“Kuu, kuaouh?” (Huh? Where am I?)

Before I knew it, I found myself in a white space. All the white light was hurting my eyes…

There was nothing but white in front of me, but when I turned around, there was a huge silver Spiral Staircase extending towards the heavens.

“Wu… wofu vorugu.”  (Ah… It’s the Ultimate Spiral Staircase.)

Ummm, why was it called “Ultimate” again? As soon as I thought about it, the answer automatically appeared in my mind. I see, so it’s called “Ultimate” because it means “to come to an end of evolution”.

I started to climb the stairs again. But, why is this set of stairs spiral? It’s the “DNA’s double helix structure”? Hmmm, so there’s another set of stairs behind this one.

It was kind of fun going up the silver Spiral Staircase with all the blessings and acclamations pouring down from the heavens, but I guess this is the end for this time.

My memory of this place was wiped clean, and I returned to reality.

……………

………

…

Right after she put an end to the rock monitor lizard, Dagger’s appearance changed.

“Gurua, wofu…”  (Chief, that’s…)

“Wafu, kuuaon.”  (Yeah, it’s become fluffier, hasn’t it?)

What was fluffier was Dagger’s tail. Compared to my tail which became 1.5 times fluffier than normal, the volume of hers was two times more than before…

That’s right, her tail had become similar to a fox’s. Contrasting with my silver, her fur had become a somewhat dull gold color, and her ears also enlarged a little.

Name: Dagger (Female: Sister)

Race: Kobold

Class: Kobold – Foxy

Skill: Leap Enhancement (Large, effect is instantaneous), Elementary Magic: Illusion

Title: Lizard Killer

Weapon: Unicorn Horn (main) Dagger (auxiliary)

Armament: Leather Armor

Auxiliary: Cloak

“Woan? Kuon.” (What’s wrong? Big brother)

“Guua, guu gaoruaoou” (You don’t look like a Kobold anymore.)

“Guao, kuorufaau…”  (Dagger, you look like a fox…)

Strictly speaking, I had the impression that the Kobold was a mix between a dog and a fox, but…

As the three continued with their exchange, someone was observing them carefully from the side. It was Muriel, the mage aspiring to be a biologist.

“Eh, it evolved!? Th-th-this is  amazing!!”

I had learned at the academy that monsters do evolve, but rarely, for me to be able to witness such a precious moment! I was so happy that I completely forgot the life-threatening danger I was in earlier.

I mean, they evolved you know? Other than that, the surprises just come one after another!

First, their physiques!

Normal Kobolds are smaller than an average human male, and yet these were as tall as a man. Moreover, that one was very huge. Their height was what convinced me to think that they were adventurers at the start.

In addition, they all had well-trained bodies.

“No matter how you look at it, those muscles aren’t normal… Did they train!? These Kobolds did muscle training?” 

This might be perhaps an incredible discovery… Besides, those sturdy muscles aren’t just for decoration.

A Kobold with a threat level of E+, that could be taken on by an “iron” adventurer, just took down a threat level C+ Rock Lizard that a mid-tier “silver” adventurer would normally take on. 

“Ah!”

At that moment, I realized that my problem was still not over.

I feel like they helped me earlier, but… it was dangerous after all. If they used their speed and coordination to attack me, then I would not be able to get away at all. I have not heard of any stories of Kobolds eating humans before, but…

As I watched them while being concerned over my safety, I noticed that one of them, the petite one with the insanely fluffy tail, was dragging along its foot.

(Huh? I wonder if it’s hurt……)

When I looked closer, I saw that the bigger Kobold was also pressing against its stomach, which was injured when the Rock Lizard attacked with its tail.

That was when a scene from a novel appeared at the back of my mind.

It was a  love story between a werewolf and a village girl, where the two met when the village girl rescued the werewolf who was hurt in battle. It seems like I would need to pitch in and help so that they don’t attack me. 

I slowly approached them as they continued to talk about something in gibberish.

After the battle ended, I checked on Dagger’s condition after she evolved. While asking her several questions, I examined the condition of her sprained foot as well.

I also checked on Buster who had injured his flank when he took an attack from the rock monitor lizard’s tail, but according to him, he only had some minor bruises and wounds.

It was probably thanks to his well-trained body and the Leather Armor that his wounds were not severe. However, the Leather Armor was badly scratched due to the ores in the rock monitor lizard’s tail.

And finally, I realized, aren’t the ores attached to the lizard iron ore?  I would have wanted to take them home but with our present condition, it was just impossible.

“Woruwoaru uruoa kuaruoo” (Looks like we have to go back to our part of the forest.)

“Kuon, wokuauu… fauaruo“ (Big brother, I’m scared… let’s hurry and go home.)

“…Gurua” (… Chief)

Turning my gaze at Buster’s prompting, I saw that the red-headed mage from earlier was making her way to us, so I spoke to the girl while being careful not to frighten her.

Of course, I was using the Kobold language… although I can understand this continent’s common language because of the memories I have of my past life, I still couldn’t pronounce because of my Kobold vocal cords.

“Ofuu, garuo faaoon” (Stop, we mean no harm.)

She probably could not comprehend what I was saying, but the red-haired girl responded to my voice and stopped at least 3 meters away from us.

“Uh, umm! Is she hurt? I…I can use primary healing magic, so…”

What!? I thought she looked like a mage but she’s actually a priestess? That was when the insignia on her mage garb that was clad in divine protection caught my eye.

(A mage, huh…so she’s an elite if she were compared to a Kobold like me.)

As I recall, people like her have learned various spells at the academy, so she can probably use healing magic. Even though I only helped her at the spur of the moment, it seems my decision to do so wasn’t a mistake!