Chapter 57 Three Sword Paths To Heaven

When the Lich finished chanting, he raised his wand and intense magic power began to radiate to every corner of the hall.

The spreading of magic power began to create magic circles.

Numerous magic circles appeared on the floor. The magic circles that appeared were so numerous that they almost filled the floor of this place.

Not long after, various undead monsters started appearing from the magic circle.

The first to be seen are the hands, followed by the head, until the rest of their body starts to show little by little.

Clack! Clack! Clack! …

Whenever the skeletons move, they make a sound similar to that of bones breaking.

When the complete bodies of all the skeletons surfaced, I could slightly identify what kind of skeletons they were.

Skeletons of Goblins, Wild Boars, and even a skeleton made of Batting Squirrels exist. I identified them by the size and shape of their bones.

They all appeared from the magic circle that was on the floor. There was also one that appeared from the ceiling.

Judging by the army of Undead he put out, it was clear that he had made them from monsters that were within Fier Mountain.

I, who previously rushed forward to attack, immediately stopped halfway. It was clear that I would never reach him. So I gave up on directly attacking that Lich.

I realized that I wouldn't be able to fight against that Lich while there was still a horde of skeletons behind me.

But there was something strange.

Even though their numbers almost filled the room, I didn't feel intimidated in the slightest. Strangely their movements look like babies who are just learning to walk. One step at a time they took with difficulty

I could see the nervousness starting to show on the face of the Lich named Nya Nu. Even though he doesn't have sweat glands, I can see he's sweating profusely.

"Shit!"

Accompanied by Nya Nu The Lich's annoyance, I started dancing amidst the crowd of skeletons.

I wasn't really dancing, but I said dancing wasn't just for figurative purposes either, but because I cut down the skeletons so easily.

Slash!

Crack!

Tasyuk!

Crumbles!

Every time I swing my sword, I manage to take down a row of skeletons. Rather than fighting living monsters, I found it easier to fight them when they were skeletons.

Of course, I attacked with all my might, but I also felt that the main reason wasn't because of my skills, but because these skeletons were so easy to beat.

"I don't mean to be insulting, but aren't these guys too easy to be my opponent?"

"Hehe, let's just say this is the opening menu."

The lich attempted to answer in a cocky tone and confident posture.

***

"Tch! You useless ant."

The Lich continued to grumble. He was irritated when he saw the abilities of the skeletons he had summoned.

In fact, he realized that the reason why the skeletons' skills were poor wasn't because the skeletons were weak from the start, but because the summoner himself couldn't keep up the soldiers' strength.

Summoning Magic is not just about summoning a creature, but also controlling what we summon and guarding the creature we summon. Of course, not all summoned creatures are like that. But if it was a low-tier Summoning Magic like Undead Resurrection, then all that was needed.

In other words, it was Nya Nu's own fault.

"Is it because I haven't fought in a long time?"

Right, Nya Nu was a Lich who had been cooped up in the Fog Dungeon for a long time. And during his confinement, he never found a single human who made it into the cave where he was. On average they will go crazy before entering the cave. So this is his first fight in a long time.

He saw that the humans he had looked down on earlier were now continuing to slash the Skeleton Soldiers he had summoned with the black-colored swords.

When he saw that the humans who were underestimated at first actually had high abilities, he then prepared another magic spell.

"It's good that you survived this long. But I will make you experience a different level of difficulty. Prepare to feel the true despair… Appear, O servant who has served me faithfully for a long time. Summoning Magic - Death Knight."

A single magic circle appeared in the center of the hall. But unlike the previous magic circle which was small in size, this time it was very large.

What emerged from the magic circle was high-level Undead called Death Knights.

Even though they were the same size as a normal human, the magic power emanating from the Death Knight was enormous.

Unlike the skeleton soldiers who didn't have any equipment, the Death Knight had armor covering his whole body. There is a helmet that covers the face. There was also a large sword hanging from his back.

A dark aura that was even thicker than the skeleton soldiers continued to emit from the Death Knight. Even the dark aura around him almost matched the aura of the summoner himself.

After surfacing, the Death Knight knelt before Nya Nu and saluted.

"It's been a long time since you summoned me, sir. Is there anything I can help you with?"

His voice is heavy. Even so, the words he spat out were filled with the spirit of a knight facing his master.

"Beat that human!"

Nya Nu immediately ordered those Death Knights to attack Mesties.

***

I did say that fighting a bunch of skeleton soldiers was easy. Even though it's true that it's easy. But, if the number of skeletons doesn't decrease too, over time I'll definitely run out of stamina.

I need to quickly make my way to that Lich.

Every swing of my sword managed to blow away a bunch of skeletons. They fly left and right haphazardly and irregularly, like waves in the ocean.

I had the feeling that I was creating a scene like when Moses parted the sea.

But in the middle of the wave, something came to me. He came from above my head.

"Enough of that, Human!"

His sound is too heavy.

Instead, what appeared was a skeleton wearing full body armor.

Not only his appearance, but the aura he gave off was also different. It was as if he was shouting that he was special.

He attacked using the great sword.

Ka-clank!

I managed to withstand his attacks.

"Another skeleton that can talk huh."

"I am Lord Nya Nu's loyal servant. Even though I am now known as a high-ranking undead monster, Death Knight, I will still serve my lord, Nya Nu, with all my heart."

"I don't care about your intro."

He introduced himself while holding his chest as if he was doing a knight's greeting before going into battle. But as soon as I insulted him that he was nothing more than an undead, he immediately lunged forward to attack me.

"Groaaa!"

We continued by exchanging blows. I'm not pushed at all.

Somehow, I feel that my movements have become very light. I feel as though I can slash anything now.

"What are you doing? Are you only able to use basic moves, Lowly Human?"

"So what? Are you netizens, why do you comment so much?"

"Stupid. Your attacks are very monotonous. It makes it easy for anyone to read your moves. Prepare to suffer defeat in front of the esteemed Lord Nya Nu."

I don't care what comments he makes.

I was still going to attack using the basic moves he disdained, however, this time I added a lot of Mana to mine.

[You have successfully activated the Additional Option on Swordsmanship Skill: Three Sword Paths to Heaven.]

[You are using Slash's basic move.]

[The First Paths: Slash (Beginner) - Active.]

'What's that?'

I didn't have time to read the System Notification.

I'm even more focused on the results of the slash that I did.

When I slashed my sword, I felt that my attack was very light. However, the visible result of my slash wasn't light in the slightest.

Bang!

The Death Knight flew backward from taking my slash. He fell to the floor.

Crack!

The armor does look fine though. But I can hear the sound of bones cracking from within the armor.

I'm sure his body isn't fine.

"H-How could a lowly human like you take down a Death Knight?"

The lich stuttered as he saw his servant slumped on the ground. He swears a lot too.

Even though I managed to take down that Death Knight, I also sacrificed a lot of stamina and mana.

'Since when did I have such a powerful slashing skill? Come to think of it, I previously received a Notification System that there was an additional option for Swordsmanship Skills.'

I tried to confirm it and checked the Swordsmanship Skill description. If I think about it, I didn't read the Swordsmanship skill description from the start. So I'll check it out.

[Skill Name: Swordsmanship

Description: When the Swordsmanship Skill is active, your swordplay skills will increase. Every sword strike you launch will have a greater impact.

Note: Due to the limitation of your physical abilities, the skill effect drops drastically.

Additional Options: Three Sword Paths To Heaven

There are many paths you can walk to reach the pinnacle of swordsmanship, but the World System has detected that you have forged three major paths.

The First Paths: Slash (Beginner)

The Second Path: Stab (Beginner)

The Third Path: Parried (Beginner)

Reach a higher level of swordsmanship by forging the foundation of swordsmanship.]

'Hmm??'

A big question mark appeared over my head. I tilted my head to digest the information above.

If I recall, after I regressed, I really only focused on practicing those three basic movements.

I can indeed practice other moves, such as feints or other moves. But training on anything else is a waste of time.

Following Cornelia's instructions from my previous life, where she ordered me to focus on basic movements, it seemed to be the right thing to do.

"You don't have the talent to learn complicated sword moves. So just practice those basic moves until you die!"

Those were her scathing words that still ring in my head until this day.

I ruffled my hair so as not to get too caught up in the past.

While I finished looking at the description of the Swordsmanship Skill, the Lich was still speaking about his shock.

Now... I was sure that Lich loved to talk. It reflected as if he never had the chance to talk to anyone before.