A Frontline Soldier Awakened as a Gamer In The War!

Kaiyan asked what he meant, while Uncle Jeff stared at him with a look of genuine pity.

“Didn’t you say I have talent?”

“It’s because you’re a commoner… Even if you were a commoner, it would have been better if you were born into a wealthy household. Then you could have become a knight. A skilled one at that.”

Jeff offered him even greater praise as if the compliment he gave earlier was nothing.

To think that Kaiyan could have become a skilled knight, not just any knight. Of course, it was probably thanks to being a player.

“That’s why it’s so regretful. To show your talent, you need proper training.”

“But if I keep practicing…”

“That’s right, if you keep practicing like you are now, your swordsmanship skills will improve. But you can’t surpass your limits unless you learn aura.”

Aura, the power of knights.

A mystical power that processes mana in a special way and stores it in the body for use.

“Aura.”

As Jeff said, Kaiyan knew that there were limits without learning aura.

Aura users can use power that transcends human limits just by using aura. But for non-users, it’s common sense that they cannot surpass their limits even if they die and come back to life.

“Of course, there are ways to learn aura even if you don’t become a knight. If you’re a noble’s child or have exceptional talent, it could be possible. But you don’t belong to either of those.”

Ultimately, it meant that Kaiyan’s low status as a commoner was the problem.

“I… I heard that there are mercenaries who can use aura among the soldiers. Like you, Uncle Jeff. How did they learn aura?”

There was one hope Kaiyan had heard as a mercenary himself, that there were very few but strong mercenaries who were stronger than most knights.

The fact that mercenaries are as strong as knights means that they are aura users.

“In most cases, they were knights who became mercenaries for some reason, or they learned half-baked aura like me.”

Jeff’s answer crushed Kalyan’s expectations.

Why would a knight become a mercenary? And what did he mean by a half-baked aura?

“… Is there such a thing as a half-baked aura?”

Kaiyan listened intently as Jeff elaborated, “In proper terms, he learned a dangerous Aura manipulation technique. You know about the grades of Aura manipulation, right?”

It was common knowledge even for a child.

There were three types of Aura manipulation techniques that could be learned.

The grade of the Aura manipulation techniques that regular knights learned was Low.

The techniques passed down in named families were Middle.

The techniques passed down in the royal family or high-ranking noble families were High.

“The technique I learned is not even on the Low level.”

“….”

The Low-level technique was a book that contained the minimum methods for training Aura. If it was not even up to the Low level, it was literally half-baked.

Jeff let out a bitter sigh and spoke again.

“Still, I was lucky… Most half-baked techniques can be life-threatening due to side effects.”

Risking one’s life to learn a half-baked technique that couldn’t even compare to the Low level.

“Then, does the technique you learned have no side effects?” Kaiyan asked.

“No, of course, it does,” Uncle Jeff replied.

“If it has side effects…”

Kaiyan listened intently as Uncle Jeff explained the side effect of the technique he had learned.

“The side effect is that it only enhances the user’s body with Aura. That’s the side effect of the technique I learned.”

Kaiyan knew that Aura users were those who had enhanced their bodies with Aura, but were also able to emit Aura externally.

Compared to the Aura experts or masters who emitted Aura externally, it could be considered a beginner’s stage. However, even at that level, it was said that it was possible to emit power beyond that of a human.

“Do you understand why I called it a half-baked technique?” Uncle Jeff asked.

“Yes…” Kaiyan replied.

Uncle Jeff went on to explain that with the low-level Aura manipulation technique, no matter how hard one tried, the limit was an Aura expert. This was common knowledge for most people living on the Eunasia continent.

But Jeff’s limit was even lower than that of an Aura user, no matter how hard he tried.

“Of course, it’s better than nothing, but I can’t say it’s good. Haha!” Jeff’s cheerful laughter sounded sad in his eyes.

Kaiyan couldn’t help but wonder why Uncle Jeff had learned a half-baked technique in the first place.

“…Why did you learn a half-baked technique, sir?” he asked.

“Obviously, to become stronger,” Uncle Jeff replied. “Where would a mercenary like me have the opportunity to learn a proper technique? Besides, there are many mercenaries who want to learn even a half-baked technique.”

“Ah, I see…” Kaiyan replied.

He had a rough idea, but learning Aura was even harder than he had imagined, even for half-baked techniques.

“I would love to teach you even these half-baked techniques, but it’s difficult because of the magical contract,” Uncle Jeff said.

“That’s okay. But what’s a magical contract?” Kaiyan asked.

“Well, you don’t seem to know much about it. A magical contract is a type of magic used when making big deals or when secrets need to be kept. If you break the contract, the other party will find out,” Uncle Jeff explained.

“A magical contract… So that’s how it is,” Kaiyan said.

Indeed, magic was full of wonders. While there was no mandatory penalty for breaking the contract, the fact that the other party would find out could be more compelling.

“Ha ha, let’s stop talking about that. Um… I’ll teach you about downward strikes and diagonal slashes today. Come on, follow me,” Uncle Jeff said.

Kaiyan followed Uncle Jeff as he passionately taught him about downward strikes and diagonal slashes.

Uncle Jeff explained in detail when to use which technique, how to connect them with the ones Kaiyan had learned before, and other tips and tricks he had acquired through his years as a mercenary.

Boom!

“Wait a minute,” Uncle Jeff said.

“Yes? What’s wrong?” Kaiyan asked.

“Why are you so… good?” Uncle Jeff asked.

“Uh… because you taught me so well, Uncle Jeff?” Kaiyan replied.

“Huh, no. I’m going in now, so practice a little more and come inside,” Uncle Jeff said.

“Yes,” Kaiyan said.

Uncle Jeff sighed as if he couldn’t believe it and went into the barracks.

“Okay. It’s tough, but I have to keep practicing now,” Kaiyan said.

He trembled with excitement and continued to swing his sword in the air, aiming to master the new techniques fully. And to hunt even more monsters tomorrow.

“Now, diagonal slash!” Kaiyan said.

Swish-

“Then thrust!” Kaiyan said.

Swish-

Connecting the moves was smoother than using only the two basic techniques. It was safe to say that the resulting additional attacks were more ferocious.

The heat that could be felt through Kaiyan’s hands was not fake, although he couldn’t be sure if he would actually be able to use it against the monsters without being eaten alive.

His clumsy swordsmanship was gradually becoming more refined with effort and skill.

“Phew… Hm? Has the war ended?”

The main camp, which had been deserted for some time, suddenly became noisy while Kaiyan was swinging his sword.

It seemed that the war had ended while he was training his swordsmanship that day.

“Truly… It’s terrible.”

He widened his eyes and took in the sight of soldiers returning to the main camp.

Soldiers covered in blood and exhausted, soldiers missing an arm, soldiers without legs being supported by their comrades.

The aftermath of how terrible and cruel the war was was clearly evident.

“Why do humans… have to go through this every ten years?”

The monster waves that had repeated for hundreds of years.

Many humans suffer in this massive war that occurs every ten years.

Just a few months ago, in the small village of Bernoff where Kaiyan used to live, there were many residents who had participated in the previous monster wave and suffered serious injuries.

“Even if I have to kill every monster…”

The reason Kaiyan gained the power of a player.

“I will end this tragedy.”

Perhaps the god who pitied humans gave him this power.

Grow stronger quickly and put an end to the monster waves that occur every ten years.

“…Stronger.”

Kwaaak.

He trembled as if his arm was about to fall off, but Kaiyan firmly gripped his sword to become stronger and even one day faster.