Chapter 1: The Novice Adventurer 

☆2 And Then, I Was Abandoned 

As an infant, I was completely helpless. I was carried out of a massive mansion—one that looked like a castle—by an old man. He held me tightly before placing me inside a horse-drawn carriage. The carriage’s interior was lavishly decorated, with soft cushions spread out to ensure comfort. 

I wasn’t wearing any clothes—just a diaper. Practically naked. 

The old man looked at me with a sorrowful expression. He was speaking words I couldn’t understand. His voice sounded distant, as if echoing from another world. 

As something resembling the sun began to rise, marking the break of dawn, the carriage quietly set off. From my low vantage point, I could barely make out the outside world. Which had the distinct atmosphere of medieval Europe. 

However, for reasons beyond my understanding, something resembling streetlights lined both sides of the road. They glowed softly in the early morning light. Civilization here didn’t seem as primitive as I initially thought. 

Letting the gentle sway of the carriage lull me, I gazed out at the passing scenery. 

The rhythmic sound of wheels rolling over cobblestone was strangely soothing. Warm lights spilled from the windows of roadside houses. They offered glimpses of the lives inside. The scene felt oddly nostalgic, yet there was an undeniable sense of unfamiliarity—this was definitely another world. 

After some time, drowsiness overtook me. 

My eyelids grew heavy, and my consciousness began to fade. 

The last things I saw were the sky, tinged orange by the rising sun, and the glow of the streetlights illuminating the road. 

Then, I drifted into a deep sleep. 

◆◆◆

The rattling of the carriage jolted me awake. 

Outside, darkness had fallen completely. 

A lamp fixed to the front of the carriage cast beams of light through the dense forest ahead. At some point, it had become the dead of night. Shadows danced among the trees as we moved. 

Without a word, the old man lifted me into his arms and stepped down from the carriage. 

A biting night wind prickled my exposed skin. 

After walking for a while, we arrived at what looked like the entrance to a cave. 

Inside, pitch-black darkness swallowed everything. Even with my eyes wide open, I couldn’t see a thing. Yet, the old man navigated the cave without hesitation. 

Then, without warning, he set me down on the cold ground. 

He said something to me—one final string of unintelligible words—before turning away and walking off. 

The cave was damp. And each time the chill in the air brushed against my skin, goosebumps rose. 

The sound of his footsteps gradually faded. It grew fainter and fainter. 

Until finally— 

Nothing. 

‘Huh? 

Wait a second— 

Did he just abandon me?!

Am I supposed to just die here?!’

A creeping sense of dread slowly consumed me. 

Cold sweat trickled down my back. My heartbeat was pounding in my ears. 

‘You’ve got to be kidding me!! All I did was get dragged into this stupid isekai situation, and now this?! 

This is bullshit!!!’ 

In the suffocating darkness, despair wrapped around me like a heavy chain. 

A crushing weight settled in my chest. It made it hard to breathe. 

◆◆◆

I had no idea how much time had passed. 

The cave remained as dark as ever, with not even a single glimmer of light to mark the passage of time. 

Since I had already slept too much earlier, I wasn’t sleepy at all. 

What I was, however, was starving. 

And strangely, that hunger dulled my fear little by little. 

Maybe the body’s desperation for food suppressed other emotions. My stomach’s growling echoed against the cave walls. It was only intensifying my sense of isolation. 

To distract myself, I started recalling and analyzing the anime and manga I used to watch in my previous life. There was literally nothing else to do—what choice did I have? 

Then— 

I heard voices. 

Distant, but definitely voices. 

What would happen if I called out? 

Did I really have a choice? 

I tried to yell, “Hey! Someone—!” but all that came out was the helpless wail of an infant. 

Still, it worked. 

Footsteps approached. 

The voices grew louder. What were they saying? 

A presence loomed nearby—several of them, actually. But in the darkness, I couldn’t see a thing. 

Then, suddenly— 

I was lifted into someone’s arms. 

They spoke to me, their words meaningless in my ears. 

I froze. I was unsure how to react. 

Then, they carried me away. They retraced their steps toward where they had come from. 

As we neared the cave entrance, light began filtering in. 

Brighter and brighter. 

By the time we stepped outside, the intense sunlight forced me to squeeze my eyes shut. 

After a while, I managed to open them again. 

The sun hung high in the sky—it must’ve been past noon. 

Tilting my head back, I looked up at the person holding me. 

Dark skin. 

White hair. 

And most notably— 

Pointed ears. 

The old man who abandoned me was obviously human. But this person— 

An elf? 

No, their darker complexion suggested something else. 

A dark elf? 

Panic prickled my nerves. 

I’d never heard anything good about dark elves in fantasy stories. 

Was I about to be sacrificed to some evil god?! 

A whole new kind of fear crept up my spine.