Chapter 100

Well, I didn’t care much about what the guild building looked like, as long as the money kept rolling in. In that regard, Chel seemed to command quite a bit of trust from the guild members.

According to Kelly, Chel’s mindset was that people should be paid exactly what they were owed, even if she had to sell the building to do it.

“I actually have a significant stake in this guild. Strictly speaking, I’m a co-representative,” Kelly said.

“Ah, so that’s why the guild is named ‘C&K’…”

“Yes. It stands for ‘Chel & Kelly.’ So, as a representative of the company, I’ll make sure you never get cheated out of your pay. You don’t need to worry.”

“No, I wasn’t worried about that… but if you’re an owner, how could you let the guild end up like—”

“Ahaha! Right! Let’s go!”

Kelly yanked on my arm before I could even finish my sentence.

“Everyone is waiting outside!”

“Waiting? Who’s waiting?”

“The guild members, of course. Everyone’s itching to test the rookie’s skills right now.”

4:00 PM.

Stepping out of the building, I stood still and let out a quiet sigh as I scanned my surroundings.

From the architecture to the trees nearby, nothing resembled the Northern Continent I had stayed in. It hit me all over again that I was truly on a different continent.

Plus, for some reason, this neighborhood felt strangely like Earth despite the heavy steampunk vibe, which brought back some old memories.

Anyway, once we arrived at the vacant lot in front of the building that served as the guild’s training ground, I saw that the members of Party 2 were all out in force. They were filling in for Party 1, who had gone through hell yesterday and were currently on their day off.

I turned to Chel, who was trailing a step behind us, and asked, “Why did you bring so many people out? I thought you said there were twenty-two combatants per party. There seems to be nearly thirty people here. Did you bring the administrative staff out too?”

She let out a short, airy chuckle.

“I didn’t bring them. They all just tagged along because they were bored. Besides, they know what happened yesterday. It’s only natural to be curious when someone who pulled off a feat like that with a single sword joins the guild.”

“So, what am I supposed to do?”

“Anything.”

“Pardon?”

“Just show them something that appeals to their sense of skill.”

Hmm… skill, huh? Well, when it comes to man-to-man combat, that’s my specialty. Fine. Let’s do this.

I stepped forward confidently in front of the guild members, who were gathered in small groups whispering as they looked at me.

“Alright. Let’s place a bet. You can use any weapon, any technique, or any Spiritual Power. Try to make me move even three steps from this spot. If you succeed, I’ll give you ten million mill.”

“…Ten million mill?”

“For real?”

“Whoa… look at the nerve of this guy.”

“I mean, you can tell just by looking at him that his physique is insane…”

“Hey. Who fights with just their body these days? It’s all about Spiritual Arts.”

“There was a rumor that his skills are Master-level.”

“Nah. Why would a Master-level bother joining our guild…?”

“Maybe he joined after seeing how strong Chel and Kelly are? If those two team up, they could probably beat down a Master easily.”

“Isn’t it more likely he was charmed by their faces? Kids from other guilds say they aren’t jealous of anything else, but they’re dying of envy because we get to see those faces every morning and evening.”

“True. Think of how many guys have self-discounted their rates just because they were infatuated with that beauty.”

“Wait, aren’t you guys mad? He’s completely looking down on us right now.”

“You’re right. Now that I think about it, he’s basically saying that no matter what we do, we can’t even make him lift a foot, right?”

“…Now that I hear it that way, I am pissed. Hey. Someone step up. Let’s see what he’s made of.”

Meanwhile, as soon as I wagered the ten million mill, Chel and Kelly’s eyes narrowed playfully.

“Does that condition… apply to me and Big Sis Chel as well?” Kelly asked.

“Of course.”

“Hmm. I’m starting to get a little annoyed too… and do you actually have the money to pay up?”

“I don’t, but… I’ll just give it to you as an advance on my pay.”

Chel and Kelly locked eyes for a moment and then nodded.

“This sounds like it could be fun,” Kelly said.

“Hmm… As the Guild Master, I suppose I should help you realize that our guild isn’t a pushover,” Chel added.

“I’ll go first.”

A young human man with a cleanly shaved skinhead—practically screaming ‘I’m a melee dealer’—stepped forward first.

He looked to be in his late twenties or early thirties, but given his frivolous behavior, he might actually be in his late teens.

Wow… maybe it’s because the people I’ve been hanging out with lately are all at least three digits old, but he looks incredibly fresh-faced.

“Hey, old man. Ten million mill if I wreck you? Seriously? You got the cash?”

Look at the way this little punk talks. He looks ten years older than me, yet who is he calling ‘old man’?

“Money? I’ve got it.”

“I guess so. With a face like that, you could probably make that kind of money in no time just by seducing women left and right.”

“If you think it’s not enough, you should wager ten million mill too. If you win, you walk away with twenty million. If I win, I just take the ten million you bet.”

The guy’s face crumpled at my words.

“Ho… Old man, you’ve got quite the knack for provocation. Fine. I’ll take that ten million mill. I’m going to turn that smooth face into a crumpled piece of trash in one shot.”

Does this guy have some kind of complex about his face? Did he try to hit on someone and get told to come back after being reborn twice? He should go find whoever gave him that honest advice and bow to them in gratitude. People who tell the truth like that are rare.

Standing next to me, Kelly cracked her knuckles.

“Senior? He’s a new face. Where did you pick up trash like that?”

Chel tilted her head.

“The Party 2 leader brought him in six months ago. He was praising him, saying if he’s trained well, he might eventually reach A-rank… I’ll have to have a word with him about proper discipline.”

“If it’s the Party 2 leader, you mean Old Man Kevin?”

“Yeah.”

“Hmph… Don’t bother with that, just move him to Party 1. Oh, and Orabeoni. I’ll make sure to kill that bastard at least once today, so don’t let it get to you. Has he traded his manners for rice…?”

“……”

“……”

“Wait, why are you both looking at me like that?”

“Nothing.”

“Yeah. It’s nothing.”

“No! What did I do!?”

“Judging by your reaction, it seems you know exactly what we were going to say.”

Taking a stance about ten meters away, the guy flashed a loathsome smirk at me and mouthed some words.

‘Master my ass. Just die, you prick.’

“Oh ho…”

And then,

“Uaaaaaaaagh!!!”

He let out a roar—I couldn’t tell if it was a scream or a battle cry—and lowered his posture, striking a ridiculous pose.

“Ragnarooooooook!!!”

I muttered to myself without even realizing it.

“Man, this guy… that’s one grandiose name for a technique.”

“It’s a Powered Fist.”

“A Powered Fist, indeed. Looks like the Hansen Style.”

“Hansen Style?”

“The Hansen School. It’s a popular style among martial-type Steel Body users. They have branches in Red and Sie too, so he must have learned it there.”

“And what exactly is a Powered Fist?”

“It’s a skill taught in the Hansen Style.”

Styles and skills… it felt a bit like a wuxia novel. Then again, there were kids back in the Northern Continent who shouted out technique names while swinging their swords. Maybe that kind of atmosphere was just more mainstream here.

“Then what was the ‘Ragnarooooooook’ part?”

“I guess he just felt like shouting it.”

“……”

Immediately after finishing his pose, the guy soared into the air and brought down a fist shimmering with mana toward me.

I had been slightly heightening my concentration just in case, and now I stared up blankly at him as he descended as if in slow motion.

What is this? Is he doing a comedy bit? Why would anyone jump that high in a duel? If he were a Blaster, I’d understand if he were firing an aura blast or something…

But why does a Mana User need to make a motion like that? And why is he falling head-first? Isn’t that just a blatant ‘telegraphed punch’? Is this some new form of suicide?

Naturally, I lightly parried his fist and delivered a soccer kick straight to his head.

Thwack!

Crash!

“……”

“……”

I scratched my head as I looked down at the guy, who was unconscious with his face plowed into the grass.

“What’s up with him?”

“Uh… well. I’m curious too.”

“…Party 2 leader. Pay cut.”

“…Anyway, next.”

Boom!

Whish, whish, whish.

Something went spinning through the air.

“Ah, his arm fell off.”

“Oh my, he’s quite something, isn’t he? To have his arm fly off like that means he swung his fist with everything he had.”

“Uaaaaaaaagh!!!!”

“Is it okay to leave him like that?”

“Orabeoni, you worry too much. Ability users don’t die easily just because they lose three or four limbs.”

Chel nodded at Kelly’s words.

“Exactly. Why do you think we have priests? You just stick it back on, perform a priestly miracle, and it’s good as new.”

Are they the ones who are weird, or is it me?

Judging by the way the Party 2 members were making a fuss, it was definitely a serious injury.

I thought I was a pretty cold person, but these two take it to another level.

I mean, granted, I was the one who blew his arm off.

“Next.”

“Ptui! Damn, you’re strong. I’ll give it a go this time.”

The one who stepped out this time was a middle-aged beastkin man holding two axes, each as tall as he was.

Judging by his ears and tail, he was either a canine beastman or a wolf beastkin.

He took a stance and pulled both axes behind his back.

“Oh. Old Man Gedon is going all out. Orabeoni, that’s the ultimate move of the Ox Style.”

Is this some kind of mental-illness-inducing game? What the hell is an ‘ultimate move’?

Come to think of it, I feel like Chel and Kelly mentioned something like that when we fought the snake before…

Anyway, the beastkin looked like he was gathering strength in that posture before he stomped the ground fiercely and brought both axes down with all his might.

Skreeee! Boom!

The axes, parried at an angle by Astraphe, slammed into the ground. A heavy sensation. Even though he didn’t seem to use aura because it was a spar, the power was impressive.

There was no need to humiliate a man who had actually learned his craft properly.

I channeled strength into the sword that had blocked the attack and deflected the axes.

Just as I was about to say “Next,”

“Orthros Fang!!!”

The beastkin bounced up like a rubber ball, spun his body in a full circle, and caught the axes as they drifted through the air. Then, a lightning-fast downward strike. This time, an aura like flickering flames erupted from the axes.

Aura, huh? Then I don’t need to hold back either.

I wedged Astraphe between the two descending axes. Then, I spun along with him in the direction he was rotating.

Whoosh!!

“Gah!”

Having lost both his balance and his direction, the beastkin went spinning away and collided violently with the ground.

K-boom! Crash!!

“Whoa! Old Man Gedon! His neck spun halfway around!”

“Yikes. We need to call a priest for this one. Yurik! Yurik! Get over here! Before we have to clear away a corpse!”

“…Um. Next?”

What followed was… a parade of all sorts of miscellaneous skills (?).

On top of that, members of Party 1, who had heard something interesting was happening and flocked over despite being on break, joined in, turning the scene into a display of every bizarre feat imaginable.

“Void-Cleaving Flash Strike!!”

Oh. That one was actually kind of cool.

“Heaven! Earth! Man!!”

That’s a skill name I’ve heard somewhere before. Specifically, it felt like it should be used by a one-armed, one-eyed lady.

“Bark! Orthros!!!”

That skill name overlapped. Couldn’t you have just gone with Cerberus?

“Ragnarooooooook-aaaaaaagh!!!”

That guy came back again. Well, I’ll give him points for tenacity.

“The swords of the forty-four million four hundred and forty-four thousand warriors gathered by the forty-four million four hundred and forty-four thousand Valkyries of the…”

Too long!!

“Lion’s Roar!!”

Oh. This one’s not bad either. For some reason, if the skill name is decent, the technique usually is too.

“Go! Omnislash…”

Even so, that one’s a bit much.

“A-ve St-at-s!!!”

…You, just go home.

ETC.

Of course, this was only because I picked out the weird ones to describe; most of them were perfectly normal. There were even some that genuinely impressed me in their own way.

But naturally, no one could make me move three steps—no, not even half a step.

“Wow, holy shit. Even Big Sis Chel or Kelly couldn’t do that. That’s insane.”

“Is it for real that he hasn’t even used mana yet?”

“They said he’s Master-level. Of course he’s a step above those two.”

“…This isn’t going to work.”