Day 10 – Cave**
My body woke me up with pain. The bed was just a square block hardened with earth magic, so the comfort hadn't changed much from sleeping directly on the floor.
"Guh… it hurts!"
Every joint creaked. If this kept up, my body would break down.
Yesterday, wood magic had appeared in my status. The name clearly emphasized "wood," so it had to do something with wood.
It might accelerate growth, but if it could process or shape wood, that was worth testing.
I gathered goblin clubs and scrap wood to start experimenting with wood magic.
I had no idea how to use it, so I tried the usual: wrapping the wood with packaging magic and slowly bending it.
"Bend… bend… ohhh!"
It responded to my suspicious psychic-like chant and actually bent.
I no longer knew what kind of magic this was, but it worked. Maybe it functioned the same way as earth magic.
…
What had I done?
In the center of the room now stood a large mid-century modern-style table. From the side, it formed a long rectangular box shape, supported by four tapered legs made from stretched goblin clubs.
Around it sat eight Eames-style shell chairs with simple four-leg bases. In the middle was an egg-chair-inspired seat, and in the corner, a full-sized ball chair completed the set.
This was bad. I had completely forgotten the original purpose. And why did a loner need so many chairs…? No, no, I'm not lonely at all!
The real goal—the bed—was made from stacked corner beams like campfire wood, topped with thin lattice slats for a spring-board effect. No mattress, nothing like a real spring bed, but compared to solid stone, it was more than enough.
I built a stylish rack shelf along the wall, but I had nothing to put on it. I placed a club there experimentally.
…The stylish vibe vanished instantly.
Objectively speaking, though, the room looked far cooler than my old 6-mat apartment back home. Everything was wood and rock, of course. The old place had been cramped, and I never had money for furniture anyway.
I lost track of time completely. Hours had passed—it was already well past noon. Lunch first.
Even though it was late, today's plan: the skill map showed exploration only along the river—upstream (deeper forest) and downstream. The areas left and right of the river remained untouched. Not knowing what was on the right side of the cave made me uneasy, so I decided to explore the right bank.
The forest wasn't as dense as the deep woods, but the trees still grew thick.
"There are quite a few around."
Goblin presences dotted the area everywhere. They might come to the cave eventually. Even if they're trash mobs, numbers matter. If that many swarmed at once, no chance of winning.
I had to thin them out one by one.
To survive, I needed to level up, gain skills, and sharpen combat experience. To live safely, I had to take risks.
I approached carefully while keeping "Presence Concealment" and "Stealth" active. Three of them. None had particularly high levels.
I readied the staff and advanced while tracing the movements I'd practiced in my imagination. I steadied my breathing. I closed the distance on the nearest center goblin while suppressing my presence, then swung both hands in a left-to-right slashing motion.
The left and right goblins roared and raised their clubs, charging.
I gripped the staff's end with my right hand alone, thrust straight into the right goblin's chest, then switched hands mid-recoil and swung wide to the left. As the panicked goblin backed away, I formed a fireball and launched it while simultaneously thrusting the staff into its neck.
I exhaled deeply and scanned around. The right goblin was still breathing. I approached, delivered the finishing blow, and stayed alert while concealing my presence again.
Did it work? The result felt excellent. All that solo fantasy staff training had paid off… don't say it hurts! Somehow my heart hurts too.
But it felt almost too perfect. The first goblin had somehow been sliced clean through. Blood splattered everywhere because of it.
I had definitely wrapped mana around the staff and imagined slashing like a sword, but actually cutting? What kind of "hold it like a sword" was this? Amazing, Shinto Muso-ryu!
No way that exists in the real world, so it must be the mana-wrap effect. Maybe boosted by the Archmage title or something? No clue.
The second goblin had a clear stab wound in the chest. I'd imagined a spear thrust that time, so it pierced.
And the biggest question: the follow-up naginata sweep I'd imagined. It missed, but… did it extend? It extended, right?
Shinto Muso-ryu staff arts are incredible—it extends? I never actually learned it, though. Yeah, I only heard about it from the otaku.
No way techniques like that existed back home without becoming super famous. So it's definitely the magic. Magic is amazing.
Because I wrapped magic around the staff, fireballs flew more easily too. This one should officially be called a fireball now, even if it only goes two meters… a fireball that doesn't fly is just a fireball, right? Exactly!
I should go back and verify properly, but since I'd come all this way, staying in the cave training forever would be dangerous.
Why? Because "Hikikomori," "NEET," and "Loner" levels would keep rising. Fine, but it's already too late to hide it.
I refocused, searched, searched—found more.
This time two. I slashed the first with an overhead cut, reversed the blade (well, staff), and cut down the second.
It really cuts. I casually sliced another approaching pair (with a staff), then thrust into the one that appeared next.
Yeah, no doubt. It cuts. It thrusts.
…
Darkness began to fall. When I snapped back to reality—what a scene. A field of goblin massacre. Splatter everywhere. Master craftsmanship? Sorry, got carried away.
With Lv 4 stats, my body moved freely. I could cut, thrust, sweep—midway through I completely lost control and did whatever I wanted to the endless stream of goblins.
When one blocked with a club, I imagined a hammer, weighted it with "Weight," and crushed. When one kept distance, I imagined a gun, sniped with fireballs, and kept the chain going.
Because they were all goblins, the stat difference let me overpower them. If kobolds (speed demons) or even stronger orcs had appeared, I'd have been the one killed.
This world isn't a game. Even if it's game-like, this is reality now. I need to stay disciplined or there might not be a next time.
I gathered magic stones and clubs, tossing them into the item bag. Thirty-two today. The last battle had been twenty-five goblins in a row.
I cooled my head and hurried home. If I had an Adventurer job, this much work would at least clear the "NEET" label. But no job means still unemployed.
With those thoughts, I returned home. It had become completely home. A comfortable 30-mat one-room compared to my old cramped 6-mat. Kitchen, bath, toilet—all complete somehow. Nothing I can say to Hikikomori me anymore.
While eating a late dinner, I reflected on the fights. No way guns exist here. Guns, no.
Isekai self-taught Shinto Muso-ryu staff arts—with magic included! "Thrust like spear, sweep like naginata, hold like sword, flee like sniper, defend like shield, if defended then crush. The staff never misses because it extends, and now with bonus magic power UP!!" …No way.
Imagining a gun made the fireball smaller but fly nearly ten meters. It spun, penetrated better—shape shifted from ball to bulle. That's cool. Careful imaging decides: pierce through, stop on impact, or burn on hit. And I still insist it's staff arts. Lots to think about.
Someday the Isekai Staff Arts Association might complain, but being a loner means no problem.
[Status updated Lv 05, HP 65, MP 61, major gains across board, new magic "Wood Magic Lv1," "Four Great Magics Lv1," skills like Mana Recovery Lv1, Physical Recovery Lv1, titles Hikikomori Lv3/NEET Lv2/Loner Lv3/Archmage Lv1, equipment Tree Staff?, Bracelet PoW +1%, etc.]
**Day 10 End**