126. Strength and Skill

The sword Rika was gripping was a practice iron sword made for training.

With its unsharpened edge, it was closer to a blunt weapon than a proper sword.

Of course, being blunt didn’t make it any less dangerous. A misplaced hit to the head could still knock someone out in one blow.

Shion, too, had picked up an unsharpened axe and wooden shield from the Martial Hall.

They were weapons he was accustomed to, and precisely because he was familiar with them, they were threatening.

The two locked eyes.

Eyes reveal much. Through Shion’s eyes hidden behind his goggles, Rika could anticipate where he intended to strike, while Shion noticed from her pupils that she was analyzing him.

Tension hung in the air.

‘Two weeks in hell must have changed him.’

The porter from two weeks ago and the one now were entirely different people. What kind of experiences in the labyrinth could have altered his gaze so drastically?

The faint killing intent had amplified, and his unrestrained aura writhed violently. It was almost like facing a wild beast. The labyrinth had completely transformed him.

Sharp and savage. Rika swallowed dryly as she measured the distance.

‘How many… how many people has he killed?’

His axe carried the scent of blood that had never been washed away. Similar to the smell that used to linger on her father’s sword. The distinct odor of a killer. Rika knew this scent all too well.

‘High-ranking knights always had this smell.’

Knights were the lord’s blades. Those who would cut down anyone-young or old-if their lord commanded. Most adventurers didn’t carry this scent, for their foes were monsters, not humans.

‘Analysis complete.’

Rika finally decided to strike.

She had roughly gauged his capabilities and deduced just how much axe-work he’d been practicing on humans these past two weeks.

Though not a seasoned murderer, he was no novice hesitant to attack people either.

Rika stepped forward. Her sword, which had been raised to head level to aim at her opponent, slowly descended to mid-height.

“Hmph.”

No words were exchanged.

Speaking during combat consumed more focus and stamina than one might think. A serious duel demanded serious concentration.

BANG-!!!

Shion deflected Rika’s lightning-fast thrust with a slight tilt of his shield, using minimal force. Simultaneously, his axe swung down with enough power to cleave her in two.

Shion’s movements were incomparable to those from two weeks ago.

She had to dodge. The momentum was unnatural. Taking this hit would send her straight to the infirmary unconscious.

Rika swiftly twisted her body to evade the axe and widened the gap. Her sword was slightly longer than Shion’s axe. There was no need to fight within his range.

In the end, close combat with restricted abilities and magic was a battle of distance. The key was not yielding ground while forcing the opponent into your own range.

Shion charged at Rika, who had created distance. Swinging his shield like a weapon, he pressed forward with his axe.

‘Is it working? Rika’s expression looks off.’

Her face had stiffened unnaturally after blocking the first strike. Judging by how her arm recoiled violently, Shion had the upper hand in raw strength.

However, from the third attack onward, she dodged every single one. Overpowering her with brute force was no longer possible.

“Tch…!”

Shion clicked his tongue at Rika, who refused to give him an opening.

Physically, Shion was undoubtedly superior. Having swallowed the Giant’s Essence, his strength and speed had already surpassed Rika’s.

With only three rounds of Maso adaptation under her belt, blocking Shion’s axe head-on would undoubtedly break her wrist. His speed was also far greater, forcing Rika to break into a cold sweat each time he advanced with his shield.

‘But if I don’t take the hits, it doesn’t matter.’

Rika decided to evade all of Shion’s attacks entirely. No matter how strong or fast the opponent, if you could predict their moves, you could avoid them. She could make a fool out of Shion.

Against low-intellect monsters, sheer physicality might suffice, but Shion’s opponent was a battle-hardened female knight.

As a result, the match remained unresolved.

“Damn it…!”

“Porter, you’re too worked up.”

“Huff… Huff…”

Rika compensated for her inferior physical abilities with skill. No matter how hard Shion pressed or how fast he struck, she maintained her rhythm, dismantling each of his attacks one by one.

Shion’s attacks were more straightforward than expected, and Rika reached a level where she could predict his next move just by observing his footwork. His eyes, breathing, and twitching muscles told her everything.

‘Rika’s read all my attack patterns. It’s like she’s dissected me. Is she using mind-reading or something?’

Shion realized it then-that every one of his actions was being deciphered by Rika.

She had already perfectly analyzed his patterns. Until two months ago, Shion had relied more on slings to break enemy skulls from a distance than close combat.

He simply lacked experience in melee. Moreover, having only been in this world for eight months, Rika-trained in combat since childhood-was a wall he couldn’t easily overcome.

This wasn’t a situation where a surprise kill was possible, and within the constraints of a spar, he couldn’t resort to extreme measures. It was just a practice match-he couldn’t exactly start throwing oil flasks and setting things on fire.

“How is it? Still manageable?”

“Not a single attack is landing.”

“It’s not that none are landing. My wrists scream every time I block.”

“You look awfully composed for someone in pain.”

“I am composed.”

“…Let’s go again.”

“Sure. As much as you want.”

Rika smirked at Shion.

For a moment, he wanted nothing more than to bring her down by any means necessary.

‘Damn it…! This bitch…! Using abilities-!!!’

BOOM-!!!

The Martial Hall floor cracked under the force.

Shion’s eyes gleamed like a beast’s, and the remnants of the Great Warrior Shaka within him slowly stirred.

“We agreed no abilities!”

“This isn’t an ability. It’s something else.”

“It is an ability! Agh-!”

The moment Shaka’s remnants surfaced, the tide turned.

Rika rolled across the floor like mad, evading Shion’s attacks.

‘I’m dead. I’m dead. I’m dead…!’

Watching Shion, whose eyes had rolled back as he discarded his shield and went full offense, Rika scrambled to think.

His once-linear attack patterns had transformed into something bestial, and his erratic movements made timing her counters absurdly difficult.

“Come here!”

“Ahhh! Hey, you-! Gah-!”

Only after pinning Rika down did Shion return to his senses.

“Hah… Hah… Did I win?”

“You damn lunatic… Fine, you won. Now get off me.”

Rika shoved Shion away roughly.

He was the first man to charge at her so recklessly and pin her down. Knights usually settled spars by pressing blades to throats or other clean methods of surrender.

This savage, monster-like approach was entirely new to her.

“…”

Flustered, Rika adjusted her disheveled collar as Shion apologized.

“Sorry. I lost control for a second.”

“Whatever. It happens during spars.”

She grabbed his outstretched hand and stood up quickly.

Rika didn’t know what kind of ability Shion had used. But she did notice that his movements had become wildly unpredictable, almost as if his rationality had slipped. Moreover, she got the sense that if he lost control, the ability might consume him.

“Shion!”

“Miss. Looks like your lesson’s over.”

“Yeah! My teacher said we could stop here.”

Just then, Leah, her lesson finished, approached the two.

Her teacher had already vanished without a trace. Being notoriously elusive, disappearing without a sound was routine for him.

“But weren’t you busy, Shion?”

“I just wanted to see you.”

Leah looked thrilled. She was overjoyed that he had come to see her and satisfied that she could show him how hard she was working.

“Is that so? Then did you watch my lesson?”

“Yes. You were working really hard. Watching got me so fired up that I ended up sparring with Rika-nim.”

“Oh? You got fired up and sparred with Rika?”

“Yeah. Seeing you and your teacher spar made my hands itch.”

“Really?”

Leah poked Shion’s side repeatedly at his comment about getting fired up and sparring with Rika.

“Won’t you… spar with me?”

“Huh? Spar? Right now?”

“No. Not that kind of spar. A different one.”

“Huh?”

Watching Shion fail to grasp her meaning, Leah sighed. As the two began their playful banter, Rika cringed and decided she needed to escape immediately.

“Ahem. I should get going, Miss. I’ve got things to do.”

“Oh? Okay. See you back at the dorm.”

“Yes, Miss. Enjoy your time…”

“Rika-nim, are you leaving?”

“Yeah. I’m busy. See you later. Take care of the Miss.”

Rika hurriedly exited the Martial Hall. With her gone, Shion and Leah were left alone.

“Since you’re here, let’s spend more time together.”

“Uh, yeah. Sure. Want to grab food?”

“Yeah. Should we eat first?”

“Sure. My treat today.”

“Really?”

“Of course. How about we get some meat?”

“Great! You’ll buy me beef?”

“I’ll get you beef and horse meat.”

Leah beamed, linking arms with him.

‘That felt natural. Nice.’

The Miss was gradually increasing physical contact.

Shion walked arm-in-arm with her without much thought.

Leah, in turn, felt a sense of comfort seeing Shion so at ease being close to her.

In her life, the only men had been her father and brother. Both were the type who would never tolerate her getting involved with other men, so before coming to the labyrinth city, she had lived in what was essentially a male-free zone.

As a result, everything with Shion felt new and thrilling.

From building their bond to natural physical contact and what others might consider an ordinary date-it was all unfamiliar territory.

“This place is good.”

“Right? If you ignore the price, it’s the best.”

“Is it… expensive?”

“Who cares? Don’t worry about it. I can afford to feed you now.”

“Where’s this confidence coming from?”

“I just took down a giant, remember? After selling that, I’m thinking of buying a house.”

“What? A house?”

“Yeah. I can’t keep mooching off Yuria forever. Might as well buy a big place. Want to live together?”

“Wha-?! Gah! Cough cough…!!”

The suggestion made Leah choke on her meat, leaving her coughing for a long while before she could breathe properly.

“Hey, you can’t just say that out of nowhere.”

“Sorry?”

“Never mind that. More importantly-you’re serious? You’d really let me, of all people, live with you?”

“Well, if you’re okay with it. Yuria will be there too. And probably Olivia and Marin.”

“I don’t care. But… living together means…”

Leah squirmed in embarrassment.

Unlike Yuria, who had already slept with Shion, she was still a virgin. To her, living together meant the start of cohabitation-and, by extension, a semi-marital relationship.

While Shion had merely invited her out of pity for her financial struggles, Leah had already imagined raising children with him.

“Shion.”

“Yes, Miss.”

“No matter how much I think about it, I doubt I’ll give my heart to anyone else within six months. I think… you’re the only one for me.”

Leah grabbed his hand firmly.

“Since I’ve already been disowned, there’s no need to hesitate anymore.”

She steeled her resolve once more.

After nearly two months in the labyrinth city, she couldn’t imagine finding anyone better than him.

“Six months from now… and beyond. It’s only you… Even though… I’ve cut ties with my family and have no money now-“

“That doesn’t matter.”

“Really?”

“It’s not like I’m with you for money.”

“I see. Just wait a little longer, and I’ll earn my Gold Badge quickly. I’ll get stronger so we can… explore the labyrinth together.”

“Sure.”

Watching Leah confess her love and discuss their future with such sincerity, Shion’s face reddened too.

Then, suddenly, he remembered her problem.

“But, Miss.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you still feel the labyrinth’s call?”

“Well… yeah. Something down there is calling me.”

“I see. I think… I might know the answer to that call.”

“What? Really?”

“Yes. I’ve found a clue.”

“A clue?”

“Yeah. Probably…”

Shion recalled what Helena had told him about the 8th Floor.

The Tomb of the Roas.

The abyssal layer where vanished ancient beings gathered.

Something there was undoubtedly calling to Leah.

“We’ll have to go down to the 8th Floor.”

He didn’t know what was summoning her, but the answer surely lay there.