INBE 03

Chapter 03

“What is this…?”

“What do you mean, what?”

“This, right here.”

I pointed at the translucent window, but Tabin only tilted his head as if he couldn’t see it.

“Can’t you all see this?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t see anything….”

“Me neither.”

The others couldn’t see the translucent window either.

So it’s only visible to me.

Could this be that magic I’ve only heard about?

Rather than magic, it feels more like a system window from a game…

[Correct! I am a system that helps Miss Aileen adapt to this other world!]

As if it had read my mind, the message in the translucent window changed.

[The tutorial has just ended. As a reward, I will give you 3,000 points!]

“3,000 points?”

[Yes! If you collect points, you can buy whatever you want in the shop of this world!]

“What’s this ‘other world shop’ now?”

“Aileen, what are you looking at and muttering to yourself about?”

Tabin asked, puzzled.

The villagers were also looking at me strangely.

Since they couldn’t see the system window, I must look odd to them.

“I’ll go to the restroom for a moment.”

Using the restroom as an excuse, I hurriedly left my seat.

Even as I went to a secluded place where no one was around, the translucent system window kept floating in front of my eyes.

“So, what is this other world shop?”

[This is it!]

The translucent window suddenly flashed and grew as large as my upper body.

“What is this?”

So this ‘other world shop’ is basically like a game shop?

But why are they selling tools like saws and hammers?

This is so…

“…nice.”

I had already been extremely annoyed by how poor the equipment here was.

If I had just had a proper saw, I could’ve built a triangular roof in two days flat.

“If I buy this, can I use it here?”

[Of course. It will be summoned immediately upon purchase!]

Oh, nice.

Then I’ll start by buying the most urgent thing—a saw…

“What the—why is a household saw 10,000 points?”

[It reflects real-world prices ˃ᴗ˂]

Don’t reflect that!

The hammer and other items were just as expensive, apparently reflecting real-world prices as well.

With 3,000 points, the best I could afford was nails.

“Should I at least buy these?”

The nails in this world were inconsistent in length and thickness, and they were expensive too, making them almost unusable.

So having these would at least help. I decided to buy the nails.

The moment I pressed the purchase button, the points were deducted, and a box of nails dropped right in front of me.

So it wasn’t a lie that they’d be summoned immediately.

“How do I earn more points?”

[By completing quests.]

“Quests?”

As soon as the word left my mouth, the shop closed and a quest window opened.

[Tutorial. Gain recognition from the villagers.]
[Reward: 3,000p]

So this was the tutorial quest I had already completed.

Quests were divided into main quests and sub quests.

The main quests ranged from Chapter 1 to Chapter 10, but only Quest 1-1 was currently available.

[1-1. Save the villagers from the rainy season.]
[Reward: 7,000p]
[※ Please complete the sub quests first.]

“Do main quests unlock in order?”

[That’s correct. You’re quick to understand!]

“I used to be obsessed with games.”

Though I never expected it would help like this.

Maybe that’s why people say you should learn everything.

Let’s see what sub quests there are.

[Q. Help repair Marianne’s house.]
[Reward: 700p]

[Q. Fix Hansen’s barn.]
[Reward: 500p]

The rewards were small compared to the main quest.

Well, that makes sense—they’re easier.

“But if I complete all the main quests, is there some kind of special reward?”

Games usually have one. I wonder if this does too.

[Of course! You can return to your original world!]

“I don’t like that.”

Even if it’s a bit inconvenient, it’s better to live comfortably here.

At least I don’t have to worry about money.

Perhaps startled by my response, the system window filled with “…….”

[…Even if we make you rich, you don’t want to go back?]

“Rich?”

[Yes. I’ll tell you the winning lottery numbers.]

Oh, that’s a bit tempting.

[If you become rich, you can throw your resignation letter right in the face of Manager Park, whom you hate so much.]

“Deal. Absolutely deal.”

To think I could achieve something I had long wished for—even on the brink of death. Just imagining it made me thrilled.

[Then please do your best to complete the quests! (´･ᴗ･`)]

The system window disappeared, leaving behind a bright smiling emoticon.

Still, I could continue to view the quest window.

“The main quest hasn’t opened yet, so I’ll have to gather points by doing sub quests.”

I needed a lot of points to buy what I wanted from the shop.

“Alright. Let’s give it a try.”

I clenched my fist with determination.

I will definitely return to my original world and throw my resignation letter in Manager Park’s face!

Belheim’s weather was infamous for being extremely harsh.

In summer, it suffered from relentless monsoons; in winter, from heavy snowstorms.

Because of this, Belheim’s officials made preparations every year, but unless one was a god, it was impossible to completely prevent natural disasters.

As a result, during this season, the lord of Belheim, Calix Krowbel, became especially irritable.

Since the lord was in a bad mood, the officials working under him were practically living in misery.

They desperately hoped that this summer would pass without major damage, but once again, disasters struck.

In fact, the damage was even worse than last year, and the officials gathered in the meeting room all wore dark expressions.

Like mute bees with honey in their mouths, they kept their lips tightly sealed, watching the lord read the report.

“…….”

With each page he turned, the lord’s gaze grew sharper. If looks could stab, they would have been shredded dozens of times.

After reviewing even the map marking the monsoon damage, Calix Krowbel slammed the desk.

Bang—!

A heavy sound echoed through the meeting room as if an earthquake had struck.

The sturdy oak desk couldn’t withstand his strength and cracked.

The officials, having witnessed the monstrous strength of their lord, turned pale.

‘Say something.’

‘What can we say in this situation? If you have something to say, say it yourself!’

“My, my lord….”

Amid their silent exchange of glances, one brave official carefully spoke up.

“We did our best to prepare, but natural disasters are inherently difficult to prevent—”

“I know. So shut your mouth.”

At the chilling command, the brave official immediately fell silent.

“…….”

A heavy silence fell again as Calix stared at the map showing the damage.

The lord’s castle and the nobles’ district were protected by magic, so they suffered almost no damage.

However, the areas without magical protection were hit severely.

The further out toward the outskirts, the worse the damage became.

“…So we couldn’t stop it again.”

Muttering in a cold voice, Calix’s eyes suddenly narrowed.

Looking closely, there was one area on the outer wall with no markings at all.

It was a small village where hunters lived.

Three days after the torrential monsoon rains that had lasted over ten days finally stopped and the sky cleared—

“Aileen. The lord is summoning you.”

Early in the morning, armored knights suddenly barged in.

Still unable to even wash my face, I was dragged here and blankly looked around.

Expensive paintings and decorations hung on the walls, and a magnificent chandelier sparkled from the towering ceiling.

The sofa I was sitting on was soft enough to be used as a bed.

On top of that, a maid brought sweet tea and cake, politely asking me to wait a moment before leaving.

“Judging by this treatment, it doesn’t seem like I was dragged here for doing something wrong…”

Then what could it be?

“Ah, maybe they called me to ask about the triangular roof and waterway method?”

Thanks to those two things, word had spread that the monsoon damage was prevented, and requests had been pouring in asking me to build them in other villages.

And just yesterday, carpenters from the largest workshop in Belheim had come to visit.

“So a girl made this? I can’t believe it.”

“Exactly. Try making it in front of us. We want to see if you really did it.”

It was obvious they were pretending to verify while trying to steal the technique.

Even if they had politely bowed and asked, I might not have told them—but coming at me like that?

Of course, I refused, and when things didn’t go their way, the carpenters left angrily, telling me to just wait and see.

Honestly, people are the same everywhere—if things don’t go their way, they lose their temper.

I had been worried about what they might do, but I never expected the lord’s knights to show up the very next day.

‘Could the lord be the one who sent those carpenters?’

After they failed to find out, did he summon me directly to ask?

Then what should I do?

It would be difficult to refuse the lord’s command.

Knock, knock—

As one thought led to another, the door opened with a light knock.