Chapter 35
Chapter 35
Translator: Penny
Episode 35: Mock Battle
Episode 35: Mock Battle
"Shin-woo, are you okay?"
"Yeah, thankfully the President adjusted his power, so I wasn't seriously injured."
"By the way, the President seems to have gotten incredibly strong, doesn't he?"
"Yeah, he's seriously powerful."
Ryu Shin-woo returned to his original spot and appeared to be chatting with his friends.
He doesn't seem too discouraged, thankfully.
"Hey, where did you get that staff?"
"That's a trade secret, Miss Ayul."
Anyway, Ryu Shin-woo... Ryu Shin-woo...
To escape Kang A-yul's persistent nagging about the staff's origin, I closed my eyes briefly and pondered Ryu Shin-woo's role in the original story...
From Academy Swordmaster
"Cough!"
Crimson blood trickled from the corner of Ryu Shin-woo's mouth.
"Haa... Hey, don't waste the healing potion on me. You're not some recovery specialist like Ecclesia. It won't save me."
"Senior, please get up... Please!"
Sakura, standing beside him, clutched Ryu Shin-woo's collar, tears streaming down her face.
"Haa... Sorry, I tried to hold on until the end. This is... harder than I thought."
Ryu Shin-woo's vision grew increasingly blurry.
"What are you staring at? Even the President's sister and the Vice President can only hold them back for so long... Leave me here and go fight. And come back victorious. You have to."
Ryu Shin-woo closed his eyes peacefully, as if he had already accepted his death.
Clang!
"Ugh... What kind of sword speed is this?!"
When you turned your head, you saw Kang A-yul and Yu Eun-ha struggling to block Mephisto's attacks.
"Ugh... I'm reaching my limit...!"
Seong Arin and Sakura, who had already exhausted all their mana breaking Mephisto's barrier, were slumped on the ground. Ecclesia stood guard around them, deploying a protective barrier.
Frankly, the situation was dire.
Choices:
I'll definitely win and come back. I won't let Senior's sacrifice be in vain.
But you had to get up.
"Yeah, that's the kind of answer I'd expect from you."
Ryu Shin-woo collapsed, his eyes losing their light and growing dim.
Now, you grip your weapon.
KWA-AAANG!
"Ugh?!"
"Damn it...!"
A massive shockwave erupted, and Yu Eun-ha and Kang A-yul, bleeding profusely, fell beside you.
Perhaps because you had drawn their attention, the black tentacle that had claimed Ryu Shin-woo's life was now looming right in front of you as you regained consciousness.
"Eun-ha, catch!"
As if reaching his limit, Kang A-yul hurled his last Magic Sword at Yu Eun-ha.
Swish!
Yu Eun-ha caught the sword and slashed through the black tentacle that had reached you.
"Get up quickly! Don't just sit there!"
Now, you gaze at what must be cut down.
A massive black serpent with nine heads... no, now only four.
Please, take care of the Academy.
For Chairwoman Eve Meitner, who sacrificed her life to complete the barrier and prevent this monster from surfacing in the real world.
Please, look after the cadets. We may not be blood-related, but... my sister, Eun-ha, too.
For "that person," who, despite being a shell of himself after Yun Seong-ho's relentless brainwashing, pleaded with me to protect the students, took the monster's attack in my place, and vanished to a place from which he would never return.
Mephisto!
The black serpent glared at you as you shouted.
Choices:
[This is the end!]
[Together, we'll defeat you!]
That's how it played out, and then the boss battle immediately began.
I've seen this scene so many times that just thinking about it brings back the dubbed voice and the exact visuals from the game.
Now that I think about it, I really have watched this scene a lot.
Part of it was because it couldn't be skipped, but... this scene was an event that occurred immediately after Yun Se-a's death in the original story.
If Sakura had been the main heroine, Ryu Shin-woo would have taken the attack for her, just like in the beginning of the scene I just recalled, and then died. Otherwise, Ryu Shin-woo would only lose an arm but survive. That was the key difference.
Either way, he can't participate in the battle afterward, so it doesn't really matter.
Anyway, since I've already wasted time reminiscing and even replaying the scene in my head, might as well think about Ryu Shin-woo for a bit.
"Ryu Shin-woo, younger brother of Ryu Seong-ho, Guild Master of the Naseon Guild."
In a single sentence, that perfectly sums him up. It's also a common phrase used when players fail to recruit Ryu Seong-ho as a companion. In many ways, he's best thought of as the SSR Grade "lite" version of his UR Grade brother, Yun Seong-ho.
"He dies protecting Sakura from the Final Boss when she's chosen as the heroine. In all other scenarios, he survives."
Contrary to expectations, Ryu Shin-woo plays a surprisingly significant role in the story of Academy Swordmaster.
Growing up constantly compared to his S-Rank Hunter brother, Ryu Seong-ho, Ryu Shin-woo endured a kind of ostracism born from excessive attention and jealousy.
This led Ryu Shin-woo to continue acting out with a rebellious streak, skipping classes as usual to secretly observe first-year lessons. During one such session, he spotted a cadet applying acidic solution to Sakura's practice bow.
In the mock battle that followed, Sakura's bow shattered weakly, leaving her vulnerable to a relentless hammering from the acid-coated cadet's hammer. She collapsed, spitting blood from every pore, and lost consciousness.
Ryu Shin-woo hesitated to intervene, fearing the consequences. Besides, the Protagonist would inevitably swoop in, hoist the unconscious Sakura onto his shoulder, and rush her to the infirmary, leaving no room for anyone else to act.
Yet, when Ryu Shin-woo witnessed several cadets mocking and jeering at the fallen Sakura, he couldn't help but see a reflection of his own past—the crushing weight of being constantly compared to his brother, Ryu Seong-ho, and the relentless pressure he had endured. From that moment on, Ryu Shin-woo began watching over Hanae Sakura from the shadows.
First, I'll slip a note to Sakura, warning her that someone has applied acidic solution to her bow. Then, I'll secretly retrieve a durable bow from the Guild and place it in her locker.
During her rematch against the Cadet who used the acidic solution, Sakura will use the new bow to secure a crushing victory. Watching her beam with pride from afar, many players, myself included, will later speculate that something might develop between them.
Their first encounter will also involve Ryu Shin-woo confronting the Protagonist, mistaking him for a Cadet trying to harm Sakura. The Protagonist, in turn, will challenge Ryu Shin-woo to a duel, mistakenly believing him to be one of the second-year Seniors bullying Sakura.
This is a battle where the player can influence the outcome, so the branching point splits in half.
If you lose, Sakura's route remains sealed. If you win, you gain the right to increase Sakura's favorability and recruit Ryu Shin-woo as a companion.
Regardless of the outcome of the battle with the Protagonist, after uncovering the truth behind Sakura's bullying incident, she acknowledges the Protagonist and from then on lives up to her reputation as the fourth-ranked student in the second year.
She later joins the same club as the Protagonist and becomes a likable character who often plays a comedic role.
While she can't reliably hold the front lines, she does possess an invincibility skill that allows her to completely absorb enemy damage for 4-5 seconds before releasing it. In the story, she often appears alongside Kang A-yul to assist the Protagonist when they reach their limits.
I even took out my staff to fight, wanting to see how skilled she really was... but I never expected her to fall in just one second.
If I hadn't held back and had fired with the intent to kill... Ryu Shin-woo would have ended up with a hole through his abdomen—a literal "donut." Though it was just a mock battle, so he wouldn't have actually died.
Firing a Magic Missile, the most basic non-elemental spell, instead of Void was a wise choice.
Void... it felt like it could even shatter Barriers.
Even cast without a Staff, it could easily shatter mid-level Barriers. With the Staff amplifying its power...
"Alright, Kang A-yul and Lee Seo-yun, step forward!"
"Miss Ayul, this is a rematch from last time. If you surrender, I'll end this without pain."
"Haa... Unfortunately, I can't afford to lose today. I'm going to win, no matter what."
Had I been lost in thought for too long? Before I knew it, the final mock battle of the class—Kang A-yul versus Lee Seo-yun—was about to begin.
"Hmm... I thought that final attack would be the decisive blow."
"Unfortunately, today's just my lucky day. Still, your blade has become sharper, hasn't it?"
Kang A-yul and Lee Seo-yun's mock battle was expected to end with Lee Seo-yun winning by a hair's breadth, but the result was Kang A-yul's victory.
Sword Saint's Blessing (S) is seriously overpowered.
Remembering how she had been scratched by Lee Seo-yun's swordsmanship last time, Kang A-yul this time faced her with pure swordsmanship, without relying on a Magic Sword.
Though initially pushed back slightly, Kang A-yul's blade, enhanced by the Sword Saint's Blessing (S), gradually chipped away at Lee Seo-yun's defenses.
In the final moments, Kang A-yul swung an enormous Magic Sword, forcing Lee Seo-yun to leap into the air. As she hung helpless in mid-air, Kang A-yul cleaved both her sword and body in half, securing her victory.
"After class today, meet me here."
"...Alright."
Watching Kang A-yul, whose face beamed with an unyielding smile, I could only clutch my head in exasperation.