Start in DxD as Motohama: Leveling Up in Another World-Chapter 5: Food from another world. Visit to the library. An unusual new friend.

Chapter 5 - Food from another world. Visit to the library. An unusual new friend.

Once he entered the house, a message appeared asking if he wanted to redeem the items again or not, and he decided to redeem the [Magic Stone: Rank C] and [Hell Slime Core].

And then...

[Hell Slime Core] was redeemed for 500,000 yen.

[Magic Stone: Rank C] was redeemed for 500,000 yen.

He ended up obtaining a large sum of money again, a total of 1 million yen. It was almost shocking to think that he had earned 2.5 million yen in just two days, but he managed to get home in time for lunch. Also, he immediately tried to use the ingredients he obtained from the field that morning.

This time's menu was "Super-Powered Tomato Salad," "Invincible Pumpkin and Winter Wisdom Radish boiled in soy sauce," and "God Speed Potato and Meat Stew." All of these dishes were made with Holy Water from the "Infinite Watering Can."

The idea of cooking them wasn't particularly different from cooking tomatoes or potatoes from Earth, he was just nervous about the taste. However, that turned out to be unnecessary anxiety.

"D-delicious!"

It was surprisingly delicious. His cooking skills were average, so this flavor could only come from the quality of the ingredients themselves. After finishing the meal, he checked his status, and there were several changes.

[Name: Shinji Motohama]

[Age: 17]

[Race: Human (100%)]

Title: [One Who Has Crossed Worlds] [Master of the Door] [Master of the House] [Inhabitant of Another World]

Occupation: [None]

Level: 150

Magic: 3,150

Strength: 5,700

Constitution: 7,200

Agility: 6,200

Intelligence: 3,100

Luck: 7,200

BP: 0

[Skills:

]

"These otherworldly ingredients are a real cheat. Even without the door, just being able to grow these would make me invincible over time."

His stats had increased by 500 points, and he had gained a new skill. Was it a sin to be happy right now?

...

Remembering his previous thought, he decided to go to a secondhand store to get some books on martial arts.

He didn't want to go to the library because it was crowded, and every time he went, he would only receive unpleasant looks from the people there. Since the secondhand bookstore he was going to now was small, it was perfect for him because there wouldn't be any people.

He finished getting ready and left the house immediately, heading straight to the secondhand bookstore after leaving the train station. He stopped when he was in front of it, reading the sign that read "Fujishiro Bookstore." It was a modest, simple, and tasteful place. There were no signs of people on the road, and even when he entered the bookstore, he was the only customer.

Inside, he was greeted by a young girl who seemed to be in charge of the place.

Looking at her, Motohama immediately got an impression of her.

Small and cute.

Her eyes were brown, and her hair was peach-colored. She tied her hair in twin pigtails over her shoulders, with a rebellious strand sticking out from her head. Her clothes were homely, with an apron featuring the bookstore's logo.

Motohama explained what he was looking for, and she quickly guided him to the martial arts section of the store.

A large number of books on martial arts and martial forms greeted him. In addition to that, there was a wide variety of books, not only on standard swordsmanship but also on spear techniques and polar arts that he was looking for, and even on sickle and chain arts and assassination techniques.

Under the attentive gaze of the girl, Motohama searched through the martial arts section for books that he might find useful.

All these books were about scattered weapons and schools, and they were not consolidated, but somehow his instincts seemed to whisper to pick them. Was that the influence of the [True Martial Arts] skill? He wasn't sure, but it would be easy to buy a few books and return, so he bought them without overthinking it and headed home.

While returning, he was distracted, looking at the sea when he stopped at a crossing, the traffic light was red.

At that moment, he noticed a girl walking in the opposite direction while fixing her hair.

- IMG

The girl was quite pleasant to look at, with her long dark brown hair tied in a braid, and her glasses revealed eyes adorned with beautiful pupils the same color as her hair. With every step, her large assets moved disproportionately.

Suddenly, the wind blew strongly, lifting the girl's skirt for a few seconds.

Motohama saw it. She was wearing white panties. But not just any ordinary, innocent panties. They were lace panties tied with two bows on the sides.

His gaze couldn't tear away from that. It was... a celestial image, in his opinion.

When the wind stopped, the girl, still surprised and embarrassed, looked at Motohama, who had his back turned.

"D-do you...?"

"I didn't see anything..."

He wanted to sound sincere, but his own brain betrayed him, replaying that celestial image over and over again.

They both stood there, looking at each other from the corner of their eyes, embarrassed and unsure of what to say.

"Hehehe..."

After a few seconds, the girl smoothed her skirt as if nothing had happened and, with little jumps, approached Motohama, who watched her in confusion.

"Well, how should I say this..."

She brought her face closer.

"Skirts aren't very secure for hiding things you don't want others to see. Don't you think?"

With a smile, she continued.

"Maybe I should wear some spats as a sort of firewall?"

"I-I don't know..."

Motohama didn't understand, or rather, didn't want to understand what she meant. He felt that responding would be the same as admitting that he had clearly seen what he had seen.

The girl continued to stare at Motohama's face with a playful smile, while he avoided her gaze, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

"Well, I... have to go..."

Without waiting for more words from the girl, he continued on his way.

"Hey, wait a moment."

Motohama ignored her call. He knew it would be problematic to continue this.

The girl ran towards Motohama, grabbing his shirt, making him stop. With a mix of confusion and surprise, he turned to face her.

"Finally caught up to you... you walk pretty fast... Motohama-kun."

The girl spoke with a smile while giving him a gentle look.

Motohama looked at her, confused. He was familiar with the girl in front of him. To be specific, he was familiar with all the girls at the school due to his previous lifestyle. Similarly, because of this, all the girls knew who he was. However, after his recent physical change, it shouldn't be so easy for them to recognize him. So why was this girl suddenly speaking to him so friendly?

"You... do you know me...?"

The girl looked at him with a small smile.

"Of course. We go to the same school, after all. Your last name, known by all the girls at school for being part of the infamous perverted trio, is Motohama."

This comment made his lips tremble as he frowned. He wanted to respond, but the girl hadn't finished yet.

"Your first name, little known and a mystery to most, is Shinji. A guy who, despite how it seems, strives to get good grades and is even considered one of the unnamed geniuses by some."

Stopping, she looked at him with the same smile.

"Then, even though you've changed a lot physically, I'm sure you're Motohama Shinji-kun."

Motohama was somewhat surprised to be recognized by someone like her. So, he also showed his knowledge.

"You're Hanekawa Tsubasa. Third-year student."

...

Both of them sat in a nearby park, watching the sunset.

"Wow! You know the name of someone like me!"

Tsubasa expressed her surprise.

"In the final exams of the first semester of second year, in all subjects including physical education and visual arts, you missed only one question on the tests... You're that Hanekawa Tsubasa."

Tsubasa looked at him, confused.

"But what are you saying? How do you even know those details?"

A small cargo ship passed in front of them at that moment.

"Could it be that you... were stalking me?"

She asked with a playful smile.

"I'm not being paranoid, am I? Considering who you are, you must even know my measurements."

She shifted her legs restlessly.

"Not really. I heard it from the other students once. I guess you could say you're famous."

Tsubasa's expression turned complicated.

...

After some time, both of them started to head back.

"Hey, Motohama-kun, do you... believe in the supernatural?"

That question made him tense up.

"What do you mean?"

Tsubasa began walking along the edge of a wall.

"They say that at our school, at night, people with wings or using magical powers have been seen."

"But what you're saying happened at night. It could easily be an optical illusion or a hallucination."

He responded, trying to change the subject.

Tsubasa looked at him for a few seconds, making him nervous.

"Yeah, I also think it's just a silly rumor."

Her gaze wandered around her surroundings again.

"Although, if there really were supernatural beings, I think I'd like to meet them."

She raised her arms to regain balance as she almost stumbled.

"The idea that there are beings superior to humans is quite appealing to me."

She turned her face toward Motohama with a small child-like smile.

"Otherwise, it wouldn't be interesting, would it?"

The wind blew again, but with less strength this time. Her hair danced with the breeze.

...

"I got carried away and ended up talking nonsense. Actually, you're someone easy to talk to."

Motohama pursed his lips. She had been talking non-stop from the beginning.

They had returned to the intersection where they had met earlier.

"I..."

"Huh...?"

Motohama turned to her.

"I'm thinking of going to the library. Would you like to come?"

Motohama seemed confused. Since meeting this girl, he had been full of surprises.

"Why? What are you going to do at the library?"

"Well, study, obviously."

She responded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Study, you say... Sorry, but I already have plans."

He showed her the bag he was carrying with books.

"Are those books? Can I see them?"

She asked curiously.

Motohama took one of the books out.

"Martial arts? Are you interested in those things? Well, you're a guy after all..."

She said, shaking her head.

Motohama took the book back and put it back in the bag.

"Motohama-kun, do you have a cellphone?"

"Well, yes..."

"Let me borrow it for a second..."

Not knowing her intentions, Motohama took his cellphone out of his pocket and handed it to her.

Tsubasa took the cellphone and started typing something.

A thought crossed Shinji's mind when he realized something. Wasn't this the legendary scene where the protagonist gets the girl's phone number?

"Thanks. Here, I'll give it back to you."

Looking at the smile on Tsubasa's face, he was confused.

Tsubasa crossed the street, walking away, leaving Shinji bewildered. When she reached the other side, she turned back toward Shinji.

"I saved my number and email."

Upon hearing that, Shinji checked his phone, and indeed, there was a number saved.

"Congratulations. You made a friend."

With a smile and a noticeable blush, she started walking away while saying goodbye.

Motohama headed back home, visibly happier.

Once home, he couldn't stop thinking about that scene. Those celestial panties were engraved in his mind.

Taking a deep breath, he headed to the bathroom with a red face. No matter how much he wanted to, old habits were hard to forget.

After that, he immediately read one of the books to calm his mind until he took a break for dinner. He read a bit more after dinner, and before he knew it, he gained a new skill called [Speed Reading] and finished the rest of the book. However, it was already late at night, so the real battle would be tomorrow. After taking a bath, he prepared the bed and went to sleep.

New n𝙤vel chapters are published on freeweɓnøvel.com.

... And then, he experienced that terrible pain again and fainted.

---

Author's Note: Monogatari is not part of the story, it's just the kitten.