Living with a Greatsword Is a Dream and a Romance
The table was littered with empty beer mugs and snacks. The dark, sticky stains between them proved beyond doubt that a drinking party had taken place here.
“Ugh… My head’s ringing. Damn it.”
“I feel like my mind has run away from my skull.”
“Hahaha! You all look hilarious sprawled out like that. Did your drinking capacity drop while I was gone?”
“Shut up! Yours is the ridiculous one!”
“Did you just go out to the city to train your liver?”
It had been a long time since the entire Night Mercenary Group had gathered like this. Lu and Ro were still lost in dreamland, Kun’s mind had apparently fled the scene, Godwin was staring at me in shock over my increased tolerance, and Resilda was trembling with irritation.
“Uahaha! To think you can drink toe-to-toe with a dwarf! I hereby recognize you as an honorary dwarf!”
“Oh? What benefits come with being an honorary dwarf? Discounts or something?”
“Don’t even dream of it!”
“Then what’s the point of accepting?”
“You do earn the right to be treated to precious liquor.”
“I accept.”
I could never turn down good booze.
“Are you insane? After drinking that much, you still want more? Did you seriously convert to the dwarf race or something?”
“Don’t be like that, Resilda. It’s been so long since we all got together. We should at least drink this much.”
“If I enjoy myself with you twice, I’ll be dead.”
“Then everyone should raise their tolerance before that happens.”
“At least tell us your secret to increasing it before you brag!”
“Just drink a lot! Hahaha!”
In truth, there was another reason my drinking capacity had improved. It was my stats.
I only learned this later, but physical stats didn’t just raise strength, agility, and stamina. They boosted every aspect of bodily performance. Reflexes, regeneration, fatigue recovery, and so on. A truly wide range of physical abilities had increased.
My current physical stat was 9. Since each point increased physical ability by 100%, I was essentially nine people in one. That meant any enemy would have to fight against someone nine times stronger than before.
“Now that I think about it, I heard you awakened?”
“Did Marco tell you?”
“Yeah. I was wondering why you came back to this godforsaken city, and it turns out you awakened. So what kind of ability did you get?”
“Come on, who reveals something like that for free? You keep your awakening ability a secret too, don’t you?”
“That’s because there’s no need for me to hide it. Can’t you tell just by looking?”
“True. Anyone could tell you’re an awakened just by looking.”
Resilda’s red hair was still blazing brightly. That was her awakening ability—visually flashy and incredibly powerful. She could coat her arrows with the flames burning from her head and incinerate her enemies. If she condensed the fire and fired it, it would even cause explosions. Thanks to that, her nickname was Resilda of the Flaming Arrow.
“Hmm, my awakening ability is a bit hard to explain.”
In a world without the concept of levels, explaining the status window was rather difficult. Still, the Night Mercenary Group had deep trust, so it should be fine to tell them.
“My awakening ability is called Level Up.”
“Level Up? What’s that?”
“You kill enemies and gain something called experience points. Once you accumulate enough, your level number goes up. Then you receive a resource called stats that lets you raise your physical abilities.”
“Wait, so if you just keep gaining that experience, you can become endlessly stronger?”
“In theory, yes.”
“What the… Isn’t that totally overpowered?”
The sharp-minded Resilda immediately recognized the value of my ability.
“But I still don’t know the limits. I have no idea how high the level cap goes.”
Even in games there was no such thing as a true max level, so my level might not have one either.
“Still, it means you can definitely get stronger, right? So what’s your level now?”
“9.”
“It’s hard to judge how strong that actually is just from the number.”
“Think of it as each stat point increasing physical ability by 100%. For reference, my physical stat is 9.”
“So you’re nine times stronger?”
“That’s right. Ridiculous, isn’t it?”
“I wish I had awakened with an ability like that.”
Resilda looked envious. She had always been quietly dissatisfied with her own ability. Because her hair glowed brightly, she was vulnerable to night raids and easily spotted in the dark. While its power was immense, those minor flaws held her back. That was why she usually moved during the day or gave up on night operations entirely.
“That’s just how the world is. If everything were fair, fights would have disappeared long ago.”
“Why are you suddenly talking like a priest?”
“I’ve just had a lot of realizations lately.”
Resilda, if you awaken your past life too, you’ll end up like me.
A day passed, and the Night Mercenary Group members who had been suffering from their hangovers finally gathered in one place.
“I’m never drinking with Nix again.”
“How did that woman come back as a total booze whale?”
“My stomach is still killing me.”
“You’re all such babies.”
“Does this look like acting to you?”
“Anyway, enough about drinking. Everyone quiet down.”
When Marco spoke, the members fell silent.
“The current state of Dorua is strange. The investigation of the swamp zone failed, a Goblin Lord has appeared in the western forest, and then there’s the incident in Belkan.”
Every direction—south, west, north, east—was riddled with problems.
“Is the end of the world coming?”
“Oh Goddess, please watch over humanity.”
“Godwin, you’re an excommunicated priest and you’re still praying?”
“What are you talking about? Being excommunicated and offering prayers to the Goddess are two different things. I cannot abandon my faith in Her.”
“And yet that same person can’t control himself around alcohol and women.”
“Ahem! What does that have to do with the current conversation!”
The outskirts were a bit noisy, but Marco brushed it off like he was used to it.
“We must choose. The White Tower is strangely insistent on investigating the swamp zone. They say they’ll bring more support.”
“I can’t understand their way of thinking. Is there something there?”
“Lu, don’t even try to understand the White Tower.”
“Got it, Ro.”
“We don’t need to worry much about the Goblin Lord. I heard the subjugation force has already departed.”
“Then there are only two choices left. Either rejoin the swamp zone exploration, or join the Belkan investigation team.”
“But is that okay? You all just came back from a request. Shouldn’t you rest?”
Marco had been with me, so he probably wasn’t too exhausted, but the others were a different story.
“Ro and I are fine. It wasn’t a combat mission.”
“I’m okay too. It was a mission that used my head rather than my body.”
Lu, Ro, and Godwin all said they were fine.
“I’m a little tired. Taking care of Kun was exhausting. Why on earth do married women like this shorty so much?”
“Ahaha, I’m curious about that too.”
Kun, the suspicious shota who was strangely popular with married women and older-sister types. I had a pretty good idea why he was so popular.
You lucky bastard. If only I still had my downstairs comrade…
I miss you, Comrade Ko. My comrade whom I can never see again. Are you comfortable over there?
Just to be clear, my previous life was from the Republic of Korea. I am not one of the northern people.
“Then will Resilda and Kun take a break from activities? You two don’t seem particularly necessary for this investigation.”
“No. I’m just mentally exhausted, not physically.”
“Are you sure? Mental management is essential, you know.”
“Do you think we don’t know that? You already know how we are, Captain.”
These were veterans with over five years of mercenary work. Their self-diagnosis was trustworthy.
“Then we’ll accept the request.”
“It’s been a while since the Night Mercenary Group took a group request! With Nix back, we’re finally complete again!”
“Your skills haven’t rusted, have they, Nix?”
“Of course not. If you want, I could take down everyone here right now?”
It wasn’t a bluff. With my enhanced body, I could probably handle everyone present.
“It’s good to see such confidence. I hope you carry that momentum into the request as well.”
Two days later, the investigation team organized in Dorua had finished preparations to depart for Belkan.
“I am Yan, the Banneret Knight who will be leading this investigation team. I hope you all listen carefully to my instructions.”
Banneret Knight Yan was a regular knight with a decent reputation in Dorua. His sword was said to be fast enough to cut the wind itself, earning him the nickname Knight of Explosive Speed.
“It’s the Knight of Explosive Speed. If he’s leading, there shouldn’t be any problems.”
“Doesn’t look like we’ll be dying like flies, at least.”
Having operated in Dorua for a long time, he also had a fair amount of respect. His unpretentious personality only added to that impression.
“I need to confirm everyone has arrived. Mercenaries whose names I call, please raise your hand or make a sound. The same goes for the priests.”
After a simple headcount, the investigation team set off toward Belkan.
“We’ll be running at full speed, so the rest of you prepare to run at a steady pace!”
Knight Yan gradually increased his horse’s speed. The mercenaries began running in sync.
This feels like a marathon.
Thanks to my increased physical abilities, I didn’t get out of breath even after running for a long time.
“The priests have it nice. They get to ride comfortably in the carriage.”
“Can’t be helped. It would take four days on foot.”
“Think we can arrive in two days?”
“As long as no one falls behind.”
We ran, and ran, and kept running. At night we set up camp in suitable spots, rested, and continued the forced march. Thanks to that, we reached Belkan in just two days.
“What the hell is this…?”
“Oh my god…”
“How horrible.”
The sight of Belkan was horrific. Orc corpses lay scattered everywhere, soldiers’ bodies torn to shreds, and undead staggering between them.
“Impure beings! Turn to ash!”
The priests, eyes rolled back at the sight of undead, unleashed their holy power. The undead exposed to the sacred light were purified without even being able to scream.
“Belkan… has fallen.”
Knight Yan muttered as he looked at Belkan. We were now witnessing the miserable destruction of an entire city.