Novel Bin Chapter 9: Practical Evaluation (3)
“The ground looks all the same, how would I know…”
A large screen filled one side of the wall.
The screens showed different views from the cameras installed inside the test site.
Prof. Lim Sung-Hyun and Instructor Park Hyun-Suk, who were in charge of scoring the actual evaluation, were looking at the students and sighing.
“… We were expecting much from cadet Kim Hyun-Cheol, but he is very disappointing.”
“He hasn’t even noticed that the rear has been empty for more than ten minutes.”
Penalties were piling up relentlessly under Kim Hyun-Cheol’s name on the scorecard.
“Besides, he acts as if he understands the structure of the black swamp, but he’s heading for nothing. If it was a real situation, he’d die, surrounded by monsters.”
That was true.
And finally, a red line was drawn on Kim Hyun-Cheol’s name.
What it meant was simple.
If you can’t prove yourself, you’re paid.
And even after being paid, if you repeat, you will never graduate.
It was a stigma.
“Only Yoo Ji-Yeon and Jung Si-woo can be pitied. Yoo Ji-Yeon can’t be tested properly since they don’t have a tanker, and cadet Jung Si-woo missed the opportunity to show his reawakening characteristics.”
Park Hyun-suk put the list down and turned his attention to Lim Seong-Hyun.
“I believed you and assigned Jung Si-woo to the center… Well, I have no reason to go back on it.”
“…”
“Professor? Why are you silent?”
Seong-Hyun Lim was not interested in Park’s words. He did not take his eyes off the screen.
Park Hyun-suk also turned to look at what happened.
“… Guys, what are you doing?”
His face scrunched up.
“Are they going to finish the exam together? What are they talking about? If the rear is isolated, it is normal to wait first.”
“… Not only the rear is isolated, but also the central position. In such a situation, it will be dangerous to be surrounded by monsters, so it is better to keep moving and finding an exit.”
“That is so even if the hunter knows the exact structure of the cracks. It holds true even for hunters with a level 2 or higher position.”
Lim Seong-Hyun was smiling lightly before he spoke admiringly.
“Since Jung Si-woo led the way, he has not walked the wrong way or stepped into a dangerous area. No, not just that. He’s heading to the destination in exactly the shortest distance.”
“…”
“I don’t know if you’re good at positioning, but…as a hunter, there seems to be no item to be deducted from the score corresponding to ‘tracking’.”
“It’s great. By the way…”
Park Hyun-suk replied sharply.
“Whether you go the shortest distance or not, monsters await you at the end. Without tanker, can we just consider them as a pair of two, center and rear?”
“…”
“I’m not going to penalize their judgments yet. It’s true that if they don’t have the power to catch the monster, given that they’re isolated, this just suicide. Crawling toward death when you could live by waiting for rescue could be the worst judgment ever made.”
“… That sounds right.”
Lim Seong-Hyun continued without hesitation.
“But isn’t it the best judgment if you catch a monster?”
If the result was good, it was a sound judgment, no matter what the variables were.
“We’ll have to wait till the end to see whether Jeong Si-woo’s judgment was the worst or the best.”
* * *
It was easier to walk now.
The swampy terrain changed within five minutes since I took the lead.
Finding the way was so easy, as there were experiences in numerous swamps and even internal structures included in the Akashic records.
“… It would have been better for you to just take the lead from the beginning.”
Yoo Ji-Yeon, said as she walked alongside me.
“But can you really catch the monster the way you said? I’m a little worried about that …”
“You said there would be a goblin shaman? Previously, Kim Hyun-Cheol said that a liquid parasite will appear in the swamp …”
“It’s a ridiculous guess. There are definitely monsters in the swamp inside the crack. But it doesn’t suit the monster that will be at the end.”
“… Why?”
I carefully replied to her anxious question.
“Most of the swampy edges are full of bushes reaching the knees. The ground is not sticky, nor is it full of moisture.”
“Ah…”
“There’s no way you could have placed a liquid monster in such a place, and even if you did, it would die in less than ten minutes. It’s more likely that there’s a goblin or worm-type monster. In fact, many goblins inhabit the ‘core’ of swamp cracks. …”
I went on to a lengthy explanation.
Only after a detailed explanation did Yoo Ji-Yeon consider me with a little trust.
As I led the way correctly, she might learn to trust me more.
Yu Ji-Yeon was looking at me like a child, with a smile on her face.
She still seemed a different person from my memory.
“How long did we walk?”
“Well, over there…”
“Shh.”
As the swamp was coming to an end, there was something squat between the lush bushes.
A creature with green skin was holding on to a long wooden stick.
Every sign was pointing to the fact that it was a ‘goblin shaman’.
“Don’t make a sound… Remember what I said? Just do it.”
“Yea, I got it. I’ve never used magic like that …but I believe you.”
You believe what you see.
I don’t know Yujiyeon’s current level of magic, but I knew that it won’t be ordinary.
T-ring!
[The bond with Yoo Ji-Yeon has increased.]
[If you have enough ties, you can ‘Link’ with Yu Ji-Yeon.]
And now, I have the power to take and use those talents at will.
Although still weak.
In the future, it will become so great that it cannot be overpowered even by all the five heroes.
[‘Link’ is activated.]
[Search for beings that match the skill level among ‘beings with a certain level of ties’.]
Of course, I haven’t grown enough to draw on the power of those.
In the memory of the user ‘Jung Si Woo’, I found an existence that met the conditions.
[Link succeeded.]
This should be enough for now.
『Green monsters are disgusting from the first sight.』
[Goblin Slayer]
[Rating: F]
Three sentences.
The words on the transparent notification window were visible, and my body began to overflow.
[“Finally, you’re taking out that great weapon.”]
Along with that, I prepared a ‘training sword’.
Now, it’s a bit too strong to be called a training sword, and I slowly pulled it out.
* * *
Making weapons for the awakened is very difficult.
For ordinary people, it would be simple to be equipped with a firearm. Yet, the awakened people had the potential to be different.
They use harder materials that are incomparable to ordinary equipment. They consider the characteristics and make the weapon in various structures to accommodate their specific skills.
It was also common for one weapon to take several craftsmen and several months to build.
Of course, there were exceptions among them.
-It’s much easier to match an existing weapon to an awakened one than to create a new weapon to suit the awakened.
The representative thing was ‘Blue Forge’, where I was involved in numerous transactions before I returned.
-If you adjust the type of engraving, you can improve the performance to suit the awakened person. If correctly engraved, it is easy to make an iron bar hat on the street into a famous sword.
The idea of imprinting a weapon on an awakened was groundbreaking.
And in the past, I had a bet with them.
-A promise is a promise, so we will keep it. I will tell you the information we have but, you should never spill it outside.
I had won the bet and got their ‘secret’ proudly.
The engraving in ‘training sword’ shone.
I hit all the stamps I knew and could engrave with the mana I had before the actual evaluation.
[Blue Forge ’41 Engraving Combination ‘is clearly infused into’ Training Sword ‘.]
[The cutting force of the training sword increases by 500 percent.]
[The strength of the training sword increases 1,000 percent.]
[The weight of the training sword is reduced by 80 percent.]
[The ‘Strengthening Enhancement (E)’ is engraved on the training sword.]
[The ‘sword aid (D)’ is engraved on the training sword.]
.
.
.
‘Training sword’ did not fit its name, it was a sword boasting vicious power.
“Go, you have to be good.”
I took the sword and replied.
“Oh, yeah!”
Yoo Ji-Yeon ran forward.
[Use the skill of the target connected by the Link.]
[Use ‘Quick Charge (D)’]
“Ki-ek?”
The goblin shaman squatting in the bush neared at a speed that my previous body could not even imagine.
[→ Linked to: ‘Goblin Slayer’]
[characteristic]
[The one who faces the green monster (C)]
[→ Goblin, Ogre species (種) monsters are applied to correct the effect of the stats.]
[skill]
[Quick rush (D), non-stop sword (C), boiling blood (D), swordsmanship (E)]
All in all, the rush was thanks to the overflowing power of the Link.
Threung.
The sharp blade moved towards his neck in a flash.
Caen.
The wooden stick stopped the blade.
The stick’s reflection shone vividly on the blade as it blocked the iron sword.
It was expected.
‘The goblin shaman’s wooden stick is ten times harder than steel.’
It’s made of old mana wood and has a myriad of magical wooden sticks.
I struck again without panic.
Caang, Caang, Caang!
The sound of metal and metal colliding, sparks flew everywhere.
“Kiee-e-ek!”
A goblin shaman’s face was distorted, and I heard an unpleasant cry.
Whenever I faced the green monster, the voice of the ‘link’ in my head rang.
“Goblins infuriate me.”
“I want to catch all of them and tear them all up.”
A third-level hunter was in the drinking room before returning.
It was the voice of an unusual hunter who lost his family to the goblins. He was searching for the goblins but had not found a crack at the top despite having enough skills.
“It’s obvious that the goblins are fighting.”
The sword swung once more.
However, this time the wooden stick and the sword did not collide.
“I just see it. How to move. 』
Fuss.
In a breath of a moment, the sword blade grazed the wooden stick and cut the goblin shaman.
Blood splattered, and it stank like fish.
[“Goblin only looks like a veteran for 10 years. I’ve felt it before, but you’re adjusting to the link skill at a tremendous rate.”]
“Kiee-e-eok!”
The goblin shaman cried out sharply in pain and embarrassment, swinging the wooden stick in a circle above his head.
Red energy shook around him.
“Yoo Ji-yeon!”
As I cried out, there was a whirring sound from the back.
The bushes shook once, and red spots were scattered on the green leaves.
“Okay… On the key … Uh …”
The blades of wind shot by Yoo Ji-Yeon pierced the body of the Goblin as he was trying to use magic; at the moment when he was absolutely defenseless.
The arm that held the wooden bar was clearly cut off, and a long stab formed on his side.
I looked at the gaping Goblin and held up the sword without hesitation.
『All goblins must die.』
My voice was heavy as the blood boiled in my veins.
The sword moved faster than before, stabbing and cutting the body of the goblin shaman.
My body began to tremble as I repeated Yujiyeon’s magic.
I didn’t rest. I cut his green skin and spilled his blood. I didn’t stop until his blood soaked my robe.
As I looked down, a new reminder window popped up.
[The assimilation rate with the linked target rises instantaneously.]
[The soul’s price rises.]
[Skill, Link grows to fit the soul.]
[Link (F) → Link (E)]
[The remnant of the soul remains, and its power belongs to some bodies.]
[Skill-Acquire’ Sword (E)’]
It was an unexpectedly colossal achievement.
‘… Finally, a kill for myself. ‘
I lost my parents and lived with a hatred of monsters, but I have never experienced killing them with my own hands.
Even if the Goblin is the weakest among the monsters appearing in the crack, initially, I so weak that I couldn’t even kill a Goblin alone.
My hands were shaking.
It wasn’t just because it was the first to kill of my life.
Watching other fell monsters was nothing compared to this feeling.
I thought I was finally able to tear them apart with these two hands.
I don’t have to sit in a chair and give orders to other hunters and feel frustrated.
I was looking forward to the future.
“Hey, you…ok…?”
Yoo Ji-Yeon, who was supporting me from behind, murmured anxiously as she looked at my blood-stained chest.
“… Hew.”
Then I looked at the mess that was once a goblin, and my face was crumpled.
“… If you could have killed it all by yourself, you didn’t have to tell me to use magic like that.”
“Ah.”
Yoo Ji-Yeon’s magic definitely was of assistance. However, frankly, without her, I could have still easily killed the goblin shaman.
Only
Who would have known that the target I was linking would work so powerfully against the goblins?
I simply smiled politely.
* * *
Despite all that, Yoo Ji-Yeon scored high for her assistance.
She knew that it was because of me.
Lee Hak-soo was given the lowest point since he followed dumb judgment blindly, and Kim Hyun-Cheol was given a failing score since he might have driven his team to death if it had been the case.
And…
It was the first perfect score of my entire life.