Through Brute Force and Guts

Len jumped back to his bed as soon as he arrived. He covered himself with a blanket and closed his eyes. Soon, his consciousness drowned in a deep sea to the dream land.

However-

"Wake up!"

"Gahh!"

Someone rocked his body and jolted him awake. Rubbing his eyes, Len asked irritatedly.

"W-what!? A robber!?"

"That's right! A robber came and I need your help to chase her away!"

"F-for real!?"

Len was being sarcastic, but it seems a real robber came.

"P-pops! He's going to die! Help him please!"

As his vision cleared, Len could see Novy stood before him. Eyes red with tears flowing down her cheeks. He felt her hands on his shoulder trembled heavily.

'W-what's going on…? What happened while I was asleep? They were having a chat some moment ago, right?'

Holding her breath, Novy explained.

"An apostle came trying to rob pops! I need your help right now!"

Ting!!

[The quest -Trial of a Beginner Blacksmith- has been updated!]

[A Desperate Struggle]

Difficulty: Unknown

Your quest to be a competent blacksmith has been interrupted by a third party. Octo wished for Novy to escape the village, however she came for your aid instead. Abandoning all reason, she gambled everything on you to save her father. The choice is yours.

Octo's life hangs on a thread, he will die within the next 00:05:59

Reward(s) on Completion:

???

If you decide to escape/abandon the quest, Novy and the whole village will hate you and distrust all apostles (Affinity -1000). Furthermore, Octo will die and you won't be able to acquire the previous rewards.

If you decide to escape/abandon the quest, you will acquire a new title (Coward).

[Quest has been automatically accepted.]

"Uhh.."

By the time Len finished reading, There's only less than 5 minutes remaining.

'Are you fucking kidding me. First this stupid trial and now I have to save Octo? Where did this quest came from? Why is it so fucking random?'

Len yelled and cursed silently. Now that he has been forced to accept the quest, he has no choice but to obey. Otherwise he will literally lose everything and…

"Don't worry, I will save your father."

Len blurted in the heat of the moment.

"Th-thank you! H-he's in the workshop right now! Please save him!"

There's no other choice. If he fails, then everything he fought for will be wasted. His struggle learning blacksmith skills and the fatigue he endured, all of those will burn into ashes.

'Her father, she must love her father deeply… not like-'

Len gritted his teeth and jumped over the bed. There's less than 4 minutes remaining. He has to run as fast as he could to the workshop.

"Wait! Take this!"

Novy threw her short sword and Len couldn't help but not to praise it.

[G. Short Sword +3] (Unique)

Equip Requirements:

Level 16

23 STR

42 DEX

10 WIS

A short sword made by Abram Willocton to Novy on her 16th birthday. A sword that is hard, yet flexible and light. Containing [Holy] attribute, it is extremely effective against creatures from the abyss. The skill of the maker shows through the low equip requirements despite having a high stats and [Unique] rating.

It's been handled with love and affection for years. Her nickname (Vy) was engraved on the pummel.

Stats:

+50 DMG

+70 SPD

+5 Charm

+1 Luck

*Increase [Sword Mastery] by 1 Level (Requirement: Novy)

*Has active skill [Sunlight] Level 1

[Sunlight] Level 1

Being exposed with holy energy for a long time, the metal has gained [Holy] attribute. The sword has the ability to convert mana into a blinding light to its foes, stunning them and give slight dizziness.

*Stun enemies for 0.5 second

*Has a small chance to induce [Minor Confusion] to enemies

*Consumes 30 MP

Cooldown: 30 seconds

"Wow! Thanks!"

A sword made by Octo himself, Len confirmed his doubt that he is not any ordinary blacksmith in this world. First it has a 'G.' in front of it, that's not a common thing found on items, at least on the games he played before. Furthermore, this short sword increased his charm by 5 points and possess its own skill.

'Abram WillOCTOn, Octo… so that's where it came from… who are you really?'

At the same time in the workshop...

"Fuh… fuh…"

Octo fell on one of his knee and gasped heavily.

"Not bad for an old man."

Licking her lips, she took another stance.

"[Setsu]."

Another wide slash and Octo raised his giant sword as a shield. He was pushed back and the rest of the workshop fell in shambles.

"That sword wouldn't hold on for much longer."

"..."

Octo propped himself and pointed his giant sword at her. Blue streams of light gathered at the tip and spread over the whole sword.

"[Heavy Thrust]."

"Hoo…"

She knew that skill. A basic movement of thrusting a sword forward, nothing more, nothing less. But if trained enough, it could even penetrate a dragon's scale like stabbing a jelly.

And judging from the mana flow around the giant sword, she was certain she will die in one hit… If it hit that is.

Moving her hands to her waist, she pulled her short sword and Octo's eyes turned into a slit.

'Utilizing two swords of different length… a foreign skill… who is she? And why she's so familiar?'

Using both of her swords, Octo thought he saw that technique before. He would ask, but the timing doesn't seems exactly appropriate.

'No, there's no use hesitating now.'

Clenching the handle tightly, Octo rushed toward her.

The black-haired woman simply smiled and moved her two swords, warding his aim off to the side.

'W-what!?'

Although Octo only ran and thrusted his sword, it was anything but slow. He attacked within a blink and she warded his attack in such a casual manner.

'A parry that came from vast experience of battles and quick reflex… this is the end…'

Facing death, his whole life flashed through his eyes. His family, friends and all the adventures he had, his wife... everything flashed in a split second.

Through the end, he could only pray for his daughter safety.

Just as she was about to cut Octo's nape from the back, a blinding light accompanied with a shout appeared.

"[Sunlight]!!"

Flash!!

Blinding light appeared and she was forced to close her eyes. Suddenly, her mind went diassary.

'W-what...!?'

Fell into panic, she jumped away from the light.

"No you don't!"

Len tried slashing her waist, but struck her short sword instead. Caught off guard, her hand slipped and the sword got thrown away.

"Aaagh!!"

He roared and chased her. Len was a little bit frenzied and not on his right mind for not getting enough sleep. In the heat of the moment, Len didn't even think of winning or losing. In reality, he's still quite weak compared to Novy, much less against this black-haired woman.

And Novy naturally knew of his condition. His levels and strength was far lacking to put up much of a fight. So why would Novy ask for his help then?

That's because apostles cannot die. They will revive after death and came again. The truth was Novy only wanted Len to stall the black-haired woman for a moment and escape together with Octo, leaving Len behind.

She knew that Len will be revived once he dies, so there's not a single tinge of guilt felt in her heart.

Another point that Len missed is that, there's no complete condition for the quest. There's no guarantee that after saving Octo the quest will be completed. Len had so little time to think, he got too indulged in the situation.

But Len also knew that the enemy he would be facing is going to be stronger than him. How strong? He doesn't know.

But Len does possess a trump 'card'.

This trump card requires precise timing to use otherwise it will only be a waste. It could only save his life once, nevertheless it still won't bring him out of the dire situation.

The black-haired woman jumped back again, avoiding Len's slash. Her eyes slowly regained its vision.

"Pops! Let's get out of here!"

Tending to her father, Novy tried to prop Octo out of the workshop.

"N-Novy? What are you doing here?"

"There's no time to explain! Let's go!"

The black-haired woman regained her vision within seconds and saw the man before her was the one she met this afternoon judging by the physique and clothing.

The [Sunlight] skill was too strong despite being only level 1. The black-haired woman's level was far manyfolds higher than Len, however her resistance to blindness was weak. She still hasn't regained 100% of her vision and unable to see Len's face.

While she was terrified of Len, the opposite also happened.

Len was shaking in his boots. He knew very well he can't win. The only choice he had was to call the guards, but there's no guards around!

'Me and my big mouth…'

He had a go against again and she dodged skillfully, leaving Len frustrated. What was he supposed to do? Len still has sanity inside him despite in frenzied state, but it wasn't enough to keep him under control.

His rage overcame his despair. The wrath in his heart bubbled like a boiled kettle.

'Why am I stuck in this stupid situation? Three times in a row. This isn't funny. Also, didn't we meet on the chicken thigh shop? Could it be she's looking for revenge? She followed me here to make trouble?'

His rage meter rose rapidly. He stared right at the black-haired woman's eyes.

Ting!!

[[???] has been successfully intimidated!! All stats decreased by 10% for 7 minutes!!]

[[???] is more inclined to yield to you!!]

[Congratulation! [Intimidation] has reached level 6!]

[Congratulation! [Intimidation] has reached level 7!]

[Congratulation! [Intimidation] has reached level 8!]

"Ah…"

The black-haired woman was already quite scared of Len since they met at the chicken thigh incident. She misunderstood that Len is a high leveled person.

There's a way to clear her misconception. In fact, it's quite easy, she simply needs to focus and Len's status would appear for her to see. It was the same like how Len inspected the entrance guards' levels, though there are limitations because his level was not enough.

On their first meeting, she was too shocked and missed her opportunity because Len escaped. Now she was unable to do so because Len kept attacking and still somewhat blinded by [Sunlight].

Furthermore with her hearts filled with doubt, [Intimidation] activated and she felt even more terrified. The black-haired woman saw how her stats decreased by 10%, thus sent her into deeper chaos. This man suddenly looked more and more of a demon.

The workshop was in shambles causing not enough light to enter. She only saw a pair of bright red pupils shining in the dark as Len's face covered in shadows, not knowing those are only her imaginations.

Red slitted pupils that does not belong to any demons she ever knew.

Len activated [Berserk] and [Hawk Eye] together. He grabbed a hammer on the floor and threw it to her face.

The black-haired woman barely able to react and dodged it to the side, and in a flash Len was already dashing with a short sword aimed at her throat!

In panic, she thrusted her long sword towards Len's chest!

STAB!!

"Ahkck…"

It landed on his right chest and missed his heart by a large margin! Len saw his HP bar going down rapidly and coughed blood at her face.

But this didn't stop Len, he threw the Novy's short sword kept walking forward which pushed the long sword deeper inside him.

The black-haired woman was extremely horrified and driven further into insanity, her smooth and beautiful eyes widen in shock, and her gaped mouth distorted her face.

Not only her, the two people near the door also had the same expression. Through the years Octo lived as a traveller, this was the first time he ever witnessed something so ridiculous and terrifying at the same time.

He had participated in wars and saw many brave men and women died with honor and disgrace. Most people fought in the war had a quick or slow death, but never in this fashion before!

Aided by [Pain Resistance], Len was able to withstand the pain and pushed himself forward closer and closer.

Finally, with only few inches drifting them apart, Len grabbed her wrist tightly.

"AHH!!! Let go!!"

She was hysterical, Novy and Octo could only watch in horror when Len suddenly yelled.

"OCTOooOOOooO!!!!"

With 10% of her stats decreased, she became relatively weaker. Still stronger than Len, sure, but her state of mind was chaotic and muddy, instead of letting go the sword she punched Len's face with her other hand instead.

Smack! Smack!!

Each hit caused Len to spit blood and tooth. His HP bar fell below critical and will die with another punch.

Unnoticed by everyone, Len held an object on his left hand. Small, rectangle and extremely thin. A black card with the word EXP on it.

"Activate!"

The EXP card shattered with a crisp sound into countless lighting particle causing a shockwave throughout the entire room.

Ting!

[100.000-EXP-Card has been activated!]

[You have acquired 100.000 EXP!]

The lighting particles entered his body and caused a spark erupted from his body and a notification window appeared!

[Congratulations! You have Levelled up to level 20!]

[HP, MP, and STAMINA has been restored!]

[You have 26 unallocated stat points]

[You have 60 unallocated skill points]

Len didn't use all his unallocated points. He didn't know what was the best build he should go for, so he kept some for 'just in case'.

But judging from the dire situation, Len decided to allocate all his stat points into STR.

"W-wha..!!?!?"

This man never cease to amaze her. Just as he was about to die, suddenly all his status restored to 100%!! His grip on her wrist also strengthen!!

'H-he levelled up!!'

Her brain stopped functioning and short-circuited. Octo already stood behind her with his huge giant sword swung toward her neck.

"Ah."

It was already too late to say anything.

The giant sword decapitated her neck and the blood spurted Len's whole body.

Her vision spun as her head fell on the ground. With her last memory of the demonic man staring down at her from above.

'I… lost…'

Piece by piece, her body disappeared into dust, leaving her long sword still intact in Len's chest.

'Kurze sword and Glaz glaive… I lost everything…'

Just as the black-haired woman dissipated, Len fell on his knees. His hands trembled holding the long sword embedded in his chest.

[You have slain [???]!!]

[[???] is a heinous criminal wanted by many kingdoms throughout Orion! You have served justice and contributed to the world's peace! You can claim your reward at the nearest guild!]

[Congratulations! You have Levelled up to level 21!]

[Congratulations! You have Levelled up to level 22!]

[Congratulations! You have Levelled up to...!]

[...]

[Congratulations! You have Levelled up to level 39!]

[You have 114 Unallocated stat points]

[You have 117 Unallocated skill points]

[HP, MP, and STAMINA has been restored!]

[You have received (Rewards Token [???])!! Give it to the nearest guild to receive your handsome rewards!]

"O-Octo… Help…"

Not knowing what to do, he asked Octo for help only to receive a pat on the back.

"That was amazing boy! You slayed that bitch away! With brute force and guts alone at that!!"

"Hacckckckk!!"

Len vomited a mouthful.

"P-pops! I-I think he's dying!

"Oh yeah! Boy, are you alright with that sword in your chest!?"

"Asshole… help me…"

"Alright! Hold on!"

With a swift move, Octo pulled the long sword and blood gushed out from his chest each time his heart beated.

"Ggaah!! Y-you..."

"Hold on! Don't speak yet!"

An small bottle appeared on her palm. It was transparent and Len could see a green salve inside.

Novy opened the bottle and rubbed the salve on his wound. Len felt a cold sensation and transformed into warmth and itch. Right after that, the bleeding stopped and scabs formed. Everything happened in the spans of seconds.

He saw his HP bar decreased like a cheetah chasing a zebra to a snail trying to cross the road. Amazement and wonder, 'Magical world sure is convenient.' Len commented quietly.

Heaving a sigh of relief, Novy helped him to sit on the floor.

"That sure was close, wasn't it boy?"

"No shit…"

"Y-you…"

"?"

Len stared at Novy, her eyes wet with tears. She looked like she got caught stealing chicken thigh to him.

Gazing at his wounds, she said.

"You… saved pops…"

"Well, that I did."

"...Thank you…"

"You are welcome. Ca-"

Then she started sobbing.

"Thank you, Ughu, from the, sobs… the deepest of my heart, sobs… thank you!!"

Len was speechless.

He couldn't say anything. Not a single word.

Throughout his whole life, this was the first time he ever got thanked like this. A sincere thanks by a woman he just met for a few days gave his heart warmth.

The truth is, Len accepted the quest because he didn't want to get kicked out of the village. He's not a hero of justice, that he knew after experiencing 'death' a few times. He's just some neighbour kid trying to act cool and mighty.

He has little affection with Octo, an old man he just met a few days old. How could he, an prideful brat who only do things if it's profitable for him, would help someone just because?

He didn't care at all.

He was forced to accept the quest.

He didn't feel a shred of sadness thinking that Octo or Novy might die. This is real life. His life is much more important than anyone else. He cannot become a hero of justice whenever he feel like it. Even with if he could revive after death.

'Death is not a pleasing sensation.'

There was no guilt for leaving them.

Even when Octo found him on that that bridge, he didn't care.

The food, the support he received… after all that, he just couldn't empathize to Novy.

Not even when he saw Octo was about to die.

Nor when Novy cried. The quest forced him to act.

He moved in impulse, scared to lose his 'position' in the village.

His act of self-sacrifice to slay the black-haired woman was caused by rage, and Len didn't consider it as a smart move either. The [Berserk] skill altered his mindset for a moment. His common sense stopped working.

But now?

Len felt her thanks was misdirected. She shouldn't thank her.

It was all herself. She did it on her own. Her decision altered the quest which forced Len to act, thus Octo survived.

And he's just a brat, not worth thanking for saving anyone's life. He did it for himself. Not for her. That's he thought.

"..."

Unbeknownst to Len, Novy experienced the same thing.

She used Len as a bait to escape together with her father. She's supposed to abandon him, leave him to his doom while she escape. But the moment his chest was stabbed, all strength and energy left her body.

He didn't scream in pain. He held on and sacrificed himself to save them. A selfless act of kindness and passion to save other people.

Just like Octo, she never witnessed anything like it.

And his act did touch her heart.

"No need for thanks, I just did it for my own sake."

Len doesn't want to lie to them because he knew... he would carry this guilt for the rest of his life. He wanted to tell them the truth that he did it for himself, and not for them. Their reaction however, was something else.

Novy hugged him.

'This boy… no, this man, he…'

Octo patted her shoulder and spoke what she wanted to say.

"Boy, compared to those savages, you… are a true 'apostle'."

"A true… apostle?"

Apostle, a word that has multiple meanings. One of them is 'missionary'. It means a person who is sent on a religious mission to spread the words of gods to a foreign land. Len believed the word apostle in this world has a different context to his, but the gap cannot be too far.

"Yeah. Would you call them apostles? She came here to wreck havoc."

"...No. Not at all."

Novy took a step back and pulled Len back on his feet.

"Let's go back to your room. This salve cannot heal your wound perfectly, we need to bandage it."

"Alright, thanks."

Patting the dust off his clothes, a question popped in his mind.

'The quest… is still not over?'

Boom!!

The workshop's wall got obliterated by a loud explosion. Len almost fall on his bottom and Novy screamed.

"AH!!"

"Novy, run!!"

Len's eyes bulged out, dusts flew everywhere and behind the crater stood a shadow of a person carrying a great sword.

"Finally… found you…"

"H-huh??"

Something was odd about this man. His body was very wet. There's even traces of seaweed in his blonde hair.

"W-what the…"

"The gem."

With bloodshot eyes, the man pointed his sword at Len.

"Hand over the gem!!"

He suddenly appeared before Len could even utter a single word. With a swift thrust, his great sword impaled Len through his stomach.

"..."

And that wasn't all.

The tip of the sword stabbed Octo's right thigh.

To be precise, the pocket where the arcane gem is.