The Weakest Knight Became a Swordmaster, But Only in Dungeons - Chapter 2

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Oblivious

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

Chapter 2: Surviving at Knight Academy (1)

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'I cut...'

I cut Orankel down.

There was no taking it back now.

I stopped the massacre that would have taken place on this train and drastically altered the original story.

I placed a hand over my chest.

Even in a situation that should have made my insides churn, my heartbeat was perfectly steady and calm.

'So my unique ability affects my emotions too?'

I put that question aside.

My gaze returned to the severed head of Orankel.

Confusion filled Orankel's face. The lips seemed to be moving as though Orankel were trying to say something, but without a neck, no sound came out.

Sss...

Orankel dissolved into purple mana ash and vanished.

That was how demonkin usually met their end.

Then, ding.

A notification window appeared.

[You have achieved the special achievement "A Step Toward the Ultimate"!]

[Condition: Successfully land your first attack after reaching the final stage of mastery.]

[The growth rate of each stat increases according to its rank.]

[Having experienced the ultimate, your body will grow without limits.]

My eyes widened.

'Right, this was a thing. I planned my build around it.'

Even with the unique ability Swordmaster's Soul, it would have been impossible to clear the story in the weakest body.

This special achievement was exactly why my build had a chance.

In the original game, it was earned late in the story and served as a final boost. But with my build, I could achieve it from the very beginning and unlock my growth potential.

Fwoosh!!

Boom!!

Explosions rang out one after another.

A barrage of mana-infused attacks was still raining down on the wolf monsters.

That defensive battle would end without a single casualty. Its only purpose was to build relationships between the protagonist and the main cast.

Of course, if I stepped in, it would end sooner...

'No. Not unless I want to die from the start.'

If I openly revealed this conditional power in front of everyone, the enemy faction Orankel belonged to would undoubtedly come after me.

I sharpened my senses and checked my surroundings. No one was watching me.

I quietly lowered myself beside the train wall and looked through the window.

The cadets were focused on the wolf monsters outside the window on the opposite side.

Like a ninja, I quickly slipped back into the train through the window. Then I hid in the same place as before.

If I'd been in my usual body, I surely would have been caught.

But my body and mana were still at the Swordmaster's Realm, so it felt incredibly easy.

......

The train defense ended safely thanks to the combined efforts of the knights and Griffin Knight School cadets.

Afterward, the knights entered the dungeon and cleared its boss.

'They came back sooner than I expected.'

That was how it happened in Elwi too. It probably wasn't a difficult dungeon for the knights.

Defeating the boss gave them a key that could open an exit gate.

"We've subjugated the boss and retrieved the exit gate key."

"Good. Let's get out of here quickly."

"Where should I create the exit?"

"Back where we came in."

Standing at the front of the train, a knight held a key glowing faintly green in the air and turned it.

Then, whoosh!

A large green gate formed in front of the train.

"We can finally get out of this creepy place..."

"Will you be all right, Instructor Rachel? You need to move the train."

"Yes. I've rested and stored up enough mana. I should be able to manage until we reach the tracks."

Whoooosh!

An enormous telekinetic force enveloped the train. It rose into the air, then smoothly passed through the green gate.

After passing through an unknown tunnel filled with green mana light, the train arrived above the tracks where it had entered the dungeon.

Clack.

Sweating profusely, Instructor Rachel carefully lowered the train onto the rails.

Once its wheels were fully settled on the tracks, she released her telekinesis and let out a deep sigh of relief.

Apparently dizzy, she pressed a hand to her forehead and collapsed into a seat.

Well, placing such a huge train precisely on the tracks had to be exhausting.

'That's amazing. ...Huh?'

As I admired her inwardly, the mana filling my body suddenly vanished.

'My unique ability ended.'

Was the human body... always this heavy?

The contrast was no joke.

"Ah, um. Ahem..."

Maybe because the Swordmaster state had ended.

All kinds of thoughts surged to the surface as though their reins had been released, pounding fiercely in my chest.

My eyes squeezed shut on their own. It felt like my mind was shouting.

Hey, the story is completely messed up! What are you going to do, Ron!?

Hey, now the enemies will go crazy trying to kill you! What are you going to do, Ron!?

'What do you want me to do...?'

I didn't have a choice...

Still, no matter how much I tried to rationalize that my actions had been the best choice, I couldn't stop the worry from rising.

'Besides, she must have noticed that the demonkin died.'

There was one person.

A black mage capable of sensing demonic energy was on this train. It would be impossible to hide from that ability.

One of the reasons the demonkin had come here in the first place was because of her.

I'd have to wait and see what she did.

* * *

'There was definitely a demonkin here...'

The train was running along the tracks again.

The passengers were relieved, each chatting about the dungeon they had just escaped.

Meanwhile, a female cadet sat with her head lowered, nervously rubbing her fingers together.

Long, deep-purple hair flowed down her back like waves, adorned with a skull-shaped hairpin.

Her bangs covered her right eye. Her exposed left eye was trembling.

It was Violet, a new cadet at Griffin Knight School.

'A dangerous demonkin definitely came looking for me...'

When the train had entered the dungeon earlier, the demonkin had used magic to speak directly into Violet's mind.

'I came... to take you...'

It was a chilling voice. Violet was afraid.

'They say demonkin like black mages...'

She was a black mage.

Violet had read in a black magic tome that demonkin liked the mana of black mages.

So, even as she trembled in fear, Violet had gathered her mana and prepared herself for battle.

But...

'Someone killed it. That person is on this train right now.'

The demonkin's energy had abruptly vanished. It was easy to tell that it had died.

Who had killed it?

If that person had fled outside the train into the desolate dungeon, someone would have seen them.

And if they had left any traces, the knights investigating the area earlier would have noticed them.

That was why Violet had concluded that the unknown powerhouse was on the train.

'I can't report this... People will find out that I can sense demonic energy...'

Her fidgeting fingers moved faster.

"Violet. You must never tell anyone that you can sense demonic energy. The world isn't ready to accept people like you yet. Understand?"

"Yes, Mother..."

Her mother's warning from childhood passed through Violet's mind.

The ability to sense demonic energy was entirely separate from black magic, and it was considered a cursed ability.

People would treat her as a demonkin, a heretic, or a witch.

After all, nobody besides such people had ever been able to sense demonic energy.

Even if there had been exceptions, they would have already vanished beneath the executioner's blade.

'What kind of person are they? They protected everyone here, so they probably aren't a bad person... No, am I just rationalizing this because it's convenient for me...?'

Her worries led to more worries.

Risking the exposure of her secret just to report this was too much.

But even so, her conscience wouldn't allow her to ignore the existence of a powerful person whose identity and intentions were unknown, despite being the only one here who had discovered them.

Besides, perhaps unintentionally, that person was her benefactor.

If they were a good person, she should repay them.

In the end, Violet reached a new conclusion.

'I'll find out for myself. I'll learn what kind of person they are.'

Determination suddenly filled Violet's trembling eyes.

* * *

The train incident was reported to Griffin Knight School, and the entrance ceremony was postponed.

No one was seriously injured. For apprentice knights, it would have been harder to sustain a major injury from a train rolling over once.

The cadets involved in the incident each received an examination at the infirmary.

After being declared unharmed, I arrived at my dormitory.

"Oh, damn..."

It was a small private room, but to me, it looked incredibly clean and luxurious.

I flopped onto the bed.

Since being reborn in this world, this was the first time I'd experienced a bed this soft.

'Ah, I could cry...'

Memories of sleeping in piles of stable straw to save even a single coin came flooding back.

I made it! I got into knight school! I'm an apprentice knight now!

...This probably wasn't the time to be so purely happy.

'What do I do now...?'

Maybe it was because my mind had been sorted out in an instant while I was in the Swordmaster state. The confusion had already settled, and I could calmly think about the future.

The third playthrough of ‘For Elise’ on Hard difficulty.

That damned, miserable story, which freely handed the protagonist helplessness and despair, marched steadily toward the world's destruction.

Even the normal ending had the protagonist give up, accept the apocalypse, and live a slow life there. Or they went back to the past with a "Our adventure begins now!" kind of ending.

And the bad ending, needless to say, was the world being destroyed.

'There's no way I can survive that.'

In the end, my only choice was to achieve the true ending.

The true ending, where the protagonist's party saved the world and the protagonist safely graduated from knight school.

By using veteran player knowledge to minimize casualties and prevent bad-ending triggers, it was possible to reach the true ending.

Then...

'I need to support the protagonist.'

I had an ability that let me become a Swordmaster under certain conditions, and things were even proceeding according to the build I'd planned.

Remembering the feel of killing the demonkin, confidence swelled inside me.

Yeah, this was doable.

Hey, protagonist! I'll help you out, you punk.

Just trust me!