Chapter 175
Our progress after leaving the east gate was smooth, and we only encountered a few goblins before arriving in the wetlands .
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As that was what they called it, I was expecting loose soil and so much mud that we would soon be covered in it…
“Well, that’s a surprise…”
“It is quite beautiful…”
We both stood there and watched . There was a slanting path between the trees that stretched on before us . Flowers bloomed here and there, and there were lots of small ponds made from water that had risen from the ground . Each pool reflected the blue sky on its surface .
It was a beautiful sight indeed .
“Really, I thought we were about to travel through some horrible marshes . ”
“As did Il . Just the thought of getting my new clothes dirty was putting me in a foul mood . But this…I am quite speechless…”
Water and flowers and sky . It was so little and yet created such a great effect . It was impressive that they had paved a path here without destroying the natural beauty . That was the empire for you . I know longer had any desire to live in Lambrusen .
The road was wide enough for us to walk side by side, and there was no one else here but us . It was nice to walk like this . A marsh date . Why not?
The wind blew and disturbed the surface of the ponds . Daniela said that this was the result of wind spirits playing . I wished I could join them . I wished I could see them .
“You cannot see them at all, Asagi?”
“Yeah, I only have normal eyes . And Jack of all Trades, Master of None as my unique skill . ”
“But what about Legs of the Forest Wolf? Is that not a unique skill?”
“Hmm…I don’t know . I don’t think it is unique if it can be given to you . ”
“But I have never seen anyone else with it . ”
“That’s not too surprising . I doubt Beowulf has that many thralls . ”
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This skill was almost part of my identity now . I would be a lot less of an Adventurer without it . Not that having Jack of all Trades, Master of None alone was such a bad thing .
“That is also a skill I have never heard of before . ”
“I’d be worth a lot less if you had…”
“I do not think I have ever asked you about it in detail… What is it like?”
Yes, it wasn’t exactly something we had talked about, now that I think of it . Or maybe we did…
“I don’t know . It’s hard to explain… If I want to do something but don’t know how, or don’t know what the outcome of doing something will be, I activate it . And then this image that is split into quarters appears in my head . ”
“Quarters? What does it look like?”
I picked up a stick and began to draw on the soft dirt .
“It’s split up like this . And I am able to see what I want to do in each frame . If I want to swing my sword like this, it will show me examples . ”
“It only instructs you visually?”
“No, I also gain an understanding of how to make my body do it . Things like weight distribution or balance . It just comes to me . ”
I hadn’t really mastered it at all yet . But it gave you the basics . In order to copy it perfectly, you had to think, move and understand it all .
“It’s kind of like a shortcut skill . But a shortcut is still a path . You can’t just skip through everything . But if I could, I would never have to be afraid of anything . ”
“I see . I think that I understand now . ”
“Yeah, it’s like that . You feel like you understand… But you’ll never be sure . It’s that kind of skill . ”
As the briefing session continued, someone came towards us from the other side of the road, and I so we moved to the side .
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“Ah, sorry to bother you . ”
“No, we were the ones blocking the path . ”
It was a young man . He looked like an Adventurer . As he greeted us pleasantly, I smiled and apologized . Daniela also bowed .
“You two look like Adventurers as well…”
“Yes . Though, I’m still somewhat of a beginner…”
“Haha . You do not look like one . ”
Oh, he was good . I almost fell for it .
“Let me give you a word of advice then . ”
“Yeah?”
“The lord of monsters lives in these wetlands . It’s beautiful now, but it will turn quite savage during the night . You might be tempted to enjoy the scenery, but you should really be hurrying on . ”
Then the man pointed up at the sky . The sun was already starting to descend . We still had plenty of time before nightfall, but that was no assurance that we could get out of this vast marsh by then if we didn’t hurry .
“Thanks for the advice . We just happened to be traveling as leisurely as if we were tourists . ”
“Ahaha . Well, you can still make it if you hurry . And now, I must go as well . ”
“Thank you . Perhaps we will meet again one day . We could go on a quest together . ”
“Ah, I am sure that will be quite fun . ”
After those social pleasantries, the man continued on his way . It was just as he turned a corner and was out of sight that Daniela turned to me and muttered .
“That man . He is very strong . ”
“Really?”
I was no expert and could not tell by just looking at someone . Perhaps Daniela had learned something about it through experience .
“Yes . If we were not in a hurry, I would have liked to fight him . ”
“Well, you may still get your wish one day . ”
We started to walk again . To be honest, I could just use Legs of the Forest Wolf and we would be out pretty quickly . But it was nice to walk like this sometimes . Things had been very hectic up until Nicora, and so we opted for a more relaxed pace while we could .
When it was nearing evening, we finally saw the end of the road . It was also the end of the marshes . This was evident by how dry the ground was when we were off of the path .
“What a relief, eh?”
“This monster lord seemed intriguing . But fighting in the marshes is not very appealing to me . ”
“You must really like your new clothes . ”
“Aye . Are they not pretty?”
Daniela turned dramatically . The skirt rose in the air, exposing her shorts underneath . My eyes felt quite blessed as her pale thighs came into view .
“I feel a lecherous stare . ”
“Heh . Ahahaha . ”
“Hey, wait . Asagi . We must talk . ”
I ignored her and began to walk on ahead . We were going in the opposite direction of the setting sun . We had initially considered going around the marshes, but ended up going straight through it . And it had saved us a lot of time . We would be able to get very close to the next town if we continued at this pace . That way, we would be able to pass through the town without stopping at an inn the next day . While we had money to spare, it didn’t hurt to try and avoid unnecessary expenses . Though, we would still sight see .
Daniela grumbled all the way, but by the time we pitched the tent and prepared dinner, she was back to her grinning self . No one remained angry when food came out . Humans have no choice but to smile when eating something delicious . You can find peace in the midst of a dinner .
Master Daniela took the first watch that night . I lay in the tent and thought excitedly of the imperial capital…for about three seconds before falling asleep from exhaustion .
But I was soon pulled out of my dream when Daniela’s voice rang in my ears .
“Asagi . Get up . Monsters . ”
“Mmm…how many?”
“Twenty . ”
“Twenty!?”
I got up frantically . At first, I had been thinking sluggishly that Daniela might have dealt with the problem alone, but those numbers were alarming . I quickly put on my armor and pulled out the Schwarz Tempest from the hollow bag . It was especially great for handling large numbers of enemies .
“They are coming from the marshes . ”
“I didn’t sense them at all during the day…”
I rested the blade on my shoulder as we looked in the direction that we had come . We had moved away from it as much as time would allow, but perhaps we were somehow still in their territory…that was a bad mistake on our part . It was dumb to think that they wouldn’t come out here where the ground was dry .
“The size…is not too bad . But there is one that looks worse than the rest . ”
“They’re still not within range of my Presence Detection…oh, now they are . Uhh…damn that’s a lot…”
I tried counting them and it did seem like twenty . Huhhh… Why wouldn’t they let me sleep in peace? I thought irritably as I scratched my head and prepared for a battle .