“I’ll kill youuu!!!”
Would a hook flung without thought cause this kind of seizure if it snagged someone in the heart?
Ok Myung-jin, wielding his spear, let out a monstrous scream and leaped high into the air.
This isn’t an act.
If that expression and movement were acting, then it was convincing enough to just go along with it.
Rohan raised his longsword and directly blocked the descending spear.
Claaang—!!!
Weapons infused with magical power clashed with a metallic roar.
The Iron Turtles below let out deep, guttural cries at the explosive sound.
“Didn’t you say earlier you weren’t planning to kill me?”
“Shut up!”
“Hey, you get rejected sometimes in life. No need to throw a tantrum over it.”
“Graaaah!!! I’ll pierce that filthy mouth of yours!!!”
Interpreting Rohan’s attempt at comfort as mockery, Ok Myung-jin looked about ready to blow steam from his face.
The magical power in his spear grew increasingly volatile, riding the wave of his emotions.
Pang!
The disrupted mana violently pushed the two apart.
Ok Myung-jin landed back in his original spot, using the Iron Turtles on the ground as stepping stones.
Rohan quickly regained his balance and readied his sword again.
“Rohan. I’ll help.”
Ichinose stepped forward.
But Rohan had already made up his mind. So he rejected her without hesitation.
“It’s okay. Just wait.”
“Student Ok Myung-jin is from a renowned martial family. He probably has some special skill.”
“Most likely.”
“…You know it’s harder to subdue someone cleanly than to kill them, right? In this situation, a joint attack makes sense.”
“Oh, you’ve already figured out what I’m planning?”
“It’s because of what the instructor said. Don’t try to kill each other. I can feel your intention.”
It was clear that if Ichinose stepped in, the power balance would shift in an instant and the situation would be resolved.
Even so—
Rohan asked her not to interfere.
“Just this once, let me act on my own.”
“…….”
Whether Ichinose had experienced it herself or not, human relationships were at times no different from those of wild beasts.
There were moments when the hierarchy was determined by sheer brute strength alone.
For those who lived by martial power, missing that fleeting moment was not an option.
Even if winning meant more trouble later, if I don’t establish dominance now… this guy would be a real nuisance.
He had seen Ok Myung-jin’s type more times than he cared to count.
He understood him all too well. Well enough to see the future that followed.
It would be the same whether it was after the practical exam, during daily academy life, or even if they ended up crossing paths again on this deserted island.
To gain the upper hand over someone like that, he needed to establish the pecking order here and now. Make it clear who was on top, leash and all.
“In return, I’ll make up for it somehow. What do you say?”
“…You don’t need to compensate me. Just don’t get hurt.”
As Rohan raised the corners of his mouth and looked straight ahead, a contrasting tension filled the air.
Perhaps Ok Myung-jin had overheard their conversation from across the way.
“Hey. If you interfere, I’ll kill you.”
“O-Okay!”
Ok Myung-jin also made it clear he wouldn’t accept help from his partner and intended to settle things on his own.
He even threw off his outerwear and gripped his spear as if ready to crush it.
“Huuuuh…”
He managed to rein in his explosive fury, at least on the surface.
Even so, the way he looked at Rohan hadn’t changed. His eyes burned with a violent hunger, like he wanted to chew through to the bone.
Rohan lightly jumped down from his spot and landed in the Iron Turtles’ habitat.
Ok Myung-jin also lowered his spear to his shoulder and followed suit.
– Gueeaaagh!
As the Iron Turtles stuck out their heads and crawled toward them, both Rohan and Ok Myung-jin stepped onto their shells.
They closed the distance between them with confident strides, stepping across the sharp carapaces like stepping stones.
Rohan wore a smile to irritate Ok Myung-jin, but his eyes stayed fixed on the spear.
And in his head, the calculations never stopped.
I can’t afford to let my guard down.
Even with that nasty temper, he was still the son of a well-off family from the Three Nations Alliance.
Just from that earlier strike, it was clear he’d received professional training when it came to combat.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Ok Myung-jin’s spear spun violently around his body.
Just like Ichinose had said. It wasn’t a thrust, but a move that used centrifugal force to swing down with impact.
His first attack hadn’t been a thrust either, but a downward strike.
If the weapon Ok Myung-jin was holding wasn’t a standard-issue weapon but his own…
Wouldn’t he have chosen something like a crescent blade or a naginata?
“Kaaargh!!!”
He swung his spear with a shout.
Rohan who was standing on the swaying Iron Turtle swung his sword like a baseball bat.
—Clang! The flat of the sword deflected the spear.
Ok Myung-jin took the force head-on and used it to spin his body,
Then he continued his fierce exchange with Rohan.
Clang! Tching! Clang!
They had to stay mindful of the unstable footing that shifted however it pleased.
Rohan used the broad face of his sword to deflect the spear and carefully watched each trajectory and movement.
Roughly ten exchanges passed.
He began to see the pattern.
The spear technique itself was systematic and excellent. The only problem… was the user’s inexperience.
Was it because reality didn’t match his expectation of overwhelming Rohan early on?
As the fight went on, the impatience in both Ok Myung-jin’s spear and his expression grew more and more apparent.
Ting!
The shaft of the spear was blocked more cleanly than ever before. Almost like the move had been read in advance.
Both Rohan and Ok Myung-jin felt it clearly in their hands. The sharp contrast of hope and despair.
“Did you skip dinner yesterday or what? Your spear feels weak as hell.”
“You’re barely blocking and still mouthing off? All talk, aren’t you!”
A vein bulged on Ok Myung-jin’s forehead.
Rohan let out a small laugh at the emotions laid bare so transparently.
An honest bastard.
Ok Myung-jin kicked off the Iron Turtle and leaped backward, widening the distance before landing on the ground.
A distance unreachable unless he threw his spear.
Even so, Ok Myung-jin began channeling mana. His entire body was enveloped in a different kind of movement than before.
A skill?
It was highly likely.
Whether to close the distance now or observe….each decision came with its pros and cons.
Rohan tensed his thighs, ready to burst forward at any moment, and kept a close watch on his opponent.
“Uooooh!!!”
An unusually loud battle cry.
Ok Myung-jin’s body began to grow larger, and he started donning armor with an Eastern flair, like something out of a historical drama.
Even the spear in his hand seemed to be affected by the skill, taking on the semi-transparent shape of a crescent blade.
So he really is that general’s grandson.
Seeing a skill like that, maybe bloodline did matter after all.
Rohan decided to close the gap and kicked off his shell.
Now transformed into a massive figure well over two meters tall, Ok Myung-jin raised his spear high.
Judging by the way he exposed his waist and lower body without concern, he must have had confidence in his durability.
“Kuhahaha!!! Die!!!”
“You lunatic. I told you, no killing between students.”
The spear came down like a guillotine.
Rohan gripped his sword with both hands. The blade turned red-hot with blazing heat.
The air distorted from the heat as he swung.
[First Sword — Blazing Slash]
The moment Rohan’s longsword and the spear collided—
Ok Myung-jin’s spear, which could have easily crushed a person, spun through the air and flew toward the sky.
“!!!”
A startled expression was clearly visible between the gaps of his helmet.
Rohan closed in on the now unarmed Ok Myung-jin and spread his mana.
Inflict Weakness.
[The target has been inflicted with physical attributes weakness.]
“What… what did you just do?!”
Startled by the strange sensation, Ok Myung-jin instinctively used his armored body as a weapon.
His fists were as large as pot lids, but since he was hopeless outside of spear techniques, they weren’t particularly threatening.
“You’re gonna lose some teeth. Bite down.”
Rohan tilted his sword sideways and slammed it into the helmet covering Ok Myung-jin’s head.
Diiing!
A resonant vibration, like the ringing of a bell.
“Ggh!”
Ok Myung-jin’s pupils began to unfocus, as if he was about to lose consciousness.
Even his legs were visibly trembling.
[Inflicted debuff to target.]
“!”
A notification he had never seen before. But the moment of confusion and surprise passed in a flash.
That’s it!
A function that had appeared after his transcendence.
He was sure of it. This was a golden opportunity.
[When attacking a target with an inflicted weakness, there is a low chance of applying a debuff. The debuff shares the level of the inflicted weakness.]
A variety of debuffs surfaced in Rohan’s mind like a list of options.
He chose the one that seemed perfect.
Blindness.
The effect took hold immediately.
“M-My eyes…!?”
The shock was so intense it seemed to jolt his fading consciousness back to clarity.
Ok Myung-jin fumbled around his own face with his voice soaked in fear.
Rohan couldn’t hold back the laughter bubbling up from the clear result.
“What are you doing in the middle of a fight?”
Rohan flipped his sword and struck Ok Myung-jin’s abdomen with the pommel.
The attack pierced through the sturdy armor and landed perfectly.
“Ka-hak—!”
The man’s legs gave out. He clutched his stomach and fell to his knees.
“………”
If he swung his sword now, he could cleanly take off his head.
But he didn’t.
Rohan drove the sword he had been holding into the ground without hesitation, fixing it in place.
He had no intention of upsetting Joo-yeon.
“That stung, huh?”
He clenched his empty hand into a solid fist and sliced through the air.
He delivered a clean blow to Ok Myung-jin’s jaw.
“Ge-heuk!”
As the dull impact blurred his consciousness,
Ok Myung-jin felt his vision returning and found release from genuine fear.
And then he looked ahead. He was forced to.
As he collapsed, He took in the sight of the beautiful girl standing above him.
“L-Lady Ichinose···!”
Ok Myung-jin squeezed out his last bit of strength to speak through his fading consciousness.
But Ichinose’s gaze didn’t spare him a single glance.
In a rare moment where Ichinose’s eyes remained open for an extended time,
They were fixed only on Rohan. They were filled with a sense of awe.
Leave a Reply