Chapter 64: A Decent Young Man
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 64: A Decent Young Man
“This place is...”
“It’s vacant land. A long time ago, some thugs from the Southeast tried to set up a gambling den here, but they got shut down by the competition.”
“So no one uses it now?”
“That’s right. Most of the surrounding buildings are empty, too. Even if the land technically has no owner, those thugs are still watching it like hawks. Who would dare use it?”
We were right on the border between the Southwest and Southeast districts, even closer to the Eastern sector than where Ravi’s Appraisal Office was located. Of course, compared to the Appraisal Office, it was much further from the center of Calax where the Labyrinth Portal was, making it a far less desirable location.
It was a wide, overgrown lot filled with weeds, surrounded by commercial buildings that stood completely hollow. On our way here, we had already run into more than twenty people.
“I see.”
“Even if someone wanted to build something, they’d be too scared of the thugs. But leaving the land idle is a waste, so those Southeast bastards have been slowly creeping back in.”
“That sounds like a difficult situation.”
“I think so, too.”
He was dressed lightly, wearing a pair of baggy brown shorts and a large, loose shirt thrown over his frame. To be honest, I was afraid I might hurt him. What would I gain from beating Sera’s Father to a pulp?
In the first place, I didn’t particularly enjoy fighting people. Especially not the husband of the Auntie I was indebted to. The fact that he looked like a pint-sized runt also played a big part in my hesitation.
I had already sent a healthy adult male to the afterlife because I failed to control my strength. This was a bit awkward.
“I heard you helped out at the inn while I was away. Marta seemed quite fond of you.”
“Ahaha... You flatter me. I’ve received so much kindness from her. I’m still in the process of paying it back.”
“Is that so? It’s rare to find someone who recognizes a debt of gratitude and knows how to repay it.”
I could really relate to that. Even if my body had regressed, my mind was the same; I could feel the 'vibe' of his years of experience.
“Young man, you said you were Gold Grade, right? What’s the highest floor you’ve reached? Around the 20th Floor?”
“Ah... no. My record is only the 12th Floor so far.”
“I see. Then it seems you haven’t experienced the True Labyrinth yet.”
“The True Labyrinth... you say?”
I could see it, too. Sera’s Father... looked like someone who had experienced the ‘True Labyrinth.’ I could feel it mostly through what was visible. It was truly intimidating....
“You said you haven’t obtained any Curse Skills, but you’ve got two useful ones.”
“Yes, that’s correct. One is a combat-oriented skill, and the other is an Unidentified Skill for which I am the first discoverer. I mostly rely on the latter’s abilities during combat.”
“...! I see. That’s good news.”
Sera’s Father nodded, naturally stroking his chin. He immediately pulled two kitchen knives from his waist and took a stance.
“Fine. I’ll let you have the first move. I don’t intend to go easy on you, so you’d better take this seriously.”
“...Yes. Then, here I come.”
He held the two short, thin kitchen knives in a reverse grip. His light, fragile body lacked any armor to protect his skin. It felt like the knives would shatter the moment they struck my Drake scales. It seemed he intended to rely on evasive maneuvers.
He stood with his weight shifted onto his left leg, creating a slanted posture that concentrated his center of gravity on one side. I could predict the direction he would move.
‘Now.’
—Whoosh!
My Drake tail swept through the air in front of me with considerable speed. It was a surprise attack executed by whipping the tail out in just over a second.
Regardless of his current state, he was Cobalt Grade. If he knew his opponent’s condition, he should be able to predict what kind of attack was coming. It was important for me to hide my moves as much as possible.
Boom!
The tail whipped through the space where Father’s head had been a moment ago. However, I didn’t feel the sensation of hitting anything. Did he dodge in that split second?
“Young man. You have very good eyes.”
“..!”
A thin voice drifted from behind me. And what I saw before my eyes was....
“F-Father?!”
Above his shoulders, the face that should naturally be there on a living person had vanished.
Then whose voice was that coming from behind me...?
“Gah!”
“Wahaha! Did that surprise you?!”
It was a grotesque sight—his head was just floating in mid-air.
“The fight isn’t over yet, is it? You need to focus!”
“N-No, wait...!”
What kind of crazy situation was this? Why was his head floating there while his body was over there?!
‘Where the hell am I supposed to aim?!’
I hurriedly switched my right eye to that of the Umbra Valkyrie. Immediately, markers began to appear within my vision, pointing out suitable locations to attack.
‘First, the head...!’
I swung my scale-covered hand at the head, but it reappeared on his shoulders as if it had never left.
I rushed forward and threw a punch at his torso, but this time, the stomach area where my fist should have landed simply vanished. His lower body remained, and his upper body was still there from the chest up, but the stomach I aimed for was gone. As I jumped back in surprise to create distance, Father laughed loudly.
“Wahaha! That was a good attack. It would’ve been even better if it had landed!”
“What on earth is that skill...?”
“Now, it’s my turn to attack!”
—Thrust!
Screeeech—
“Urgh...?!”
A hand suddenly appeared out of thin air behind my back, driving a reverse-gripped kitchen knife down with force. I had managed to block it by covering my back with scales beneath my shirt, but if that attack had landed properly, it would have been over.
“I’m not done yet!”
A leg would suddenly pop out of the void to kick me in the head, or a hand would grab my ankle.
Even using the eyes of the Direwolf Alpha, I couldn’t tell where the attacks were coming from.
I couldn’t tell when I’d be hit, nor where the strike would land.
‘The stomach...!’
A kitchen knife would lunge from the air, or a kick would fly toward my face.
“Wahaha! Young man! Do you feel it?!”
The scales I had wrapped around my arms and legs were useless. He kept targeting weak spots where I hadn't manifested scales, or he used attacks like grabbing my ankles where the scales didn't really matter. To put it another way...
‘I can bait his attacks by leaving certain areas unscaled.’
Reluctantly, I manifested scales on my face and neck, intentionally leaving my stomach and chest exposed to bait his strikes.
In reality, those were the two most fatal areas to take a hit. However, suddenly scaling my stomach and chest while removing them from my limbs would be no different from asking him to attack those specific spots.
I gradually expanded the range of my scales, narrowing down his possible targets, and entered a defensive posture while predicting the timing of his next move.
‘Now...!’
“Oops?”
“Haha...! I’ve got you!”
I successfully caught the kick flying toward my solar plexus. I gripped his thin ankle gently, fearing I might break it if I used too much strength, but it was a firm hold.
“I like how quickly you catch on! But it’s too early to relax!”
His ankle slipped away like mist in an instant. The part I was holding suddenly vanished, and he disappeared again.
‘But as long as I get the timing right, I can block it as many times as I need.’
There wasn't necessarily a reason I had to catch him. I didn't need to bait his attacks anymore.
I covered my entire body in scales and focused purely on defense. It might be an equipment issue, but currently, it didn't seem like Father could land a meaningful blow through my scales. His strikes were light, and his knives were blunt and weak.
“Come at me...!”
“You asked for it!”
After being hit a few times, I started to get a feel for it. He’s coming from the front...!
Whoosh—!!
Thud!!
“Gah...?!”
The impact was far stronger than expected, feeling as if I’d been struck by a flying bowling ball. The force was so great that my body, which had become heavy enough to easily reach 150kg, was pushed back.
“How can there be this much force...?!”
“Watch yourself!”
Boom—!
“Urgh!”
“Wahaha! My attacks aren't light, you know?!”
The impacts grew progressively heavier. While the initial attacks were manageable despite pushing me back, these were on a different level. It felt like being struck by a battering ram.
An attack aimed at the back of my legs forced me to my knees, and he instantly exploited my collapsed center of gravity.
—Thud.
“Huff.... What in the world....”
“Khehehe. For a youngster, no one has lasted this long against me! Excellent!”
“You’re too strong. What kind of skill were you using?”
“What makes you think I was using a skill?”
“Well, obviously....”
There was no way that impact could come from such a small body. Those tiny feet and fists couldn't possibly generate that kind of power.
“How could such an impact come from those small fists and feet? It has to be a skill....”
“Hmm, certainly. Punching with these fists alone couldn't produce that kind of force.”
As he said that, Sera’s Father took a short hop and plopped down right on my stomach as I lay on the ground.
“Urgh. You’re heavy.”
“Oh? Am I?”
“Yes.... No matter how light your frame is, if you just sit down like that....”
“Exactly. That’s it.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“No matter how light a body is, it’s still a human body. How could the weight of an entire person be light?”
“That’s....”
“This body weighs at least 20kg. Even a heavy mace that can kill a man in one hit only weighs about 2kg. If this body isn't a weapon, then what is?”
“Huh.”
He had a point when he put it that way. Still, how could a person put their entire body weight into every attack? At the very least, a human has to keep two feet on the ground to fight, so one could argue there’s no way to put one's full weight into every single strike.
“That’s not the point. What matters is using that weight effectively.”
“I see.”
“Yes. From what I can see, if you learn to use your weight properly, your progress will skyrocket.”
“...I’ll work on it.”
I sat up, lifting Father who was still perched on my stomach, and stood up.
“Father. By the way, where did the kitchen knives go?”
“Ah, they’re over there.”
Where Father’s finger pointed, there lay thin scraps of metal that were no longer recognizable as knives, along with pieces of wood that had once worked hard to serve as handles.
“Um, tell Marta that you broke them.”
“Wait, what....”
“Ahem! Lessons are expensive! Go and take the scolding in my place.”
“Understood....”
“Ehehe. Sera really did bring back a decent young man!”