"..."
"I stood up and dusted myself off. First things first: let's test this 'Gentle Husband' talent so I don't end up a widower before I even get married."
So, I approached the dangerous entity lying on the ground. As I reached out my trembling hand and touched her golden hair, a light energy flowed from my palm toward her. Let's wait and see if this actually works.
The result of the thirty minutes I spent by her side like a statue? Eh, as expected; there was no miraculous recovery.
The wounds hadn't closed instantly, but the bleeding had stopped, and the pained expression on her face had relaxed slightly. That's to be expected from a Blue-tier talent anyway, but on the bright side, it didn't seem to deplete any of my Mana. So, it looks like this will work passively even if I don't want it to.
"Now then~" Since it's certain I'll be staying here for a long time to restore my potential wife to health, let's create Reiner's Perfect Survival Plan!
I picked up a dried stick I found on the ground and started thinking aloud while drawing random shapes in the dirt of the cave floor.
"Since the moon is high right now, I have absolutely no intention of going outside. I'll start putting the plan into motion after surviving the night."
I moved my stick to the symbols of meat and a plastic bottle I had drawn.
"As for necessities, since the cave is already serving as a shelter, my first target will be water, fire and food."
"Fire. If I don't want to die from dirty water or eating raw food, this is mandatory. Luckily, even though it's night, there isn't a freezing cold in the air. If I had to freeze to death on my first night in this world, I would cry."
Pointing the stick at the lizard shape on the ground, I turned my gaze to the side where my "potential wife" was sleeping.
"For the rest of the time, I shouldn't leave her side. Even if the Gentle Husband talent doesn't provide super-powerful healing, it definitely has an effect."
"But... Ughhhh... Why do I have to do all this knowing she might kill me the moment she heals? Why do I have to go through this just because I want to be loved? I would have accepted a cute high school romance in a school uniform."
My gaze involuntarily drifted to Stella. Moonlight was hitting her face. To be honest... She is excessively beautiful. My childhood crush, Angelina, was a beautiful woman, but Angelina looks like a pair of knock-off sunglasses next to her.
Golden eyelashes, blonde hair flowing like a waterfall, snow-white skin... Honestly, she is beautiful enough to make anyone want to look at her again and again. If you ignore her 4-meter height, she looks like a work of art.
"Okay, maybe my luck isn't that bad..."
I paused while looking for a place to lie down. The talent required close contact to work. But where could I touch a woman without it counting as harassment?
"I guess... the leg is a safe zone."
I swallowed in fear. If she woke up, she could crush me like a fly, but I had no other choice. I believe she would agree with me; after all, I'm doing this to save her life. I approached hesitantly and hugged her leg, which was almost as tall as I was.
"Oh wow..."
It was much softer than I expected; her skin was like cotton. It was so comfortable that all the stress of the day, the fear of death, and fatigue suddenly crashed down on me. My eyelids slowly grew heavy, and Reiner's first husband-wife nap in this world took place.
***
I opened my eyes with the sunlight hitting my face. I think I might have drooled a little. Ahem! I quickly sat up and wiped my mouth. When I looked at Stella, her wounds still looked terrifying, but they seemed better than yesterday.
"Great. It works."
I couldn't celebrate the recovery status because my stomach growled, reminding me that it clearly had more important priorities. I tensed up and headed toward the cave exit. Of course, I didn't stop praying to my one and only goddess for survival as I left.
"My dear Goddess Gaia, please let me return alive. Help this beloved servant of yours."
The moment I stepped out of the cave, my breath was taken away. The vibrant green of the trees, the clean air filling my lungs, the sunlight filtering through the leaves... For a moment, I forgot everything and just watched. This view was more beautiful than all the dreams I had built between those gray laboratory walls.
"Wow..."
I started walking forward in admiration, and let me tell you, the romance didn't even last five minutes. As one ventures deeper into the forest, one realizes something: Forests are great when viewed from afar, but inside, the situation is not quite like that...
Because of the dense branches covering the sky, the interior was dim and oppressive. Vines sticking to my face with every step, thorns cutting my skin, and that endless buzzing of insects... What do people love about this?!
As I muttered to myself and dealt with the bugs constantly appearing on me, my eyes lit up when I saw a thin gray column rising from among the trees. The symbol of civilization! Yes, Smoke!
Hoping to find someone I could ask for help, I ran toward the smoke. After all, animals can't build campfires, right? When I excitedly arrived at the location, what I saw was not quite what I expected.
I quickly hid behind some bushes and observed the campsite. It was a small camp. There was a dying campfire, cone-shaped tents, and large bags filled with supplies. It was exactly the adventure camp I had dreamed of. Except for one problem.
The three people sitting around the fire were not human. Snake heads, scaled human bodies, and wearing leather armor, they were speaking with hissing sounds.
"Snake Men..."
Those who play TOT know that this universe is not a place where you can say "Let's hold hands and sing songs." The power competition between races is bloody. And these reptile friends in front of me definitely do not view humans as "neighbors."
But wait, let's not get pessimistic immediately. This doesn't mean we are completely unlucky. Snake Men are types we classify as "trash mobs" in the early levels of the game. With enough intelligence and strategy, I should be able to do something.
I took my planning stick and started forming my plan on the dirt.
"First, I will wait for one member to separate. You might ask, why would they leave the camp? Let me answer you. The moment every living being is most vulnerable... When they go to the bathroom! No matter who you are, as long as you live, you are vulnerable when Mother Nature calls."
A sly smile spread across my face.
"While he does his business in peace, I will go and attack him from behind using my Tough Guy talent. Once I finish him off, I'll loot his armor and sword and bolt out of here without dealing with anyone else!"
(3.5 hours later)
Yes, I waited exactly 210 minutes for a snake's bladder to fill up. My brain had gone numb from listening to the hissing sounds of their language, but finally, one of them stood up!
Fearful of making a sound, I followed him from a distance. When he was far enough from the camp, he stopped and checked his surroundings. Once convinced no one was around, he loosened his armor.
When I heard the sound of flowing water, I slowly emerged from behind the tree where I was hiding. I activated my Tough Guy talent. I selected Basic Element Master from Stella's vast pool of talents.
At that moment, the same blue panel appeared again, but a few things had changed:
[USER STATUS]
Name: Reiner Hart
Race: Human
Level: 1 - MORTAL > FORMATION (Fake)!
Points: 0
[BASIC STATS]
Strength: 10 > 7.615!
Speed: 10 > 6.160!
Endurance: 10 > 8.263!
Intelligence: 10 > 7.937!
Mana: 10 > 25.064!
[TALENTS]
1. Sacrifice (Pink)
2. Soul Bond (Pink)
3. Smile (Crimson)
4. Tough Guy (Purple)
5. Gentle Husband (Blue)
6. Basic Element Master (New!) (Blue)
"It dropped from Crimson to Blue? Wow, I feel like I just took out a high-interest loan from the bank. Wait, this isn't the time to talk!"
Quickly thinking about my newly acquired talent, I focused on the indispensable classic of the magic world. With a sensation of heat in my hand, a fire began to rise from my palm. For those who can't guess: It's a Fireball!
I aimed the fireball in my hand at the Snake Man, who was experiencing one of the most peaceful moments of his life. The creature saw the light too late, and just as he was about to turn around in shock, I had already released the spell.
"Everything went according to plan, hahahah! The only thing left is to loot his armor and equipment and run!"
While I was rejoicing like this, I cannot say that things went exactly as I planned.
The fireball coming out of my hand was the size of a soccer ball, but the moment it left my palm, it instantly grew to the size of an elephant. A roaring, massive cannonball of hell swallowed the Snake Man and did not slow down.
The massive fireball continued forward, obliterating all trees, bushes, and the ground in the distance all the way to the Snake Men's camp. In front of me, a charred, flat highway stretching all the way to the camp had formed.
Instead of the snake man who was spending time in peace just a moment ago, only smoking earth and a heavy smell of burning remained.
Inside the camp area, the other Snake Man, who was about to eat his meal with a stew bowl in his hand, was looking at me. First, he looked at the vanished forest, then at the vanished tents, and finally, back at me.
"..."
"..."