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The Otherworld Conquest Method of a Reincarnated Porter Chapter 102 Part 1

Practical Test

「Sei-sama, I think I’ll take the test too.」

「Ugh, I’m nervous, but there’s no harm in taking it, so I’ll give it a try, too.」

「…..」

It looks like it doesn’t really matter how many times we fail, and even if we fail the test this time, it will give us some idea for the next one, so I guess it would be a good idea to take it. After waiting for a while, the receptionist woman comes down the stairs, along with an elderly warrior. It seems that man is the examiner for the practical test. As soon as the man comes down, the receptionist and the association staff doing paperwork in the back suddenly start to make a fuss and stare at us scrutinizingly. What is the deal with those guys? There should be a lot of people taking the test, no?

「Is it you guys? The ones who want to take the practical test, I mean.」

The elderly man shows little to no openings in his movements. I can’t read his expression. I can tell he is a pretty strong guy without having to appraise him.

「Yeah, the four of us. Can we take the test now?」

「Very well. Follow me.」

「Hey, I didn’t say I’d take it, you know?」

「It’s a good opportunity. You should try taking it, too, Scarlett. You never know when you’ll get the chance to take it again, after all.」

「Haa, good grief.」

I manage to induce Scarlett to take the practical test as well. I would like to know more about her abilities, after all.

As we follow the man out of the association building, we find ourselves in what looks like a vacant lot. No one else is here, so even if we show our cards, no one would find out about it; just as I think as such, association staff come after us one after another.

「What’s the deal with those guys?」

「Well, you can just think of them as spectators. They happen to have free time at this time of the day, you see.」

It seems that they are making bets. Who would pass the test, and who would not. It seems that the reason they were staring at us scrutinizingly earlier was because they were measuring our strength. Well, since they didn’t use appraisal, and I have no intention of showing my trump card such as the iron ball in the first place, there is no harm in letting them watch.

「So, what should I do?」

「Do whatever you want. As long as you can prove your strength, that’s good enough. You don’t seem to be armed, though. Are you a pugilist?」

「No, I’m a… porter.」

「What the….」

I take a mithril alloy sword out of my storage. The elderly man looks a little surprised.

「Are you surprised that a porter is aiming to become a bronze-rank adventurer?」

「That’s not it. I’m simply surprised that you are a porter.」

「? What do you mean?」

「I said I am surprised that a man as strong as you are is a porter.」

「What?! Did you use appraisal? I sensed no signs of it, though.」

He found out that I am using a fake name, huh. Well, even if he found out about it, he doesn’t look like the kind of guy who would blabber and tell everyone around about it, though.

「That’s not it. If you have been fighting for many years, you can more or less tell how strong the other party is.」

Well, I guess so. I have also come to be able to tell monsters’ ranks pretty accurately without having to appraise them. The reason I appraise them is to confirm the rank and to find out the name. If I have many years of experience, I bet I will be able to tell even more accurately.

This man is without a doubt stronger than me. Let’s challenge him with the mindset of practicing with someone superior to me. I channel magical energy into the mithril alloy sword.

「Oh.」

「You should be able to tell my skill proficiency, no? Do I pass the test?」

Normally, it takes time to channel magical energy into a sword. As if to show it off, I deliberately use material enhancement and magical energy manipulation, in which I have high proficiency, to channel magical energy into it quickly.

「Your material enhancement and magical energy manipulation are commendable. But that alone isn’t enough to defeat monsters. Now, come at me.」

The man draws the red iron alloy sword on his waist and channels magical energy into it. The deep crimson color of the sword tells me that it is made of a high percentage of red iron. By some chance, it may even be a sword made of 100 percent red iron. It must be worth a lot of money.

Now then, what should I do? Shall I give him a full-strength thrust with the intention of killing him? No, I can only see a future where it would get dodged. I also get the feeling that if he senses my killing intent and gets mad at me, I would be in trouble. The other party is stronger than me, so the only way for me to win is through a surprise attack. Alright, I’ve made up my mind.

Instant Movement. To catch him by surprise, I swiftly jump toward his chest area with instant movement and make him lock swords with me. I don’t think I will be able to beat him in swordsmanship, but how about a contest of strength? Of all things, porters have a considerable amount of strength and stamina. And then, being high-leveled, I am going to use full-strength body enhancement to lock swords with him and then send him flying.

! He doesn’t budge. How is that even possible?! This elderly man of about 170 centimeters in height is toying with me, locking swords with me without even changing his expression. I wonder how high his level is. And what is his Job? Alright, appraisal!

Damn it, I appraise him, but it ends up getting repelled. Now that it has come to this, I will go at him like I am trying to give him a heavy blow. As I lock swords with him will all my might, I instantly retract my strength, move backward with instant movement, and then swing my sword down at the man’s left wrist. The man removes his left hand from the hilt of his sword and my sword slashes through the air.

「Damn it.」

「You have good strength and aim. It’s just that, your movements are readable through your line of sight, you know?」

He has the leeway to track my line of sight in the middle of our fight, huh. Or is he bluffing? Screw it, I won’t be able to beat him anyway, so let’s go with a frontal attack. Closing the distance with instant step, I exchange blows with the man with our swords. Without changing his expression even once, the man takes all my attacks for a minute or so on the exact same spot. I retreat to the rear.

「Phew~」

As I catch my breath after exchanging blows while using full-strength body enhancement, sweat breaks out all over my body. Damn it, just how strong is this guy? I don’t feel like I will be able to beat him even if my level goes up to 100.

「What beautiful swordsmanship. You must be from a knight or a noble family. Not bad. If you work hard, you can still get much stronger.」

I thought my swordsmanship skill was already at its limit and would never get any better, but if it is as this man says, I guess I will try training in it a bit more.

「You pass the test. Still, you’re stronger than I imagined. I was surprised there.」

「What are you talking about? My attack didn’t work at all, did it?」

「That’s not true. I simply didn’t change my facial expression, but I didn’t have that much leeway, you see.」

I see, not changing your facial expression is very effective in a fight against a human being. It is creepy because you can’t tell if your attack is working or how strong the other party is. When you are in pain, don’t show it in your face and bluff your way out. Well, I don’t think you can do such a thing so easily, though. However, there is no harm in keeping it in mind.

「You must have an innate skill. Most likely a rare growth type. Otherwise, there is no explanation for your strength.」

「…..」

Poker face. I think there’s a lot I can learn from this guy, but conversely, all my cards will end up getting found out by him.

「Hmm, I see you’ve learned something.」

「Let me ask you one thing. How many people in this world are stronger than you?」

「That’s a tough question. Strength changes depending on the conditions and environment in which you fight, after all. There should be several people in Adelista who are about as strong as I am. If they are still alive, that is.」

Adelista, huh. What kind of place is the primeval labyrinth? Let’s try going there someday.

「All right, next.」

「Ugh, after such an amazing battle, I’m so nervous.」

「In that case, I’ll go next.」

It looks like Lunamilia is going to challenge him next. I wonder if I will finally be able to take a look at sacred magic. I take Lunamilia’s metal rod, which is stored in my storage, and hand it to her.

「No need to stress over it. You can always try again, after all.」

「Yes, Sei-sama.」

It seems that Lunamilia is not the type to be nervous. I wonder if she has confidence in herself.

「Those clothes, are you a monk?」

「Yes, I am. I came here on a monastic journey.」

「Oh, I don’t hear much of it these days, though. You’re around level 20, right? Can you use evil warding arrow?」

「Yes, I can. I can also use holy light spirit. However, only on myself.」

「What?! In that case, you pass the test without question, but do come at me without using sacred magic.」

I hear some unfamiliar words there, but it seems that at present, Lunamilia is strong enough to get a pass. In the end, it looks like I won’t be able to take a look at sacred magic.

「Here I come!」

As she channels magical energy into the metal rod, it glows a dull red. As it is, she charges at the man and unleashes a splendid swing at him. As opposed to taking it with his sword, the man chooses to dodge it. Lunamilia is thrown off balance. Then, *swoosh, swoosh* she unleashes one swing after another at him, making the wind whistle around her. It is a series of attacks that would put you in a sorry state if it hits, but as if it is only natural, there is no sign that it will hit at all.

「That’s enough.」

「Haa, haa, haa.」

「Hmm, have you ever been in a real battle before?」

「Haa, haa, I have fought with sacred magic in the Labyrinth of the Dead, but this is the second time I have fought with this weapon.」

Huh?! Seriously? That fight with the centipede was her first real battle, huh. Hmm, I can’t measure her strength.

「Muu… I think you have enough strength, but due to your lack of experiences in actual combat, it’s hard to evaluate you. I’ll fail you this time. Dive into the labyrinth, gain experience, and then give it another try.」

She fails, but, well, that’s fair, I guess. However, after a while of challenging the labyrinth, she will definitely become pretty strong.