Chapter 5
The variable stat, Finesse
The other instructors and Pike had left after Owens descended the stairs. Owens looked at Crane's status screen carefully and said, "Your stats and level don’t add up, why do you have so much on INT and WIS?"
"Ummm... I read a lot..."
"Seriously?"
"Yes sir. From the point I last met you until two months ago I was in the library reading dozens of books a day."
"So that's what happened huh. Well that explains why you learned the twelve forms in two months. Wisdom decreases the time it takes for a person to learn a skill as well as a few other things."
"Excuse me sir, everyone seems impressed that I can use the twelve forms skill, but the credit should go to Barrows who trained me."
Owens chucked a bit and said, "Kid, there is something you have yet to understand. Barrows, along most of the other people who have the twelve forms as a skill are members of nobility. Because of their highborn stature they're given the priority to use the limited skill books we have which allow for instant use of the twelve forms as a skill. Although practice is considered mandatory, fewer than 1 in 200 of our infantrymen have gained its use as a skill. But don't be fooled, even with high wisdom you didn't have a class. Not having a sword based class means you learn skills at half the rate as a sword user. "
Crane had followed Owens to his study, which was to Crane's surprise, had a quite a few books. "Welcome to my office kid." Owen sat at one end of his desk and motioned for Crane to sit at the other. "Sir," Crane asked, "Why does my new stat not have a value? It should be at zero with plus ten shouldn't it?" "Thats what I'm about to tell you kid." Owens waited for Crane to seat himself before starting up again. "Now, Finesse. It is what we call a variable stat. When you use a skill that is based off finesse, how well you perform the activation routine is rated on a scale of one to one hundred. The higher the rating, the more powerful the effect of the skill. Most finesse skills are a personal use buffs." Owen picked up a book on his table and dropped it in front of Crane. "I said before that nobility are given priority to skill book use but your performance today showed you deserve these things way more than those pompous, self-serving, backstabbing..... Never mind, this one is yours now. The skills here require the Finesse stat to use anyways so no point in saving them for someone else."
Crane put his hand on the cover of the book and and said, "Identify."
Soa's Legacy
C-Grade Skill book
The autobiography of Soa Thorn
Shows detailed drawing of pre-form routines used by the Kingdom of Kallamore's most elegant swordsman throughout the book.
Teaches the skill: Soa's Routines
Single Use
Requirements:
Sword based class with Finesse Stat
Crane looked at Owen, "Is it really ok for me to use this sir?"
Owen replied, "Course it is, I learned those skills years ago, this isn't the only copy of this book."
Now Crane understood why the book was only C-grade item. Although it would teach several highly useful skills, it could only be learned by a very small group of people and this book had several copies. There may even have been more copies of this book than there were people who could use it.
Crane put his hand over the book again and said, "Learn."
You have learned new skill: Soa's Routines
Crane said aloud, "Skill window Soa's Routine "
Skill Window Soa's RoutineSoa's Routine [1] 0%
Majestic Stance- Increases attack strength and speed of techniques performed after stance used
-ATK and ATK SPD +10% for 2 technique after use at level [1]
Mana Cost: 20
Regal Guard- Increase defense and chance of successful parry after use
-Defense +5 Luck +10 at level [1]
Mana Cost: 30
Noble Step- Increase movement speed to dodge oncoming attack after use
-Movement speed +20% for 2 steps after use at level [1]
Mana Cost: 15
All effects are multiplied by Finesse stat/100
Crane had not been told yet so he had to ask. "Sir, what kind of class uses finesse? If I can't add points to it is there any point in gaining the stat before becoming the class?"
"Wait wait, just give me a moment to explain. The class that you're going to become when your skills and level are high enough is called Fencer. Besides the fact that being a Fencer adds +50 to your finesse, as a fencer you will be able to create your own routines and buffs. In order to do that however you must understand the source of power behind finesse and I can't tell you it. Only after you figure it out yourself can you make the most out of finesse and create your own forms when you become a fencer."
"I understand sir, but how does a high level fencer compare to say, a knight or paladin?"
"That depends entirely on how well you come to understand the finesse stat. If you fail to understand it you will be be no match for any swordsman of the same level. But if you master it not only will you gain a power equal to anyone's you will be able to create forms that can do anything any skill of a knight or paladin can do. Know of course this is no easy thing, the number of fencers who rose to this level on in the history of the continent can be counted on the fingers of one hand."
"Can you do it sir?"
"Nope, I'm better than your average swordsman but I got cheated at a crucial part of my growth that prevented me from mastering it and creating my own routines."
"How did you get cheated?"
Owens looked down at Crane with a smirk and said, "I asked too many questions about finesse and got all the answers instead of figuring out myself. But that's enough of that, now that you have a class and some skills it is time to put you to work. You'll be heading off on an escort mission tomorrow morning. Until then you are dismissed."
Crane let out a deep sigh and stood up. Owen then said, "Wait, I forgot one last thing to give you, a graduation from basic training present." Owen pulled a sword from beneath the table and presented it to Crane. Crane took the sword and said, "Identify."
Light Rapier
Durability 77/80
Damage- 10~12
A fine rapier made of quality iron. The back of the blade was made with a stronger iron, making it more durable
Options: +5 AGI
Requirements:
STR 50
AGI 50
The sword was vastly superior to what he had been using and was of a higher quality than he should've received. Crane looked at Owen for a moment but only thanked him before leaving.
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For the next few hours Crane practiced his new skills while trying to incorporate Soa's routines into his swordplay. Each routine was a small, precise motion that put an emphasis on elegant movement. Majestic stance required Crane to stand in a specific form, then from that form move his left hand behind his back while making a circle with the tip of the sword in his right and stop in the stance in a position that basically said, 'I will defeat you with flair.' Regal Guard required him to stand in a similar starting pose but he had to sweep his back leg behind him, make a twist with his wrist and end it with his sword pointed up and his wrist an inch in front of his chest. Noble Step had to be started with all the weight on one foot and the other foot touching the ground by the toe with the sword in front of the chest pointed up. The skills could not be stacked until intermediate level. Whenever he used a routine a number flash in his vision showing what Finesse stat he got for that routine. However even with eight hours of trial and error practice he could only average 20~30 finesse per use. When he ran out of mana for practicing he would practice the motions until his mana returned.
As the morning came, a man who was clearly a Knight Crane never saw before and a short young man who looked only a little older than Crane found him practicing. The Knight said, "My name is Levi and this young master is Geoffry Xander Cornilius Koritan. Master Koritan requires a specimen found in the plains and is going to retrieve it. I of course will accompany him for his protection but should something happen to me, he will need at least one other person. However the master has certain requirements, he disdains travelling with people older than he is, myself excluded. I asked for assistance from the army and was informed you were the most skilled swordsman who was younger than the master." The nobleman next to Levi looked at Crane and said, "Will you do it?"
Obtaining the specimen
A nobleman of Yarsan had insisted that only someone younger than himself may escort him with his knight bodyguard to find something in the grasslands, and you're who the army pointed out.
Difficulty: D
Quest Requirements:
Younger than the quest giver
Fail if Nobleman dies
This quest is given to you as a member of the Army, refusal or failure will result in criminal charges.
Crane read the details on the message for a moment before answering.
"As you command."
You have accepted the quest
Crane didn't exactly have a choice in the matter.
After that Crane and Levi both purchased many supplies for themselves and Levi lead them through the city gates and onto a gravel road.
Crane wanted to ask what the hell they were looking for, but didn't. The young nobleman would likely use anything Crane said or did against him. Geoffry spotted a group of wolves in the distance and said to Crane, "I am bored, entertain me and kill those dogs."
Crane looked up to Levi for a moment but he didn't say anything so Crane could only reply, "As the master wishes."
At least he would have something to vent his frustration on. He could barely use the routines, but he still had the swordsman skills he gained when he got the class and had yet to use them on something living. Crane walked to the group and let out a loud whistle. The group immediately noticed him and started running. The first thing he wanted to try was a combo of Dash and Power Lunge, to see if they complemented each other. As the first wolf approached him he used both the skills simultaneously, shortening the distance between the coyote and himself in a single step while reeling back his arm to perform his power lunge. The coyote had not expected the sudden acceleration and tried to turn away, but the point of Crane's power lunge followed it and ended him in an instance. The other two coyotes circled Crane, but he never lost their position. Crane showed his back to them to get them to attack in the same direction. In the moment he felt they would attack, Crane turned and met their attack with a barrage of piercing attacks. His flurry skill was a continuous mana burner but it did the trick. The wolves unwilling jumped into a wall of stabs and dissolved before they could make a sound.
The use of skills was just for show. Crane had hunted wolves with his former unit many times and was currently at least twice their level. That and he had just gained the +50% attack bonus that every warrior class enjoyed.
Crane sheathed his sword and returned to his audience. Geoffry smiled and said, "Levi could take them all with a single attack from a distance. But I guess that you have some skill for a commoner." Crane could only repress a, 'you wanna be next brat?!'
Crane had read many stories that involved circumstances like this one so he tried to act the part of the ever so humble adventurer. In some of those stories the nobleman had been targeted by assassins, gotten sick and died from exposure, or eaten by monsters the nobleman found and thought 'would make wonderful pets.' Crane spent his time wondering which of those he would rather have occur, but he would be imprisoned if the quest failed, so he decided it would be for the best to avoid those ends. Although it was just an escort mission the quest difficulty was not E, but D. Crane was not going to underestimate the quest.
After three days of walking on the path, Levi and Geoffry turned and continued off the path. After another half hour of walking Levi said, "We have arrived young master." The only thing Crane saw was there was a dead tree. Levi walked up to the base of the tree and pulled open a hidden hatch. Geoffery went in first and Levi waited for Crane to enter before entering himself and closing the hatch behind him. Levi then said, "What we need is at the end of this dungeon."
Now the difficulty of the quest became clear, this dungeon was likely filled with monsters much higher than his level and not only did he have to make it the end and back, but do so while making sure a spoiled nobleman didn't die along the way.
They went down a long flight of stairs which lead to a door. Levi said to Crane, "I will take care of the monsters, you are to protect the young master and stay by his side. You are not to be distracted by fallen items. You may only fight monsters I allow you to fight. Is that clear?" Levi gave Crane a stern gaze and he knew why. If Crane was the type to leave Geoffry's side in search of experience and japtem then he was less than useless. Crane said, "I will protect him with my life and watch our backs." Levi nodded and opened the door.
*Ding*
You are the first adventurer to enter the Depths of the Burrower
Benefits: Fame increased by 40.
Double experience, 2x item drop rate.
The first monster killed will drop a good quality item.
According to the royal road guide, the first party to enter a dungeon with a user activated a bonus. Although the Knight with him had likely been here before, Crane was the first user since Royal Road's release to enter the dungeon.
The tunnels looked like they had been dug by giant moles, twisting and parting at various places with strange glowing roots sticking out from the rounded dirt walls that covered the tunnels in a light blue glow. Crane had been on the lookout for for any signs of monster activity when Levi stopped. There was a tremor in the ground and the walls of the dirt tunnel opened revealing giant wolf sized insects. To Crane they looked like a cross between an ant and a beetle, and there were now six of them in front of Levi. The Knight drew his long sword and started slashing away at the bugs, cleaving through each one with a single stroke. From that point on there was an almost constant stream of insects, flowing through the walls at them.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Levi always seemed to position the party so that the grass beetles would always appear in front of him. But at one point he said, "Get ready!" Two bugs popped out from the ground behind them while Levi fought what looked to be more than a dozen bugs on his side. Crane had been observing the bugs Levi killed and noticed that they only attack with their mandibles and had a hard exoskeleton. They were the kind of enemy that required squishing as opposed to piercing. Crane had a moment before they were within range so took his Majestic Stance. 35! Higher than he got while practicing, the stance gave him a small boost in attack strength and speed for his next two attacks. When the bugs were within his sword's reach, he used his flurry attack to send a strengthened wall of thrusts. However unlike the wolves he met earlier, the weak series of thrusts either scratched or bounced off the hard exterior. It only kept them at bay until Crane ran out of mana which would be in about thirty more seconds. The bugs inched closer and closer and after ten seconds were within striking range of Crane, until Levi's sword swept them both in a single hit. In the twenty something seconds since Crane had looked behind him, Levi had killed all the bugs on his side. Levi looked at Crane and said, "You'll never get anywhere poking their shells with your kind of strength. Instead of Flurry, pierce the space between the sections."
After that Crane had more luck, the level of the grass beetles were around the mid 40s, and Crane took about half a minute of stabbing the gaps between the shells to kill a single bug while avoiding the bite from it's mandibles. Somehow Levi must've known where the bugs would appear from the ground, because Crane never had to fight more bugs than he could handle. About an hour after entering the dungeon Crane had leveled up 3 times. The experience from high level monsters and a double exp bonus for being the first User to discover the dungeon were the reason for the absurd pace of his leveling.
After Crane had gotten more adept at killing the bugs, Levi seemed to make it so he was now facing at least four bugs at a time. Geoffry had not actually said a word since their arrival, for which Crane was grateful for. It may have been because he knew better, or more likely that he was reasonably entertained by their battles. Either way it didn't matter, Crane stayed close to Geoffry killing monsters, practicing his finesse buffs, and leveling up through the whole place.
To Crane it seemed that they were traveling in circles. They had been in the tunnels for 2 whole days, and Crane had leveled up to 47, his sword mastery hit level 8, and his finesse stat was averaging 40.
Skill Level Up: Soa's Routine [3]
Your routines have greater effect
Crane had just killed another bug with a finesse boosted strike when he got a message it had leveled up. "Show Skill Window Soa’s Routine"
Skill Window Soa's RoutineSoa's Routine [3] 1%
Majestic Stance- Increases attack strength and speed of techniques performed after stance used
-ATK and ATK SPD +30% for 3 technique after use
Mana Cost: 20
Regal Guard- Increase defense and chance of successful parry after use
-Defense +15 Luck +30 for next movement
Mana Cost: 30
Noble Step- Increase movement speed to dodge oncoming attack after use
-Movement speed +90% for 3 steps after use
Mana Cost: 15
All effects are multiplied by Finesse stat/98
The effects of the skills had increased and the reduction under the finesse stat had decreased. Crane's skills could now take down a bug in as little as three hits.
Crane saw that Levi had noticed the change, as he started descending further down into the dungeon. From these walls came darker bugs with smaller gaps between their armor. These were likely the soldier bugs and the other variety was the workers. Once again Crane was back to taking up to thirty seconds to kill a single bug, but he was grateful he could get stronger before coming down here. Then Crane realized what was happening.
Levi first fought in front of Crane, revealing the bugs patterns. He then allowed Crane to fight a small amount and gave advice on the bugs weaknesses. After that he gave only the amount Crane could work with, increasing Crane's skill proficiency and level, and waited while wandering in circles for Crane to rise to this point.
Levi was basically investing in Crane. Although this could be seen as a kind gesture, Crane saw the truth. No matter how powerful Levi was, even if he could protect Geoffrey on his own, when they reached the end of the dungeon Levi would not be able to protect him with certainty. That is why he was strengthening Crane.
In this way another two days past in the dungeon and Crane gained eight more levels. He has also gotten experienced with the soldier bugs movements and could take on up to five at a time. Crane sometimes caught Levi smirking at him from the corner of his eye.
As Levi, Geoffry and Crane were descending again, Levi stopped and said, The Queen's chamber and the specimen the young master seeks are at the end of this tunnel. In the corner of the chamber is a boulder. Follow the young master to it, he will stay there and you must protect him while I deal with the queen. You understand?" Crane said, "No harm shall come to him under my watch." Levi looked at Geoffry and said, "Are you ready young master?" He smiled and said, "Make it a great show." The knight nodded and the party continued to the queen's chamber.
The room was larger than his middle school auditorium and completely empty. Crane saw a refrigerator sized rock in the corner of the room and went over to it with Geoffry. Levi went to the center of the room and the ground started to quake. From the ground emerge something that looked like a cross between a beetle and a lobster, and was as large as a truck. Above the bug was a name, The Burrower. After a thought Crane realized that the queen was the one who made the tunnels and the dungeon. After it appeared it did not look at Levi, but Crane and Geoffry.
The creature started to rush to them as Levi used his Bash skill on the bug, sending it to the opposite wall and charging at it. Before Levi could get to it the bug screamed. Levi then started fighting it, using massive skills but the bug used it's large frontal claws as shields against his attacks and used the pause between skills to strike at Levi.
Meanwhile, the entire room started to shake in a low hum. Dozens of bugs, both soldier and worker, popped out from the dirt. Levi was on one side of the room fighting the Borrower, and Crane was on the other with Geoffry and a boulder behind him. The bugs appeared from the walls, floor and roof. Who ever they were closer to on their emergence they would move towards, leaving Crane with twenty plus and counting bugs to deal with.
He took a peek behind him at Geoffry who was sitting against the rock with a relaxed smile on his face, watching Levi fight the queen. It was not that Geoffry had confidence that he would be fine or that he had the skills to take care of himself. Crane concluded that Geoffry, who had been protected and pampered all his life could not even register a sense of fear. It must've been like watching a movie, or playing one of the video games that Crane hated.
At that last thought he could feel a sense of fury rise inside him. Crane looked at the sea of bugs that approached him, and imagined his sword piercing each one. They were no longer enemies, just a means to vent his frustration at the brat behind him. At that moment to Crane, the battle was already over. He performed a Majestic stance. 75! The fact that his finesse stat had gone 35 points over what it had ever gone before was irrelevant to him. "Twelve forms," he muttered, Crane began the extermination. He no longer had a sense of self, he had become an extension of the technique. Crane had over 1200 mana left after using Majestic Stance, and the reduced mana cost of twelve forms was 10 mana per second. Against the endless wave of bugs, if Levi had not defeated the queen in under two minutes, Crane would be left defenseless. Crane's sense of time had extended from his stance's AGI buff allowing him to aim for the weakest point of the bugs and score consecutive critical hits, but it made seconds feel like hours and he did not know how much longer it would take before Levi was finished. Crane could only take on each bug that got in his range one at a time until his slowly depleting mana bar ran dry. So with abandoned fury he annihilated bug after bug after bug.
After slaying another worker, Crane saw the last of his mana bar disappear. Crane would not go down without a fight, so he started to use his regular attacks. The soldier bug in front of him was damaged by his attack but it did not fall and was close enough to give Crane a nasty bite. Crane noticed his health had dropped to about half, and that another bug was coming at him from the side. Crane stabbed the soldier bug through the eye into its head, dealing a critical hit and dissolving it just as two worker bugs came at him with the first he saw a moment ago taking a bite out of him. With less than a quarter of his health remaining, Crane jumped onto his attacker's back and fought the second bug while his ride bucked up and down. Crane got a lucky shot on the second bug and was able to kill it. He then turned his blade down and put his weight into boring the sword through the gap between its body and head armor, right through its neck. The worker dissolved and Crane looked around for his next target, desperate to take down at least one more before his was killed. But there were none.
New Stat: Fighting SpiritNew Stat: Perseverance
Crane ignored the messages and looked for Geoffry to see him still sitting calmly against the boulder and Crane realized that not only were the rest of the bugs on Levi's side, but that they had stopped coming through the walls at some point. Crane heard the queen let out another loud screech as it dissolved into nothingness. Levi took care of the other dozen or so bugs left in ten or so strikes and rushed over to Crane and Geoffry only to see that Geoffry was fine and there were no bugs left on Crane's side.
"I can't believe you finished before I did," said Levi.
Crane said, "I only survived because you helped strengthen me to this point, and because the waves of bugs stopped. If you hadn't waited for me to get stronger by annihilating hundreds of the bugs in the dungeon during the wait, the waves would've lasted five times longer and I would've been bug food."
Levi replied to that, "I have no idea what you're talking about. I may have used my Knight's Sixth Sense skill to find monster locations and let you have a few, but the reason we traveled in circles earlier is because that queen changes this dungeon's layout every few weeks and I got completely lost."
Crane's respect for Levi as a level headed knight who thought every action through vanished. Levi approached the rock as Geoffry got up and watched him slash through the rock at a diagonal. The top part slid off and a green goo started to pour out. Crane realize why the queen headed for him and Geoffry at the beginning, it was protecting its young. Geoffry got out an empty jar large enough to fit one's head inside and dumped it into the egg, scooping out what looked like a huge bug larva.
Quest Complete: Obtaining the specimen
The nobleman obtained the specimen he requested and did not receive a single injury along the way.
You have Leveled Up
You have Leveled Up
You have Leveled Up
Crane walked up to the sliced egg and put his hand on the shell, "Identify."
Queen Grass Beetle egg
Filled with Larva.
Matures to full growth eight weeks after hatching.
Required food and nourishment for the first two weeks from their mother
Crane was disgusted when he realized what had just happened. This spoiled brat wanted this bug for some reason and he had everything that was in his way, the bug's mother included, killed to get it. Although these bugs were not exactly cute and cuddly, the whole thing gave Crane a sour feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Crane asked Levi, "If I am no longer of any service to you, I would like to return separately." This was more than a statement, it was a test. The reason Levi brought Crane in the first place was because no matter how strong you are, this is not a place one should be alone. If Levi valued Crane he would insist on Crane returning with them. If Crane was seen as a tool to be used by Geeofry then Levi would have no further use of him and would not care either way.
Levi said, "Do as you will, the reward for your services will be left at your base." Levi left the queen's chamber with Geoffry behind him.
Chapter 6 The Skill to Win viewtopic.php?f=91&t=577&p=2356#p2356
Chapter 4 The Way of the Sword viewtopic.php?f=91&t=575