Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 25

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

One-Strike Kill Swordmaster Episode 25

Episode 25. Earth Dragon Subjugation (2)

Step, step-.

After passing through the entrance village, the true labyrinth finally revealed itself.

The distinctive earthy smell and musty odor unique to dungeons pierced my nose.

As we descended along the damp passages, the light from above gradually dimmed and the gloomy darkness grew thicker.

【Labyrinth Village: Upper Layers】

This was a location name from inside the game.

The upper layers of Labyrinth Village were where the barrier’s influence began to fade in earnest.

Therefore, it was also a place with the risk of monster attacks, just like the uncharted wilderness.

【Lv. 11】

Pause-.

Just then, a translucent window flickered in the darkness.

‘Something’ hidden in the dark alley was targeting us.

“Adelia.”

The moment I called Adelia’s name.

Kieeeek-!

A green-skinned monster charged toward us.

‘Dungeon goblin.’

It was one of the most representative low-grade monsters inhabiting Labyrinth Village.

Adelia showed no sign of panic and swung her sword to end its life.

Slash─!

Thud-.

The cleanly severed head of the beast fell to the ground.

Watching this from a few steps away, I thought to myself.

‘…Thanks to the level window, I can detect most ambushes.’

The dungeon was dark.

Only the dim torches installed here and there illuminated the surroundings.

Because of this, my vision was somewhat limited, but I didn’t need to worry about ambushes.

Thanks to the level window appearing before my eyes, I could pinpoint the monsters’ locations.

‘I’ve been feeling this since I noticed Adelia’s surveillance not long ago, but….’

The game system felt overwhelmingly powerful in many ways.

‘Well, that aside.’

I carefully recalled the goblin’s movements from earlier.

The speed at which it charged toward us.

And Adelia’s skilled swordsmanship that dispatched it in one strike.

─Kieeeek!

Was it because my swordsmanship talent had been unlocked?

Or was it simply because the goblin’s level was low?

I didn’t know the exact reason, but….

‘I feel like I could handle that level of attack sufficiently now.’

Somehow, I felt that kind of confidence.

‘If I get the chance later, I should try facing a goblin for practice.’

I was now thinking of gradually accumulating real combat experience for leveling up.

Of course, without the help of skills, relying solely on my swordsmanship talent.

“The Protagonist.”

While I was having such thoughts alone.

Adelia, who had been staring at the headless goblin corpse, asked me a question.

“What should we do with this?”

Tap tap-.

Adelia kicked the corpse with her foot.

Monster corpses were adventurers’ main source of income.

More precisely, the magic stones that could be harvested from their bodies.

Power sources for barriers, materials for magical tools, and so on. Magic stones had countless uses.

After pondering this for a moment, I gave my answer.

“Leave it. Someone who needs it will take it.”

Goblin magic stones would only fetch pocket change if sold.

The lower the monster’s grade, the lower the purity of its magic stone.

Rather than bothering with such trivial things, it was better to hurry and search for the earth dragon.

It wasn’t like we were short on money at the moment anyway.

‘Thank you so much, Lea de Karayan….’

…Thanks to you generously providing us with money, we don’t have to live miserably.

* * *

Step, step-.

Before we knew it, about half a day had passed since entering the labyrinth.

There had been no special incidents during that time.

It was a continuous cycle of low-grade monsters including goblins attacking, and Adelia cutting them to pieces.

Well, if I had to pick something unusual….

【Lv. 32】

【Lv. 27】

【Lv. 39】

It was occasionally encountering groups of adventurers like now.

“…We’ll pass through first.”

A veteran swordsman with graying hair spoke while being extremely wary of us.

The swordsman lowered his sword tip to show he had no intention of attacking and slipped past us.

The other party members also followed him, slowly moving along.

Watching their retreating figures grow distant, Adelia spoke with apparent surprise.

“There are quite a lot of adventurers. I didn’t expect to encounter them this frequently….”

Adelia was right.

We had already encountered other adventurer groups about five or six times.

It wasn’t particularly surprising. The upper layers of the labyrinth had always been a region with many adventurers.

Indeed, this was one of the few fields where magic stones could be obtained stably.

‘First of all, there are height restrictions, so there are no large monsters.’

Due to the nature of being a dungeon, only small-bodied monsters could inhabit it.

Unlike the uncharted wilderness where you never knew what might emerge, the types of monsters that appeared here were somewhat predetermined.

That alone gave adventurers quite a sense of security.

‘Moreover, the barrier’s influence hasn’t completely disappeared, so the risk of higher-tier species appearing is also low.’

However, not all adventurers were satisfied with hunting in the upper layers.

As I mentioned earlier, selling magic stones from monsters like goblins only brings in pocket change.

That’s why adventurers confident in their abilities would go deeper to continue their hunts.

To places where the barrier’s influence had weakened and higher-tier monsters appeared.

‘For example….’

【Lv. 70】

【Lv. 56】

【Lv. 58】

【Lv. 21】

‘…like that adventurer party over there.’

As soon as I turned the corner, I could see the adventurers.

Adelia immediately took a defensive stance upon seeing them.

“…They’re well-trained adventurers.”

A completely opposite reaction from when she encountered the white-haired swordsman earlier.

That made sense.

Setting aside their considerably high levels, their party composition was quite well-rounded.

‘Let’s see.’

Two adventurers with melee weapons.

One archer.

Plus a Level 21 guide.

It was quite a stable combination for exploring the labyrinth.

‘Guides become truly necessary starting from the middle layers.’

This meant they might be a skilled party that traveled between the middle layers, possibly even the lower layers.

Pause-.

Just then, sensing our presence, they quickly turned their heads toward us.

Upon spotting Adelia, they immediately froze.

“….”

“….”

“….”

Silence fell.

Just as Adelia was wary of them, they too seemed to be watching us cautiously.

How long did this standoff continue?

The man with the ponytail spoke up, representing his party.

…While looking at Adelia, not me.

“I’ve been wandering around Labyrinth Village for three years and know the faces of most adventurers, but this is the first time I’ve seen someone as skilled as you.”

“….”

“You seem to be new here. May I ask what brought you to Labyrinth Village?”

Adelia didn’t answer the question and kept her mouth firmly shut.

Since she was following me, she apparently had no intention of speaking first.

But for the other party who didn’t know this, it was frustrating.

Sigh-.

The man with the ponytail let out a breath and continued speaking.

“Please understand. There have been so many ‘Plunderers’ lately.”

“….”

“We need to know your purpose to feel at ease.”

Plunderers.

A term referring to those who hunted people instead of monsters for profit.

They were criminals who mainly operated in the Uncharted Wilderness where there was virtually no law enforcement, and in the upper layers of Labyrinth Village.

Instead of giving a straightforward answer, I threw a question back at the man.

“Tell us your purpose first.”

“…?”

The man who heard my question frowned slightly.

“What purpose would we have? We’re just hunting monsters, selling magic stones for money, and barely surviving….”

“Is that really all?”

I cut off the man’s words.

Their purpose was simple hunting? It was such an obvious lie.

Would they really gather such a party just for hunting?

‘And more importantly….’

─That crazy bastard. That commission has been posted for over three years now.

Three years.

The period those adventurers claimed to have been active in Labyrinth Village.

And that perfectly matched when the earth dragon subjugation commission was created.

It was too coincidental to dismiss as mere chance.

“Ugh….”

Sure enough, upon hearing my words, the man began scratching the back of his neck with a displeased expression.

“We’re exploring the deepest layer to defeat the earth dragon. What about you?”

I answered immediately, in the most emotionless voice possible.

“The same.”

Thud-.

The atmosphere instantly froze.

Of course they’d be uncomfortable. From their perspective, a new competitor had suddenly appeared.

The man with the ponytail let out a snicker and nodded as if he had expected this.

“I thought so.”

Then he began throwing childish provocations.

“By the way, aren’t you a guide? I naturally assumed you were some lackey hired by that woman.”

“….”

“Ah, I see. Some rich family’s young master came to play at exploration with his bodyguard knight.”

Adelia frowned upon hearing those words.

“How dare you with that foul mouth…!”

Swish-.

Before Adelia could draw her sword, I quickly stepped forward to stop her.

When I extended my arm forward, Adelia suppressed her anger and stepped back.

‘The reason for such provocation is obvious.’

They wanted to provoke us into making the first move.

That way, they could claim self-defense while eliminating us.

To capture the earth dragon for themselves alone, they wouldn’t hesitate to use such underhanded methods.

‘Do they think the four of them together could defeat Adelia?’

Well.

It was a foolish judgment.

If it were the Level 77 Adelia I first met, perhaps.

But Adelia, who had gained enlightenment and broken through the Level 80 barrier, was on a completely different level from them.

Seeing them provoke without properly assessing the skill gap showed their basic abilities were lacking.

‘At least they’re not skilled enough to subjugate the earth dragon.’

I could understand why they had been failing for three years.

‘Well, there’s no reason to engage in pointless attrition warfare with such people.’

That was when it happened.

“Hey, young master. Let me give you a piece of advice.”

The ponytailed man spoke in a voice as if he was doing me a favor.

He must have interpreted my tight-lipped silence as fear.

“I don’t know what the upper layers were like, but from the middle layers onward, playing at being an adventurer is a perfect way to die. You need to know how to protect yourself there.”

Hearing his words, I pretended to nod obediently.

Do you avoid shit because you’re scared of it?

No, you avoid it because it’s dirty.

I chose what’s commonly called the ‘don’t feed the trolls’… or rather, the ‘don’t feed the idiots’ strategy.

“Thanks for the advice. I’ll end my adventuring games here.”

“…?”

“Well then, we’ll be heading back now.”

Whoosh-.

As soon as I finished speaking, I turned around and headed in the opposite direction.

Up the slope, specifically toward the path leading away from the middle layers.

“Hm?”

“What’s with that guy?”

“Puhaha, he was a coward without an ounce of courage.”

The next moment, mocking laughter erupted from among the adventurers.

Their reaction suggested they hadn’t expected me to give up so easily.

“G-Gaon…?”

Adelia was equally flustered.

She approached me and whispered quietly.

“Are you really going to give up like this?”

“No.”

As if I would.

It’s just that the place we need to visit is on the opposite side from the path leading to the middle layers.

“I guarantee those guys won’t even catch a glimpse of the earth dragon’s claws.”

“….”

“In contrast, we’re going to accomplish in one go what they couldn’t do in three years.”

“Ah.”

Hearing those words, Adelia let out an exclamation of admiration.

Before I knew it, her eyes were filled with admiration.

“…I’ll trust and follow you.”

* * *

About an hour had passed since then.

“Gaon?”

“What is it.”

“Can we really find the earth dragon using this method…?”

I nodded without a moment’s hesitation.

“Yes.”

“….”

Clench-.

Adelia bit her lip and looked at me with suspicious eyes.

Her expression suggested she couldn’t understand my actions at all.

Regardless, I began making final preparations with a resolute expression.

Kraaaack-!

The entire dungeon echoed with the sound of earth being torn up.

…Now it was time to call our ‘guide’.

* * *

“Huh, what?”

Startle-.

At the same time.

An old man who had been peacefully resting in the grasslands jerked up as if having a seizure.

Perk-!

When he glanced to the side with anxious eyes, he saw the donkey that had been drinking water by the riverbank prick up its ears.

As if it was about to bolt somewhere at any moment.

“W-wait! Calm down, Wilson! I know what you’re thinking, but don’t just run off on your own…!”

Heeehaw-!

Despite its owner’s desperate pleas, the donkey began running somewhere with a bray.

The old man, cursing under his breath, hurriedly chased after it.

“…That damn donkey bastard, really!”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————