WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Reformation of the Deadbeat Noble

Chapter 166

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Judith's Way (1)

Across a very long stretch of history, the ancient martial masters who studied the ways of combat had gone through countless trials and errors in their pursuit of greater strength.

Sometimes through long years of training, sometimes by sharing insight with others, sometimes by fighting fearsome, terrible demons.

And out of all that, the Six Concepts of Aura had been born.

Accumulation, Amplification, Hardening, Blooming, Concentration, and Manifestation, a chain of concepts passed down from ancient heroes to the sword houses and fencing halls of the present, each shaping its own distinct character along the way.

Of course, orcs hadn't simply been standing idle while humans made these advances.

They'd played a relatively small part in establishing the great framework of Aura control, but through their own particular strength, Spirit Magic, they had succeeded in developing a unique and special method of Aura control all their own.

Just as it had with humans, that knowledge had passed down from heroes to the warriors of each tribe among the orcs, and by now it had come to be called the Five Elements Divine Technique.

'The Five Elements Divine Technique. And not just any version, the one belonging to Durkali's high warriors!'

Airen Farreira swallowed hard as he listened to Chieftain Tarakhan's words.

He didn't know much about it in detail.

Everything he knew about spirits amounted to whatever Kubharu had happened to mention now and then.

Even the Five Elements Divine Technique itself, he'd only heard of for the first time on this journey.

Still, there was no mistaking that this was an enormous opportunity.

The Five Elements Divine Technique of Durkali was, after all, the very thing that had placed Karakum among the Continent's Ten Strongest.

'Of course, this method of Aura control doesn't suit everyone...'

He'd heard as much from Kubharu.

The Five Elements Divine Technique was rooted in handling Aura, but Spirit Magic made up no small part of it either.

Which meant that anyone without talent for spirits couldn't even begin to learn it.

Tarakhan himself was proof of that. Despite being chieftain, no trace of spirit energy could be felt in his Aura.

But Airen was certain.

At the very least, out of the five elemental energies, he was confident he could properly wield Metal energy.

'I managed to handle even the iron stake belonging to the man in the dream, after all.'

A deep confidence welled up in his chest, burning behind his eyes.

He wasn't the only one who felt that way.

The moment Judith heard the words "Five Elements Divine Technique," her eyes had snapped wide open too, fixed on Tarakhan.

'I have to learn this, no matter what.'

Water, earth, wood, metal.

She had no idea about any of those. Not the slightest interest.

Fire, though, was a different story.

Ever since the moment she'd witnessed Hall Master Ian's Sword Dance at Krono Fencing Hall, right up to now, Judith had worked single-mindedly to weave the strength of fire into her blade.

Heat itself was the ideal she chased.

The others, too, whatever the differences between them, couldn't help but feel drawn in by the chieftain's words.

But even amid all that, an unpleasant thought had already surfaced in Brett's mind.

'Will the other high warriors of Durkali actually allow this?'

If Chieftain Tarakhan and Great Warrior Karakum held absolute power over the tribe, none of this would be a problem.

Their word would simply be law.

But from what he'd seen so far, the mood within Durkali suggested that the high warriors, the rough equivalent of nobles in human society, held considerable power of their own.

He only had to think back to what he'd seen from Master Halifa and the spirit mage Gorha.

Or even before that, the way Gunt and his men had treated Judith.

From their point of view, would they really accept outsiders walking off with something like the Five Elements Divine Technique, a treasure that belonged to the entire tribe?

Right then, as though he'd read the thought straight out of Brett's mind, Master Halifa suddenly appeared.

Airen had assumed he'd already left the mountain entirely. Apparently not.

And Halifa wasn't alone.

Behind him stood three more orcs, including Gunt, all of them wearing expressions that made it clear they'd already heard what Tarakhan had said.

Tarakhan, Karakum, and everyone else present turned their eyes toward Halifa.

After a brief pause, he spoke.

"Chieftain, I object."

"And why is that, Halifa?"

"I'd like to ask the opposite question. Why would you decide a matter of this weight alone? This is the Five Elements Divine Technique we're talking about. The distilled essence of Aura and spirit mastery, refined over hundreds of years by the great warriors of Durkali at the cost of their lives. How could you possibly hand that over to humans you've only just met?"

"This isn't a simple matter of handing it over. Didn't the old heroes say it themselves? Standing water rots. If we'd kept our martial insight locked tight in our own hands, do you truly believe Durkali would have reached the prosperity it enjoys now? It wouldn't have. You know this as well as I do. Not just these four, but no small number of orcs from other tribes, humans, and even elves at times have shared their knowledge with us. And in return, they gave us things not unlike the Five Elements Divine Technique."

The exchange between Tarakhan and Halifa took place in the orc tongue. Because of that, none of Airen's group besides Kubharu could follow what was being said.

But it was plain enough that Halifa didn't think much of them. Judith's expression curdled like she'd bitten into something rotten.

It wasn't that she couldn't understand his position.

But understanding it and still thinking the man was a piece of trash were two different things.

Her mood twisted, Judith almost spat, but she caught herself, worried it might look like she was undermining Tarakhan while he tried his best to argue on their behalf.

Then Gunt cut in, speaking suddenly in the continental common tongue, and her mood soured even further.

"Chieftain! They proved themselves as great warriors. But these people haven't!"

"....."

"Even giving every benefit of the doubt, the two Sword Masters and the young man from House Lloyd, descendant of an old hero, maybe they've earned the right. But that red haired swordswoman hasn't. Neither her house nor she herself has proven anything, and on top of that, she didn't hold back from insulting orcs as a whole."

"That little..."

A low mutter slipped from Judith's mouth. Quiet, but clear enough for Brett standing beside her to catch every word.

It might have reached Halifa's ears too, but the blue haired young man couldn't bring himself to scold her for it.

Because he himself was already boiling with anger at Gunt's words. His own hot glare swept over toward Halifa's side.

But there was no changing the direction things were heading.

Having heard his third son's words, Halifa gave a quiet nod and spoke.

"I agree with Gunt. Setting aside whether what he said was right or wrong, it remains a fact that this human swordswoman hasn't yet proven herself worthy as a warrior."

"Gurgar left instructions. He said these four would go on to have a great influence on Durkali's future prosperity."

"I'll take that into consideration as well. Given everything that's been said so far, why not let the great council decide? I believe it's only right to hear from Gorha and the other spirit mages, and from the other warriors too."

Was it Gunt's influence?

Halifa had switched, at some point, to speaking the continental common tongue, and Kubharu and the four watched him in silence while Karakum quietly closed his eyes.

Karakum felt he had no right to intervene, not after stepping down from the chieftain's seat himself.

Amid all this, Tarakhan let out a deep sigh and nodded. Then he spoke.

"We'll hold a council."

A short while later, the chieftain who had come down from the mountain summoned the great council.

With the tribe's finest gathered in one place, debate broke out over whether to pass down the Five Elements Divine Technique, and a conclusion came faster than expected.

Even Gorha, the spirit mage who might have been counted among Halifa's opposition, ended up agreeing with him.

Airen Farreira and Illia Lindsay were granted permission to receive the Five Elements Divine Technique.

Brett Lloyd fell somewhat short of the standard, but out of respect for the late Gurgar's wishes, he too was granted permission.

Judith, however, still fell short of qualifying even with all factors considered, and so a trial was arranged to let her prove herself.

Its name: the Trial of the Warrior.

A grueling yet honorable ordeal in which she would have to fight three high warriors back to back, to prove that she truly was an outstanding warrior.

Everyone who heard the news worried for Judith, but she only laughed it off and answered.

"Gurgar said it himself, didn't he? That this is a gift for us. So..."

That trial probably isn't one I can't overcome.

Everyone who heard her nodded.

* * *

A week after Gurgar's resurrection.

In a massive arena much like the one they'd seen at the Proof Land, the Trial of the Warrior was held to prove Judith's qualification.

The atmosphere really did feel remarkably similar to the Proof Land.

Countless orcs packed the stands, all there to watch the clash between one of the tribe's warriors and a human.

The one difference was that every single one of them was rooting, without exception, for the orc warrior.

"How strong could a human possibly be, anyway."

"Judith? Never heard of her. And apparently she's really young too."

"Doesn't matter how old or young she is. I heard her opponents this time are Master Halifa's three sons. There's no way to win against that without being a Master yourself."

"No, honestly, I doubt even a human Master could pull it off."

"Right! Orc bodies are just fundamentally superior, so facing three of them back to back would be brutal even for a Master."

Unlike the wandering orcs who'd grown friendly toward humans purely to survive, the orcs of the continent's northwest tended to look down on humans.

To a people who valued physical strength above all else, humans, with their naturally slight builds, were something to be dismissed outright.

But if you asked whether orcs felt nothing but superiority toward humans, that wasn't true either.

Long history had proven otherwise.

Four hundred years ago, and a hundred and fifty years ago too.

Orc warriors had struck down the necks of countless demonoids and torn apart no small number of demons, spreading word of their courage far across the continent.

But it had always been humans who played the decisive role in ending the chaos of those eras.

Dion Lindsay, founder of House Lindsay, had beheaded the Dragon King.

The White Knight Commander of the Holy Kingdom Abilius had sent three of the Seven Great Demons back to the demon realm.

Even now, the continent's strongest wasn't an orc.

However great Karakum's reputation might be, it still couldn't match the renown of Ian, Kun, and Julius Hyul.

That fact had planted no small sense of inferiority in the orcs' hearts.

Superiority and inferiority.

Two feelings that should never have been able to mix, and yet every orc gathered here carried both at once.

And that mixture came out as anticipation for their own tribe's warriors, and unreasoning anger toward the human fighter.

"Gunt! No need to pass it to your brothers, just finish her off yourself, little brother!"

"Lord Gunt! Smash her to pieces!"

"Gunt, Pahun, Garam! Whoever it is, don't let it drag on!"

"Get lost, human!"

"Booooo!"

It was a mood as though not a single orc in the crowd stood behind Judith.

But that wasn't quite true.

Standing beside Chieftain Tarakhan, looking down at the arena, Kubharu alone prayed desperately for Judith's success.

Even so, apart from that hope, he viewed the situation itself with real concern.

The high warriors chosen to face Judith were simply too skilled.

'Master Halifa's three sons... I heard every one of them ranks among the upper tier of Experts.'

The eldest, Garam in particular, was said to be a terrifyingly capable fighter, someone who might even rival a Master.

Facing three opponents of that caliber back to back, no matter how strong Judith was, it was bound to be a punishing fight.

Making things worse, this contest wouldn't be decided with swords, but with bare hands.

Unlike human swordsmen, orcs trained deeply in unarmed combat from a very young age.

His thoughts reaching that point, Kubharu closed his eyes and thought of his own master.

And unlike every other orc gathered there, he prayed, again and again, that the red haired human would overcome this trial.

"Hmph."

Paying none of that any mind, Gunt, assigned to the first trial, snorted and climbed into the arena. His bulging eyes fixed on Judith with a glare.

He knew she wasn't an opponent to underestimate.

But hand to hand combat was an orc's specialty. And there was no contest in build, either.

Certain of his victory, Gunt curled one corner of his mouth up and spoke.

"I'm about to show you exactly what a real warrior looks like."

Judith didn't answer.

She simply raised both fists in silence and settled into a striking stance.

Watching her, Gunt let out another laugh.

Not a bad stance. But given the difference in build, it didn't feel remotely threatening.

Licking his lower lip, he settled into his own stance, and soon the referee's shout rang out, signaling the start.

The instant it did, Gunt dropped low and shot forward with a low tackle meant to crush Judith flat.

Excited roars burst out from every corner of the crowd.

And then, just as quickly, those roars fell silent.

Crack!

Feigning a step backward, Judith closed the distance in an instant and drove a knee straight upward.

Gunt staggered, nearly toppling backward, and quickly stumbled away. His thick neck and iron jaw kept him from losing consciousness, at least for now.

But the damage was unmistakable, and Judith didn't let the chance slip by.

She closed in fast, and Gunt, still reeling, threw a flurry of powerful punches in return.

None of them landed.

A moment later, Judith slipped behind him and wrapped both arms around his neck, locking it down.

That was the end of it. Gunt struggled for a moment, then went limp and dropped to the ground like a marionette with its strings cut.

"....."

"....."

Silence.

In that dead, funeral hush, Judith leaned close to the unconscious Gunt's ear and whispered quietly.

"So what's a real warrior again, you little shit?"

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