more stat points became available. Shiori immediately boosted its attack power and unlocked a new skill. She had named the skill "Slash" herself; its simple effect was to increase the power of the next attack after activation. Players were free to create skills of any name and function, though their potency remained limited by the equipment’s level. Even a dramatically named skill such as "Meteor Impact" would be weak at low levels.

"Slash!... The cooldown is about five seconds. Yes, that’s acceptable."

Shiori tested the enhanced swing, which struck with noticeably greater force than before, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Hmm... things are proceeding well. Perhaps I’ll venture a little deeper into the field."

Since the wolf hunts had gone smoothly, she pressed onward, eyes scanning the tall grass and scattered trees.

"Now then... what will appear next?"

As she advanced warily, ready for an ambush from any direction, a rustling sound erupted from the right.

"Something’s there...!"

Three small green figures burst from the grass.

"Gya gya gya!"

"Gah gah gah!"

"What... are those...?"

They were green-skinned creatures roughly seventy centimeters tall, clad in ragged loincloths, wielding crude knives, and wearing hideous, leering grins. The labels floating above them confirmed her suspicion.

**Green Goblin Lv5**

**Green Goblin Lv4**

**Green Goblin Lv5**

"Goblins... a classic fantasy staple. I would very much like to be attacked by them, but this is still hunting time. I must be patient."

Though a strong wave of temptation washed over her at the sight of these archetypal erotic-fantasy monsters, Shiori shook her head, refocused, and raised her dagger.

"Gugya gya...!"

"Gya gya gya!"

"Gyaaa!"

"Hah...!"

The goblins charged with knives raised. Shiori dodged their attacks with practiced grace, just as she had against the wolves, and counterattacked swiftly.

"Gah...!"

"Gyaaaah!? G-gya... gyaaaah!"

"Gyaaa gyaaa!"

One precise strike felled the first goblin. The remaining two paused momentarily in shock before renewing their assault. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"Ah...! Yes...!"

"Gyaaaah!?"

"Gugi... Gyaaaaaaah!"

Shiori evaded and countered with calm precision, eventually defeating all three.

**Obtained Crude Knife.**

**Obtained Shabby Loincloth ×2.**

**Obtained 12E.**

The goblins screamed and disappeared, leaving behind their loot. Shiori checked the notification window and lowered her dagger with a satisfied nod.

"No problems so far. Let’s continue."

She had only just begun to move again when three more goblins appeared.

"Gugyagya!"

"Gya gya gu gya!"

"Gugyaa gugyaa!"

"Ugh... more of them already..."

These newcomers had clearly detected her and approached with open hostility. Shiori readjusted her grip and raised her guard once more.

But at that moment—

"...Ahh!?"

A faint whistling sound came from behind, followed by a sharp pain in her thigh.

"An... arrow...? Where did that come from...?"

The projectile had struck her leg. The damage was minor, yet it was her first time being hit. As she tried to locate the archer while still watching the goblins ahead, a strange tingling sensation began to spread from the wound.

"Ah... what is this...? My body...!?"

The numbness raced through her entire leg in an instant. Shiori’s knees buckled, and she collapsed forward.

"Ah... um... paralysis...?"

A status window confirmed: **Status Ailment: Paralysis**. The numbness rapidly spread throughout her body until she could no longer support herself and fell onto her hands and knees.

"Gugyagya..."

"Gya gya gya..."

"Gugya gugya..."

"Gugyagya...!"

The goblins wasted no time. With lewd, sinister grins, the three in front and the bow-wielding goblin from behind closed in, surrounding the helpless Shiori.

"Ah... ah, no... well... ah... ahh... ♡"

Anticipation flooded her mind as she imagined what would come next, and her cheeks flushed with heat.

"Ah... I didn’t intend for this to happen right now... but it seems there’s nothing I can do about it anymore... ♡"

*How will these goblins violate me...?* ♡

"Gugyagya!"

"Gya gya!"

"Gugyaa gugyaa!"

"Gya gya gya!"

Paralyzed and unable to move, Shiori lay on the ground, her heart pounding with eager dread. The goblins reached out with dirty hands, their nasty smiles widening as they closed in on her defenseless body.