I hadn’t heard the specific details because we had hurriedly boarded the hired carriage.

Bless, perched on my palm, began to explain the situation.

―Kyuuu kyuu, kyuku.

‘The story I’m about to tell you is about an abuse incident I saw about 30 minutes ago.’

It was quite a serious start. That seriousness transferred to me, and I tensed up.

Bless chirped incessantly with his unique twittering sound.

‘I was flying over Pandora Forest as usual. But then!’

“Then!”

‘I discovered some strange people. At that moment! I was shocked beyond belief.’

“Why were you surprised?”

After that, Bless started moving his beak rapidly, and I immediately interpreted what he said.

According to him, near a deep pond in the G sector, some strange people were hunting a monster with a broad, flat beak.

The sack containing the hunted monster had clear dark red bloodstains on it.

‘Is it hunting, or is it poaching?’

In the Empire, hunting harmful monsters or animals is legal.

Conversely, hunting rare or harmless creatures is clearly illegal.

Of course, I only heard about it from Bless, so I didn’t know if the monster was illegally abused or legally hunted.

But judging by our clever Bless seeking help, it seemed they weren’t harmful.

At that moment, I suddenly thought of ‘poachers hunting rare monsters’.

Poachers had emerged due to rumors that the internal organs of rare monsters were a panacea.

Of course, the truth of the rumor hadn’t been confirmed.

It was just based on unfounded gossip that someone had seen the effects.

Whether in the world I originally lived in or in the world of romance fantasy novels, it seems there are always those who will consume anything if it’s said to be good for health.

Such barbaric people.

Sadly, if it was a gathering of poachers, it didn’t seem like I could make a difference even if I went.

“Bless, I don’t think I’ll be of much help? Unless it’s the Allen Knights, it’s too dangerous.”

―Kyukuuukuku…….

‘But I wanted to help….. Ugh.’

“I understand how you feel. Let’s observe the situation first, then ask Honey for help.”

Is it too much to hope that Honey will appear at the right moment, as he always does?

It was at that moment that I had a strange feeling.

‘G sector, pond, and a broad-beaked monster being poached.’

Those elements were familiar.

It felt like I had read about it somewhere in the original story.

Having been possessed as Yerena for quite some time, I had forgotten about the content of the original story for a while.

Unless I’m a genius, I can’t remember the detailed content of the original story.

But if it feels this familiar, it must have been quite a significant event.

Just as I was feeling frustrated, like an itch I couldn’t locate, the coachman shouted.

“This is as far as the carriage can go!”

The place where Bless and I got off was the G-1 sector, the entrance to the G sector.

I paid the fare and got off the carriage.

I hadn’t planned to go all the way to the G-2 sector by carriage anyway.

If we did, our presence, close to being uninvited guests, would be discovered.

I carefully walked along the small path in the forest towards the G-2 sector.

Having experienced dispatching to various parts of Pandora Forest as a Guide, the forest path was clear in my mind.

It was when we had almost reached our destination.

Bang!

A gunshot broke the silence of the forest.

It was undoubtedly the sound made by those who had hunted the monster.

I lowered my posture and hid behind a tall tree.

Without any special signal, Bless, perched on my shoulder, also became quiet. It was possible because he was smart and perceptive.

I carefully moved towards where the gunshot had come from.

Finally, when human figures came into view, I stopped and completely hid behind a tree.

The deep breath I took smelled of phytoncide faintly mixed with the scent of blood.

I was soon able to confirm the source of the blood smell.

“……”

It was probably the two blood-stained sacks that Bless had seen.

Above the sacks, I could see the corpse of a monster that had died not long ago.

Glancing at its appearance, it wasn’t a harmful monster that I knew of.

After gaining the Tamer ability, I had studied monsters and animals quite a bit, so I could distinguish them to some extent.

‘It really is poaching.’

I frowned without realizing it.

While I might understand if it were otherworldly monsters that harm humans or other animals, killing innocent and powerless monsters didn’t sit well with me.

There were a total of three poachers cruelly killing the weak monsters.

‘Three armed men… If we confront them, we might end up in danger instead.’

At that moment, another loud Bang! was heard, followed by the cry of a monster that seemed to have been shot.

―Kueek!

One man wearing boots walked to the pond and pulled something out of it.

It was the ‘broad-beaked monster’ that Bless had seen.

A long body with a long, flat beak, and brown fur. It looked like a mix between a duck and a raccoon.

‘A platypus? Potas?’

‘Potas’ is the name of a monster that resembles a platypus.

As soon as I recalled the monster’s name, I realized why this situation felt familiar.

Accidentally discovered Potas being poached and saving them…

‘…That was the first thing the female lead did when she appeared! Damn!’

How could I have forgotten such an important fact!

I only read the original story once, and there have been many life-threatening crises since then, so I must have forgotten.

I frowned a bit more and belatedly tried to recall the original story.

The female lead, living in the frontier, comes to the capital to join the Center.

As she passes through Pandora Forest, she ‘accidentally’ gets lost and discovers Potas being slaughtered.

The female lead, unable to ignore this horrific scene, risks her life to protect the Potas.

She also ‘happened’ to know that Potas were not harmful monsters.

Unlike me, the female lead was skilled in martial arts, so she didn’t easily lose to the armed poachers.

But there were three men.

The female lead eventually gets pushed into a defensive position…

At that moment, someone appears like a black knight on a black horse to save the female lead and the Potas.

“Who dares to fire gunshots near my potato field? This is my territory.”

I think someone’s first appearance line was something like this.

The one who delivered this boastful line was none other than the Guildmaster of the Honey Butter Guild.

That’s right, my Honey!

The reason why Honey suddenly appears in Pandora Forest is…

Deep in the G sector, there was the Guildmaster’s potato field. A grand potato field befitting his nickname of Potato Prince.

The Guildmaster mainly used non-aggressive abilities like Potato Wiki and Potato Subspace, but he was also excellent at shooting and swordsmanship.

He subdues the poachers in an instant.

The female lead expresses her gratitude to the Guildmaster who saved her life and the pitiful monsters.

“Thank you for helping. I’d like to repay you… Are you from the capital?”

“It’s only natural to help a beautiful lady and poor monsters, but if the lady wishes to repay me, I won’t refuse.”

“Yes. But before I repay you, I’m lost. Could you accompany me to the capital?”

“Of course.”

And so, the two walk together through the forest path.

The Guildmaster realizes after just a few conversations that the female lead is no ordinary person, and the female lead feels the same.

The two, intrigued by each other, continue their relationship in the capital.

This incident with the Potas becomes the catalyst for the female lead to receive help from the Honey Butter Guild.

In other words, the poachers and Potas were used for the first meeting between the female lead and the Guildmaster.

The fact that the female lead ‘accidentally’ got lost in the G sector where the Guildmaster’s potato field was located, and ‘happened’ to know about Potas in this vast forest, must have been the author’s intention.

It seemed right for me, an extra, to exit like this.

If things go according to the original story, the Potas would be saved without me and Bless intervening.

I didn’t doubt that this was the female lead’s first appearance.

It was appropriate timing-wise.

I tried to leave this cruel scene.

Just in case I had mistaken the date, I was planning to tell Honey about this incident as soon as I returned to the capital.

It was at that moment when I was about to turn back.