I Became a Gallery Newbie Beloved by Transcendents
Chapter 28
I moved forward.
I swung my sword down vertically.
The sword suddenly stopped.
A 4th-rank swordsman.
I expected he wouldn’t be easy, but he was more impenetrable than I thought.
Red sword energy was burning from the sword in Rainer’s hand.
“I’ll show you what kind of being you’re standing before.”
Instinctively, I felt it.
The feeling that this guy was the most dangerous opponent I’ve faced so far.
Rainer kicked off the ground and thrust the sword held in both hands.
KAGAGAGAK!
I twisted my foot to the right and blocked Rainer’s sword with the flat of my blade.
“I was a knight of the honorable Valten family. I’m on a different level from a rootless being like you.”
Knight?
I couldn’t help but ask.
“Then why are you here doing this? Have you thrown away your knightly honor?”
Of course, I didn’t forget to subtly provoke him while asking.
“Or were you abandoned by that knight family?”
It seemed my provocation had hit a nerve.
“…Y-you lowly bastard, how dare you!”
Rainer, with a face like a demon, charged at me again with his sword.
His sword was wrapped in a red storm, as if he had layered several more sword energies on top of what he had just manifested.
I provoked him to make him lose his composure.
While I succeeded in making him lose his composure, it seemed I had stirred up too much anger.
“Take this, this is the sword of the great Valten!”
I don’t know about great, but I certainly understand it’s dangerous.
Dragon Slaying Sword.
I believed in the swordsmanship that the Light’s Sword senior had given me.
The contents of the sword manual stated that in order for the sword technique to be properly demonstrated, sword energy was necessary.
And now I had that sword energy.
The red aura approaching from a diagonal direction.
I had no thought of avoiding it. I just had to cut through it.
TSUTSUTSU!
Horizontal slash, Thorshogg (Giant’s Strike).
The red windstorm that came down diagonally was cut through in one go.
Beyond the severed windstorm, I could see Rainer’s face contorted.
He closed his mouth and withdrew his outstretched arms.
I saw him raising his right shoulder and pulling his sword back.
I immediately recognized it as a preparation stance for a thrust.
I could see the red energy converging on Rainer’s sword with a flash of light.
KUGUGUGUGUGU!
The crimson haze condensing in a spiral pattern violently disturbed the atmosphere.
A chill ran down my spine.
The emotion that arose wasn’t fear.
I took the same stance as Rainer.
I raised pure white sword energy to my counter-sword Karnavalt.
The sensation of arm muscles being pulled taut like a bowstring traveled up to my shoulders.
KUNG.
I stepped forward.
The muscles in my right shoulder screamed.
What filled my vision was a four-pronged onslaught.
As expected, Rainer extended an ultra-fast thrust.
The sword energy slash rushed at me like a straight-extending spear.
Four red spears distorted the air as they rushed in.
The match was decided in an instant.
From the Karnavalt in my hand, pure white sword energy also extended.
Dragon Slaying Sword Form 4.
5-chain thrust.
Quinque Acies.
JJEOJEOJEOJEOJEOJEOJEONG!!
The four strands of red slashes collided with the white light and were mutually destroyed.
Fragments of sword energy spread out thickly.
Cutting through the fragments, the pure white sword energy extended and struck Rainer’s abdomen.
His thrust was a 4-chain.
My thrust was a 5-chain.
The single trajectory that survived without being destroyed struck Rainer’s abdomen.
“KUHEK!”
Red blood burst from Rainer’s mouth.
There was no astonishment or question on Rainer’s face.
Because both he and I had seen it.
The process of our sword strikes meeting.
There are no coincidences in a life-or-death battle.
The moment I approached to finish him off,
Rainer instantly struck his sword into the ground.
FLASH—
A red shockwave rushed right in front of my face.
Every nerve in my body told me:
Touch that and you die.
WUDEUREUK—
I heard something being crushed.
It was my right arm.
My right arm, engulfed in the shockwave, was strangely twisted.
Blood vessels burst in my eyes.
It was pain like having blades embedded in every nerve.
I barely held onto my consciousness that felt like it would fly away from the sudden pain.
[Skill ‘Pain Suppression’ level has increased. Lv.6]
[Skill ‘Fighter’s Movement’ level has increased. Lv.5]
My thinking accelerated.
I had to jump over the rising red shockwave and take Rainer’s throat.
I released white aura from both feet.
Dragon Slaying Sword, footwork.
What I fixed my gaze on was the one gap that the shockwave hadn’t completely covered.
Lumen Errans.
I stepped forward.
JJEOK-
I flowed into the gap in the vertically rising red current.
CHWAAAK!
With the bloodstained dagger in my left hand, I sliced Rainer’s neck.
I properly severed his carotid artery.
Blood gushed from the neck of Rainer, who collapsed to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.
From the moment my thrust pierced his abdomen.
To my arm being devoured by the red shockwave.
And until Rainer died now.
All these moments were just an instant.
[Level has increased!]
[Lv.20 → Lv.21]
Was it because I killed a 4th-rank? I immediately gained another level after finally reaching level 20 from slaughtering monsters and humans.
WUDEUREUK!
And naturally, my right arm was restored to its original state.
I stared at Rainer who had died with his eyes wide open.
I really almost died. You bastard.
His arms were far from normal. Blood vessels bulging grotesquely.
The red shockwave. It seems he had gone beyond his limits to perform that attack.
Was he trying to take me down with him?
I literally survived by the narrowest of margins.
I couldn’t yet fall into the lingering emotions of the battle with the 4th-rank swordsman Rainer.
The situation wasn’t fully resolved.
Toward Kaetor who was thrusting a spear at me, I swung my counter-sword horizontally.
The half-severed spear shaft shot upward.
Blood spread out in a horizontal line.
I killed Kaetor. Two remained.
They didn’t even think of intervening in the battle between me and Rainer.
But they didn’t immediately rush in like Kaetor either, so I ended their lives.
“……”
Despite just leveling up, I felt an intense accumulation of fatigue.
Both physically and mentally.
I approached the two Cat Tribe with chains on their necks and hands and freed them from the iron chains.
“A-are you okay?”
“I’m glad you’re alive….”
“The elders should be coming….”
The Cat Tribe beastkin gathered closely.
They all had faces that were wary of me. Except for Mike.
I didn’t particularly feel like easing their wariness.
Leaning against a large tree, I looked at the Cat Tribe.
The total number of Cat Tribe secured was eight.
[8/8]
I had already secured the number of Cat Tribe specified by the quest.
Now the quest would be completed once I handed them over to the rescue team.
But when are these rescue team guys coming?
If they’re coming to rescue Cat Tribe, they’re likely to be Cat Tribe themselves.
At that moment, one of the two Cat Tribe I had just rescued sobbed and said:
[NPC – Cat Tribe Beastkin Shamo]
“Yu-Yutel and Merba are missing….”
Two are missing?
Well, the quest did say to secure at least 8 people.
It never said there were only 8.
Shamo continued with a pale face.
“That person was definitely the battle captain of the slave traders, and we were dragged around here and there… but they weren’t anywhere. We thought they’d be here… they can’t not be here.”
Their mental state was completely broken.
It would have been perfectly fine for me to say “How should I know?”
The quest conditions had already been met.
The children with cat ears began a heated discussion.
“Let’s go look for them!”
“No! It’s dangerous for everyone to scatter again! There are not only slave traders but also monsters!”
Yes, don’t go.
But these beings.
No matter how I looked at them, they didn’t seem like the NPCs from the games I used to play in my previous life.
I could understand why the senior Transcender Gallery members got so immersed in the Lucerna Mercenary Corps and Delisa.
The approach didn’t feel different from reality.
I took out my terminal and filmed the Cat Tribe gathered in a circle discussing.
I opened the Transcender Gallery.
I wrote a post.
Photo attached.
Title: Found as many Cat Tribe as required but…
Author: Anonymous*
Attachment: 823884390.jpg
(Photo of eight Cat Tribe beastkin children gathered in a circle)
– The kids say two are missing. Anyone know how to find them?
ã„´ The Cat Tribe kids are cute.
ã„´ Ice Queen) Frozen! So cute!
ã„´ Dragon King of Demons) Belt-ui- Haven’t seen Cat Tribe in a while.
ã„´ You only need to find as many as required, don’t you?
ã„´ They’re in an immersive state.
ã„´ This guy cleared 100 floors and still doesn’t know about the Tower. Finding more than the required number gives you extra points.
ã„´ People die doing that, what do you mean I don’t know? You’re gonna get killed.
ㄴ Light’s Sword) I think there was someone with ears who would know this.
ã„´ Elf) ? Me?
ㄴ Light’s Sword) Not you, the furry-eared one.
ã„´ Pioneer) That ear guy got blocked a while ago.
Water King) HEY!!!!!!!!!!! Tower Master!!!!!!!!!!!!! You son of a bitch!!!!!!!!!
Pioneer) Oh, you’ve been released. It’s been a while.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA As soon as you’re released, you’re trying so hard to get blocked again.
Water King) When cat people appear on the stairs, you should release me right away!!!!!!!!!
Tower Master) ?
Water King) I’m sorry. I got a bit excited haha
Water King) I’ve been just lurking for so long that I really wanted to participate haha…
‘?’
The question mark of someone in power is frightening.
Immediate mental treatment DD
Tower Master) I gave you special pardon because it’s your area of expertise, so be careful with your words.
Water King) Haha yes!!
Give thumbs up if Water King is cursing like hell inside.
Not just inside, they’re probably saying it out loud too
Anonymous*) Are you a cat person?
Water King) Hey, nice to meet you!!!!!! Tower Master!!!!!!!!
Water King) First of all, thank you for saving the cat children. Even if they’re NPCs, they seem so real, don’t they?
Anonymous*) Two are missing. Is there a way to find them?
Water King) The children seem to have forgotten because they’re in a confused state! Cat people have a resonant sound that can only be sent between cat tribe members!
Water King) If it’s the Forest of Beasts, given cat people’s habits, caves are places they would hide. The two remaining ones are likely hiding in a cave. The cat people’s resonant sound can penetrate sealed spaces, so you should be able to find them quickly.
Anonymous*) THX
Water King) Please find them!
As far as possible.
I closed the gallery.
“Mike.”
Mike immediately ran over and peeked at me.
“Yes.”
“Don’t cat people have a resonant sound that allows communication between them?”
“Ah…!”
Mike’s green eyes widened.
The other cat people also looked surprised.
“Why did we forget that!”
The cat people opened their mouths and began making sounds I couldn’t hear.
Then, as if detecting a direction, they all turned their heads to the right at once.
“I’ll take the lead, so follow closely behind me, slowly.”
“We must do as Mr. Meteor says.”
Mike commanded the children behind me.
THUMP THUMP
After walking for about 20 minutes, two cat people emerged from a cave, cutting through the fog.
“Yutel!”
“Merba!”
The cat children embraced each other in reunion.
“Is that all of them?”
Mike stood on tiptoe, looking up at me with a bright smile.
“Yes, Meteor.”
The rescue is complete.
Now we just need to rendezvous with the rescue team.
