Episode 8. Wait a minute. This isn’t it! (1)
The battlefield was a rugged mountainous terrain. Jenny Chainsilver stood on a dirt path in the middle of the mountains.
“Why of all places…?”
Jenny furrowed her brow as she bit her tongue. Such dense places didn’t hold good memories for her.
Seven years ago, it was a path she traveled with her mother on a carriage along a thunderous mountain road. It was a familiar, safe route, so there was no need for an escort.
It must have been a place slightly off the beaten path, who would have known they’d encounter monsters there. And not just any monsters, ones so powerful that even the escorts couldn’t handle.
The soldiers, and even her mother, fought against them, but it was futile. In the end, her mother didn’t make it.
“If only I hadn’t… done something foolish back then…”
Every time she recalled that moment, her arms trembled as if she were back in the snow-capped mountains. Her hands suddenly grew cold, as if they would freeze if she touched something.
Jenny pressed hard on the veins of her trembling arm. It caused pain as blood circulation was blocked, but there was no other way to control it.
Only then did the trembling subside. It was a problem that required harsh measures almost akin to self-harm to control.
“But I even lost Mother’s pendant. Radon… and Travell!”
With her mother’s memory resurfacing, she naturally thought of the heirlooms too.
Yes… it’s true that Radon broke the promise. But solely fixating on him might be a hasty assumption.
Radon may be the instigator, but it was Travell, not Radon, who destroyed the necklace mercilessly.
And she herself has an issue; she was the one who agreed to accept the promise back then. Regardless of her thoughts on the matter, it was an overstepping act.
“Am I doing the right thing?”
Who should she really blame? Was she possibly blaming the wrong person? That fleeting moment made her wonder.
Bang!-
A novice hiding among the trees launched a surprise attack. However, Jenny easily deflected it and calmly spoke.
“Yeah. It wasn’t the time to be distracted.”
It wasn’t just one who launched the ambush. Multiple members of Team B suddenly fell from above. Since the trees were so dense, it was perfect for them to hide by climbing up.
Jenny admired those hiding in the dense area. It was a good tactic but… the opponent was Jenny Chainsilver.
As they fell, she dodged the sword strikes coming at her head. With a flick- she knocked one out by tapping their badge.
Caught off guard by the ambush being revealed, they panicked. Though they knew it was too late, they still rushed in, knowing they were exposed. But at the point where the ambush failed, the outcome was already decided.
[Chainsilver Style – Snowflake]
She vanished. Jenny, who had been watched closely, literally evaporated.
The novices who ambushed blinked stupidly at Jenny’s disappearing figure like ghosts, but as swordsmen themselves, they could instinctively feel her presence, albeit belatedly.
Zing!-
As the badge on their chest shattered into pieces, the figure with hair fluttering like a blizzard… standing behind.
* * * * *
“Now, what to do.”
I pondered as I climbed up onto the tree.
According to the game scenario I know, Radon gets eliminated in less than 10 minutes. He happened to encounter Jenny passing by, got beaten up thoroughly, and got knocked out.
Given the clear gap in skill, why did he foolishly engage Jenny? The reason lies in his hair.
Originally, Radon was supposed to go bald at Jenny’s hands. Due to that grudge, he joined in ambushing Team B to target Jenny.
“Hmm… I can’t help it with the hair.”
But I’ve deviated from the main story. As you can see, my hair is intact.
Normally, by this time, the ambush would be over, but here I am, sitting leisurely.
“Wasn’t the time limit 90 minutes?”
Even if the story might go awry, it was fortunate that Radon was a minor supporting character. That he wasn’t a crucial character.
As long as I don’t severely disrupt the story, I’m good to go to move around.
Thud!-
The tree I was sitting on shook. I lost balance and fell to the ground. Beneath me was an annoying face waiting.
“Radon!!”
It was Breed, the one who had assigned me the task to buy a wooden sword forcefully. He looked up at me with a nasty grin on his face.
“Get down here, you swindler!”
I landed on the grass without panicking. My body moved instinctively to accommodate the fall.
Even though Breed had found me skillfully, he didn’t lose his sinister smile while issuing threats.
“I thought you could hide like that and I wouldn’t find you? Ha, if you were going to hide, you should’ve hidden properly.”
“Do you still have business with me?”
“Plenty. You swindler.”
Breed emphasized, brandishing me the wooden sword I had given him. Just like Ludical, this wooden sword was obviously cheap, and I’m sure he resented me for giving it to him.
“Calling me a swindler. You should watch your accusations.”
“No need for long speeches. I feel like I need to personally knock you out to satisfy my anger. With that pathetic fishing rod, you can’t do anything but run away.”
Fishing rod. Despite wielding a cheap wooden sword, he felt he had the upper hand.
“Get lost!!”
Breed charged at me, wrapping the wooden sword with aura.
It was so comically minuscule that it made me chuckle if it was really the aura of the fantasy world, but logically, if it clashed with that, the fishing rod would break as usual.
Crack!-
His wooden sword broke, and with just a light swing of the fishing rod, Breed was astonished to see his aura nullified.
I stabbed him in the chest before he could even scream. As the badge shattered, he was impaled on a rock.
“All the effort I put into raising my stats these past few days paid off.”
By lying, Radon could acquire 1 ability point when his swindler experience reached 100%. He had acquired a total of 5 points by bluffing around various places. It did prick his conscience a bit, but that was all water under the bridge now.
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t understand how a fishing rod could defeat a wooden sword. Unless you experienced it firsthand, you wouldn’t understand.
Yeah… firsthand experience.
“So, you are here.”
His nerves tensed at the sudden chilly voice. He heard the sound of the air parting from behind.
Swish!-
He swiftly raised his fishing rod to fend off the unexpected ambush. True to the saying, when you mention the tiger, it comes – Jenny Chainsilver was standing there.
“Do you know why I’m here?”
“I guess I’m still disliked by you.”
It’s not that he didn’t understand. Jenny’s tolerance wasn’t broad enough to forgive him just because he broke a promise out of fear.
“Of course not. But I’ve thought about it again, and it feels a bit unfair to just blame you.”
“Then why are you so fixated on me?”
Jenny Chainsilver was a character with strong fixation. Considering this, Radon could only attract Jenny’s attention.
But…
“What’s your identity?”
It was mere curiosity.
“Ever since what happened by the lakeside, I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I couldn’t just sit still until I figured out how you pierced through my sword and knocked me out with one blow.”
The grudge from the heirloom? That was put on the back burner. Could it be possible for someone who wasn’t even in Class C to exhibit such remarkable strength?
Was he hiding his power? Or did his training make him stronger? I wanted to know what that power was.
Maybe it was true that he was a descendant of a swordsman, as he claimed.
Thud!-
Jenny’s silhouette vanished. What a ghostly spectacle!
However, thanks to the activation of the “Action Insight” skill, he could keep up with her movements.
He blocked the charging wooden sword with the fishing rod. Despite the impact that would easily break a stick, the fishing rod held its form.
It would be impossible for someone not highly skilled to exhibit such prowess with a non-lethal object.
“Look at this… with this much strength… why did you break the promise back then?”
That was why Jenny was angry.
Was it because he chickened out using the excuse of being scared, despite having this kind of strength? Honestly, even Radon would have found it absurd.
However, using a fishing rod to pull off such tricks was not because of his sword skills but due to the skill “Illusionary Swordsmanship”. Essentially, it was almost like grasping a real sword, so he had the upper hand.
From Jenny’s perspective, who didn’t know this fact, it was easy to misunderstand.
“Tell me honestly. What’s your identity?”
Her wooden sword was dyed with a blue aura. She raised the sword high with the momentum to split the mountains.
As someone who recognized the skill immediately, he grasped the fishing rod with both hands and took a defensive stance.
[Chainsilver Style – Hailstorm]
An overwhelming single-strike skill used occasionally when playing as Jenny, which overwhelms nearby opponents with overwhelming force.
Even though he barely managed to block it, the pressure from the fishing rod felt like supporting an iceberg, making his arms tremble.
[Illusionary Swordsmanship – Steel Fishing Rod Lv2]
But he knew how to counter.
He pulled the flexible head of the fishing rod like a bowstring. Thanks to the skill, the curved fishing rod became as sturdy as steel, and with a flick of his fingertips, he bounced off the wooden sword with tremendous resilience.
“……!!”
Jenny was taken aback and pushed aside. Though she managed to create some distance, it wasn’t an entirely favorable situation.
If it became known that he, a mere Class C student, fought against Jenny, a top student in Class A, everyone would be puzzled.
While the students from Class B couldn’t even react and were brushed aside, how could someone from Class C manage to hold his own with just a fishing rod?
If he had grown enough to explain it, it wouldn’t be a problem… but they would instead doubt Jenny. They would wonder why she, from Class A, couldn’t handle a mere student from Class C in one blow.
It wouldn’t be good for Jenny to be stressed out in this chapter.
So, he had to stage scenes where he was at a disadvantage as much as possible. At least appealing that “For a Class C student, he held his own!” would be acceptable.
“Heh!”
Just as Jenny approached again and started to unleash fierce attacks. Each attack was as heavy as a lead ball, leaving no room for evasion.
Although he had confidence in blocking them all, to avoid suspicion from the spectators, he relaxed his grip on the fishing rod.
At that moment, Jenny’s thrusting attack followed seamlessly.
“Ugh!”
Though he managed to defend, he was pushed back by the force. Unfortunately, the slope ahead forced him to roll and dirty his uniform with mud.
Having played the role of a fallen warrior, he extended himself and collapsed.
Seems like even feigning injury is considered a lie. The ones being deceived must be the spectators. So, is that why it decreased by 45%?
Jenny leaped off the slope and landed. If she had brought him down, she naturally had to finish it, so he lay there, revealing his badge, spread-eagled.
What a perfect timing to fake being incapacitated! After all, according to the story, I’m supposed to lose to you.
Please… just break my badge quickly and leave. Don’t bother with someone like me anymore!
“Now…”
Huh…?
“Are you kidding me!!”
Thud!-
She swung her wooden sword towards my head. If I had been even slightly late in dodging, my skull wouldn’t have been intact.
“Why are you pretending it’s already over? You let your guard down earlier.”
“….”
“Do it properly. Otherwise…”
I’ll kill you.
Her voice echoed ominously for a moment.
I’m doomed. Jenny is serious if she says so.
From her perspective, this isn’t just a simple skill test.
In fact, I’m not skilled enough to defeat Jenny. The incident by the lake was largely due to Jenny’s negligence, and there was also a difference in weapon performance.
“Above all, she’s still relying on that item prowess.”
Initially, Jenny’s true strength hasn’t been unleashed yet.
I know. She’s been sealed since her enrollment.
“Should I just tear off the badge myself and self-destruct?”
I can’t. Not only would Professor Radiant be furious, but there’s also a high chance Jenny won’t let go of her grudge against me.
Instead, it’s obvious that she’ll roll like an angry dragon, shouting, “Why are you running away again?!”
“She’s truly like a ghost.”
There’s no choice but to keep fighting until she’s satisfied.
Even though I don’t know how the audience will perceive it, there’s no other way but to pretend to be on the losing side as much as possible.
But just pretending to be losing won’t satisfy her. However, if I use too much force, the wooden sword might break again.
Whichever way I choose, she’ll probably hold a grudge. In a word… there’s no solution!
“Come on… just let it happen!”
[Fake Strike Lv2 (Ready)]
In the end, I took a gamble.
Activating the skill impulsively felt like being drunk.
It’s almost certain that I’ll lose, but experimenting with the skill at this point isn’t a bad idea.
“Are you still not coming to your senses?”
Is he still underestimating me? With that thought, Jenny gripped the wooden sword until her veins showed, and then the aura exploded.
Thud!-
A dull impact spread. Jenny’s strikes were even heavier than before, causing me to stagger under the force.
Just enduring a single blow was exhausting. The pain was so intense that my arm felt like it might break from the consecutive strikes.
“Ugh!”
The fishing rod, pushed back by the force, ended up behind me. In the situation where I was about to release the weapon from my hand, Jenny’s strike formed a crescent.
[Fake Strike Lv2 (Activated)]
Huh? At that moment, my body moved on its own. Light flashed from the fishing rod, which I thought had lost its direction.
Crack!-
The fishing rod clashed with Jenny’s sword in a strange trajectory.
“….!!”
From Jenny’s perspective, who thought I was defenseless, she couldn’t help but be surprised.
And so was I.
“Huh…?”
…Jenny’s wooden sword broke.
“Wait a minute! This isn’t supposed to happen, right?”
