Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Volkan
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It was during my fight with Volkan.
His words: I'll accept everything you've got, so unleash your power without holding back.
'This kind of opportunity doesn't come often.'
A situation where I could reveal everything I had.
Honestly, even I didn't know my full capabilities. Without having gone through a proper fight before, I couldn't gauge my own strength.
And a few other things besides.
Every time I swung my sword, I could feel it more clearly this time.
'Information is flowing out from Rogue Mastery (S).'
Every time I swung my sword.
How to adjust my stance better, how to evolve it further from there.
Insights like that flooded into my mind.
And even beyond that.
'What the hell.'
Information on elven swordsmanship started leaking out.
Dark Moon of the Dark Moon.
The swordsmanship that emerged when I used the technique Rishiel had wielded.
'Dual-wield style?'
The sword traced a path. Unlike before, it drew a circle.
-You're in danger! Rishiel tried to stop me.
I didn't even question why. Volkan had taken a stance like he was about to cleave down from above.
'I have to block...'
No, I need to dodge. I leaped back.
Then Rishiel said urgently.
-Elven swordsmanship can only be used by elves. 'What?'
-Look at that old man's eyes. Doesn't something seem to be gleaming sharply in them? No, that old man always has eyes that gleam like that.
Even looking closely.
'Ah, this might be a bit dangerous.'
His eyes were spinning even more intensely than before.
There had been merit in safely testing my skills, so I'd charged in.
'This is getting dangerous.'
Then I should run.
I was just about to surrender.
📜 ENCOUNTER QUEST 📜 You have encountered the Sword King Volkan.
Capture his interest in any way, or make him lose it.
🎁 Reward: ???
❌ Failure: No penalty.
'Oh.'
A perfectly timed encounter quest popped up.
'If I surrender like this.'
His interest would vanish.
I quietly raised both hands and surrendered.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ As I expected, once I surrendered, Volkan quietly let me go.
-Wait, doesn't that guy just have a dumbstruck look on his face? Rishiel chimed in agreement with my thoughts.
No, hold on.
'I just thought that a moment ago.'
-Thoughts like that come through. Probably because we're connected. 'Really?'
-By the way, your actions and thoughts are completely different... You should probably run first. Following Rishiel's words, I quickly moved my feet.
I could already hear shouting from behind.
"What the hell? Where's the old man? You came alone? And you're in one piece?"
A smirking man asked as he looked at me.
I couldn't answer that I'd ditched the old man and fled, so I hurried out.
"Huh? Yuseong? You're already coming out?"
"Let's go."
"W-Wait, uh, where are you...!"
I grabbed Ermé's hand and walked out briskly.
Now that we were outside the guild, I could finally relax a bit.
"What happened?"
"Ran into a weird old man."
"An old man? Wait, you don't mean... the Sword King Volkan?"
"You know him?"
"Of course! He's super famous... No way you fought him?"
Is that old guy famous for challenging anyone to a fight?
Good thing I ran.
'I've run this far, so he'll lose interest, calling me spineless or whatever.'
I know his type well. And I didn't even show anything special.
-No, the moment you used elven swordsmanship, he already thinks you're something special. 'What's so great about elven swordsmanship?'
But that circular sword technique in the middle was a bit odd.
'That one looked amazing.'
Even I, who knew nothing about swordsmanship, could tell it was different. I couldn't describe it precisely.
'Dark Moon, was it?'
Maybe I should find an open field somewhere and practice.
I was thinking that when.
"Hold on a second. You met Volkan and came back unscathed?"
"Yeah. He seemed annoying, so I bolted."
"...Did you maybe land a hit on him? Or did he look stunned?"
"The latter?"
"..."
Ermé made an expression I'd never seen before.
It looked utterly dejected.
"I-I worked so hard to get his attention."
"...?"
Ermé looked gloomy.
But that wasn't the important thing right now.
"Could we sell the Whisper of the Wind, by any chance?"
"Whisper of the Wind? Oh, you mean that rapier the elf used?"
"Yeah."
-Hold on! That's my precious treasure! It's not a job, it's survival first.
"Probably impossible. If something like that leaked out, hiding my name would be nearly impossible."
"I see."
A B- grade item has that much value?
'How can I use the Blood-Soaked Dagger?'
It's too eye-catching.
I want to hide it a bit.
"So how does the settlement work?"
"Huh? Oh, because of the Whisper of the Wind?"
"Yeah."
"It's valuable, but since it's stolen goods and a bit dangerous, the settlement payout will be low."
"Can't be helped."
"Still, once Yuseong gets famous... Wait, are you already? Anyway, once the stolen goods issue clears up, you can sell it for cash or use it yourself. It's actually a gain."
True enough.
I'm not strapped for cash anyway.
'I do feel a little bad though.'
Leeching off Ermé like this.
She seems well-off, and I'll work hard later to pay back any debts.
"Shall we head back then?"
"Sure. Training today was good, but after coming out of the Labyrinth, you need at least one rest day."
With that, Ermé trudged along.
I followed behind her.
'I want to check my rewards quick.'
Until now, every interest had ended with drawing attention and capture.
But this time?
I'd repeated actions he seemed to hate.
'This time I can get the failure reward for sure.'
Better to get a clear failure reward than ambiguous attention.
And look at this.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Encounter Quest completed.] I wasn't wrong.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [You have drawn unprecedented interest from the Sword King Volkan!] [Additional rewards available.] "...?"
What?
What did you say?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The inn's courtyard.
A suitable training ground, with no prying eyes.
So here, I safely checked the quest rewards.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Encounter Quest completed.] [Acquired Gift: Swordsmanship Genius (B).] [Innate Combat Sense (B) and Swordsmanship Genius (B) combine.] [Acquired Gift: Sword Master (A+).] "...Oh."
I checked it immediately.
⚔ GIFT ⚔ Sword Master (A+) Growth-type. ◇ Limited to weapons in the sword category, you can wield them like a master. ◇ Enhanced combat sense, speed, and slashing power. ◇ Technique correction: Swordsmanship (Lv 5). Opens Swordsmanship if none. What about abilities?
I felt like something had appeared with the new gift.
I immediately checked my status window.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ ⚡ Strength: 4 💨 Agility: 4 ✨ Magic Power: 4 💪 Stamina: 4 🧠 Spirit: 4 👁️ Sense: 4 Name: Han Yuseong (Lv. 1)
◇ Gifts - Rogue Mastery (S), Plunder (S), Sword Master (A+), Fatal Constitution (A) ◇ Skills - Hidden Space (B) ◇ Techniques - Swordsmanship (Lv 6) (1+5) A status window vastly different from the start.
My stats had risen decently.
How does Swordsmanship work?
I swung my sword experimentally.
Slash.
The swing itself felt different. Before, it was by feel; now, it was sharp and precise.
A bit embarrassing.
Like seeing work as a newbie at the company, then revisiting it years later.
'Why was I so pathetic before?'
At least I could find direction right away. That's fortunate.
Slash slash slash!
The sword cut through the air. The blades in both hands moved freely and wildly.
Faster, sharper.
All I knew how to do right now was elven swordsmanship.
But elven swordsmanship was outstanding enough to satisfy.
-...What nonsense is this. 'How is it?'
-How is it? I can only say it's incredible. Is that so?
But I didn't take Rishiel's words at face value. She needed to stay on my good side, so she'd say nice things.
After swinging a few more times, the moon had fully risen before I knew it.
'Got too absorbed.'
But it was fun.
Me, who'd never exercised.
Finding fun in this.
'Maybe I'm athletic after all.'
Anyway, a satisfying day.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Today, I headed to the guild too.
Ermé for final settlement.
Me for a swordsmanship manual.
'Wonder if that old man's there.'
A bit worrying.
I bolted without looking back, but far from losing interest, I drew too much attention.
'He shouldn't be though.'
When I got on the ring, he called it girly behavior.
Someone like that wouldn't wait around for me.
"Hey there."
Entering the guild, Teresa waved lazily with one hand to greet us.
Next to her, Glasses was sprawled out half-dead.
"Why's Glasses like that?"
"Glasses had a match with the elemental enchanters yesterday, and it turned into a drinking contest."
"Men are all the same."
Ermé gave Glasses a pitiful look, then slyly glanced at me.
"Well, Yuseong's a bit different."
What's the difference between me and Glasses?
Maybe thanks to Fatal Constitution. Even without it active, people often overrated me.
Not the point.
Ermé calculated everything, then pulled out a heavy pouch and stowed it in her backpack.
"Settlements happen in the settlement room."
"Settlement room?"
"Doing it out here invites blind blades. There are adventurers, but also riffraff sometimes."
Hence the skeptics.
Adding that, Ermé and our party headed to the settlement room.
"First off, before we get to numbers, one thing: the black sword from killing that elf Rishiel goes to Yuseong."
"No complaints."
"That bastard was strong. I'm glad."
"Then for settlement: Yuseong's share, excluding the sword, is 3 silver coins."
"Thanks."
"Glasses there gets 3 gold and 45 silver."
"My name's Marcel. Thanks anyway."
"Teresa gets 3 gold and 50 silver. Plus 30 silver for helping Yuseong."
"Thanks."
"The rest is mine: 6 gold and 75 silver."
"A truly massive sum."
"The elves' gear was pretty good stuff. Took effort to sell, so we settled today."
"Next Labyrinth run?"
"We went yesterday, so tomorrow?"
"After that incident, I want a bit of rest, but I'll be in top form by tomorrow."
Glasses said with a stern face.
Good luck.
"Meanwhile, I'll recruit one more party member."
"Party member?"
"Yeah, anyone who can pull their weight. I know some info here."
Well, Ermé will handle it.
"I'm heading to the orphanage."
"Why the orphanage?"
"Teresa's an orphan. Her physical prowess got her picked as a holy knight."
"But I can't heal."
"...Divine power requires specific gifts; not everyone with it can use it."
That's a shame.
But wasn't Ermé a Berserker?
'What does a holy knight have to do to earn that title?'
I was curious but decided not to pry.
She has her own life.
With everyone splitting up, I went to find manuals.
I'd already asked Ermé for the location.
'Problem is, it's near the training grounds.'
I peeked through the training ground door.
Unlike yesterday, a woman stood at the entrance.
'Lucky, no sign of him today.'
I went inside to the teaching materials area.
Not many people there.
Makes sense; sword users wouldn't bother with this.
Thinking that, I scanned the sword manuals.
And I realized something.
Surprisingly.
'They're low-level?'
Most I could grasp at a glance.
Nothing impressive.
'Basic training sword methods?'
But the names were flashy.
Like Crushing Sword Method or Asura Sword Method.
As I was looking at the sword method books.
"...You ran yesterday, what's this now?"
Volkan's incredulous face appeared.
"Argh, shit!"
'You scared me.'
-Your thought and words came out backwards. Be quiet, Rishiel.