Pick Me Up!

It was a single strike.

“……”

Amidst everyone’s silence, I sheathed my sword.

Whoosh. Blood spurted like a fountain from the giant’s neck. My strike had split his massive steel axe, then separated his head from his body.

Thud.

The body, now headless, staggered and fell to the ground.

“So, that means…”

“I won, didn’t I.”

“Ah, yes. Han Israt, victory!”

I flicked the blood off my sword blade and stepped down from the stage.

The blood seeping into the cracks of the floor gradually became light and disappeared.

That guy will be resurrected in the stadium’s waiting room shortly. That’s why I could cut him down without hesitation.

“Impressive, Hyung-nim!”

Amidst the silence, Aaron shouted.

Stop embarrassing me. I chuckled and headed towards the corridor connected to the waiting room.

Blood dripped down the path I walked.

I opened the door marked ‘Player’s Waiting Room.’

I collapsed onto a sofa in the corner and took out a healing potion.

This was the last potion I had.

Collarbone, ribs, lower abdomen, thigh, calf.

All the annoying places were injured.

Each time I applied the potion to the wounds, a fierce pain surged.

If I hadn’t learned the regeneration skill I would have been completely unable to fight much earlier.

The match I just finished was the round of 32.

I need to win four more times to win the individual competition.

“……Impressive.”

I looked to the side.

A man in a Niflheimr uniform coat was watching me.

Ah, this guy.

He is called the ‘The Second Coming of the Sword Demon.’

“I watched the video in the waiting room. That was a fine sword fight.”

He approached me.

I nodded absently.

Speaking of videos, I turned my head and there was a large TV installed on the waiting room wall.

“My name is Vanil Norchev, a senior trainee from Niflheimr. And you are……”

“Han, from Townia.”

“Townia? You mean Aaron’s?”

“That’s right. He was originally part of our party.”

“There’s quite a difference in level between you two.”

Vanil said expressionlessly.

“I saw the finals of the Battle Royale too. That was praiseworthy. How about it, joining Niflheimr? I heard you were an external trainee as well. You must know about Niflheimr’s excellence. I’ll suggest it to the director when I return.”

He’s spouting fantastic nonsense.

I silently wrapped a bandage around my wound.

“I think you’re one of my kind.”

“One of your kind?”

“Born different, possessing a unique vessel like Lord Ridigion.”

Vanil gripped his scabbard tightly.

“If a rabbit eats meat and a lion grazes, would the world operate correctly? It’s the same with people. Everyone lives according to their given vessel.”

When he mentioned ‘rabbit,’ Vanil’s eyes narrowed.

I knew exactly who he was thinking of, and I laughed.

“Go. I’m not interested.”

“……That’s regrettable.”

At that moment, a call for Vanil resonated in the waiting room.

It seemed it was his turn to participate. Vanil left the waiting room after giving me a nod, suggesting I could always change my mind.

‘Rabbits and lions.’

I don’t blame him.

To him, that was the only logic. Aaron, trying to climb up even though he wasn’t fit to, must seem like a rabbit attempting to eat meat.

‘What happened to Aaron.’

I was the only one left in the player’s waiting room.

I gulped down the last of the healing potion and then glanced at a bulletin board on one side of the room.

A hologram screen was updating the bracket in real-time.

Fortunately.

Aaron’s name was still in the mix.

He hadn’t been eliminated from Group A.

I finished the emergency treatment in the waiting room.

The bleeding had stopped, and I was feeling better, but it would be difficult to fully recover today.

The aftereffects of Ascend last for several days. Carrying this penalty, I had to win the individual match.

Once my body felt somewhat okay, I left the waiting room.

Most of the players were watching the matches on-site.

That would be better for scouting the opponents.

I decided to go to the stadium to watch the match as well.

Vanil was just defeating his opponent.

This time, he used only his fists.

I watched Vanil, who seemed to take it as a matter of course, then turned towards the second floor of the spectator seats.

According to the bracket, it was Aaron’s turn next.

Aaron, holding a spear, was heading towards the stage.

“Whew, the hero called the ‘The Second Coming of the Sword Demon’, he’s really something. The depth of his skill is unfathomable.”

From beside me, the spectators were chattering.

“Who’s the other guy? I’ve never seen him before.”

“He’s from Niflheimr, just like the Sword Demon.”

“Oh, then is that man also exceptional?”

“No, he’s ordinary. He doesn’t overpower his opponents like the Sword Demon. Niflheimr doesn’t really suit him. If you bet on that man, you’re likely to lose everything. He’s lucky to have made it this far, but he’ll probably drop out in the semifinals.”

As I listened to the heroes who had been eliminated in the preliminaries, I smirked and watched Aaron. Facing a dual swordsman, Aaron thrust and swung his spear. The dual swordsman countered by skillfully maneuvering his weapons against Aaron.

“It’s nothing special.”

“Right? There’s no impact. It’s not even fun to watch.”

The spectators gossiped.

That’s to be expected. Aaron didn’t overwhelm his opponent, nor was his fighting style fast or flashy.

Aaron’s techniques were simple thrusts and swings.

Any novice spearman could perform such basic movement.

His movements were neat like a machine, but nothing more. Aaron had not used any of the profound martial arts techniques that involved deep principles of weapon handling.

“He’s so boring. Who else is a contender for the championship?”

“There’s the ‘Mad Dog’.”

“Mad Dog?”

“He committed a massacre in the Battle Royale before entering the individual competition. They say he split his opponent’s weapon and head in half with a single blow. He seems to be in poor physical condition, but that mad beast is essentially a monster… Uh!”

A spectator who made eye contact with me gasped and quickly left his seat.

“What, what?”

“Come with me!”

In an instant, two seats beside me were vacant.

Am I even considered a hero anymore? I clicked my tongue and turned my gaze away.

Or, I tried to.

“……”

Someone was sitting there.

As if they had always been there naturally.

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