The teaching method at the Jeongmu Academy was self-directed learning.
There were numerous instructors responsible for various subjects and teaching assistants who assisted them. The students would seek out the instructors of the classes they wished to attend.
However, among the myriad of subjects, there were also mandatory courses.
These included Moorim History which was written from the perspective of the orthodox factions, Field Medicine, which taught emergency response techniques for unexpected injuries, and Practical Martial Arts, where students resolved matters through sparring.
Most of the courses, except for Moorim History, focused on preventing the premature deaths of novice martial artists.
Among these, Practical Martial Arts was considered the most popular class among the students.
The reason was simple.
“Baek Woo Jin, I challenge you to a duel.”
Unexpected events like this frequently occur, much to the amusement of onlookers.
The incident took place when students were gathering at the Grand Training Hall for their Practical Martial Arts class.
Most of the students had already gathered and they were chatting in groups when Baek Woo Jin arrived late.
“He’s really handsome….”
“His face alone is like that of a master. Hoho!”
The Baek Woo Jin who arrived late captured the attention of many female students. This inevitably stirred jealousy among the male students.
As Baek Woo Jin approached with unsteady steps, those with keen senses quickly noticed a sweet lingering scent of alcohol wafting from him.
It wasn’t the residual smell from a last night’s drinking session. It was a fresh and strong aroma that could only come from someone who had just drunk alcohol.
All the students began to murmur.
“What? Did he come here after drinking?”
“That crazy guy, showing up to Practical Martial Arts class after drinking.”
The male students started voicing their complaints, as if they were just waiting for an opportunity to do so.
None of the male students liked Baek Woo Jin who always charmed the female students with his looks despite his lack of skill.
The group that was most displeased by this was the one led by Namgong Soo.
They had consistently picked fights with Baek Woo Jin over various reasons, all because Namgong Soo wanted so.
He’s just an empty shell.
Namgong Soo had everything handed to him from birth.
He came from the Namgong clan, one of the five great clans. He also had exceptional martial talent and a commanding appearance.
He was confident in his looks, and indeed, many female students praised his appearance. But Baek Woo Jin was just on a different level.
It looked as if Baek Woo Jin was meticulously crafted by the gods themselves, while others were made from molds.
Namgong Soo who had always been the object of everyone’s admiration didn’t like those moments. Moments when Baek Woo Jin’s mere presence would create a silence and shift the attention away from him.
What made him even more frustrated was Yoo Hwa Yeon being by Baek Woo Jin’s side.
Even though he knew that she would soon be in his grasp, and despite knowing that she had already decided to leave Baek Woo Jin, he couldn’t suppress his rage when he saw them together.
The reason was simple.
Regardless of Yoo Hwa Yeon’s high ideals and Baek Woo Jin’s incompetence, the sight of the two of them standing together was enough to evoke admiration from those who saw them.
Sometimes, he wondered if his desire to tear apart their picture-perfect image outweighed his feelings for her.
However, it wouldn’t look good if he acted directly.
“That bastard… is crazy.”
Namgong Soo muttered quietly enough for those around him to hear.
That was enough.
It was enough to spur those gathered around him to action in their eagerness to win his favor.
“Hey, Dragon Face!”
The one who stepped forward first was Gu Wang Soo.
He was the second son of the Gu clan. The Gu clan was based in Jiangsu province, which bordered Anhui province where the Namgong clan was based.
This is my chance!
He had actually entered the Jeongmu Academy with the sole intention of building a good relationship with Namgong Soo.
He thought that if he could become close to him, he could make use the powerful Namgong name to push aside his older brother and become the head of his clan.
“Hmm?”
Baek Woo Jin’s slightly unfocused eyes turned towards Gu Wang Soo.
Baek Woo Jin quickly remembered his face.
He was the most active among Namgong Soo’s group, which constantly picked fights with him over ridiculous reasons.
Gu Wang Soo seemed to be aware of the eyes of those around him and so he admonished Baek Woo Jin with a serious expression on his face.
“Attending class after drinking alcohol! Are you out of your mind?”
Baek Woo Jin scratched his cheek with an embarrassed look.
“Uh… since I drank, I guess I’m not in my right mind?”
His self-deprecating tone brought out small chuckles from the observing students.
Gu Wang Soo’s face turned slightly red. He was flustered by the unexpected response.
Something felt off. However, he decided to ignore it and, as usual, tried to provoke him again.
“Hmph! It seems you’ve given up because your skills aren’t improving. Why don’t you just quit and stop bothering others?”
Normally, such an insulting remark would have made Baek Woo Jin’s face turn beet red with shame. But this time, his expression didn’t change at all. Instead, he just grinned and shook his head.
“No, my skills have actually improved a lot lately.”
His smiling face caused a stir among the crowd again.
“Look at him smile. He’s so cute!”
“Yeah, I usually can’t stand people who drink and wander around, but I think I could like him even if he drank all day!”
That face of his!
“Hmph, if your skills have improved, we’ll find out by testing them!”
Feeling his position weaken due to the overwhelming support from the female students, Gu Wang Soo sneered and shouted.
“Baek Woo Jin, I challenge you to a duel!”
“Sure.”
Let’s have a match.
As if he was waiting for this moment, Baek Woo Jin responded sharply.
Practical martial arts lessons began with duels between students. After the duel and once the victor was decided, the instructor would point out what went wrong and what could have been done better. So that he could instill theoretical knowledge in every one.
Practical martial arts classes hadn’t always been conducted this way. In the early days when the academy was established, the teaching method involved instructors and assistants demonstrating matches and providing detailed education to the students. However, frequent conflicts within the academy led to a change in approach.
To avoid terrible incidents from fights that occurred out of the instructors’ sight, they decided to create a public outlet for these confrontations.
“Is everyone gathered?”
As the looks exchanged between the students grew more intense, instructor Jong Ri Hyeok who was in charge of the practical martial arts class and his assistants entered the Grand Training Hall.
“Alright, you kids are full of spirit, so I’m sure you’ve formed various conflicts between you while us Instructors weren’t watching.”
So, who will duel?
As soon as he finished speaking, Gu Wang Soo raised his hand and shouted.
“Instructor-nim! I want to duel Baek Woo Jin. Please allow it!”
Jong Ri Hyrok frowned and shifted his gaze to Baek Woo Jin. The latter seemed to agree without any objections as he looked back calmly.
Jong Ri Hyrok was inwardly surprised as he met his eyes.
I heard he returned after a month…
His previously erratic breathing had stabilized a bit.
The implication was clear.
Did he reach first-rank?
His somewhat confident facial expression now made sense.
Most martial artists die right after reaching a new stage.
They feel confident that they can do anything with this newfound power they have never felt before.
Such people usually lose their lives by recklessly challenging experts who are slightly higher in skill than themselves.
Jong Ri Hyrok judged that Baek Woo Jin was thinking in such a way.
He can hold out for a while.
Baek Woo Jin who had just reached first rank, and Gu Wang Soo who was aiming for the later first rank.
The winner and loser seemed to be already decided, but they would likely exchange several fierce moves, so this should make a good demonstration for the class.
“Alright. The first duel of today’s class is between Baek Woo Jin and Gu Wang Soo.”
As the duel was decided and the students began to step back under the instructor’s guidance, the two people standing beside Baek Woo Jin didn’t move. They kept looking at him with worried eyes.
They were Shin Ye Hwa and Yoo Hwa Yeon.
“What are you really thinking!”
“That’s right, Gege. It’s not too late to give up even now…”
Shin Ye Hwa exclaimed and Yoo Hwa Yeon spoke in a concerned tone.
Baek Woo Jin didn’t care about their concerns and stepped forward.
Worrying over a duel where they couldn’t even kill each other was pointless.
He had anticipated this moment and had been waiting for it.
Being ignored and living a beaten life were the two things Baek Woo Jin hated the most in the world.
He knew this from experience.
Enduring only meant that the pain he had to endure would return even stronger.
“What do you mean ‘what am I going to do’? I’m just going to have some fun.”
At his unexpectedly calm response, Shin Ye Hwa and Yoo Hwa Yeon stared blankly at his back before they got pulled away by the instructor.
Leave a Reply