Elsid Becomes an Adventurer
"Hah!"
While Elsid smiled in delight, Bacal closed the distance in a single step and swung his greatsword once more. Having seen the ground crack under that blade earlier, Elsid knew its power well. BOOM! He hurled himself aside, and once again the earth split open, sending up a cloud of dust.
If Yu Jin-gwang was an iaijutsu master who had refined speed and technique to their limits, then Bacal was a swordsman who had built his strength through raw power. Could Elsid defeat this man who had grown strong by walking an entirely different path and pass the test?
I'll find out when I try.
Elsid decided that simply running wouldn't win him the fight. He switched to offense. Dragging the battle into a war of attrition and waiting for Bacal to tire was an option, but that felt ridiculous. It would be an utterly boring way to fight.
"Hah!"
With a shout, Elsid swung his swords at Bacal.
"As expected of someone who uses dual blades—you're fast. And you're not just flailing around; your strikes trace clean arcs. Interesting."
Bacal parried the attack with ease, even offering commentary. The difference in raw strength made it inevitable, but the man was simply stronger overall. Still, Elsid's goal wasn't merely to swing his swords. Getting in close was the real objective.
"Ultra-close combat, is it?"
Bacal had already guessed Elsid's intent the moment he evaluated the swords earlier. His sharp eyes missed nothing. Just by watching Elsid rush in, he had read the plan perfectly. That was why he was the examiner, after all.
At a distance of roughly one meter, Bacal wouldn't be able to swing his nearly two-meter-long greatsword with ease.
"Good thinking, but I have no intention of just standing here and taking it..."
Bacal had seen through Elsid's plan and tried to retreat to create space for his greatsword, but he couldn't move.
"What—?!"
Elsid had stepped on Bacal's foot, freezing his movement for an instant. The strength difference meant Bacal could break free quickly, but one second was all Elsid needed. In the middle of a fight, that single second was a massive opening.
Elsid drove the hilt of his wooden sword into Bacal's abdomen.
"Not a chance."
Even with his foot pinned, Bacal laid his greatsword across his torso like a shield and blocked the strike. He poured strength into his trapped leg to retreat, and at that exact moment Elsid lifted his foot. The sudden loss of resistance sent Bacal's center of gravity lurching backward.
The instant his balance shifted, Elsid crossed his two swords into an X and slammed them into the greatsword shielding Bacal's front.
CLANG!
The impact pushed Bacal's massive frame back a step.
"I'm not done yet."
Elsid pressed forward, thrusting both aura-clad swords in rapid succession. His target wasn't Bacal himself but the greatsword in his hands. Leaning his body forward, Elsid drove in relentlessly. If he gave even an inch of ground, Bacal would regain the space to swing.
Unable to fix his stance or create distance, Bacal was forced to use his greatsword like a shield, desperately blocking the flurry of thrusts.
"This ends now."
Elsid unleashed another powerful X-shaped strike against the greatsword, whose accumulated impacts had already weakened it.
CRASH!
The blade finally gave way with a sound like shattering glass, scattering fragments across the ground and leaving only the hilt in Bacal's hand.
"Impossible..."
Bacal stared in shock at the broken weapon.
"How about it? Did I pass?"
Elsid asked calmly, swords still pointed at the stunned examiner. His posture made it clear he was ready to continue the test at any moment.
"Heh... heh heh..."
Bacal lowered his head for a moment, then suddenly burst into booming laughter.
"Kuhahahaha! I can't believe you actually tried to beat me by breaking my weapon—even if it was just one of the training hall's mass-produced greatswords."
He tossed the ruined hilt aside and grinned.
"Pass? Of course you pass!"
Relieved, Elsid sheathed his swords and turned around—only to find Robin yawning loudly.
"Yawn... So it's over? I was about to die of boredom waiting."
"If you're just going to sleep, get lost. Actually, while you're at it, why don't you leave this world entirely?"
The receptionist, who had appeared at some point, glared at Robin with open contempt.
Just what kind of adventurer life has this guy led to make even that expressionless receptionist show such disgust...? Elsid thought. In a way, it was almost impressive.
***
After the test ended, Elsid found himself on the guild's third floor for reasons unknown. The top floor housed the Guild Master's office of the Nao Adventurer Guild. Neither Robin nor the receptionist had come up with him. Only Bacal, Elsid himself, and the Guild Master were present.
The Guild Master looked ordinary at first glance. Brown hair, brown eyes, round spectacles, and a gentle, unremarkable face—he appeared to be a man in his early thirties. No ears or tail like Bacal's; he was unmistakably human. Elsid wondered what skill and strength lay behind that plain face. He certainly hadn't obtained the position through luck.
"So you're saying you admitted defeat, Bacal?"
"Yeah. I never expected him to actually break my weapon... I've sparred with and tested over a hundred adventurers, but this is a first. Hah."
"How fascinating."
The Guild Master looked Elsid up and down as if appraising him.
"Still, I'm not particularly surprised. Considering what you accomplished with the subjugation force, it's more surprising that you ended the test by merely breaking a weapon."
"You know about me?"
"Of course. Your name came up at the last Guild Masters' meeting, where representatives from hundreds of guilds—adventurers, mercenaries, hunters—gather every six months."
It wasn't strange that the Guild Master knew him; Elsid had accepted the subjugation request from this very guild's bulletin board.
"An unaffiliated expert, belonging to neither the Adventurer Guild nor the Mercenary Guild, who wiped out thieves attempting a rear ambush, defeated more undead than anyone else, and played a major role in slaying that troublesome chimera..."
Hearing his own deeds recounted by someone else felt strangely embarrassing.
"I've talked long enough. I called you here because I have a few questions. Do you mind?"
"Not at all."
Elsid nodded. He had nothing to hide.
"Where are you from?"
"Ragna Castle."
"Why do you want to become an adventurer?"
"There's a place I want to go, and I need proof of identity."
"How refreshingly realistic. No dreams or hopes at all."
After hearing all the answers, the Guild Master gave a slight nod.
"Does this mean I failed?"
Elsid worried his reason might be deemed insufficient, but the Guild Master shook his head.
"No. You defeated Bacal, who was a B-rank adventurer before becoming an examiner. We can't reject someone like that. Besides, you never once lied during our conversation."
"How do you know I didn't lie?"
"I've cast a fifth-circle spell, Bell of Falsehood, throughout this room. If you'd told even a single lie, a loud bell would have rung. Of course, that applies to everyone in this room, not just you."
So the man before him was a mage. Elsid couldn't determine his exact rank, but he was at least fifth-circle or higher—a high-ranking sorcerer. As expected, the Guild Master position wasn't something one obtained lightly.
Just as Elsid was musing about the Guild Master's strength, the receptionist entered the office.
"Master, everything is ready."
"Understood. Let's go, then."
The Guild Master rose from his chair and headed for the door.
"Come along, you two."
"Yes."
Bacal, who had been standing silently beside them the whole time, spoke, and Elsid nodded before quickly following the Guild Master out of the room.