Thousand-Faced Dragon

Chapter 189 Departure
The anecdotes about dwarfs are, in a sense, just a joke.

Alternatively, it can be seen as a job joke in another world, similar to the endless overtime and desperate low income in pediatric medicine, or the various "funny stories" in proctology.

Just as medical students and doctors often tell medical jokes, so too do those who perform spells often tell these sorcerer jokes.

There are subtle hierarchies of contempt within it, some self-deprecation, and some helplessness.
"Actually, everyone is pretty much the same."

These amusing discussions about the nature of things by the monks are actually similar to occupational hazard; sometimes cause and effect are reversed.

Spells require caution and meticulousness. The spatial coordinates and the covenant with the alien creatures must be flawless. Not to mention errors in word choice and description, even a single mistake in punctuation or number is unacceptable—it's death! Or worse, the soul is dragged into another world and eternally enslaved there.

The mortality rate in this system is alarmingly high. Whether it's alien creatures or spatial teleportation, the slightest mistake can lead to certain death.

It also contains many jokes about how "apprentices miscalculated a mark / archmages forgot a character" and got themselves into trouble.

Life is the price of mistakes. Spellcasters must be meticulous and cautious, which has even led to various obsessive-compulsive tendencies.

To ensure they don't make mistakes, they often have overly strict requirements for procedures, carrying all sorts of measuring tools, codes, and reference books. Of course, if you're clever and cunning enough, you can bypass all the rules, or even enjoy manipulating them.

This is also the root cause of the polarization in the magic system, where some practitioners are extremely meticulous while others are extremely casual.

Incidentally, Law Knights with a large number of spellcasting abilities are also particularly meticulous, and in a sense, Larry is quite suitable.

Evoking is a technique that manipulates the elements. Evokers inevitably assimilate with the elements, their bodies and even souls merging with each other. High-level vokers even have the innate ability to transform into elements. They inevitably provoke the temper of the elements. Considering the high prevalence of fire magic, a fiery temper naturally becomes a characteristic of vokers.

Well, the lightning element isn't exactly good-tempered either, and the ice and water elements are quite cold-blooded. In fact, elemental life and elemental nature are rather inhumane.

They are the basic elements that make up the world; they are so human, but that may not be a good thing.

Incidentally, paladins, as the embodiment of the Evoking Slash (a type of magic), are also quite hot-tempered, since the "Radiant Element" not only hates negative energy and evil, but also has a fire component.

Alchemy, especially the transformation system, requires time, years, and luck. Spending too much time alone, or in a laboratory, will naturally drive you crazy.

In fact, all extraordinary professions and bloodlines have this problem.

The hero profession brings fearless courage, but it also allows them to enjoy the thrill of life and death. If you walk by the river often, you'll fall in sooner or later.

This can be considered an occupational hazard in a sense, or the price of power. These things can even invade the soul and permanently change an individual.
"To change something and gain something, you naturally have to give something in return. That's fair, isn't it?"

The snake had somehow crawled out and was watching Rean and the little guy's interaction with great interest.

These past few days, Rean's biggest gain was probably spending a few good days with little Lana.

The rather "clumsy" Rean also naturally took little Lana to practice swordsmanship, or rather, to rekindle her past physical memories.

There was no way around it; she seemed to regard sword practice as a hobby and a game, often dragging Rean along to play (Lana: Uncle Dwarf is so stupid, not fun at all). And with the resurgence of her physical instincts, the excitement and joy she felt from the bottom of her heart during battle was impossible to hide.

She loved the sword, loved the battles between them, and loved the feeling of being on the brink of life and death.

"The progress is really too fast."

Although the little one's energy is depleted very quickly with each practice session, her progress is still evident.

Faster, more accurate, and more cunning. Rean rarely used the phrase "cunning sword" to describe a swordsman's skill.

But this kind of swordsmanship, where each strike has several inducements and variations, and which is always transformed around the opponent, is indeed quite cunning.

She doesn't need much strength; on the contrary, she needs faster movements and sharper eyes.

"Greedy, so greedy! You actually dared to attack me with such an obvious weakness."

Rean forced Lana back with a single sword strike, watching as her balance was shattered by brute force, ready to deliver the final blow at any moment. He had originally intended to rebuke her for her greed.

She not only took advantage of the flaw he deliberately revealed, but also tried to use it to kill him.

But the next moment, he hesitated.

From Lana's perspective, this greed and cunning seem to be without fault; how can the weak defeat the strong without taking risks?

Sometimes, even knowing it's a trap, you still have to step into it, risking your life for the possibility of turning the tide.

Or perhaps, this is courage, this is the mark of a brave person. Even with extremely low odds of winning, even when often outnumbered, they still bet everything and seize every possible opportunity to win.

“You need more basic training, and you need to improve your physical strength.” In the end, Rean didn’t stop Lana’s fighting style. Because he couldn’t be sure who was right, or rather, that both sides were right.

Rean's swordsmanship was taught by Sue, and he followed the honorable "knightly path," which meant head-on, direct combat to see who would die first.

Thicker armor, heavier swords, and even the ability to recover and launch surprise attacks on the battlefield.

Open and forceful oppression is Rean's path to victory.

Lana, on the other hand, put herself in a weak position from the start, instinctively avoiding the opponent's strengths, and then concentrating all her strength to seize the opponent's mistakes and weaknesses, forcibly turning the tide. This is a special sword technique designed from the beginning to target powerful opponents and behemoths!

High risk, high reward? No, it's about sacrificing everything for a single, devastating blow to kill a powerful opponent.

This kind of combat logic and swordsmanship instinct is too abnormal. Rean thinks he will have a rather short life. Perhaps the hero's weaponry and professional abilities can make up for these shortcomings to some extent.

Rean ultimately did not stop her or teach her knightly swordsmanship, because it was simply impossible for her.

She had made it her instinct; even if the memory and power were erased, it seemed that her body and soul still remembered it.

Even if you change your path, it will definitely be a hybrid, and you're more likely to die suddenly.
"Perhaps I should find myself another sword."

Rean looked at the Sword of the Hero and sighed. He could even feel the sword's longing; perhaps its former master was more suitable for it.

It's really nothing special. Rean's effect with this sword is quite average. Apart from saving on maintenance costs and not having to worry about the sword breaking, it's basically a blank slate.

Perhaps, a magic sword with radiance and fire amplification would be more suitable for Rean.
"Your Excellency, I have almost recovered."

The centaur knight from the adventure team gave Rean some good news.

This means that the first exploration of the underground ruins can begin, and Rean can finally try out the main quest in his encyclopedia and face that "underground evil god".

However, he did not travel alone with the adventure team this time; he added several other companions.

"Is it okay for you to leave?"

"No, it shouldn't be within a week. I need to learn about the underground ruins and also get some experience." Dimon was in a good mood; he could finally get some exercise.

As Dimon's strength improves, he needs to understand the situation of the underground ruins to prepare for the Weaver Knight's training and to have his progress validated.

"Things are going well on my end too. The shop is open, and I'm going to get some materials." Victoria's words were half true and half false. She understood that her freedom depended on Rean, and she wanted to get to know him better.

"I need real combat! Simulations alone are not enough." And Ophelia, the robot I hadn't seen in a long time, also came along.

After thinking for a moment, Rean finally spoke.

"Lana, come too. This will give you a chance to practice and collect your evolution materials."

Rean still brought along the little guy who was instantly overjoyed.

Lions are not cats; they need hunting grounds to grow. Keeping them at home will only make them useless.

But at that moment, a snake suddenly appeared on Rean's shoulder.

"Heh, I only have a few days left." Counting the time, there should only be four or five days left. This time there was no record of his possession status, so Rean wasn't sure if he would leave on time.

"That's great, what a pity." Although he didn't know what Snake had been busy with these days, Rean was genuinely happy that he was leaving.

If the snake leaves now, Rean would even be willing to spend money to throw a farewell party!

"You promised me that you must complete the agreement before I leave, otherwise, hehe, those unlucky bastards who break their contract with me, do I need to tell you what their fate will be?" The snake has never been a radical advocate of war; he prefers all kinds of contracts and agreements.

He and Rean also have a contract that is about to expire. If the snake disappears, the contract will naturally be impossible to fulfill. The true core of this contract is to let the snake see the "fun" he wants.

The snake's narrow eyes were filled with pleasure and anticipation.

He never forgot the promise, and he knew that Rean was trying to delay the wine so that it would take time to mature. The more people are in a hurry, the more fun they have.

"Hehe, the stories of evil gods who either fell or went mad because of breach of contract and inability to fulfill their promises are interesting tales within the snake clan. Would you like me to tell you about them?"

(End of this chapter)