Classic Saber Draw Slash

"My lord, I'll fetch Physician Blai right away!"

Anke, the butler, had just returned to the baron's castle when he saw Lister's disheveled, torn clothes, which were also speckled with blood.

Coupled with the strong stench of blood all over Lister, the sight instantly filled his eyes with alarm.

Although he hoped the new Baron Merrick could pull himself together and restore the family's glory,

he certainly didn't want Lister to suffer a serious injury or even face death. Anke himself was already in his twilight years and only wanted to spend his retirement with the Merick Family.

If anything happened to Lister, it would be almost impossible for a butler like him to enter another noble's service. Trust alone would be a major obstacle.

"A physician? I thought the family no longer retained any professionals."

"Physician Blai isn't a professional."

Ever since accepting his identity, Lister had known that he couldn't resurrect endlessly like a game character, so he had stopped acting rashly.

Even though he believed ordinary Three-Headed Hound Knights posed no threat to him,

he had still returned home to rest and recover, just to be safe.

When Physician Blai, whom Butler Anke had mentioned, came over, he too was an elderly man.

He had learned some basic local treatment for external injuries and was indeed not the healing-class professional Lister had imagined.

"My lord, you seem to have suffered a heavy impact, but it's nothing serious. You only need to rest for a few days."

"If you're still concerned, my lord, just drink a little holy water."

With that, he took a large glass bottle full of water from inside his clothes. From the outside, there was no telling that it was the so-called "holy water."

Only after scanning it with the system did Lister believe that the very elderly Physician Blai really wasn't the sort of feudal physician who swindled people.

"Obtained the church's low-grade healing water. Effect: slowly restores health and stamina."

Lister didn't use it immediately. His health was recovering fairly smoothly indoors, rising by 20 points an hour.

A good sleep should take care of it. He would save the low-grade healing water for when he returned to the three-headed hounds' lair in the coming days.

In his room, the history book of the Kingdom of Lucian still lay open on the table, untouched.

Lister opened the system panel.

[Remaining experience: 41210]

The next moment, he spent it on the Merrick Saber Technique without hesitation.

[Merrick Saber Technique LV3 → LV4 (11231/40000): precisely strikes the target, dealing 417-525 damage (increased by the strength attribute)]

Although he knew that improving the Merrick Breathing Technique was the most important foundation of his strength, the pressure to survive was greater at present.

Upgrading his skill increased its damage far more than the passive benefits did. Even if he wanted to grind monsters for levels, he first had to improve his skill enough to cut them down.

Lister slept especially soundly, and by the time he woke, it was already evening the next day. He had slept for nearly 20 hours.

Anke had prepared dry rations well in advance, as instructed.

But before Lister left, Anke asked him a question, his face full of concern.

"My lord, have you been given a mission to exterminate monsters?"

"Perhaps you should take it easy for a while? For the Merick Family's sake, the duel certainly won't cost you your life, but..."

The old butler was also worried about the duel a month away. Considerately, he stopped halfway through what he was saying.

Lister understood that, with Duke Will II witnessing the duel, it certainly wouldn't cost him his life.

But there was no guarantee he wouldn't be injured or humiliated. Injuries in a duel were unavoidable.

"Perhaps you should stay home and train instead?"

Professionals native to this world naturally leveled up through training, long-term training.

Otherwise, they had to spend money on various potions or heavenly treasures.

Apart from those methods, there was no other way to rapidly improve their strength. Exterminating monsters was, at most, a way to hone practical combat skills.

Lister was different. Although killing monsters didn't drop extra items, he still received the experience points a player should get.

This was the only shortcut he had to rapidly improve his strength before the duel.

"Say no more. I'll decide this for myself. Don't tell me you think I'm inferior to Quint?"

"No! You're powerful, my lord. You certainly won't lose!"

The old butler privately thought Lister's chances were slim, but naturally said something different to his face.

Especially seeing how confident Lister looked, he thought that, with Duke Will there, it was enough that the baron's life wouldn't be in danger.

Lister shook his head, amused.

He had made his position so clear, yet even though the old butler was on his side, he only dared say Lister wouldn't lose, rather than that he would defeat his opponent.

That showed that Lister truly didn't command much respect in the Merick Family, to say nothing of the family's current reputation in the Duchy of Will.

If the barons of previous generations hadn't still been held in esteem, the family would probably have fallen into decline even faster.

"Butler Anke, besides the matter of the inherited techniques I mentioned last time,

please keep an eye out for information about Miss Anna and Quint lately, especially information about Quint's activities in the city."

With that, Lister rode off again, leaving Butler Anke alone with a complicated expression.

He didn't think Lister wanted to gain a deeper understanding of his opponent.

Rather, he thought Lister wanted to keep watching his romantic rival, so Quint wouldn't become overly intimate with Miss Anna while Lister was away from the city.

Once again, Lister arrived at the familiar hills.

The three-headed hound nest he had wiped out the night before last hadn't respawned.

The dead bodies still lay scattered where they had fallen, and some had even been gnawed on by other, unknown monsters.

For some reason, Lister's heart sank.

In the game, respawns should have occurred on a 24-hour cycle, but it had been well over 24 hours since he killed the three-headed hound guarding the entrance to this outer cave.

If he was right, the monsters in this world wouldn't respawn endlessly every 24 hours as they had when the game was live.

Once they were wiped out, they were gone!

All he could do now was hope there were more three-headed hounds in this area, at least enough for him to level up.

"Squelch!"

The dull sound of a blade cutting into flesh once again rang out in several of the caves in the area.

Lister was much more cautious this time than he had been yesterday. Even against three-headed hounds several levels below him, he would first lure them over, then pick the right moment to kill them in a single strike.

He conserved as much stamina as possible so he could kill more.

The LV4 Merrick Saber Technique was indeed a huge improvement. Its damage on paper had risen by less than a hundred,

but that damage was further boosted by his strength.

With the critical hits to the back of their necks, Lister was practically slaughtering the Three-Headed Hound Knights in this area.

At the same time, he saw more and more human corpses in the caves.

He could have found some valuables by searching carefully through the piles of corpses, but it was simply too disgusting.

Lister had no time to rummage through severed bodies and remains for a few copper coins.

Three hours later, Lister had cleared a total of three caves on the outskirts.

[Remaining experience: 62643]

"Congratulations, your Merrick Breathing Technique has improved. Your Merrick Saber Technique has improved."

[Merrick Breathing Technique LV2 → LV3 (1/30000), additional strength +3]

[Merrick Saber Technique LV4 → LV5 (1/50000): precisely strikes the target, dealing 537-635 damage (increased by the strength attribute)]

[New Merrick Saber Technique derivative skill-Merrick Saber Draw Slash: use the Merrick Saber Draw Slash to deliver a wide sweeping slash against nearby enemies.

Note: this skill cannot be actively upgraded. Its damage increases with the level of the Merrick Saber Technique. Every 5 levels, its damage and sweeping range increase by a certain amount. It can receive a boost from the strength attribute.]

"Whew!"

Lister let out a long breath. He was dirtier than he had been yesterday, and his clothes were covered in blood.

But his face showed more excitement than anything else. He had finally unlocked the Iai Slash.

Although the Iai Slash couldn't kill a Three-Headed Hound Knight in one hit, it was still a good AOE attack for dealing with groups when surrounded.

For martial arts classes, AOE skills like this were hard to come by.

That was also why many martial arts players kept the Merrick Saber Technique in the late game. They didn't put many levels into it, but it was at least enough to deal with minor monsters.

And to Lister, the Iai Slash was a sign that the Merick Family's techniques had been passed down.

For now, both its symbolic and practical significance were crucial.