How to Survive as a Knight’s Son – Chapter 26

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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A troll with game skills? It didn’t matter. In the game, this skill would have halved the party’s HP, but reality was different.

First of all, I, with my superior eyesight, was able to pinpoint the landing spots and avoid getting hit. Roland also effortlessly dodged the larger stones and deflected the smaller ones with his sword.

The mercenaries, however, were a different story.

“Damn it! I’ve never seen a troll do this!!”

“Argh! I’m dying!”

The mercenaries hopped around like their feet were on fire, but they still seemed to get hit by half of the falling stones. It was fortunate they weren’t seriously injured.

“Kruk kruk kruk.”

The troll laughed like an audience member at a circus and continued pounding the ground. It seemed to be saying, “So, who has the advantage now?”

“We need to attack again!”

We couldn’t just keep dodging. Our stamina wasn’t infinite. We would be the first to tire. With that thought, I charged towards the troll.

The troll swung its club in response. The slower speed indicated that it wasn’t using its full strength. Its eyes were fixed on Roland, who was waiting for an opportunity to strike. I suddenly felt a surge of anger.

Was a mere monster looking down on me?

I threw aside my one-handed sword and torch and grabbed my longsword with both hands. Since the troll’s attention was elsewhere, I easily dodged its club.

“Huh?”

The troll looked dumbfounded, its gaze finally landing on me.

“Too late, you beast!”

I planted my feet firmly on the ground and put all my weight behind my sword. It was a full-powered strike. I felt a slight resistance, then my sword sliced through the troll’s leg like a knife through butter. Blood spurted out, revealing the white bone beneath. It was a deep wound.

“Khyung!”

The troll roared and fell to its knees, its gleaming yellow eyes now fixated on me.

“Roland!”

I rolled to the side as I shouted. The troll’s club slammed into the spot where I had been standing a moment ago, followed by its other fist. It was completely focused on me.

However, Roland, who should have taken advantage of the opening, didn’t move. He was watching Jimmy, who was running towards the passage now unguarded by the gatekeeper. Jimmy was using me as a decoy to escape.

Betrayal.

“Jimmy!”

“Fuck! I have to survive!”

Despite his words, a smile played on Jimmy’s lips. He was after the relics.

“Khyung?”

The troll, noticing Jimmy, tilted its head. It didn’t hesitate for long. Despite the deep wound I had inflicted, it turned its back on me and charged towards Jimmy.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Only after the troll turned its back did Roland move. He wasn’t exactly enthusiastic.

“Sir Roland!”

“I can’t let a traitor claim the treasure.”

“You’re going to let this opportunity slip away?”

Roland closed his mouth. His eyes gleamed in the flickering torchlight.

He must have thought he could take down the troll on his own. Otherwise, there was no reason to pass up this opportunity.

But that wouldn’t do.

The party system meant that experience points were distributed based on contribution. The more Roland contributed, the less I would receive.

What was the point of bringing him here then?

I hesitated for a moment. Could I defeat the troll without Roland’s help? I was skeptical. It was unreasonable to expect me to defeat a troll after only a week of training.

Nevertheless, I gripped my longsword and chased after the troll.

‘There’s only one chance.’

Judging by its behavior, the troll, like in the game, prioritized attacking those closest to the passage. If so, it would be vulnerable until it killed Jimmy. My prediction was correct.

Despite me approaching from behind, the troll only focused on Jimmy, who was nearing the passage. It even lowered its body, offering the back of its neck to me, in preparation to kill him.

As the troll swung its club, crushing Jimmy into a pulp, I sprang into action. I stepped on the troll’s bent leg and climbed onto its back, my feet finding purchase on its shoulders.

“Khyung?”

Finally noticing me, the troll straightened up and raised both hands above its head, intending to crush me like a mosquito.

Before it could, I planted my feet firmly on its shoulders to steady myself and plunged my reversed longsword into the base of its skull. I felt a hard resistance as the tip of my sword pierced its spine.

However, the troll’s hands continued to close in. I could feel the wind against my face as its palms approached. I was less than a second from death.

Instead of dodging, I leaped off the troll’s shoulders and put all my weight on the sword embedded in its spine.

“Die!!!”

I felt a snap as the resistance gave way. The sword slid further into the troll’s body.

“…!”

Another difference from the game was that there were no HP bars. The troll’s massive hands, which had been closing in with a roar, lost their strength and fell. Its enormous body followed.

Thump.

Dust rose and spread in a circle.

The message confirmed the troll’s death. My level jumped up two ranks. I had already gained some experience from fighting goblins, but this was still an enormous amount.

The troublesome and painstaking effort had been worth it. A thrill more intense than any sexual pleasure surged through me.

However, my satisfaction was short-lived. There were still more experience points to be gained.

I turned to face Roland, who was approaching. Blood from the troll dripped from his lowered sword.

After defeating the troll, we took a moment to regroup. Our party of seven had been reduced to three.

“There are only three of us left. We might not make it back alive. Don’t you think so?”

Hendricks said, looking down at Jimmy’s mangled corpse.

“Who knows? The exit might be close.”

“You’re awfully optimistic. But even if we escape, there’s no guarantee we’ll survive. He won’t let us go so easily.”

Hendricks lowered his voice and glanced at Roland, who was leaning against the wall next to the passage.

As if he intended to replace the troll as the gatekeeper.

“…”

I remained silent. That seemed to be enough. Hendricks quietly said,

“Don’t forget what we talked about.”

He was referring to our agreement to join forces against Roland if he showed his true colors. I nodded, though I had no intention of keeping my promise. After all, I wasn’t the only one who had stood by and watched Jimmy die.

Silence hung heavy in the air as we resumed our journey. In fact, both of them, excluding me, had already revealed their intentions to some extent.

Roland had systematically reduced the number of mercenaries and was now looking at me with a calculating gaze. Hendricks was opposed to Roland and had stood by as his fellow mercenary died.

We all knew that only one of us would survive this ancient ruin. It was only a matter of time before we turned on each other.

That moment arrived sooner than expected.

“Wait.”

Roland, who was leading the way, raised his fist. At the end of the long passage, we could see a light. A pure, incandescent orange light. It started as a small dot, growing larger as we approached, until we no longer needed torches.

The light was emanating from an opening in the wall alongside the passage. It was just big enough for a person to squeeze through.

Roland’s face hardened as he peeked through the opening. Hendricks, who crouched down and looked through it, gasped.

“Gasp! Th-That’s…!”

It was no wonder. The vast chamber below the opening was teeming with goblins. Thousands of them. It seemed like all the goblins we had encountered so far had gathered here.

Fortunately, the passage we were on was located high on the chamber wall, out of sight unless the goblins craned their necks all the way back.

“Fuck. How many are there…?”

“So that’s where the light is coming from.”

I subtly pointed towards a raised platform at the bottom of the opposite cliff face. In the center of the platform, a stalactite and a stalagmite met, and an orange crystal glowed at their point of contact.

Just as we were all mesmerized by the mystical light, it pulsed like a heartbeat, and a speck of light emerged from the crystal, forming a goblin.

“What’s that…?”

“It’s creating monsters?”

I whispered to the two startled men,

“If we were to install this behind enemy lines during wartime, it would cause significant disruption.”

Gulp.

It was undoubtedly a priceless treasure. Perhaps worth a king’s ransom. Both Roland and Hendricks swallowed hard.

“There’s the exit.”

And there was an exit behind the crystal. We could see the ground beyond, covered in fallen leaves and trees.

There was also a passage below the opening we were standing at. If we hadn’t taken the shortcut and continued straight through the goblins, we would have ended up in that chamber. The two men’s eyes darted around.

“But the way down…”

“Even if we could climb down that cliff, there’s no way we could get through that horde of goblins to reach the exit. Well, maybe Sir Roland could.”

I stared at Roland, who was now fiddling with the hilt of his sword. He seemed to be in deep thought. However, he gritted his teeth, as if he didn’t have the confidence to fight his way through thousands of goblins.

“A treasure right in front of us, and we have to pass it up?”

“Don’t be so disappointed. Now that we know the way, we can return to the manor, prepare properly, and come back. For now, let’s look for another exit.”

Neither Roland nor Hendricks replied. Only after I started walking did they reluctantly follow. We found another exit a short while later.

“There’s the exit!”

At the end of the passage, we could see an opening leading to the outside, with fallen leaves and trees visible beyond.

We stopped in front of the exit and exchanged glances. None of us wanted to turn back now. Especially Hendricks.

As a mere mercenary, he wouldn’t get a share of the treasure, or perhaps even his wages. He might even be silenced.

“Now!”

That’s why, right after exchanging glances with me, he shot Roland with his crossbow. As expected, Roland deflected the bolt with his sword and quickly turned to face me, his sword drawn.

“What…?”

Roland’s eyes were filled with confusion. I was just standing there, watching. I had never intended to honor my agreement with Hendricks. Neither did he.

Hendricks, after firing a single shot, threw aside his crossbow and ran. He was heading towards the opening overlooking the chamber filled with goblins.

“You’ve been tricked.”

However, Roland still kept his sword pointed at me. He was hesitant to attack. I didn’t give him time to think and spoke,

“He’s planning to take the treasure while we fight.”

“He can’t possibly get through thousands of goblins.”

“He must have found a way to avoid them and get to the treasure. Otherwise, why would he run in that direction with the exit right in front of him?”

Roland bit his lip, then gestured towards the direction Hendricks had disappeared to with his chin, still keeping his sword pointed at me.

“Lead the way!”

Roland finally revealed his true colors. I chuckled.

“Why should I?”

“Do you not see this sword?”

“Hmm, so you want to fight me, just as Hendricks intended? While he takes the treasure and runs? He’s the only one who benefits from this. Is that truly what you want?”

I drew my sword and pointed it at Roland, showing that I was ready to fight. Roland’s face contorted.

“You…!”

“Whatever you decide, you better hurry. Hendricks is getting closer to the treasure with every passing moment.”

Roland wouldn’t give up on the crystal now that he had seen it. I had overlooked one thing: a greedy person sometimes refuses to give up on anything.

Roland, his eyes following the now-invisible Hendricks, suddenly turned and drew a dagger from his belt. His target was, of course, me. Time seemed to slow down.

The dagger, which had started as a small dot, grew larger. Even in slow motion, it was moving faster than I could react. Roland had been hiding his true skills all along.

‘Move! Move!’

Once again, I felt trapped within my own body. The only difference from my spar with Andrei was that this time, my body responded, albeit slightly.

I twisted my body and brought my sword up to block the dagger’s path, now visible thanks to the slowed time. The dagger, a blur in the otherwise slow motion, struck my sword and was deflected.

Clang-

The sound reached me a moment later, and time returned to its normal speed. I quickly retreated, keeping my eyes on Roland. However, the expected attack didn’t come.

While I was busy blocking his dagger, Roland had already disappeared, chasing after Hendricks.

“So, he gets the treasure if he kills or injures me, and he still gets it even if he doesn’t? I can’t let my guard down for a second.”

However, I was the ultimate victor.

After calming my racing heart, I followed them. There was still something I needed to confirm before I could finish this.

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