Politely declining Legolas's kind invitation, Levi followed Bilbo to a secluded area and asked:
"What happened?"
"I went to visit Thorin and the others, Levi." Bilbo sighed with heavy concern. As soon as he left the king's throne, he had immediately gone to visit the dwarves. On his way back, he happened to run into Levi.
After briefly describing the dwarves' situation, Bilbo hesitantly said: "Actually, Thorin entrusted me with some tasks."
"Did you agree?"
"I..."
"I haven't agreed yet, since this matter is quite difficult. So I wanted to ask your opinion. I don't know how to put it, let me think..."
"In seven days, the Woodland Realm will hold the Feast of Starlight. All elves are looking forward to this banquet, including the prison guards. They'll all be thoroughly drunk by then." Levi suddenly said something seemingly unrelated.
"Bilbo, I believe you have your own judgment."
He patted the hobbit's shoulder with gentle encouragement.
"During the banquet, I happen to have some matters that require me to leave temporarily. Of course, not just that day. I may need to part ways with you all for some time afterward."
While speaking, Levi pulled out a golden apple with a lustrous glow from his backpack.
"It contains healing power and can cure almost any injury or pain."
The apple was placed in Bilbo's hands as Levi continued: "I trust you, Bilbo. You'll know when to use it."
"This... no, no, no, I don't think I'll need it. You should keep it yourself. You fight often, so you definitely need it more than I do!"
Bilbo immediately refused. Regardless of its effects, this thing clearly looked very valuable.
"You will, Bilbo."
Looking at Levi's eyes that seemed to see through everything, Bilbo wanted to say more, but the words seemed stuck in his throat. He opened his mouth, then finally agreed:
"Alright then, I understand."
"Thank you, Levi. I've decided what to do."
Levi's trust and gift filled Bilbo with determination. Having come this far, he was no longer the comfort-seeking hobbit who constantly thought of home. He had his own judgment about certain matters.
"I'll do this. It's what we agreed on from the beginning. I said I'd help them reclaim their homeland."
"I'm glad you've come to that conclusion."
There were still seven days until the Feast of Starlight.
After parting with Bilbo, Levi also went to visit the dwarves, inquiring about their situation and future plans.
"Why don't you just dig us out?" one dwarf asked quietly.
Levi pointed to the group of guards standing at the entrance and shrugged.
"I could dig you out, but you might not be able to get away." Levi could certainly force the dwarves out, but the consequences... at best, his reputation with the Woodland Realm would decrease somewhat. At worst, there might be serious problems.
Levi hinted: "You won't rot here forever. Don't forget, I'm not the only one outside."
The dwarves looked at each other, falling quiet for a moment. Everyone knew who that other person was.
Actually, before Levi arrived, Thorin had already entrusted Bilbo with this task. This wasn't hidden from anyone except the elves.
"Don't worry, this isn't the end of your journey."
Levi had also learned to speak in riddles, but once he said this, the dwarves knew things would probably work out. They just needed to wait. Wait for their burglar.
"What about you, Levi?" Kili asked.
"I still have some matters to attend to. If time permits, I'll find you and rejoin after this."
"Good."
Having temporarily resolved matters with the dwarves, Levi left the prison and looked at the palace, suddenly slapping his forehead.
"I completely forgot about this."
With that thought, Levi found an elf to serve as a guide and toured this underground palace, successfully unlocking the crafting recipes for the Woodland Elf equipment series.
You could never have too many crafting recipe categories. The more, the better.
Elven equipment series, aside from stylistic differences, were all roughly the same in strength. Nothing special.
However, besides equipment, something else here caught Levi's attention:
Some elves who were training.
Their long lifespans meant most elves were quite skilled fighters. They had enough time to learn slowly. You could say they were all brave warriors, every one an elite.
But skills, if unused for too long, would become rusty. So daily training was still necessary. Training grounds might be rare in Rivendell, but they were everywhere in the Woodland Realm because their combat frequency was quite high.
It had to be said, these elves wielded their swords quite well. Any one of them could show impressive skills.
However, swordsmanship...
The elves' movements reminded Levi of a mod he'd played before.
From current observations, the system adding new mods wasn't without pattern. Each time a new mod was added, it was because he had encountered the corresponding elements.
While thinking this, Levi's gaze suddenly found a rather familiar figure.
Legolas.
Not knowing what he'd experienced, he was currently training with a rather gloomy expression, his sword techniques dazzling to watch.
"Impressive." Levi couldn't help but praise.
Noticing Levi's arrival, Legolas immediately stopped his movements and responded:
"Thank you for the praise, but I think no matter how superb my swordsmanship, it couldn't compare to the legend of the wilderness."
"Uh, well..."
"If possible, I'd like to request some combat guidance." Legolas said seriously.
Levi rubbed his hands, feeling somewhat embarrassed.
What could he guide? Eat a golden apple, drink a potion, and charge in? Or be a despicable block man exploiting mechanics and throwing TNT?
Honestly, he didn't even use these things himself unless absolutely necessary. Ordinary orcs weren't worth using the real trump cards in his backpack. Those were reserved for big bosses.
"Actually, I don't know any swordsmanship. In fact, I've never learned these things." Levi explained.
"Never learned?"
Legolas was genuinely surprised.
How was that possible? If he really didn't have good fighting skills, where did those terrifying battle records come from?
Could it really be just brute force?
"I indeed haven't learned any combat techniques. If I had to choose something I'm relatively good at, it would be pure slashing."
Hearing Levi's words, Legolas found it incredible. He didn't know how to describe Levi. This person was too unique.
"Actually, I'm very interested in elven combat methods. If possible, could you teach me some?"
"Of course, I'd be happy to help."
Though surprised, faced with Levi's request, Legolas immediately agreed. He displayed his weapon arsenal: "Sword, dagger, bow, or unarmed combat, evasion techniques. Whatever you want to see, I'll demonstrate."
"I'll do my best, holding nothing back."
While speaking, Legolas picked up practice weapons and handed one to Levi.
An impromptu demonstration and lesson began.
Initially, Levi was worried. He didn't know how to hold back in combat. If he accidentally injured Legolas, that would be quite embarrassing.
However, as the training progressed, Levi gradually lost this concern entirely.
Couldn't hit him, simply couldn't hit him. This guy was harder to catch than dust floating in the air. Those movements weren't something humans could perform, though he wasn't human to begin with.
If this were a life-or-death battle with all means available, Levi had many ways to deal with this situation. But in pure skill comparison, he had to admit he really wasn't very good at this.
Clang!
Once again, Levi's sword was deflected, exposing a weakness.
After this exchange, Legolas suddenly stopped, indicating he had finished demonstrating this phase.
As Legolas stopped, a notification appeared almost simultaneously:
[Mod Added: Dynamic Swordsmanship]
There it was!
Levi couldn't help but feel excited. He'd only been trying it out, not expecting it to actually work.
Unaware of Levi's situation, Legolas sheathed his sword and explained: "What I just demonstrated were the most basic techniques. These methods of dealing with enemies cannot be learned without experiencing real combat. But for someone like you who's accustomed to battlefield fighting, I believe you'll master them quickly."
"Exactly right."
While agreeing, Levi opened the Dynamic Swordsmanship mod's skill panel. Currently, there was only one skill: Basic Swordsmanship Lv.1.
In the game, this skill's function was to automatically lock onto enemies without manual aiming. In the current context, it meant that when entering combat, Levi's focus would be stronger and his observation of enemies more detailed.
Dynamic Swordsmanship mod skills required "skill orbs" to unlock or upgrade, and skill orbs were obtained by killing hostile creatures.
In other words, to acquire new skills or upgrade existing ones, he just needed to keep slashing.
"I understand everything now."
[Chapter Complete]
***
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