Chapter 7: Old Man Goes to Pick Up Apples

The next day.

I decided to get up in the morning and head straight for the Golden Apple.

The place where the apples are is near the forest where I helped Mashiro yesterday.

Of course, monsters will also appear.

(Should I stop by the general store just in case? I’m also an old man, so I might mess things up.)

I stopped by the general store.

There are several adventurers already in the general store talking.

“Hey, have you heard? The story of the Goblin Magical Girl.”

“Huh? A Goblin Magical Girl?”

“It seems a goblin that can use magic has appeared.”

I overheard such a conversation.

(A Goblin Magical Girl, huh?)

Let’s imagine it.

Dressing up a goblin in a magical girl costume and giving it a wand.

(Boof!)

I burst out laughing.

An absurd monster had been created.

Where in the world would you find a goblin wearing a magical girl costume?

(But, it seems like they exist in this world.)

“However, a Goblin Magical Girl, huh? Seems like we could get quite a bit of experience points if we defeat it.”

“Yeah, if it’s a monster, we can defeat it without any hesitation. If we see it, let’s try defeating it.”

The adventurers said so and left the general store.

I don’t know where that so-called Goblin Magical Girl will appear, but if I come across it, I’ll try to defeat it too.

However, really…

(Is there really such a thing as a Goblin Magical Girl?)

Could it be some sort of mistake?

But, is there anything to mistake it for?

While thinking such thoughts, I decided to purchase the necessary items.

After finishing my item purchase, I left the general store.

Straightaway, I headed towards the forest.

“There it is, there it is.”

I quickly found the apple.

“This tree is huge. About 10 meters tall.”

Apples were growing on the tree.

“I’ve never picked something like this before. I wonder how I should do it.”

Should I try climbing up for now?

Do farmers use some kind of tool for this?

Probably, I think they do.

With such thoughts, I decided to try climbing up for now.

Climb, climb.

I only did a bit of tree climbing when I was a child.

I climb up while feeling a great sense of nostalgia.

Surprisingly, it wasn’t difficult to climb as there were plenty of footholds.

“Whew.”

I arrived at the first branch.

There, I noticed.

“Meow. Meow.”

A cat?

A small baby-like cat was on the branch.

Why is it here?

“Meow! Meow!”

It seems to be threatening.

However, it doesn’t seem like it’s in a mood to attack me if I don’t get closer.

“Sorry. I won’t do anything, so please stay quiet.”

I decided to keep climbing the tree, ignoring the cat.

As expected, the cat didn’t seem to attack.

But why is there a cat here?

Did it climb up the tree and get stuck?

While pondering various things, I continued climbing the tree and eventually reached the top.

As far as I could see, golden apples were hanging everywhere.

It’s a free-for-all.

“Wow, like a Viking!”

Muttering such things, I began to gather the apples.

For now, one.

*Snap.*

I tried pulling it off.

“Let’s grab some more apples. About ten? For now.”

*Snap.*

*Snap.*

*Snap.*

I plucked the apples from the tree branches and tossed them into my item pouch.

I repeated this process.

【Obtained 10 Golden Apples】

Stop at a nice round number.

Well, this should be enough.

(If I get too carried away, being an old man, I might slip and fall.)

I decided to descend from the tree.

Honestly, descending is scarier than climbing up.

As I descended, I eventually reached the branch where the cat was earlier.

“Meow!”

It seems like it’s still trying to intimidate me.

It must perceive me as a threat.

However, if it’s stuck up here, it’s rather pitiful.

I moved a little closer to the cat.

“Meow!!!”

It’s still intimidating.

Its fur is bristling, and there’s nothing else to interpret except intimidation.

“I’ll do this.”

I placed the apple I had picked earlier in front of the cat.

“Meow…”

It seemed like the intensity of its intimidation lessened a bit.

Slowly, it approached the apple and touched it with its front paw.

Lick.

As if testing for poison, the cat nibbled on the apple for a bit right there.

Crunch, crunch.

It started eating.

Tap.

After eating for a while, the cat nudged the apple towards me with its face.

It seemed like it was saying, “I’m done, you can have it,” but…

“Oh, it’s okay. It’s yours.”

I reached out my hand and waved it to the side.

Then, it started eating again.

It seems like its wariness has considerably diminished.

And then, I noticed.

(Is it injured? This cat…)

I noticed that the cat’s right hind leg was crushed.

“No wonder. It must be terrifying with its leg crushed.”

It’s not unreasonable for it to perceive anyone approaching its injured leg as an enemy.

But maybe now it’s okay?

“Come on, you’re a good kitty.”

As I slowly approached the cat, it lay down on the spot.

Perhaps it recognized me as an ally.

As I got close enough to touch the cat’s leg, I took out a potion from my item pouch.

I used the potion on the cat’s leg.

*Pop.*

Green light enveloped the leg.

Soon, as the light subsided, the leg returned to normal.

“Now you can walk.”

I smiled and gently stroked the cat.

Fluffy.

Feels good.

The cat seemed to want more petting, offering its head to me.

I petted it vigorously.

“Nya~”

Is that what they call a cat’s purring?

It was making a cute sound.

After petting it for a while, I stood up.

“Okay then, you can climb down on your own, right?”

As I said this and tried to descend from the branch, the cat clung to my leg.

“Meow.”

“Is there something else?”

When I asked, the cat released my leg and looked in a certain direction.

It was towards a thicket.

“Meow! Shaa!”

It began to growl.

Is something coming?

I crouched down.

And as I looked in the same direction as the cat…

Rustle, rustle.

I heard the sound of something rustling through the thicket.

And then, faintly visible through the foliage…

A white dress.

(A human?)

What the heck, you startled me.

I glanced at the cat, which was still growling.

But why would that person in the dress be so intimidating?

(Should I take a closer look at their face?)

With that thought in mind, I turned my gaze back to the thicket.

Rustle.

A loud rustling came from the dense foliage, and the person in the dress revealed themselves.

“Giiiiiiiiiiii!”

The figure emerging from the thicket was not human.

It was a green monster.

A goblin.

Strangely, it held not a club, but a staff typically wielded by mages.

And its attire resembled the dress worn by magical girls.

I had a sinking feeling.

(This is it! This is the Goblin Magical Girl!!! It really exists!)

Um, my smartphone… I should take a photo…

Wait, there are no smartphones in this world.

In Japan, there would undoubtedly be a scene where someone takes a picture.

This is an incredibly rare monster!

But, however…

“Where did it get that equipment from? Wasn’t it originally meant for humans?”

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