52 The Key (3)

"You, who are barely a tier 2 knight, want to learn my technique to help find my clan?"

"It's impossible; you are too weak". He said it while laughing.

Tier 2 knight? Was this how his clan measured strength? They must use a knight system, then.

And I could already guess that tier 2 did not mean that I was one rank away from the strongest. The lower the number, the weaker you were. 

And I am too weak to help his clan?

Isn't that a little arrogant for someone whose clan was missing?

So, who are really the weak ones here?

I wouldn't say that to his face, as I was afraid of the consequences.

Yeah, I could regress, but now I was too curious.

But I need to convince him somehow either way.

"If you go back to the crystal, how long are you going to wait till your missing descendants come again?"

"I can take you with me and summon you again when I see your clan. You just have to teach me your technique".

He floated towards me until he was right in front of my eyes. The look in his eyes showed a hint of annoyance.

"I don't know who teleported you guys here or how you got the runestone. Maybe my clan is dead or alive, but let me tell you this:

I will never, in a thousand years, teach an outsider my technique". He retorted.

"But my clan is not as weak as you think it is. My true form has probably solved this problem long ago". He said in a confident tone.

It seems like he was dead set on not teaching an outsider his technique. It was probably something he encoded before he ascended.

Therefore, this approach seemed like a dead end. But if he was the last step for me to clear the floor, I couldn't give up now based on what I have seen.

This guy literally said he would never teach an outsider his technique, even if his whole clan was dead.

For that reason, I could take it as that he would rather die with the technique than give it to an outsider.

He has his reasons not to give it, but I also have my reasons to learn it. If I don't get that technique, I will be stuck here forever.

I felt that the technique was the only key for me to clear this floor. But if he never wants to give it, what do I do then?

I looked at the floating figure in the air. Because he felt my gaze, he turned his eyes to lock eyes with me.

But now that I looked properly into his eyes, I realized something.

Those eyes filled with superiority, like he was looking at an ant. Why is he looking at me with that look?

Does he really think he is stronger in this position?

Isn't his whole clan missing? How is he so sure that they were alive?

Someone who is stuck inside a rock thinks that he is at an advantage. His whole clan was missing, and they could be dead, yet he is looking at me with superiority.

Well, truth be told, I need his help no matter what.

"If we don't kill 1000 monsters, we will not be able to return to our homes, meaning that we could die. Can't you please help us?". I begged him.

"Well, you tried your best to explain. So I can at least show you something". He said this while a sword slowly materialized out of thin air.

I didn't expect him to actually teach me, after he just told us that he would rather have his whole clan die than have an outsider learn his technique.

He is probably not showing his technique, then. It's probably something different, but it was enough for me that he wanted to teach me.

The sword materialized in his hands as he took a sword stance.

"Look closely and try your best to comprehend this". He chuckled as he swung the sword.

But as he was done with the swing, I realized... nothing.

It looked like a completely normal swing, and there wasn't anything different other than it being a little slower than normal.

I scratched my head.

"Is that it?". I said it in confusion.

The sword faded away from the figure.

"What do you mean, 'Is that it?' Are you even a swordsman? Why do you even carry that sword around if you know nothing?". He said it in anger, as if my response offended him.

"No, it looked completely like a normal swing". I answered in response.

"If that's what you saw, then so be it. But I feel like you deserve a reward, so pull out your sword". He sighed.

'Oh, is he actually going to teach me?'. As I looked at the floating figure,

He looked very young, but somehow he was a lot stronger than me.

Could he be bluffing? Maybe he was just a normal ghost, but with him mentioning his clan,

I don't think it was a bluff, seeing as I couldn't comprehend anything from his swing. So getting a personal lesson from this guy could definitely evolve my swordsmanship.

But as I pulled out my sword, a look of disgust appeared in his eyes.

"Why do you hold it that way?" He asked with a tone of disgust.

What does he mean by holding it that way? Is there a wrong way to hold the sword?

Right now, I was just imitating the sword stance of my skill.

"Am I holding it wrong?". I asked.

"It's not that you are holding it wrong, but it's more like you are doing it. But you actually don't know why you are doing it.

But nevermind that, let me see you swing the sword".

I pulled back my feet and did the most basic sword stance I knew. And as I swung the sword, I could hear it cutting the wind.

It was very impressive for me, but as I looked at the floating figure,

An ugly expression appeared on his face, which told me the complete opposite.

"The way you swing your sword is very weird. Again, it seems like you are doing it, but at the same time, you don't know what you are doing.

It feels like you do not have any basics at all, but at the same time, you do. This is very weird. I have never seen anything like this. How did you even become a Tier 2 knight?". He said it with a weird tone.

What the hell is he even saying? What does he mean by saying that I am doing it, but at the same time I am not?

"Who taught you to wield the sword?". 

"I am self-taught.".

Well, it was technically true. I taught myself while sparring with Lee Min-ho, and I slowly tried to copy him until I raised my skill to rank C.

"That's impossible; with that skill you showed, you would at least know the basics. But I can sense that you don't know anything". He said it in a confused tone.