Chapter 211
Raising my skills, huh…
“…”
Munch munch.
“Hmm…”
Nibble nibble.
I thought about it for a long time, but nothing came to mind.
Maybe it’s because I rose to this level too quickly, but normally, the rank of Master isn’t something one can reach so easily.
Even for someone with talent, it requires a long time and relentless effort just to barely touch it.
In other words, if you don’t have talent, not only is reaching it impossible, but even gazing at it is forbidden.
And then…
‘Transcendence.’
The rank beyond Master, a realm that completely surpasses humanity.
Though it’s a legendary stage, it’s not completely unheard of.
According to stories, the founding emperor of the Lo Arka Empire, Arka, is said to have transcended humanity. A few others are also rumored to have achieved it.
But finding records about it was incredibly difficult.
Even if I managed to find something, it would only say, “It existed,” or “It happened,” without detailing how one trained, how long it took to achieve transcendence, or anything like that.
Maybe deep within the Empire, there’s information about it.
But I’m practically the Empire’s mortal enemy. How could I boldly walk up and ask them to hand over their closely-guarded precious information?
Especially after I killed the Sage and a few of the Empire’s top swordsmen.
To be honest, after killing the Sage, I didn’t harbor much emotion toward the Empire anymore.
I didn’t particularly like them, but I no longer wanted to kill them all like before.
However, regardless of how I feel, the Empire probably sees me as its archenemy.
‘Well, who knows?’
The Sage knew I hated him and still extended an offer to recruit me.
Maybe the current emperor of the Empire might also bury past grudges if it meant benefiting the Empire and shake hands with me.
Nom nom.
Anyway.
While it’s fortunate that I know my final destination, it’s frustrating not knowing how to get there.
At the very least, blindly swinging my sword wouldn’t bring me anywhere near their level.
Edel said I’d reach it eventually, but when exactly is this “eventually”?
The more I thought about it, the more bitter my mouth felt…
“Huh?”
…or not?
As I unconsciously licked my lips, a sweet taste flowed over my tongue.
A savory, rich sweetness that lingered.
Was the problem I was agonizing over so sweet that it felt like I could taste it?
‘…No way.’
Even the most imaginative person couldn’t conjure up something this vivid.
So, it was definitely someone else’s doing.
For instance, like Da-eun sitting next to me, holding out chocolate.
“…What are you doing?”
“Ah, you finally noticed?”
Da-eun flashed a mischievous eye smile.
“Here. Say ahh~.”
Then, she brought the chocolate in her hand to my mouth.
Since she was offering, I ate it, but…
Munch munch.
“What were you doing?”
“I kept slipping chocolate in, but you didn’t notice, so I wanted to see how long it’d take. Did you know? Kana, you’ve already eaten more than five pieces.”
“….”
My question implied why she was doing that, but Da-eun just grinned as she answered.
Surely, she didn’t literally interpret my question as asking what she was doing.
“…Are you teasing me?”
“Aw, come on. How could I tease someone as cute as Kana?”
So, she was teasing me.
If she’s going to say that, she could at least stop smiling.
Saying it while smirking mischievously makes it impossible to believe.
As I gave her a sulky look, Da-eun cautiously asked.
“…Are you mad?”
“I’m not mad.”
“You sound mad.”
“I said I’m not.”
In the first place, why would I be mad over something like this?
Da-eun’s actions were so ridiculous that I was at a loss for words, but I didn’t particularly feel upset about it.
If anything, I just thought it was a waste.
‘That’s pretty expensive, though.’
Of course, price doesn’t always equate to taste, but the chocolate Da-eun had was definitely tastier than the cheap ones you find everywhere.
And I had eaten more than five of them.
“I couldn’t taste any of it…”
“…Are you the one who feels wronged here? Geez, you really are such a child sometimes.”
Shaking her head as if she couldn’t deal with me, Da-eun pulled out another chocolate.
“Just eat a bit more. …Ah, but maybe eating too much will make you sick of it?”
“It’s fine.”
“And it’s not good for your health either…”
“I said it’s fine.”
Chomp.
I quickly snatched the chocolate from Da-eun’s fingers as it stopped just in front of my face.
Da-eun, who had been stiff with worry earlier, broke into a beaming smile again.
“Hehe, Kana, do you know what you just looked like? You were like a seagull snatching shrimp crackers.”
“…A seagull?”
“Yeah. You know, those birds at the beach that swoop in and grab snacks right out of your hands? You looked like that.”
“….”
“Hmm… No, wait. You might’ve looked more like a baby bird being fed?”
Was it really necessary for her to say that just because I used my mouth instead of my hands to grab the chocolate?
As always, Da-eun’s way of looking at things was far from ordinary.
“So.”
Da-eun put a chocolate from the box into her own mouth.
She shivered slightly, probably from the sudden rush of sweetness, and then casually started a conversation.
“What’s got our Kana so worried~?”
“Huh?”
How did she know I was worried about something?
I looked at her blankly, my eyes wide.
“How did you know?”
“How could I not? It’s written all over your face, ‘I’m worried about something.’ I can read your face so well now that I can tell what you’re thinking just by looking.”
“Then you must also know that I’m thinking you’re ridiculous.”
“…I’m hurt.”
Well, it’s not surprising she noticed, considering I was so lost in thought that I didn’t even realize I was eating something.
It really highlighted just how deeply I had been engrossed in my thoughts.
“So? What’s the problem?”
Da-eun grabbed my shoulders and gave me a shake, as if urging me to spill it.
It wasn’t rough, but it was just annoying enough to disrupt my train of thought.
I let my irritation show openly as I answered.
“It’s not like you’d understand even if I told you.”
Da-eun, who couldn’t even handle mana properly without the system’s help and was only a half-baked Expert, wasn’t going to provide me with any solutions to my problem.
“…Did you just say that with this mouth?”
“Buuh…”
“This little rascal!”
Da-eun began squishing my cheeks as if they were made of clay.
I was just stating the truth, but I was being subjected to this treatment for it.
It’s unfair, really unfair.
“Helping doesn’t always require knowing everything, you know. There are plenty of times when someone gets inspired by a random remark from a passerby. If we put our heads together and think about it, we might come up with a good idea! It’s not like you lose anything by talking about it, so why not just give it a shot?”
“That’s what they call ‘armchair experts.’”
“Do you have to keep being so snarky?”
Clearly annoyed by my uncooperative attitude, Da-eun shot me a sharp look.
“Hm…”
Since she was insisting so much, I might as well try saying something.
Like Da-eun said, I wouldn’t lose anything by it.
Making up my mind, I slowly opened my mouth.
***
…Or so I thought there was nothing to lose.
Unfortunately, I was completely wrong.
“So. You want to become stronger, is that it?”
Da-eun was wearing an old martial arts uniform, where she got it from, I had no idea.
Either way, she was dressed in something athletes might wear, putting on a deliberately serious expression.
Seeing her like that, I nodded.
“Shouldn’t have said anything after all.”
I should’ve expected to see something like this.
It was my mistake not to take Da-eun’s personality into account.
While I was wallowing in regret, Da-eun continued her ridiculous one-person act.
“Hoho… It seems you don’t trust me, young one. I shall grant you a glimpse of my power.”
Hup!
Da-eun let out a short shout, and a blue aura began to flow over her body.
“Hrrgh!”
Crack!
She punched forward, creating a fist-sized hole in a rectangular brick.
“Well? Do you believe me now?”
“Dust is falling everywhere. Clean it up.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Sigh.
Watching Da-eun sullenly clean up the dust on the floor, I let out a deep sigh.
I hadn’t been expecting much from the start, but watching her do this still made me sigh involuntarily.
“All done!”
“Change your clothes, too.”
“…Huh?”
“What do you mean, ‘huh’? Just change out of that.”
The martial arts uniform she was wearing was so tattered that it might as well have been a rag.
“But when you think of a reclusive hermit, this is the image that comes to mind, right? Mysterious and one with nature…”
“You don’t look like a hermit. You look like a beggar.”
“…Really?”
“Yes, really. Even if you showed yourself to Yuki, she’d say the same thing. Want me to take a picture and send it to her?”
“…No, that’s okay.”
Only after nodding without hesitation did Da-eun go and change into proper clothes.
“Just to be sure, you didn’t actually spend money on that, right?”
“…Hehe.”
Da-eun responded with nothing but a guilty laugh.
Her lack of a proper answer made me naturally cradle my head in despair.
“So people are paying money for trash these days.”
“Trash?! I’ll have you know, I bought this cosplay outfit for quite a high price….”
And someone was actually selling something like that for a high price?
What a messed-up world we live in.
“But listen! I’ve got a great idea!”
“Do I have to hear it?”
It hadn’t even been a few minutes since she put on that ridiculous show in rags.
“Of course! It’ll definitely help you, Kana!”
“…Fine, let’s hear it.”
If it sounded like nonsense, I could just ignore it.
Even though my voice made it obvious I had no enthusiasm, Da-eun didn’t care and declared with confidence.
“My idea is… training like in a manga!”
—
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