Endless Leveling Done Right!-Chapter 23: A Shield Not Meant For Mortals [Part 1]

[Constitution +1] 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Alex eased up his sword stance and wiped the sweat off his face.

After some trial and error, Alex discovered that intensive sword training could also help increase his Constitution stat.

But sword training wasn’t just about swinging the blade and practicing downward strikes. It also meant refining his stances, learning how to block, and deflecting attacks. Fortunately, he had Dim Dim to help him train.

The Dim Sum God’s role was to hurl stones at Alex, aiming mostly for his upper body and mercifully avoiding the head.

Alex made it a goal to block the stones as best as he could, using only the sword.

He had steeled himself to focus on blocking and deflecting instead of dodging.

Thinking that they were playing some kind of game, Dim Dim took it seriously, occasionally throwing feints at Alex before hitting him with a stone.

The very painful experience made the young man grit his teeth.

But thanks to Dim Dim’s help, he was able to shorten his reaction time.

This allowed him to block four out of ten stone throws from the very enthusiastic Dim Sum God, who thought that Alex was playing a game with him.

"Okay, let’s take a break, Dim Dim," Alex said to the Dim Sum God, who was about to throw another stone at him.

"Dim Dim~" Dim Dim nodded before obediently putting the stone down.

But just as Alex was about to invite the little guy to have some lunch with him, he noticed movement from the corner of his eye.

A moment later, the sound of two wooden swords striking each other reverberated in the surroundings.

"Good. Your reaction time has improved."

"Master, don’t sneak on me like that. If you didn’t purposely enter my line of sight, I would have been hit by your sneak attack."

Cairo smirked and lowered the wooden sword in his hand. He had just returned from his tribe. As soon as he arrived, he went looking for his one and only disciple, even rushing out of the airship that brought him back to the Floating Island of Thaloria.

He had been observing Alex since half an hour ago and couldn’t help but chuckle when he saw that Dim Dim was bullying the young man with its stone throws.

Still, he was quite happy because the young man didn’t disappoint him, keeping his promise to train everyday.

"I just returned and I’m feeling hungry, so I’ll let you off the hook this time," Cairo said. "Now, come. Let’s have lunch at the inn." He pressed his hand against Alex’s back, firmly but gently pushing him.

Alex breathed a sigh of relief as he had initially been worried that his Master would ask to spar with him on the spot.

Although he didn’t mind doing it, his body was still sore from the hits that he had taken from Dim Dim’s stone throws.

All he wanted to do was eat, shower, and take a short nap before heading to the library to read.

While the two of them were walking toward the gate of the town, they noticed several people running towards the Floating Forest.

Alex recognized a few of them since they were also Adventurers just like him.

"They look anxious," Cairo remarked. "Something must have happened in the forest."

"Should we take a look, Master?" Alex asked.

The Catkin pondered a bit before shaking his head. "There are already over a dozen Adventurers headed to the forest. Whatever they are going to face, they should be able to handle it with their skill level.

"Besides, I’m hungry. I can’t function properly on an empty stomach. Isn’t that right, Dim Dim?"

Dim Dim nodded in agreement. "Dim Dim!"

"Good! Now let’s go eat something good!"

"Dim!"

Alex gave the Floating Forest one last glance before following behind his Master and Dim Dim, who seemed very eager to have lunch at the Cat Tail’s Inn.

An hour later...

"Are there any skilled Adventurers here?!" shouted one of the regulars of the tavern as soon as he entered the establishment. "Please! People are dying. They need help really badly!"

Alex, Cairo, and Dim Dim, who had just finished eating, looked at the disheveled middle-aged man begging for help.

His clothes were very dirty, and his hair was in disarray. A single glance was enough to tell everyone that he might have just escaped from something dangerous in the Floating Forest.

"Please! Can anyone help?!" the man pleaded. "I’ll give you all my money. Please! Save my daughter, Annie! Please, someone, save her!"

Suddenly, the memory of the herbalist who Alex and Dim Dim had met in the forest flashed inside Alex’s head.

Ever since meeting Annie and her childhood friend, Ronnie, Alex had started to subconsciously notice that they went to the Floating Forest around the same time he did his morning jog.

Although they couldn’t be considered friends, they were already acquaintances.

"Master..." Alex looked at the Catkin Swordsman beside him, and the latter nodded.

"A friend of yours?" Cairo asked.

"An acquaintance."

"I see." The Catkin gave Alex’s head a firm pat before standing, and approached the man asking for help.

"Tell us the details. What happened in the Floating Forest?" Cairo asked. "Also, did you ask the Adventurer’s Guild for help?"

"I did go to the guild!" Annie’s father replied. "But they might not have enough men to save everyone. So I’m here to look for help. I heard Catkins are good at scouting and tracking people. Please! Save my daughter, I beg of you!"

"Tell us exactly what happened," Cairo stated. "I need to know what attacked you, and how many they are."

"It’s the Hobgoblins," the distressed man answered. "Dozens of them suddenly appeared in the outskirts and encircled low-ranked Adventurers looking for herbs.

"I-I tried to fight them off, but my daughter asked me to come to the town to ask for help. Ronnie bought time so I could run away. I don’t know what happened to them after."

"But as I was running away, I saw corpses of young adventurers on my way back. All of them were young men. As for the girls, I’m afraid..."

No words were need to be spoken because everyone understood what he was trying to say.

"Let’s go, Alex," Cairo said. "Make sure to stay as close to me as possible."

"Yes, Master," Alex replied.

The pair then ran until they reached the gates, where a few other Adventurer Parties were starting to gather.

Perhaps due to the nature of the incident, the Guild Master had decided to issue a rescue mission to save the low-ranking Wanderers, who were clearly no match against Rank 2 Monsters and above.

After leaving the city, Cairo took out a black shield from his storage ring and handed it to his disciple.

"Use this and prioritize your safety." Cairo looked at Alex solemnly. "If you need to run away, just run away. You will help me more if you do that."

Alex understood what his Master implied. The Catkin wished for him to gain some combat experience. However, if the situation becomes too dangerous, the young man should run away.

Cairo wasn’t confident that he would be able to protect his disciple if he faced many strong enemies at once.

"Understood, Master," Alex replied and accepted the black shield that was handed to him.

As soon as Alex equipped the shield on his left hand, he heard a notification sound inside his head, and a blue window screen appeared in front of him.

When the young man saw the description of the shield, he almost dropped it due to shock and disbelief.

It was a shield meant not for mere mortals to hold, but for those who wish to defy fate.