WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Irevi

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 57: Unconsciousness

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Now that I'd defeated the Crystal Spider, the boss of the spider nest, all that remained was to return to the village.

Rizmel said she needed to report on the Crystal Spider, then gathered several crystal fragments that had broken off and tucked them into a pouch.

I was interested in the material called Light Mithril too, so I picked up a few pieces for myself.

[Lightless Light Mithril]

When I put one in my inventory and checked its information, it said it had lost its light and, with it, its original power.

In the end, the only Light Mithril I could obtain was the five ingots from the clear reward.

No wonder there was no information about it on the community. It wasn't a material people could obtain and use in the first place.

Still, five ingots should be enough to make one piece of equipment. I should take them to that blacksmith later.

Rizmel didn't say a word the entire way back to the Dark Elf village.

She looked deep in thought, but since talking to other people made me uncomfortable anyway, the silence was actually welcome.

The Dark Elf Reconnaissance Team enthusiastically welcomed me back after I cleared out the spider nest.

"You're not hurt anywhere, are you? It must've been rough. Want something to eat?"

"You've already taken care of something big. What an admirable human."

"You're starting to feel like a proper Reconnaissance Team member. Nice."

It felt like they were praising a little kid for successfully running their first errand, so I wasn't exactly thrilled.

Rizmel left me behind to report on the Crystal Spider, then immediately dragged me outside.

As I chewed on one of the cookies the Reconnaissance Team members had given me, Rizmel asked, "Why do you want to learn swordsmanship?"

Her expression was unusually serious. She was far too different from the emotionless Non-Player Characters on the other floors.

Rizmel had already read the letter I'd handed over. Then she probably knew I wanted to receive a sword from the blacksmith too.

But judging by the way she was asking, it seemed she'd noticed that wasn't my real reason. I answered.

"To get stronger."

Swordsmanship was a technique for fighting, in the end. What other reason could there be to learn it?

"Then why do you want to get stronger? You're already incredibly strong for a human, aren't you?"

"Because being strong for a human isn't enough. I need to become much stronger."

I had no intention of blabbering to a Non-Player Character about the Tower of Trials. She probably wouldn't understand it anyway.

Apparently dissatisfied with my answer, Rizmel frowned and spoke again.

"You're going to get stronger."

That was strange. She wasn't saying I could become stronger. She said I was going to become stronger, as if it had already been decided.

"I watched you fight. You lack technique, but you have talent. At that level, you'll get stronger on your own even if you don't learn from me."

That wasn't wrong. Even if I didn't learn swordsmanship from Rizmel, I would keep growing without stopping.

"So you don't need to throw yourself headfirst into dangerous real battles to gain experience. Why are you in such a hurry?"

Rizmel said there had been no need for me to charge at that spider like I had.

She said calling for support and fighting with the Reconnaissance Team would still have been valuable experience.

"Like you're desperate to die."

What a ridiculous thing to say. I opened my mouth to snap back at Rizmel.

"That's..."

But that was all that came out. No suitable words would come out of my mouth.

I'd rushed at the spider to get the boss kill reward and grow stronger. Yet it wasn't as though I desperately needed the reward.

I hadn't even known there was a Hidden Boss, or what reward it would give me. I hadn't needed to fight alone, either.

Even if I'd fought together with Rizmel and the other Dark Elves, I would have received the maximum contribution reward and the first-clear reward.

Besides, I was already far stronger than Floor 7 required. Even if I didn't grow at all, I could clear up to Floor 10 without much trouble.

The reason I'd gone to the spider nest with Rizmel was simply to show my skills and learn swordsmanship.

There had been absolutely no reason for me to take the Crystal Spider on alone without knowing how to defeat it.

There was only one reason I'd used at that moment.

"Because I can."

Because I'd sworn never to stop.

* * *

Rizmel made a strange expression after hearing my answer, then nodded after a long while.

"Okay."

I didn't know what she understood, but she seemed to have sorted out her thoughts. Rizmel took me to a spot some distance away from the Reconnaissance Team building.

I could tell what kind of place it was at a glance. It was a wide area littered with scarecrows and blunt swords, probably meant for training.

1. Complete Rizmel's three stages of basic training.

2. Complete Rizmel's three stages of advanced training (Optional).

3. Complete Rizmel's selection test (Optional).

4. Win a sparring match against Rizmel (Optional).

The quest objectives appeared on their own in one corner of the system interface. It looked like Rizmel was about to teach me swordsmanship.

"I'll tell you in advance, I've never taught swordsmanship to a human brat before. So I'm just going to do things the way I normally do."

"Fine by me."

"Hey, do you know what I mean by doing things the way I normally do? I mean I have no intention of adjusting things to a human's level. I won't go easy on you if you get hurt."

Grumbling, Rizmel kicked aside the scarecrows lying around and handed me a blunt sword.

[Scout Training Sword]

Attack Power +20 (Slash)

Critical Damage: x1.0

Durability 100/100

Enhancement Attempts Remaining: 2

The sword's stats were miserable. Damn, I hadn't thought there could be a weapon worse than a store-bought weapon from Floor 1.

Still, I liked its simple design and well-balanced weight.

Personally, I would've preferred it to be a little heavier, but regardless of its performance, it seemed comfortable to use.

"Whenever you train with me, you'll use only that. Take off your shield and armor too."

So this was a method of training nothing but pure swordsmanship without items. I fucking loved it.

"Then let's start with this."

Rizmel said that and tossed something like a black gem onto the ground at her feet.

-Clang!

The gem shattered, and pitch-black shadows crept out from inside.

The shadows wriggled and shifted shape, eventually settling into forms that resembled dolls holding weapons.

[Rizmel's Selection Test (Beginner) has begun.]

Wait, selection test?

What happened to the basic training and advanced training?

* * *

The quest objectives clearly said basic training, advanced training, then selection test.

Naturally, I'd assumed we'd go in that order. Were we starting with the test right away?

Was this what Rizmel meant by not going easy on me because I was human?

"You seemed to have bad habits when using weapons. The letter said the same thing. I think I need to check that first."

There were five Shadow Dolls in total. Each took up a position in a different direction, weapons raised as they surrounded me.

"Defeat these dolls with that training sword."

Rizmel hopped back a fair distance. At the same time, the Shadow Dolls began moving.

-Tap tap tap!

One Shadow Doll holding a sword sprinted in and rapidly closed the distance. It looked like a basic mob, but it was pretty fast.

I dodged the sword it swung at me, then swung the training sword at its neck.

-Crack!

The attack landed cleanly, but the training sword was so weak that it didn't cut properly.

It felt like smacking a sandbag with a wooden plank. What the hell, was it even possible to land an effective hit with this thing?

Rizmel wasn't making me do something impossible just to screw with me, right? She didn't seem like that kind of person.

-Whoosh!

I avoided the doll's next swing with a backstep. Its attack naturally flowed into the next motion.

Its movements were as smooth as water, but it wasn't fast enough to keep up with my reflexes.

If slashing didn't work, I'd try stabbing. I dodged the follow-up attack, forced open a gap, and thrust my sword forward.

-Thunk!

The feedback still felt terrible. It was better than before, but it still didn't feel like I'd stabbed something with a sword.

Then, at that moment, a Shadow Doll carrying a huge axe rushed at me from behind. I knew it wouldn't be one-on-one.

Using Intuition, I predicted the axe's path and twisted my shoulder to barely avoid it.

Then I swung my elbow at its head.

-Swish.

But my elbow, which should have clearly landed, passed straight through the shadow's head.

What the hell was this? Physical attack immunity?

My stance fell apart from the unexpected whiff, and the sword-wielding doll rushed in at once.

I tried to respond with a kick, but once again, my foot passed straight through the doll's body.

The doll swung its sword at my neck, but it didn't cu- It smacked me in the temple instead.

-Smack!

The hit wasn't that hard because the timing had been off, but it was incredibly irritating.

I tightened my grip on the training sword in my right hand and swung hard, striking the bastard in the temple just the same.

-Crack!

The blow didn't land properly, as expected, but it still hit.

Since this was swordsmanship training, I could only hit them with a sword. Was that it?

"Yeah, I get it."

I kicked off the ground, widened the distance from the dolls, and readjusted my grip on the sword.

This method would definitely improve my sword skills. It was rough, but effective.

Still, wasn't it a little ridiculous to make me do this out of nowhere, then be the one worrying about it?

"Ah, your head... It'll be okay, right?"

It's been five minutes since you said you wouldn't go easy on me if I got hurt, you bitch.

Footnotes:

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