WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
Chapter 27: Cheat
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I’d rather face a thousand high-level Players at once.
That was no exaggeration.
In fact, if only total firepower were considered, a thousand Players might have had greater combined firepower.
Even Lee Cheon-gi could not use a thousand Skills at once.
But to Rimon, the ten Skills Lee Cheon-gi used were more troublesome than a thousand disorganized ones.
Like how one boss was harder to clear than a thousand trash mobs.
Having strengthened himself with all sorts of Skills, Lee Cheon-gi combined multiple Skills and used them like combos. That made him a difficult opponent.
Precognition and Space Transfer together? Isn’t that cheating?
His defensive ability was particularly impressive.
He foresaw the future in which he was attacked.
Then he immediately crossed space to evade.
With that simple combo alone, Lee Cheon-gi had already escaped Rimon’s sword several times.
And since Rimon could not be certain those were all his defensive Skills, he could only click his tongue.
“The more I see, the less I understand.”
“What is it, asshole?”
“That someone who is not even a Player can be this strong.”
Lee Cheon-gi shook his head as well.
No, he was even more dumbfounded.
The attacks he had unleashed so far would have been enough to kill even a grand duke-class Player several times over.
Yet Rimon had not merely endured all those attacks without using a Skill. He had launched lethal counterattacks several times.
By the standards of this Iron Age, Rimon was the unreasonable one.
“Player, my ass. From where I stand, you freaks are the abnormal ones, using bullshit abilities just because you made contracts with Constellations.”
“Then most of humanity is abnormal.”
“Then the world is fucked up, asshole!”
Rimon stepped forward before he had even finished speaking.
One step as he cut through the golem Lee Cheon-gi had summoned. One step as he passed through a storm of lightning. Then one more.
A surprise attack exploiting the gap in their conversation.
Especially considering the nature of those strange three steps, it was an attack that would strike no matter how far away the target was, if they let their guard down.
“Space Transfer.”
But it did not work on Lee Cheon-gi.
He had not let his guard down in the first place, and this time as well, Precognition had shown him the future where he was cut down.
“Idiot.”
It happened at that very moment.
Before he had even taken his third step.
Rimon saw Lee Cheon-gi use spatial teleportation and spun his body with a cold smile.
Tiiing!
He twisted his body, lifting the foot that had been about to touch the ground.
Instead, he slammed his sword into the ground and used it to spin himself. Riding that momentum, he stepped once more in the exact opposite direction.
Toward the place where Lee Cheon-gi had crossed space to appear!
And so came the final step.
Having forced his way right before Lee Cheon-gi, Rimon swung his sword without the slightest hesitation.
As though he would not give him even a moment to evade.
It shot forth like lightning, a blow certain to hit.
A blade so fast it could chase down and cut apart even a fired bullet.
“Weapon Swap.”
Clang!
But the blade did not reach him.
It was simply blocked in mid-swing.
Rimon looked surprised at having his sword stopped, something he had not experienced in a long time.
“What are you so surprised about?”
Golden armor instead of a white suit.
A jeweled crown instead of glasses.
A long, ornate treasured sword instead of a ring.
Lee Cheon-gi had instantly changed his equipment with Weapon Swap and blocked Rimon’s sword with his own. He spoke calmly.
“Did you think that, out of the thousands of Skills I possess, I would not have even one swordsmanship Skill?”
* * *
Judging coolly, it was only natural that Lee Cheon-gi was skilled with a sword.
Among the ten Monarchs, some might not excel at close combat, but none lacked even a countermeasure against it.
No one with such a weakness could ever reach Level 100.
That was all the more true of Lee Cheon-gi, the most versatile of the Monarchs.
Clang, clangclangclang!
“You’re this good with a sword, yet all you did was run away?”
He pulled his sword back and thrust.
His target was the heart.
A fast, sharp attack like a ray of light.
“Changing tactics according to one’s opponent is a Player’s basic principle. There is no reason for me to fight within your range.”
The treasured sword knocked aside the thrust.
Lee Cheon-gi caught his own blade in his gauntleted hand, slightly twisted his body, and tilted the sword to deflect the thrust. A textbook defense.
“Then why are you using a sword now?”
“The first reason is that you do not give me room to retreat.”
“Hm, I’ll give you that.”
Rimon closed the distance and swung his sword rapidly.
He did not expect a fatal wound.
They were merely light successive strikes, poured out to deny Lee Cheon-gi any opening to escape with Space Transfer. Those weightless attacks were easily caught by the treasured sword.
“So what’s the second reason?”
“Because I do not think I will lose even if we fight like this.”
At that moment, Rimon, who had calmly continued attacking even as they spoke, made an incredulous expression.
“...
Did you just say you’d beat me with swordsmanship?”
If it was a joke, Lee Cheon-gi should admit it now.
Rimon was gracious enough to dismiss it as terrible humor and let it pass.
But Lee Cheon-gi cut through that consideration.
“Do you think I cannot?”
Clang!
Keeping the tip of his sword fixed in the air, he moved only the hilt and rippled the treasured sword like a wave.
Rimon’s sword was knocked away by that deft motion.
A sudden rising slash slipped through the opening.
Rimon blocked it simply by turning the wrist that held his sword, then counterattacked. Watching his swordsmanship, Lee Cheon-gi continued calmly.
“Your swordsmanship is certainly remarkable. Few grand duke-class Players could handle it.”
As someone proficient in more Skills than anyone else, Lee Cheon-gi could be certain.
Rimon’s abilities were at least Grand Duke-rank.
With a few exceptions, even Players above Level 90 would not be his match.
“But that is all.”
There was no surprise in his words.
No admiration or fear, either.
Only a thorough analysis.
The certainty of a Player who had observed the patterns of a boss monster encountered for the first time, tested it, and determined how to clear it.
“If I can use swordsmanship equal to or better than yours, it will not be a problem at all.”
“Ha...!”
Perhaps that calm attitude made it even more absurd.
Rimon let out one disbelieving laugh.
Then he gripped his sword tightly.
Staring at Lee Cheon-gi with cold golden eyes, he shouted in a growl.
“Come on, then! If you can do it, try it, asshole!”
Fwoosh!
At the same time, a fierce assault began.
As though all his previous swordplay had been nothing more than probing.
He slashed at the chest and thrust at the throat, changing the path of his sword before an attack was even blocked and pouring out another assault. It was a storm of blades.
Fantastical sword strikes that could only be called the pinnacle of swordsmanship.
Even so, Lee Cheon-gi did not retreat.
Though anyone could see that fighting at a distance was wiser.
Perhaps because of the pride of an absolute being.
Or perhaps because he was certain of victory.
He stood firm, swinging his sword in return to withstand Rimon’s fierce assault.
Clangclangclang!
Advanced Swordsmanship, which enhanced attack power.
Taiji Sword Art, which raised the chance of a successful counter.
Six Harmonies Sword Art, which had a set chance to repel an attack.
Hunyuan Sword, which always dealt defense-piercing damage.
Sometimes complementing one another, sometimes used in alternation to maximize their effects, his countless swordsmanship Skills produced something miraculous.
Another pinnacle of swordsmanship that only Lee Cheon-gi in all the world could display.
When those two swords collided.
The superior of the two sword arts at their peak became clear.
Slash!
His armor bore deep sword marks. His forearm had been sharply cut. Blood ran from his neck.
Lee Cheon-gi was covered in blood in an instant.
Seeing that, Rimon gave a faint scoff.
“What are you doing, asshole? You said you’d take me down with swordsmanship.”
“Yes, that is what I intend to do.”
“You can still say that?”
“The match is not over yet.”
“Looks over to me.”
It was an undeniable reality.
Lee Cheon-gi’s body was stained with blood, while Rimon was not wounded at all.
But Lee Cheon-gi did not waver.
As though everything remained within his expectations.
He simply continued swinging his treasured sword to receive Rimon’s strikes and answered with a calm expression.
“Well, you will see.”
“See what, you...”
Was he stubborn because of his pride?
Had the shock of defeat driven him mad?
Rimon sneered incredulously at Lee Cheon-gi, who refused to retreat until the end.
Clang!
“...?”
But the moment their swords collided.
A question surfaced on his face.
A sense of wrongness that no one else could have noticed, but that he could not help feeling, gave rise to suspicion.
But that was only the beginning.
Clangclangclangclang!
As though his earlier disadvantage had been a lie.
Lee Cheon-gi now matched Rimon’s sword stroke for stroke.
He drew down his treasured sword, twisted his shoulder to turn a slash into a thrust, then flicked his wrist to recover an attack that should have been knocked away.
With every clash, his swordsmanship grew faster and more precise. Rimon’s eyes widened.
“You bastard, don’t tell me...?”
“You noticed far too late.”
Was it anger, bewilderment, or surprise?
Seeing the mixture of emotions impossible to define on Rimon’s face, Lee Cheon-gi pointed out:
“I did not cross swords with you simply because I had no chance to retreat, or because I thought I would not lose.”
Lee Cheon-gi had clearly said it.
That changing tactics depending on one’s opponent was a Player’s basic principle.
By that standard, his actions were contradictory.
Facing Rimon with swordsmanship, of all things, was the most foolish choice regardless of his own skill.
Yet if Lee Cheon-gi had deliberately done so, there could only be two reasons.
He needed to.
Or he was confident he could still win.
There was no need to ask which was right.
Lee Cheon-gi’s sword revealed that both were.
“Ever since I heard that you defeated one hundred and fifty high-level Players, I was curious. How could that be possible with swordsmanship alone?”
Even as he spoke, Lee Cheon-gi did not stop his sword.
As though not a single moment was worth wasting.
He swung his treasured sword without pause and continued as he watched Rimon’s swordsmanship answer it.
“And after fighting you myself today, I became certain. Your swordsmanship is a technique that surpasses Unique Skills in itself.”
That was no exaggeration.
Even Grand Dukes could not face one hundred and fifty high-level Players.
Rimon’s swordsmanship, which had made that possible with a single sword, was valuable enough to compare with the Monarchs’ absolute Skills, with only slight exaggeration.
Even if Lee Cheon-gi had not shown all his strength, the fact that Rimon had held his own against him to this extent was proof enough.
“But I have a disposition that cannot simply pass by an excellent ‘technique.’”
A smile appeared on his normally calm face.
He looked at Rimon with eyes gleaming strangely.
With the satisfaction of finally seeing the System message he had waited for throughout the battle, Lee Cheon-gi said:
“I will gladly take the Sword Master’s swordsmanship.”
[The experience accumulated on the target has met the conditions.]
[Unique Skill, Skill Acquisition, has activated.]
[You acquire Rimon Aspelder’s swordsmanship, Demon-Slaying Dragon-Killing Sword.]
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