Farewell to the hero! chapter 50

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Using the term Daniel had just taught me made his smile grow wider.

“That’s why, when you use a dagger, you can’t think of cutting your opponent to kill them. You have to aim to stab their vital points with a single strike.”

“For humans, the heart is a vital point, right?”

“Humans have dozens of vital points, not just the heart. But unless you’re a professional assassin, you don’t need to memorize them all. In short, the crown of the head, throat, collarbone, inner thigh, knees, both sides of the chest, and the ankles are the main ones.”

“That’s already a lot.”

“There are even more.”

He had already listed seven points, and I couldn’t imagine how many more there could be. I was astonished.

The crown of the head, throat, collarbone, knees…

I repeated the vital points Daniel mentioned, inwardly impressed.

I hadn’t considered places like the collarbone as vital points before.

While I was lost in thought, Daniel pulled out another dagger from his waist.

It was the same as the one in my hand, but the hilt was wrapped in worn cloth, with a wavy pattern etched into it.

The cloth, stained from frequent use, suggested that this was Daniel’s preferred dagger.

It made sense.

Lending out one’s primary weapon wasn’t something you did lightly, no matter how many spares you had.

Even Kaindel, who didn’t seem to care about most things, carried his sword as if it were a part of his body.

“Daggers are mainly used for self-defense or as secondary weapons. It’s rare to rely solely on a dagger in a fight where the goal is to kill.”

“But you only use a dagger, right?”

“It depends on how you use it. I initially learned it as a self-defense weapon, but I kept using it because it suited me.”

“That’s interesting.”

Hearing me murmur, Daniel adjusted his grip on the dagger, turning the blade so that it faced me.

As he lifted his hand, the dagger caught the moonlight, casting a soft glow.

“Everything I’ve explained so far is about using a dagger against humans. When it comes to monsters, however, the approach is quite different.”

He shifted his left foot back as he spoke, taking a stance that made me instinctively focus.

“When facing monsters with a dagger, you don’t just hold it and fight. You throw it. Since the dagger’s reach is short, engaging at that distance would put you at a disadvantage.”

“Throw it?”

“Yes.”

I understood the logic—since the reach was short, you’d be at a disadvantage when fighting monsters.

But the idea of throwing the dagger caught me off guard.

I tightened my grip on the dagger.

The weight was substantial, even though it wasn’t as heavy as a longsword.

I wasn’t confident I could throw it and hit a monster.

I’d be lucky if it didn’t drop a few steps in front of me.

Daniel stared blankly at the dagger before glancing at me and then subtly changing the direction of his wrist.

He flicked it a few times, as if loosening his wrist, and suddenly threw the dagger.

It flew straight ahead and embedded itself perfectly into the tree trunk in front of us.

Despite the distance, it hadn’t veered off course.

As my eyes followed the path of the dagger, I noticed a yellow feather also lodged into the tree along with the blade.

I couldn’t tell if it belonged to a bird or a monster, but it was clear something had been there just moments ago.

I gulped as the dagger pierced through the feather, as if rejecting all my doubts.

It seemed Daniel really did handle daggers as skillfully as Sehir had testified.

However, I wasn’t sure if I could replicate that.

I glanced back and forth between the dagger and the feather before cautiously asking, “Isn’t that difficult?”

“Of course, it may take a long time to get used to, but this method could actually be easier to learn. If you’re going to fight while holding a dagger, you not only have to master the use of the dagger but also learn how to move your body to match its reach. On the other hand, when throwing, you can skip all those steps.”

“That makes sense,” I replied.

His calm explanation was surprisingly convincing.

Thinking back to how he had thrown the dagger, the way he held it and his precision in targeting seemed far beyond what I could hope to mimic, but the act of throwing itself didn’t seem impossible.

Maybe I could actually give it a try.

Just as I was fidgeting with the dagger in my hand, Daniel walked over to the tree, pulled out the dagger, and gently stepped on the fluttering yellow feather as he added, “Throwing a dagger is simple. Raise your arm to match the tension in your shoulder muscles.”

“Okay.”

“To put it simply, pull your arm back as if you’re throwing something. However, if you release it right away, the angle will twist. So pause for a moment, think of aligning the blade horizontally, and bend your wrist before letting go.”

Following his instructions, I pulled my arm back.

My eyes were fixed on the spot where Daniel’s dagger had hit.

A faint mark remained on the tree trunk where his blade had struck.

As I aligned the blade horizontally, I felt the weight distribute evenly.

Is it time?

I glanced at Daniel, who was silently watching me, then threw the dagger.

It didn’t fly as straight and fast as Daniel’s had, but it arced through the air and lightly tapped the tree.

The dagger didn’t embed itself into the tree like his had, only leaving a slight mark, barely peeling off a bit of the bark.

Daniel, who had been watching the fallen bark cover the feather, bent down and picked up the dagger that had rolled to his feet.

“Well done.”

“Really?” I asked, uncertain.

“Yes, for a first try, it seems you have talent.”

Talent? All I’d done was leave a small scratch on the tree.

I glanced at Daniel, who was handing out compliments with his usual blank expression, and awkwardly smiled.

The back of my neck grew warm.

Even though I knew Daniel wasn’t the type to offer empty praise, I still felt embarrassed.

While I was aware that no one gets it right on the first try, I still felt a bit self-conscious.

I resolved then and there to practice until I could perform in front of Daniel without shame.

“Now, go ahead and throw it lightly a hundred more times, then take a break.”

“A hundred… times?”

My newfound resolve almost faltered on the spot.

Surprised by the overwhelming number, I asked for clarification, and Daniel slowly blinked.

“A hundred is a small amount. Starting tomorrow, you’ll need to throw it two hundred or even three hundred times. Only then will it become second nature.”

“…”

In the end, I couldn’t come up with a counterargument and pressed my lips together.

Even though my body was protesting, claiming that it lacked the stamina, my mind had already accepted his reasoning.

Since I wouldn’t be able to train with Daniel for long, I had to learn as much as possible in a short amount of time.

Even if that meant throwing daggers hundreds of times.

After all, you never know when something unexpected might happen.

A hundred…

I murmured to myself as I steeled my resolve and clenched my fists.

If I grit my teeth and push through, I can do it.

A hundred times, two hundred times, as many as it takes.

Since I had already decided to learn the dagger, I had anticipated the physical toll it would take.

And knowing Daniel, he wouldn’t have instructed me to do it if he didn’t believe it was possible.

Daniel silently observed me as I motivated myself.

Then, with a slight smile, he added, “I’ll be stretching nearby. Call me if you need anything.”

In the end, it wasn’t impossible.

I hit a wall around my seventieth throw, but I kept pushing through and eventually surpassed a hundred.

After silently counting to one hundred, I collapsed on the ground.

I no longer had the strength to stand.

I needed to gather the daggers scattered around, but my body refused to move.

I’ll just rest for a bit.

I had to, or I wouldn’t be able to hold on any longer.

Using the excuse of regaining my strength, I lay flat on the ground and placed the back of my hand on my forehead.

I thought I was overheated, but my forehead felt cold instead.

My hair, damp with sweat, brushed against my fingers despite having washed earlier.

As I kept brushing my unruly hair out of my face, Daniel quietly approached and handed me a water bottle.

“Well done.”

“Hah, ha, wow, this is… really tough.”

Even speaking a single sentence left me breathless.

My hand shook as I accepted the bottle.

Daniel waited patiently as I drained the bottle, then sat down beside me.

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