Chapter 158
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 158
Chapter Title: Achievement
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-Whoosh! Whoosh!
The sword slashed through the empty air with a menacing aura, ripping it apart. The swings grew faster and faster until they reached their peak speed. Then, in an instant, I pulled the sword back and thrust it forward again, pouring my will into the blade.
'Cut.'
-Slash!
I hadn't infused a single drop of mana into it, but the sword advanced with transcendent momentum, just as if I had. And when the blade finally came to a stop—without even touching the straw dummy I'd set up in the training grounds—a thin scratch appeared on it.
"Hoo..."
Feeling the recoil wash over me as I swung, I wiped away my sweat and sheathed the sword.
'Still tough.'
The phrase that had appeared when my [Swordsmanship] reached level 6: "A faint will resides in the sword." At first, I had no idea what it meant, but I'd experienced a glimpse of it back on the 22nd floor.
When I'd swung my sword while holding the intent to "cut," it unleashed a razor-sharp sword qi that seemed ready to slice through everything blocking my path. I was trying to recreate that sensation now, but I couldn't muster the same power.
'If Alensia were here, I'd ask her.'
After I vanished in the Labyrinth mutation, Alensia had immediately volunteered for the investigation team. She'd entered the Labyrinth that very day and still hadn't returned.
'Alensia's strong, so I'm not too worried...'
...but she wasn't planning to stay in the Labyrinth until she found me, even though I was already back on the surface, right? I'd asked Gloria to inform the investigation team of my survival, but who knows.
I couldn't enter the Labyrinth myself anyway.
-Zzzt.
"Ugh."
Once I'd sheathed the sword, a sharp, tingling pain shot through my left arm—the one I'd been swinging with. I rubbed my shoulder with [Heavenly Touch] to endure it.
"Not fully recovered yet, huh..."
When I'd been discharged from the temple yesterday, my arm had looked perfectly fine, so I'd jumped right into my usual sword training this morning... but that was enough for today. Pushing it further might slow my recovery.
Instead, I sheathed the sword, left the estate, and headed for the commercial district. I hadn't been able to check them while I was at the temple, but it was time to see the rewards from that 22nd-floor ruin.
-Clang! Clang!
As I made my way to the workshop street in the commercial district, the sound of hammers ringing from various forges greeted me.
Now familiar with the area, I walked straight to Miranda's workshop. Luckily, she was there today—the steady rhythm of hammer strikes echoed from inside.
"Hoo..."
Stepping into the workshop, I saw Miranda pounding away, drenched in sweat, as the scorching heat from the furnace hit me full force.
Just like before, she was deep in her work and didn't notice me enter. This time, I decided not to disturb her and just sat nearby, watching.
-Kang! Kang! Kaaang!
'...Huh?'
Was it my imagination? Her skill seemed a bit better than when I'd seen her during the festival... No, her movements were more fluid, maybe?
"Phew... Oh? Ian? You're back!"
A moment later, Miranda set down her hammer, wiped her sweat, spotted me, and greeted me with a bright smile.
She seemed really happy to see me?
"I heard you went into the Labyrinth—glad you made it back safe. I was worried you might've gotten caught in that mutation."
"...Yeah, something like that."
No need to mention getting swept up in it and losing an arm, right? It might just worry her unnecessarily, so I changed the subject.
"I noticed when I came in, but your hammer work looks a lot smoother now..."
"Right?!"
Whoa, that startled me.
As if she'd been waiting for me to say it, my casual compliment made Miranda's eyes sparkle as she scooted right up to me.
"Check this out!"
-Knead, knead.
"...???"
She suddenly grabbed my hand and started kneading it, telling me to feel something.
"Get it?"
"...Pretty soft for hands that hammer all day."
"...Ahem. Thanks, but that's not it. Doesn't my touch feel smoother now?"
Now that she mentioned it, yeah—her hammer strikes were more natural, and even this light hand massage felt more fluid. Not quite [Heavenly Touch] level, but like she had [Dexterity] or something.
"Exactly!"
"...What? [Dexterity]?"
*********
Miranda explained that the day after we'd gotten smashed on cocktails I'd taught her to make, she'd woken up to find [Dexterity] in her skill window.
"I think mixing those cocktails you taught me was the trigger. I got it right after! Since then, my hammer work's improved, and cutting leather too..."
She was thrilled, proudly showing off her new skill. She'd only had it a few days and was already at level 2.
'...No way, right?'
Miranda thought she'd earned the experience for [Dexterity] by making cocktails, since the recipes required some finesse... but...
[Lust Absorption lv. 5]: Through sexual acts, gain experience... (excerpted)... Positive effects occur on the [Lust Absorption] target.
'...No way that's it.'
For a split second, the "positive effects" on the [Lust Absorption] target flashed in my mind... but I shook my head to dismiss it. Giving experience to others? No way.
The skill was literally called "Absorption." It had to suck something in, not hand out experience. Ridiculous.
"So, what brings you here? Gear damaged in the Labyrinth?"
"Ah, I picked up some stuff from the Labyrinth this time..."
I shook off the stray thought and pulled out the remains of the living armors I'd collected from the 22nd floor.
As I laid out the shattered armor fragments, Miranda's expression turned serious. She tapped them with her hammer, carefully assessing the metal.
"This is froststeel... but it's not just the chill—there's curse energy too. Heh, you brought back something fun."
"There's more."
I dumped out the piles of armor scraps from my inventory, along with the disassembled pieces of a massive knight's armor and the intact greatsword of the knight.
"...That's a ton. What, did you raid a ruin all by yourself?"
Miranda hit the nail on the head, but she didn't pry further and began appraising everything. I had [Insight] too, but she knew metal better.
"These armors first. Good metal, but the curses drag down the value. Still, four or five gold per suit. Fifty of them? Easily over 200 gold."
"200 gold..."
Back when I'd rummaged through the 22nd-floor ruin, I hadn't seen any valuable artifacts and was disappointed. Guess I was wrong.
'Even just the armors are worth a fortune?!'
Over fifty suits of armor. Most were broken or shattered, but the raw metal was valuable enough. A bit excited now, I held out the knight's armor—clearly different in quality from the rest.
"What about this one? How much for it?"
"This..."
Unlike the other living armors that broke easily, this one had taken every trick in the book to barely pierce. It had to be worth at least 50 gold, right...?
"Can't use it."
"...Pardon?"
"Too much curse energy, totally smashed... This your mana? Anyway, soaked in mana, covered in blood clots... Basically scrap. Looks like it was decent originally, though. Too bad."
It hit like thunder from a clear sky. The knight's armor I'd slaved over to defeat was worthless? Not unsellable, but barely more than the grunt living armors.
A little deflated, I tamped down my expectations and offered the greatsword.
"Then... this?"
"Hmm... this."
Miranda took the greatsword in her slender arms, hefted it effortlessly, swung it a few times in the air, tapped the flat with her hammer to test it, then let out an impressed whistle.
"Nice. Top-notch. Wouldn't be out of place on an advanced adventurer."
"Oh."
"And it's an artifact. Projectile defense enchantment on the flat. Just hold it sideways, and it'll block most arrows or spells."
Artifacts. Rare relics from the Labyrinth with special powers.
Listening to her, I recalled the knight during the fight—always parrying with the flat of its blade. Come to think of it, when I'd lured it into traps, it had blocked the barrage of ice spears with the greatsword...
'If I were a swordsman instead of a mage or archer, that fight would've been way harder.'
Choosing a frontal assault had been lucky, maybe.
"So, what do you want to do with it?"
"Can I sell it?"
"Not thinking of using it? Hurts my pride a bit, but spec-wise, it's better than the sword I made you last time."
"I considered it..."
She had a point—I'd thought about wielding it myself. [Swordsmanship] at level 6 wasn't just for show; I could probably handle a greatsword decently.
But it didn't suit my build, and switching from my familiar blade wasn't worth the gain. Best to sell the greatsword, regrettable as it was.
"Better at auction than selling to me. Get it appraised by pros there—easy 100 gold."
"And this?"
"This... whoa!"
After appraising the smaller items, I pulled out the highlight.
"...No way, a skill stone?"
"Probably. But I don't know what skill's in it. Can your [Insight] tell?"
After my bath(?) with Gloria, my [Insight] leveled up. Re-appraising the stone confirmed it was a skill stone, but still no clue what skill.
Figured Miranda's higher-level [Insight] might reveal it, so I showed her. She freaked but took it and appraised.
"How'd you even get this? Most adventurers never see one in a lifetime, and you've barely started."
Wonder what she'd say if I told her I'd gotten one before—and eaten it.
"Got it. Rare skill inside."
"Ooh, rare... What is it?"
Maybe the knight's ice powers skillified? Whatever it was, another [Regeneration]-tier skill would be great...!
"[Necromancy] skill."
".......?????? What?"
"[Necromancy]. Death magic. Who knew it'd come as a skill stone? Impressive."
...Of all things. Yeah, rare just from the name, but...
[Necromancy lv. 8]
...I already have that. Level 8, even. It's a bit unstable—not a perfect skill—but it's in my skill window.
"What'll you do? Eat it? If you're diving the Labyrinth more, might be worth it..."
"Miranda... do you know what happens if you consume a skill stone for a skill you already have?"
"Heard some rich guy tried it once. Nothing happened, I think?"
Damn. I'd hoped for an icy breath skill or something.