Awakening as the False Forest Lord

When I opened my eyes to a new dawn, a pure white ceiling came into view.

"..."

Soon, the events just before I lost consciousness slowly resurfaced.

...Fighting Marco... being chased by a monster in the forest... it had been an utterly exhausting day. And in the end, my arm was torn off by the monster, I fell off a cliff... and took that final blow.

Hm? Wait... did I really take that final blow?

Actually, my awareness had cut out right before that, so I couldn't remember clearly what had happened.

...I think the amulet Vivian gave me fell to the ground and flashed with light...

Come to think of it, not only had my torn-off arm regenerated, but my body was completely healed. No more pain... and someone had even changed my clothes.

At least I'm safe for now... but hm, where is this place?

I slowly scanned my surroundings. The room carried a faint floral scent mixed with medicinal herbs. Neatly arranged medicine bottles and towels. Morning sunlight poured through the window, warmly illuminating the room, while white curtains fluttered lightly in the breeze.

A monastery...? Looks like it.

Turning my gaze to the bedside, I spotted a little girl sitting in a small chair. She was leaning her upper body toward me, arms folded on the bed, deep in sleep. Sunlight bathed her brown hair, making it softly gleam.

It was Marie.

"...Mm, mnya... Tesa..."

She must have nursed me all night; her sleeping face bore traces of fatigue and deep worry. Feeling ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠grateful yet sorry, I gently stroked her hair a few times.

After catching my breath for a moment, I decided to face reality again. First, I checked the backlog of notifications.

I doubted my eyes for a moment.

Three stats went up at once?!

But the notifications didn't end there.

Hm.

The rewards were tempting, sure, but I had zero desire to encounter a monster like that ever again. I probably wouldn't be setting foot in Silvanes Forest for a good while.

I continued checking the remaining notifications.

With trembling hands, I selected YES, and more notifications appeared.

What? It's not given right away?

...Well, if they're saying it'll be given, waiting a bit shouldn't be too hard.

But after all that ordeal... it'd better be worth it...

These seemed to be the last notifications. I then opened my status window to check my overall situation.

What I wanted to check... was naturally the Judge trait and the Hand-to-Hand Combat skill.

Somehow... it was pretty complicated. Summarizing roughly: double damage against wicked people, right? It felt restrictive since it's limited to the wicked... but on the flip side, overwhelming effectiveness against them.

"...Hmnya? Uh, uh...!?"

Right then, Marie woke up.

"Sleep well?"

"Teresa!!"

The moment she saw me, she lunged over and hugged me tightly.

"Waaahhh... Do you know how worried I was!? Last night, you wouldn't wake up no matter what, and I was so scared... What if you never woke up... Do you know how terrified I was!? Hwaaaahhh..."

"Sorry."

"Hwaaa... You're awake... Thank goodness... Sniff, sob... sob..."

I soothed her as she sobbed, patting her back.

"...So, how's your body? Any pain anywhere?"

"No, I think I'm f, f-fine."

A moment later, once she seemed calmer, I asked her a question.

"So... can you explain ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠what happened?"

"...That's what I want to ask you."

"Haha... Tell me what you know first. I'll explain mine slowly."

I gave a wry smile. Marie narrowed her eyes at me suspiciously, then sighed and nodded.

"Fine... You're the one who went through the big ordeal, not me... You must want to grasp the situation quick."

"Thanks."

"But fair warning, I don't know much. Last night, Sister Vanessa carried you back to the monastery in a panic after you lost consciousness. She said you were attacked by some monster in the forest."

"And then?"

"Then... hm, well... Marco and his gang, plus James, came back to the monastery late and got summoned straight to the abbess's office."

"I see."

"...Did those guys do something to you, Teresa?"

Instead of answering, I closed my eyes briefly and recalled yesterday's events. Marie quickly pieced it together and erupted in anger.

"I knew it!! Those absolute scum!! Don't worry, Teresa! All the sisters are super serious about it. No matter who they are, they won't get off lightly this time!"

But the problem was... they probably wouldn't confess honestly. They'd no doubt slander and lie to pin the blame on me. I might need to prepare for some fallout from their falsehoods.

"I hope so..."

"It'll definitely happen! If not, I'll never forgive them!"

Suddenly, Marie's vibe shifted.

"Marie?"

"...How dare they... hurt Teresa..."

"Marie...?"

Her soft eyes turned icy cold, and meeting that gaze sent chills down my spine.

"I won't forgive them... won't forgive... No, I shouldn't leave their punishment to the sisters... I should do it myself..."

"Marie!!!"

I grabbed her shoulders and shouted. Only then did her eyes waver slowly, returning to their gentle state.

"...Huh, yeah?! What?"

"Ah... nothing."

"What. Lame."

For some reason... it felt like Marie had awakened to a new side of herself.

Nah, probably not.

I shook my head and refocused on my situation. Truth be told, while Marco's gang was a concern, something even more worrying loomed larger.

"Marie."

"Yeah?"

The scary look from before was gone; she smiled at me warmly.

"Uh, um... When I arrived here, what was my condition? Like, was I injured anywhere? Nothing like that?"

"Right, yeah! Sister said... you were unconscious, but there weren't any injuries on your body. Your clothes were a total mess, but no wounds at all... She was really puzzled, wondering how that was possible."

Of course she'd be suspicious...

Tch...

I clutched my head briefly, desperately trying to come up with a plausible excuse, but nothing came to mind.