‘How about this?’
Chaeng-!
“······?”
‘Is this not it… then how about this?’
“······!”
I continued to question with my sword, and the woman snickered, indicating that it was not the case.
‘I got nervous when she suddenly targeted Yeon-hee, but it seems she has a gentle side when it comes to swords.’
And through our sword exchange, I realized that the first target of this woman was not Yeon-hee but Ran.
Even now, she was covertly aiming for Ran, who was perched on Yeon-hee’s shoulder.
‘Why? Is it because of Ran’s [Acceleration]?’
That might be the case, but from her gaze, it felt like there was another reason.
The back-and-forth continued.
‘You’re using a lot of tricks that aren’t typical of Ilseom’s swordsmanship. Maybe the first attack was aimed at me?’
In reality, I had a hole blown in my body, so Kwon Hyun-a’s attack could be considered successful.
Kwon Hyun-a had enough leeway to counter-attack right after deflecting my strike, but she was subtly pointing out the issues with my attacks one by one.
‘You seem used to teaching? Is it possible that this woman was teaching those who came before?’
– Kwon Hyun-a!!
At that moment, unable to bear watching Kwon Hyun-a play the teacher role any longer, Hyeon Woo-seok unleashed a vehement reprimand at her.
“Ah? Ahh!”
Only then did Kwon Hyun-a seem to realize her mistake, glaring at me while trying to compose herself.
‘Ah… that damn brat. Things were going well.’
Just as I was feeling a bit ticklish, Hyeon Woo-seok’s shout completely wiped away my senses.
“Shit…”
‘What are you looking at me for like I’m the one at fault?’
After that, we exchanged blows over fifty times.
Though they say it was an exchange, I simply kept dodging.
Kwon Hyun-a unleashed sharp strikes that had once pierced my body without restraint, and I could barely manage to block them, let alone think of anything else.
‘Wow… technically, I stand no chance here.’
Evading with [Bran] was out of the question, as her thrusts came at such erratic timings that their sharpness grew as time passed.
A giant.
I felt that kind of sensation from that little girl.
Fortunately, since I had received even a bit of the [Forgotten Ancient Swordsmanship] from my master, I was able to hold on at this level.
The fast-paced exchanges continued for about another minute, leaving even Yeon-hee unable to intervene as I was gradually pushed back.
Moreover, seeing me endure much better than she had expected, she eventually took out a potion called ‘Kilbar’ from the space.
‘What… you weren’t planning on using that?’
*Gulp*
At that moment, a chill ran down my spine, and I quickly lunged toward Yeon-hee.
*Ssgeuck─!*
‘Tch…!’
Suddenly, Kwon Hyun-a’s attack, which had flown toward my defense, headed for Ran on Yeon-hee’s shoulder, and Rakan managed to throw himself in just in time to block it.
‘She’s definitely targeting Ran!! Ran! Do you know that woman?’
(Not at all… she’s a person I’ve never seen before. Don’t worry, I won’t let her lay a finger on the master.)
“Il-wol! Don’t worry about me! If it comes down to it, I’ll use the earring!”
Yeon-hee was already fidgeting with her earring, ready to escape at any moment.
‘No. Using that here would be a waste of an item.’
“Grrr!!”
After blocking the attack, Rakan, now in a frenzy, charged at Kwon Hyun-a.
I also launched my attack simultaneously.
However, Kwon Hyun-a pivoted in a semi-circle, lightly dispatched Rakan’s neck, and by the time she arrived right in front of me, she attempted to plunge a dagger from her bosom into my forehead.
[Special Strong Acid]
*Zzzzaaack─!*
“Ugh?!”
At that moment, a powerful acid erupted from my mouth, startling her, causing her to retreat.
‘I’ve lost. I’ve really lost.’
I had to acknowledge that I could not keep being stubborn.
Even if she was aiming for Ran, I couldn’t just stand by and let her attacks on Yeon-hee continue.
“Craaaaa!!”
Yeon-hee brought Ran back again, but I had no hope of blocking the next attack without a problem.
The opponent was a master in swordsmanship, an expertise I could hardly compete with.
The smirk on Hyeon Woo-seok’s face revealed everything.
*Hoo─ the taste isn’t quite right. I wanted to take them down solely with swordsmanship. I never expected a monster like this to endure.*
Having polished my skills with my master’s secret art for decades, my meager swordsmanship talent clearly had its limits.
‘Was I getting a bit carried away with obtaining public approval? I had forgotten my place.’
But even with that bitter feeling, I didn’t want to give up hope. In fact, I felt a sense of gratitude that I had managed to exchange sword techniques to this extent.
“Spirit…!”
‘So what did the spirit do to you!’
Kwon Hyun-a, glancing at the newly summoned Rakan, lunged forward while shouting for the spirit.
A thin sword that was only half the size of a regular sword swirled towards my body like a serpent.
‘I don’t think you realize how much I’ve held back from using other skills while sharing swords with you.’
[Chain of Flame]
As the skill manifested, a donut-shaped flame encircled Kwon Hyun-a, binding her instantly.
“Ggghhh?! Release!!”
*Whoosh—*
But surprisingly, with her murmured word, the chains of flame scattered like smoke.
‘What the…? Does a sword class really have a release skill?’
However, I anticipated such a possibility and quickly manifested a flame barrier behind Kwon Hyun-a, who was backing away.
*Fwoosh-!*
‘Okay, this time for sure-‘
But despite the horrible flames blocking her escape, she didn’t stop running; instead, she swung her sword at the barrier.
‘What?!’
*Swish—*
Kwon Hyun-a’s swing significantly reduced the strength of the [Wall of Fire].
Moreover, the flame energy attached to Kwon Hyun-a’s sword was definitely the fire that had just been moving according to my will.
“Gggrrr?! The flame, the flames! The sword will break!”
‘Did she absorb it? What the heck is that sword? I don’t sense any artifact’s energy from it, though?’
Though she wasn’t controlling the absorbed flames properly, I felt an inexplicable sense of emptiness and anger, a sudden impulse to take Kwon Hyun-a down.
‘Get a grip… I can’t kill her.’
Kwon Hyun-a twisted the sword surrounded by flame energy grotesquely and hurled herself forward, and I faced it head-on.
‘First, the flame energy.’
[Arcane Deflection]
*Boom──!*
“Ugh?!”
Along with the magic reflection skill, all the flame energy flew away, but Kwon Hyun-a’s sharp strikes still came at me fiercely.
However, I managed to push back her attack with the side of my sword and detonated all my mobility techniques to charge forward.
Adding [Lightning Step], [Reckless Charge], and [Phantom Dash] to the mix made my speed utterly terrifying.
“Yeeek?! Ilseom Sky Slash—”
It seemed Kwon Hyun-a attempted to use a counterattack I didn’t know about, but I had already collided with her body.
*Boom—!*
[Thunder Horn]
*Zzzt—!*
“Gyaaaaa!!”
As I struck her, feeding her a bolt of lightning, I saw the momentary loss of focus in Kwon Hyun-a’s floating eyes.
After colliding with me, she rolled dozens of times and flew far away.
But I had no intention of stopping there.
I might hide my abilities, but I had no hesitation in revealing my magical capabilities.
[Fireball]
[Fireball]
[Fireball]
.
.
.
– What?! He can spam fireballs like that?
– Crazy, is there really such a monster?
– If he spams like that, his mental strength wouldn’t hold up, right? Is he a monster without that concept?
‘It’s not like I don’t have that notion… just less so than others.’
In a fleeting moment, I poured dozens of fireballs, each the size of a human torso, onto Kwon Hyun-a who lay on the ground.
The impact of the collision made Kwon Hyun-a regain her senses.
However, she still seemed unable to stabilize her body, possibly still in a state of shock from the lightning.
Dozens of fireballs hurtling toward her.
This time, Kwon Hyun-a couldn’t exhibit the impressive ability she demonstrated when she absorbed the flame energy earlier.
‘Relying on flailing around while sitting is totally different.’
Nonetheless, she displayed remarkable skills by deflecting several fireballs from her seated position, but soon her swinging speed slowed, and at one point she hunched down to enter a defensive skill.
*Fwoosh──!*
– Ughh…! So hot…!
*It’s [Hunker Down]… it’s been a while since I last saw that. Does she seriously go about tanking that like an idiot?*
Though regarded as a low-tier defensive skill due to the requirement of maintaining a hunched position, it still had some utility.
But that was only if I stood still.
Kwon Hyun-a tried to escape quickly after finishing [Hunker Down].
[Poison Scale]
My tail tightened around her neck.
“Cough-heh—!”
Kwon Hyun-a, lifted into the air, had bloodshot eyes, with froth bubbling from her mouth.
She couldn’t even voice her intention to surrender as I gripped tightly around her.
‘Ah, that girl is perfect for the [Demon Servant] test. What a shame.’
I momentarily pondered over the talented individual in front of me.
– T-That’s dangerous!
– Where did that tail suddenly come from?
– That’s a technique that’s bound to catch someone off-guard if you don’t know it!
– Stop! Judge, what are you doing? Why aren’t you stopping it?
But the man, who had been acting as the scarecrow referee, only kept glancing at Hyeon Woo-seok.
– That malicious monster keeps tormenting Hyun-a!
‘To them, I must look like the antagonist.’
*Clap, clap, clap.*
“Ggghhh?! Cough…!”
‘It’s a shame… but it can’t be helped. More importantly, I should collect my dues, right?’
*Whack!*
I momentarily glanced at Kwon Hyun-a before lightly punching her stomach.
Her abdomen caved in, launching her waist skyward.
While I was grateful for correcting my swordsmanship, what really ticked me off was that she tried to extend her sword toward Yeon-hee. Of course, I was also somewhat angered that she attacked Ran.
*Whack!*
“Ggghhh…!”
*Thud thud thud thud!*
After giving Kwon Hyun-a’s whole body a gentle massage, I spun my tail and flung her with all my might.
But instead of the expected impact sound when she crashed against the wall, there was none.
Hyeon Woo-seok had shielded Kwon Hyun-a just before she hit the wall.
‘Of course. Out of the five, the only one he cares about is that woman.’
The previous swordsmen didn’t flinch when their arms were severed; they really are a joke.
“Lee Yeon-hee… you don’t know the meaning of moderation, do you?”
“······.”
Hyeon Woo-seok gritted his teeth, glaring at Yeon-hee as if he wanted to kill her.
‘Why is he acting like this toward Yeon-hee again?’
I quickly blocked Hyeon Woo-seok’s line of sight and took his gaze upon myself, and he, as if I were merely his subordinate, whipped his head around and directed Kwon Hyun-a to the healers.
[······ Oh, today’s duel’s winner··· is the White Alliance······.]
The announcer glanced around as he revealed that the side that had hired him had suffered a crushing defeat.
Once the outcome was decided, the Ilseom side grew increasingly subdued, while Vision side felt festive.
– We won!! What is that skeleton?!
– His name is Il-wol.
– Il-wol~! Come join us!!
– What a reliable guy he is!
Especially Jang Yu-chan couldn’t take his eyes off me.
