Ossan Saikyō Chapter 5 Part 03
The next morning, before the sun had fully risen, I took Freynil and Rani to the training grounds.
We went through the usual physical ability training, and Rani seemed genuinely impressed by how efficiently it raised physical skills.
From what she said, at least among low-rank adventurers, there wasn’t really a habit of consciously training individual physical skills. Of course, there wasn’t even a structured method for that kind of specialized training to begin with.
That made me think about spreading this training method through the guild, but Rani immediately shut that down.
“Even if you spread something like that, no one’s going to do it. Everyone’s just focused on getting by day to day.”
Apparently, that was the reality.
As for Rani, she specialized in striking precise weak points, which meant she had excellent control over her body. Figuring that was likely skill-related, she tried training with that in mind and ended up acquiring a new skill,【Body Control】.
“I’ve never done training like this before, but it really feels like my movements are a level better than yesterday. You’re amazing, Soushi.”
After finishing training, Rani swung her longsword to check her body’s condition. When skills level up, there can be a slight mismatch in movement, so adjusting to it is important.
“Thanks to Soushi-sama, I was able to fight as an adventurer too. But this really is a special kind of training, isn’t it?”
Freynil said that while holding her staff in a focused stance.
“Yeah, training like this is probably rare for E-rank, right? I mean, there’s no one else at the training grounds right now.”
“That’s true. We ought to be grateful to Soushi-sama.”
“By the way, that lug Soushi's swinging around… how is he even able to use something like that? How much training does it take to get there?”
“I seem to have an easier time leveling strength-related skills. Plus, I have【Might】.”
“I see. Still, being straightforwardly strong like that is great for a leader. Everyone in my previous parties was weaker than me.”
“Really? That must have been disappointing.”
Beastkin were said to have superior physical abilities, but even so, Rani looked like a slender girl. If a man lost in strength to her, that would be pretty embarrassing.
That might have been part of why she got kicked out of her parties.
Just as we were about to wrap up, since it was about time the receptionist arrived, Zeal showed up.
“Oh, you’re at it. Hm? New member? I’m Zeal, nice to meet you.”
“I’m Rani. Zeal… as in the leader of〈Fortuner〉?”
“Yep, that’s me. Looks like I’ve gotten pretty famous.”
“I doubt there’s any adventurer in this town who doesn’t know〈Fortuner〉.”
“Heh, glad to hear it.”
While saying that, Zeal turned toward me. The slight grin in his eyes probably meant he was thinking something like, “So you like them young, huh?”
Given the situation, I couldn’t exactly deny it outright, but I just shook my head. The more you try to deny something like that, the deeper you dig your own grave. Best to brush it off casually.
First thing in the morning, we asked the receptionist Mariane to process our acceptance of the subjugation request, then set out immediately.
We exited through the north gate of Euron and headed north along the road toward a farming village about a day’s walk away.
Well, we were supposed to walk. But thanks to Rani’s suggestion of “Since we’re at it, why don’t we run?”, it turned into a marathon instead.
Freynil started to get tired midway, so I carried her for part of it, but it ended up being good training (E/N: 😏).
As a result, we reached the village around noon and immediately visited the village chief to gather information about the target, the Terror Knights.
Apparently, they appeared both day and night, and two had been confirmed. However, since they always moved in pairs, there was a possibility there were more in total.
“Why do you think that?” I asked, since it was important.
The elderly village chief replied,
“Each time we see them, they seem to carry different weapons. Swords, spears, axes — we’ve confirmed at least three types recently.”
That reminded me of the goblin group I had fought before, where their weapons varied. Maybe undead also changed weapons as their numbers increased.
Either way, we’d investigate first. If there were too many, we could retreat and request reinforcements from the guild. For now, finding the monsters was the priority.
After obtaining permission to use the lodging hut, we headed to the area where the Terror Knights had been spotted.
It was an open grassland, far from the fields, with a forest visible in the distance.
The breeze felt nice, but there was a prickling sense of unease in the air.
Freynil narrowed her eyes and scanned the surroundings, while Rani twitched her ears and nose, trying to pick up something.
“I feel something over there.”
“Yeah… there’s an unpleasant smell in that direction.”
Both of them pointed the same way: toward the forest.
My【Presence Detection】wasn’t picking up anything, but if both of them sensed it, there had to be something.
“Alright, let’s check it out. I’ll take point — Rani, bring up the rear.”
“Yes, Soushi-sama.”
“Got it.”
We moved forward cautiously toward the forest. The prickling sensation at the back of my neck grew stronger. It was a new feeling; there had to be something significant ahead.
As we advanced slowly, my【Presence Detection】suddenly triggered. I could sense Rani behind me drawing her sword.
“They’re here. Freynil, «Sacred Ray».”
“Understood.”
As I stared ahead, two soldiers in black armor appeared.
Calling them soldier might be misleading; their armor should be empty. Terror Knights were essentially a type of living armor.
The real problem was that they seemed to appear out of thin air.
Even in a game-like world, monsters appearing without any sign was strange. There had to be some kind of mechanism behind this.
As we waited, the two Terror Knights approached with heavy clanking sounds, carrying swords and shields.
“Soushi, let me take one.”
Rani stepped beside me. Probably wanted to show her ability. Or maybe she just liked fighting.
“Alright. I’ll handle one with Freynil. Can you pull yours away?”
“Leave it to me.”
The moment she said that, Rani vanished from beside me. In the blink of an eye, she struck one Terror Knight and shoved it far. That was probably the【Dash】skill; but even with【Dynamic Acuity】, I could barely follow her movement up close.
“Magic, ready.”
“Go ahead.”
Freynil stepped beside me and fired «Sacred Ray».
The beam pierced through the armor and shield, and the next instant, the Terror Knight melted away and vanished. As expected,【Holy Magic】was effective against undead.
Meanwhile, Rani was fighting her Terror Knight with hit-and-run tactics, completely overwhelming it.
She glanced at me briefly, then held her longsword forward. The blade glowed red; and with a slash, it cut through the Terror Knight’s shield.
The shield seemed to melt, so that must have been a fire-attribute magic sword. After a few more strikes, the Terror Knight fell apart and collapsed.
Rani picked up the mana stone and ran back to me.
“Well? That’s magic sword. Looks useful, right?”
“Yeah. Being able to cut through shields and armor is extremely strong. And your speed — I can barely keep up.”
“I’m confident in my speed. That’s my basic style, so remember it.”
“Got it.”
Just then, my【Presence Detection】triggered again. Two more Terror Knights appeared, this time wielding spears.
So what the village chief said was true. That meant there were likely two more remaining after these.
“I’ll take these two. Rani, stay with Freynil. More will probably show up. Freynil, prepare «Sacred Ray».”
As leader, it was probably best to show some strength. Rani seemed like the type who valued that.
I walked straight toward them, entering spear range.
Naturally, the Terra Knights thrust their spears, but with a single swing of my mace, I shattered both.
Closing the distance, I smashed them apart. Against sheer mass and speed, even plate armor would collapse like sand castles.
“Whoa! What was that? You’re just crushing them with brute force? That’s insane power. I like it~ very manly.”
“Soushi-sama’s strength is far greater than that.”
I could hear the two of them talking behind me.
After that, as expected, the remaining two Terror Knights appeared, but Rani and Freynil handled them, bringing the battle to a close.
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E/N:
Ez, gg!
Stay tuned!
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