Chapter 276: You Are Human, Right?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 276: You Are Human, Right?
“I’m sorry….”
“No, it’s fine. It doesn’t really feel like my own body anyway.”
When your body grows significantly larger than its original size, it doesn’t feel like you’re moving yourself so much as operating a machine with your mind, so it doesn’t bother me much. Besides, I’d already washed off the parts where she’d vomited with water.
“And… Aven.”
“Yes? What is it?”
“Thank you, truly. It’s all thanks to you.”
“Haha, don’t mention it. We’re all just helping each other out.”
We were in front of the Mayerbridge Union’s main building. After letting Rubia down, I sat on a bench to rest for a moment while looking over the clan’s training grounds. Night had already fallen, but seeing the clan members still training hard filled me with a sense of pride.
Rubia, perhaps because she’d had a good cry with her mother and then a long nap, said she felt energized and was going to change into her training gear.
“U-Um, excuse me….”
“Hm? Ah, you’re…”
I recognized her face. I was sure I’d heard her name somewhere before.
“Nike.”
“I-It’s Rike….”
“I see. My apologies.”
She was a woman with a gloomy impression and long, dark navy hair. Her name was Rike. Her bangs were so thick and overgrown that it was hard to tell what kind of expression she was making.
I heard she’d joined the Mayerbridge Union after becoming friends with Rubia, and surprisingly, she was apparently a fan of mine. Since she was the first person to ever tell me to my face that they were a fan, I wasn’t quite sure what stance to take.
Should I give her an autograph or something?
As I sat there pondering, Rike, who had been fidgeting with a sword in one hand, mustered her courage and shouted.
“M-May I sit next to you?!”
“Of course. It’s not like this bench is reserved for me.”
“Hieek….”
I believe she was originally an alchemist. She’d entered the labyrinth to gather herbs and suddenly ended up obtaining the Sword Saint skill. I heard she started working as a high-grade explorer because the pay was better.
“So, how is your training going?”
“I-I’m not really sure, but… I-I’m working hard….”
“I see.”
A period of silence followed. Even though she said she was a fan, I had no idea what kind of conversation to have with someone like her. I really hoped Rubia would finish changing and come out soon.
“U-Um, A-Aven-nim….”
“Just call me Aven.”
“Ah…! Aven-nim…. By any chance… could you show me your transformed state…?”
“Hmm.”
Come to think of it, she wasn't a fan of me, but a fan of my transformed appearance.
“All right. Will just showing you the form be enough?”
“I-If it’s not too much trouble…! Could we spar once…?”
“Sure. It’s not like it’s particularly difficult.”
Rike was likely the most recent addition to the Mayerbridge Union’s full party. In a way, she was the rookie of the group. I wondered what the rookie of the Mayerbridge Union was like.
Creeeak—!
When I’m in the city, I try my best to transform into a form that’s as least grotesque as possible so as not to startle the people around me. Even so, it mostly involves covering the exterior with an exoskeleton while the process of wrapping the entire body in muscle and fat takes place.
Still, it’s much better aesthetically than watching muscle fibers and yellow fat writhing around.
“Shall we get started?”
“H-Huk…! Y-Yes, sir….”
* * *
Recently, the Mayerbridge Union’s training grounds have been opened to the public during the evening. The reason, of course, was the increase in new recruits. While most were low-grade explorers, there were also several with high grades.
The Mayerbridge Union was the top clan within Calax, but its scale was still slightly smaller compared to Roanmarie or Hechituk. Since they had plenty of clan funds, they likely wanted to recruit more people.
If low-grade explorers became stronger later on, there was a high possibility they would join the Mayerbridge Union, where they’d formed a good impression.
“Come at me whenever you’re ready, Rike.”
“U-Understood…!”
Rike drew a long sword from the scabbard tied to her left hip. It was a weapon slightly longer than a typical one-handed sword, and I could tell just by looking that it was made of high-quality materials. I was worried I might break it during the spar.
“A-Are we really using live blades…?”
“Yes, it’s fine, so swing to your heart’s content. Oh, but do be careful not to let your sword snap.”
Since the clan’s internal training schedule had ended and the grounds were opened to the public at 8:00 PM, there were many unfamiliar faces around us.
—W-What is that thing…?
—Hey, look over there. Is that even human?
—I don’t think so….
—Is that an explorer from the Mayerbridge Union too?
Amidst the buzzing whispers, Rike cautiously took her first step forward.
Flash—!
Contrary to her appearance, which seemed sluggish due to her large chest, Rike achieved an optimal leap through precise stride calculations. It seemed the name ‘Sword Saint’ wasn't just for show; despite having no prior knowledge of swordsmanship, she displayed incredible skill.
I had no idea how a single skill could turn a person into a genius of the blade.
Swish-swish-swish!
The sound of her sword swings wasn't loud; it was quiet and serene. From the way she held her posture to the path of her swings and even the alignment of the blade—it was difficult to produce such a sound unless the swing was perfect.
Thwack—!
Her thrusts are excellent, too.
She was being very aggressive. If my guess was correct, this was the reason for her aggression.
BOOM—!
“H-Hieek…!”
“Your defense is lacking, Rike.”
“U-Uuu….”
A long tail had surged forward, scraping and gouging the ground. When the tip stopped just before touching Rike’s temple, she dropped her sword in surprise.
The ‘Sword Saint’ skill literally grants one incredible swordsmanship. Of course, swordsmanship includes defensive aspects, but given Rike’s physical specs, it would be difficult for her to properly respond to such sudden situations.
“You haven't been doing much sparring, have you?”
“H-How did you….”
I figured as much, given how difficult Rike found it to interact with people. Even if she did spar, it was probably only a few times with Rubia. If she only sparred with Rubia, who had great power but was slow, she wouldn't get used to high-speed attacks like this.
“Practice a lot with Delbaheim. She uses a very fast sword.”
“U-Understood….”
After Rike lost the spar, Rubia arrived at the training grounds, having changed into her activewear. She carried a hammer larger than her own small frame on her back.
“Aven! Spar with me too!”
“With you, Rubia?”
“What? Are you saying I’ll be worse than Rike?”
“I didn't mean that. If you want to, then sure.”
Of course, the result wasn't much different. In fact, Rubia’s personality was to push through with raw strength, which might be effective when hunting large monsters, but…
Crash!
“Ugh! Can’t you just let me hit you once?!”
“Try harder and make it happen with your own strength.”
“Urgh! I’m definitely going to do it!”
As Rubia was rolling around on the ground throwing a tantrum, one of the nearby explorers approached and spoke to me.
“Greetings! I am Kai, an Iron-grade explorer!”
“Hmm, what is it?”
“I was wondering if I might be permitted to inquire as to whether you might find it burdensome if I were to ask if you would be open to the possibility of engaging in a brief sparring match with me!!”
“You’re saying you want to spar once, right?”
“That is correct!”
Why on earth was he using such convoluted, nested questions? Could it be that that group existed in this world too?
“Fine, I don’t see why not.”
I wondered how much effort I should put in against an Iron-grade explorer. It had been so long since I’d encountered one that I wasn't sure of the scale. Would treating him like a Direwolf be about right?
“H-Here I come! Hyaaaap!!!”
Right, it was nice to see such youthful energy. Beginners always shouted at the top of their lungs when swinging a sword. They’d fix that later. As they learned to manage their breathing, they’d stop unnecessarily straining their vocal cords.
Clang!
And more than anything, this guy was using dual swords. I happened to really like dual-wielding—no particular reason, I just found it amusing. After all, the more swords you held, the more you could cut.
Then I should take out my swords too.
I manifested Queen Arachne’s exoskeleton into the shape of swords and gripped one in each hand. Since they contained blood vessels and were equipped with functions that could add significant extra damage to attacks, they were incredibly dangerous things to swing at a human, but…
“A little faster.”
“U-Understood!”
Clang! Clang!!
After clashing blades a few times, it happened.
Shatter—!!
“M-My sword…!”
“Oh dear. What have I done?”
I had casually parried a random swing, but the accumulated impact caused his sword to shatter.
“U-Uwaaaah!! My sword…!!”
Kai wailed piteously as he stared at his broken left sword. It looked like it had snapped clean in half.
“Wait a moment.”
“Yes…?”
I grabbed the two broken pieces of the sword and wrapped them in Queen Arachne’s exoskeleton. Then, I lined the interior with the heat-resistant organs that usually protected my Flame Core and raised the temperature above the melting point of iron to melt the sword down.
It was clearly a crude sword made by pouring scrap metal into a mold. Even if I reforged it like this, its strength wouldn't be much different from before.
Afterward, I dipped the properly formed blade into melted fat to lower the heat and cooled it down with my Frost Core. When I pulled it out, it was perfectly fused back together.
“There, this should do it, right?”
“H-Huk!! How did you do that, Big Brother?!”
“I just melted the iron and stuck it back together.”
“There’s no way a human could do that….”
Kai stared at the restored sword for a moment, then glanced back at me.
“Y-You are human, right?”
“Of course.”
Anyone can do this much if they’re human. Or not.