TMSDL 27

Chapter 27 — Weed’s Roanoke Live Stream

Weed’s return to Hell Difficulty drew a crowd of viewers.

— The fourth stage of Hell Difficulty is about to be revealed for the first time.
— No one’s ever cleared it. No info. No idea what’s going to happen.
— Damn, Weed must be nervous. Even his heart must be racing.
— He’s going to prove that “Water Rocket” title for real.
— He has to fight without any info. This is no easy feat.
— What he’s done already was reckless.
— Come on, Weed’s not what he used to be!
— I’ll admit it. He’ll probably die in Stage 4, but it’s amazing he came back at all.
— Maybe he’ll use the Mirror of the Abyss again.
— Even on Nightmare Difficulty, forbidden skills aren’t enough for many of the bosses.

Recent community sentiment leaned critical. Many viewers said Weed’s past glories were no longer enough, especially after he gave his masterpiece sword to the Line Guild.

Some players, who remembered the Royal Road days and had witnessed Weed’s feats firsthand, also weighed in:

— Kids these days don’t know Weed at all.
— Weed’s not afraid. It’s the monsters in Stage 4 who should be scared.
— I’m more worried for the Blade Dragon Guild. What are they gonna do now?
— Seriously, they messed with Weed.
— Looting a weapon crafted by Weed? That’s unthinkable. Even Hermes Guild wouldn’t dare.
— You’ve got to at least respect his courage.
— Is this a “he won’t die” kind of moment?
— More like, “He survived this too?”
— LOL, yeah.
— Hermes Guild, who killed Weed in Royal Road, was utterly destroyed afterward. Other guilds just watched.
— Today’s players only heard about Weed, they don’t know what he was. If he hadn’t left Royal Road, the Arpen Empire would still be ruling the continent.
— The Blade Dragon Guild members probably don’t even realize what they’ve done.
— They’re sleeping peacefully—completely unaware they might be cut soon.

Older viewers, in their late 30s to 40s, had very different reactions. They knew Weed well and weren’t swayed by the current community buzz.

— Boomers, come on.
— The overhype is too much. It’s like K-snacks: all packaging, no content.
— Still living in Royal Road nostalgia, huh?
— VR’s not the same anymore. There are so many skilled players now.
— What he’s done is impressive, but this is the end of the road.
— Today will be Weed’s last day.

Then the info for Stage 4 of Hell Difficulty was revealed:

— You have to learn swordsmanship from 5 instructors.
— Fail to learn in time? You’re out.
— Huh, could be trickier than expected.
— You need all 5 to acknowledge and teach you.
— Just learning late could mean failure.
— Learning swordsmanship isn’t easy.
— Up to intermediate, it’s fine. But advanced requires step-by-step training.
— Master-level skills are insanely hard. Even if they teach you, you might fail.
— Sword instructor Pankri? Isn’t he from the Kingdom of Kahalan?
— Yeah, just searched it.
— His record’s insane. Why’s a veteran mercenary here?
— It’s Hell Difficulty. Summoners here are on another level.
— Apparently, the level is adjusted for fairness.
— So it might be doable?
— Since he’s the first one, maybe Weed just needs to survive.

The viewers held their breath as Weed faced Instructor Pankri.

But it wasn’t a fight.

It was a one-sided beatdown.

— Weed’s dominating?!
— How is he this good?
— That’s insane. The opponent’s a former mercenary captain!
— Pankri’s sword is fast and powerful, but Weed’s suppressing him completely.
— What kind of strength and technique is that?
— His sword swings feel like a solid wall.
— Is that really swordsmanship?
— Look, Pankri just lowered his head.

Weed’s performance hadn’t degraded at all during his time away.

Weed only swung his sword seventeen times.

That was enough to fracture Pankri’s ribs, swell his wrists, and make him limp on one leg.

“I lost. You’re more than qualified to learn swordsmanship.”

Pankri collapsed to the ground. Weed simply clicked his tongue in disappointment.

“I was just getting into the rhythm.”

To learn swordsmanship in Hell Difficulty Stage 4, Weed needed the instructor’s recognition. Killing the instructor would forfeit the chance, so he held back from striking the neck or heart on instinct.

“You should’ve lasted a little longer so I could warm up.”

“Urgh…”

“It would’ve been an excellent learning experience for you to become stronger.”

Weed threw Pankri’s arrogance back at him. His attitude wasn’t particularly better than in the past—this time he just openly showed frustration at gaining no loot or experience from the fight.

“If you keep whining, it makes me look like the bad guy.”

“I think… you broke several of my ribs…”

“You’ve got to power through with mental strength.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Back in my day, we’d fight even if an arm got chopped off.”

“Urgh…”

Ding!

You have earned Pankri’s respect.

Major Combat Achievement!
You have overwhelmed a retired mercenary captain using swordsmanship.
All stats increase by +2.
Fame increased by 1,200.

Despite not sculpting or forging anything, Weed gained a major stat boost purely through combat.

‘Is it usually hard to get combat achievements in Roanoke?’

(Yes. Combat achievements usually come from first clears, boss monsters, famous enemies, or large-scale battles.)

(Also, since your character was created on Hell Difficulty, the rewards are much greater.)

In Hell Difficulty, even eating a fish-shaped pastry as a kid could help you grow—it was that extreme.

These opportunities were rare once the character was already created.

Pankri groaned in pain.

“I will teach you one of my sword techniques. Which skill would you like to learn?”

You can learn one Master-Level Sword Skill from Instructor Pankri.
Please select the skill you wish to acquire.

Weed had yet to learn any sword skills in Roanoke. He had mana but hadn’t used it yet.

‘Wouldn’t be bad to pick up a few useful skills in this stage.’

(It seems this stage offers growth opportunities through trials.)

But suddenly, Weed had a bad feeling.

His absolute intuition, which had never been wrong since Royal Road, was flashing red.

When something felt even slightly off, disaster always followed.

‘Why would they give away skills in Hell Stage 4?’

(Not sure what you mean.)

‘Maybe… Stage 5 is going to be that hard.’

Hell Stage 4 might not be “easy,” but he had a gut feeling Stage 5 would be brutally difficult.

Having been burned many times by hidden quests and backstabs in Royal Road, Weed knew: now was the time to pick a truly valuable skill.

Without hesitation, he made his choice.

“I’d like to learn the defensive skill that creates a wall using sword swings.”

“Wise choice. A good defense is the foundation of all swordsmanship.”

“It didn’t work so well against me, though.”

“…Ahem. That was due to my low proficiency.”

The AI was surprised by Weed’s pick. Until now, he’d focused solely on offense to achieve 100% clear rate in Hell Difficulty.

But choosing a master-level defensive skill? That was a solid move.

(Considering what’s to come, prioritizing defense is a wise decision.)

(If you fall into serious danger even once, your life could be at risk. Balancing offense and defense is key to growth.)

‘What are you even talking about?’

(Huh?)

‘This is the first instructor. Obviously the weakest. Learning an offensive skill from him would be useless. So I’ll save those for later and grab defense now.’

Weed’s plan was to learn strong offense skills later—starting with defense here was just optimization.

“I will now demonstrate my sword technique.”

“Please proceed.”

To learn it, Weed had to mirror Pankri’s sword movements exactly.

Slashing, thrusting, jumping—the sword style moved like a dance.

It lasted about three minutes, and Weed had to replicate it perfectly.

“I’ll repeat it several times.”

“No need. I’ve seen enough.”

“Excuse me?”

“That was simpler than I expected.”

Weed began performing the technique immediately.

His sword pierced, flowed, and danced through the air.

The motion of his sword was smooth, elegant, and dazzling.

Each step followed the natural rhythm of the technique, and the light traced beautiful arcs in the air—etched so vividly, they would be unforgettable.

“…Wha—”

Though the movements were technically the same as Pankri’s, Weed’s execution felt entirely different.

The flow was sharper, clearer.

His sword became a seamless extension of his body.

(Instructor Pankri is in awe of your skill.)

(In Royal Road, this would boost affinity. In Roanoke, it likely raises loyalty.)

Roanoke valued power. The strong ruled.

Weed had fought brilliantly in Royal Road, always making full use of his abilities.

You have mastered a sword technique on your own.

Beginner Swordsmanship Lv.1 (0%)
Increases sword damage and power of sword skills as level rises.

Achievement Unlocked: Enlightenment!
You’ve reached a high level of understanding in swordsmanship.
All stats +4. Agility +10.

Master Skill Acquired: Wall of the Sword
Beginner Swordsmanship rises rapidly!
→ Level 2: Sword damage increased.
→ Level 3: Damage increased, range +5%.
→ Level 4: Huge boost to damage.

Weed finally learned a swordsmanship skill after reaching Stage 4 of Hell Difficulty.

In earlier stages, he’d mainly used orc clubs, bows, and undead forces.

The result of rapid growth.

Stage 1 of Sword Cave Complete!
You have overwhelmed Instructor Pankri and acquired a skill.

Time Taken: 21 minutes.
Maximum rewards granted.
Strength +3. Max HP and MP +500.

New Trait Acquired!
Genius Swordsman (Lv.1):
+10% sword damage, +15% sword skill proficiency gain.

Special Reward!
Summoning Token: Retired Mercenary Pankri
Can summon him in 5 battles. If he dies, the token becomes unusable.

Stat boosts. Traits. A summon token from the instructor.

‘Roanoke sure gives out generous rewards.’

(Not for other users. You’re earning 100% achievement on Hell Difficulty—that’s why.)

Weed, showered in rewards, moved on to the next stage.