< Chapter 101: Dream (1) >
The aftermath in Australia has almost disappeared.
The cadets have regained their sanity with two days of self-study (free time).
The instructors who were summoned from all sides have finished all their duties and returned to normal.
“So, now I will announce the first-year rankings.”
Today is the day the rankings are updated.
They should have been announced on Thursday, right after returning from Australia, but they were delayed for various reasons due to the postponement of the return and the aftermath of the Four Divine Beasts incident.
As a hologram rises above the podium, the lower-ranked cadets check their phones.
The rankings announced by hologram start from the first place. Since it takes a long time to reach the lower ranks, they’re checking if the update has been announced on the homepage.
Of course, I was just watching the hologram.
I must have taken first place in this exam. I’m in the top rankings, so why bother checking separately?
[1st place Ha Si-yeon]
[2nd place Shin Jia]
As expected, the rankings of the two were reversed.
“Cadet Shin Jia could not participate in the exam due to an injury and thus received an average score. It’s unfortunate, but rules are rules. Try harder next time.”
“Yes.”
Jia ‘pretended’ to respond casually. Her eyes twitched slightly. She couldn’t completely hide her irritation.
“Cadet Ha Si-yeon has risen from 4th to 1st in just two months. Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
Ha Si-yeon smiled brightly.
“Kim Chul-jin. Congratulations. You’re in 9th place.”
“Ow! Thank you!”
Kim Chul-jin had a tough time with me during the survival test, but somehow he survived to the end.
…Of course, I did keep him alive to torture him longer.
Anyway, it seemed like he gathered decent scores beforehand. An increase in ranking was inevitable.
While nodding, Instructor Pi Jin Ho’s gaze caught me. I could feel a strange heat in his eyes looking at me.
“Everyone, applause.”
He suddenly began to applaud.
Clap clap clap-
Following the instructor’s words, the other cadets began to clap as well.
They looked confused about what was going on.
“I never dreamed that you would come this far from 498th place in just two months.”
Pride, self-esteem.
Such emotions were rippling in Instructor Pi Jin Ho’s eyes.
It’s like the face of a master delighted with his pupil’s growth. Exactly that.
“Kang Seo-yul. 14th place.”
[14th place Kang Seo-yul]
At that moment, exclamations erupted around me.
“Wow!”
“He’s insane.”
“Single digits are just around the corner.”
I could feel eyes from all directions.
Jealousy, astonishment, envy, admiration.
A torrent of various emotions.
…It doesn’t feel bad.
“In the history of the military academy, Cadet Kang Seo-yul is the first to raise his ranking at this speed. It’s a rare and remarkable feat.”
The murmurs grew louder.
“Kang Seo-yul’s physical abilities have started to improve as well. Rising in the rankings was only a matter of time.”
“His skills were better than the first in his grade from the start. When his physical abilities rise, it’s game over.”
I felt a little proud amid the successive praises.
“Isn’t he going to be selected as a member for the national competition during the summer vacation?”
“It’s highly possible. Look at his upward trend now.”
I smiled.
The goal is within reach.
* * *
That Night.
I was called by Instructor Pi Jin Ho and headed to the private training room.
“Hello.”
“Come on in.”
As I entered the private training room, I saw Instructor Pi Jin Ho warming up, with beads of sweat on his forehead. Had he been working out in the afternoon?
“Phew.”
After finishing his exercise, Instructor Pi Jin Ho wiped his face with a towel and approached me.
“You seem to be in good condition.”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“Did you warm up?”
“Yes, I did some light stretching.”
I always stretch at this time. Stretching is followed by drills and afternoon training. This is my routine.
However, the afternoon training was skipped today since I was called by Instructor Pi Jin Ho.
“Did you bring the Cheonbyeon?”
“Yes, I brought it.”
I handed over the carrier I was holding. I had brought it as he told me to fetch it separately. Normally, it’s stored in the ‘Artisan’s Portable Forge’, but since I couldn’t show that, I had packed it in a carrier.
“Then we can start right away.”
“Excuse me?”
Instructor Pi Jin Ho grinned.
“Disable training mode. Change to sparring mode. The terrain is flat.”
[Changing to sparring mode.]
For a moment, I doubted my ears. Sparring? Now?
While I was in shock, Instructor Pi Jin Ho pulled out his sword from where it was laid.
It was not a practice sword, but a real weapon.
“It’s a mid-term check. Come at me.”
Instructor Pi Jin Ho held his sword. In an instant, a fierce momentum rose. An intangible will to knock me down seemed to press upon my body, even giving me an illusion of weight.
I swallowed dryly.
Instructor Pi Jin Ho. He’s called the strongest instructor in the academy. His estimated rank is S. He’s within the top 50 in the world.
“It’s thrilling.”
Such a formidable opponent is showing hostility toward me. A tingling sensation ran through my body.
I drew the Cheonbyeon. This was a great opportunity. An excellent chance to see how well I could fight without using ancient relics.
“I will learn from you.”
I bowed slightly and assumed my stance.
“Come on. I’ll just defend.”
“…Aren’t you underestimating me too much?”
“You’ll know if I’m underestimating you or not once we start.”
“…Yes, that’s true.”
I wrapped my sword with energy.
“Here I come.”
I stomped on the ground.
‘Boost!’
I activated body enhancement and swung my sword.
Chiiiing-!
My sword slid down the instructor’s blade. A perfect deflection.
I changed the Cheonbyeon into the form of a dagger. Instructor Pi Jin Ho’s eyes sharpened at the sudden change.
At that moment, the Path of Wind opened. A unique trait of the Elf assassins, it predicts and shows the best path to follow.
“…What?”
But there were no red trails in my eyes. The Path of Wind didn’t provide any guidance.
The Path of Wind seemed to say:
No matter what you do, you can’t penetrate the being before you.
No matter what you do, you can’t block the being before you.
Such an absurd situation…
I was still in shock when it happened.
“How long are you going to stand there? If this was real, your head would have been gone three times by now.”
“Damn!”
I snapped back to reality at Instructor Pi Jin Ho’s words.
I thrust my dagger into the visible gap.
Clang!
Instructor Pi Jin Ho deflected it nonchalantly.
I changed the form of the weapon right in that stance. Into a scythe shape. A curved sword shape that would stretch out to reach Pi Jin Ho’s arm from this position.
“Hmm.”
But it was in vain.
Instructor Pi Jin Ho seemed to know everything, quickly ducking his body faster than a chameleon’s change.
“You would have died six times by now.”
My scythe didn’t even graze the instructor’s hair.
This time, it was a whip.
I feigned swinging the scythe and changed it into a whip.
“Ten times.”
It was useless.
With only two steps, my whip became useless.
Next was the spear.
I launched an attack with Spiral Spear, even adding a boost.
I thought he would dodge this too.
“Kang Seo-yul. You are not the only one who can rotate energy.”
But my anticipation was completely off.
Screeching-!
“What’s this?”
Instructor Pi Jin Ho didn’t dodge my spear but parried it.
My spear, clashing with the sword,
Bang!
Made an enormous explosive noise as it crashed to the ground.
The mighty torrent of power completely destroyed my body’s balance.
“Twenty times. If this were real, your head would have flown into the sky.”
Instructor Pi Jin Ho looked down at me.
“The thrust with the mystery of rotation is indeed threatening. But to an opponent who knows its principle, it’s merely prey.”
“What did you do?”
Instructor Pi Jin Ho smirked, stretching his sword forward.
“I matched the direction and speed of the rotation of your spear’s energy with the rotation of my sword’s energy. With an even greater force, you see.”
“I see…”
So that’s why my spear crashed to the ground.
In the battle of energies, my power was overpowered and guided in the direction where the force was applied.
“Is this the end?”
Instructor Pi Jin Ho asked with the same expression.
“Not yet.”
I gritted my teeth and quickly retreated, changing the Chameleon to the form of a bow.
At the same time, I pulled the bowstring.
Whizzing-!
My ultimate move that I used to defeat the Beast Master. I cast the arrow of my most powerful shot, utilizing all four attributes, including the Wind’s Blade.
Whirling-
Instructor Pi Jin Ho’s eyes widened.
“Fire… no, a wind attribute?”
It was his first time seeing me use the wind attribute.
Surprise was natural.
And it would be hard to respond perfectly to a technique he’d never seen before.
But that was wishful thinking on my part.
“Amazing. It’s a triple attribute.”
“!”
Instructor Pi Jin Ho, who had appeared before me, swung his sword.
Clang-!
The next moment, the bow in my hand was pointing in a completely different direction.
“When holding a bow, you must not grip it too strongly or weakly.”
“Argh!”
The shock caused me to release the bowstring.
“That’s why the trajectory is often bent by such light shocks. Remember that.”
Looking at the Spiral Arrow, fired incompletely and flying through the air, I opened my eyes wide.
* * *
That night.
Lying in bed, I recalled my confrontation with Instructor Pi Jin Ho.
“I didn’t expect to be so helpless.”
I had some confidence in myself.
Even though my ability rating was similar to a D-rank superhuman, my actual ability was at least B-rank, maybe even A-rank.
My attributes were special, and Cheonbyeon, the weapon, allowed me to utilize 100% of my unique traits; it was the perfect weapon for me.
Even if Instructor Pi Jin Ho was strong, I thought I might be able to land some effective hits.
That’s what I thought.
“Sigh…”
But that was just my arrogance.
I was like a frog in a well.
―Your skill is excellent. You possess the weapon’s master.
I repeated the words Instructor Pi Jin Ho said to me after the duel.
―But it’s not unique. Many superhumans in the world possess such skills.
Being the master of a weapon is an excellent attribute. It’s the best trait, increasing weapon proficiency and enabling free manipulation of Qi.
But that’s it.
Once you reach A-rank or higher, most superhumans can handle Qi freely, and weapon proficiency is close to maxed.
―Of course, in terms of dagger and bow, your skill may be one step above.
Only ‘dagger’ and ‘bow,’ supported by other race attributes, are exceptions.
―But even if you advance one step with skill, your physical specs are set back ten steps.
Instructor Pi Jin Ho said.
―When fighting real superhumans, not cadets or monsters, your skill loses its specialty.
There’s a saying, “Soft can overcome hard.”
I endured the Beast Master’s excellent physical ability with skill.
Dodging and blocking his amateurish, straightforward attacks wasn’t a difficult task.
―The fire attribute is about destruction. But if you miss, it’s meaningless. The same goes for wind.
―A combat method focused on counters? It’s just a shallow tactic to cover your physical deficiencies.
Instructor Pi Jin Ho’s words were harsh.
You may be special among the cadets, but you’re not in the professional world.
That’s what he was saying.
―Don’t be arrogant. I felt it during the last small White Tiger incident at the airport, Kang Seo-yul. You are overconfident.
It seemed my attempt to handle the small White Tiger by myself appeared arrogant to Instructor Pi Jin Ho. Well, he was right, considering all the circumstances.
―Don’t be too gloomy. You’re still young. There’s plenty of room to become stronger. Gradually grow, and you’ll be able to face someone like me with one hand.
Carrot and stick.
Instructor Pi Jin Ho’s guidance was perfect.
―Keep increasing your ability, master your attributes, and use bonus points when you reach the limit. Your only weakness, physical specs, will disappear.
If I had a system, that would have been the perfect carrot.
But I don’t have attribute mastery or bonus points.
So, to me, Instructor Pi Jin Ho’s words sounded like:
You’re barely keeping up now, but once other cadets accumulate proficiency and use bonus points, you’ll be left behind again, right?
To me, his words were not a carrot and stick but rather a whip and another whip.
“…He’s not wrong.”
Of course, I have an ancient relic.
A power separate from other superhumans. Even in its incomplete state, it’s strong enough to handle Vermilion Bird alone.
But that’s just insurance.
There’s no guarantee the ancient relic will always be available, and a 1-minute duration is too short.
“Sigh.”
So the answer is to become stronger, after all.
That doesn’t change my course of action.
Keep training to improve physical abilities, collect ancient relics, and fully integrate the remaining racial traits.
That’s all I can do.
“No.”
Lying in bed, I focused my magic on my palm.
Ching-
An incomplete barrier formed, showing no progress.
“…I need to find a way to use magic, too.”
Finding an ancient magic system independent of the system is now a priority.
* * *
Kang Seo-yul left, but Pi Jin Ho was still alone in the training room.
“…Haha.”
He sits in a chair, smiling faintly.
“I’m a fool indeed.”
He laughed involuntarily, recalling the recent duel with Kang Seo-yul.
He had planned to curb Kang Seo-yul’s arrogance a little, but he was surprised because he fought so well.
It was beyond imagination.
He was quite proficient in using the Cheonbyeon, and his movements were flawless.
‘Could he be a triple attribute holder?’
That last arrow was the finishing touch.
‘An intangible arrow using the synergy of fire and wind attributes.’
Even though it seemed to be an incomplete technique, its power was beyond imagination.
If he had been hit squarely by that arrow, even Pi Jin Ho wouldn’t have escaped unscathed.
Everyone would be shocked to learn that a first-year cadet learned such an extraordinary technique by himself.
“…That’s enough to be arrogant.”
Nevertheless, Kang Seo-yul was not arrogant.
No, it would be more accurate to say that he might have been arrogant but quickly came to his senses.
His deeply reflective and bowed head was impressive.
‘An unceasingly reflective and hard-working genius.’
A genius almost near perfection.
In Pi Jin Ho’s heart, that’s what Kang Seo-yul was.
Pi Jin Ho got up from his seat, smiling faintly.
‘But what to do about this?’
Pi Jin Ho turned and looked at one side of the wall.
The wall where Kang Seo-yul’s incomplete arrow had collided.
“I didn’t expect it to break this.”
The sturdy wall of the training room, forged with high-strength magical metal, was shattered.
It would take quite a bit of money to repair this.
And the instructor’s monthly salary is quite meager.
“Can’t be helped.”
Pi Jin Ho took out his phone, took a picture of the scene, and sent a message to Maiden.
[Photo attached]
[Fix this, please.]
The reply came right away.
[Did you get shot in the head? Who are you ordering around?]
“Hmm.”
He had already expected this level of defiance.
[Video attached]
[Please.]
“That should do it.”
He attached Maiden’s 15-year-old embarrassing past, sent it, and switched his phone to silent mode, smiling contentedly.
[You, son of a… Where are you hiding? Come out!]
His silent phone kept spitting out messages filled with curses and vulgarities from Maiden.
< Chapter 101 Dream (1) > End
