A vast grassland and a castle city—sights not seen in Japan.
After surveying the scene, Souma muttered, "A dream...? But it feels so real."
He could smell the air. He could feel the gentle breeze brushing his cheek. It felt just like actual reality, Souma thought.
"If I were wearing my school uniform, I might not have thought it was a dream."
Right now, Souma was wearing a plain shirt, leather pants, and brown boots. None of these belonged to him. However, the sword at his waist was the same as the one in reality.
"Puny~!"
A slime appeared. It looked just like the one that had sprayed him with liquid in the forest.
"Even in my dreams, it's slimes," Souma said, drawing his sword.
"Puny~!"
The slime trembled all over. This was a characteristic movement it made before attacking. But Souma didn't know that.
"Whoa!"
Consequently, it felt like a sudden attack to Souma. Even though the attack came from the front, the liquid splashed all over his body.
(I got hit without a healer! This is bad! My skin's melting!)
Souma panicked, but that didn't actually happen. A health bar appeared above his head, and it just decreased a little.
(It works like a game, huh.)
Relieved, Souma struck back at the slime.
"In this world, I'm not afraid of your attacks!"
With one swing of Souma's sword, the slime was split in two and died.
『Defeated a slime.』
『Gained 10 experience points.』
『Gained 55 Gold.』
『Level increased to 2.』
Logs scrolled in the corner of his vision.
"It feels more and more like a game. In reality, you don't get logs like this when you defeat an enemy, and you don't get money either."
As he muttered, Souma suddenly realized.
"Level... does that mean there are stats too?"
He tried chanting "Status."
---
[Job]Swordsman
[Level]2
[Overall Power]596
---
A translucent status screen appeared in his vision.
"The status is just like in reality, only level and overall power. Wait, my overall power is high! At level 2 with overall power 596, I'd be near the top of my class!"
Souma chuckled.
"Since this is a dream, I want to be a top student, so having high abilities is good."
Around him, he could see various other monsters. Not just slimes, but horned rabbits and other cute small-fry.
"Here, even if I get hit, it won't directly affect my real body. I'll fight a bunch and gain experience! I don't care about that city in the distance!"
Souma ran across the grassland and decided to hunt monsters indiscriminately.
◇
After that, Souma continued fighting for hours, taking breaks. The enemies were all level 1 monsters, but even so, grinding through them raised his level.
---
[Job]Swordsman
[Level]5
[Overall Power]1092
---
By the time the sun set, Souma had reached level 5. His overall power had hit the four-digit mark. He could feel the growth physically.
"Ah, I'm tired~!"
Souma lay down on the grassland. He was exhausted from all the fighting.
"Puny~!"
A slime approached angrily, but it was no problem.
"I'm not afraid of you anymore."
He swung his sword while lying down and defeated the slime. Thanks to his increased level and overall power, his attack speed had become tremendous.
"In this world, when your level goes up, your overall power also increases explosively... If reality worked like this, I wouldn't have such a hard time."
Souma remembered the time right before he fell asleep. Even doing push-ups desperately, his overall power only increased by 1. A far cry from here.
"No matter how much I hunt, I don't wake up from the dream. I guess I'll head to that city."
He sat up and headed toward the city. In front of the large gate stood a guard.
"Welcome to Grandelle!"
The guard noticed Souma and called out.
(Japanese! Just as expected from a dream!)
Souma nodded, saying "Thanks," and passed through the gate.
"Oh...! This is magnificent."
Before Souma's eyes spread a cityscape full of exotic charm. Stone buildings with ornate decorations lined the streets. The ground was paved with cobblestones, and many carriages and passersby came and went.
"It's like I've stepped into a game...!"
Filled with emotion, Souma walked down a random street. Everywhere he looked was bustling with activity, and just walking made his heart leap. Even though it clearly wasn't Japan, the fact that Japanese was being spoken everywhere was also wonderful.
(Since I'm here, I might as well act like a game character.)
Thinking that, Souma decided to talk to some random people. In games, it's standard to talk to NPCs like villagers.
◇
After talking to many people, Souma learned about this world. This was a different world called Mistoria, and the currency was Gold, not Japanese yen. The level of civilization was behind Earth's, but magic was developed instead. Aside from that, the only notable difference was the presence of monsters outside.
(In this world, I could make things easier for Mom.)
Souma satisfied his hunger at a suitable tavern. He devoured a meat on the bone that he had only ever seen in manga and anime. The juices spread in his mouth, making him happy.
(I want to stay in this world forever... but it's probably about time.)
After paying the bill and leaving the tavern, Souma headed to an inn. On the way, fatigue-induced drowsiness made him yawn repeatedly.
"Ah, I'm so tired~!"
He rented a room at a suitable inn and immediately dove into the bed. Although the room had a bath, he didn't feel like using it.
(It's a dream, so I don't need to clean my body. I'm tired, so I'll just sleep.)
Enjoying the feel of the bed, which was different from his one at home, Souma fell asleep.
◇
"Souma, it's morning."
His mother Namie's voice woke Souma up.
"Ah, I slept well! Good morning, Mom."
Souma sat up, rubbed his sleepy eyes, and greeted Namie.
"You look very refreshed today."
"Do I? Maybe because I had an interesting dream."
"That's good to hear."
Namie smiled and headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.
(That fun time is over...)
Souma looked around the room and felt disappointed inside.
(My days as a dropout start again.)
In Mistoria, he had dominated the grassland, but on Earth, he was a school dropout. Because the dream was so enjoyable, he felt even more gloomy than usual.
(I'll check my status and be crushed by the harsh reality.)
Souma sighed and chanted "Status."
---
[Job]Swordsman
[Level]5
[Overall Power]1092
---
"What the heck is this?!"
Souma exclaimed involuntarily. The status from Mistoria was reflected here.