Chapter 7
Chapter 7
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: EP. 2 – Knight Lee Han Here
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The stuffy mood melted away smoothly before he knew it.
Not only had it been a while since he'd faced a new opponent, but the Sword Resonance he'd shown at the end had been impressive in its own right. And since he'd properly crushed a guy like that, it was only natural that he felt refreshed inside.
If anyone had seen it, they might call his personality foul and sinister...
'Right.'
Lee Han humbly acknowledged it.
He did have a bit more twisted personality than most. And yes, he was a bit sinister.
That said, he wasn't the type to look down on others and derive pleasure from it.
He just had a touch of sinister pleasure from smashing apart those "annoying bastards" who proclaimed their strength with their entire bodies.
It was a rewarding moment, in his own way.
'I wasn't originally like this.'
Lee Han hadn't originally been one to enjoy fighting, but after reincarnating into a medieval fantasy world and living there for thirty years—not just living, but witnessing every kind of filthy sight—it was inevitable that his disposition would twist.
And on top of that, he'd spent the last three years getting beaten every single day by the Knight Commander dude...!
Honestly, there was no way he couldn't crave "victory."
"Was I a bit too harsh?"
"N-no, sir. Th-thank you for going easy on me."
"I held back some. If I'd hit you any harder there, you'd be a corpse. Heh."
"...Haha."
Lee Han patted his shoulder with what he thought was a joking tone.
But to the listener, it was a chilling remark.
Yord had bounced off the ground like a skipped stone and slammed into the wall, but fortunately, he only had some bruises—no major injuries.
This was partly thanks to Yord being a swordsman trained in Fighting Technique, but mostly because Lee Han had indeed held back, as he'd said.
'That was an insane strike.'
Yord's body was still trembling even now.
When he'd swung his sword awakening Sword Resonance, he'd expected that even if he couldn't win, he could at least land one hit.
But as if to prove that was a delusion, he'd swung back into a defensive stance, and the moment his swing met the blade...!
'I don't remember.'
Yes, he remembered clashing blades, but nothing beyond that.
He'd just flown away, his mind flickering out like a shorting fuse.
What his body instinctively remembered was how incredibly heavy that strike had been, and how incredibly strong and fast it was.
'That guy could've sliced me clean in half, not just sent me flying.'
Senior Ri Han still showed no signs of fatigue, overflowing with composure.
Yord forced a bitter smile as he deeply acknowledged in his heart that his sword had been utterly shattered.
He'd thought he could kneel every other person besides Aura Users...
'The world is wide.'
The young genius swordsman tasted the bitterness of his first defeat in life, his expression turning poignant.
After the spar between Lee Han and Yord, people approached Yord with admiration, not hesitating to show their goodwill.
Probably because his Sword Resonance display had been so striking.
Where was his family from? What was his sword school? What was his master's name?
They had a ton of questions, just like army seniors.
...Not in a particularly good way.
"Military places are the same everywhere, huh."
"Don't look at it so negatively. Family background, sword school, having a master—those are important to nobles."
"Sure, so commoners with no family or school should just scram, right?"
"...I didn't say it like that."
"Just think it's because I'm the twisted one."
"You're deliberately being sarcastic..."
Jake shook his head.
He knew that self-deprecating talk and sarcastic tone, said loud enough for everyone to hear, was bait to lure others into challenging him first.
Of course, everyone knew it was a ploy and avoided him, steering clear instead. Among the newbies, there were some who might bite, but after seeing the Yord match, none of the bold ones who wanted a spar were around.
"You've warmed up enough anyway. So chill out now."
"It's only half-warmed up, so I'm even itchier. Tsk."
"...Don't look at me like that. I'm never sparring with you."
Jake subtly backed away, avoiding the gaze of the guy like a fighting dog.
If he got caught, his body wouldn't hold up, so avoidance was the best policy.
Refusing a fellow knight's spar request wasn't polite, but you had to pick your opponents. Fighting a "mad beast" was out of the question.
'...If there were a barbarian warrior, would he be like that guy?'
The barbarians living in ancient temples of deserts and jungles.
They were innate warriors who honed their skills and strength in real combat.
A foolish way that didn't involve kindly learning from a master.
Yet those foolishly honed barbarian warriors were said to be stronger than any knight in the kingdom.
'No matter how I think about it, he's just like that.'
A peculiar guy who'd learned from no one, wielding only basic swordsmanship and fighting others to hone strength and skill.
Undeniably crude, yet no one in the knight order could overwhelm him.
It was exactly like a barbarian warrior.
"Barbarian Warrior Lee Han."
"Is that an insult or praise?"
"Both."
"...Not sure if I should be happy or pissed."
Even Lee Han himself couldn't deny the barbarian warrior comment.
He knew what undertones it carried.
...Uncomfortably so.
"Impressive talent, as expected."
"Yeah, how the hell is that even possible?"
"I can't even dream of imitating it."
"...Feels like he's just stupidly strong."
"Isn't that impressive in its own way?"
The knights evaluated the Lee Han-Yord spar, sending him gazes of admiration mixed with envy.
Though fellow knights, they were also rivals.
Among them, Lee Han—who stood out not just prominently but like a jagged rock—was a massive wall, perfect to make a common enemy of.
...Though Lee Han had zero interest in rivals or promotions.
'Talent, huh... That's how it looks to them?'
Lee Han let out a wry smile, finding it laughable.
Talent.
How nice it would be if he had that.
'Would things be easier now?'
Lee Han's talent could be pinned down as slightly above average.
For example, in grades: if 300 students took a math test and the average was 60, Lee Han would be at 70—a bit above average, the kind where good note-taking in class gets you decent scores.
It sounds decent, but normally, this level isn't enough to become a knight.
A knight's talent can't just be a bit above average; it has to be the kind where you can effortlessly hit top 10 in school even slacking off in class.
The guys who seem to play and sleep but somehow ace tests.
Prodigies or geniuses.
That's why every guy in the knight order had been called a prodigy at some point.
Even the nobles strutting around had backs, sure, but they'd received proper genius training and had fitting knight talent.
But not Lee Han.
As mentioned, just slightly above average.
However, lacking talent like others, he had a unique constitution—what's called a "trait."
In other words, no talent like others, but he had "functions."
No talent for mastering Fighting Technique or learning techniques at a glance to become a master, but the functions attached to his body let him beat them.
'The old man said it.'
- Your body is wondrous. It has a mystical quality that compensates for foolish talent. But there are limits. Plenty in the knight order can overwhelm even that mysticism, heh heh.
Advice mixed with curses on the day he'd been beaten.
So he'd snarked back.
'Then what should I do?'
The old man smirked.
- Simple. Strengthen the "functions" your body has. Figure out how yourself—it's your body, so you know it best.
True enough.
He'd learned how to enhance functions from the assassin organization he'd once been part of.
Breaking the limiter on the flesh.
The principle of tearing muscles and snapping bones to make them tougher and stronger.
- Good, you seem to have an idea. Hm, one more piece of advice: fight lots of guys to accumulate experience—or in your case, data.
Not treating people like machines...
But the advice helped, and it was why Lee Han picked fights with knights nearly every day for the past three years.
By fighting all sorts of people as the old man advised, he'd instinctively learned how to handle knights.
He still didn't know how they wielded swordsmanship, but he could instinctively judge how to move his body against them.
Make the body remember what the head can't.
'Funny thing.'
...Am I really not human, more like a machine?
Of course, he wasn't actually a machine.
His sweat and efforts weren't fake.
Just sweat in a different direction from others, clearly.
'As long as I get stronger, whatever.'
He wasn't some martial arts seeker craving the way of the warrior.
If anything, as Jake said.
'Barbarian warrior mindset fits.'
Just win, that's it.
Growth, enlightenment—those were things he neither knew nor could reach.
And he thought of himself this way.
'Not bad.'
Pretty damn good, even.
At least he wouldn't go around getting beaten everywhere.