Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Basic Swordsmanship and the Healer's Path
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Yeah.
Was there anyone in this world who understood vertical slashes as well as I did?
This phenomenon was, in a way, only natural.
The system that had engulfed the world might seem at first glance like a villain or some malicious game guide, but surprisingly, it had an exceptional understanding and observational skill for individuals, ensuring a high degree of fairness in granting rewards.
In other words, as long as one had a deep understanding of a technique, the system would recognize it as a skill without hesitation.
‘The reason I could wield the Formless Sword was because of that, too.’
It wasn’t that he had acquired some special skill and reached the realm of Sword and Body Union.
After choosing the path of the sword, Suho had honed his swordsmanship relentlessly every single day to grow stronger.
As a result, not only had he become the world’s greatest swordmaster, but he had also earned the system’s recognition, ascending to the realm of Sword and Body Union and mastering the Formless Sword skill.
But Suho was a bit disappointed with the system’s judgment.
He, who had been called the Sword God, had been granted a skill that was merely B-rank.
Of course, he understood.
‘It can’t judge everything based on just seeing it once.’
This was especially true for physical techniques.
No matter how exceptional one’s talent was, the system rarely acknowledged initial skill acquisitions above B-rank.
Of course, it didn’t outright refuse; there were exceptions like special skills.
But most basic techniques were capped at B.
So, to aim for higher ranks, one had to provide proof worthy of it.
There was such a thing as beginner’s luck, after all.
Suho swung the stick horizontally next, slicing the goblins beside him.
[Your understanding of horizontal slashes is exceptionally high.]
[The system is beginning its evaluation of your talent.]
[Congratulations! You have acquired Horizontal Slash (B).]
Following vertical slash, he obtained the horizontal slash skill.
B-rank again.
Suho then thrust the stick like a spear.
[Your understanding of thrusts is exceptionally high.]
[The system is beginning its evaluation of your talent.]
[Congratulations! You have acquired Thrust (B).]
Thrust was the same.
This time, he swung the stick diagonally.
[Your understanding of diagonal slashes is exceptionally high.]
[The system is beginning its evaluation of your talent.]
[Congratulations! You have acquired Diagonal Slash (B).]
Every swing of the stick granted him a new skill.
Yeah.
This was indeed the world he remembered.
Then it happened.
[Your overall understanding of swordsmanship is exceptionally high.]
[Horizontal Slash, Vertical Slash, Diagonal Slash, and Thrust skills are being integrated into ‘Swordsmanship’.]
[Congratulations! You have acquired Basic Swordsmanship (B).]
Once he had mastered the three slashes and the thrust as skills, they merged into one under the name ‘Basic Swordsmanship’.
It was a natural progression.
The system had formulas, and it automatically integrated specific skill sets for efficiency the moment they were acquired.
But even this time, the rank was B.
However, this was better.
A single integrated skill was easier to level up than scattered ones.
‘Basic Swordsmanship, huh…’
Seeing the name Basic Swordsmanship brought a smirk as old memories surfaced.
Even swordsmen with flashy reputations had all started with Basic Swordsmanship before developing their unique sword skills.
In that sense, the swordsmanship Suho had used was named after himself: Guardian Sword.
Naturally, Suho planned to create Guardian Sword first this time as well.
‘No, I don’t even need to create it. My swordsmanship is already Guardian Sword in itself.’
Suho swung the stick a few more times, quickly dispatching the remaining goblins.
A new system notification appeared.
[Your level has increased.]
[All stats have increased by 1.]
[You have acquired 1 bonus stat.]
He had leveled up.
And before even choosing a class.
The firefighter, stunned by the sight, stammered.
“P-player? Are you a player?”
“Not yet.”
“Huh?”
Suho ignored the firefighter’s bewildered question.
He had no intention of looting the goblin corpses for spoils.
That wasn’t important to him right now.
Instead, he pulled up the class selection window he had postponed earlier.
[Choose the power you wish to pursue.]
[Warrior]
[Mage]
[Archer]
[Healer]
The class selection window floated before his eyes.
It was later revealed that this window could be delayed.
There were no system penalties for not choosing immediately.
In the future, it became common practice to undergo aptitude tests from the Association before selecting a class.
Of course, Suho had started as a warrior, become a swordsman, and reached the Sword God realm, so he had chosen according to his aptitude from the start.
That’s why he had tried to pick warrior earlier.
He figured he could grow faster than anyone else on a path he had already walked.
But he soon shook his head.
Even if it was a path he had walked before, when the critical moment arrived, he realized how powerless and frail the title of Sword God truly was.
‘If only I could have cured even Myriad Poisons…’
Having eaten the heart of Venom, the ultimate in poison antibodies, he thought deadly poisons could no longer hinder him.
But who knew Suzuki’s Myriad Poisons would surpass Immunity to All Poisons.
That’s why Suho’s eyes kept drifting to Healer.
‘What if I could become a healer surpassing Isabella?’
Of course, healers had a reputation for being weak.
They truly lacked offensive skills, with most focused on shields, heals, and buffs.
But just now, he had effortlessly acquired swordsmanship skills against the goblins.
Thanks to the system’s fair ability evaluation.
That sparked the thought.
If he could acquire swordsmanship skills like this, did he really need to walk the warrior path again?
The answer was no.
‘Skills mastered based on talent can be used freely regardless of class. Just like how I got swordsmanship skills earlier.’
However, healer abilities weren’t mostly talent-based; they required the system’s direct aid to acquire.
No matter how devout, one couldn’t heal patients with mere prayer.
Thus, Suho finally made his decision.
[You have selected Healer.]
[Are you sure you wish to choose the path of the Healer?]
Suho nodded at the system’s query.
Light enveloped him.
[You have become a Healer.]
[5 bonus stats have been granted.]
[You have acquired Light of Healing (F).]
[Congratulations on becoming a true Player.]
[The system wishes to give you a small gift.]
[Select one weapon from the System Armory.]
Suho had finally become a healer.
At the same time, the system opened its armory to grant a welcome gift.
His choice was, naturally, a sword.
Suho selected a longsword of appropriate length and weight.
[You have acquired Novice’s Sword.]
No need to check the info.
It would have the lowest attack and durability.
Still, better than a metal rod.
Suho then checked his status window.
“Status window.”
[An Su-ho]
- Lv: 2
- Class: Healer
- Strength: 2
- Vitality: 2
- Mana: 2
- Senses: 2
- Bonus Stats: 6
Suho eyed his pathetically low status window.
It was to be expected, having returned to the past.
After some deliberation, he invested 2 points each into Strength, Vitality, and Mana.
The reason for putting bonus stats into Mana was simple.
‘Recovery skills are ultimately based on Mana, after all.’
The world called healer skills holy spells and mage skills magic.
But the system listed holy spells as divine magic.
Thus, they were influenced by Mana.
That’s why most healers poured nearly all their stats into Mana.
Other stats rose by one per level anyway.
But Suho didn’t follow suit.
‘For me, healing is just a support tool. My main is still swordsmanship.’
Of course, once a healer grew sufficiently, various buffs could compensate for lacking Vitality and Strength.
But that was for later.
Even as the Sword God from the future, he needed baseline stats to unleash his prime power.
After distributing his stats, Suho approached the firefighter staring blankly at him.
“Bear with the pain just a bit.”
“Huh? Gah!”
Without hesitation, Suho yanked out the arrow embedded in the firefighter’s body.
Blood gushed out, and he immediately cast Light of Healing on the wound.
[Using Light of Healing.]
[The targeted area begins to recover.]
Light of Healing.
The most basic skill every healer possessed.
But it wasn’t a skill high-level players abandoned.
Simpler descriptions often meant more powerful, intuitive effects.
He recalled Isabella’s ‘Light of the Holy Spirit’ as an example.
‘That skill started as Light of Healing, too.’
Soon, the firefighter’s wound fully healed, and he asked Suho in a daze.
“Y-you’re a healer too?”
“Now I am.”
“Huh?”
“Take care.”
Having healed the wound, Suho had no more time to chat with the firefighter.
Without hesitation, he turned and gazed at the gate portal that had appeared in the middle of Sindorim Station intersection.
Goblins were still rampaging around, and from the looks of it, no hunter players had arrived yet.
A good opportunity.
Sudden Gates, unpredictable in appearance, could be entered first if timed right.
‘If my memory serves, I can clear that one at my current level.’
For unentered gates, the magic beasts they spawned allowed predicting the internal environment and difficulty.
Of course, Suho knew exactly what that gate was.
In the past, he had nearly died because of it.
That’s why he decided to clear it with his own hands this time.
From another perspective, it was like an enemy gate that had almost taken his life.
Suho slashed approaching goblins and stepped into the gate portal.
[Entering the Gate.]
[Loading Gate information.]
[Greenred]
- Entry Conditions: Unknown.
- Max Entries: Unknown.
A brief system notification.
That was all the info.
Unsurprisingly, unconfirmed gates revealed nothing to players.
That’s why everyone hesitated to challenge unknown gates without prior entry records.
Blindly entering could mean facing unimaginable difficulty—and death.
As Suho entered, the gate portal closed.
Now, to reopen it, there were only two ways: the entrants die, or the gate is cleared.
But Suho had no doubt he wouldn’t die.
Whether this was a dream, reality, or anywhere else.