The Most Powerful Witch in History

-Stand in line properly!
-The toll is 1 silver coin!

“Oh…”
The ‘Village of Beginnings’, which could be called the mecca for newbies.
Having dealt with the thieves and traversed the forest to arrive at the village’s checkpoint, I showed quite an intrigued expression.

-I am a merchant.
-I’m here for tourism!

“…”
NPCs, each with their own consciousness, feeling emotions and acting on them. This impressed upon me that I wasn’t simply ‘playing a game’, but had come to an independent ‘world’.

“…Good.”
I smiled faintly.
It was a world incomparably cleaner than the reality filled with the stench of exhaust fumes, full of ambition and greed.
Although I didn’t know why I had come to this world in Arianna’s form, so far I didn’t regret it at all, nor did I feel any desire to return to the original reality.

“…”
Above all, at the thought that I could actively embark on adventures that no one else could experience, not just in a computer game, my heart started pounding as if it would explode.

-The toll is 1 silver coin.

“…”
After going through a brief inspection and handing a silver coin to the village guard demanding the toll, I finally set foot in this Village of Beginnings, not with a mouse and keyboard, but with my own two legs.

-There’s a sale at the market!
-Hey adventurer, won’t you come to our inn?

“…”
Befitting the mecca for newbies, the place where everything in the game begins, the Village of Beginnings formed a bustling ‘city’ scale beyond that of a ‘village’.

-You have entered the ‘Village of Beginnings’ in the Kingdom of Espor!

“…”
As if to make me realize I had entered the Village of Beginnings, a blue hologram notification screen also briefly appeared and disappeared in front of me.

“Alright.”
Nodding with satisfaction, I looked at the village scenery spread out before me.

“Should I find lodging first and then go to the guild office?”
I briefly pondered my next destination.
Due to the characteristics of ‘Deal and Attack’, which lacks proper instant movement skills, users usually paid a fee to use ‘teleport machines’ installed in villages or cities to go to their desired destinations.

Therefore, for me, aiming to reach max level, that is, to gain 1 million experience points, it seemed good to establish a ‘base’ rather than just wandering around. I’d secure lodging in this Village of Beginnings, the greatest metropolis in ‘Deal and Attack’, and use the teleport machine to travel and hunt high-level monsters.

“…Shall I go to an inn?”
Having roughly made a plan, I headed towards the street of inns where establishments offering meals and lodging were clustered.

-Hey adventurer! How about our inn?
-Meals are free at our inn!

“…”
The street of inns where touting was being carried out actively, even excessively, from the entrance. Looking curiously at those scenes that were like a medieval period, something I could never see in the game, I continued walking.

-Hey there, pretty lady! Come to our inn!
-No, our inn has better service!

“…”
Touts rushing in from here and there. But with all of them using the same lines, there wasn’t any inn that particularly appealed to me.

“Where should I go…”
Unlike in the game where everything was resolved with a simple ‘logout’, I found myself in a dilemma among the numerous inns. Since I’d be staying for quite a while, I’d prefer a high-class inn if possible…

“Our inn has the finest rooms, and meals and baths are free.”

“…!”
Then, a voice that struck the back of my head.
Hearing these quite attractive options, I immediately turned around to see a girl with braided hair smiling at me.

“How about it, pretty lady? Want to come to our inn?”

“…”
The red-haired girl showing a sly smile. To this girl who offered conditions most similar to the inn I was looking for, with the finest rooms and free meals and baths, I muttered gruffly:

“…Where is it?”

“Really? You’re coming to our inn?”
“I’m just going to take a look for now.”
“Great great! Follow me!”

The girl exclaimed with a beaming expression at my answer. Then she firmly grasped my hand and immediately set off.

“I’m Louisa! What’s your name?”
“…Arianna.”

The girl named Louisa, who seemed to have a chatty personality, kept talking about this and that while guiding me. She kept her tongue moving incessantly with a bright face.

“You’re really pretty, sis. The prettiest I’ve seen so far!”
“…Thanks.”

She complimented my appearance.
Well, I had invested a whole two days in character customization, so it would be strange if I wasn’t good-looking. My appearance charm was ranked among the top in ‘Deal and Attack’.

“We’re here!”

“…”
The inn we arrived at after walking for about 4 minutes.
As Louisa said, from the outer walls to the pillars, it certainly looked more luxurious than other inns.

“Here it is, I hope you have a comfortable stay!”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“If you need Louisa, just talk to the desk!”

“…”
After seeing me off, Louisa ran back to the street to tout again. As she disappeared into the crowd, I opened the inn’s door and went inside.

-How was your quest this time?
-Of course I succeeded! With this sword, I killed 7 goblins!
-This guy’s lying again!
-Hahahahaha!

“…”
The first floor seemed to be used as a dining room, with many adventurers laughing and eating. At the same time, the pungent smell of alcohol and tobacco.
Frowning at the smell that was the only thing no different from reality, I moved towards the desk.

-…Hey, the woman who just came in.
-She’s really pretty, isn’t she?
-Forget pretty, look at that equipment, is she some knight?
-She looks like a magic consultant? Really beautiful.

“…?”
And for some reason, the atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Feeling uncomfortable with the gaze that seemed strangely focused on me, I stood in front of the desk to get a room.

“Welcome.”
An old man greeted me.
…Thinking unnecessary words were pointless, I immediately told the old man directly what I wanted.

“…The best room here. I’ll be staying for a month.”
I’m getting a room for a month for now.
The old man looked at me with quite a surprised expression. He opened his eyes wide and stated the price.

“The best room for a month would be 2 gold coins, is that alright?”
“It’s fine.”

I immediately placed 2 shining gold coins in front of him. He looked at me with an even more surprised expression as I casually put down such a large sum.
After receiving the gold coins, he rummaged in his pocket and handed me a key.

“It’s the last room on the second floor. Will you be having dinner now?”
“Dinner…?”

He asked if I would also have dinner right away.
The food of ‘Deal and Attack’.
Those mysterious foods I had only ever seen with my eyes but never tasted even once.

“…”
With curiosity and a bit of hunger creeping up, I nodded briefly.

“Yes, prepare dinner too.”
“…Come down in 10 minutes, today’s menu is grilled wyvern tail.”

“…”
After hearing the name of the menu that made me dizzy just by listening, I picked up the room key and headed to the inn’s finest room.

“Oh.”
…Opening the room door and entering, a quite luxurious scene unfolded before my eyes. Furniture, wallpaper, and carpets that might look better than my real-life studio apartment were pleasantly arranged.

“…”
After taking off my witch’s hat and robe and hanging them on the coat rack, I plopped down on the blue sofa. The softness of the sofa enveloped my whole body as if by magic. I became too lazy to get up for dinner or anything else.

“Sigh…”
…After sitting blankly with my head tilted back for 10 minutes, I finally got up for dinner.

“…”
I trudged out of the room, went down the stairs, received the prepared hearty meal, and found an empty seat in the dining room.

“Hmm…”
The ‘grilled wyvern tail’ looked quite good visually. It had a shape and smell similar to barbecue.

“…”
The taste wasn’t much different from ordinary pork. I wasn’t expecting an extraordinary delicacy, but I couldn’t hide my disappointment at the all too familiar taste.

“…”
With no companion to talk to, I fell into thought while chewing the strangely tough meat.

“Am I alone…?”
The existence of other players besides me suddenly occurred to me.
Although I had only seen NPCs so far, the fact that I had come to this world meant that there was a good possibility that others had come here too.

“Hmm…”
As I was among the top-ranked players, I didn’t think I would lose to anyone in a one-on-one fight, but if multiple high-level players teamed up and attacked me, that could be quite a threat.

“Beings that could be a threat.”
I muttered while stabbing a vegetable with my fork.
Including other possible players, I suddenly thought about beings in this world that could pose a threat to me.

“…Probably the Empire’s Sword Saint and the Beast Kingdom’s Fighting King.”
Given my current level, I should be able to handle most beings, but the Sword Saint protecting the Empire and the Fighting King of the Beast Kingdom, known for his very aggressive personality, both had an incredible high level of 750 despite being NPCs, so they might pose some threat if they came at me with determination.

“Other than those two, well…”
Apart from those two, I couldn’t think of anyone else who could be a threat, so I just needed to act to avoid getting entangled with them.
Even if I did fight them, I didn’t think I would lose to mere NPCs, but dealing with others in the 700 level range would unnecessarily consume many things like equipment durability and health.
And repairing all that costs money, money.

“…Hey, miss!”
“…?”
…As I was lost in various idle thoughts, a thick voice suddenly rang out loudly right next to me.

“Oh my!”
Startled, I gently raised my head to see three burly men.
Their faces were bright red as if they had drunk quite a lot, and they spoke to me while pushing their glasses towards me.

“You look bored, how about having a drink with us?”