I Became the 101st Hero – Chapter 42

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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“Tell me, boy… are you using some kind of self-hypnosis on yourself?”

His words struck me like a bolt of lightning.

‘Self-hypnosis?’

There was only one thing he could be referring to.

‘Is he talking about Absolute Obedience?’

I had definitely relied on Absolute Obedience while learning swordsmanship from Gwen.

The techniques, etched into my muscle memory through mental commands, were perfect, impossible to forget or execute incorrectly.

Even Gwen had been impressed by my learning speed, made possible by Absolute Obedience.

‘He figured that out just by watching me swing my sword?’

Libero’s insight was as sharp as ever.

But that wasn’t what mattered.

‘Is he saying that Absolute Obedience is connected to my limitations?’

It was a thought I had never entertained before.

After all, Absolute Obedience had always been a helpful tool, never a hindrance.

But Libero had pinpointed the flaw in my logic.

“You seem to have an idea of what I’m talking about. Can you tell me what it is?”

I couldn’t tell him.

I didn’t mind revealing that I could use the inventory or that I possessed relics.

But [Absolute Obedience]… that was different.

I usually thought of it as a convenient ability that allowed me to control my body perfectly.

But in reality, it was the foundation of my very existence in this world.

“No, I can’t tell you. But it’s true that I have something in mind.”

“I see. Well, it doesn’t matter either way.”

He pointed to my sword once more.

“Can you consciously disable this… self-hypnosis of yours?”

That was easy.

I could do that with Absolute Obedience as well.

It was a shame to lose the muscle memory of Gwen’s swordsmanship that I had painstakingly acquired. But if I could learn Libero’s techniques, it wouldn’t matter in the end.

I erased the swordsmanship techniques embedded in my muscle memory.

Now, all I had was my original [Swordsmanship (B)] skill and the knowledge of Lidval family swordsmanship I had learned from Gwen.

It didn’t seem like much of a difference, but in reality, it changed everything.

“I’ve disabled it.”

“It seems you have a unique method of self-hypnosis. Now, swing your sword again.”

I did as he asked.

Whoosh.

The sword swung through the air, weak and unsteady.

Its trajectory was erratic, lacking any semblance of control.

Even I could tell it was pathetic.

‘Was I really this bad?’

I had hunted wolves and fought off bandits with this swordsmanship.

But after experiencing the fluidity and precision of Gwen’s swordsmanship through Absolute Obedience… my original skills felt clumsy and unrefined.

I had assumed that even if the techniques were learned through Absolute Obedience, using them in actual combat would naturally improve my skills.

But I was wrong.

“That’s… atrocious. It matches your talent perfectly. In fact, it might even be too good for you.”

He was right.

Even [Swordsmanship (B)] was too much for Allen Blake.

I clenched my fist, feeling exposed, as if I had been stripped bare.

But then, to my surprise, he laughed and said,

“However, it’s a vast improvement over your previous attempt.”

“What?”

Why?

As far as I could tell, there was nothing better about this compared to my earlier attempt.

But he seemed to prefer it.

“Why is that?”

“Well, in terms of skill level, your previous attempt was better, of course. But I’m talking about potential. Your previous attempt had a clear limitation.”

He formed his sword once more.

Then, he swung it casually, as if it were a mere twig.

But even that casual swing was precise, elegant, and breathtakingly beautiful.

“This…”

He swung his sword again.

The same trajectory, the same stance as before.

It was just as beautiful, but there was a subtle difference.

“And this. Can you tell the difference?”

I thought back to the two swings, analyzing them in my mind.

“There is a difference. But I can’t pinpoint what it is.”

“I wasn’t expecting you to. I’ll explain.”

He swung his sword once more.

This time, it was a slow, deliberate movement.

“This is the First Form.”

He smoothly retracted the sword, then thrust it forward.

“And this is the Second Form. From here…”

He twisted his wrist, changing the angle of the blade.

“The Third Form. Let’s just say these three forms are the foundation.”

He seamlessly linked the three forms together, his movements fluid and effortless.

“Once you’ve reached a certain level of proficiency, you should be able to connect the forms like this, seamlessly. And then…”

He swung his sword again.

It was similar to his previous movements, yet subtly different.

“You can add variations like this, but that’s more about talent, so let’s move on.”

He pointed the tip of his sword at me.

“The problem is, your self-hypnosis is limiting all of that.”

He demonstrated the First Form again.

“You’re already half a beat slow from the very beginning. I assume it takes time to access the techniques through your self-hypnosis?”

He thrust his sword forward, executing the Second Form.

“There’s also a delay between the First and Second Forms. Another half a beat. When initiating an attack, the delay in the First Form might not be noticeable, but the delay between the First and Second Forms is fatal.”

He pointed upwards.

“When we were clashing blades earlier, your continuous attacks weren’t bad. But because of that slight delay between each strike, I could easily block them.”

He executed the Third Form, twisting his wrist and bringing the sword down.

But the trajectory was unique, different from what I had seen before.

“Lastly, improvisation. If you keep relying on self-hypnosis, you’ll never be able to improvise. Even if you disable it, I doubt your talent will allow for much improvisation, but…”

His words were a whirlwind of criticism, pointing out every single flaw in my swordsmanship.

He was critiquing Absolute Obedience, the very thing that defined my existence in this world.

‘His criticisms are harsh, but accurate.’

Perhaps this was why I had come here in the first place.

Even Gwen couldn’t have given me this kind of feedback.

I thought back to my conversation with her.

“You’re skilled, certainly… but there’s something off.”

I had been aware of it then, the subtle difference between my swordsmanship and hers, despite the fact that I was using the exact same techniques.

It wasn’t simply a matter of Agility stats.

“It’s like you’re always half a beat slow. It feels unnatural.”

“I don’t understand what’s wrong. All I know is, my way of teaching won’t make you a high-ranking hero.”

Libero had finally revealed the root of the problem.

Absolute Obedience, the one thing I thought was helping me, was holding me back.

‘But…’

I thought back to my pathetic display of swordsmanship earlier.

Even that was only possible because of the [Swordsmanship (B)] skill that Allen Blake shouldn’t have possessed.

I couldn’t imagine going back to that level of incompetence.

“Isn’t there a way to overcome this while still using self-hypnosis?”

“No.”

“But what if we try…”

Libero pointed his sword at me, his expression serious.

“Be quiet. You were the one who said you wouldn’t give up. You’ll never reach your goal if you don’t let go of this self-hypnosis.”

I lowered my head, ashamed.

He was right. I felt foolish for even entertaining the thought of compromise.

“But you won’t regret choosing the path of swordsmanship.”

He smiled, a hint of pride in his voice.

“Swordsmanship was born to overcome differences in strength. It was born for those who lack innate talent.”

He drew his sword once more.

Then, he pointed it at the empty air.

“Watch closely.”

He closed his eyes and raised his sword.

And then…

‘What the…!’

That was when I finally understood.

Everything he had shown me before, all his impressive techniques, had been mere child’s play compared to this.

And even this, I suspected, was just a fraction of his true power.

“From point to line…”

The tip of his sword moved slowly, tracing a path through the air.

“From line to space…”

I couldn’t believe my eyes.

The trajectory of his sword shimmered, distorting the very space around it.

“From space…”

His movements didn’t stop there.

“To spacetime.”

I felt as if time itself had stopped.

No, it wasn’t just a feeling.

Time had stopped for a brief moment when he swung his sword downwards.

‘How?’

The movement itself was a simple downward slash.

But with that one slash, he had achieved something transcendent.

‘What kind of power was that?’

As I tried to analyze what had just happened, what kind of power he had used, he shook his head.

“I didn’t use any special power just now. I reached that level through pure swordsmanship.”

He paused, a hint of bitterness in his voice.

“Though even I couldn’t reach the true peak.”

He couldn’t hide the regret in his eyes.

But the swordsmanship he had just shown me… it was enough for now.

Whether Allen Blake had the talent to reach that level… well, that was a different story.

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