"Her best friend will indeed not return, no matter how many Goblins she kills, but she might be able to help others who could face tragedy."
"Using this power to aid those in despair, envisioning herself as a spiritual healing mage, her friend's smile appeared before her eyes."
The Hero exhaled slowly, patted her own cheeks, and turned to step deeper into the darkness.
To help those harmed by Goblins—
Though the Hero thought this, but...
With the help of a picked-up torchlight, the Hero silently stared down at the youth.
Her best friend's Childhood Friend, also her own friend, not an adventurer, nor a plain hero.
The young man lowered his head, his expression colored red with embarrassment from the day before.
"You haven't returned to the city for a whole day, and I heard from the guard that you came here, so..."
From rescuer to lost, from saving a damsel to being saved by one.
The youth's head was almost touching his toes, buried into the ground.
It was the Hero's attitude that prevented him from raising his gaze.
"As you can see, I'm safe and sound, just got a bit tired from killing Goblins, so I decided to rest here for a while."
Seeing that the young man was somewhat disheveled but otherwise unharmed, the Hero relaxed.
Since no one became a victim of the Goblins, nothing could be better.
[Should she explain herself to the young man?]
But seeing the young man's face looking a bit unpleasant, unsure if it was due to the stench in the air, the fatigue of being trapped, or his own misleading posture.
The Hero thought for a moment and decided to slightly explain her situation.
"Don't misunderstand, don't worry. You must have heard her mention, my ability is to transform into a beast, the reason for not wearing clothes is because of this, and the dirt on my body is from killing Goblins."
"That's a relief..." reassured by her explanation, the young man whose thoughts were influenced by memories of his best friend nodded complicatedly.
"Let's go, back to the city."
Seeing the young man calm down, the Hero turned first, holding the torch ready to lead the way.
For the Hero, this was deeper into the cave, but the mine had more than one exit, the young man had entered from another entrance.
Considering the young man's pace, it shouldn't be too far from an exit here, he was fortunate not to encounter fleeing Goblins.
"Wait, wait a moment." But then the young man called out to the Hero.
[What supplies did the young man bring?]
1. Found the luggage the Hero left outside
3. The young man's own luggage
5. The young man discovered an ore
9. A potion of full recovery
10. Critical Success/ Extreme Failure♛
[It is an Extreme Failure!]
1. The young man came empty-handed
2. Discovered a Goblin
3. The young man sprained an ankle♛
4. The young man was affected by the remnants of a Magic Potion(?)
9. Stop obsessing over Goblins
10. Critical Success/Extreme Failure
"You guy..." Watching the boy who twisted his ankle and could not even stand up momentarily, the Hero couldn't help but sigh.
She then realized why he was yelling for help in such a place.
Although her Transformation into Big Snake thrived here, the pitch-dark mining cave truly wasn't suitable for an ordinary person to move around; a slight misstep could lead to an error.
The boy was so ashamed that he was at a loss for words, truly wishing he could bury his head in the ground.
However, despite his twisted ankle, the boy still brought some useful things.
[What the boy brought was—]
1. Found the Hero's luggage left outside
3. The boy's own luggage♛
5. The boy discovered a piece of ore
9. A bottle of complete recovery Potion
10. Critical Success/Extreme Failure
The boy's backpack contained food, water, spare clothes, ordinary medicines, and bandages.
And instead of a Short Sword, it's more appropriate to call it a kitchen knife.
Magic Creatures' territories are generally far from cities, and this once human-operated mine was no exception.
Adventurers fighting Magic Creatures often need to endure hardships outdoors, making adequate supplies and luggage essential.
Moreover, they need to bring the spoils back to the city, so large Adventurer teams even hire dedicated porters.
"I thought you might need these things, so..." the boy said softly.
"Thank you, they indeed helped."
The Hero changed into slightly bigger clothes, then without caring for manners, she gulped down food and guzzled water from the bottle.
[With the supplies brought by the boy, penalties to the Hero's Constitution and Strength were lifted]
Although it wasn't exactly delicious, hunger is the best seasoning.
After eating the supplies, feeling rejuvenated, the Hero let out a satisfied breath and then turned back to look at the boy.
The light from the torch dimmed slightly, and in the flickering flame, the boy's disheveled appearance seemed somewhat unfamiliar.
She suddenly recalled, in the past when they were together, there were always close friends around, and they hardly had opportunities to be alone .
Not to mention in such a sunless mining pit.
The Hero remained silent for a while, then spoke softly.
"I appreciate you coming to find me despite the danger, but if you died out here, it would've been a great loss.
"Don't do such things anymore. Seeking revenge on Goblins is my decision, and I will bear the consequences myself."
The boy lifted his head as if wanting to say something, but looking at his twisted ankle, he ultimately remained silent.
In such a dark and rugged cave, even she, holding a torch, found it challenging to move without stumbling and twisting her ankle.
But she said she had already killed most of the Goblins in the cave, and indeed there was no sign of those Goblins anymore.
She and he were different; she had become a Hero, while he couldn't make that decision and hadn't even pushed open the door of the Adventurer Guild.
"Come on, I'll take you back."
The Hero wrapped her feet with bandages to prevent the tender soles from getting punctured by broken stones.
Then she handed the torch to the boy, turned around, and crouched down, gesturing to him.
The boy silently nodded, took the torch, and then leaned his body on her not-so-broad shoulders.
Not long ago, she was just a carefree friend playing in the city with him, but now she was on a completely different path.
However, the title of Hero might quite suit her.
[Hero's Luck (5 + Safe return to the city)]