Starting With an SSS-Rank Swordsmanship Talent

Upon returning to his room, Alaric took a quick bath in his private bathroom and changed into comfortable silk nightwear.

It’s time to use ‘that thing’.

(Note: Item Upgrade Card will be changed to Equipment Upgrade Card to prevent confusion.)

Alaric hadn’t used the Equipment Upgrade Card which he had gotten recently. He had been thinking which of his equipment he should upgrade and he had finally made a decision.

He looked to his left where two swords could be seen neatly placed on a hanging sword holder.

He grabbed the sword at the top.

This was just an ordinary steel sword before, but it had become something impressive after he used an Equipment Upgrade Card on it.

[Do you want to use your Equipment Upgrade Card on the selected item?]

[Yes] [No]

Alaric had been hesitant to use it on this sword since he also wanted to upgrade the other one. However, he was curious about what would happen to the Uncommon Steel Sword if it were upgraded once again.

This curiosity drove him to press [Yes].

[Congratulations! You have upgraded your Uncommon Steel Sword to Rare Steel Sword!]

[Rare Steel Sword]

Sharpness: 20

Durability: 20

Unexpectedly, the weight of the sword didn’t change.

Alaric slowly pulled the sword, revealing a pristine blade. He ran his fingers through the fuller while admiring the blade’s appearance.

There are more changes to its appearance now. The blade is thicker, but a fuller has been made to reduce its weight. Although it looks bigger than it was before, the weight remains the same.

Alaric was satisfied with the sword’s new look.

He gave it a few swings.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

Oh?

His eyes lit up when he felt almost no resistance as he cut through the air.

The balance of the sword was impeccable. It felt perfect in his hand with no awkwardness.

He infused mana into the sword, revealing the archaic patterns hidden underneath the blade.

This is… This isn’t a steel sword anymore, but a relic!

He realized that the sword wasn’t rejecting his mana. Instead, it was greedily absorbing it! Furthermore, the patterns inscribed on the blade seemed to have awakened the dormant power of the sword.

Alaric swung the mana-infused sword.

Swoosh!

A blade light was released as the sword slashed down.

The blade light struck the thick wall with a ‘bang’.

Bang!

Holy shit!

Alaric stared at the deep impression on the wall with a look of disbelief.

He had only casually swung the mana-infused sword, but it actually left significant damage on the wall.

Is this the power of a relic?

Excluding the new shield they had gotten from House Paxley, House Silversword only had one relic and it was in his father’s possession so he couldn’t tell the difference.

I better keep this a secret for now.

Alaric put the sword back into its sheath before he carefully placed it on the sword holder.

With this sword, can I fight against Elite Knights?

Alaric was tempted to test this, but it was already late in the night so he decided to postpone the idea.

Let’s try tomorrow.

***

In the ghetto of a city in the northeast of the empire, a man dressed in rags could be seen leaning against the wall.

He was visibly shaking from the cold, but he remained on his spot without moving as if he was waiting for something.

His right hand which was tightly holding the dagger hidden underneath his clothes had already turned stiff.

Just when will those guys come out?

The man narrowed his eyes as he observed the busy pub across the street.

Suddenly, a few more figures appeared behind the man.

“My lord, should we head in?” One of them muttered.

The man turned his head and glared at the person who had spoken. “Didn’t I tell you to call me boss recently?”

“I’m sorry, b-boss! I’m still not used to it.”

“You better get used to it soon if you don’t want to be captured along with me.” The man snorted.

At this moment, his face which had been hidden in the darkness was revealed.

This man was Liam Paxley, a wanted criminal who had been on the run after escaping the punishment of the sacred duel.

Many things had happened to him since he left Ryvaad.

Together with the warriors sent by his mother, Liam somehow managed to escape. To hide his identity he decisively carved a few scars on his face and he even cut his hair short.

Now, he had formed a small mercenary group together with his remaining subordinates. They were new to the city, but they had established themselves as a capable group after more than five successful operations.

However, the most surprising thing was that Liam had already become a Knight Apprentice!

“It’s them! They’re out!” Liam mumbled when he saw their targets coming out of the pub.

He made a hand gesture to his subordinates.

The target was surrounded by ten warriors and one of them was an old Knight.

On the other hand, Liam’s crew only had six people, but two of them were Knights, while the remaining four were Knight Apprentices.

Although they were outnumbered, Liam knew that they could pull off the assassination.

The old Knight who was protecting their target seemed to have sensed that something was wrong.

“Enemies! Grab your weapons and protect Sir Ben!” The old Knight shouted as he pulled his sword.

Upon hearing his roar, the warriors immediately grabbed their weapons and surrounded their master.

At this moment, a series of whistling sounds echoed.

Suu! Suu! Suu!

Three unlucky warriors were hit by the crossbow bolts and one of them who was struck to the head died on the spot. The other two fell to the ground, screaming in pain.

“Don’t panic! Hold your positions!” The old Knight shouted when he saw his men falling into disarray.

Just then, he sensed a feeling of extreme danger. His eyes narrowed into slits as he diagonally raised his sword above his head.

Clang!

The javelin aimed at his head fell after hitting his sword.

“Brace yourselves! They are coming!” The old man glared in a certain direction.