Vol 1: Chapter 17
「Get your ass over there.」
Raikira-san kicked me lightly in the butt, pushing me to the front.
Damnit! I’ll get you back for this, macho tsundere beastmen…
「So, you are a party member of the GreatShield, huh?」Joseph-san asked.
The boys and girls on the side, covered in dirt and sweat, became noisy.
「–A child like that is a fellow party member of the “Silver GreatShield”?!」
「–Perhaps, he’s a genius swordsman or something, contrary to his appearance?」
「No, I mean… I’m just following them around?」
「Interesting.」
「I don’t think it’s interesting.」
「Let’s see how good you are with a sword. Come at me.」
Skinhead-san was the type who didn’t listen to what people had to say.
I seeked Dante-san for help, but he just nodded with a smile on his face and said,「It’s a chance to train with an experienced opponent. It will be a good experience for you.」
「O-Okay… But I’ll say this just in case, I’m just an amateur.」
I borrowed a wooden sword from one of the boys. It was quite heavy for my body. However, thanks to the 【Physical Strength Enhancement】 I learned, I could hold it up if I used both hands. And I further enhanced the movement of my body with 【Support Magic】. Just a little bit. If I overdo it, I’ll run out of mana.
I faced Joseph-san, who was standing at a fixed distance.
…So, what do I do now?
I began to remember the Kendo practices in the physical education class of my previous life.
「Hou, that’s starting to look good.」
I assumed Chudan no Kamae. From there on, I approached closer while sliding my feet along the ground… and I raised my wooden sword overhead. [1. TL Note: “Chudan no Kamae” is a basic stance in Kendo.]
(Eh?)
The moment I raised it up, I felt as if my body was moving on its own. Is this the effect of 【Sword Technique】?
「HAAAAAAAA!」
The downswing was so sharp – I couldn’t fire a slash like that even when I was 16 years old. Arm strength, leg strength, back strength, abdominal strength, all came together as a tremendous force towards Joseph-san’s face – because I couldn’t reach for his head with my height.
However, my slash did not reach Joseph-san.
It felt as if I was hitting my wooden sword against a rock. Joseph-san casually swung his wooden sword, which sent my wooden sword flying. The wooden sword hit the ceiling and fell together with a cloud of dust.
「Ouuuuuuuuch…」
My palm and wrist was burning because the sword was forcibly knocked away.
「It was a pretty good slash! However, your attack was too direct and over reliant on skill!」
When I was secretly using healing magic with a poker face to heal my wrist,
「Skill…」Dante-san was flabbergasted. He must have surely thought that I had no skill whatsoever.
…I have to make an excuse later.
「I want to train some more, but…」
…Please no.
「Unfortunately, our time has ended. It’s training time for the veterans.」
「Thank you very much.」
…Phew, I am saved.
I escaped towards Raikira-san while holding my wrist. The healing magic has already taken away the pain, but the gazes of the teenage boys and girls hurt.
「–What was that sword technique? Is that something a child can do?」
「–Isn’t it a skill? I think the trainer said that too.」
「–He has a rare skill? How nice.」
They were correct in that I have a rare skill, but it’s probably not what they imagined.
Meanwhile, adventurers in their 20s and 30s came to the training ground.
「–Uhhmm, been a while.」
「–Get your bodies in shape. We will be out of town for a week from tomorrow.」
「–I am holding a sword for the first time in 4 days.」
Apparently, adventurers who took on escort and harvesting quests were resting in the city for a while. They most likely came here to get their bodies back in shape.
「Not bad, kid.」Raikira-san grinned.
「Do you still want to watch?」Dante-san asked, as he came back.
「Um, yes… Is there a problem?」
「No, I don’t mind. There are many things you can learn just by observing. I and Raikira are going out for a little. I’ll come pick you up later. You’re within the guild, so no problems will occur.」
「Thank you.」
「Okay. Let’s go, Raikira. We have to carry the shopping bags that Non and Mimino bought.」
「Aight.」
And the two left.
Dante-san didn’t ask me anything. I’m sure he is waiting for me to open up. Which just makes it that much harder.
I remained alone in the training ground. It’s a place where I set foot for the first time, but I didn’t feel lonely. Rather, I simply watched how high rank adventurers fought, and wondered about the skills they had.
I still felt somewhat guilty about learning skills with 【World Ruler】 because it felt as though I was stealing the effort of others. However, it was absolutely necessary if I wished to survive in this world, and moreover, I realized that having a skill is not good enough. How well you can handle it is the main point.
It’s the same thing Joseph-san told the trainees.
If you are given a skill, you can suddenly become stronger. However, if you are over-reliant on it, you will suffer serious injuries. If you are an adventurer, over-reliance might just get you killed.
(Right now, I just have to learn.)
I kept my eyes peeled.
Such an opportunity doesn’t come by often.
I have to learn as much as possible.
-【Leg Strength Enhancement★】 【Hearing Enhancement★】 【Grip Strength Enhancement★】 【Flexibility Enhancement★】 【Power Burst Enhancement★】
-【Sword Technique★★】 【Spear Technique★★】 【Axe Technique★★】 【Archery Technique★★】 【Dagger Technique★★】 【Close Quarters Combat Technique★★】 【Kicking Technique★★】 【Shield Technique★★】 【Sprinting Technique★★】 【Hardening Technique★★】
-【Support Magic★★】
−【Curved Archery Technique★★★】 【Dancing Sword Technique★★★】
I think this was about all I learned. I was aware of the 3-stars. There may have been some skills that got +1 and became a higher star skill, but the difficulty of confirming that lies in my lack of understanding.
And this was probably all that I have learned before today.
-【Eyesight Enhancement★】 【Physical Strength Enhancement★】 【Back Muscle Strength Enhancement★】 【Abdominal Muscle Strength Enhancement★】 【Dexterity★】 【Mana Control★】 【Mana Enhancement★】 【Magic Aptitude Enhancement★】 【Stamina Enhancement★】
-【Convenience★】
-【Prayer Technique★】
-【Immunity Enhancement★★】
-【Great Sword Technique★★】
-【Fire Magic★★】 【Flower Magic★★】 【Earth Magic★★】 【Healing Magic★★】
Despite prayer technique being a “technique” skill, it has a special position of being a 1-star.
「No point in having skills, if you don’t use it…」
I continued observing.
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