novelraw Chapter 46 : Duel (1)
Chapter 46 : Duel (1)
Duel (1)
To begin with the conclusion, Plerine's plan was scrapped.
"Everyone knows about the upcoming duel. In this situation, if the opponent dies, I'd be the first suspect, right?"
"Even if it's all handled smoothly, with no evidence left behind?"
Plerine spat out the murderous suggestion without any change in expression, but after a brief consideration, she ultimately rejected it.
"First, let's prepare to win the duel. If it really seems impossible, we'll reconsider. There's still time before the duel."
Running the shop was essential for my survival rate and growth.
For this shop to run smoothly, my standing and reputation in the village were critical.
Fleeing from an honor duel, or my opponent dying before the fight even began, would only complicate shop management.
'Therefore, plan A has to be winning the duel.'
If I could win this duel, I could display my strength as a cook, earn a reputation, and establish my shop's position.
Of course, if there's no way at all, I'd have to follow Plerine's advice and prepare accordingly.
"Alright. Since that's what you say, boss, I'll wait for now. But if things seem hopeless, I won't just sit by and watch."
Her words reminded me that the woman in front of me was a terrifying high-circle mage.
Yet, it was also reassuring to have such insurance.
"Okay, so don't worry. I'll make sure none of you have to put yourselves in harm's way."
I tried to sound confident, but the two employees' reactions were less than enthusiastic. Naba even fidgeted anxiously, gnawing his lower lip. It was getting pretty awkward when—
"Boss, wait a second."
"Hm?"
"Someone's running toward the shop."
Before the words were even finished, the shop door began to shake. Bang! Bang!
"Hey, is anyone in there?!"
Recognizing the familiar voice, my tension faded. Naba began to rise as if to respond, but I stopped him.
"Sit down."
"O-oh, yes."
Instead of the employee, I personally walked over to open the door.
Clink. Creak.
I flashed a bright smile at the middle-aged man panting on the threshold.
"Long time no see, Flaco."
"You, you son of a bitch!"
Flaco started off with a burst of anger.
"When did you get back?! If you're here, you should have reported in first!"
Why's this guy so worked up?
"I left a gift at your place, Flaco. Didn't you see it? It's a bow I bought for a hefty price at Grey Fortress, about this size."
"... How was I supposed to know that?!"
Flaco shouted in a strange mix of annoyance and relief, then coughed a few times, glancing furtively into the shop before speaking softly.
"... Naba? Is he here?"
I nodded toward Naba with my chin. Naba approached with a beaming smile.
"Flaco! I was feeling awkward since I hadn't paid my respects yet."
"... Damn brat."
Flaco stared at Naba for a long moment, then bowed his head and muttered.
"I told you to call me uncle, not Flaco."
Naba responded with a "Huh?" but Flaco raised his voice in return.
"Ha! Good, that's good! Things were getting annoying anyway!"
With that, the hunter spun around and began to walk off. I barely stifled a laugh.
'Looks like they've grown fond of each other while I was away.'
Well, who wouldn't get attached?
He's a well-behaved, cute kid, and the son of a close friend. Hard not to adore the little one.
I'd been slightly worried Flaco's hunter's instincts might pick something up, but it turned out to be an unfounded concern.
Flaco's lonely figure receded—and suddenly, Naba dashed past me, running after him.
"Flaco, please help us!"
Choking back tears, Naba grabbed Flaco's sleeve.
"... What are you talking about?"
Flaco's head turned slowly to look at me, his brow deeply furrowed and fierce killing intent radiating from him.
I was just as flustered, but Naba shouted desperately:
"Our boss is going to have a duel in three days!"
"...?"
"Please, please help us!"
Oh, my aching head.
*
Whether he was an unwelcome guest or a reinforcement, a new figure joined the meeting table, which, until a moment ago, had been our dining table.
'Even if I know how to cook, I'm not trusted for my combat prowess, huh.'
A sad reality.
After briefly introducing Plerine and Flaco, I explained the situation to Flaco again.
News about me would reach his ears sooner or later anyway.
"What?! Sergeant Pab? You mean that giant in Hank's company?!"
This guy was being extra dramatic today.
"Most likely, yes. Why? Is he famous or something?"
Flaco looked at me with pity and said,
"Don't worry. Even if you die, I'll take care of Naba and the shop."
Son of a...? It looked like his lips twitched for a moment.
"No tasteless jokes, please."
"Does this sound like a joke to you?"
"Anyway, if you know anything about Sergeant Pab, please tell me everything."
Flaco blinked a few times at my words.
"You're serious, aren't you. Hah."
I almost lost my temper at Flaco's condescension, but Naba, who had been watching quietly, stepped up first.
"Flaco, please—any advice you can give us."
Flaco coughed, then spoke, seemingly moved by Naba's earnest plea.
"Battalion commander, madman Jeros, Legion Special Investigator, Lantz, Hank, Devanne—company commanders."
"?"
"Other than those, the strongest person in this village is Sergeant Pab."
Gulp.
I heard Naba swallow hard.
The child's face wasn't just pale; it was the picture of despair, but Flaco continued dispassionately.
"He's a squad leader in name only; his skills match that of a company commander. There's no one else in the 3rd-rank who can hold a candle to him. I hear he's practically knocking on 4th-rank's door."
Flaco then described the wiry company commander's fighting style.
He fought with a near-perfect Flowing Sword style for an exceptional defense, and he used his uniquely long arms to make decisive preemptive strikes.
"To my knowledge, he's never lost in a sparring tournament. In fact, he's overwhelmed every opponent."
The more I heard from Flaco, the more shocked I became inside.
Green-eyed Hank, that bastard.
Did they set up an outsider like me to face someone this strong?
'Meticulously done, you son of a bitch.'
As I realized the opponent was even stronger than expected, part of my mind feverishly calculated ways I could possibly win.
Then Flaco said,
"Run away."
The unexpected suggestion threw me off a bit.
"That's under consideration."
To be precise, if Plerine went for the assassination and got caught, I'd run.
"Under consideration? You've just now learned mana and you're only at first-rank—what are you—?"
"What if I'm not first-rank?"
"If you're not first-rank...what? You mean—?!"
"Yes. I'm at 2nd-rank now. I'm almost at the 3rd-rank, too."
"... What the—! You, an outsider, not only learned mana but reached 2nd-rank? All in such a short time?"
"My primary sword style is Quick Sword, want me to show you?"
"No, never mind. If my hunter's instincts are right, it must be true. Damn it, oh gods above."
Flaco sighed as if the world was ending.
"Anyway, even if you're at 2nd-rank, the result will be the same. Pab is 3rd-rank—you can't match him."
"We'll see. Can't know unless I try. As you know, I've beaten people above my rank before."
"...?"
Flaco missed the implication for a moment, then exploded.
"You little—! You think I'm a pushover?!"
To the sound of the medieval hunter's yelling, I began sketching out my victory plan. Naba, hang in there. Keep him calm.
'If an underdog like me is to defeat Pab, what should I do?'
First, I reviewed my own experience.
How had I, a first-rank, managed to defeat a 2nd-rank hunter?
... In truth, the biggest reason was Flaco's carelessness.
'If he'd had one or two more arrows left, who knows what would have happened? I'd either have died or been gravely hurt....'
No point in tempting fate any further.
In short, the result of that fight was because—
'I closed in and fought him at a distance advantageous to me.'
That's why he nearly died and I could almost win.
In such a straightforward match, where no outside factors are present, controlling the distance is vital.
'In other words, I must take the opponent's distance while creating my own.'
It's the similarity between games and sword duels.
But then, how could I close the gap and get in range against that long-armed monkey and Flowing Sword style?
Learning a movement skill—footwork—was the obvious solution, but unfortunately, I had no one to teach me.
... Damn Jeros.
That bastard probably knows a movement technique or two.
Increasing my own attack range wasn't easy, either.
My swordsmanship was specialized in kitchen knives.
It would be silly to suddenly start using an arming sword now.
'Hm?'
Suddenly, an odd or rather, ingenious idea popped into my head.
"What about this, then?"
"??"
Flaco fell silent with curiosity, and naturally, the three pairs of eyes fell on me.
"What? Come up with a good idea?"
It was a bit embarrassing now that the stage was set, but the basics of brainstorming are quantity over quality.
Forget logic, just throw it out there.
"For the next three days, I train with a spear instead of a sword. With a spear, I'd have the range advantage."
"......."
"......."
"......."
Goddamn. The atmosphere couldn't have gotten any colder.
After a long moment, Plerine asked,
"Can you learn enough in the little time you have to actually use it in the duel?"
"With my talent, who knows."
"Hah! Talent, my ass!"
Flaco protested.
"Got anyone to teach you spear techniques?"
Even before I could answer, Naba timidly raised a hand.
"Boss, if it's about range, why not use a bow instead of a spear?"
"... A bow?"
"Yes, a bow. If it's archery, you can learn from Flaco."
Naba's cute idea was better than mine, but it wasn't the right answer.
"Against Flowing Sword, ordinary archery won't work—unless you have a skill like 'Hunting Time'."
That's what I said, but I'd still like to learn archery if the opportunity came up.
I'd been a good marksman in the army. Wouldn't it be easy to learn the bow, too?
As I entertained these thoughts, Flaco suddenly grew uncharacteristically serious.
"Ian."
He called my name with a grave expression.
"How do you know about 'Hunting Time'?"
A chill ran up my forearm.
No way... This guy—
Can he use 'Hunting Time'?!
*
You know about Korean gamers.
They may not care for game lore or story,
but when it comes to character specs and builds? No one knows their stuff better.
I was your average Korean gamer:
a ten-year Belkhazium veteran.
Of course, I knew 'Hunting Time'.
'The core skill of physical ranged builds—Hunting Time!'
Normally, ranged attacks have lower 'accuracy' compared to melee attacks.
But if you use the 'Hunting Time' skill, your 'accuracy' increases dramatically, letting you land valid hits even on targets with high defense or evasion.
'In short, if I have Hunting Time, I can use a bow against Flowing Sword!'
Of course, reality is different from the game, and the skills will vary, but even so, I felt a glimmer of hope.
"Flaco!"
With only days until the duel,
I steeled myself to treat Flaco as my teacher rather than Jeros and bowed my head.
"Please! Teach me archery and Hunting Time!!"
My desperate cry echoed through the shop, but there was no reply.
Sensing something strange, I looked up and Flaco awkwardly scratched his nose.
"No."
This bastard?
"Why not?"
"You think archery's that easy?! I don't know how you know about Hunting Time, but there's no guarantee you can even learn the basics of archery before the duel, let alone Hunting Time."
Calm down, Ian.
He's just a dumb medievaler.
"And besides, I, Flaco, hate wasting time on pointless things."
—I almost punched him in the face,
but thankfully, Naba stepped up first.
"Flaco, our boss has a natural talent for martial arts. I've seen it! Alone, with just a kitchen knife, he's beaten multiple opponents. He'll learn archery just as quickly."
Startled by Naba's fervor, Flaco fumbled before replying.
"Still no! Even if that damned Ian somehow manages to learn my archery, I've got a certain quota of fresh meat to deliver every day. I can't afford to miss even a single day of hunting."
"... Right, I forgot."
Knowing Flaco's workload and routine, Naba fell silent in dismay.
A great solution came to me in that moment.
"I have a stash of fresh meat. How about I share it?"
Naba immediately responded.
"Right! The boss caught plenty of meat! If it's that big haul, Flaco could afford to take a few days off!"
"... What do you mean?"
With a dumb look on his face, Naba dragged Flaco off to the kitchen. After a moment, Flaco returned with an even dumber expression.
"Who caught that?"
"I did."
"Huh? You?"
"Yes."
Flaco muttered in a resigned tone.
"Aren't you supposed to be 2nd-rank? How'd you take down an Ice Bear so cleanly?"
No need to mention Plerine's help, so I moved straight to the negotiations.
"As payment for teaching me archery and Hunting Time, you can have half of the Ice Bear meat. Sound fair?"