GLITCH

Sven's Resolve and the Tech Sword

TRAVELER'S ROUTE, Emerald City – Blue Town

Friday, November 5, 2500 10:43 AM

"Are you now familiar with the specs of the G-watch I gave you?"

I asked Sven, which became my companion just now.

Sven looked into my eyes and said, "Yes, this G-watch is pretty convenient. You have my thanks upon letting me have it."

"That's good to know. By the way", I gazed on his back and I don't see him equipped with a sword.

"Did you perhaps store your sword in the G-watch?"

Sven scratched his head with his right hand.

"Uh well, my sword has been badly damaged during that griffin glitch incident."

"Oh my, I'm sorry if I asked about it."

"No, it's totally fine. That sword only costs 500 Omega so I don't mind it that much."

A sword that only costs 500 Omega huh…

It's way too cheap.

The original swords I know costs a lot more than that. Come to think of it; his class is Rogue Knight, so it's natural for him to have two-handed sword to be his forte. Rogue Knight is similar to a Berserker; the only difference between them is that Berserkers love to use two-hand axe or heavy hammer.

Curious, I took a peek at Sven's stats.

Sven Fleming *Private – Platinum Guild

HP: 8000/8000 MP: 500/500

Mantle: Rogue Knight Lv. 016

Strength: 39

Dexterity: 30

Constitution: 40

Intelligence: 26

Skill:

NIGHT VISION [Toggle Status: Inactive]

- Can see well in the darkness

IRON DEFENSE [ACTIVE]

- Defense is boosted thrice

SLASH [ACTIVE]

- Attacks with a heavy slash

TENACITY [PASSIVE]

- Negates 40% of the damage taken

KNIGHT'S ASSAULT [ACTIVE]

- A powerful strike that can pierce through the enemy's defense

Sven is six levels above me. For a level 16, he has good stats, and for a Rogue Knight who usually takes pride in his Constitution and Strength alone, he's quite fast since his DEX is 30.

Should I give it to him? I guess not. He's formidable, but his STR and DEX is still below than the authority level required for him to use it.

"Oh yeah, Sven have you seen the glitch warning?"

"Yes, I got the notification. What about it?"

I paused for a brief moment and said, "I think it's nice to have you get more real combat experience before you go to the Glitch Academy you know? I can teach you a thing or two here", I said with a smile.

Sven responded.

"Isn't this cheating? I mean, I'm going to take private lessons with you. Won't it be unfair?" he said while scratching his head with his finger.

"No, it's not. I'm not officially a teacher yet", I took a step closer to him, while pressing my face towards his.

"Just think of it as a lesson from a friend, okay?"

"O-okay…" he said while stuttering.

I withdraw my position then walked to the grassy fields beside the road.

"Rylai? Where are you going?"

"Hmm? We're taking the liberty to slay the glitch that's about to be manifested. Come with me", I said while giving him a holler.

"Eh? But I don't have a weapon."

"You'll fight them barehanded."

"…excuse me, what?"

Sven looks astonished.

"Don't worry about that, your status is high enough to fight", I said as I came back and took him by force.

"W-wait…!"

Sorry Sven. I'll just apologize to you after this.

•••

After a few minutes of walking, we stopped at the very spot where the glitch will manifest. The exact place of manifestation is not mentioned in the G-watch, it only shows the countdown and the estimated place where it'll manifest; it's only thanks to my [Soul Read] skill, a unique skill that can see anything and anyone inside and out. Glitches are no exception. If I explain this to simpler terms, [Soul Read] lets me see what others cannot; I see glitch manifestation spots as some sort of distorted space while swirling with wild mana. That's why I can see the exact spot.

As of how the G-watch works, it receives the warning notifications from the Glitch Detector IV, a satellite from space that monitors the world and the four great continents, and tried to minimize the casualties inflicted by the Glitch. I don't really know how it works, since I haven't got my hands on the data about its structure and components; it's made years ago by those fallen civilizations of the past.

It's a pure coincidence that someone managed to operate it here in this world via terminal. The terminal is located in the Crisp Desert. It's off-limits by the way.

"So, this is the spot where the glitch will manifest?" Sven asked with a dumbfounded face.

"Yep, I'm one hundred percent sure of it!" I replied with a smile.

We then watched as the timer ticked off.

10…

9…

8…

7…

6…

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

In front of our very eyes, the glitch started to manifest. It's a bunch reanimated skeletons. They're about the same height as Sven's and were wearing a heavy armor plate and equipped with either a rusty sword or a spear.

[SKELETON WARRIORS] Glitch

Manifested

Skeleton Warrior

900/3900 MP: 0/0

Monster Lv. 15

Strength: 30

Dexterity: 10

Constitution: 32

Intelligence: 7

Skill: None

State: [REANIMATED] can't be defeated without destroying its core

These Skeleton Warriors have the same stats.

The DEX is so low, so they're slowpokes. Nevertheless, I find their STR and CON as well as that reanimated state a real deal nuisance. Looking at Sven's EXP gauge, if he manages to defeat at least four or five skeleton warriors, He'll level up and I can finally give him something that I know he surely wanted.

"Good luck Sven!" I said while tapping on his shoulder.

"W-wait, you're not helping?"

"Of course not. I said it before, this is YOUR training. Don't worry I'll jump into the scene if I see you struggling too much."

"O-oh…" Sven said, full of regret.

•••

Surprisingly, the Glitch manifested on the exact spot where Rylai and I approached. A total of 17 skeleton warriors appeared. I thought that Rylai will help but she told me she won't. It's reassuring that she'll be there if something unprecedented happens, but I don't want her to save me again. My pride is at stake, and I can't afford to be saved by the same person again and again.

I clenched my fists and took a deep breath.

The undead warriors attacked.

One tried to grab me from behind. But before it could do so, I faced it quickly and let its head approach my left fist. The head flew away, and the undead I just assaulted became immobilized.

So, these bones get defeated after being beheaded?

"I wouldn't be confident if I were you", said Rylai, while sitting atop a large stone nearby.

What?

"!?"

Just then the one who I thought was immobilized suddenly moved and tried to stab me with its sword. I barely dodged the attack. Darn it.

I need to be more attentive at their movements. They may be slow but…

Before I could process my thoughts, one of them attacked with a full vertical swing. I took a side step to evade it. When I look to the ground where the sword struck, it shows signs of a heavy blow; it formed a tiny crater. Even with my current condition, if one of those sinister attacks hit me, it will give me a heavy toll on my health.

Their power is not something that I can belittle.

"There's no need to observe their movement since they're slowpokes", Rylai said. "It's better for you to take them down one by one while being cautious to your space. Also destroy their core which is usually located inside the cranium", she continued.

I glanced at her then nodded. I fixed my stance and took a deep breath. I made a leap towards one of them and did a sweep to its feet to stop its movement, and when the skeleton stumbled down, I did an axe kick with my right leg to ensure a killing blow and destroy the core along with the cranium. The cranium did crumble, and with the core destroyed, the skeleton warrior turned into ashes, leaving its armor and rusty sword behind.

That's one down. Sixteen skeletons left to go.

I'm about to fetch the sword but Rylai forbid me to do so.

She said that weapons and armors equipped by beings with reanimated or undead state garners status demerits that is potentially harmful to someone and can even bestow sickness to anyone who dare to touch and use it even for a short period of time. The more you use it, the more chance that it will bestow a curse status permanently.

"These items can only be used by humans after putting some sacred ash, a holy-attribute item, to it; make sure to remember it okay?" Rylai stated.

I nodded in agreement and then tried to defeat the other skeletons with the same tactics. I defeated another one. After that happened, the skeleton somehow changed their tactics; they moved closer to one another in a group of five. They started to encircle me; one group is on my front while the other two groups were on my back.

This is quite a challenge. I'm fired up!

I dashed forward one of the three groups and did a knee strike on one of the five skeletons while holding its head to make it secure its place and impact with my attack. I defeated it and quickly took a leap backwards so that I can avoid the retaliation of its fellow skeletons. One of the two groups at my blind spot made its move. Their coordination is so well that even with their slow speed they can make me in a pinch in terms of space. The two of them wielding a spear threw it to put my movement to a halt. One of them then tried to cut me horizontally; I ducked and kicked its dominant hand (that's what I think since it's the one carrying the sword). The sword flew up in the air, and since I can't even hold it, I hit its hilt with a right spinning back kick when it got to my reach. The sword flew in a spinning vertical motion and destroyed two three skeletons, along with the sword's owner, who were in a straight line. When the three turned to ashes, I managed to flee from their encirclement to take a breath from battling. When I faced them, my eyes widened as saw an unprecedented scene.

The skeletons dismantled and sucked to a void. The next thing I saw is the outburst of an intense energy which is enough to send shivers to my spine and made me cover my eyes from its blinding light. Just then, a hard blow is dealt to my abdomen and sent me flying.

When I opened my eyes, I found myself lying on Rylai's lap while breathing heavily and coughing blood, several meters away from where I previously stand. When I look to the one who got me good, it's a giant skeleton wearing a helmet, body armor and is equipped with a huge two-hand sword.

"You're bleeding; take some rest. I'll take it over from here."

Not again this scenario. I don't want this to happen again. And yet, here I am, protected again by the same person who saved my life once.

I'm so stupid. Just because I always won from battling the challengers back in my home doesn't mean that I'm strong enough to defeat anyone. I should've known that this isn't a sparring match; this is a real battle; a battle where one can be killed due to overconfidence.

I need to redeem myself…right here, right now!

I slowly stood up while feeling the painful sensation all over my body.

"Wait."

Rylai took her glance towards me with the corner of her eyes.

"You can no longer fight in your condition right now you know?"

"I know. But I won't give up, not anymore. As long as I'm still breathing, I'll stand up and face whatever or whoever is in front of me. Even if my heart gets punctured, or I got an arm or a leg cut, I'll fight. It's because…I'm a Rogue Knight."

After hearing it, Rylai took her gaze away from me, and looked directly at the monster instead.

Did I fail to persuade her?

"This one is a Skeleton General. It has the thrice the status as yours. Now tell me, do you have the resolve to fight it once more?"

"Yes", I said while I spew some blood to clear my mouth.

"Well then, have this."

Rylai put her left arm sideward, and a huge sword appeared beside her wedged to the ground. It's a sword with the height enough for Rylai to touch its hilt and has a dazzling blue light that runs along the edges of the sword.

"This is my Tech Sword; I made it during the period of my life that I planned to open a weapon shop but the plan fades as I'm now a future instructor of Glitch Academy."

I walked towards her, not minding my injuries. I picked up the sword and felt a tingling sensation on my hands. The sword then with its blue light pulsated for a brief moment.

"The sword now deems you as its owner. I'll assist you for now. Now, show me your resolve Sven", Rylai said while preparing herself to battle.

"Of course", I said while grinning.

I took a deep breath to relax myself and focused my senses for the moment of truth.

A mad clash between a reanimated giant and two Glints is on the roll.