Chapter 14

Infinite Skill Copying with EX-Grade Interpretation Chapter 14

[Using the skill ‘Wire Web (E).’]

A cold smile formed on my lips along with the system notification. Only now could I finally see it.

I wasn’t simply following him with my eyes. I could see where he was aiming, and even what the minute movements of his muscles meant.

─Tap.

One step.

The instant he stepped forward, I took my stance as well.

─Twitch.

If his shoulder moved.

A right hook would come.

Because that was the stance for it.

─Whoosh!

I narrowly avoided the incoming hook and slipped inside his guard.

I could see the confusion on his face.

I swung my sword toward the underside of his chin.

─Swish!

Too bad.

The sword barely grazed past his neck.

I immediately took my stance again.

He twisted his ankle.

His next attack would aim for my head.

─Clang!

I steadily knocked away his fist.

“What the hell are you, bastard?”

He began to panic at my response, which was on a completely different level from before.

Then it was my turn.

Until now, I had barely managed to defend myself.

This time, it was time to return the favor.

─Whoosh!

─Slice!

I smoothly deflected his attacks and continued driving him into a corner. As red wounds began appearing one by one across his body, I also started growing impatient.

‘A veteran really is a veteran. It’s not easy to land a proper hit on him.’

Even when he couldn’t completely dodge, he narrowly avoided fatal blows through pure instinct.

Even so, I didn’t feel like I was going to lose at all. If anything, I even had the strange thought that I wanted this fight to last a little longer.

Naturally.

Because I was growing stronger in real time.

[Interpreting the opponent’s actions.]

[The proficiency of the skill ‘Wire Web (E+)’ increases.]

[‘Wire Web (E+)’ changes to ‘Wire Web (C).’]

I was interpreting my opponent’s actions and gradually making them my own.

The more we clashed, the more I interpreted the seasoned experience he had accumulated and engraved it into my body.

I instinctively knew that was how I could grow explosively.

─Thud!

I kicked off the ground once again. The wires came at me much faster and more precisely than before.

But to my eyes, the gaps within those complicated trajectories stood out clearly like weaknesses.

I persistently dug through those gaps and carved deep wounds into his body.

Trying to use the wires defensively was meaningless.

Now that I possessed the same skill, his defensive movements were nothing more than easy-to-read patterns.

“This is driving me crazy. Just fucking die already!!”

Having lost his reason, he began charging at me like a madman.

But unlike his momentum, his attacks became simpler, and his speed slowed. Dodging them wasn’t much of a problem.

─Whoooosh!

Until I felt something cold wrap around my arm.

A vile smile spread across Eugene’s lips when he saw the wire wrapped around my arm.

But.

‘I knew you’d go for this.’

Instead, I studied his posture even more closely.

His waist twisted, and he braced his legs deeply against the ground as though digging them in.

‘Next, obviously.’

His next move appeared in my head like a diagram.

He would yank me toward him like reeling in a large catch, then deliver an unavoidable finishing blow.

It was painfully obvious.

But the moment I found the weakness hidden within that technique, I immersed myself even more deeply.

If I apply that...

That was when it happened.

[The actions of the target ‘Eugene’ have been perfectly interpreted.]

[The interpreted proficiency is engraved into your body.]

[‘Wire Web (C)’ changes to ‘Wire Web (B).’]

[The proficiency of ‘Light Footsteps (D)’ and ‘Wire Web (B)’ affects Acceleration.]

[The proficiency of ‘Acceleration (B+)’ stacks.]

[‘Acceleration (B+)’ changes to ‘Perfect Acceleration (A).’]

[Perfect Acceleration (A)]

─Accelerates your physical abilities, allowing you to seize a fleeting instant.

─Allows you to move freely during a fleeting instant.

─The limit of acceleration can be determined according to your physical abilities.

‘Stacking? What is this. Well, I guess it doesn’t matter.’

If it was good for me anyway, there was no reason to think about it for long.

I just had to use this power to crush my enemy.

‘So if I put strength into my legs like I’m squeezing my heart.’

The instant he took his stance to pull me toward him, I also concentrated power into my legs and moved.

[Using the skill ‘Perfect Acceleration (A).’]

The sound of my heartbeat pounded against my eardrums. The world slowed until it almost seemed to stop.

I could see him twisting his waist, even the movement of the fingers about to pull the wire wrapped around my hand, all moving incredibly slowly.

Within that frozen time, I moved first.

─Whoosh!

“Huh?”

I pulled the wire faster than the force with which he was trying to drag me, breaking his stance.

The face that had been wearing a triumphant smile twisted in shock. I absolutely did not miss the fatal opening created within that fleeting instant.

[Using the skill ‘Demon Flash (A).’]

The essence of that flash also lay in explosive instantaneous speed.

With Acceleration pushing the strength in my legs to its absolute limit, I drew my sword.

Even at a glance, there was a large difference between the man before me and me in terms of basic physical ability.

But at this moment, I possessed something far stronger than he did.

Absolute speed that allowed me to move freely within a fleeting instant.

─Slash!

The sword swung, and red blood splashed across my face.

A deep gash split across his chest.

But I didn’t stop.

Hunters often returned even from the brink of death, so I had to finish him properly.

─Stab!

I drove my sword deep into the massive wound.

It pierced through his neck and ended the fight.

“Haa, haa... damn bastard.”

The acceleration ended.

As time gradually returned to normal, I could feel my heart pounding like crazy.

‘It consumes more stamina than I expected.’

It had lasted less than five seconds in real time, but my body felt strained to the point where I could barely move.

I instinctively felt it. If I had used it even a little longer, my heart might have burst.

However.

“I won, so who cares.”

I won.

I had survived the brink of death, and in return, I had analyzed his movements and turned them into my own strength.

[You have gained experience by fighting an enemy stronger than yourself.]

[Skill proficiency increases.]

[The skill ‘Trained Body (D)’ changes to ‘Trained Body (D+).’]

[The skill ‘Light Footsteps (D)’ changes to ‘Light Footsteps (C).’]

“Then, is it time to do what I need to do?”

─Tap.

─Rustle.

I searched the body of the man whose life had ended. Wondering if he had any information about them, I reached into his clothes and felt something.

It was long, hard, and very angular.

“What is this?”

[Interpreting the item.]

[Mana Communication Device]

─Communication is possible between devices connected by the same mana.

─As long as there is sufficient battery power, communication can be transmitted without a distance limit.

─Remaining battery: 20%.

Was this like an upgraded version of the radio I had seen?

─Zap.

Don’t tell me.

I hurriedly examined the side and back of the communication device and soon realized there were words engraved on it.

It was written in the common language, readable without even using Interpretation.

[For Headquarters Reports]

‘So this is basically a direct line to the guys chasing me, right?’

That was when it happened.

─Crackle.

─Bzzzt!

[Uh... Hey.]

A sound began coming from the communication device, as though someone was contacting it.

Don’t tell me. Was headquarters calling?

The device crackled as it sent a signal.

It seemed too wasteful to let this opportunity pass, so I quietly lifted the communication device.

[Respond, Eugene. How did the job go? Is the cleanup finished?]

‘By the job, does he mean.’

It seemed to refer to that horrific massacre I had seen through the spirit’s eyes earlier.

I cleared my throat and spoke while imitating Eugene’s dry voice from memory.

“I killed them all. Didn’t leave a single one alive, just as ordered.”

[Hmph, as expected. Fast as always.]

Fortunately, even though my voice was slightly different, the other person didn’t seem to notice.

I didn’t know whether it was because of the communication device’s poor sound quality or because they had too much faith in Eugene’s abilities.

That made me speak even more confidently.

“What’s the next mission?”

If I knew their next objective, I might be able to prepare in advance. I moved to obtain as much information as possible.

[The higher-ups have ordered their complete disposal.]

[We’re disposing of the White Bone Guild bastards at midnight tonight.]

“Location?”

[Their hideout. The slums in District Eleven. Make sure you’re there by midnight.]

─Click.

With those words, the communication ended.

I took a moment to catch my breath.

‘Disposal? More importantly, the higher-ups... Just how big is this organization?’

A smile naturally appeared on my face now that their tail was finally beginning to show.

It was practically the same as being given a chance to catch them.

But with my current strength alone, wiping them all out would be impossible.

That was why I needed power.

The reliable power known as the Scabbard Guild.

‘If they’re connected to the White Bone Guild, they’ll definitely move.’

If I dangled the White Bone Guild, the target upon whom they needed to take bloody revenge, they would have no choice but to act.

‘A chance to wipe them all out.’

This was a chance to use the guild’s help to capture those bastards and extract proper information.

And.

“And I can use this too.”

[Using Interpretation.]

[Wire Launcher]

─A magic tool that fires and retracts wire.

I looked at the wire device attached to the dead hunter’s wrist.

It was the item he had used during the fight. An astonishing piece of equipment that had allowed him to catch up to me in an instant even when I used Acceleration and ran at full speed.

I lifted the wire launcher and put it on my wrist.

I had never used it even once, but perhaps because his experience was engraved into my body, it felt incredibly familiar, as though I had used it for years.

[Using the skill ‘Wire Web (B).’]

─Whir!

─Thwack!

The wire shot toward the wall in an instant and firmly anchored itself to the railing on the rooftop.

When I activated the device, my body lifted lightly into the air, allowing me to soar onto the building in an instant just as he had.

‘So this is what it felt like. This should be extremely useful inside the Tower too.’

I would need to use it more in actual combat, but I had already experienced firsthand how powerful this wire was during my desperate fight with him.

With a little more practice, I could probably use it as a powerful hidden card of my own.

Then only one thing remained.

Head to the Scabbard Guild and inform them about those bastards.

_____________

“This is the information I found.”

In front of Gilbert, Guild Master of the Scabbard Guild, I revealed the information I had uncovered.

The White Bone Guild, the true culprits who had killed the Scabbard Guild’s youths.

And the suspicious organization helping them.

At first, the Guild Master seemed doubtful about my story, but once he saw the special communication device I presented as evidence, his expression became certain and he listened intently.

“White Bone... I’ve never heard that name before.”

“A small or mid-sized guild?”

“I doubt it. If they were small-scale, they wouldn’t have received support. In that case...”

Yuri, who had been listening beside us, unconsciously muttered.

“An unregistered... guild.”

“Unregistered?”

“Yeah, you still don’t know much about the guild ecosystem. Basically, it refers to organizations that specialize in crime or profitable underworld work rather than clearing the Tower. Since they aren’t officially registered, it’s easier for them to hide their identities.”

Yuri’s explanation was clear.

If even they had never heard the name before, the chance that it was an unregistered guild was extremely high.

“More importantly, what about those guys in white suits? What the hell are they? Are they another unregistered guild?”

“I don’t know. All I know is that they’ve been rapidly expanding their influence in the back alleys recently.”

That old man had told me.

They had recently been gaining notoriety in the back alleys.

That was all.

I didn’t know why they were so relentlessly pursuing me.

Nor did I know why they had supported the White Bone Guild in trying to kidnap Yuri.

“Dad, don’t you know anything either? Any information come in or... Dad?”

But something was strange about Guild Master Gilbert.

He slowly shook his head as though denying something. Then he narrowed his eyes and quietly whispered.

“That can’t be... They should have all been wiped out in the past.”

“Dad?”

At Yuri’s question, Gilbert seemed to come back to his senses and returned to his gentle expression.

“Do you know something?”

“No. There were people in the past who used similar methods, so I was briefly mistaken. If my memory is correct, they should already have been completely exterminated. It must be my mistake.”

He tried to deny it, but from the trembling in his eyes, I caught a glimpse of some enormous secret.

“More importantly...”

At Yuri’s question from beside us, both my gaze and the Guild Master’s turned toward her.

“If it’s midnight, shouldn’t we start preparing now? If we’re late, we might end up getting nothing at all.”

I nodded at Yuri’s words.

More time had passed than expected.

I also needed to treat my wounds.

And the Scabbard Guild would need to prepare by midnight.

“We should prepare quickly. I’ll heal my wounds with potions too. It won’t take...”

“Wait. You’re planning to come with us in that condition?”

Yuri’s eyes widened as she pointed at my body.

Her finger was aimed at my leather armor, stained with blood and torn in several places.

“With that crappy equipment? What are you going to do if you go there like that and die from one sword strike?”

“What’s wrong with my equipment? I’ll have you know this is carefully handmade armor made from monster hide. It’s pretty sturdy and comfortable.”

I meant it sincerely. I had grown attached to the equipment after all the effort I had put into making it.

But Yuri snorted as though I were pathetic.

“Hey, forget it. Wear something else. We’ll give you some of ours.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, so take off that weird-looking husk.”

“...”

Damn it.

I really liked this thing.