? Yumiko POV

    "So much useless junk. This world is so annoying. Why restrictions?"

    Yumiko''s tail swatted away another useless weapon. Beastman couldn''t equip it, leaving her irritated, sending the pretty spiked whip into the distance.

    Her impatience grew as she heard Ryuji finding things for Ryo and Akari.

    "So noisy," she sighed.

    Tired of searching, she stood in place, closed her eyes, and wondered which direction to search in because of their time limit.

    "..."

    "Hm?"

    ''My feet?''

    Opening her eyes, a set of claws rested on her lower leg. "???" she sneered for a moment before seeing they pointed in a direction.

    ''Go that way?''

    "Whatever," she groaned, finding it faster than her current plan.

    "..."

    She strangely used her tail, letting the wind remove the dust as she wafted it left and right. "Hm?" Yumiko watched it stop in a particular direction.

    ''... Closer.''

    Yumiko followed the feeling and walked forward five steps. Her tail swiped once again, stopping as she found a small box. The padlock was so rusty that it broke the moment she lifted the box with a powerless clang.

    "!?" Yumiko raised her brow, and her pupils focused on the box as she became interested in knowing what lingered inside.

    ''Found one,'' she thought as she carefully opened the box.

    "...?" Her eyes became brighter and shone like small lights, and her beautiful lips let out a pleased smirk.

    ''My item?''

    Yumiko didn''t know why, but that was the feeling in her chest upon seeing the item. It felt like something guided her to this item because it was an item only Beastmen could use!

    "I wonder if I can use them well?"

    Inside the box was a pair of gauntlets and greaves, made from what seemed to be an extremely lightweight metal, neither iron nor bronze, but something that felt a little magical as it vibrated and throbbed when her fingers slid across the surface.

    —Grit Increased by 2

    —Agility Increased by 2

    —Strength Increased by 1

    —Self Repairing.

    ***

    When Ryuji saw her weapon and armour, he was amazed at how strong they seemed compared to his basic equipment, which would never grow. The items would grant her close to three levels of attributes and repair themselves when she killed monsters.

    It would devour part of their soul and magic to repair and improve them slowly!

    ''I am glad; this makes up for her lack of base attributes, or rather, because of the ring, she can level once again as a Beastman. Maybe there is more to learn about other races, but I can''t do it in this kingdom.''

    "Did I do well, Ryuji?" Her eyes narrowed, a simple show of her confidence as she nudged her hips against him while enjoying herself a little more.

    "Yeah, you picked an amazing item."

    "Fufu, then you must become my knight, here to protect me from harm then."

    Her words trailed off as she lowered her head and kissed his cheek before walking away with a slightly red face. However, her fluffy ears and tail wagging gave her embarrassment away.

    "So cute," Ryuji petted her head, unable to say anything to such a beauty.

    He couldn''t handle how she shifted from a mature adult to a lovely young woman, sometimes making his heartthrob, but the movements were so close to his mother that he felt a sense of crisis.

    ''She is going to improve quickly. I should practise harder to keep my advantage!''

    Her changes ignited Ryuji''s desire to train even more. He wants to remain stronger than Yumiko when she acts strangely mature and adult, and it drives him crazy.

    "Umu, shall we go find something nice to eat? I am hungry after training in this dusty room for so long!" Yumiko announced while lightly stretching.

    Ryuji just nodded, heading toward the exit. "That sounds good."

    "Ryu, make sure you take good care of me," Yumiko smiled. "Or I''ll beat you!"

    Her fist pushed forward, revealing the deadly blade; even her boots did the same with a small sharp blade that flipped out when she performed her attacks.

    "Of course. Now let''s go find Ryo and Akari. They might be ready."

    "Nn!" she agreed, taking his hand, her ears twitching as her tail swished back and forth like a kitten who found her favourite toy.

    While Ryuji felt relieved, he refused to separate from Yumiko after getting to know her. This item and the fact that she could improve faster now. He was confident she could handle the D-rank dungeons or higher as they moved forward.