Chapter 44

This story is a work of fiction.

The characters, organizations, and names are all fictional and have no connection to any real entities.

Revised on 2023/3/2.

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042 - My Job is a Sword Master

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“Gwaah...”

I was blown away by Balkan's sword pressure and rolled on the ground several times. Does this guy even know what it means to hold back?

It was only the 19th day since my reincarnation, in the afternoon. In the morning, I had interviews with Gandarban and others, and got measured by a tailor. After that, Balkan came to the mansion to call me, and I ended up being roughed up.

I had just started to get used to the muscle pain, but now I'm back to having it again. And today, I even have bruises.

“Get up quickly.”

“Please, at least hold back a little.”

“I am holding back.”

So, I was blown away 10 meters by his "holding back." Do I alone think that his "holding back" doesn't count as holding back?

When I looked at the other soldiers, they averted their eyes. These guys pushed Balkan onto me!

As soon as I stood up, Balkan attacked me again. If I took the hit, I would be blown away again, so I tried to move to deflect it, but...

“Whoa!”

I was blown away because my deflection was too weak.

I was trained without a break until evening. Balkan is really a musclehead, and I thought I was going to die several times.

This continued, and I couldn't enter the dungeon for a whole month. On the 49th day of my reincarnation, I entered the 12th month.

Every day, I was trained by Balkan, and eventually, Gandarban and his subordinates joined in. Even Rosalina participated.

“Yah!”

“What’s this?”

“Thrust!”

“Not yet!”

Rosalina and Balkan's training is nothing short of impressive. Thanks to Rosalina's participation, my training became a bit less intense, which is a relief.

After being trained by Balkan every day, I became eligible to change my job to a swordsman. I skipped the swordsman job and changed to a sword master. I changed from a traveler to a sword master, and I made sure to create a proper job change record at the temple.

When I changed jobs, the priest made a fuss, and I was called by the duke, but I decided to stick with the sword master job.

The conditions for obtaining the job of sword master are not clear, so it's fine.

Thanks to this, I can now openly act as a sword master. Balkan's training occasionally comes in handy (laughs).

The temple is in every large town, and it cost me 20,000 yen (2 platinum coins) to change jobs. While thinking it was a rip-off, I have a memory of changing to a sword master.

By the way, it seems that priests can see available jobs, but I could hide them from the status screen, so I hid my available jobs. It's a convenient feature.

I am now a sword master at level 5, but I can hardly see Rosalina and Balkan's movements.

For jobs like sword master, swordsman, spearman, and knight, training alone can increase your level.

However, as your level increases, it becomes harder to level up through training alone. As a result, I haven't leveled up from level 5 at all. This is inevitable for combat jobs.

A soldier rushed into the training ground, and Balkan interrupted the training to receive a report.

“Something seems to have happened.”

Gandarban, who was training with me, spoke while we were in a sword lock. If I let my guard down here, I'll be overwhelmed, so I don't relax.

I deflected Gandarban's sword and took a step back.

“If it concerns us, we'll be called.”

“Indeed.”

*Clang*. We continued to clash without stopping. I use a two-handed sword, while Gandarban uses a one-handed sword and a shield, so in a sword-to-sword clash, I have the advantage. However, Gandarban, who has trained a lot, blocks my attacks with his one-handed sword. It's frustrating because my sword master level is low.

“Gather!”

Balkan's voice, like a roar, echoed across the training ground.

The soldiers moved briskly and gathered in front of Balkan. We joined them.

“From now on, the knight corps will conduct strict patrols, day and night.”

The duke's family has a knight corps and a guard force that maintains the town's security.

Usually, the guard force patrols the town, but if the knight corps also patrols, something must have happened.

“Sir, may I ask a question?”

“Go ahead.”

“I assume that our knight corps is patrolling because we received a request for support from the guard force. Is this due to that incident?”

The knight who asked the question is a mid-level knight. In the past month, I have learned the faces, names, and positions of the knights and soldiers.

“Last night, another decapitator nest appeared. This brings the total number of victims to 10. The guard force is patrolling day and night, but they haven't been able to capture the decapitator nest yet.”

The decapitator nest, a serial killer, started appearing around the 11th month. I don't know the pace of a serial killer, but considering that 10 victims have appeared in about a month, it's a pretty high rate of crime.

“The targets are mainly prostitutes. We have warned them not to go out at night, but if prostitutes don't go out at night, they can't make a living. Unfortunately, we can't stop them.”

They sell their bodies to earn a living. Even prostitutes need to eat to survive, so we can't tell them not to do business. We could order them not to, but if they can't eat, they will eventually starve to death. Ideally, the decapitator nest would be caught before that happens, but no one can guarantee that.

Following Balkan's instructions, the knights ran out of the training ground.

“Sir Foothicker, training is over for today. When the decapitator nest issue is resolved, I'll train with you again.”

What's with that condescending tone!? When did I ever ask him to train me!? I want to yell, but I can't, which is frustrating.

By the way, Foothicker is my family name in this world. Tracing my ancestors leads to a famous historical figure, and I named myself after that person.

Since there's no need to go into detail, I'll end the family name explanation here. Now that I have some free time, I might go to the dungeon for the first time in a while.

I don't need to go after criminals. The knight corps is already on the move, so I, who don't even know the basics of investigation, would just get in the way. Besides, with the knight corps mobilized, I think the situation will be resolved eventually. ...I hope.

“After we eat lunch at the mansion, we'll head to the dungeon. What about you, Gandarban and the others?”

“It is our duty to protect our master. We will accompany you.”

“Alright, let's eat first. Let's go.”

On the way back to the mansion, I saw many knights. I don't know everyone, but I greeted those I recognized.

On the 50th day of my reincarnation, I had an early lunch at the mansion and headed to the dungeon.

“It's been a while since we entered the dungeon.”

“Master was favored by Balkan and was in training all the time.”

“If being favored by Balkan means feeling your life is in danger, then the world is wrong, Annelise.”

“Hahaha, is that so?”

It's strange to feel your life is in danger just because you're favored by someone.

This time, I brought Annelise, Rosalina, Gandarban, and four other soldiers to the dungeon.

We need five soldiers, but one is still being recruited. Anyway, this time, Gandarban and the others are with me.

The five don't know that I can change my job myself, but it's fine because we have a confidentiality agreement through a magic contract.

“I forbid you from revealing my job and skills. Understand?”

Apparently, this statement is necessary for the confidentiality agreement to apply.

“Many people already know about the sword master, don’t they?”

Gandarban tilted his head in confusion. That gesture is cute when done by a girl like Annelise or Rosalina, but not by a bear-like old man.

“Right, my job is a sword master. Remember that, and if anyone asks, tell them that.”

“Understood...?”

The five look puzzled.

“Let's go.”

───Dungeon Move.

“““““Huh!?”””””

The five were surprised when a door appeared on the wall.

“Come on, hurry up and go in.”

I opened the door and pushed the five in. We all entered, and after confirming that everyone had moved, I canceled the move. The five were also surprised when the door disappeared.

“Don’t say anything about this. Got it?”

““““Yes, sir!””””

It's safe because we have a magic contract, but Gandarban is emphasizing the point to the soldiers.

“Was that the Dungeon Move?”

“Exactly. Do you know about the Dungeon Move, Gandarban?”

“I once entered a dungeon with a job changer who used the Dungeon Move.”

He used it to move then.

“Convenient, right?”

“Yes, very convenient. By the way, where are we now?”

“We are near the boss room on the 6th floor.”

“I thought the Dungeon Move could only move to places you've been to before... So, you've been here before, sir?”

He knows a lot. I confirmed this.

“Regardless of me, these four are only level 10. The 6th floor boss is dangerous.”

The Sword Gargoyle is level 24. Fighting a boss with more than double the level is reckless, even for me.

“That's why I'll explain the strategy now. We'll hunt the boss multiple times today, so understand the strategy well.”

Ignoring the shocked Gandarban and others, I explained the strategy. It's not a big strategy, so it should be easy to understand quickly.

“I understand the strategy, but I didn't expect the boss to be a Sword Gargoyle...”

Gargoyle is resistant to physical attacks, so he seems to think it's troublesome.

However, we have the necessary strength.

Gandarban, a Strong Arm Knight at level 22. Annelise, a Mage at level 21. Rosalina, a Battle Master at level 20. And me, an Enchanter at level 18.

The four soldiers just need to attack from the side. I don't expect much damage from the low-level soldiers, so it's fine.

Thank you for reading.

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