Chapter 26

When it comes to talking about games, he suddenly starts writing long posts~www

The place where Rad and the others were training was easy to find.

People had gathered there, and a few had even forgotten their own training to watch the scene.

"Whoa! V, Slash!"

Shouting, Rad swung his sword at the training dummy. He was the leader of the new party, and while "channeling magic into a sword" turned out to be a surprisingly advanced technique, he had struggled quite a bit on the first day. Now, however, he seemed to be performing it quite smoothly.

The trajectory of the V he swung was a bit awkward, but it just barely formed a "V Slash," and the sword flash emitted light.

However, the one drawing the crowd's attention was next to him.

"V, Slash! No, wait, slash!! Cross... Raid!!"

This was my sister in this world, Resilia.

Watching her fluidly execute her techniques, I couldn't help but catch my breath.

Of course, she wasn't moving to show off to others; she probably didn't even notice the attention.

She was just wearing a training uniform, and the sword in her hand was a simple store-bought steel sword.

Still, her form was so beautiful, and her movements so polished, that they naturally drew people in.

Seeing her dance like a celestial being, delivering sharp and fierce slashes, I realized anew:

--I am trash.

Ah, no, it's not that my humanity is worthless or anything like that.

While I can't really deny that, that's not what I mean.

Rather, the people in this world are characters from a work of fiction.

They were created to become significant figures, born with blessed appearances and stats, inhabitants of a two-dimensional world.

In terms of specs, they are not the kind of opponents a mere game-loving otaku can match.

Therefore, there is no room for complacency.

"I" am inferior to these people, and "Rex" can't compete with them either.

Let's start with this as the premise.

If I compete on the same level as them and put in the same amount of effort, I will definitely lose.

However, even understanding this, I saw an advantage in the current situation.

Because...

"Rad. Resilia. That's not good enough."

It was because even the perfect Resilia and the others had yet to master manual arts.

"Try to make it a bit more compact, and be aware of the inertia."

As I said this, I sharply swung my sword in a small motion, tracing the trajectory accurately in the "monitor in my head."

The sword flash drew a perfect V, creating a stronger and cleaner effect than Rad or Resilia.

Resilia followed it intently without blinking, while Rad groaned in frustration.

"As always, the old man's techniques are incomprehensible. The sword's trajectory is off, so why is it still a cleaner technique than ours?"

"It's because I'm calculating. Got it? You're not just mimicking the arts. You're showing the world the trajectory of the arts."

I know it's a completely incomprehensible explanation, but I can't explain it any further.

Their movements, which were almost perfect, and even more so, seemed to have a higher degree of reproduction than mine.

However, the reason they couldn't quite get the arts to activate was that the manual activation of the arts was, for some reason, "game-compliant."

At first, I thought that "if I perfectly reproduce the movements when using arts automatically, the manual arts would activate," but that wasn't the case.

To use arts manually, it seems that you need to reproduce not the "movements of the activated arts" but the "controller movements when a game player manually activates arts" with your weapon.

Of course, both involve "tracing the trajectory accurately," but the meaning is clearly different in a game and in reality.

Think about it: if there was a game that advertised "enjoy playing tennis like in real life," the movements of the controller and the real racket would not be exactly the same.

Before even considering the technical aspects, it would be incredibly tiring, difficult to practice, and a terrible game to play in a small space.

The best boxer in the world is not necessarily the best boxing gamer.

Even in a motion-sensing game, the way you move the controller has its own unique nuances.

For example, in a game, swinging the controller with a large radius and full force is less effective than swinging it quickly and with a small radius.

In extreme cases, swinging the controller fifty centimeters in a wide arc and snapping it fifteen centimeters quickly can result in the same movement in the game, even though the actual distance moved is different.

To fully master the manual activation of arts, you need to swing your weapon while considering these nuances, essentially "assuming that the weapon you are holding is a Dynamic Motion Z (7,980 yen tax excluded) and adjusting the speed and swing to make the imaginary motion sensor react properly."

This is a mysterious skill that no one in this world possesses.

This is the distortion created by the friction between "games" and "reality."

But it is precisely in this gap that my "path to thrive" lies.

"Damn! How much training does it take to be able to link techniques like that?"

Rad was lamenting, but there was nothing I could do about it.

In the game, there was a "Practice Mode" separate from the main story where you could test out techniques and magic without worrying about MP.

In this mode, you could see the trajectory of the technique you were trying to mimic and get visual feedback on how well you were reproducing it.

Compared to that, the training environment I had back then was incredibly favorable.

Rad, who would likely be leading the charge and drawing enemy attacks, wouldn't have many opportunities to use combos.

He might not need to use Over Arts, but manual arts have many advantages, so it's not a waste to learn them.

Perhaps my persuasion worked, or maybe it was his serious nature, but Rad continued to train earnestly for a while before finally speaking up.

"...Hey. Is it really enough to just swing a weapon?"

"What do you mean?"

When I asked, Rad looked at me anxiously.

"Everyone else is doing all sorts of training, but I'm told that just this for a month is fine... I'm worried. What if I get left behind by them?"

I was a bit surprised by his words.

Given Rad's image as a musclehead, I thought he was just enjoying swinging his weapon to his heart's content, but it seemed he was more thoughtful than I expected.

(What should I do?)

I thought for a moment.

Rad needs strength above all else.

That's why I'm doing this strength-increasing training, but I doubt he's satisfied with just that.

(...Well, it's a bit early, but it's about time.)

Approaching the anxious Rad, I held out my right hand and said, "Here."

In my extended hand was a sword.

"O-Old man, this is..."

"You know. My beloved sword, the Brave Sword."

I said it casually, but Rad shouted in agitation.

"I know that! But..."

"You know, right? I'm giving this to you."

"What?!"

To the speechless Rad, I continued.

"I said it before. 'If I die, this sword is yours.' I came back to life, but I did die. So this is yours now."

I declared it unilaterally and thrust the Brave Sword into Rad's hands.

"It's heavy..."

As he stumbled upon receiving it, I smiled and said, "Of course it is."

"It's the sword of an A-rank adventurer. Don't think you can handle it easily."

The same was true for the initial "protagonist" if Rex died.

The Brave Sword, entrusted to him, required a significant strength stat to wield.

Only when he gained enough experience to handle it could he be said to have inherited Rex's will.

"Still, it's not for me..."

As Rad said this and tried to look down again, I said,

"I heard from Nuek. ...You're going to be a hero, right?"

At my words, Rad's face snapped up.

"This is the Brave Sword, a legendary weapon. Are you going to run away from it, aiming to be a hero?"

Rad clenched his lips and stared at the Brave Sword.

I couldn't know what internal struggle or thoughts were swirling in his mind.

But in the end, Rad looked up and glared at me fiercely.

"You old man, using a cheap provocation! But I'll take your bait!"

His eyes no longer held any trace of doubt.

They were filled only with a burning competitiveness and passion.

"Watch this, old man... Rex! I'll definitely become a hero worthy of this sword! So you better watch!"

With that, Rad began swinging the Brave Sword.

He shouted and swung the heavy sword.

However, the high strength stat required made it difficult for Rad to control it.

Struggling desperately, sometimes falling, he continued training with all his might.

It was hard to say that his form was good.

But his relentless, earnest effort was touching in its own way.

"...Damn. What a show-off."

I tightened my lips, which had unconsciously curved into a smile, and turned around.

"...Well."

I turned back once to burn Rad's image into my memory, then left the training ground.

A shadow approached silently.

"...Resilia. Are you done with your practice?"

"If you're going somewhere, I'm coming with you. I can't leave you alone, who knows what you might do."

I smiled wryly at my eccentric sister, and we started walking together.

"Our destination is the Adventurer's Guild. We're going to storm it."

This is uncharted territory, even in the game.

I don't know if it will work.

But after seeing such determination, I can't afford to be half-hearted.

It's my turn now.

"---I have to show those well-behaved game characters what modern gamers can do!"

Starting from the next chapter, it's Rex's time to shine (planned).