Kays Translations

Chapter 22: How to Beat the Old Monster

After submitting the outing and overnight stay notices, Ishud and Gulf rode a magic item, a flying carpet, for high-speed travel and landed in a certain forest.

Right from the start, they encountered a higher-ranking species of goblins, and the real battle began.

However, for the most part, Gulf was the one fighting during this holiday.

"Take this!!!"

"Grrahh!!??"

Currently, they had already finished off the higher-ranking goblins, and they were now engaging in combat with the higher-ranking kobolds they had encountered anew.

(Hmm, yeah, he's fighting pretty well. I remember he switched to a combat swordsman after being a swordsman. Not only his sword skills but also his attacks using the whole body are impressive. There's still a bit of stiffness, though.)

While combat swordsmen have slightly inferior sword skills compared to knife wielders or knights, their physical abilities and attack power using the whole body are superior. They can be considered a class that can fight to the end even without a sword.

"All right, let's take a little break."

"Yeah... Phew, phew... Can I take these, too?"

"Of course. You defeated them, so the fangs, claws, skin, and bones are all yours, Gulf."

Living in the dormitory meant there was generally no need to worry about living expenses, but personal purchases had to be covered from individual wallets.

Since Gulf was registered as an adventurer at the Adventurer's Guild, he could sell materials to the guild and receive payment.

"Switching from a longsword to unarmed attacks is good, but... you know, it would be better if it could be more natural."

Not just conveying his impressions from watching, but also assuming there were enemies in front of them, Ishudo demonstrated by actually wielding a longsword.

"Doing something like holding the longsword in reverse and striking might work too."

"I see... But, wouldn't it be cumbersome when you punch?"

"If it's just for a counter, you don't need to overthink it. Besides, punching hurts more when you have something in your fist."

"Yeah, that's true... I guess if that's the case, it's not a bad idea to hold it in reverse and strike without letting go."

"Exactly, exactly. Well, why not try a demonstration?"

"Huh?"

Just as Gulf tilted his head, a C-rank monster, a Forest Grizzly, emerged from the shadows of the trees and attacked the two of them.

"Grraaah!!!"

"Here we go, watch closely!"

In the first few moves, Ishud engaged the opponent with swordplay, then deflected the Forest Grizzly's claw attack with the bracer part, and finally struck with the reversed grip of the longsword, hitting the right fist against the throat.

"Gu!? Gaah..."

"How was that? If you're worried, you can always enchant the blade with magic. There might be concerns about angles and such, but for now, I think it's fine."

Having executed most of his thoughts and ideas through honed muscles, Ishud wasn't entirely confident in advising his friend.

"...Ishud, you really seem to enjoy crushing opponents with your muscles."

"Well, yeah. I generally enjoy it. I like smashing with weapons too, but there's a certain satisfaction to this."

"Yet, you're quite skilled, even in terms of technique... your mind seems to work well in that aspect too. Why is that?"

It was a genuine question.

In Gulf's hometown, there was a teacher who had been active as an adventurer.

Even now, Gulf thought he couldn't match up to that teacher. 

However, despite not having seen the bottom of his teacher's abilities, he couldn't imagine the teacher beating Ishud.

From Ishud, he felt the strength to break the weapon of technique with the weapon of strength.

"Haha, you do have a point of curiosity. Well, you see, I used to spar with someone who I couldn't defeat even if I went all out."

"...Someone like that exists?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure there are plenty of them. The world is really vast. That person is my great-grandpa, and he's truly strong. Even with my pride in muscles and physical abilities, I couldn't do anything against him. I earnestly tried to figure out a way to beat him, but... well, couldn't win."

Gulf's expression turned incredulous, as if he were seeing something unbelievable. 

However, it provided a convincing reason for why Ishud was knowledgeable about technique as well.

"All right, next up is a Lizardman."

"...I've had a bit of a break, so I'll take this one."

"Sure? Okay, I'll leave it to you then."

Even as Ishud dismantled the Forest Grizzly, which would likely become their lunch, he kept an eye on his friend's fight, preparing for any unexpected situation.

(That Lizardman... is different from the higher-ranking Kobolds and Goblins we encountered earlier.)

From Ishud's perspective, even if there are dozens of them, they are not worth considering opponents. However, once they exceed level twenty... for Gulf, they are by no means easy opponents.

(Though he might have consumed some stamina in the previous battle... Haha, it's still interesting!!)

Gulf, in the midst of the battle, once wielded his longsword in an unconventional manner, landing a blow to the lizardman's abdomen.

After dozens of exchanges in the fight, he switched his grip again, this time feigning a punch and seamlessly slicing open the opponent's abdomen.

"Hah!?"

Ultimately, that single strike dramatically tilted the course of the battle, concluding with a decapitation.

"Haa... haa... haa... haa~~~"

"Good job."

"Sorry... can I take another break?"

"For now, feel free to rest until I finish dismantling the Forest Grizzly."

Dying due to stamina exhaustion is the height of folly.

However, as someone who wants to train Gulf, Ishudo has no intention of being too lenient.

Disassembly, including the lizardman's corpse, was completed several hours later.

Afterward, most of the encountered monsters were fought consecutively by Gulf while on the move.

(Truly, it's a bit... challenging, perhaps.)

For D-rank monsters, as long as they are not significantly high-level special individuals, subjugation isn't too difficult.

However, when fatigue accumulates... the possibility of being killed by multiple iron ants is by no means low.

(There are still two left. I need to eliminate waste... eliminate waste.)

While the intention is to thoroughly train Gulf in real combat, it would be meaningless if promising material for the future were to die.

Naturally, if the situation becomes truly dangerous, Ishud can swiftly bury the monsters with a dash resembling divine speed.

However... contrary to Ishud's inner thoughts, Gulf absolutely had no intention of relying on his friend's help.

To be honest, Gulf had a vague understanding of what Ishud was thinking.

Nevertheless... the encounter with Ishud was an unmistakable opportunity, and Gulf wasn't lacking the guts to throw away a chance to leap forward.

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