"It really isn’t a dream, is it...?"

What greeted me when I opened my eyes was the ceiling of the inn I stayed at last night. It was foolish of me to even hope for a second that the absurd event of being summoned as a demon lord yesterday was just a dream.

Still, considering the situation, it's amazing how I managed to sleep soundly. Old men like me tend to be pretty thick-skinned.

"So... what should I do now?"

After having the not-so-tasty breakfast at the inn, I stepped out. For now, I'll take a walk around the town and figure out what to do next.

"Hmm... defeating monsters and selling their materials seems like my best bet."

As I walked around the town, I tried to think of ways to earn some money, and becoming an adventurer—like the usual trope in these otherworldly stories—seemed like the most reasonable choice.

This town is quite large, and there were many jobs available, but none of them were hiring a middle-aged man over 35. And even if there was a job listing, it was always for experienced individuals, with no opportunities for beginners.

It seems that finding a new job in this world is just as tough for someone my age. Life is rough, even in another world.

Given the situation, the best option might be to become an adventurer, where materials from monsters are bought regardless of age. Damn it, I wish I had production skills among my demon lord abilities.

"Even if I use my knowledge from the previous world to make money, I don’t have the capital. For now, I guess I’ll just try to earn some small change."

Even if I were to cheat with knowledge from my old world, I’d still need capital and connections, and it would take some time before I could make any real money.

Monster materials can be sold even if I’m not an adventurer, though the price might be a bit lower. For now, this seems like the quickest way to make some daily income.

...But I really don't want to become an adventurer. All I want is a modest life, like in the old world—working enough to get by and occasionally enjoying a good meal. As you get older, high ambitions tend to fade.

"So, I’ve made it to the forest... but what should I do now?"

There wasn’t any sort of inspection when leaving town, so I was able to get out easily. Of course, I don’t have much money, so I didn’t bother buying any weapons or armor—I’m completely unarmed.

The gate guard kept warning me, but I reassured him that I’d be fine and left the town. He was genuinely concerned about an unarmed guy like me, which was nice of him. The gate guard seems like a good person.

By the way, I couldn’t find any magic steel crystals in the town, which I need to return to my world. It seems to be quite a valuable item. Well, whatever I end up doing, I’ll need money.

"Alright, let’s see if I can use this Presence Detection skill... Okay, I can sense all the living beings in the vicinity, just like a radar!"

When I activated the Presence Detection skill, I could sense the positions of the surrounding creatures in my mind. I could even tell their approximate size and filter out the small ones. The range was pretty impressive, too.

"Let’s start by heading over there."

I walked in the direction of a nearby creature that wasn’t too big.

"Moo..."

What I found was a black cow. I’m not sure if it’s a monster, but if it’s a cow, it should be useful for materials or food.

Alright, let's do this. Time to make up my mind.

"Wind Cutter!"

*Slash!*

The cow didn’t even notice me, and with a single strike from my wind blade, its head was cleanly severed.

Blood gushed from the neck—this is what it means to take a life.

"I’ll make sure to use this life properly..."

Of course, this is the first time I’ve deliberately killed a large creature. It does stir something inside me.

The best thing I can do now is to use the life I took to its fullest. I’ll sell the materials and keep the meat. I can cook at least a little.

"First, let’s store it using space magic."

With space magic, I can store items like in an item box. Since storage magic seems to be rare in this world, I’ll take it out later in town and sell it at a buying station.

"Alright, let’s go find another monster."

There’s a chance that this cow’s materials might not sell, or it might not even be edible. I should go find at least one more.

"So, this one’s a boar-type monster?"

The smell of blood from the cow was pretty strong, so I walked a bit further and moved to a different area. As I was about to use Presence Detection again to search for a monster, I noticed a boar-type creature a little ahead of me.

"Good, a boar should work for both materials and food. Let’s take it down."

"Snort!"

"Huh?!"

Just as I was about to use Wind Cutter to take it down, the boar noticed me.

"Snort!!"

Whether it was the sound or the smell, for some reason, the boar had figured out where I was hiding behind a tree. It charged at me immediately. I hurried to cast a spell in response.

"Watch out!"

As I was about to fight back with magic, a person suddenly jumped in between me and the boar.

I almost sliced the person who jumped in with my wind magic.

"Oink!?"

The man who jumped in seemed to be an adventurer. He swung his longsword down, and with a single stroke, the boar collapsed, spewing blood.

He defeated that massive boar in one hit.

"That was close. Are you alright?"