Chapter 17

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 17

Chapter Title: Coin-Picking Crow

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Pecking at breadcrumbs, I organized all the information I'd gathered so far.

There were five humans here in total.

Two men and three women: one mage, one archer, one priest.

And two warriors.

A pretty ideal party, all things considered.

Though it might not be entirely accurate.

I hadn't asked them directly; I was just judging based on their weapons.

Surprisingly, I could even see their names and levels.

I'd guessed I might see humans' info too, but I hadn't expected it to show up like this.

Why, even with three Curse Hounds, they all had the same generic name.

I figured humans would show as something like Homo Sapien LV10, but nope—it kindly displayed each one's proper name.

I wonder if changing your name would update the display.

That was all I could see, though.

No descriptions, traits, or skills for them.

Maybe it's because they're human, or my skill level's too low—hard to say.

Judging by them... they're just average, I guess?

Like hitting the recommended level zone in a game.

Nothing standout, but the party's balanced enough to cover weaknesses.

And then there was this odd one out.

He looked like he'd be the protagonist of some story, at minimum.

In other words, handsome.

Or, to put it another way, a pretty-boy parasite bird I wanted to smack.

His weapon was no joke either.

A gleaming silver longsword that screamed top-tier at a glance.

Enough to stir my material desires.

These adventurers were subtly strong but had some green edges, clear as day.

Based on my life experience so far (3 days), they had plenty of gaps.

Still, the party held together and stayed upbeat thanks to this Ethan guy, probably.

I caught a glimpse of him sparring with the warrior Hans—immediately obvious he was several cuts above.

And he was hiding it.

That weird symbol after his level was suspicious too.

The others were readable at a glance, but Ethan? Unfathomable.

I'll need to stay on edge around him.

"Chirp chirp."

Of course, Ethan wasn't in sight right now, so I stayed hidden and chirped like a crow.

Thud. Another bread crumb flew my way.

Humans sure know how to make good food.

I scurried over and pecked it up.

Observation confirmed: this level of contact was safe.

Still, no full reveals, just in case.

During the initial tailing, I locked eyes with the blue-haired girl—she looked a bit scared.

Not to brag, but my face is ridiculously cute.

No way she'd make that face at me... unless in this world, she might.

Why, it's a world where cute squirrels smash skulls with acorns, right?

She could've mistaken me for some disguised monster.

So, minimal safety: stay hidden.

The adventurers did show some goodwill to non-aggressive critters.

"Agwen, tossing bread crumbs is a bad habit."

...It was because it tasted bad?

"You only know one side of it. It's returning it to the ecosystem's true owners."

"Typical elf... What if some weird monster eats it and powers up?"

"Normal weird monsters don't eat bread."

"W-well, true..."

The weird crow pecked bread while eavesdropping.

"Anyway, it's odd. Tons of monsters, but no human traces anywhere. Did ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠folks catch on and evacuate early?"

"Hope so."

Seems Eternal Night talk hadn't spread wide.

Just Sage-level info?

Even if that Sage's a kiwi bird.

"Oh, here they come. Hans! Ethan! Find anything?"

He's kinda uncomfortable...

Still, gotta hear the intel.

They'd split up to search and regrouped here.

Naturally, Ethan's group had the most info.

"Laces were out."

"Laces?"

I crept closer.

Sounded intriguing.

"Laces out while it's still daytime?"

Erica questioned it.

Common knowledge: no Laces in sunlight.

"Not that strange. A strong evil spirit could let Laces roam nearby even in daylight."

Elf Agwen answered instead.

I perked my ears, cramming every word.

This stuff was vital intel.

Laces don't move by day, but strong evil spirits enable limited activity.

Got it.

"Saw a big, rundown building on the village outskirts. Felt strong resentment from inside. Hasn't attacked us yet, so probably an earthbound spirit."

Yes.

Keep spilling that info.

"Earthbound spirit... The culprit behind Skarnas Village disappearances?"

"Can't say for sure, but ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠likely."

Power of the crowd?

Five humans and one crow pinpoint the culprit already.

"So, what now?"

"Check the enemy's level first. If too risky, grab intel and bail."

"Right, but..."

Erica pondered Agwen's words.

"What do Hans and Mary think?"

"We're here—might as well exterminate the spirit. We've got a priest and silver gear."

"If we can, sure. But scout the threat first, like Agwen said."

The adventurers talked it out and decided.

Set up base camp here, handle night Laces to gauge the earthbound spirit's power.

Earthbound can't approach them directly, so fight minions for estimates.

"Good. That's the plan. Everyone know their roles? Laces might swarm, so fortify. Get Mary's blessings, bury silver items around."

Thought Ethan was leader, but Erica's naturally taking charge.

Makes sense—she spotted me first. Leader material.

Got plenty of intel; time to head back.

If they rushed the spirit, I'd follow—but they've got a day, so I can do my thing.

"Huh? Wait, there was a coin here..."

"Coin? Must've dropped it."

"No, a silver one! That's bread for days!"

Sometime ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠earlier, I'd eyed the silver coin in my beak, then headed home satisfied.

Pretty decent haul.

Got the prime intel I craved.

These humans' values, strength levels.

Useful for future encounters.

Even scored the presumed Eternal Night host's location for free.

Hell, I could just flap in my nest, and those adventurers might handle it.

The other four are standard, but Ethan stood out.

I'd worried at first.

What if they couldn't survive the night?

Strangers or not, watching death up close feels off.

Not that I'd sacrifice myself—no ability anyway.

Thought I'd guide 'em to safety, but unnecessary.

They're prepped better than I thought.

Typical dark fantasy young adventurers? Cocky, then bad end.

These dodged flags.

...Wait, this is Dark Fantasy prefixed, not plain Fantasy.

They'll be fine, right?

Eh, probably. Got a protagonist-type.

No worries.

Won't change anyway—focus on me.

Time left; level up those pending gains from scouting?

Detour to nest first.

Got bread bits, can't lug this shiny silver forever.

"Caw."

Shwoong, house-sitting okay?

"Wh... whiiiine..."

Shwoong peeked from nest entrance, shook head hard.

Did it sulk 'cause I went solo?

No, you hate sun.

Anyway, brought bread—cheer up...

"Kee-hee-heet..."

An uninvited guest.

Clinging to a nest corner, eyeing Shwoong with sinister intent.

Shwoong was warning me.

Lace inside—run.

Lucky.

Without Shwoong, I'd have waltzed right in.

It won't touch kin like Shwoong, so back off.

Self-preservation first.

Other foes, maybe—but not a physical-immune Lace.

"Shwoong..."

Thud.

Beak went slack, dropping my prize with a weird clunk.

Clink.

Not on purpose.

Why do something that dumb?

"Kee-hee-heet!"

The Lace spotted me, cackling eerily.

"Whiiiine...!"

Running now, it'd struggle to follow.

Sun's still up.

But I didn't run.

Three shiny things here.

Glittering golden Shwoong.

White-feathered sparkling Lace.

And sunlight-glinting silver coin.

Yeah.

This coin shone pure silver.

One-eyed god obverse, crow reverse.

Gods above.

I ask little.

Just that the mint worker stuck to the job.

...This is real silver, right?

"Caaaaw!"

I entrusted my fate to some minter James (41), flapping into a charge.