WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Alyo

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Surviving as a Warrior in a TRPG World ◈

Chapter 6: Priest and Adventurer (5)

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Lugos said he would show him something valuable, then suddenly pulled out a worn scrap of paper. Gerik could only stare in disbelief.

Perhaps he took that reaction as proof of Gerik's bumpkin ways, because Lugos snickered in amusement, a sound that did not suit his build or appearance at all.

"Such a country kid... You idiot. This is a Skillbook. Well, technically, it's a piece of one, but close enough."

"...A Skillbook!!"

Nearly two months had passed since his reincarnation, and he had finally encountered an item straight out of a tabletop role-playing game.

The appearance of a fantasy item so far removed from his old world made Gerik's heart pound hard enough for him to hear it in his ears.

"Oh, judging by that reaction, you know what this is?"

"Of course! If you use it, poof! You can learn some kind of technique, right? Or become stronger..."

In the games and tabletop role-playing games he had enjoyed in his former life, Skillbooks were items that raised stats or taught various skills. Based on that experience, Gerik rattled off his guesses about what it did.

"Stats...? I don't know what those are, but it does let you learn special techniques. Not with a 'poof,' though."

"Can I learn one too?!"

"Who knows? Try it if you can."

Gerik acted as if he could learn anything just by touching the Skillbook, and Lugos chuckled as though he were watching a comedy.

"Strictly speaking, a Skillbook is something you can only use once you've built up the basics, you idiot."

"...Really?"

"Yeah. This is a Manifestation Page, the core of a Skillbook, so it's true that you can learn a skill by using it steadily. But you also have to perfectly train your body in the posture, breathing, swing speed, and everything else through the Training Manual, the remaining pages of the Skillbook. Your physical abilities need to be up to a certain standard too."

"Ah..."

Lugos explained that even learning the most basic skill required prerequisites.

He added that the Skillbook Gerik was holding was basic enough to learn once those conditions were met. Magic, sorcery, and divine spells, on the other hand, could not be learned without talent or special qualifications.

"Then no matter how many prerequisites you master, you can't learn magic without talent?"

"Yeah. They say you can only learn magic if something like mana chooses you. For the record, neither you nor I are likely to have that."

"...Why do you think that?"

Gerik had considered learning magic while working as an adventurer, so Lugos's certainty rubbed him the wrong way.

Still, after spending the past few weeks with him, Gerik knew Lugos was not the kind of person to speak carelessly. Instead of getting angry, he cautiously asked why.

"Because I've met a fair number of mages, even if not that many. Mages have a certain air about them. From what I can see, you don't."

"...You're saying I can't because of an aura?"

The reason was so absurd that Gerik was dumbfounded. Yet Lugos continued calmly without changing his expression.

"Once you gain some experience and have occasion to meet important people, you'll understand why I say this. Mages give off something... strange. I'm not a mage, so I don't know exactly what it is... but they're different. They have something ordinary people don't."

"Hmm..."

Gerik recalled the tabletop role-playing game setting book he had read before his death. It said mages were beings who twisted the world to their will, so they always carried a distinctive air around them. Perhaps that was what Lugos meant.

"...Couldn't you start giving off a similar air after learning magic?"

"I don't think so. They say people who carry the seed of magic have that subtle air even before they know any magic. One thing is certain, I've never felt anything like that from you."

"..."

Lugos's firm words left a bitter feeling in Gerik's chest.

Still, Lugos might have been wrong because he did not know the truth. Even if Gerik could not become a mage, there were plenty of powerful classes besides mages in a tabletop role-playing game world. Setting aside his disappointment, Gerik stepped closer to inspect the Skillbook.

"Have you mastered all the prerequisites, Lugos?"

"More or less."

"Oh... Then could you teach me?"

"I can't."

Lugos explained that when he acquired this Skillbook, he had entered into a Magic Contract not to carelessly reveal its prerequisites.

The magic had settled deep within his soul, making him forget the fine details so he could not pass that knowledge on to others.

"So realistically, I can't teach you."

"Then I suppose it can't be helped. Where can you buy one of these?"

"A Skillbook? It's far beyond what you could afford."

Lugos laughed and explained that he could possess such an item only because he was an adventurer close to Silver Plate rank.

"Skillbooks are never released to ordinary people. They're valuable."

"...Then what about you?"

"I told you, I borrowed it. And this thing will naturally break apart after a while."

To manage Skillbooks, the Adventurers’ Guild copied and rented only Skillbook Fragments containing the Power of Manifestation to adventurers who had mastered the prerequisites, Lugos explained.

"Apparently, they're replicas made by gathering all the secrets of smart folk like Mage Tower mages, alchemists, and priests. If you return it within the time limit, you get half the rental fee back. But if you're late and it breaks, they swallow all that money too. What a pack of thieves..."

It seemed they had even included a feature that caused it to break once its mana ran out, all to prevent uncontrolled circulation. Gerik wanted the Skillbook even more after hearing how thoroughly it had been designed.

"Can I touch it once?"

"Go ahead. Just be careful not to tear it."

Under normal circumstances, Lugos would never have handed it over. But he had grown somewhat fond of Gerik, so he allowed him to touch the Skillbook Fragment.

Though he could not learn its skill, Gerik picked up the paper with trembling hands, overwhelmed with emotion.

『Skill Name: Slash』

『Grade: Common』

『Effect: Strike the enemy with a powerful slash.』

『Note: Novices always crave secret techniques. But veterans who have fought through countless battles know all too well that it is not secret techniques, but the basics that begin and end a fight. - Sigurd, Mercenary King of the Southern Isles -』

"...!!"

The instant he took the paper, a mysterious vision of unknown origin appeared before Gerik's eyes. It looked as though he had opened a game status window, and his mind froze for a moment.

『Would you like to learn the skill? Y/N』

"Gasp...!!"

When a message asking whether he wanted to learn the skill appeared beneath the status window, Gerik was so startled that he felt his breath catch.

Seeing him tremble and stare blankly ahead, Lugos, who had been watching beside him, worried that the magical item might be causing the boy some side effect.

"I'm... I'm fine. I was just so moved..."

Afraid Lugos would snatch the Skillbook Fragment away at any moment, Gerik desperately pretended to be calm and tried to buy time.

'How am I supposed to learn it? Do I have to say it out loud? Or touch the Y I can see? I want to learn it...'

The opportunity had come to him through incredible luck, yet Gerik did not know how to accept it. Anxiety washed over him.

As he desperately considered how to learn it and thought, I want to learn it, knowledge suddenly poured into his head through a mysterious power.

『Keep your breathing from interfering with your body's movements! Then raise the sword above your head. Finally, swing it hard with all your strength, as though drawing a diagonal line! But don't grip it too tightly with your palms!』

Gerik suddenly realized that he had entered someone else's body in an illusory space. Someone watching him from somewhere gave firm instructions on posture, breathing, and how to swing a sword.

『Good. That was a basic horizontal slash. If you apply that...』

The instructor went on to explain various styles that used the same slash from different directions, along with the corresponding breathing methods.

Strangely, despite seeing and hearing it only once, Gerik felt the technique settle perfectly into his mind.

"...rik. Gerik!"

"Huh? Uh..."

The boy stood there blankly, holding the Skillbook. Lugos finally lost patience, shook him by the shoulder, and called his name. The moment he confirmed Gerik had come to his senses, he snatched the Skillbook from Gerik's hand and tucked it into his clothes.

"This won't do. It looks like the spell on it is affecting you."

Fortunately, Gerik had learned the entire skill before the Skillbook was taken away, so he did not feel the slightest regret at Lugos's action.

Having already seen everything there was to see, he lost interest in the Skillbook and asked something else.

"Lugos, doesn't a vision appear when you hold a Skillbook? Like you learn everything just by holding it..."

"Why would it? If everyone could learn skills that way, they'd all have classes."

'Just as I thought...!! So it really isn't supposed to work.'

Gerik realized he possessed something special that set him apart from the natives of this world, and excitement surged through him. Feigning nonchalance, he hid the truth and asked:

"You never know. There might be someone like that."

"Sure there is. And if there were someone that special, some mad mage or powerful bastard would have caught them and turned them into a test subject."

'I definitely can't go around telling people about this ability...'

At Lugos's calm but certain words, Gerik vowed never to reveal this ability to anyone, for his own safety.

"I see. By the way, what exactly is this 'class' you mentioned earlier?"

"Ah, that..."

Lugos explained that by learning specific skills through Skillbooks and refining them to their limit, a person could gain a class, a kind of superhuman state.

"For example, the class I hope to gain, Warrior, can be obtained by learning Slash, Shockwave, and Strength Enhancement, then developing those skills to a certain level."

He added that when someone combined skills and advanced to a particular class, the blessing of that class settled into their body and made them stronger.

"The Warrior class has no unique skills, but its strength and agility both rise evenly, giving you physical abilities an ordinary person couldn't imagine. It's a class with an exceptionally high baseline."

"Wait... Does that mean other classes can grant special skills when you advance into them?"

"Yeah. Rogue and Assassin are prime examples. Those classes don't strengthen the body as much as Warrior does, but in exchange, they gain a unique trait that weakens their presence. People have a hard time noticing them even when they're close by. Pretty dangerous, right?"

"Wow..."

Only after hearing about the special powers granted by classes did Gerik truly feel that he had stepped into a fantasy world, and a thrill ran through him.

"For the record, that's one of the main reasons our party can apply for Silver Plate. Every one of my party members has skills and considerable proficiency, so given enough time, they're all capable of gaining a class."

From Lugos's explanation, Gerik got a sense of the criteria for Silver Plate. He realized that to be treated with even a minimum of respect in this world, he absolutely needed a class.

"Can you learn everything about classes at the Adventurers’ Guild?"

"You think so?"

Laughing at Gerik's innocent question, Lugos said there were countless hidden classes in this world.

Every faction and noble house concealed their secrets and used them as their foundation. Those secrets were their true power.

"Well... You can learn how to advance to basic classes like Warrior, Rogue, and Ranger at the Adventurers’ Guild. But you'll never learn special skills or the methods of advancing based on them from the guild."

Footnotes:

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