Realization from a Moment (5)
Gulp.
Adelia swallowed hard.
The sight of the Heavenly Dragon Bird filling the night sky was overwhelming in itself.
Her hand holding the sword trembled violently. It was the aftermath of fighting off the monster wave just moments ago.
...In this state, I'm supposed to hold out for ten minutes against the Heavenly Dragon Bird?
It was impossible.
Even in peak condition, her chances of survival would be slim. In her current exhausted state, it was practically suicide.
Yet, Adelia did not voice her doubts.
Having resolved to receive Sir Gaon's teachings, she had no choice but to obey his orders implicitly.
I don't understand why a Divine Beast is attacking humans, but...
Divine Beasts.
They were the eyes of Elder, observers watching over the world.
Unless something catastrophic occurred, they were said to never interfere in human affairs. At least, that was what Adelia had been taught by her family since childhood.
But now, defying all she knew, the Heavenly Dragon Bird was preparing to strike.
...One thing is certain: the situation is dire.
Adelia bit her lip hard.
A cold shiver ran down her spine. Something was terribly wrong.
The immediate danger was one thing, but the abnormal behavior of a Divine Beast implied a disturbance in the balance of the world.
But...
Adelia tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword once more.
...Worrying about the reason won't change anything right now.
Suddenly, a voice echoed in her mind.
It was the very first lesson Gaon had given her.
"A strike born of a cluttered mind can never be clean. So, when you hold your sword, forget your worries and focus entirely on the present moment."
Recalling the Sword Master's advice, Adelia closed her eyes.
She took a deep breath, clearing her cluttered thoughts.
"Whew..."
Yes.
The only thing that mattered to her right now was 'realization.'
It was time to wash away all distractions and focus solely on the enemy before her.
"..."
Adelia opened her eyes and took a step forward.
Though she was walking toward an opponent vastly stronger than herself, her steps did not falter.
"Sir Gaon."
Her voice cut through the wind.
Despite the raging thunder, her voice was crystal clear.
"Until now, I have brought you nothing but disappointment."
The time she had frozen in fear during their first confrontation.
The moment she had almost collapsed in helplessness before Peter Pan.
Those humiliating memories flashed before her eyes.
"In your eyes, every single one of my actions must have seemed pathetic."
She felt utterly pathetic.
But at the same time, she realized something. It was precisely because she had failed to overcome these crises that she had been unable to break through the wall blocking her path.
She wanted to change. She wanted to transcend the limits holding her back.
That was why she kept moving forward, even as the crushing presence of the Heavenly Dragon Bird weighed down on her entire body.
"So, this time, I will show you."
Adelia's gaze sharpened. In the next instant, a blue-green aura began to envelop her body.
"I do not know if this is courage or mere recklessness, but..."
Screeech!
The massive shadow of the Heavenly Dragon Bird loomed over her.
She tightened her grip on her sword.
Her eyes, now completely devoid of doubt, reflected only the image of the beast.
"...Even if it costs me my life, I will prove that I am worthy of your teachings, Sir Gaon."
Shring!
Her blue-green sword let out a sharp, cold cry.
Hold out for ten minutes against the Heavenly Dragon Bird. That was the trial Sir Gaon had set for her.
This time, she would pass it no matter what.
In any RPG, leveling up becomes harder the higher your level.
This is because the absolute amount of experience required increases exponentially.
This gap was particularly extreme in Lost Elder.
To put it in perspective, the difference between level 90 and 91 was far greater than the gap between level 70 and 80.
Screeech!
Under these circumstances, telling a mere level 77 to fight the Heavenly Dragon Bird? And for ten minutes, no less?
It was an absurd command.
Even though I was the one who ordered it, it was an incredibly reckless act.
It was literally no different from an ant trying to fight an elephant.
But...
...If that person is Adelia, the story is different.
Level 78.
In the brief time they had been fighting, Adelia's level had already gone up by one.
Crossing the threshold of life and death multiple times while facing the Heavenly Dragon Bird had allowed her to break past her limits.
I can see her growing by the second.
At first, she had been busy just barely dodging the beast's attacks.
But as time passed, her movements grew more refined, and she even began to seize opportunities to counterattack.
Charging through the gale whipped up by the Heavenly Dragon Bird's wings, Adelia deflected lightning with her blue-green sword.
It was truly a wondrous sight.
She truly deserves her reputation as the character with the highest potential in Lost Elder.
Rumble, crash!
I had already retreated far outside the Heavenly Dragon Bird's attack range.
Finding a safe zone amidst the falling lightning bolts was child's play for me.
Thanks to the experience accumulated over 200 playthroughs, I knew practically 'everything' about the beast. All of its patterns, weaknesses, and abilities.
But I couldn't make use of that knowledge right now.
All I could do for the moment was wait for the cooldown of Ritardando Jin to end.
Of course, the wait is almost over.
Boom!
Right on cue, the Heavenly Dragon Bird's tail slammed into Adelia.
Though she managed to block the strike, she couldn't withstand the recoil. She was sent flying through the air and crashed hard into the ground.
"Ugh, argh..."
Like a roly-poly toy, Adelia pushed herself back up.
Gritting her teeth, she charged at the Heavenly Dragon Bird once more.
Or rather, she tried to.
She's hit her limit.
Her movements had slowed down visibly.
Her breathing was ragged, and the hand holding her sword trembled uncontrollably. The blue-green aura enveloping her was also rapidly fading.
"Ah..."
Thud.
Sure enough, Adelia collapsed after taking only a few steps.
With her face covered in blood and dirt, she barely managed to push her upper body up. She tried to stand, but her legs refused to obey.
Screeech!
The Heavenly Dragon Bird shrieked, preparing to deliver the finishing blow.
Adelia grit her teeth.
She muttered to herself as if brainwashing her own mind.
"Not yet... It's not over yet..."
Step.
I walked forward.
Adelia, who had been muttering like someone possessed, suddenly snapped her head up.
She stared blankly at me as I passed by her. Despite the roaring storm, my footsteps seemed to echo clearly through the area.
"I-I can still...!"
"That is enough," I interrupted her. "You have held out well for ten minutes."
"...!"
Adelia's eyes widened.
"T-Then..."
Her lips trembled as she struggled to speak, looking as if a torrent of emotions was rising to her throat.
"Then... do I have the qualification...?"
"You have already proven your worth. From the very first day we met."
I recalled the first time I met Adelia.
"I do not care if I lose an arm. I do not care if one of my legs is severed."
"..."
"If only I can gain realization and reach the next stage... I am prepared to sacrifice everything."
It was a line I had never heard once in all my 200 playthroughs of Lost Elder.
But... that was precisely why her words resonated so deeply with me.
Ritardando Jin
[AVAILABLE]
"You said you didn't care if you lost an arm."
Step.
I walked toward the Heavenly Dragon Bird. The beast merely stared down at me with a look of utter bewilderment.
It was only natural.
How absurd must it look to see a pathetic level 1 human approaching without a shred of fear? It probably felt that paying attention to someone like me wasn't even worth its time when it should be finishing off Adelia.
"And you said you didn't care if a leg was severed."
Above all, the Heavenly Dragon Bird had a specific habit.
It would never attack a trivial creature first unless its specific territory was violated.
...And a level 1 was the very definition of a trivial creature.
In other words, I could approach up to the 'safe distance' I knew without being targeted.
"I have witnessed your resolve."
Step.
As I walked, I gripped the hilt of the Feather Sword tightly.
Blue veins began to bulge on my thin, frail forearm.
My Strength stat was a mere 2, but that was more than enough. All I needed to do was draw a sword that was lighter than a feather.
The 12-star skill, which had been grayed out, began to glow with a brilliant, iridescent rainbow light once more.
"This makes three times."
The Human Butcher Barba, the kidnapper of Dawnguard, Peter Pan.
And now, the Heavenly Dragon Bird.
Adelia was about to witness me using the Soul of the Sword Master for the third time.
"Watch closely."
Though she hadn't had the luxury to properly observe my sword until now, if she poured all her focus into this single strike, a genius of her caliber would undoubtedly gain a massive realization from watching my blade.
"Watch carefully, and engrave it into your eyes."
...And those words were also meant for myself.
I, too, had witnessed the activation of the Soul of the Sword Master multiple times. No, I hadn't just witnessed it; I had experienced it firsthand.
As I've mentioned before, Lost Elder has a unique leveling system.
Players grow through realizations gained from repetitive actions, training, or actual combat. It is a growth mechanism identical to reality.
Then why haven't I grown at all?
Even though I invested a whopping 179,312,341 points to max out my talent in the Sword.
Even though I possessed such talent and had experienced a Sword Master's strike twice already.
Why had I failed to achieve any growth whatsoever?
The reason was simple.
...Because for a player to perform a certain action, they must first have the necessary foundation.
This was something I had considered when customizing this concept-play character.
To swing a heavy weapon, one needs the corresponding Strength and Stamina stats. To wield magic, one needs a baseline of Mana and Perception stats.
As I've said countless times, there was a reason high-ranking players focused on building well-rounded, all-rounder characters.
In the world of Lost Elder, no matter how high your talent in one area was, if your other stats were lacking, your character could never unleash their full potential.
Strength: 2
Agility: 1
Stamina: 2
Mana: 1
Perception: 1
...
This was painfully obvious in my own case.
With Strength, Agility, and Stamina at a mere 2, I couldn't even lift a weapon unless it was the Feather Sword.
With Mana at a measly 1, I could only use the hard-won Soul of the Sword Master for 0.01 seconds.
And above all, with a Perception stat of 1, I couldn't even properly perceive the swordsmanship I unleashed in that split second.
It all stems from a lack of foundation.
But.
What if there was a way to temporarily compensate for my lacking stats?
What if that 'moment' of 0.01 seconds could be stretched out indefinitely?
And so...
What if, even with a pathetic Perception stat of 1, I could witness the exact moment the 12-star Mythic-tier skill activated in vivid detail?
You have used the Authority Skill: Ritardando Jin.
The moment I crossed the safe distance and stepped into the Heavenly Dragon Bird's attack range, I opened my eyes wide and immediately activated Ritardando.
Tick! Tack! Tick! Tack!
The sound of a ticking clock echoed from all directions.
Blue lightning split the sky.
The bolt could no longer be called a flash. The streak of light, which would normally vanish in the blink of an eye, was now descending toward me slowly—incredibly slowly.
Whoosh.
The raindrops froze in midair. As if someone had scattered crystal beads across the sky, the world was reflected upside down in each transparent droplet.
The gale whipped up by the Heavenly Dragon Bird's wings now danced in slow motion.
Shards of shattered rock floated suspended in the air, the sharp cracks along their edges visible in vivid detail.
A slow heartbeat thudded in my ears. Thump. And only after a long pause, another. Thump.
Ruuuumble!
The lightning summoned by the Heavenly Dragon Bird reached right before my eyes.
Even within this endlessly suspended time, the movement of the lightning was incredibly swift.
But it wasn't so fast that I couldn't react. I waited calmly, measuring the exact timing.
The moment the distance between the lightning and me closed to a hair's breadth...
...At long last, the entirety of the 'sword' began to unfold before my eyes.