Chapter 12

"Well, we're in this now. It'll be fine as long as we don't do anything unnecessary."

Ardys grinned and drew two short swords from his waist.

The short swords he threw into the air floated in mid-air, unsupported.

"What!? That...!"

Gio's eyes widened as if he had just remembered something.

Meanwhile, the Despairs were rapidly closing the distance to Ardys.

"Everyone, prepare for battle!"

Gresh hurriedly gave instructions to his companions, but Ardys reprimanded him.

"Stay put."

"But...!"

"It'll be over soon, so don't get in the way."

The Despairs were already within bow range.

"Go!"

At Ardys' command, the two short swords flew straight toward the Despairs.

The short swords, aimed at two Despairs, flew as if drawn to their targets.

In the next moment, the Despairs, still in their charge, slammed into the ground and rolled several meters before stopping.

"Huh!? What happened!?"

Ralph's eyes widened as he saw the Despairs, who had fallen and remained motionless.

"One more."

Having taken down two Despairs with the flying short swords, only one remained, charging directly at Ardys.

The Despair stopped about ten meters away, crouching as if gauging the distance.

Perhaps because the other Despairs had been defeated, it decided to carefully target Ardys' weak points rather than rush in.

"Hmm, surprisingly cautious."

"Shaaaaa!"

The Despair responded with a warning growl to Ardys' seemingly impressed comment.

"Of course, it's meaningless to attack the wrong target."

Ardys, with a cool expression, held out his palm and folded his fingers.

In sync with his finger movements, several sharp, pointed rocks emerged from the ground and thrust toward the Despair.

"Geaaaaah!"

Caught off guard by the unexpected attack from below, the Despair tried to dodge. However, the rocks were not just one or two.

Even if it managed to dodge some, the continuous onslaught of rocks was futile resistance.

The next rock struck the Despair, which had lost its balance while dodging, and pierced its body.

In an instant, the Despair was skewered and fell dead.

"Wow... He took down that Despair in an instant..."

Ralph, who had never seen Ardys fight before, couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

Gio, Gresh, and Conia were speechless at the one-sided battle.

It was understandable.

Gresh had seen the Despair's head fall in front of him, but he had been too close and too panicked to see the short swords' movements clearly.

Conia had been focused on Gresh and only realized the Despair was dead when she looked up.

Seeing the Despair's movements and Ardys' battle from a distance, they could truly appreciate his overwhelming strength.

"Well, that should make it safe now."

Turning around, Ardys spoke, and Ralph stepped forward.

Before Gresh could intervene, anticipating trouble, Ralph bowed deeply to Ardys.

"I'm sorry."

His attitude was a stark contrast to before, sincere in his apology.

"Earlier, I underestimated you. I said things that were insulting, but I take them back. Seeing your battle, I understand your skill. I was rude to you, and I apologize."

Seeing Ralph bow humbly, Ardys couldn't refuse.

Besides, Ardys hadn't really minded in the first place.

"Don't worry about it. I'm used to it."

"And I want to thank you for saving my life and the lives of my companions."

Ralph's first impression wasn't good, but he might just be a serious and awkward person.

He had the courage to admit his mistakes, so he probably wasn't a bad person.

Ardys thought he might be a bit like Ted.

"Alright. I accept your apology and gratitude. So, please stand up."

"Thank you."

Ralph raised his head and Ardys looked at him again.

Ralph was a head taller than Ardys.

He had short black hair and brown eyes, with a muscular build that exuded power and toughness.

"Excuse me, can I ask you something?"

A tall man with long hair stepped in from the side.

In contrast to Ralph, he was slender and slightly shorter, a swordsman.

"Um, I think..."

"Gio."

Gio, with his chestnut hair tied back, introduced himself before Ardys could speak.

"The sword manipulation technique you showed in the battle earlier. Could you be the rumored 'Sword Mage'?"

"Gio, what's a 'Sword Mage'?"

Conia, who had never heard of it, asked Gio directly.

"Have you not heard? The rumor of a mage who uses a unique art called Sword Magic, which no one has ever used before, in addition to the four elemental magics."

"I haven't heard of it."

Conia shook her head, her crimson hair swaying.

"The one-of-a-kind Sword Magic that no one can imitate. The swords controlled by this magic swim through the air as if they have a life of their own, slicing off the heads of monsters in a dance. The mysterious mage is said to be... extremely powerful."

Gio's gaze pierced Ardys, as if urging him to answer.

Ardys averted his eyes and scratched his cheek as he replied.

"I'm called that sometimes... but I never claimed it myself."

Gio took this as a confirmation.

"Indeed... To be saved by the rumored Sword Mage... This will make for a good story over drinks."

"Wow, you're such a celebrity. Can I have your autograph later?"

A young girl with crimson semi-long hair, a small face, a small nose, and a small mouth, with large, acorn-like orange eyes, smiled.

She was petite and looked younger than Ardys, but she was apparently only a year younger than Ralph.

"So, Gresh and the others are heading back to Tria, right?"

Gresh nodded in response to Ardys' question.

"Yeah, we're not in the mood to continue hunting today."

"Absolutely. Running into four Despairs is the worst day of my life."

Ralph grumbled.

"But we were lucky enough to be saved by the 'Sword Mage' and no one died. It's not all bad."

"I didn't feel alive at all."

Gio, who had nearly died, didn't seem too bothered, but Conia, who had witnessed the entire ordeal, shuddered.

Gresh mentioned that they had caught a decent amount of prey in the morning, enough for a day's earnings.

However, the mental fatigue from being in danger twice was significant, so they decided to head back for the day.

In that case, Ardys made a suggestion.

2016/12/19 Typo correction: Despia → Despair

*Thank you for pointing out the typo in the comments.

2017/11/01 Typo correction: Suu → Kuiu