"Tch..."

SLASH!

Klaus killed five slimes with a single horizontal sweep, and with another flick of his wrist, he did it again. Green slime goo splattered across the sewer walls.

’My enhanced strength stat really makes this much easier.’ He thought while bringing his whole sword down vertically, cutting a slime in half and breaking the core apart in one clean strike.

The town was pretty big, so clearing the entire sewer system was taking quite some time. However, from what he could feel... he was almost done.

As for the slimes on the opposite platform and even those floating inside the disgusting sewer water, he used Magnetic Field to control multiple swords at once, slicing them apart while taking occasional breaks to recover his mana.

’Though if I had some long-range spell, this would be quite a bit easier.’ Klaus thought while retracting his swords back into his storage ring.

He leaned against the musty wall, letting his mental energy rejuvenate while he studied the manual. The last thing he needed was to faint down here in the sewers from mana exhaustion and drown in literal shit water.

As for how he passed the time between slime massacres, he was studying the book that Astrid had given him... the Manual for the 12 Basic Sword Forms.

Back in the game, Manuals could simply be consumed like items and the character would learn the skill instantly, the knowledge just downloading into their brain but it wasn’t the same for real life, not even close.

’Which is why I really want a swordsmanship skill from the System.’ Klaus thought with a heavy sigh.

But beggars couldn’t be choosers. Maybe he could roll something like that one day from the gacha, but for now, he had to focus on actually getting good the hard way.

’There are 12 basic sword forms.’ Klaus read, flipping through the worn pages.

All swordsmen fell under the categories of these sword forms, whether it be Empire Swordsmen or any regional style. Everybody that was good with a sword used one or two of these forms as their foundation except for nobles, of course.

Every noble clan that wasn’t a mage-focused bloodline mostly had proprietary sword forms of their own, jealously guarded family techniques passed down through generations.

This included the Royal Sword Form which the Prince himself had mastered alongside his overwhelming aura.

The basic sword forms existed below that elevated plane, accessible to commoners only because nobles refused to share their superior styles with the common people.

It was a usual occurrence in this world since most nobles viewed commoners as lessers... inferior beings whose bloodlines were tainted.

Having a child with a commoner automatically resulted in dooming the potential of the said child, cutting them off from inheritance and noble society entirely.

Putting all of those bitter thoughts aside, Klaus focused back on the manual in his hands.

’The 12 basic sword forms are as follows...’ He read along, studying the diagrams carefully.

’The Vark Form that specializes in defense and holding ground, using the blade to create an impenetrable wall. The Kress Form that uses the weight of the blade to transition from one strike to another without stopping, building continuous momentum. The Jora Form that focuses around stabbing in one singular lethal thrust to kill or render the opponent immobile with precision. The Drax Form which treats the sword as a falling object and is the primary form for those using heavy weapons, focusing on overhead chops that can break shields and shatter armor...’

Klaus flipped the page.

So far it was exactly as he remembered from the game. The "superior" sword techniques of the nobles were just built around using these basic techniques in tandem, adding more stylish strikes and fancy flourishes to make them look more impressive.

Regardless, he continued refreshing his memory.

’The Sunder Form which focuses on not striking the opponent but their weapon directly, with the intent to notch, bend, or even shatter it entirely. After that is the Malo Form which emphasizes staying close to the ground using leg-sweeps and under-the-guard stabs, also notoriously known as the Weakling Style among swordsmen.’ Klaus thought and closed the book with a soft thud.

He had a headache building behind his eyes. He wasn’t really one for information dumps like this, but he remembered the rest of them now at least.

There was the Vane Form, The Riven Form, The Oros Form, The Hekat Form, and the Talos Form. Each with their own strengths and weaknesses with their own ideal situations for use.

As for which one fits him the most? He really didn’t know yet. He’d need actual combat experience to figure that out.

’But I have to thank Astrid for at least helping me remember them now.’ Klaus thought gratefully.

There was an online friend back in his previous life who had broken down the sword styles of the noble families back into their basic form components, analyzing their techniques frame by frame from gameplay footage.

’If I remember correctly, he did say that one of the Heroine’s families just spammed the first four forms in different combinations and called it a day.’ Klaus recalled with a slight smirk.

Regardless, alongside the names of these styles were detailed breakdowns of their steps and stances. He couldn’t learn all of them properly... not without years of dedicated training but one thing he could learn right now was what he could use to defend himself in a pinch.

Klaus looked at the sword he was holding, then back at the manual one more time.

’So to use the Jora Form properly... I need to have my feet positioned like this for optimal thrusting power, huh?’ He muttered while studying the stance diagram. ’Note that it causes shock up the arms when not done properly and can result in dropping your weapon.’

He looked up and spotted a slime bouncing ahead, completely oblivious to his presence.

The thing kept bouncing around unknowingly. Thinking back on it, all the slimes that he had fought today didn’t even try to dodge his attacks. They were just dumb monsters operating on pure instinct.

Did that mean the first slime he’d ever encountered... the one who had dodged his sword strikes repeatedly back when he was still trash was somehow special? An outlier?

’Probably just got lucky.’ Klaus decided.

Regardless, Klaus pressed his foot forward and closed the distance quickly. Having a stronger body was really a great advantage.

He could push forward with real force now without worrying about his legs breaking or his knees giving out, though he still wasn’t anywhere near as fast as Taula was.

Klaus stabbed forward with the Jora Form thrust.

The blade went through the slime completely, piercing straight through its gelatinous body and shattering the core inside with a satisfying crack but the impact sent a violent shock running up both his arms, the reverb rattling through his bones.

His grip loosened involuntarily and the sword clattered to the ground.

’Ow... fuck.’ Klaus thought, shaking out his hands.

Well, the book did explicitly say that happened when the attack stance wasn’t done properly. He’d need way more practice before he could pull that off consistently.

Klaus picked up his sword and looked around the sewer tunnel carefully.

There were no more slimes in sight and the tunnel was eerily quiet now.

’Don’t tell me I’m done with them already...?’

Sure, the slimes were repetitive enemies, but he loved them like that. They were easy to kill, predictable, and didn’t require complex strategy. They were perfect for grinding.

There was sudden silence now that he no longer heard the constant sounds of slimes bouncing and squelching against the stone then Klaus heard something else entirely.

Shouting.

’Shouting in the sewer...?’ Klaus thought, his body immediately tensing.

He focused his hearing and surely enough, he could make out the sound clearly now. People were shouting at the far end of the sewers, their voices echoing through the tunnels and it sounded like panicked screaming.

As for why other people were down here in the sewers at the same time as him... well, it didn’t concern him.

That was until they started running in his direction at full sprint.

Naturally, Klaus did what any normal, rational human being with a functional survival instinct would do in this situation.

He turned around and ran the other way instantly.

"Help! Help!" The person running behind him called out desperately as their voice was full of terror. "The Raven Thie—Gluk!"

The voice cut off abruptly with a wet choking sound.

Klaus kept running even faster, his boots splashing through puddles of filthy water. In fact, he had already brought out a sword from his storage ring, preparing to use Magnetic Field to propel himself past the area quickly and get back to the ladder exit.

However, in the split second it took him to blink...

There was a sword pressed directly against his throat, the cold steel kissing his neck. Someone was behind him and he hadn’t even heard them move.

"Where the fuck do you think you’re running to...?" A sweet-sounding voice called from directly behind his ear, contrasting sharply with the vulgarity of her words. "Don’t tell me you’re trying to run away from all the fun we’re about to have?"

Klaus’s entire body froze.

He glanced down at the sword pressed to his neck without moving his head. There were several intricate symbols etched along the blade, glowing with a dull red light.

It was a weapon design from a character that he immediately recognized from the game.

’The Raven Thief... fuck, fuck, FUCK... why did I have to run into he—’

"Are you fucking deaf, you little shit?" The woman cursed venomously from behind him, her voice dropping all pretense of sweetness. "If you don’t open your goddamn mouth and speak right fucking now, I’ll slit your throat, cut off your pathetic little dick, and hang it in my mouth like a fucking trophy. It must be tiny as hell too, considering you’re such a spineless wimp."

She pressed the blade harder against his neck with the edge biting into his skin. Klaus felt the fabric of his protective suit splitting open, and a thin line of warm blood trickling down.

"Now I asked you a question, you deaf piece of shit." Her voice was pure venom now and each word dripped with murderous intent. "Where the hell do you think you’re fucking running to?"

Klaus swallowed carefully, feeling the blade move against his throat with the motion.

He was absolutely cooked.