I became too greedy, and my mind was clouded with those thoughts alone. I openly thrusted towards his left. My defenses were open, and he was able to read that move too easily.
He knocked my sword away to the left with his massive sword very quickly. Unable to recover, I realized his sword was already pointed at me.
"You are still too greedy!"
He said jokingly, and I turned away while clicking my tongue.
"Tch!!"
I walked silently to pick up my sword from the ground. Meanwhile, Jrake noticed the density in my atmosphere.
"Hmm… are you pissed?"
"A little bit."
I picked up my sword from the ground, and pointed my sword at him again.
"Again."
"No, let's take a pause first."
He said while slowly lowering his body to sit on the ground. Meanwhile, I look dumbfounded.
"W-What?"
"Running wild with emotion like that, under certain conditions in combat, that can be good. But most of the time, it will only harm you.
During training, however, it is one hundred percent bad. So let's rest for a bit and try to control yourself."
He said to me while grinning, probably because he found this situation a little funny. But surprisingly, I was no longer mad.
I agree fully with what he said. In training, the use of emotions will only hinder. In combat however, there may be moments where it is essential.
For now… all I need to do is calm down.
I sat down right in front of him, placing my blade on top of my crossed legs. Seeing me sitting down while trying to cool myself, he chuckled.
"Your skills really do improve at a scary pace, though."
He said to me, and I can't really deny that.
"Is that so? How scary?"
"The scary that can scare the Swordsaint."
My expression must have changed to confusion, because he laughed immediately after saying that name.
I heard about her from Klane and Keila last night when we talked. The Swordsaint, a female adventurer who became a Blue ranked adventurer in less than 4 months. It was said that her sword skills and talent are beyond human comprehension. There were rumors that she was the best swordsman in the entire continent, and I don't think those rumors would exist for no reason.
'She is moving at the pace that will turn her into a Yellow adventurer very soon.'
I remembered what Keila said last night when we talked. If that is the case, then that must mean she is just that incredible.
"Who knows. Maybe I'll get to spar with her someday."
I said to Jrake, and he immediately laughed at me.
"Yeah, right! You can't even keep your sword in your hands!"
"... Would you stop countering anything that can make me feel confident?"
He lifted his shoulders and hands while his face was creating an annoying expression with his lips lifted upward. I really want to punch that face of his so much.
As we sat to rest, a thought crossed my mind about what we were talking about previously.
"Is the dungeon for the test conquered already?"
If the dungeon isn't conquered, then it's possible that the dungeon boss is still alive. If so, it can be dangerous for the Red ranked adventurers, because dungeon bosses are usually very strong.
"That goes without saying. It was conquered a long time ago by a White ranked."
Oh…? White ranked adventurers…
The highest rank that an adventurer can achieve. It was said that the level of respect that they had is the same as a high ranking noble like a duke or earl. This is because their strength is valued to be the strongest of the kingdom, and they are considered heroes who are capable of protecting the kingdom from any danger.
I thought White ranked adventurers don't exist... I wonder what kind of people they are.
"Speaking of White ranked adventurers… can you tell me about it?"
"Hmm, I know a thing or two."
Jrake said, but he is slowly getting back up. Huh? Are we continuing?
"But, you have to beat me for that information!"
He taunted me, and I stood back up rapidly.
"All right, don't make this easy!"
The two of us began to make some distance again. For a while, we did some light exercise to stretch our muscles again, since we did have a rest just now. Once we were done, we began sparring again.
I started rushing, he was still in the defensive position as usual. So, I used a way to trick him.
As I got closer to him, I lowered my body. Now he thinks I'm going to attack his lower part, so he lowered his sword.
Chance!
FWOOSSHH!!!
I jumped, far higher than what I did yesterday with the bear. With the sword, I controlled my movements in the air, and finally saw my target below me. Like a hawk looking at a mouse in the field, I strike down my sword with the help of gravity.
Jrake lifted his sword in panic for protection, and I noticed that he did it a little too rashly. Thanks to that, I saw a way to knock it.
Right there… Take this!!!
FTAAANNNGGGG!!!!!!!!!!
A loud metal hit can be heard all the way to the diner. It's much louder than the previous sounds that they heard, so they seemed to be curious about it. Klane saw the situation, and she moved her head out of the window.
"Everyone, please don't mind the sound!! It's just two people training! Hehe…"
She said that to everyone and managed to calm them down. But deep down…
'Damn Jrake and Rize!! Could you not ruin everyone's morning!!?'
.
Jrake is on the ground. His sword was thrown far away. I stood not far from him, holding my sword.
"Ha, I did not expect you to jump that high."
He said while sitting down.
"Yeah, well…"
I fell down on my butt too.
"That jump sure eats a lot of my energy..."
Hearing that, Jrake placed his hand on his chin. He looked at me while thinking.
"I see... You used magic energy to boost your jump? That's clever. How did you learn about that move?"
"... The 'what', now?"
"Magic energy strengthening or enhancing. Basically, you enhance a portion of your body with magic, and it causes that enhanced body part of yours to be much more powerful than it usually would."
W-Woah…
That's… broken.
Wait.
"I did… that?"
"From the looks of it, yeah. No way you can jump that high without magic, right? Unless your body is athletic as heck, and I know better that it's not."
Right… my body is so weak that I couldn't even train for too long. And yet, I was able to make high jumps like that.
"That's magic. Specifically, what you just did is called 'Magic Energy Enhancing'. And you did it all unconsciously without even knowing what you did… what a scary talent."
He commented while giving it a thought, and I stared at him with a grin.
"Was that jealousy I heard?"
"Pft, not really. Even if you enhanced your whole body against me, you still couldn't beat me."
"You can enhance your whole body??"
"You can apply it to your whole body!!"
I became widely surprised, and I gave it a thought. If I can enhance my whole body like that… then…
I can move, jump, run, and even fight like a demon.
I can become… superman. Literally.
Maybe that's how all the strong people in this world… become strong. How those White ranked adventurers become… White ranked.
Speaking of White ranks…
"Ah! White ranked adventurers!"
I suddenly shouted as I remembered, and Jrake immediately remembered what just happened.
"Oh, right. Haha, couldn't believe you beat me. Though you did cheat, I can't believe you would use magic energy enhancing like that."
"Was that not okay?"
"Of course not! If you're going to use it, then I will use it too!"
Jrake said to me, and he cleared his throat. Afterwards, he began explaining.
"There are plenty of White ranked adventurers in the course of history, but only three were very well known.
A dwarf that could literally control the earth. He is the user of a high ranking earth magic. Very powerful, that he can turn a whole mountain into his toy.
An elf that was known to be able to use every form of magic, said to be the most versatile mage in the entire continent. He currently leads a high class magic academy at another kingdom as the headmaster. He was called The Greatest Magician."
The Greatest Magician…
I don't know. That name sounds ridiculous to me. But from how Jrake explained it, it seems like this guy is a real magic maniac, and he must definitely be powerful.
"The final one is a human. He was said to be able to control monsters, especially dragons. A long time ago, he gave the Mazino kingdom their dragons. The dragons in the castle that exist today were all gifts from him to the kingdom."
There's dragons? In the kingdom???
And the power to control dragons?????
I want that!?!? Hello!?!?
"But somehow, the kingdom doesn't like him. Even after all that gift, he walked away from the kingdom and never came back. Nobody knows where he has gone, but many said his strength was as strong as that of the demon king, who is said to be the strongest existence in our world."
The demon king?
What is this, a fantasy novel?
"Simply said, that dragon guy is without a doubt the strongest adventurer. The dwarf, the elf, any other White ranked adventurers, nobody was even close to his level."
Surely it is, since his ability is to control dragons.
According to the book, dragons are the most dangerous type of beast and monster. Even their weakest rank is a Yellow, and it goes all the way to a rank that is beyond the White rank. If a man was able to control just three dragons, he could wipe out a whole country in one night. With him disappearing, there's no telling what he would do and what he could do.
"Hmmm… In that case, how do you 'become' a white adventurer?"
I asked him, and he looked wildly confused.
"Well, there are the rules and tests. First, everyone in a kingdom must acknowledge that you are powerful. Second, you have to be a Yellow rank. Usually there's no test for that rank, so I think… by achievements? It depends, honestly."
"Ohh… basically the same as ranking up normally with some weird extra conditions?"
"Yep. Everyone in the kingdom has to acknowledge you. White adventurers are respected for their strength. Everyone has to believe that you can protect them. And also the achievements, so everyone knows that you are capable of doing things and not just all talk."
"I see…"
"Thinking about becoming one?"
"Sounds like a pain to me."
"Haha! Yeah, right."
"No, really. It's boring."
Jrake could only shake his head while laughing, and I smacked him in the shoulder. After that, he stood up again.
"Let's finish this training here for today, Rize."
"... Already?"
"I have things to prep. It's going to be a big test! There's going to be a lot of people taking it."
Oh… right. Gray ranked test.
After saying our farewells, I went back to my room to prepare for a mission. I wonder what kind of mission I will have today, since Klane will be the one who decides it for me.
After preparing up, I went back down to the receptionist desk to look for Klane. And just like she said last night, she really did prepare a mission for me.
"Here it is!"
She gave me the mission scroll, and I opened it to read it. It just told me to gather some special rocks at a cave… huh?
Oh right, the catch wouldn't be listed.
"So, what's the catch?"
I turned to Klane, and she began explaining.
"The last group who took the mission saw a pack of demon beasts around the area. Luckily, they ran before the beasts attacked them, and they quickly abandoned the mission."
"I see... Then, I'll take it."
"Be careful, Rize… This one involves more than one beast unlike before. It will be much harder than before."
"I know. I'm confident, and I won't get hurt."
I said to her while grinning, and Klane let out a sigh. I turned my back while waving my hand at her, and began heading towards the exit.
"She became so strong just within this little time... I'm worried about what will happen to her in the future."
Klane mumbled right after she saw me exit, and she let out a sigh again. In front of her, an adventurer is arriving on the desk.
"Well, that depends on how you will support her."
"Heh?"
She didn't expect someone to answer her, and Klane quickly turned to the female adventurer in front of her.
The female adventurer had long golden hair and golden eyes, and a long white metal scabbard with a golden sword handle was placed on her hips. Her body is covered in golden metallic armor, and a long red torn cape can be seen flailing around behind her. Her hair was tied on the back, and her face shows a confident grin that only professional adventurers would ever wear.
Klane recognized the adventurer in front of her, and quickly searched her desk for something. She took out a piece of paper scroll, and handed it to the female adventurer.
"Here's your test scroll. The knights who will assess you are already there, waiting for you on the spot. Try not to take too long on your preparation, Fran."
Klane said to the adventurer while she read the contents of the paper. After confirming everything, the adventurer folded it again and nodded at Klane.
"All right. Thank you, Klane."
"Your welcome! Good luck on the test, Miss Swordsaint!!"
Hearing her title getting called like that, the adventurer nodded shyly. She turned around and began leaving the desk, towards her teammates that were waiting by the diner.
As she walks in the lobby, multiple adventurers are glaring at her dumbfoundedly. Her golden armor was so shiny that everyone knows she is not a simple person. After all, she is the highest ranking person in the room.
She arrived at her teammate's location. Two adventurers, a mage and a tanker. And they all seem to be waiting for her.
"Say, who was that Red haired girl?"
One of her teammates asked her. It's the biggest guy with the shield on his back, the tanker of the team.
"I heard that she has been clinging to Miss Klane a lot, saying that Miss Klane is pampering her too much or something."
The mage on her team, a young female wearing a long magician robe and large magician hat, said to her. The Swordsaint turned to the mage and nodded.
"I don't really know the full story, but I know that something is going on. Just now, Klane was talking about her, and it might really be exactly like you said.
But, did you hear that the nearby farming village was attacked by a Purple rank demonized bear?"
The Swordsaint asked her teammates, and they all looked confused. Seeing this, she began explaining by herself.
"It's all over the newspapers. According to the witnesses, it was a Red ranked adventurer that defeated the bear in one attack."
Hearing this, the tanker looked surprised.
"What? Any demonized beasts have massive regeneration abilities. Not even a Green ranked adventurer can take care of it that easily. Was that… her?"
The Swordsaint nodded grimly at her tanker teammate, and the magician girl chuckled a little bit.
"Looks like Rath is going to have some fun."
Hearing that, the Swordsaint laughed a little as well. The three then began heading towards the exit, and the blinding sunlight warmly welcomed them outside.