Chapter 129
Chapter 129
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 129
Chapter Title: Orc Hero Candidate
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East Continent.
Orc hero candidate.
Among them, Burkan was the chieftain's son, but he was considered one of the top contenders for the next hero competition.
"Of course. My potential has been verified, but our tribe is full of monstrous beings."
Burkan had said that.
After seeing Gortash, I started to understand what he meant.
"This guy has quite an interesting body."
The holy sword said that upon seeing Gortash.
'Interesting body?'
"You could call it a Heavenly Martial Body. For humans, it's a body optimized for martial arts. But this one's even more specialized for orcs."
'Is that so?'
"It's a case where the main focus has shifted to emitting force, ignoring or blocking the opponent's attacks or abilities. Your sword energy might have a hard time with it."
'That much?'
I was a bit shocked.
I'd been realizing lately that my sword energy fell short in many ways.
"Yeah, his techniques are probably defense-oriented."
'What if I fight him?'
"You'd win. Not to brag or anything, but your true value isn't in swordsmanship, right?"
Steal Strike.
The holy sword subtly referred to the gift I possessed.
Well, I acknowledged it myself.
The most dangerous gift I had was Steal Strike.
Its power could even steal something from the Black Darkness Art in an instant.
'And lately, I can even steal space.'
I wondered what its limits even were.
"Honestly, it's a frightening ability. Even without reversal, it performs at that level... I wonder just how powerful the reversal would be..."
'Reversal?'
"It's too advanced for you right now. Just know the principle."
I thought about reversal.
Reversal, reversal...
'Ah, maybe.'
I felt like I'd seen something similar before.
Veronica.
The demon I'd seen when I met her before.
If holy power felt endlessly aligned with the scriptures,
that power felt endlessly on the opposite end.
Just witnessing it had filled me with an inexplicable disgust.
"Normally, abilities related to the body can't be reversed... but if you reverse that Steal Strike of yours, it might turn into something pretty interesting."
'What would reversing a stealing ability even produce?'
"...Don't get stuck on the concept of 'stealing.' Gifts are imitations of divine talents. I've never heard or seen anyone with a gift like your Steal Strike."
'......'
"Remember this. I didn't call it demonic technique or divine technique for no reason. Is it really 'stealing' in the first place?"
I looked at Steal Strike in one corner of my status window.
Steal Strike (S) ◇ Steals the opponent's possessions. It often pulled random items like in a gacha,
but this ability was fundamentally about stealing from the opponent.
Yet the holy sword was questioning whether it truly was stealing.
'It's not like I don't have an idea.'
This ability felt off somehow.
Other gifts activated at my will most of the time, but this one occasionally moved on its own, beyond my control.
"Gifts are fragments of talents modeled after someone. It's common for those fragments to be picky about their users. But since you obtained it, it means you've already been vetted once and chosen as its master."
Then Steal Strike...
Just as my thoughts were connecting, Gortash glared at me with blazing eyes.
"So you're Ja-an's Sword Ghost. Makes sense—the guy who beat Genius Killer couldn't be ordinary."
Kneeling respectfully, Gortash stared straight at me.
No, in that posture, it didn't feel scary at all.
"What an amusing fellow."
The holy sword evaluated Gortash that way.
Yeah, amusing. Up close it's tragedy, from afar it's comedy.
'If I weren't the one involved.'
I could enjoy it too.
Haa.
I sighed inwardly and shoved food into my mouth.
"So, when's good for you?"
"What."
"Fighting, duh. Can't do it on the airship, but on the East Continent, we can brawl anytime without issue, right?"
"Sure, no problem."
Volkan spoke with his mouth stuffed full of steamed bun.
How does he even talk like that?
No food spraying out, speaking clearly.
This is level 9?
"That's what you're impressed by...?"
Honestly, it was impressive.
I looked at Gortash. He was glaring at me with blazing eyes.
'Really burdensome.'
Burden some, but I scanned Gortash's body.
The holy sword had said it.
That body was tough and strong. So my sword energy wouldn't work.
'Looking closely, it's a bit different.'
I understood why the holy sword said my sword energy wouldn't penetrate.
This was the type that couldn't be broken head-on.
But did he misunderstand my gaze?
Gortash nodded with a very satisfied expression.
"Looks like you like this body too. Better than your scrawny frame—full of muscle like this, right?"
"......"
I was truly speechless.
"What kind of ignorant nonsense is that? Yuseong's body is way better than that."
Ermé protested from the side at Gortash's words.
Cheong Yuraang and Veronica subtly nodded in agreement.
"You like a pretty-boy body like that? It won't break if you poke it, but it's not suited for battle."
"Don't cry and whine to me after losing to Yuseong later."
"Hah, as a warrior, I don't cry."
This guy's making me want to cry.
I ate while thinking that. Cheongju really cooks well.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The airship continued onward.
And soon, we arrived at the East Continent.
'...The air feels different already?'
Excluding Cradle, mana in the West Continent was somewhat thin.
The closest comparable place was the beastkin holy site.
This whole area gave off that vibe.
As we prepared to disembark, I felt gazes pouring in from all directions.
Felt like a monkey in a zoo.
"Heh, you're looking forward to it too, huh. Our clash of strength..."
Gortash had snuck up on me.
Please give me a break.
I rubbed my face dry with my hand, searching for an escape.
'Honestly, seems tough.'
The fight between Gortash and me was half-predestined.
Inevitably.
Before the hero competition proper, nobles would pull strings in a small training ground for spars.
It was used to weed out hero candidates once more.
"Sorry, Gortash. Wouldn't I be better than a musclehead like you whose brain is full of muscle?"
A man emerged with a sleazy voice.
A pretty-boy swordsman with blond hair and blue eyes.
What was his name again? Brandil, I think.
'Gold Thunder.'
I remembered because of the lightning in his epithet.
The narcissistic pretty-boy squinted at me.
"You're on my level... or beyond in beauty. With that aesthetic sense, it suits you to fight me, not some musclehead."
"What do you want, twig? Scram if you don't wanna die."
"You think he's not a match for an ignorant brute like that either, right?"
The pretty-boy dwarf addressing me,
and Gortash staring at me with hot eyes.
'What a pair.'
"What a pair."
Huh, did I say that out loud?
I flinched for a moment, but it was Volkan's voice.
"What a pair. This'll make picking an opponent fun."
Volkan said that, but his face was unmistakably full of mischief.
He was grinning like he was enjoying my suffering.
"Who're you gonna pick?"
Volkan grinned as if demanding an immediate choice.
And the two staring at me with hot eyes.
But this feels unfair.
'I'm in the thief category.'
This old man was egging me on to smash these swordsmen.
'Knocking them down isn't hard.'
Gortash, who could nullify my sword energy, or Gold Thunder, who seemed to wield similar swordsmanship to mine.
Both were opponents where I saw the advantage.
'But what's the point of beating them?'
It'd just draw all kinds of attention, which I don't need.
"Look, it's Gortash of Force and Brandil of Gold Thunder."
"What a lineup. Genius Killer, Force, Gold Thunder. And the rising Gold Witch and Wind Swordsman Rishiel..."
"Saintess and Sword Emperor... no, Sword King Volkan. An absurd group of notables. No wonder the crown prince and princess are sticking close."
Whispers came from everywhere.
Good thing I'd hidden beforehand—no one had properly spotted me.
"Why's Yuseong dealing with those kids?"
I was thinking that when So Yeonhwa tilted her head and approached me.
"An ignorant idiot who bulked up so much his brain's ruled by muscle, and a weakling obsessed with looks for no reason."
Gortash and Brandil reacted to So Yeonhwa's words.
"Genius Killer, you gonna talk?"
"Just the ravings of a defeated loser."
"You two are weaker than me."
So Yeonhwa said it calmly, like stating a plain fact.
She probably felt that way too.
"You should fight me instead of those two."
"......"
That was the pitch?
I'd thought she was taking my side.
I stroked Cheong Yuraang's tail beside me to calm my mind.
"H-huh? M-Master, doing something so lewd here..."
"......"
Why react like that to this?
I wanted to cry.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ It was obvious, but I couldn't skip the competition.
So I'd half-resigned myself.
Maybe that was the price.
Had I been too complacent?
"Puhaha! Hahahahaha!"
Volkan was laughing heartily, thoroughly enjoying it.
"Kh... Khuhuhu!"
The crown prince desperately tried to hold back his laughter but failed.
Get a herniated disc from laughing.
"Hang in there..."
Ermé gave an awkward smile, looking at me with pity and anticipation.
Don't do this.
Even if the world bullies me, this is too much.
"Ah."
Was this the result of trying to avoid fighting everyone?
"Heh... This isn't bad."
Gortash smiled contentedly at me.
"Muscle lump. Hurry up and finish, then come down."
Brandil looked annoyed at Gortash.
"If Gortash and Brandil wear each other down, there might be a chance..."
So Yeonhwa was calmly calculating.
Yes.
The result of trying to dodge fights with everyone.
I had to fight all of them.
'Don't do this to me.'
I suppressed the urge to deny the world and put on an aggrieved expression.
Now that it came to this, I felt like getting revenge on the world that put me here.
'...Now that it's like this.'
No choice.
I didn't want this.
'I'll fight dirty.'
Time to teach them what a thief is.
I picked up my bow with a resolute expression.