The Weakest Knight Became a Swordmaster, But Only in Dungeons - Chapter 15

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Oblivious

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◈ The Weakest Knight Became a Swordmaster, But Only in Dungeons ◈

Chapter 15: Blue Flame Magical Beast - Interlude

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I landed on the exposed ground amid the scattering blue flames.

With one swing, whoosh, I shook the blue blood from my blade.

The moment Helldrug’s head struck the ground and kicked up dust, I sheathed my sword.

Whoosh.

As soon as the sword entered its scabbard, the Iron Claw Wind died down.

Thud!!

Helldrug’s headless massive body collapsed helplessly, sending up a huge cloud of dust.

‘Okay, I got it.’

Ah, so this was what they called a Swordmaster...

It’s very strong.

[You have cleared the Dungeon Boss.]

[You have acquired the Exit Gate Key.]

[You can create an Exit Gate anywhere near the Gate through which you entered.]

Fwoooosh.

A green key appeared in midair. I grabbed it.

It was the Exit Gate Key.

‘I should take that too.’

I walked toward Helldrug’s head.

Its head had already withered like a dried flower, but its horn still brimmed vividly with life and blue-flame mana.

Slice.

I easily cut off the horn.

Inside the flesh, a black sword and black scabbard were embedded side by side.

Dark blue mana flowed from the black sword into Helldrug’s corpse like blood through veins.

But perhaps because Helldrug had been subjugated, the blue mana being supplied was rapidly losing strength.

‘Flame Demon Sword Hwama.’

A little over a hundred years ago, Demon Hiccup had brought this famed fire-goblin sword from the East and implanted it in Helldrug.

It was also the source of the blue flames.

I grabbed the sword’s hilt.

Fwoosh!

Blue flames rose from the hilt. I had worried it might be hot, but it was warm.

Its ogre master was dead, so Flame Demon Sword Hwama was trying to welcome a new master.

The requirements to become its master were roughly...

[Requirements]

- [Fifth Tier]

- [Sword Expert realm]

The notification window kindly informed me.

[“Flame Demon Sword Hwama” welcomes you as its new master.]

[You have acquired the trait “Blue-Flame Demon.”]

[When using “Flame Demon Sword Hwama,” you can wield “Flame Demon Mana.”]

‘Good. Just as expected.’

Flame Demon Mana was the flame mana used by Helldrug, flames that devoured mana.

In For Elise, Elise became the master of Flame Demon Sword Hwama, but its mana clashed directly with her fairy’s power and tried to destroy her body.

To use Flame Demon Sword Hwama, Elise had to obtain a special opportunity near the end of the game. Even then, she had to accept the risk.

‘By then, she’ll have gotten a good weapon that suits her fairy’s power.’

There was no reason to use Flame Demon Sword Hwama when she had a better weapon.

As a result, Flame Demon Sword Hwama was treated as a weapon of pure style, WOAT in practicality, WOAT in performance, but GOAT in style...

‘But for me right now, it’s GOAT in both practicality and performance.’

I didn’t have any power that would clash with Flame Demon Mana.

It was nothing but sweet honey for me.

Fwoosh.

I pulled out Flame Demon Sword Hwama and its scabbard. When I sheathed it, the flames scattered.

Swoosh.

Like Ravenous Wolf Sword Kalzak, Flame Demon Sword Hwama could also be converted into mana. I turned both swords into mana and stored them inside me.

My Swordmaster senses constantly surveyed the entire area. I couldn’t sense the presence of any creature watching me.

‘I’ve finished what I came for, so should I head back?’

Bzzzz!

Whoooosh.

I held the Exit Gate Key out in the air and turned it, creating a green Exit Gate.

When an Exit Gate was created, a small green aurora appeared in the sky above it.

Once Elise and the others finished fighting, they would see that aurora and come here.

‘Hang in there, Elise.’

I stepped through the Gate.

* * *

Elise, Lara, and Henry arrived at the Exit Gate after finishing their battle.

The ogre’s corpse, a massive monster that had radiated an enormous amount of mana, lay there. The surrounding area had been devastated.

The ogre’s body was rapidly drying up and turning to ash.

“I can’t believe it...”

Lara let out a hollow laugh.

Earlier, when the ogre roared, the three of them had witnessed a terrifying mana slash that was visible even from far away.

At the time, the mana slash had surged over the forest as though it would cut through the sky itself.

All that remained was pure awe.

Elise looked toward the translucent notification window, the Scenario Note.

[“Scenario Note” has been updated.]

[Would you like to view it?]

[Oh, Elise. The magical beast that was supposed to burn you, your friend, and her younger brother has had its head lopped off! A page of bad endings has disappeared. Congratulations, Elise!]

‘Someone helped me again.’

The Scenario Note had updated right after the ogre’s head was cut off.

This ogre had been the source of the tragedy.

And once again, an unknown person had dealt with it.

“Elise. Do you think the person who defeated that magical beast is someone we know?”

“I don’t know... But I think I know this much.”

Elise recalled the mana slash that had defeated the ogre.

Power so overwhelming it was almost unfair.

The density of that mana had made one thing clear.

“At the very least, they’re a Swordmaster.”

Lara opened her mouth, then shut it again.

Henry couldn’t say anything either.

They all agreed.

‘To think they were at that level...’

Elise could only be amazed.

She had guessed that the person helping her was strong, but she had never imagined they were a Swordmaster-level powerhouse.

Whoooosh.

Elise and the others exited through the Exit Gate.

They arrived in a rocky area near the place where they had been pulled into the Gate.

It was a place where footprints and other traces would not easily remain.

They couldn’t know whether that unknown person had deliberately chosen this place as the Exit Gate’s destination.

“Sis, we’re outside! We’re safe now!”

“I know.”

While Henry chattered in an attempt to lighten the mood, Elise’s thoughts were completely occupied by the being that had defeated the ogre.

“Should we have interrogated that Demonkin somehow? Asked where they got information about you?”

Lara suddenly looked at Elise and asked with a serious expression.

“What if the Demonkin had used some strange trick?”

“That’s true, but... Ngh.”

“Lara, don’t give yourself a headache thinking about it. Let’s leave the investigation to the school.”

This was not something mere cadets could handle.

Lara sighed and nodded.

“Well... I suppose you’re right.”

Afterward, the three sent a magical carrier pigeon to the carriage driver who had gone to a nearby city to request support. They needed to inform them of the situation.

Before leaving, Elise went to the place where they had first been caught up in the Gate.

She wanted to search for traces that the unknown powerhouse might have left behind. Lara and Henry helped her.

But they couldn’t find a single clue that could be connected to that unknown powerhouse.

‘There aren’t any traces at all. That’s unnatural.’

At least some footprints should have remained. Or a strand of hair.

It seemed highly likely that the unknown powerhouse had deliberately taken care not to leave behind any traces.

A faint laugh escaped Elise’s lips.

What was this, hide-and-seek?

Just who was that Swordmaster?

She couldn’t expect an answer right away. In the end, Elise had no choice but to swallow her questions.

As the humid air dampened her skin, she looked up at the sky.

Gray clouds drifted overhead.

It looked like it was going to rain.

* * *

“Elise, are you okay!?”

“I heard you were pulled into a Gate!?”

“Damn it, if I’d been there...!”

A few days later, in a lecture hall at Griffin Knight School.

Many cadets gathered around Elise Lorendia, voicing their concern.

There were especially many male cadets. It was quite obvious that they wanted to earn points with Elise.

“I’m fine. As you can see, I’m perfectly alright.”

Elise smiled sweetly and gave them suitable answers.

“When I stepped forward to protect Elise and my sister Lara, it was a terribly dangerous moment. I was about to reveal my power when... Hah, my mistake. Forget what I was about to say. It’s a secret...”

“Why!? Tell us, Henry!”

Henry Twislope was telling the story as though he were recounting a heroic tale, completely absorbed in himself.

Of course, his own contribution was rather clumsily glossed over.

“D-Did you hear, Mr. Hazely!? That the top-ranked and second-ranked cadets were pulled into a Dungeon!?”

The necromancer Violet and the Barbarian Turak sat on either side of me.

Violet brought up the topic as soon as she entered the lecture hall. Turak chewed on jerky as though he had no interest in it.

“Yeah, I heard.”

“Oh, you did... Please forget I said anything...”

Violet immediately became dejected as she turned her head away.

Don’t give up. Just talk to me...

I quickly continued the conversation naturally.

“It must’ve been scary. Still, things probably worked out because the people caught up in it were honor students. If it had been someone else... Ugh.”

“R-Right!? It really was something frightening...!”

Since I kept the conversation going, Violet’s eyes lit up as she responded to me.

Rumors had spread throughout Griffin Knight School that Elise, Lara, and Henry had been pulled into a Dungeon and targeted by a Demonkin.

Elise and the others had reported the incident to Griffin Knight School, then spent several days cooperating with the investigation and resting.

The knight school had taken this matter seriously and was investigating it.

‘It won’t get very far, though.’

Even if the knight school investigated this incident, it wouldn’t find any useful clues, and the investigation would eventually fade away.

‘Because the enemy faction holds key positions in this school.’

The reason I couldn’t ask the knight school for help was the presence of a mastermind.

Still, they wouldn’t be able to move as openly as before for a while. Griffin Knight School was on edge because of what had happened to Elise.

My gaze suddenly turned toward Lara Twislope.

A female cadet with pale blue hair tied in low twin tails. She wore a beret on her head.

Lara had retreated to a seat two spaces away from the cadets crowded around Elise.

She sat there with her chin resting on her hand, looking indifferently in Elise’s direction.

She sat in front of me, and because this was a tiered lecture hall, I could look down at her.

‘Her legs...’

Lara’s two legs were still perfectly intact beneath her skirt.

‘Man... This is kind of moving.’

It made my chest tighten a little, like watching a scene from an emotional movie.

Maybe it was because she was one of the main characters of Elwi, and I had grown somewhat attached to her.

In the original third playthrough story, it was impossible to reach the true ending without Lara losing one of her legs.

A pleased smile formed on my lips.

Yeah, let’s admit it. I did something great, Ron Hazely!

Hey, Lara! Your legs are still attached thanks to me, you brat!

I wanted to brag to Lara as much as I could, but naturally, I couldn’t.

I could only enjoy the lingering emotion by myself.

Just as I was warmly looking at Lara’s bare legs...

“?”

Lara suddenly turned her head toward me.

Following my gaze, Lara looked down at her legs, then looked back at me.

“...”

She began glaring at me with an expression of contempt.

“No, it’s not like that.”

I hurried to explain.

Don’t misunderstand. I was just moved by looking at your legs.

Wait...

Doesn’t that sound kind of perverted too?

Ah, damn it. Why is this routine happening again? This is so unfair.

“What’s wrong, Mr. Hazely?”

“What do you mean it’s not like that?”

Violet and Turak looked at me curiously from either side.

Lara’s face reddened. Soon, she puffed out her cheeks and turned away from me. Then she hid her legs beneath her desk.

‘How am I supposed to explain this one...?’

I might have been able to skirt around it once, but twice would be difficult even for me.

If we had been as close as last time, that would have been one thing, but who would have expected her to notice my gaze from this far away?

Lara wouldn’t try to harm me over something like this, but it seemed I would have to endure an awkward atmosphere with her for a while.

Soon, an instructor with a calm impression entered the lecture hall.

“Attendance report for Mana Manipulation Theory, Second Class! Thirty cadets total, none excused, thirty cadets present! That concludes the report. We are ready for class!”

“At ease.”

“At ease!”

The class leader, who had been standing alone, finished reporting to the instructor and sat down.

Unlike training, cadets were divided into separate classes for lectures. We were in Second Class.

“Before we begin, I will announce the next test.”

‘The next test... Is it time for that?’

For Elise, Chapter 1, Act 6. The third round of selection.

“The next test will be one-on-one sparring. Starting with this class, we will focus on combat mana techniques, so make sure you learn them properly.”

“Yes!”

The cadets responded in disciplined voices.

‘Sparring is here.’

I silently let out a deep breath.