Chapter 10 - Glasses Boy Heads to the Hunting Grounds

Chapter 10 - Glasses Boy Heads to the Hunting Grounds

From Laila’s demeanor, it seems my sister hasn’t changed much in the past two years.

When I asked about Horn earlier, she got all tense and chased after me—probably because Horn is still the same gullible, high-maintenance person she always was. People around her, like Laila, have to keep an eye on her, or else they’d be too worried to leave her alone. It was like that back in the village, and I bet it’s the same now with her adventuring party.

My sister is the type who accomplishes whatever she sets her mind to, but beyond that? Well, let’s just say she’s… hopeless. A complete disaster. A hopeless, foolish mess. No exaggeration needed—that’s just how she is.

I can easily imagine her getting tangled up in shady schemes here in the city and causing trouble for everyone around her.

And Laila probably suspected me of being some suspicious glasses-wearing swindler trying to scam Horn out of her money again. What a terrible woman.
…Well, maybe not.

"Alright, I'm heading back."
"I’ll go too. Thanks for the glasses."

With that, Laila and Lolobel stood up.

I arranged to meet Laila again three days later in the evening. If Horn had returned by then, she’d introduce us.

Now then.

Despite the unexpected visitors, the sun was still high in the sky—just past noon. The reason I’d come back to the inn was to retrieve my bow.

At Joseph’s Shop in District Six—a place that dealt in bows, as I’d learned from the weapons store on the main street—I heard they had a practice range out back. Apparently, it was originally made for customers to test their purchases.

Of course, since I was bringing my own bow, they’d charge me a usage fee. But since there weren’t any other safe places nearby to practice, I decided to use theirs.

And so, after hearing Laila’s story, I vaguely settled on a plan.

Since I’d be stuck here for a few days anyway, I might as well earn some money in the meantime. It could go toward paying off Horn’s debt, or I could buy a skinning knife as a souvenir of my trip to the royal capital. My pockets were feeling painfully light right now, and extra cash never hurt.

The bow I got from my master as an adult gift still didn’t feel natural in my hands, so I wouldn’t push myself too hard today. I just needed to get used to it by the end of the day so I could start hunting tomorrow.

—Alright, let’s go.

The next day.

I took my time with breakfast and waited until mid-morning for any messengers from the castle. When no one showed up, I grabbed the luggage I’d prepared the day before and headed for the city gate.

"Move along."

Thanks to my preparations, I passed through the gate easily.

After asking Joseph, the shop owner, about a few things, I learned that I still didn’t have an ID. Apparently, crossing the border without one meant paying a toll. The quickest way to get identification was through the government office or one of the guilds—so I went and got one.

That’s right—a Hunting Guild ID.

Compared to the Adventurer’s Guild, the Hunting Guild had fewer members, was smaller in scale, and didn’t attract much attention. It mainly dealt with hunting and gathering intel on creatures’ behavior and habits, with very few requests from civilians.

From every angle, the Adventurer’s Guild was seen as the better option—which meant the Hunting Guild was completely unpopular.

And that’s exactly why I registered with them.
It suited me perfectly.

The guild itself was a quiet little hut with just a reception desk inside, seeing maybe five or six people a day. The receptionist also had zero enthusiasm, which was a big plus for me. If she’d been overly curious and pushy, I probably would’ve left.

Still, the information they had on local creature distribution and behavior was legit—a pleasant surprise. Despite being small, they were still functional. Not on the verge of collapse, just… niche. Probably used by people like me who preferred to stay out of the spotlight.

After passing through the gate, I unfolded a hand-drawn copy of the local map and checked my destination.

My target was a forest often used by rookie adventurers. As long as I didn’t go too deep, it was relatively safe.

"Over there, huh?"

Since I planned to hunt common game like rabbits and deer, the forest to the far south was supposedly the closest hunting spot.

Hmm… If not for Glasses, I probably wouldn’t have even seen it. My vision used to be so blurry.

At this distance, walking leisurely would get me there by evening.
Having confirmed my destination, I broke into a jog.

Near the city gate, I spotted merchants and wagons, but as I moved further out, I started seeing the occasional adventurer. Passing by or overtaking them, I hurried toward my destination.

"—This should do."

Beyond a small river stretched a dense forest.

I strung my bow and prepared for the hunt.

"...A few people are already here."

At first glance, the forest seemed quiet, but when I focused, I could sense several presences inside—close to the entrance. What were they doing?
Eh, didn’t matter. Probably adventurers gathering herbs or something.

Because of them, the game must’ve retreated deeper in.

…Wait, no. There’s one.

I raised my bow and loosed an arrow into the woods.

"—Scree!"

A metallic scraping sound rang out.
The arrow flew straight and true, hitting its mark.

Crossing the river and stepping into the forest, I found a brown-feathered orochid pheasant skewered by my arrow, lying motionless on the ground. A tasty, common wild bird. Nice, nice—good start.

"The treetops might be an unexpected goldmine."

I slit its neck to drain the blood and hung it upside-down from a nearby branch.

Animals usually see humans as threats and flee at the slightest hint of danger. Birds are the same, but…

This forest seemed different.
Even within my limited sensing range, two more targets were within bow range.

Maybe the adventurers who frequented this area only cared about ground-dwelling animals and monsters.
If so, the birds up above wouldn’t see humans as much of a threat—since they were rarely hunted and usually left alone.
At least, that was my guess.

The prey was there—just unseen.
And thanks to their lowered guard, this place might be a hidden gem.

Alright, today I’ll focus on birds near the forest’s edge.
I still need to get used to my bow, and since this is my first time here, I won’t venture too deep—just enough to get a feel for the terrain.

—In the end, I returned to the capital with five birds in tow after just a short time.

"Still, these Glasses are something else."

As I stared at prey hidden among the branches and thick foliage, it almost seemed like the trees and leaves had turned slightly transparent—letting me see the creature’s posture and direction.

Logically, I shouldn’t be able to see them, but it felt like I could.

Maybe my improved vision made it easier to sense details? I wasn’t sure if there was a connection, but…

Either way, the fact that I bagged this much in such a short time was undeniably thanks to Glasses.

An incredibly useful "gift."