Chapter 16 : Chapter 16
Chapter 16. Am I doing this right?
I wanted to do more slap fights right away, but it was impossible.
Hyunwoo touched his swollen cheek.
‘It’s only this much because I got Physique I. I should stop for today.’
It seemed best to return to the lodging.
Hyunwoo left the market and headed for his lodging.
* * *
I arrived at the lodging.
In the still-empty lodging, there was only a single mattress.
Returning to the lodging, Hyunwoo was able to shake off the excitement of the slap fight.
Once the excitement passed, the pain set in.
“Agh… these ignorant Demon World bastards. What kind of sport is this? It’s going to kill someone.”
Hyunwoo touched his aching cheek and sequentially organized the things he had to do in the market.
‘First, swordsmanship. And if possible, Pain Tolerance too.’
I didn't forget the priority of the two.
Obtaining Pain Tolerance in the market was a secondary task.
The most important thing was to obtain the Skirma Swordsmanship.
Since I had time, I was thinking of obtaining a new trait while learning the swordsmanship.
Lastly, I needed several items.
Core items necessary for hunting the Black Whale.
But I decided to postpone the matter of items for now.
‘It won’t be too late to prepare those after I’ve obtained the swordsmanship.’
Once a rough picture was drawn, Hyunwoo got up and took a stance.
‘Was it like this?’
The strange sensations he felt during the slap fight.
If it wasn't Hyunwoo's delusion, it was ‘Sabla Swordsmanship’.
Recalling the sensation from that time, the arm he swung cut through the air.
WHOOSH—!
The sound of cutting through the wind clearly contained the essence of Sabla Swordsmanship.
After swinging his arm a few more times, he felt like he was starting to get it.
It was confirmed that he would have to swing his arms instead of a sword for the time being.
Whoosh—
For the first time, Hyunwoo began training with his bare hands instead of a sword.
* * *
A week had passed since Hyunwoo started going back and forth between the market and his lodging.
Thump—
After waking up and waiting for a moment, he heard Van’s footsteps.
It was one of the changes that had occurred during that time.
‘He’s right on time today too.’
Van brought meals at the times Hyunwoo had set.
Clatter—
“Eat.”
Moreover, the food that used to be thrown on the dirty floor was now served on a plate.
The quality of the food hadn't changed much, but this alone was a huge improvement.
As Van cleared away the empty plate from yesterday's meal, he stared at me.
What is it?
“Do you have something to say?”
“Human. That ugly face of yours won’t last.”
At a glance, it sounded like he was picking a fight, but his true intentions were obvious.
He meant to ask if I wasn't getting my swollen face treated.
It was a statement filled with his own kind of concern.
Hyunwoo also returned the answer in Van’s way.
“Who are you calling ugly, you pig head.”
It meant I’ll take care of it, so you don't need to worry.
“Tsk… A gladiator’s body is his life. Take care of your body.”
Van clicked his tongue and left with the empty plate.
Seeing each other at every mealtime, I felt like we had gotten a little closer.
But telling me to get treatment was excessive meddling.
‘Who is he to try and make all my efforts go to waste.’
It wasn't that I was stingy with the mana stones for treatment.
I was enduring because getting treatment would render the past week’s struggle to obtain Pain Tolerance meaningless.
For now, I had no choice but to endure.
It wasn't as if I had no gains at all over the past week.
Jingle—
Hyunwoo looked into his pouch of mana stones while eating.
‘Is it about 620 mana stones? I’ve earned over 120 mana stones.’
Hyunwoo used mana stones in the market in two cases.
One was to purchase the Frogman’s junk items, and the other was to participate in slap fights.
The luck from the first day in the slap fights didn't continue.
Still, there were more victories than defeats.
When I attacked first, I, who used Sabla Swordsmanship, had the advantage.
On the other hand, when I was on the defense, I was at a disadvantage.
It was an innate limitation that arose because of my human body.
Even though I had been enhanced with Physique I, I was fundamentally weaker than the Demon World residents.
My lacking strength could be compensated for with Sabla Swordsmanship, but there was no way to compensate for my body’s durability.
‘Still, there was an unexpected reward.’
⌜Sabla Swordsmanship (2-Star)―70%⌟
Even though I hadn't trained in swordsmanship separately for a week, the proficiency of Sabla Swordsmanship had increased by 5%.
The system was clearly judging the slaps Hyunwoo threw as swordsmanship.
But even so, the speed at which the proficiency increased was excessively fast.
It was probably thanks to the synergy between the ‘Rookie’ title and the ‘Swordsmanship Genius’ trait.
Other than that, a minor gain was that I no longer closed my eyes to the opponent’s attacks.
It was the result of effort after learning that recognizing the incoming attack lessened the pain.
Not closing my eyes to an attack would also be helpful in a real fight.
The meal, which had been slowly savored while recalling past events, finally came to an end.
Hyunwoo put down the plate and headed to the market.
‘I don’t want to go….’
Unless one was a pervert, anyone would think the same as Hyunwoo.
The back of Hyunwoo, who was willingly going to get beaten, was reminiscent of a cow being dragged to the slaughterhouse.
* * *
The first place Hyunwoo headed to after entering the market was the back alley.
Buying the Frogman’s junk items there was the start of his daily routine.
…I still hadn’t obtained the swordsmanship.
‘If by any chance I don’t get the Skirma Swordsmanship in time….’
Forget about hunting the Black Whale, it would be difficult to even run away in the Demon World Strait.
There was only a week and a day left until the Black Whale Survival match.
Obtaining the swordsmanship was not the end.
I had to raise its proficiency after that.
‘I have to get the swordsmanship as soon as possible, somehow….’
Hyunwoo was starting to get more and more anxious.
Regardless of Hyunwoo's anxiety, the Frogman hadn't said a single word for the past week.
Having arrived in front of the Frogman's stall, Hyunwoo opened his mouth.
“I’ll take everything.”
Today, too, I bought all of the Frogman’s junk items and stared at him.
“……”
The Frogman silently rolled up his mat.
‘Sigh. Another bust today?’
As I sighed and was about to turn away, I noticed the Frogman was standing still.
‘Huh?’
The Frogman, who had been ignoring me all this time, looked at me and opened his mouth.
“I have something to ask.”
‘Yes!’
Hyunwoo’s face lit up as he approached the Frogman.
“Please speak.”
“Why are you being kind to me? These items are useless to a human.”
‘You’ve been selling them all this time, knowing that?!’
No, more than that, ‘to a human’….
No one would need such junk items.
Hyunwoo suppressed the urge to correct him to ‘useless to anyone’ and opened his mouth.
“It’s because you remind me of someone precious.”
“Someone precious….”
“I was once comrades with a Frogman in the past.”
Someone precious, my ass.
Of course, there was no such person.
I was just creating a pretext to learn swordsmanship from him.
The Frogman was lost in thought, his thick lips pressed together.
A moment later, he looked at Hyunwoo and said.
“I am a pauper. I have nothing to repay your kindness with.”
“May I ask for a favor?”
“Is there something you want from me?”
“It's nothing much….”
Hyunwoo’s words trailed off as he looked at the old sword the Frogman was wearing.
A long sword that looked more like a spear than a sword.
Its shape was reminiscent of an awl.
As Hyunwoo paused, looking at the sword, the Frogman asked in return.
“Are you interested in the sword?”
Hyunwoo shook his head.
Having built it up this much, he thought it was time.
Hyunwoo said bluntly.
“I am interested in the swordsmanship that can be performed with that sword.”
“……”
Again, the Frogman sank into thought.
Before he could refuse, I pushed him once more.
“Even a clumsy swordsmanship is fine. Please teach me your swordsmanship.”
After continuing to ponder for a moment, the Frogman finally uttered a single phrase.
“…Follow me.”
“Yes!”
Hyunwoo let out a silent cheer of joy.
‘Yes!’
The Frogman began to lead the way, fidgeting with the sword at his waist.
A moment later, the Frogman stopped in front of the entrance to the sewage treatment facility.
The entrance was blocked by iron bars.
When he pulled a lever next to the entrance, the iron bars rose.
RUMBLE—!
The dark interior could be seen behind the opened iron bars.
“Follow carefully.”
“Yes.”
Even before the Frogman warned him to be careful, a terrible smell was already wafting out.
As he went further inside, the foul smell intensified, putting all his senses on edge.
‘Ugh… The smell of the back alley was child’s play.’
The smell wasn't the only terrible thing.
Splash—
The water on the floor was getting deeper.
The unpleasant stickiness that touched the soles of his feet was disgusting.
“It must be a difficult environment for a human to endure. You'll get used to it soon.”
After he started talking, the Frogman was surprisingly kind, contrary to his appearance.
He kept looking back at Hyunwoo as he led the way, checking if he was uncomfortable.
That wouldn't make me comfortable.
Because it seemed impossible to get used to this environment.
Hyunwoo swatted away a swarm of flying insects that suddenly attacked him.
If I got used to a space like this, wouldn’t my life already be ruined?
At some point, my sense of smell became numb, and breathing became a little easier.
“Phew… Yes. It’s a little better now.”
Hyunwoo barely swallowed the complaints that rose up to his throat.
Unaware of Hyunwoo’s inner thoughts, the Frogman continued to speak.
“I’m glad. It will probably take you half a year of learning to even be able to imitate my swordsmanship.”
‘You want me to stay here for half a year?’
I had no plans to stay that long at all.
Because it wouldn't take that long to learn the swordsmanship anyway.
⌜Trait : Master of Copy
Description : ‘The grass is always greener on the other side.’
You can steal someone else’s swordsmanship just by watching them.⌟
As long as I had Master of Copy, swordsmanship was just a skill that Hyunwoo could learn by simply seeing it performed.
The reason Hyunwoo had gone through the troublesome process and followed him all the way here was different.
It was because proficiency rises quickly when you learn directly from the user of the swordsmanship.
‘It’s not something I’m keen on, coming here… but I have no choice.’
It was something I had to endure to be able to use the ‘Skirma Swordsmanship’ I would learn from him in a real battle right away.
If my goal was just to obtain the swordsmanship, I could have just picked a fight with the Frogman and stolen his swordsmanship.
The reason I had gone through the troublesome process and followed him all the way here was because of the ‘Master System’.
‘Originally, the most standard way to learn swordsmanship is to learn from someone else.’
The Master System.
Because it was so difficult to raise swordsmanship proficiency in ‘Masal’, it was a system that was added later in a patch.
You could take the game's characters as ‘masters’ and learn swordsmanship from them.
By learning swordsmanship under the guidance of a master, you could raise your swordsmanship proficiency quickly.
‘I don’t know if the Frogman will actually be applied as a master, though.’
It was worth checking out at least once.
After walking for a while following the Frogman, a huge cavern appeared.
In the wide space, there were many wooden planks that had been pierced, as if they were originally used for training.
The Frogman stopped and drew the sword from his waist.
Ssk—
“Watch carefully. I will show you what swordsmanship you will learn from now on.”
It was a good thing.
If the Frogman hadn't demonstrated the swordsmanship first, Hyunwoo would have asked him to.
The Frogman, who had been speaking in a gentle voice, suddenly let out a kiai.
“Hap!”
With a resounding shout, the swordsmanship unfolded from the Frogman’s hand.
He performed the swordsmanship with all his might, as if he had never been frail in the back alley.
He swung his sword fiercely, as if this were the last moment of his life.
The passionately performed swordsmanship contained the path the Frogman had lived so far.
Watching the swordsmanship that seemed to have melted the joys and sorrows of life, Hyunwoo thought.
‘…He’s trying really hard. I feel bad.’
In fact, I didn't feel bad at all.
I was just looking forward to getting the swordsmanship for free.
After watching him perform the swordsmanship for a while, the system window I had been waiting for appeared.
⌜Skirma Swordsmanship (2-Star)—An ancient swordsmanship used by Frogmen who inhabit the swamps. The all-piercing thrust can contain even greater power when performed in water.
Proficiency : 92%
Trait : None⌟
Befitting an old Frogman, he had high proficiency.
This time, the prompt to acquire it immediately did not appear.
‘Huh?’
[You must achieve a friendship level of 50 or higher with the Frogman to acquire the swordsmanship.]
Unlike the 1-Star, which could be learned immediately, a condition was added to acquiring swordsmanship from 2-Star onwards.
‘A condition has been added to Master of Copy. I had a feeling, but I guess so.’
In fact, I had already guessed it.
If there were no restrictions on learning high-grade swordsmanship, I would become ridiculously strong.
There was no way the AI in charge of balance would have allowed me to learn swordsmanship without conditions.
…The condition would probably get more difficult as the grade increased.
A friendship level of 50 or higher with the Frogman.
Fortunately, this condition was easy.
Today was the first time I had a conversation with the Frogman.
But it had been a long time since I had surpassed a friendship level of 50.
‘Buying all the junk items helped.’
⌜You have met the acquisition condition for Skirma Swordsmanship (2-Star).⌟
The very fact that the Frogman had brought Hyunwoo all the way here meant a friendship level of 60 or higher.
⌜Skirma Swordsmanship (2-Star) is a copyable skill.⌟
⌜Would you like to acquire it?⌟
‘Acquire.’
⌜Name : Kim Hyunwoo
Title : Rookie
Skills : ■Sabla Swordsmanship (2-Star)―70%, ■Skirma Swordsmanship (2-Star)―0%(New!), ⊠
Innate Traits : Swordsmanship Synthesis, Master of Copy, Swordsmanship Genius
General Traits : PhysiqueⅠ⌟
The movements of ‘Skirma Swordsmanship’ were slowly being engraved in my mind.
This time, there was even a teaching aid right in front of me.
“Hap!”
The Frogman was still moving passionately, performing the swordsmanship.
I savored the swordsmanship being engraved on my body and watched his movements.
It was the easiest thing I had done so far.
After watching him a little longer, Hyunwoo finally opened his mouth.
“That’s enough.”
“Huh? Seeing it once won’t be enough. You have to see it at least two or three times….”
“I think I can imitate it to some extent.”
“What did you say?”
The Frogman stared at me with an incredulous expression.
Hyunwoo shrugged and stood in front of him with his sword.
He glared at me.
“Are you… looking down on swordsmanship?”
It would be faster to show him once than to persuade him with words.
Hyunwoo closed his eyes and expanded his body’s senses.
‘A thrust aimed at a single point.’
Soon, as the image in his mind and the sensation in his body coincided, the sword shot out.
A thrust with the speed of a ray of light!
WHOOSH—!
The Frogman’s eyes widened as he watched Hyunwoo’s swordsmanship.
“……!”
The swordsmanship that had been with the Frogman for decades.
He wasn't so blind as to not recognize the swordsmanship he had performed with his own hands all this time.
The swordsmanship that unfolded from Hyunwoo’s hand was definitely Skirma Swordsmanship.
⌜Skirma Swordsmanship (2-Star)―2%⌟
The proficiency increased by 2% in one go.
Even after obtaining ‘Swordsmanship Genius’ and ‘Rookie’, the proficiency had never increased by 2% just by swinging the sword for the first time.
Confirming that the Master System was being applied successfully, Hyunwoo grinned and opened his mouth.
“Am I doing this right?”
Instead of an answer, only silence filled the cavern.
“……”