Surviving as a Warrior in a TRPG World - Chapter 46

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Alyo

◈ Surviving as a Warrior in a TRPG World ◈

Chapter 46: Border Forest (3)

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"Ah...!!"

Hearing that, Gerik looked startled, returned to his position, and began unleashing threatening Slashes at the approaching enemies.

"Nubis foetor... diffunde!"

Though the enemy's relentless assault had weakened under the hindrance spells, Minos did not stop casting.

Not long after he finished the chant, a dark green sphere shot from the tip of his staff. From the point of impact, a foul-smelling cloud began spreading in every direction.

Minos continued to bombard the narrow passage with every sort of debuff spell. He cast spells that brought on intense drowsiness and spread fog to confuse the enemy, harassing them relentlessly.

'His approach is completely different from that crazy mage who mixed in attack spells every now and then.'

Gerik cut off the head of a Hobgoblin too disoriented by the horrible stench to think straight as he thought to himself.

With the enemy's assault and pressure weakening, Gerik finally had room to look around.

That was when he noticed Minos occasionally checking the areas where he would cast his spells according to Ilvern's instructions.

'Ilvern must have advised him to focus on debuffs.'

As Gerik swung his sword and assessed the situation, Ilvern looked at him and shouted.

"Gerik! Advance!"

Sleep, spiderwebs, fear, confusion, breathing difficulty.

Seeing that wide area debuffs had incapacitated most of the enemies, including the Hobgoblins, Ilvern must have decided the time had finally come. For the first time, he ordered them to advance.

At his shout, the three close-combat fighters, excluding Minos, raised their weapons and charged at the Hobgoblins writhing in pain.

"Khek... Khek... Humaaan...!! I'll kill you!!"

One Hobgoblin glared at them and spat out a furious curse, but the webbing stuck to its legs and the gas-induced breathing difficulty kept it from properly fighting back.

'Charge! Slash!'

Spotting the Hobgoblin that had drawn his attention, Gerik used the Charge-Slash combination as though he had been waiting for this, sending its head flying.

The party quickly and precisely eliminated the incapacitated Hobgoblins one by one. Before long, they had successfully wiped out the Goblin group.

Once the battle ended, everyone let out a sigh of relief.

"Hm..."

By the book, they should have remained alert for a possible ambush by surviving enemies. Yet Ilvern looked over the party and paused when he saw the exhaustion plain on every face.

"Huff... Huff..."

Not only Gerik and Katrin, who kept letting out ragged breaths after the fierce battle, but even Minos, who had only cast spells from the rear, seemed to be hyperventilating from the extreme tension.

"Everyone, fall back."

Deciding that standard tactical procedures were impossible at the moment, Ilvern kept watch at the front alone, prepared for an ambush as he slowly led his allies toward the exit.

"Let's rest here for a while."

After judging the location safe enough, Ilvern gave the party those brief words. He then took up position at the entrance to the passage and calmly stood watch, intending to buy his allies time to catch their breath.

It was hard to believe he had just fought such a fierce battle.

'As expected, a former knight really is different.'

Gerik inwardly admired him when he saw that Ilvern had not taken a single ragged breath.

At the same time, Gerik leaned against the cave wall, pulled out the waterskin at his waist, and took a drink.

That was not enough for Katrin, who took out dry rations as well and chewed them to quickly restore her depleted strength.

Impressed by the veteran before him, Gerik set down his pack and moved to take out his own dry rations.

In the process, his gaze naturally drifted toward Minos.

'Meditation...?'

After swallowing several mouthfuls of water, Minos straightened his back, closed his eyes, and sat in meditation like an eminent monk deep in training.

Though he was only sitting still, the air around him began to subtly change.

'So that's how he recharges his magic?'

Gerik watched with interest.

As Gerik observed Minos and recovered his strength, Katrin, who had been quietly sitting and restoring her stamina, rose to her feet.

'...Huh?'

Gerik knew Katrin was right in front of him, yet for some reason, he found it difficult to truly perceive her.

It was as if his brain rejected her very existence.

'Is that Wild’s Grace...?'

From the unreal situation before him, Gerik instinctively realized Katrin had used her Wild’s Grace skill.

'Unlike cloaking, it just makes her presence faint?'

Most concealment techniques he had seen through games in his previous life hid someone visually, but Katrin's skill operated on a different principle.

She was visible, yet his gaze slid past her. It was closer to something that disrupted perception itself, blurring awareness of her existence.

'Amazing...'

Katrin always used the skill outside his line of sight when she scouted ahead of the party, so this was the first time Gerik had directly seen Wild’s Grace.

While Gerik watched her with fascination, Katrin spoke briefly.

"I'll go check for any stragglers."

As though the others' opinions did not matter, she did not wait for a reply. The moment she finished speaking, she slipped deeper into the passage and vanished.

With Katrin gone, Gerik was effectively the only one left to rest. Feeling a little guilty, he silently chewed his dry rations and focused on restoring his strength.

'I finally feel like I can breathe again...'

Once some energy had returned, he gathered his pack, rose to his feet, and approached Ilvern, who was guarding the entrance to the passage.

"I've rested enough. I'll stand watch now, so you should get some rest."

"No. I'm not particularly tired. More importantly..."

Ilvern shook his head, then gestured toward Minos with his chin.

"Take the position opposite mine and protect the young master."

"...Understood."

Gerik obediently nodded at Ilvern's request, then took up position opposite the meditating Minos.

The two silently held their positions and waited for his meditation to end.

After some time passed in silence, Ilvern spoke.

"...Your skill use seemed a little unpolished today."

As though trying to break the suffocating silence, Ilvern continued in an even tone while keeping his eyes on the passage outside.

"Have you never received proper training in that area?"

Rather than answer right away, Gerik held his tongue and thought for a moment.

'What should I say...?'

Gerik was wary of answering carelessly and giving away clues about his identity.

Still, Ilvern did not seem malicious. More than that, Gerik had a feeling he could learn something he lacked from him, so he hesitated.

'I don't think a simple explanation would cause any problems...'

Unable to resist the temptation in the end, Gerik lowered his guard and began honestly explaining his situation.

"...Yes. I've never received proper combat training. Especially not for skills."

"Hm."

Ilvern gave a short response and seemed to think for a moment. Then, in a careful but frank tone, he spoke.

"That's a little... strange."

At Ilvern's answer, Gerik felt his heart sink.

Fortunately, he must have kept his expression under control. Ilvern appeared to notice nothing unusual and continued calmly.

"You said you have never received combat training, yet an adventurer who only just started out gives rather plausible tactical opinions during party meetings. That isn't normal."

Ilvern glanced at Gerik and continued.

"Your opinions on tactics are one thing. But insisting on the importance of provisioning makes even less sense. What experience could a self-proclaimed farmer who is only seventeen and a novice adventurer possibly have that would teach him the importance of provisioning?"

"..."

"Therefore, there is only one conclusion. You have experience receiving at least basic military training."

Gerik felt cold sweat run down his back when he saw how quickly Ilvern had noticed something strange about him from their brief exchange of opinions not long ago.

He argued, almost as an excuse, that he might have picked it up from mercenaries. Yet Ilvern seemed even more amused as he refuted him.

"Really? But do you know what's more interesting? Training in logistics and command is not given to just anyone. Mercenaries? You mean men who would be lucky to serve as low-ranking soldiers are taught that?"

Left speechless, Gerik closed his mouth, and a heavy silence filled the area for a moment. Eventually, unable to contain his curiosity, Ilvern looked at Gerik and asked again.

"Who... exactly are you?"

'Nothing he said is wrong, so it's hard to argue.'

Gerik realized he was still trapped in the framework of modern thinking.

As Ilvern said, teaching tactics to ordinary soldiers was only possible in the modern world, where compulsory education could make it happen. In this world, where educational levels varied wildly, it really was absurd.

He had also been able to casually read famous military treatises at a library as general knowledge, but that too had only been possible in the modern world, where books and information were abundant.

In this world, such knowledge was difficult to access unless one came from a privileged background.

'At the Guild too... I need some suitable identity that can hide the suspicious parts about me.'

As Gerik fell silent in thought, Ilvern seemed to take that silence as a refusal to answer.

He did not press Gerik any further about Gerik's background and naturally changed the subject.

"You were lucky today."

Ilvern glanced at Gerik.

"If not for that armor, you would have suffered several grievous wounds today. Where did you get it?"

As Ilvern praised his armor, Gerik felt as though he himself had been complimented and happily explained.

"Not long ago, I was lucky enough to earn a sizeable sum, thirty gold coins, from a Sewer mission. I spent all of it on armor and weapons."

Ilvern's expression became peculiar again after hearing that explanation.

"...Again."

"Pardon?"

"You're saying something strange again."

Ilvern let out a brief sigh and continued.

"With thirty gold coins, most adventurers would simply retire. At the very least, they'd waste it on pleasure. It's enough money to do that."

He looked at Gerik and went on.

"But a Wood Plate adventurer with little experience spends every coin on equipment? No matter how necessary it is, being able to spend that much money without hesitation already isn't the mindset of an ordinary person. Do you know what one of the important things nobles are taught is?"

"...What is it?"

"To know how to spend money freely in the right places."

After saying that, Ilvern no longer questioned Gerik about his identity. It was as though he had already figured out enough about him. Instead, he asked something in a slightly different direction.

"What is your goal from here on?"

Gerik had never expected Ilvern's question. It was also a question that went to the heart of his life, so he fell into deep thought for a while.

"...I want to become an adventurer of at least Silver Plate rank and freely adventure across the world."

"...Why?"

"That's..."

In his previous life, he had lived according to other people's standards and expectations, believing that was the right way to live.

But Gerik had lost everything while dying helplessly before the inescapable calamity of cancer, and he no longer wanted to live as he had before.

He wanted to devote himself to things that made him feel alive.

Yet explaining that would mean revealing his secret, so Gerik vaguely answered instead.

"Because I want to live exactly as I want, without conforming to other people's standards or expectations."

"..."

Ilvern said nothing. He only stared intently at Gerik.