Overlord: Welcome the Birth of the King

After more than a month, Lyle had finally achieved his first small goal since arriving in this other world.

"Awoo..."

A faint whimper echoed from a patch of grass about ten meters away from the large tree where Lyle was resting.

"Still following me, huh?"

Lyle glanced in the direction of the sound, furrowed his brows slightly, but then withdrew his gaze, deciding to ignore it.

It was that small Barghest again.

He had no interest in taming a creature that lacked combat ability. Even a fully grown Barghest wasn't of much use to him.

As time passed, Lyle would only become stronger, whereas even an adult Barghest was barely stronger than an ogre at best.

A short distance away, hidden within dense shrubbery...

The small Barghest lay weakly on the ground, panting. Its brown beast-like eyes held a hint of intelligence as it gazed at Lyle, who was meditating beneath the tree.

Its limbs trembled.

With a feeble stumble, it collapsed into the grass, ears drooping and its breath ragged.

Having been born only recently, such a long journey had pushed even the Barghest's naturally strong endurance to its limit.

Only after confirming that Lyle had stopped moving did the small Barghest finally close its eyes and drift into an exhausted slumber.

Beneath the massive tree...

Lyle retrieved several water pouches and various miscellaneous items from his Inventory, carefully examining them. Every so often, a faint magical glow flickered between his fingers.

Over the past few days, when he wasn't hunting goblins and other monsters for experience, he had been experimenting with Alchemy.

After much trial and error, he had finally managed to produce something useful.

The only somewhat successful result was an Alchemical Solution made using the venom sacs harvested from the Gallows Spiders he had slain earlier.

---

[Item: Inferior Alchemical Solution]

Effect: Created using the venom sac of a Gallows Spider, this solution induces paralysis for three minutes. (Cannot be stored for long periods; its effects will fully degrade within an hour.)

---

Lyle had consumed two venom sacs just to create a solution with a noticeable effect.

Thankfully, his Inventory maintained items in their original state, preventing deterioration over time. Otherwise, this alchemical solution would have been completely useless.

This experiment had made Lyle realize that the range of usable materials for alchemy was much broader than he had initially thought.

However—

Just like his earlier experiment using Blazing Grass, this alchemical solution had the "Inferior" label attached to it.

Even though both solutions technically had effects, in Lyle's eyes, they were nothing more than half-baked failures.

Or perhaps, not even that.

If he had to describe it—

It was like trying to make tomato soup.

A normal method would involve cutting tomatoes, adding water, heating them, and waiting for them to cook.

Alchemy, on the other hand, was supposed to skip all those steps and instantly transform a tomato into a bowl of soup—without losing any of its nutrients and even enhancing its properties.

But right now, his alchemy was like poorly-made tomato soup—barely functional and far from ideal.

"Half-baked is still half-baked. Just because it works doesn't mean it's actually useful."

"Maybe at low levels, it has some value, but once my level increases, these inferior solutions will be completely worthless."

Lyle muttered to himself while shaking his head.

For example, the Blazing Grass Potion he made earlier only restored 1 HP.

A pathetic effect.

He would be better off handing the herbs to Enfrya, who could at least make proper healing potions.

Sure, using better materials might create a more potent alchemical solution, but if it was still inferior, it was just a waste of resources.

Not to mention—

He didn't have the money to afford high-quality ingredients anyway.

"Right now, it's just like being an apprentice alchemist." Lyle rubbed his temples, feeling frustrated.

It was like trying to make a fortune silently—only to end up with just silence.

Lyle knew exactly what he was missing.

He lacked the Alchemy skills from YGGDRASIL.

With a shake of his head, he dismissed the thought.

He wasn't the type to dwell on things.

If something wasn't useful at the moment, he would set it aside and focus on what was.

Night passed in an instant.

Flame Moon, July 4th.

With just a little over 100 experience points left before leveling up, Lyle was more motivated than ever.

As the darkness of the forest began to fade, he was already on the move, sword in hand.

Thanks to a magic item with the "Forest Walker" effect, terrain was no longer an issue for him.

His increased mobility allowed him to quickly track down isolated goblins and other monsters.

Meanwhile...

The small Barghest, which had been resting in the distance, quickly scrambled to its feet to follow.

However, due to dense vegetation blocking its path—and Lyle's superior speed—it lost sight of him within mere moments.

Yet—

"Awoo!"

The Barghest shook off the morning dew, lifted its nose, and sniffed the air.

Relying on its keen sense of smell, it plunged into the forest, tracking Lyle's scent.

---

THUMP!

A half-meter-long Armored Beetle was sent flying, smashing into a tree with a heavy impact.

Leaves rustled.

The tree trembled.

"Screech!"

Yet, the beetle emerged unscathed, its wings buzzing as it charged straight at Lyle.

"Tch, tough little bastard."

"Goblins are way easier to kill than these things."

Lyle sidestepped the attack, allowing the beetle to crash into the tree he had deliberately positioned himself in front of.

THUD!

The impact left a deep crack in the bark, but the beetle was stunned by its own momentum, flipping onto its back.

Its soft underbelly was exposed.

Lyle's eyes flashed.

Before the creature could recover, he stepped forward and plunged his sword into its weak point.

SPLAT!

A shrill screech.

Then silence.

『Gained 53 Experience Points.』

『Experience: 9425/9500.』

"Damn, its shell is ridiculously hard. A basic iron sword can't even cut through it properly."

"And it barely gives any experience. I'd be better off hunting goblins."

Shaking his head, Lyle resumed his search for prey.

---

Deep within the forest...

Flashes of steel glinted in the morning light.

A series of muffled screams followed.

Ordinary beasts were nothing more than stepping stones for Lyle's advancement.

With only 70 experience points left, time seemed to stretch unbearably long.

BANG!

A plump rabbit was crushed under Lyle's boot.

It kicked and struggled, but there was no escaping his strength.

A single rabbit gave almost no experience… but right now, it was just enough.

"Hmm. 11:02 AM. This'll make a decent lunch."

Glancing at his pocket watch, Lyle let out a relieved sigh.

Finally—

He could leave this damn forest.

SQUELCH!

The rabbit's skull caved in.

『Gained 1 Experience Point.』

『Level Up! Genius 10 LV.』