Those who chose to fight with the sword had no choice but to get up close and personal with their opponent.
There were many monsters in Solterra that could be considered as the worst nightmare of melee fighters.
This was why most Wanderers, especially girls, preferred to fight using long-range weapons and abilities, allowing them to attack from a safe distance.
Derek had always wanted to be a swordsman since he was young.
He didn't grow up in a wealthy family, but they weren't poor either.
They could be considered as almost a middle-class family, and because of this, Derek didn't receive any proper training.
However, that all changed when he arrived in Solterra and was sent to a place where a retired soldier lived.
This soldier taught Derek the basics of swordsmanship, which he proceeded to master at a rapid pace.
After training for half a year and clearing his first mission, Derek knew that there was no going back to him.
The abilities that he acquired from the mission only strengthened his desire to become a swordsman.
So, he did what he needed to do and joined the Central Government.
He was then assigned a proper sword instructor, who made sure to refine Derek's sword skills and made sure he developed a solid foundation.
Thirteen knew that Derek wasn't a genius like Roland, Joshua, and Erica.
However, he was a hard worker.
Since the young man's basic swordsmanship was already solid, Thirteen decided to give him scenarios in which he would have trouble fighting in close combat.
Once Derek overcame this obstacle, Thirteen would teach him a sword art that he believed would fit the other party perfectly.
The name of this Sword Art was Relentless Destroyer. As the name implied, it was a very aggressive sword style that wouldn't stop until its target was destroyed.
But there was one requirement to Master this skill, and that was to become fearless in fighting in close combat regardless of what or who your enemy was.
In fact, The One had asked Thirteen to impart a Martial Technique to Derek because it had high expectations of him.
Even Gods had their favorites.
Who could have guessed that the God of Solterra and Pangea favored Derek more than it favored Roland, the Hero of their party?
But Thirteen wasn't convinced.
He said that he would only agree to give Derek a Martial Skill if the young man passed his test.
The One agreed and even told Thirteen that if he wished to give the other members of the Hero Party some Divine Techniques as well, it would allow it.
In the end, Thirteen agreed to bestow Derek, Shana, Erica, Mildred, and Rianna their own Divine Ranked Martial Techniques.
However, he made sure that they would only be able to use it while they wielded the equipment that he had made for them.
It was like Arthur's Mythical Weapon that allowed him to master Heaven's Blade.
As for the Hero and the Sage?
Thirteen really didn't care about them. After all, they were already blessed by Fate.
But since he gave others some gifts, he planned to give the two of them something as well.
However, the only thing he would give them was equipment, and nothing else.
"Are you still alive?" Thirteen asked as he removed Derek's Neuro-Link.
The young man's body was still twitching from time to time, which made Thirteen decide to pour a few drops of rejuvenation potion on his lips, allowing him to recover faster.
A few minutes later, Derek's eyes regained their focus, but a defeated look appeared on his face.
"Master, you hate me, don't you?" Derek asked.
"Of course not," Thirteen replied. "I'm going to make you the strongest swordsman in the world. Heck, people will even call you the Sword Saint in the future. But in order to reach that goal, you need to become fearless.
"Right now, I'm sure that this is a very traumatic experience for you. However, it is better that you experience it in a virtual world rather than in real life."
Derek sighed and wanted the teenage boy to lower the difficulty of his training.
He was reaching his limit, and truth be told, he was afraid that he would have a mental breakdown first before he became fearless.
"Master, can't you just teach me how to become strong instantly?"
"You sounded like Erica just now. Do you want to gather the seven magic balls instead?"
Erica, who was worried about Derek, didn't have the heart to laugh at the teenage boy's jabs at her and her comrade.
"Master, how did you become strong?" Derek asked. "I've never seen a thirteen-year-old as strong as you."
"It's because I've lost countless times in my past lives," Thirteen replied. "Each time I was reborn, I trained, I became strong, and then I lost. If this happens to you over and over for a long period of time, being strong is the only choice you have left."
"Are you talking about the Main Character of a novel?" Derek asked. "I like reading those kinds of books."
"Not a Main Character," Thirteen answered. "Just your regular run-off-the-mill cannon fodder."
"Then, if this is a story, wouldn't that make Roland the Main Character?" Derek said as he slowly propped himself up from the ground. "If I'm part of that story, I'd probably just be an Extra."
Thirteen nodded. "Right. You're just an Extra."
"How harsh." Derek chuckled as he held Zion's hand, which the latter offered to help him stand up.
"Ready for another round?" Thirteen asked as he shook the Neuro-Link on his hand, which made Derek shudder.
"Can I have ten more minutes?" Derek replied as he patted his chest. "I don't want to experience something like that right away."
"Okay, I'll give you a break today." Thirteen relented because he could see that Derek was truly at his limit and still hadn't recovered from his horrifying experience. "But you better be ready tomorrow."
"Yes!" Derek made a fist pump before patting his chest in relief.
"Tomorrow, be sure to go out in a blaze of glory, okay?"
"I'd rather not. It really hurts, Master. Have you experienced how it feels to get burned?"
Thirteen shook his head. "No. Only heartbreak."
The girls, who heard Thirteen's reply, looked at him in surprise.
All of them thought that he was still too young to talk about love and heartbreaks, but his tone when he said those words really felt as if he had been heartbroken, making them want to ask him questions, which the teenage boy had no plans of answering.