Chapter 56

Chapter 56

HEL SCANS

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Luke watched at the back of Ban as he moved away with a limp.

‘Are there trolls among distant ancestors?’

It was a highly disrespectful inference, but a reasonable suspicion.

That durability makes no sense.

His weapon, the pike, is undoubtedly a large weapon.

A heavy weapon used to crush the tough skeletons of creatures that are resistant to slashing attacks.This chapter was first shared on the Ñøv€lß1n platform.

Naturally, he controlled the strength, but getting hit repeatedly like this should result in swelling, much like a frog.

He recalled the moment just before.

“I’ve set the commission fee. You pay 1 gold each time you get hit five times. How does that sound?”

“Huh? Am I the benchmark for getting hit?”

“Do you know how difficult it is not to hit to kill?”

“Oh, I see. Got it.”

He earned 18 gold.

‘I thought I’d earn about 4 or 5 gold if I hit him.’

Even after taking hits in the 90s, he was fine.

His body was swollen, but he was sturdy enough to walk to the infirmary like that.

His tenacity and toughness were beyond expectations.

But most surprising of all...

‘How did he manage that?’

Even in the midst of an attack, Luke didn’t stop observing the other party.

It’s the mercenary’s code to do their best when they agree to receive payment.

‘Certainly, he stumbled at first.’

He was about to react as usual but suddenly froze.

But as the non-stop exchange of blows continued, Luke realized something was off.

‘... The sword is always there in advance.’

From a certain point, the sword was always ready near the point of impact.

Thanks to that, minimal defense was achieved.

Even if the body stiffened and strength drained midway, critical hits were avoided.

‘Like someone foreseeing a few seconds ahead.’

Pike is inherently a challenging weapon to handle.

Its attack range is significantly wider than ordinary weapons, and the effective range varies based on the grip distance, making it difficult to adapt to distances.

Due to the concentrated weight in the front, the attack interval is also short.

In other words, in the hands of a skilled practitioner like Luke, reading the attacks becomes incredibly difficult.

‘But he reacted to everything.’

Luke silently observed the footprints of Ban stamped on the training ground.

‘If there was no problem with him...’

...What would have happened to the match?

The expression on Luke’s face, who had been picturing the overall scenario in his mind, gradually hardened.

‘I can’t lose.’

Those cruel and harsh times spent on the battlefield.

The meaning of that shouldn’t fade away.

It was quite some time after Luke left the training ground.

* * *

‘It’s almost time to wrap up.’

The Extreme training dungeon was nearing completion.

The hero meticulously surveyed the surroundings, checking off items on the checklist one by one.

Various traps, guardians, gimmicks, and mazes were strategically placed, awaiting the children.

Next to him, Pia, covered in dust, sat down with a sigh.

“Wow, it ended faster than I thought.”

“Because we used advanced dungeon stones.”

“Huh, sometimes it’s dizzying to see the Principal and the professor spending money.”

“You have to spend it when you have it. What’s the point of hoarding?”

Pia nodded her head approvingly.

Of course, she also made money that she could never have imagined before.

But to keep up with their spending, she still had a long way to go.

Yussi generously handed money to the hero, and the hero, in turn, also used his own treasury for high-quality lessons.

How much was spent on this ‘dungeon practice’ this time?

Woo-woo-woo-

Pia looked at the dazzling light emitted by the ‘dungeon stone.’

It was hard to believe that this fist-sized rock constituted and supported this massive dungeon.

Even the price was hard to believe. However, the quality of the completed dungeon was exceptionally excellent.

“Still, I’m a bit worried about the difficulty. Usually, second-years start proper dungeon practices.”

“....”

“...Professor? Why are you like that?”

It was a rare sight.

The usually sharp and clear-eyed hero was staring blankly at the dungeon ceiling.

“Professor?”

The hero blinked.

‘What is this sensation?’

A very subtle feeling of déjå vu.

Becoming a good-for-nothing overnight just because someone who had never tried meat said it tasted good was not a suitable option.

[PR/N: The analogy is supposed to show how it’s nonsense for you to do something just because some dumbass said it.]

Besides, she didn’t want to clean the bathroom twice for the same reason.

Cleaning the toilet with a fool was something she only needed to do once.

It was a moment of profound reflection.

...So, in the end, she continued as before.

Swinging the sword diligently, harbouring the determination to eventually defeat the hero.

It was a promise she made, hoping her grandmother would take notice.

She returned to the monotonous routine.

Bwoong-!

In that pitiful moment of desires and sudden memories, and the sword in her hand, which had nothing to do with each other, moved organically and smoothly.

She was in the midst of showcasing completely different swordsmanship, skillfully changing the form of the sword.

“Hmm.”

“...?”

“Hoo-hoo-hoo.”

A snort came from behind.

Leciel turned only her head without stopping the sword, and soon faced an amused face.

‘Blue fool. What’s going on?’

Cuculli’s large pupils stared at her intently.

Pupils longer than those of a human.

The mischievousness that always lingered within them seemed somewhat subdued today.

Cuculli casually spoke, as if delivering a greeting.

“Is this worth it?”

Leciel blinked her eyes.

Because it was a provocation she had never experienced in her life, she was slow to catch on, had it not been for the stinging sense of rivalry that pricked her skin.

“...Huh.”

Leciel’s sword came to a halt.

She was aware that Cuculli often fought with her peers at the beginning of the semester.

She was also well aware of the outcome, which was a legacy.

However, she honestly never expected Cuculli’s hostility to be directed toward her.

Leciel had considered the hero as her only competition, nothing more, nothing less.

The prospect of becoming the target of Cuculli’s rivalry, who had always been beneath her, wasn’t pleasant.

“Hey, what did you just say?”

“I said I thought it would be worth sticking around at this level.”

“Ha...”

Cuculli joyfully watched as Leciel’s brow twitched.

Unlike the angry Leciel, Cuculli was delighted.

‘This practical training is such a fantastic opportunity!’

The sparring sessions she had engaged in with her peers so far had not satisfied her competitive spirit.

They were filled with weak opponents, and friendly matches had their limitations in intensity.

“To bring a kid to this point... it’s a deduction.”

“Ugh! That’s unfair!”

“If you have a conscience, look at this face, bloated three times its size.”

At the beginning of the semester, she had dealt a bit roughly with Gerald and received a lump sum deduction from the hero.

For her, with a keen sense of smell, toilet cleaning was truly torture, especially with that foolish person boasting beside her.

‘Other kids went out and fought to their heart’s content, and I had to endure this injustice!’

But finally, the time had come.

A practical training where competition was possible.

If she could officially compete under the supervision of the hero, she preferred the strongest opponent.

There was no need to think about whom to face; it was never a consideration.

Today’s cute provocation was a device to enhance the flavor of the upcoming duel.

Cuculli bared her fangs and smiled broadly.

“Scared?”

Leciel’s pupils rippled once, as if flames were flickering.

“You can’t beat me.”

“Hmm, everyone will know that in a few days.”

Leciel didn’t react further.

She merely furrowed her brows slightly, turned abruptly, and left.

However, Cuculli vividly felt her anger.

She was delighted, as it seemed to indicate how intense their upcoming fight would be.

“Hehe, this is going to be really fun.”

With cheeks flushed with excitement and a swaying gait, Cuculli suddenly stopped.

“Well, what if we end up in the same group? What will I do then?”

... They couldn’t fight if they were in the same group.

Cuculli quickly derived an answer.

Well, if that happened, she would just have to clean the toilet for another month or so.

Smirking, Cuculli left the training ground.

* * *

And so, a few days later, the day of the dungeon practical training dawned.

HEL SCANS

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