Combat Experience

Without any further tactical discussion, Hilde had already charged straight at the Terminate Boar.

Paul folded his arms across his chest and calmly stepped back behind the two of them, as if intending to watch the entire battle from start to finish.

Almost the instant Hilde closed the distance, the Terminate Boar let out a roar, and its thick arm came smashing down at her head.

Instead of retreating, she advanced. The dirt beneath her feet exploded with a boom as she accelerated again, rushing in front of the Terminate Boar a step before its arm could fall.

The next moment, the sword in her hand slashed down.

Screech—

The blade tore through muscle and bone, the distinctive sensation traveling along the sword and into her wrist.

It was Hilde's first time fighting a monster, and she did not dare hold back. She used every bit of strength she had.

In an instant, the Terminate Boar's arm was severed outright.

Hilde quickly pulled back, no joy showing on her face. That strike had actually been aimed at the Terminate Boar's neck, but it had also sensed her intent and used its arm to block. If it had been an ordinary swordsman, they might not have been able to cut through the arm cleanly, or might even have gotten the blade stuck between the bones. But with Hilde's strength, that would never happen.

Though she had yet to learn the method of using battle aura unique to advanced swordsmen, her strength was in no way inferior to one.

If it were a pure contest of strength, she could even match Paul!

Boom boom boom—

Three arms lashed out continuously like long whips, producing deafening crashes amid the boar's roars, and a cloud of dust swallowed Hilde's figure.

Rudeus's nerves instantly went taut.

But soon, Hilde's figure burst out from the dust.

She quickly withdrew beyond the Terminate Boar's attack range, then began circling it nonstop.

Hilde did not use Water God Style techniques to counter the monster's attacks. She intended to handle this battle with the Sword God Style, and the principles of the Sword God Style absolutely did not include matching strength with the enemy.

Find the right chance, and kill in one blow.

If there was no chance, then keep using speed to circle and search for one.

But there was another way to think about it: create an opening by force.

Then Hilde's voice rang out:

"Restrict its movements for me! Rudeus! I need to find a chance for a one-hit kill!"

"Got it!"

Rudeus took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

If he needed to restrict its movement, fire magic would not work, and neither would wind magic. The best option would be magic that could accurately hit the enemy while ensuring it would not affect Hilde's movements.

In that case...

"Mire!"

Rudeus quickly raised his hand and aimed toward the Terminate Boar.

There was no trajectory, nor any flashy effect.

In the next instant, the massive body of the Terminate Boar, which had been standing on the earth roaring, suddenly sank uncontrollably, both legs plunging into the ground up to the thighs.

This sudden change made the Terminate Boar freeze for a moment.

It was only an extremely brief gap.

But...

"Now's my chance!"

The instant the Terminate Boar froze because it could not move, Hilde had already launched a charge from behind it. The sword in her hand cut out straight at the most devious angle, with no gaudy special effects, only a slash delivered with the greatest speed, the most precise angle, and maximum power.

Rather than swordsmanship, it was resolve.

Blood sprayed out.

Hilde clearly felt the sword in her hand cut through the monster's tough body—muscle, blood vessels, sinew, and bone—without the slightest pause. This stroke came down like a hot knife through butter.

With a brief, sharp howl cut abruptly short, the enormous Terminate Boar was split in two down the middle, then collapsed with a crash.

Holding her sword-swinging stance, Hilde did not move at all.

"We... we won!"

Rudeus shouted.

"Good work, Hilde, Rudeus."

Paul nodded.

He stepped forward and patted Hilde on the shoulder.

"The first time's the hardest. With this experience, handling it next time will be much easier."

"Hah..."

Only then did Hilde let out a deep breath.

Only now did she realize that from the moment she had made her move, she had unconsciously been holding her breath, afraid that breathing would disrupt the rhythm of her attack.

So this was what they called...

Taking an opponent down in one go?

It felt pretty good.

"Hilde, do you think the Sword God Style is easier to use than the Water God Style?" Paul asked.

Next came the post-battle review.

Hilde thought it over carefully.

It was true that in the fight just now, she had instinctively chosen the Sword God Style.

Even so, she shook her head.

"It was only because I felt the Sword God Style would make it easier to deal with that kind of enemy. After all, I've never used the Water God Style against an enemy with four arms."

"Mm. You're right. In that respect, the Sword God Style does have a certain advantage. But the real reason is that, in your subconscious judgment, the opponent's raw strength was below yours. So rather than defend passively, it was better to take the initiative. That's the way to deal with monsters."

Paul changed the subject. "But if your opponent is a swordsman of the Water God Style, that's a different matter."

"Why is that?" Hilde asked.

"Because Water God Style swordsmen are all cunning."

Paul explained.

The so-called Water God Style was a school of swordsmanship centered on defense and counterattacks. Though it had offensive techniques as well, they were hardly prominent—or rather, there were very few of them.

So even when facing an opponent they wanted to defeat, the tactic they used was to make the opponent attack first, then counter.

But when someone knew their opponent was a Water God Style swordsman, would they choose to act rashly?

Taking that into account, aside from basic swordsmanship training, the Water God Style also included "rhetoric training." Its purpose was to enrage opponents through words and make them take the initiative in attacking first. In terms Hilde understood, it was basically things like "taunting," "trash talk," and "drawing aggro."

Because this world did not have a skill like "Taunt," so common in online games, this was the only way to draw aggro.

Hilde had instinctively judged that her own raw strength was above her opponent's, and used the Sword God Style in order to end the fight quickly. But if her opponent were a Water God Style swordsman, they might instead exploit that point, feigning weakness to lure the enemy into attacking.

"I see. I've learned something..."

Hilde nodded slightly.

Rudeus naturally received Paul's praise as well. Though he had panicked for an instant when facing the monster, he had quickly assessed the situation and taken the correct measures. That calm judgment was precisely the quality a magician needed to possess.

Receiving Paul's praise was naturally a good thing.

Whether swordsmanship or magic, in the end, their value could only be shown in battle.

So there was no faster way to improve than actual combat.

From then on, Paul basically took Hilde and Rudeus to participate in monster subjugations every month, which made both of their practical combat ability improve rapidly. Though they were all low-level monsters, it was still experience in the end.

And not long after that...

A letter sent from afar broke their peaceful life.