The Tin Knight-Chapter 46: The Tin Knight and The City of Clockwork (5)

It was natural to find someone from the Lennart family at the Lennart dojo.

However, Adelaide’s eyes widened in surprise—after all, she hadn’t expected one of them to be working as a receptionist.

Amused by this reaction, the receptionist let out a hearty laugh.

Their appearance was quite delicate, but their behavior was boisterous, making it difficult to determine if they were male or female.

“Great! Wonderful! I love people with rich expressions. Yeah, it was worth waiting for you to come.”

Adelaide asked in surprise, “Did you know I was coming?”

“I received a message from Ruben, the representative instructor at Lowefelt. This is the closest dojo from there.”

“But still, without knowing exactly when...”

“Let’s say it’s killing two birds with one stone. This is partly a hobby for me.”

The receptionist tapped the hat on their head.

“This is a magic tool with a slight perception interference effect. I’ve turned off the effect now, but normally, it has the effect of blurring the overall impression, including the face. As you know, our bloodline’s appearance is quite unique, isn’t it? Once people confirm the hair and eye color, they start bowing and flattering, so I can’t hear people’s pure evaluations. In contrast, when they think I’m just a regular employee, everyone shows honest reactions. Ah, but this is a secret, okay? If rumors spread in the city, I won’t be able to play anymore.”

“Ah, haha. Hahaha.”

Adelaide could only laugh.

Unlike Ruben, the instructor at Lowefelt, who was the epitome of a stern and strict warrior, the instructor here in Tik-Tok seemed quite eccentric.

“Um... well, um.”

“Oh my. Come to think of it, I haven’t told you my name yet. I’m René von Lennart.”

René winked, closing one eye.

When René pressed a button-like thing at the reception desk, an employee wearing the same uniform as René appeared from inside the management office.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ points out that this person’s appearance is also blurry!]

At the Tin Knight’s remark, Adelaide carefully observed the new employee.

That was when she realized something strange.

Despite clearly being in front of her, it was difficult to grasp the person’s specific appearance.

More precisely, it felt like someone one would pass by on the street.

They were in her field of vision, but when she tried to recall their face, it was impossible to remember in detail.

If asked to describe their features, she could only say “a person wearing a uniform”.

“Did you call, Boss?”

“Take care of the reception desk for me. I think I need to guide our precious guests.”

“Understood.”

After giving instructions to the employee, René turned to Adelaide with an invitation.

“Well then, follow me.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you.”

“Haha, no need for thanks.”

The place René guided them to was a fairly large training ground.

From the Tin Knight’s knowledge, it was about the size of a tennis court.

“The test content is simple. You just need to defeat the magic dolls we’ve prepared. There are seven difficulty levels in total, but I’d like to recommend starting from the basic level first.”

“Then, please start with the basic level.”

“Understood.”

When René gave a command to one of the dolls waiting in the corner of the training ground, the waiting doll stood up and walked to the center of the arena.

Its body was made from wood, and it carried no weapons.

Raising one arm horizontally near its chest, the doll bowed its head in greeting.

Adelaide, flustered, returned the greeting.

“When an effective hit is made, there will be a sound from the doll. Victory is achieved when a sharp sound rings out three times.”

“Understood,” Adelaide answered briefly.

She had already entered a state of concentration.

René, eyes shining at this sight, announced the start of the match.

Whoosh!

The wooden doll made the first move.

Stepping forward with its right foot, it swung its wooden fist widely.

Adelaide lowered her posture, then slashed at the wooden doll’s stomach in the gap of its failed attack.

– Beep!

Although no blood flowed, a sharp whistle-like sound rang out from the doll instead.

It tried to counterattack by swinging both arms, but Adelaide had already positioned herself behind the doll.

Slash!

One diagonal slash on the back panel.

One horizontal slash aimed at the nape.

With a fluid combo, the wooden doll rang out consecutive signal sounds, collapsing to the ground.

“Haha, as expected. This was too easy for you, I see. Shall we move on to the next level? Ah, of course, if you want to rest, you may do so at any time. There’s no rule saying you have to clear all levels consecutively.”

“I’m okay. I’ll continue like this!”

“Understood.”

Adelaide’s subsequent performance was exceptionally outstanding.

Level 2: Three exchanges to defeat a doll using basic swordsmanship.

Level 3: Five exchanges to defeat a doll wielding dual swords flamboyantly.

Level 4: Though she struggled against the joint attacks of two dolls, she managed to overcome them in twenty exchanges.

“Haah, haah.”

Adelaide breathed heavily.

She had experienced this prior in the labyrinth—the difficulty of facing multiple opponents compared to facing one was the difference between heaven and earth.

Not only was the stamina consumption high, but finding escape routes between enemy attacks was extremely tricky.

Of course, it was rewarding in proportion to its difficulty.

The admiring gazes of the disciples who had gathered around, René’s praise, and the Tin Knight’s cheering all excited Adelaide.

Clap clap clap.

When René clapped as if showing off, the surrounding gazes gathered.

“Excellent. It’s a skill that draws admiration. I mentioned earlier that the test consists of seven levels, but you don’t need to clear all seven. It’s considered a pass if you win up to the fifth level. This applies to the dojo’s disciples as well.”

Pass if you win up to the fifth level.

Those words flowed into Adelaide’s ears.

With her head a bit dull from the excitement, Adelaide thought vaguely.

I passed the test at Lowefelt in one try.

So, maybe this time too...

“How about it? Would you like to challenge it right away?”

“Yes.”

The deliberation wasn’t long, and Adelaide boldly issued her challenge.

And then...

Clang!

“Huh?”

She was met with a magic doll emitting mana from its entire body.

In a situation where she clearly slashed the body but heard a sharp metallic sound instead of the notification sound indicating an effective hit, Adelaide shouted in confusion, “Um, excuse me! I think this one is broken?!”

“Nope, this doll is functioning perfectly fine! We’ve just reactivated the reinforcement armor that was turned off until now!”

“Eck.”

Reinforcement armor.

If attacks don’t work even when slashing, what should I do?

Adelaide fell into confusion, but her opponent didn’t wait.

As if all the sluggish movements prior had been a mere feint, it pressed Adelaide with movements that seemed at least twice as fast, driving her into a corner.

***“No, wait—kyaaaaaaaa!!”

Even while screaming, Adelaide somehow managed to succeed in dodging.

Watching this scene, the disciples exclaimed in admiration.

“Wow, she dodges well.”

“It’s admirable that she’s still trying to counterattack somehow, but just tapping it like that won’t mean anything. Does she know how to use body reinforcement but not sword energy?”

“But did she even use body reinforcement? I can’t see any mana fluctuations on her body.”

“Come on, it’s probably just hard to see. How could she move like that without reinforcement?”

“That’s true.”

Overhearing the disciples’ words, you thought.

These friends are quite sharp.

Clink.

With your arms crossed, you fell into contemplation.

In truth, Adelaide hadn’t yet properly learned how to handle mana.

She could move lightly to some extent thanks to the basics she learned from the Friedel family, but that was all.

However, you had never directly taught Adelaide how to handle mana.

The reason was clear.

The experience and wisdom of the “Tin Knight” deemed it too early.

Adelaide’s innate physical qualities were truly at a genius level—almost innate.

Even at this point, she was displaying abilities on par with average reinforcement users without mana, but how far she could rise if she continued to train was in the realm of speculation.

For now, learning how to handle mana would undoubtedly hinder Adelaide’s growth.

It was similar to giving soft shoes to someone who had been walking around barefoot well, causing the calluses on their soles to disappear.

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Even if you told Adelaide to not use mana, there was no way to prevent unconscious use.

As a “player”, you judged this as a kind of build-up.

There were such things in games.

When a character reached a certain level, they became eligible for promotion to a higher class, and the player could then decide whether to promote the character immediately or continue growing in the current class.

If promoted immediately, the character becomes stronger quickly.

However, exclusive skills or bonus stats that could only be obtained by leveling up without promotion all evaporated into thin air.

Teaching Adelaide how to handle mana now would make her stronger in the short term, but thinking about the future, it would only hurt her.

That was the common view of both the “Tin Knight” and the “player”.

The problem was that because she couldn’t handle mana well now, Adelaide was on the verge of being defeated.

For Adelaide’s growth, she shouldn’t be taught how to handle mana now.

But it was also troublesome not to clear this sub-quest here.

There was an option to just pass it for now and come back later after Adelaide’s growth was complete, but in your opinion, that was a waste of time.

You came to a conclusion.

Originally, games were not necessarily cleared only by “orthodox” methods.

Even if the opponent was a boss that could only be defeated by weakening with specific items or performing specific gimmicks, if the player willed it, they could be beaten through brute force!

You decided to impart that “will” to Adelaide.

***

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to roll backward to the right!]

Before Adelaide’s reason could process the phrase that appeared in her mind, her instinct moved her body.

Right after Adelaide hurriedly rolled her body, the wooden doll’s leg stomped where she had been.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to charge to the left rear while staying prone!]

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to kick the opponent’s right knee area hard, and use that rebound to create distance!]

Whack!

Adelaide’s kick connected as the doll adjusted its stance.

The doll’s posture adjustment was delayed by one beat, while Adelaide, using the force of the impact, regained her posture one beat faster.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to lower the sword to the lower right!]

Adelaide lowered the sword she was holding with both hands diagonally downward.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to swing the sword upward with all her might!]

It was a very strange instruction.

It meant swinging the sword towards empty air after creating distance.

Huh? Huh?

But Adelaide, who was in a half-dazed state, didn’t have the capacity to question such details.

Unaware of the happenings around her, Adelaide swung her sword as instructed and...

Thwack!

...the neck of the doll, which was charging towards Adelaide with perfect timing, lined up perfectly with the sword’s trajectory.

Adelaide’s body was sent flying backward from the force of the charge, but the result was clear.

Adelaide’s sword was embedded about one-third into the wooden doll’s neck.

The gazes of the spectators watching from the sidelines were awestruck.

While everyone was frozen in confusion, only one person—one voice was issuing instructions without hesitation for Adelaide to hear.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to secure the mace from among the spare weapons in the corner of the training ground!]

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to charge forward!]

By this point, Adelaide’s reason had caught up with her instinct, but instead of being flustered, she followed the Tin Knight’s instructions.

Holding the mace in her hand, Adelaide sprinted across the ground.

The wooden doll, which had been trying to remove the sword stuck in its neck, seemed to consider the approaching Adelaide a greater threat and stopped its action to shift into a defensive stance.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to lower her body and ram into the left leg!]

The wooden doll’s right foot kick grazed Adelaide’s golden hair.

The left leg, which had been solely supporting balance, collided with Adelaide.

Whack!

A sharp pain shot up from Adelaide’s arm and shoulder.

Having collided bare-bodied with a body that could deflect even swords, it was natural that even Adelaide wouldn’t be unscathed.

But in exchange for that pain, the magic doll’s balance was disrupted.

The upper body of the doll, which had spread its two legs front and back as if stretching, tilted to the left.

Thud.

The tip of the blade stuck in the doll’s neck was driven deep into the ground.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to strike the sword handle with the mace!]

Whack!

Adelaide struck the sword handle, driving the blade even deeper into the doll’s neck.

If this had been done in a normal state, the sword tip on the opposite side would have moved and come out, but that sword tip was now firmly embedded in the ground.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to strike the sword handle with the mace!]

Whack!

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to strike the sword handle with the mace!]

Whack!

[The ‘Tin Knight’ tells Adel to strike the sword handle with the mace!]

Whack!

Unable to withstand the consecutive impacts, the sword tip that had been buried in the ground came out.

Thud.

Adelaide collapsed to the ground—completely drained.

She had no more energy left to move.

Not that she needed to.

The wooden doll, with more than half of its neck cut off, twitched its limbs weakly with a creak, then stopped moving altogether.

– Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!

Only the signal sound indicating effective hits kept ringing repeatedly from the doll’s body like a siren.

Or rather, it would be more accurate to say that everyone only now recognized the sound that had been ringing since the sword first lodged itself in its neck.

While everyone was dumbfounded, the Tin Knight alone nodded his head in satisfaction.

As expected, if you set your mind to breaking something, you can break it somehow.