The Absolute Speed of a Certain Comic 132

Title: The Promise Given by Finn

Allowing a Level 1 newcomer to join an expedition is almost like a joke.

“When I choose expedition members, aside from necessary personnel like the combat and logistics departments, the only factor to consider is whether the members need to gather great achievements. However, I heard you’ve been training on the middle floors with Lefiya and Line. Great achievements shouldn’t be difficult for you, right?”

Great achievements can be gained by forming a team; for instance, an expedition of the Loki Familia to at least the 50th Floor would undoubtedly be a significant achievement for 90% of adventurers.

As long as an adventurer can follow the main forces of the Loki Familia, they would almost certainly gather the necessary great achievements to level up.

To help his Familia members level up, outside the normal formation, Finn only allows members who urgently need to accumulate great achievements to join the expedition team.

“Frankly, I might become a burden if I follow you, right?”

Hoshiharu didn’t hide any thoughts and directly addressed Finn’s concerns.

“...Yeah, that’s true.”

Finn spread his hands.

He didn’t want to say it. After all, he had to maintain his friend’s dignity, but he didn’t expect Hoshiharu to take the initiative to clarify this.

Hoshiharu’s combat skills could indeed be considered very strong, but he himself was still somewhat inexperienced. Unfortunately, during an expedition, what’s required is more than just strong combat skills—a strong self is also needed.

Since an expedition is a team fight, facing large numbers of incoming monsters, it’s impossible to fight individually. One must break up the ranks and face monsters in group battles.

“If I can level up before the expedition starts, would you take me with you?”

Soon after, Hoshiharu proposed a condition that nearly made Finn’s jaw drop.

“What? Level up?”

Finn was stunned.

“If I remember correctly, you only joined about 20 days ago. Have you already reached your limit?”

Even if Hoshiharu had been training on the middle floors, this speed was too fast to be normal.

It’s worth noting that Orario’s fastest level-up record from Level 1 to Level 2 is about one year. This record was set by the Sword Princess, Ais, so Finn couldn’t be mistaken.

But now, only 20 days had passed, and Hoshiharu was already close to the threshold for leveling up?

“According to Loki, I can indeed level up at any time now, but she asked me to train a bit more and wait until I reach my limit.”

Hearing this, Finn thought deeply.

If Loki herself said this, it couldn’t be wrong.

To be honest, Finn did hold Hoshiharu in high regard and believed he could break the record set by Ais, but according to his estimation, it would take two or three months. Twenty days was truly beyond common sense.

“How about this?”

Finn pondered for a long time before lifting his now serious face.

“I can give you a promise, but the condition must change. Before the expedition begins, if you can manage a draw with Raul... no, if you can last two minutes against him, I’ll agree to let you join the expedition team.”

Raul Nord, that porcupine-headed fool.

The Level 4 frontline fighters are very close to Level 5. They are the strongest group within the Loki Familia aside from the executives.

“...Agreed.”

Hoshiharu thought for a moment and agreed without further negotiation.

After leveling up, lasting two minutes against Raul was something he was confident he could do.

❀❀❀

Early morning.

*CLANK*

The sound of continuous clashing steel echoed in the courtyard, constantly hitting people’s eardrums.

A blonde girl, dignified as a goddess, and a black-haired boy, so handsome even the gods felt ashamed, were sparring in the open space of the atrium.

The tips of the rapier and katana continuously clashed under the strong wind that tore through the atmosphere. The speed of the two swords was so fast that it couldn’t be clearly seen with the naked eye.

Ais’s swordsmanship style was like a storm combo, incredibly sharp and carrying a sense of overwhelming grandeur. For her, even fighting had become an art.

But Hoshiharu was surpassing her.

His swordplay was also like a fierce storm, and its sharpness seemed to surpass Ais’s. The process of swinging his sword was like dancing, filled with intoxicating beauty.

*CLANK*

As the sound of blocking rang out, Ais unconsciously took a step back, and the hand holding her rapier nearly became unstable. She increased her strength in time to stabilize the sword in her hand.

“...I lost.”

Ais looked at the hand holding rapier, then lowered her eyelids slightly, announcing her defeat with a bit of frustration.

In the confrontation just now, Hoshiharu could have drawn his sword.

She instinctively used power exceeding Level 1 to stabilize her sword’s hilt.

However, the agreement between the two at the start of their sword practice was not to rely on strong physical strength but only to compare swordsmanship, so Ais had truly lost.

“Compared to yesterday, there’s one less flaw in your swordsmanship, which is a good result.”

“...I can’t compare to you.”

Although she clearly received praise from Hoshiharu, Ais wasn’t happy at all.

Because Hoshiharu used her own swordsmanship.

He didn’t use his own swordsmanship but directly learned her swordsmanship while fighting her, and then used it to defeat her.

In Ais’s eyes, this technique was truly astonishing.

“Can’t you teach me your swordsmanship?”

Ais lifted her head and looked at Hoshiharu with somewhat reluctant yet eager eyes.

She knew her request was sudden, but it also showed how confident and eager she was about Hoshiharu’s swordsmanship.

“It’s not that I can’t teach it, but if I do, it might not be good for you.”

Hoshiharu shook his head.

“Your swordsmanship has already formed its own style. If I recklessly change your swordsmanship, it will only confuse you. If you fail to learn this, you can discard it.”

Indeed.

If Ais could have the unreasonable swordsmanship talent of Hoshiharu, there wouldn’t be any problem. But unfortunately, Ais didn’t have his talent, so she could only advance step by step.

Ais’s upturned eyes lowered again.

Even her shoulders slumped slightly, looking frustrated and defeated.

“There’s no need to be too frustrated... I can teach you the sword techniques I’ve developed, but it’s up to you how much you can learn.”

Hoshiharu paused for a moment, then suggested after some thought.

“Really?”

Ais’s eyes brightened, and it felt like the world regained its color, her slight depression suddenly disappearing.

“Yeah.”

Hoshiharu nodded.

A girl who was easy to understand.

The range of her facial expressions was very small, often giving others the impression of coldness, but after truly interacting with her, one would find that she wasn’t very good at expressing her thoughts.

As soon as there were emotional ups and downs in her heart, Ais would react very straightforwardly, with everything written on her face, making her easy to understand.

Like a simple little animal.

Hoshiharu sometimes wondered, if he touched her head, would Ais act like a pet and rub her head against his hand?