A Lesson in Humility
To a commanding knight, their weapon was as precious as life itself. Though they trained to fight unarmed when the situation demanded it, no knight would ever surrender their weapon to another without a damn good reason. And that held true even for Sebastian, the man they called a half-knight.
"Look, kid, I know you're ridiculously strong, but swordsmanship is a completely different beast—"
Lee Haram ignored Sebastian's words, walking over to the side of the road to snap off two suitable tree branches.
"Catch."
"Even so, this is just ridiculous..."
"Here I come."
Haram pointed her branch at him, recalling the lessons she had received from the Forgotten Swordmaster.
—Your small frame is definitely a disadvantage in a fight, but if you close the distance, the story changes.
—An opponent will know that and try to keep their distance, but if they let their guard down, it's a different game entirely.
Sebastian didn't look even slightly tense as Haram charged at him. While raw strength was undeniably crucial in a fight, things were different when wielding toy-like twigs.
If they put all their power into them, the branches would snap instantly. In a situation like this, technique and swordsmanship decided the victor.
Sebastian recalled the geniuses he had encountered in the past.
She's probably never lost a fight because she's possessed this monstrous strength since childhood.
There were geniuses born with immense power, or those who mastered in days what took others years. Many such geniuses defied common sense, but they were all arrogant.
Maybe in a few years, but right now, I won't lose.
She looked young, and traveling with a beast suggested she lacked a proper master. Sebastian resolved to teach this monstrously strong kid a lesson about how vast the world truly was.
The moment Haram closed the distance and swung her branch down in a massive overhead strike, Sebastian twisted his body and brought his own branch up to meet the point of impact.
In his mind, he envisioned parrying the girl's strike with a fluid deflection and pointing his own branch at her throat.
But reality was cruel.
Like a snake slithering up a tree, Haram's branch clung to Sebastian's, refusing to let go. While Sebastian's attention was entirely occupied by the clashing twigs, Haram lunged straight into the knight's chest.
"Gah!"
Sebastian's vision flipped upside down as his body sailed through the air. It was a textbook shoulder throw. As Sebastian lay sprawled on the ground, Haram pointed her branch at him.
"My swordsmanship is better too. Now, hand it over."
"...Fine."
Sebastian meekly unbuckled the sword from his waist and handed it to Haram. Although the decisive blow had been delivered through raw physical force rather than swordsmanship, the technique she used to deflect his strength and slip past his guard was the real deal.
Even so, surrendering his sword was a deep humiliation for a knight. It wasn't that he was so deeply impressed by Haram's swordsmanship and martial arts that he willingly accepted such disgrace, but...
Alright, I'm giving it to you! Just please stop...
"Woof!"
"Oh? Poppy, when did you get so close?"
Sebastian simply couldn't withstand the terrifying glare of the massive monster looming right behind Haram.
He gave it up surprisingly easily. I was planning to beat him up some more if he refused.
Thanks to the knight being unexpectedly submissive, things had gone smoothly. If my knowledge was correct, these NPCs would accompany me all the way to the fifth floor. Setting the servants aside, it would be beneficial to stay on good terms with the old man and the knight.
Of course, if they got in the way of clearing the stage, I would have to get rough, but as long as they listened to me, there was no need to be overbearing.
I looked down at the knight, who was trembling on the ground with a terrified expression. I had worried they might turn out to be enemies like before, but seeing him look so pathetic, they were almost certainly on my side.
"Ahem. I don't intend for that sword to be your final reward. Consider it collateral for now."
"Fine, I get it, so please just stop that old man!"
I pointed at the old man, who had begun to dance while clutching the jewelry box.
"Ahem, well, that is a highly valuable treasure... Alright! My Lord!"
Feeling my gaze, the knight scrambled to his feet and rushed over to the old man he called the Count. While the knight tried to calm him down, I drew the sword and practiced the forms I had learned from the Forgotten Swordmaster.
The knight, who seemed to be an ally NPC, was even weaker than I had anticipated. Even with a transcendent's advice, my actual swordsmanship wasn't particularly outstanding.
Yet a knight had been effortlessly defeated by someone like me. It was clear that I couldn't expect any help in combat from him, let alone the servants currently wiping down the carriage.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
At the sudden sound of clapping, I turned my head to see the Count walking back toward me, applauding. Having handed the treasure box he had been hugging to the knight, the empty-handed Count approached me.
"Though there are still some unrefined areas, your swordsmanship is truly remarkable. Might I ask the name of your master?"
"..."
"If you cannot say, then so be it. In that case, may I ask your name? Otherwise, I shall have to keep calling you kid..."
"I'm Haram. Lee Haram."
"Ah, Lady Haram. You may keep that sword. It was far too grand a weapon for my son, whose skills remain utterly dreadful despite my providing him with the finest tutors and sparring partners."
"Father!"
I had wondered how someone with his skills had managed to become a knight, but it turned out to be pure nepotism. Regardless, just as the old man said, the sword I had taken from the knight looked to be of exceptionally high quality.
Having handled various items during my time working at the guild, I could tell that this was easily top-tier among non-magical swords.
"Of course, I do not intend to let that sword be your only reward. Once we arrive at my territory..."
"More importantly, do you have anything to eat?"
"Ah, about that..."
At my question, the Count's gaze drifted toward the carriage. Although we had pulled it out of the swamp, the vehicle was caked in mud and looked completely unusable.
Even if there had been food inside, it was likely ruined by the muck. As I was lamenting the lack of food, the knight pulled something out of his pouch.
"U-Um... if you don't mind, you can have this."
The leather pouch the knight offered contained a few pieces of jerky. Considering the historical setting, it was high-quality jerky, heavily seasoned with precious spices. I didn't bother politely declining and immediately began to eat.
"Ugh... that precious stuff..."
Every time a piece of jerky went into my mouth, the knight's body flinched.
If you're going to act like that, you shouldn't have given it to me in the first place.
Naturally, I ate every single piece without leaving a crumb.
By the time I finished the jerky, I sensed something was off.
Why haven't the Void Dogs returned yet?
I had ordered the Void Dogs produced at the Void Pool to abandon the pool and regroup with us the moment they spotted an enemy. If no enemies were approaching, they should have been gathering the surrounding grass to spawn as many Void Dogs as possible.
As someone who used to play strategy games as a hobby, failing to min-max resource gathering to the absolute limit before a wave started was practically a crime.
The problem was that, according to my calculations, the Void Pool should have been destroyed by now. I looked back in the direction Poppy and I had run from, but the road was completely empty.
Did the Void Dogs get wiped out on their way here?
Active Legion Units: 234
Just in case, I pulled up my status window, but the legion was being produced without any issues.
The first batch was 5. Then Poppy dumped that massive tree, queuing up another 200. If the Void Dogs gathered more resources to spawn even more...
That number was only possible if the Void Pool was still perfectly intact and the Void Dogs were continuously gathering grass and branches. An unexpected variable had arisen.
Wait, now that I think about it, why hasn't the raid started yet?
It had been about thirty minutes since the third floor began. On Extreme difficulty, the first wave usually hit within thirty minutes, so the lack of any attack was highly unusual.
"Poppy, go back to the Void Pool and tell the others to patrol our rear."
"Woof!"
Upon receiving my command, Poppy dashed back down the path we came. One might think it was a good thing that enemies weren't showing up, but this was the Impossible difficulty.
*Be most cautious when things seem to be going smoothly.*
That was the conclusion I had reached after clearing up to the second floor on Impossible. Though it might have been a bit hasty to draw a conclusion so early, there was no harm in being careful.
While Poppy ran toward the Void Pool, I opened the system window and accessed the Transcendent Gallery.
Honestly, though simple-minded, Lava Princess's suggestion was the most intuitive answer. Whatever lay ahead, there would be an exit at the end of this road. Escaping through it was all that mattered. Yet, an inexplicable sense of unease wrapped around me, making me hesitate.
"Lady Haram, where did that mons—er, Poppy go? I think it is about time we set off..."
The knight, now carrying only the essential luggage from the carriage on his back, approached me.
"Poppy is fine. More importantly..."
As I counted the members of our group, I realized one person was missing. The big-nosed servant I had seen earlier was nowhere to be found.
"You mean Rick? He is scouting the path ahead."
"My Lord! It's a disaster!"
Before the knight could even finish his sentence, the big-nosed servant came sprinting toward us from the distance.
"What is all this racket? Could it possibly be worse than you fools sinking my carriage into a swamp?"
The Count scowled deeply, but the big-nosed servant was too panicked to care about his master's temper.
"Monsters! Monsters are swarming this way!"
"I'll handle it."
I pushed past the pale-faced servant and stepped forward.
Moving past the carriage blocking the road, I saw ten of the marine monsters I had encountered on the second floor charging toward us.
"This is nothing."
I sliced through the monsters, making sure to protect my head and neck. Though I suffered a few scratches from claws I failed to dodge, my wounds closed and new flesh knit together in less than five seconds.
In under three minutes, every single monster lay dead. My hoodie had been torn during the scuffle, but it seemed to have a self-repair function, returning to its original state shortly after the fight ended.
"This is way too small to be a proper raid..."
Just like the second floor, the third floor was a group stage designed for up to ten players. A mere ten monsters was far too few. As I pondered this, my senses picked up something.
In the distance, a winged fish was flying through the air, attempting to flee. I picked up a decent-sized stone and hurled it at the escaping creature.
Thwack!
The stone struck the fish dead-on, sending it crashing to the ground. After examining the creature closely, I posted my findings on the Transcendent Gallery.
Even putting aside the Clown Knight as an anomaly, Poppy had appeared on the first floor, and an Abyss Priest had appeared on the second. It was entirely logical for a commander-class entity to show up on the third floor.
If a commander was indeed present, it would explain why the raid was delayed and why the initial force was so small.
Which means the enemy commander sent out scouts...
This attack was likely more of a reconnaissance mission than a proper raid. According to the Ruler of Frost, commanders of the Abyss Army lacked the ability to communicate over long distances.
Of course, if the evil god from the second floor intervened, it could relay information, but in that case, there would have been no reason to send a separate scout. Thus, it was reasonable to assume the evil god was not present on the third floor.
Wait.
I suddenly looked in the direction the scout had been trying to flee.
"You did well, Lady Haram. Let me clean your sword for you."
The knight approached, taking my blood-stained sword to wipe it down. Standing beside him was the old man. I turned to the Count and asked,
"My Lord, which direction is your territory?"
"Hmm? It is that way. We must head in that direction."
The place the scout had been trying to return to after completing its mission was, naturally, the main camp where the commander resided. The direction the Count pointed to aligned perfectly with the path the scout had been fleeing along.