It was a beautiful day. The skies were clear, the weather was nice, and Floating Eyes were firing magic spells at me left and right. How did I get here? Oh, allow me to explain. I climbed down the rocky cliff and entered the forest on my way to the town. In retrospect, I should have been more careful, as I went in assuming I would encounter the same monsters, but that assumption was destroyed as quickly as it had formed. 

Oh, no, I thought as I came face to face with it, an enormous floating eyeball. Its veins were visible for all to see, and it had a strange, almost sinister look to it. Its eye started glowing, and I immediately jumped for cover. A black orb proceeded forth from its eye toward where I was standing, blasting that spot to smithereens. How scary, I thought as I readied my bow. This time, I had distanced myself while hiding. I wasn't going to repeat that mistake, and that's when it happened. What's this? I could feel a surge of power coming from within as I positioned my arrow and drew the elastic thread. Whatever it was, I instinctively knew that this shot was going to be different, so I released the arrow and watched as it obliterated the Floating Eye in one hit. A crit! I thought to myself joyfully as I gained 20EXP. 

Critical hits depended on the Dex or Skill stat, and it usually dealt three times as much damage as a normal attack, though in some cases, it could be more. See? I can win this! But there were more where that came from, many, many more... What's with this place? It's swarming with Floating Eyes! They weren't particularly strong, but one couldn't take them lightly either, especially if their M-DEF stat were low. Jokes on you, though! My M-DEF stat is somewhat decent! I thought to myself as I avoided several black orbs. Was it because of my speed? Partly. But the terrain was also working in my favor. I could hide in the forest and lower their hit probability ratio by doing so. Mountains were also great for this, but that was another matter entirely. I continued this routine for what felt like ages until I had shot down all the Floating Eyes, gaining two levels in the process:

I had also exhausted all my arrows in that long and drawn-out fight. I breathed a sigh of relief, and that was when I sensed it clearly. [Weapon Rank Increased]. I see. I completely forgot, I thought to myself. It was faint, but every time I defeated an enemy, I could intuitively sense I was gaining a different kind of EXP. It was weapon EXP, and the system behind it was simple: The more you used a weapon, the greater your proficiency, unlocking higher-tier weapons for you to use. Now, I was at weapon rank E, which wasn't all that impressive, honestly, but it meant I could use iron bows. I'll buy one when I get to the town. The rest of the journey was pretty uneventful. It was just me jumping at every leaf that fell on my shoulder, but could you blame me? I was out of ammo, so things felt way tenser than usual. Fortunately, I didn't encounter any other monsters on my way to the town.

Finally, I'm here. Even at the entrance, I could tell that the town had a kind of warm, homely feel to it. Two guards were stationed at the gate for security, and they were sending puzzled looks my way. They were probably wondering what a little girl like me was doing in the forest, which was completely reasonable, but as I didn't want to be stopped, I puffed out my chest and strolled in confidently as if I owned the place. Confidence could take you far in life, but it didn't take me beyond the gate because one of the guards stopped me and asked, "Wait, I haven't seen your face around here. What is the purpose of your visit?"

I sighed and wore a sad expression as I answered, "I was traveling through the forest with my party when monsters attacked and scattered my group. I was wondering if I could find any of them here." They exchanged glances and nodded, and the other guard said, "Proceed," with a hint of sympathy in his voice, which was worrying. I lied, but who would believe me if I told them I came from another world? They'd probably think I was a lunatic! Besides, they were just NPCs anyway, so it didn't matter. But what was with that look? I wondered as I shifted my attention to the next mission: finding a weapon shop! 

The cobblestone road was wide enough for horse-drawn carriages to pass through, and I saw many people walking at the sides, so I followed suit. My eye was immediately drawn to one of such carriages, surrounded by adventurers. I saw Mercenaries, Mages, Priests, and Cavalry among their entourage. I was impressed. It'd be nice to find a team like that, I thought as I watched them near the exit. As I did so, I accidentally bumped into an old man, and he said to me gruffly, "Watch where you're going!" Those expressions... could it be? I wondered, feeling uncomfortable all of a sudden before continuing along, hoping I was mistaken. I admired the scenery, partly to take my mind off my growing discomfort. It was like I was in the Medieval era! Timber houses lined the streets, and I could see a castle in the distance. I could have gotten lost in the excitement, but I remembered my reasons for coming. That's right. I have to sell this silver bow for money and then join an adventurer party.

Eventually, I found the symbol I was looking for: a sword painted on the door of a small house, which I assumed to be the armory. I entered the shop and met an old woman standing by the counter with an absent-minded look on her face. "Oh, a customer!" She noticed me and beckoned me over with a warm, inviting smile. At once, I felt a chill run down my spine, but it was probably just my imagination, so I dismissed the possibility and presented the silver bow to her. "Oh! Are you looking to sell this? You're an archer, so wouldn't it be better for you to keep it?"

What's going on here? They were all NPCs: The guards, the old man, and the woman in front of me. Yet, their expressions were vivid and lively. They showed emotions, held their own opinions, and in the weapon shop lady's case, she used none of the lines we were all familiar with as players. How could this be? I was in another world, so this was to be expected, but it also meant that... I am playing on Adaptive Mode. "Hey, are you alright?" She asked me with a worried expression on her face. My hands were trembling, my legs were like noodles, and I was practically hyperventilating. "Hey! Hey!" She said something else, but I couldn't remember, as that day, in that small house, I passed out due to shock.

Kureous

Sorry for scheduling the chapter all of a sudden. I had to make a few adjustments.