Chapter 125 Life Is Precious Just By Being There
The ≪Extreme Sword≫ that appeared before the captains' eyes looked extremely unwell for some reason.
However, his expression wasn't bad. He had a calm face, as if he had been freed from all pain.
"What's wrong, Lord of Extreme Sword? You... seem to be in a really bad state..."
They're about to explore up to the 46th floor.
Aaron, who's supposed to lead the way for them 'Dark Crows,' looks unreliable. Without him, they can't reach the 46th floor, and without him, they can't defeat the guardians of the 40th and 45th floors. And yet, Aaron, their crucial fighting force, is in this state.
"If you're not feeling well, should we postpone this exploration...?"
No, it's not just a matter of postponing; he should be taken to the medical clinic right away.
The captain thought the exploration would definitely be postponed, but asked to confirm.
However, Aaron just laughed calmly and waved his hand.
"No, no, don't worry about me. ...I'm not feeling bad at all."
"""......"""
The captain was speechless.
There were too many things to tsukkomi (make a witty remark), and he didn't know what to say.
He's saying he's not feeling bad, but his body is clearly unwell, or He's saying he's fine, but we're worried, or He's not usually this casual.
"""......"""
The subordinates' gazes focused on the captain.
There was an unspoken pressure to do something.
The captain had no choice but to open his mouth.
"But, Lord of Extreme Sword... are you really going to take us to the 46th floor? ...Are you okay?"
"Yes, of course. There's no need for you all to worry. I'll definitely take you all to the 46th floor. Leave everything to me."
Aaron nodded calmly without hesitation, his expression serene.
The captain knew well of ≪Extreme Sword≫'s strength. If Aaron himself was this confident, then it would surely be okay.
However, the captain couldn't shake off a lingering sense of unease.
"So, is that so... By the way, Lord of Extreme Sword."
"Yes, what is it?"
"You look really pale, what happened?"
If he said something like he got poisoned or infected with an incurable disease, the captain would have decided to cancel the exploration for today without hesitation.
But Aaron's answer was not what they expected.
"...It's just one cup, that's all."
"――What? One cup?"
Aaron suddenly looked far away and started talking.
What did he mean by "one cup"? Was he weak to alcohol and got like this after just one cup? No way, that's impossible. They had seen him drinking multiple cups of liquor with a beer mug during the Nord defeat celebration.
So what was it? Was it poison again?
Aaron told them an incomprehensible word, making them suspect even more.
"...I just had one cup of soup, that's all... And that's why I'm like this."
"Y-yes...? Soup, you say...?"
Was that some kind of metaphor?
Even when they looked at him questioningly, Aaron just smiled and didn't answer. And there was also a question about why he said he "ate" the soup instead of "drank" it.
In the Continental Common Language, "to drink" and "to eat" were clearly distinguished and used different words. Although it was possible to say "ate" when referring to a hearty soup, when explicitly saying "soup", it was more common to say "drank".
(Ugh, what's the point of saying you had one cup of soup and that's it? That's definitely not it)
It might be a difficult question to answer. But they couldn't afford not to get an answer.
"Lord of Extreme Sword... Did you get poisoned through the soup?"
That would make sense. But Aaron clearly denied it.
"It's not poison. If we define it academically... it's just cooking."
"......"
Why did he need to define it academically? And why did it change from "soup" to "cooking"?
They were torn between asking or not asking, but Aaron didn't give them the time.
"Well, everyone. Let's get going then. I'll take the lead, so please follow me."
"Ah, that... I understand."
And so, without finding a clear reason to stop their exploration, Aaron and the 10 'Dark Crow' members decided to head towards the 46th floor.
* * *
Their unease and suspicion towards Aaron were blown away.
It wasn't because they saw him fight on the way here.
In fact, there were no battles at all on the way here.
(What's going on...!! This isn't what I expected...!!)
Aaron and the 'Dark Crow' members, including him, advanced through the Snowfield Floor while maintaining their stealth.
Stealth refers to the technique of neutralizing magical energy and perfectly concealing it within oneself to deceive the [magical energy sense]. To be more accurate, this includes killing one's presence, moving quietly, and encompassing all of these to achieve stealth.
For Scout Jobs, these can be achieved through various skills.
And what's special about this technique compared to other combat Jobs' skills is that it can be recreated even without skills.
What's necessary is the technique to kill one's presence, move quietly, and control magical energy.
Surprisingly, no aura is used in the technique to achieve stealth. Therefore, it's said that even other Jobs can recreate this technique with sufficient training.
Aaron had successfully imitated this technique to an extremely high level.
(But that's not all. It's not just that. It's inexplicable how we have been able to avoid encounters with monsters until now.)
The skills that Scout Jobs possess to hide themselves are diverse.
It's a given that they can move without making a sound, and they have skills to not release body odor to avoid detection by monsters with a keen sense of smell (not erase, but not release). They also have skills to deceive body temperature, create decoys using aura to divert attention, and even skills that utilize the refraction of aura to obscure their appearance.
Indeed, Aaron seemed to be imitating many Scout skills, both those that use aura and those that don't. However, compared to other combat Jobs, his Scout skills are special. As a professional, the captain was inferior to him in terms of the number of skills he could use.
And so, it's impossible to deceive all the monsters in this floor.
That's what it means.
(Why don't we encounter any monsters? It can't be...)
One possibility.
To confirm it, the captain took a risk and asked Aaron, who was walking ahead.
"Lord of Extreme Sword, why haven't we encountered any monsters since earlier?"
Aaron turned his face towards the captain while walking with his black cane, a walking aid.
"Ah, it's because we're avoiding them, that's why."
He replied as if it was only natural.
The captain was convinced that his guess was correct.
In other words, Aaron was saying, "I'm using my [magical energy sense] to detect the monsters' locations and avoid them, so we haven't encountered any."
With his stealth abilities and such a wide and accurate [magical energy sense], it was certainly possible.
However, it sounded too simple when explained logically, but it was actually abnormal.
Avoiding battles with monsters and moving forward. That in itself wasn't surprising to the captain and his team. After all, they usually did that when exploring the deeper floors of the labyrinth.
However, it was only possible by using numerous scouting skills. While [magical energy sense] could detect and avoid monsters, it wasn't perfect up until now.
(By the way, Lord of Extreme Sword used to explore the deeper layers floor, so he must be skilled in [magical energy sense]... His training is incredible...
He was completely mimicking several scouting skills, and his techniques were truly impressive.
But there was something that couldn't be understood.
"Ah, Lord of Extreme Sword."
"What is it, Captain?"
The captain asked Aaron, who was smiling calmly.
"Why don't you fight them?"
Clearly, at this level of depth, the only one with a decent fighting power is Aaron. They can try not to be a hindrance, but they won't be of much help.
That's why it's understandable to avoid fighting as much as possible.
It's understandable, but they never thought they wouldn't fight at all.
Aaron calmly replied to the captain's question.
"That's right... we still have a long way to go. So, to conserve our energy, I think we should avoid fighting as much as possible. And..."
"And?"
Aaron stopped, gazing at the vast, majestic landscape of Snowfield Floor as if lost in thought.
"I'm... I just don't like fighting, that's all."
"......What?"
It was an unexpected and unbelievable statement coming from the mouth of the ≪Extreme Sword≫.
They couldn't help but stare at Aaron in surprise.
Aaron looked back at the captains with a compassionate gaze.
"Life is precious just by existing, just by being alive... and yet, to throw it away in a meaningless battle is a grave sin, don't you think?"
"Uh, uh..."
They didn't know what he was talking about, but it was clear that those were his true feelings.
So, they wondered if he would really fight when the time came, and the captains felt uneasy.
((Is this guy okay?))
They had the composure not to express their unease directly in front of him.
"Well, let's go."
"""......"""
The "Dark Crow" members followed Aaron, still feeling uneasy.
As they walked, the captain thought to themselves.
(Lord of Extreme Sword's skills are certainly amazing, but with this many people, I don't think we can avoid all the monsters until the 40th floor...)
That concern would soon prove to be correct.
However, they would soon come to realize something else――the extraordinary skills of the ≪Extreme Sword≫, which wouldn't falter even with a warped personality, and above all, his compassionate heart, like that of a saint.
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