Finally, the fire was already dead when I finally opened my status screen.
I hadn't checked it in a while mostly because I was scared it might show something like "Weak and Failure"
But of course, curiosity got me.
The blue panel shimmered to life in front of me.
Name: John Avery
Level: 1
Skill: Master Chef (Unique)
Familiar: —
Except… now there was a new section under "Familiar."
When I tapped it open, two names glowed softly in gold and silver.
Familiar List:
- Tweety (Phoenix) — Level MAX
- Shiro (White Tiger) — Level MAX
I stared for a long moment.
"…Wait. Maxed out? Already?"
Tweety was perched on a rock nearby, preening his feathers.
"Naturally," he said without looking up. "We are divine beings, John, not poultry and house cats."
"Yeah, I noticed," I muttered.
Meanwhile, my own level mockingly blinked back at me at level 1.
"One," I repeated under my breath. "I have two mythical creatures who could destroy kingdoms and I can barely win a fistfight with a chicken."
"Every party needs a chef," Tweety said wisely.
"That's… not comforting."
I closed the menu and sighed. "Alright, we'll deal with my self-esteem later. Let's get some sleep."
Shiro, now back in his tiny cat form, peeked out from my shoulder bag and yawned.
"Good idea," he said, voice sleepy. "Dreams taste better after dinner."
I didn't even want to know what that meant.
The next morning, after a surprisingly cozy night at the inn (and after convincing Shiro not to sleep inside the blanket drawer), we headed to the Adventurer Guild.
My plan was simple: collect whatever meat the beats have Tweety brought back yesterday and quietly move on with my day. Reality, of course, had other plans.
The moment we walked into the guild, the assistant butcher, a big man with arms the size of hams waved me over.
"Ah, there you are! The man with the divine pets!"
I blinked.
"Uh… hi?"
He grinned and held up a pouch.
"Got your payment ready. The master butcher said that the parts from yesterday's beasts were processed this morning. Usable meat, organs, hides, bones, scales and even feathers and
the works."
I nodded slowly.
"Okay, and, uh… how much are we talking about?"
He slid the pouch across the counter.
It jingled. Loudly.
I peeked inside. Gold and a lot of it.
"Wait… this can't be right. How much is this?"
"Two thousand gold," he said, wiping his hands. "That's for the inedible parts."
I nearly dropped the bag.
"T-Two thousand!? For inedible parts!?"
Tweety made a pleased little noise.
"I told you my hunts are efficient."
The butcher laughed.
"Most adventurers can't even scratch the hides of those beasts your phoenix dragged in. Their pelts alone are worth a fortune and resistant to fire, sharp as steel when tanned. The organs are what Alchemists go crazy for. Even the bones are used for weapon cores."
I just stood there, mouth half open.
Back on Earth, I used to argue with customers over two extra toppings.
Now I was getting paid more than I'd made in my entire career but for animal leftovers.
"You should bring in more if you can," the butcher added. "Your bird's got a real eye for quality meat."
Tweety puffed his chest proudly.
"Naturally."
Meanwhile, Shiro poked his head out of my sling bag, blinking sleepily.
"I can help next time too."
I looked at the butcher, then at my bag full of divine carnivores, and sighed.
"...Yeah. Somehow, I don't think the forest is ready for that."
That night, I sat in my room, counting the gold coins on the table.
Two thousand gold. I think I can save this to buy some important things when Mukoda-san and I meet.
Tweety sat beside the window, staring into the moonlight.
Shiro was curled up in my bag again, snoring softly.
I leaned back, staring at my shimmering status screen again.
Level 1.
With two max-level familiars,a bag full of money and a gut feeling that peace and quiet were about to get a lot more expensive.
"Yeah," I muttered, closing my eyes. "This is definitely going to get out of hand."
The next morning, I just finished double-checking my earnings. Yes, still two thousand gold, and yes, I still couldn't believe it when I realized something weird.
The coin pouch the guild gave me had a crest stamped on it: Dolern Guild Association.
"Wait," I said aloud. "Dolern?"
Tweety looked up from polishing his feathers.
"Yes. That's the city's name."
"I thought it was Dolan."
"Close enough," Tweety said, unconcerned.
"Not close enough for my sense of direction," I muttered. "No wonder I couldn't find it on the map or even meet Mukoda! I was way ahead of him!
Anyway, after shoving the processed meat neatly into my item box, I decided it was time to move. We'd earned some money.
Now it was time for… well, whatever came next.
Mostly, I wanted to find Mukoda.
Yeah, that Mukoda the guy with the grocery skill, the legend himself.
If anyone could teach me how to survive long-term with bottomless appetites for pets, it was him.
Before leaving, I headed back to the Adventurer Guild to register my new familiar.
The clerk behind the counter nearly dropped her quill when she saw Shiro even in cat form, he gave off this regal "I own this building now" aura.
She handed me the form with shaking hands.
"Y-Your familiar's name?"
"Shiro," I said. "White Tiger."
Her eyes widened slightly. She stamped the paper so fast the ink smudged.
As I turned to leave, I caught a few whispers from nearby adventurers.
"That's him… the guy with the phoenix."
"Now he's got a tiger too?"
"Weirdest familiar combo I've ever seen."
At least nobody laughed this time.
Progress.
Once registration was done, I hit the market to stock up before the trip.
Salt, pepper pods, sun-vinegar, dried herbs, a few new pots, and a spare ladle because mine mysteriously went missing last night. (Still blaming Shiro.)
By the time I packed everything into my item box, it looked like a small grocery aisle there. Tweety called it "preparation." I called it "emergency rations for two bottomless divine stomachs."
We left Dol-Dolern the next morning. Using my delivery bike, I rode on it. The road stretched ahead, quiet and bright, the forest shimmering with dew.
Shiro rode behind me in his smaller form, inside my open pizza box. Tweety glided lazily overhead.
For a while, it was nice, peaceful travel, birdsong, and only the occasional tree catching on fire whenever Tweety sneezed.
Then a thought hit me.
"Hey, Tweety… how do I level up?"
He blinked mid-flight.
"Level up?"
"Yeah. You know, gain experience, grow stronger, all that good stuff. You and Shiro are both max level already, but I'm still stuck at one."
Tweety landed gracefully on my shoulder, thinking.
"You could enter a dungeon."
Shiro nodded after he jumped on my shoulder and then landed on my bike's handle, perfectly balancing.
"That's where most adventurers grow faster. Monsters, mana stones, treasure…"
"Uh-huh," I said slowly. "You mean that place full of death traps and things that want to eat me?"
"Precisely," Tweety said cheerfully.
I sighed. "Figures."
Shiro tilted his head.
"Before that, you should learn your element. It helps determine what kind of monsters you're best against."
"My element?"
"Fire, water, wind, earth, or something rarer," Tweety explained. "Knowing that makes training easier."
"Alright," I said. "How do I find out?"
Tweety and Shiro exchanged a glance that made me nervous.
"We'll test it," they said at the same time.
I groaned.
"Why do I feel like this is going to end with something exploding?"
"Because it probably will," Tweety said, looking pleased. "It's called channeling of mana. Deadly but the only way to find out."
"That too. But check your stats menu as well. You can see what elemental magic you have."
That's when after eating for lunch and while resting, I decided to check my stats again. According to Tweety and Shiro, the next step to "getting stronger" was to check my stats again.
I really didn't want to. The last time it basically told me "congratulations, you're still useless." But they insisted.
So, fine. I opened my menu.
Name: John Avery
Level: 1
Skill: Master Chef (Unique)
Familiar: Tweety (Phoenix) / Shiro (White Tiger)
Element Magic:
Fire: —
Water: —
Earth: —
Wind: —
Electric: —
Frost: —
I stared.
"...Well, that's depressing."
"You have six elemental magic listed but you have no elemental affinity yet," Tweety said, sounding far too calm about it.
"Yeah, thanks for the reminder."
It looked like a shopping list with nothing in the cart. If there was an achievement for "most magically bankrupt person alive," I was probably about to unlock it.
"I just want one of those to light up," I said, closing the screen. "Just one. Fire, frost, heck, even dirt. Anything."
"That is why we test," Shiro said from his spot beside the campfire. "If you want your mana to respond, you must first learn to channel it."
"And not explode," Tweety added casually.
"Excuse me- what?"
"It's a minor risk," Tweety said, waving a wing. "Very rare. Hardly fatal."
"'Hardly fatal' is not reassuring!" I said.
Still, I sat down cross-legged like he told me. Apparently, the first step was "feeling" my mana. It sounded spiritual and peaceful. I liked peaceful.
Tweety perched on a rock, acting like some mystical mentor.
"Close your eyes. Focus on your breathing. Picture the flow of mana within your body."
I did as told. Deep breath in, slow breath out.
Nothing.
Another breath. And still nothing.
Then Shiro spoke up from behind me.
"You look constipated."
"I'm concentrating!" I snapped.
"Ah, I see. Similar expression."
Tweety ignored us both.
"Now, imagine pulling that flow toward your palms. Let it gather there."
"Okay," I murmured, following his instructions. For a moment, I felt… something. A faint warmth, like static under my skin.
"Hey, I think it's working," I said, eyes still closed.
"Good," Tweety said. "Now, open your hand slowly. Let it manifest."
I opened my hand.
There was a tiny flicker of light…and then pffft!
A spark fizzled out instantly, leaving behind a thin trail of smoke.
"...Is it supposed to smell like burnt?" I asked.
Tweety blinked.
"That… might be fire magic."
"Might?"
"Or mild static discharge," he said thoughtfully.
Shiro leaned closer, sniffing my hand.
"Smells like… something died."
"Thanks, that helps," I muttered.
I tried again, focusing harder this time. The warmth returned, stronger now, pulsing in my chest and flowing to my arms.
My hands tingled, then glowed faintly orange.
"Oh! Oh, it's working!" I said, grinning.
And then it sputtered, turned blue, sparked yellow, and died again.
Tweety tilted his head.
"Interesting."
"What's interesting?!"
"You have an unstable affinity."
Shiro's eyes gleamed with amusement.
"Meaning?"
"Meaning," Tweety said smoothly, "his magic doesn't know what it wants to be."
"Great," I said. "Even my mana's indecisive."
They both looked way too entertained.
Tweety fluffed his feathers, thoughtful.
"It seems you'll need to stabilize it. A dungeon would be ideal."
Shiro nodded.
"Beginners' dungeon. Weak monsters, low risk. If you fight and adapt, your element might reveal itself."
"'Low risk,' huh," I said, crossing my arms. "You guys are for real? Mukoda already had his fire magic and earth magic before entering a dungeon and he barely survived. And me with nothing, do you think I'll survive?"
"You have us," Tweety said proudly.
I sighed.
"You two are gonna make me die."
By the time we made camp that night, my mana training had turned into something resembling a comedy act: me waving my hands like an idiot, Tweety shouting "focus!" like an instructor, and Shiro laughing so hard he nearly rolled into the fire.
Still, deep down, I couldn't deny it.
Something inside me had started to move.
It wasn't strong, but it was there, a pulse, a glow, like a tiny ember waiting for air.
Maybe, just maybe, this world was finally starting to recognize me.
Or maybe I just really needed a nap.