Why Is Song Sia Being So Serious? (2)
Three mirrors of light, summoned into empty air.
All three of those one-meter mirrors shattered at once.
KRAAAAAASH—
A storm of fragments exploded outward in every direction. Because the blast carried the attribute of explosion, it packed a solid amount of damage. Naturally, I was caught in it too—but an Awakened's authority never deals damage to its own user. I came through unscathed.
Still, even this much won't do much against Song Sia either.
Light attribute or not, those summoned mirrors weren't meant for offense. There was a reason I'd been a powerless extra.
"That kind of thing… won't work."
Song Sia's voice cut through the air.
I already know that.
But at the same time, the female professor's voice rang out.
"What just happened? Those fragments of light are blocking Sia's curse!"
Song Sia's Genocide Field. The cursed blood that had been crashing over my entire body. That blood had been trying to tear into me like a school of piranhas starved for three days—
Sizzle— sizzle— sizzle—
The countless shards of light scattering through the air neutralized the cursed blood.
Snap—
That was the moment.
I kicked off the ground, seizing that razor-thin opening.
Whoooosh—
The Holy Knight's sword blazed with light as it thrust straight toward Song Sia.
"Sia!!!"
The female professor cried out in panic.
The microscopic shards were scattering light like a flashbang. With the mirror fragments blanketing the area, Song Sia's vision was completely blocked.
A proper flashbang, then.
If this thrust landed, it would mean I'd landed a clean hit on Song Sia despite the overwhelming disadvantage.
But it failed.
Whirrrrrrrrr—
Whips of blood coiled around the Holy Knight's sword all at once. Of course—against someone of Song Sia's caliber, my sword strike was answered instantly. To her, it must have looked painfully slow.
And that was a genuine thrust, not even a feint. As expected of a monster.
My sword stopped dead in midair, unable to advance any further. But I didn't panic.
And right on the timing I'd predicted—
She's going to say, "It's useless."
Song Sia said exactly that.
"It's useless."
"That's our Sia! There's no way she'd fall for such a sluggish thrust! Phew…"
The female professor watching the spar let out a sigh of relief.
But this was no time to relax. My attack wasn't over yet.
"Hmm?"
Professor Seong Junhyeok's voice drifted over.
I simply threw the now-immobilized Holy Knight's sword aside.
"Don't tell me he's giving up…"
No. This wasn't surrender.
Song Sia was so exceptionally gifted that the moment she decided her opponent was completely neutralized, she tended to let her guard down.
Sorry, but I know that habit of yours all too well.
Sure, I'd thrown my sword—so I had no conventional means of attack left. But this time was different. I had a new authority skill.
I charged in bare-handed—no, not bare-handed at all.
Faithful Guardian Knight of the Goddess!
Unlike before, this was a proper Holy Knight-attribute authority.
Passive Skill currently active.
A shield generated in response to the curse. At my will, that shield reshaped itself into a buckler bound to my arm.
FWOOOOSH—
I swung that shield straight at Song Sia.
Silence settled over the evaluators.
The one-minute abbreviated spar was over. The result was already clear. Song Sia still stood upright on the evaluation grounds, while Lee Junwoo was sitting on the shattered floor. Just as Professor Marian had been going on about, Song Sia had won.
But the evaluators' reactions were the complete opposite.
"He had… that kind of attack method…?"
Professor Marian said, her voice flustered. Instructor Seong Junhyeok felt much the same.
To exploit an opening that skillfully. He was reading several moves ahead!
The scene from moments ago flashed through his mind. The mirrors of light summoned into the air. Detonating those mirrors to nullify Song Sia's curse—even just the sense for that skill had been impressive enough. As a Holy Knight himself, Seong Junhyeok could feel the sacred power contained in those mirrors. Compared to the dark mana Song Sia possessed, that sacred power was clearly inferior.
If he'd simply used those mirrors like a shield…
The absolute power was weak, and mirrors couldn't cover every part of the body. He never would have fully blocked Song Sia's sorcery. The cursed blood Song Sia had conjured—that ominous blood-mist had been enough to send a chill even down Seong Junhyeok's spine. It was effectively a compound spell that surpassed C-rank hunter level. And yet Lee Junwoo had completely neutralized that blood sorcery, if only for a brief moment. That sense alone was worth a high score.
And that wasn't all…
Right then—
"I thought he was an unusual cadet, but he's exceeded my expectations. To display that kind of combat sense against a cadet whose specs so vastly outclass him."
Seong Junhyeok understood what Lee Suyeon was getting at. The mirror detonation had been surprising enough, but the true value of what this cadet Lee Junwoo had shown was—
"The thrust feint. So Instructor Lee Suyeon caught it as well."
Lee Suyeon nodded.
"Yes. With Song Sia rattled by the mirror explosion, an ordinary cadet would have rushed in desperately for a clean hit…"
But given the overwhelming gap in specs, a conventional attack would only have invited a counter. As expected, Lee Junwoo had seized that opening and launched a thrust.
It was a textbook thrust stance—but strangely, painfully slow.
If that attack had been all there was, Seong Junhyeok would have been disappointed. Song Sia's blood whips had blocked it far too easily. But in that very instant, Lee Junwoo had thrown his sword without the slightest hesitation.
A Holy Knight… throwing his sword?
Not just for Holy Knights—having one's sword taken was a disgrace for every swordsman. It wasn't merely a matter of pride. Lose your primary weapon and you lose your means of attacking the opponent, plunging yourself into an instant disadvantage. So he'd felt a twinge of pity at the sight—until it turned to shock.
Lee Junwoo had used that opening to forge a shield of sacred power. Then he'd swung that shield and landed a clean hit on Song Sia.
A combination I never saw coming.
And so the meaning of that stiflingly slow thrust just before became immediately clear. The sword strike was the feint. The shield swing was Lee Junwoo's true aim.
Of course, even that clean shield hit hadn't dealt Song Sia any real damage. In the end, Song Sia had counterattacked unharmed, and it was Lee Junwoo who ended up sitting on the floor.
"……"
But the look in Song Sia's eyes as she stood there blankly—no, her face said everything. Having taken that shield strike cleanly, Song Sia's lip was split and bleeding. Her cheek was swollen bright red.
"That's enough for the evaluation. Both of you, exchange greetings."
In a normal spar, if their skills had been comparable, Song Sia would naturally have been the winner. But Seong Junhyeok already knew. One look at the silent Professor Marian's reaction was enough.
Regardless of specs, the one who showed greater potential was Lee Junwoo.
Creative use of authority and skills. In terms of combat, the one who'd successfully landed a reverse ambush was Lee Junwoo. If their specs had been equal, Song Sia wouldn't have gotten off with a mere scratch on her face.
Lee Junwoo's victory.
And Seong Junhyeok found himself wanting to personally instruct this cadet. As a Holy Knight class, the boy would end up in his department—but that didn't mean a student could necessarily learn under the instructor of their choice. Especially not under him, who held the position of head instructor. Naturally, it would be an extremely preferential benefit for a freshman.
He left quite an impression.
Above all, a cadet who, in a situation of overwhelming disadvantage, calmly looked ahead not just one move but two—even for someone who'd been an instructor for quite some time, that was nearly unheard of. There were many outstanding cadets among the current second-years, the so-called Golden Generation. But even they had almost never fought under conditions as unfavorable as Lee Junwoo's.
It has nothing to do with talent. It's a mindset—the resolve never to give up, no matter how disadvantageous the situation.
That composure and indomitable will. For a Holy Knight who had to stand at the front line of a party, it was the most essential talent. It was also a talent required of an outstanding hero. It felt like discovering an exceptionally fine raw gemstone.
The two cadets exchanged greetings and left.
"Time to evaluate which class to assign them to."
Instructor Lee Suyeon said with a bright smile. Professor Marian remained silent, but a short while later, once the evaluation concluded, all three of them were of the same opinion. Despite taking a clean hit, Song Sia—who had displayed magic far beyond cadet level—was High Class.
And as for Lee Junwoo…
Right then, Professor Lee Suyeon declared as if stating a fact.
"Instructor Seong Junhyeok. That cadet Lee Junwoo—I'm taking him to our Liberal Arts Department. My apologies to you, Instructor."
She was still smiling brightly. In that moment, Seong Junhyeok recalled what he'd heard about this young instructor's reputation. Extremely sociable and good-natured—but once she dug her heels in, her stubbornness never broke. To bring Lee Junwoo into the Holy Knight Department, he might have to offer some rather attractive conditions.
The class assignment evaluations all wrapped up, and a new week began. Now the academy life would start in earnest. The cadets' major departments and their respective party classes had been decided, so this week would bring full-scale lectures and training within each major department. There was also the party class orientation.
Next week there's a physical ability test. I need to prepare properly.
The physical ability test. The so-called Hell Week was scheduled. The relatively far weaker Low Class would take that test separately, but High Class and Middle Class would take it together.
Having checked the entire schedule, An Yumin opened the academy app on her smartphone. She wanted to search one particular cadet's profile.
Lee Junwoo. Middle Class…
An unexpected result. Given that his opponent had been Song Sia, she'd fully expected him to end up in Low Class.
An Yumin sat down on the sofa in the Aegis office. Theia Academy was a thorough meritocracy, so records of all official evaluations and training were made public—to stimulate the cadets' competitive spirit. An Yumin kept replaying the recording of the last class assignment evaluation: the abbreviated spar between Lee Junwoo and Song Sia.
……
And Lee Junwoo had chosen a major she never would have expected. Instead of entering the Holy Knight Department, he'd gone into the Liberal Arts Department. Through the name link on the replay, she checked Lee Junwoo's profile.
His supervising instructor is Instructor Lee Suyeon.
Lee Suyeon. There was no way An Yumin wouldn't know that name. The Weapon Master—and a named hunter who'd achieved countless merits at a young age. A so-called hero. An Yumin had always respected Instructor Lee Suyeon. In other words, her idol. And it seemed that same Lee Suyeon had accepted Lee Junwoo as her personal student.
"Ugh…"
Suddenly, that headache returned. It was a headache that had started recently. Maybe from thinking too much. Trying to forget the pain, she watched the replay again.
Lee Junwoo and Song Sia's abbreviated spar. The result seemed to be Song Sia's victory—but An Yumin hadn't become the student representative for nothing. From the replay alone, she could immediately tell who had fought better.
Lee Junwoo fought this well against Song Sia?
The bottom of the barrel at Theia High Academy. In all those countless hero activities—whether in dungeons or against villains—Lee Junwoo had never once managed a single noteworthy performance. But in this replay, it was different. Lee Junwoo displayed highly skilled skill utilization and a combat style that read two moves ahead. A special combat method of thoroughly reading the opponent's hand and showing them a card they never expected. All of it was content Lee Junwoo had endlessly emphasized to An Yumin.
……
Ever since that Lee Junwoo had appointed himself An Yumin's personal trainer—ever since he'd taught her his unique combat theory—An Yumin's skills had steadily improved. But Lee Junwoo himself had never once demonstrated that theory in actual combat. Because he had been powerless.
"Really…?"
But this replay was nothing like the Lee Junwoo she had known. The Lee Junwoo who left Aegis had grown. This wasn't the powerless figure he'd shown for three years. He didn't even look like someone who'd developed a panic disorder just a few months ago.
— Junwoo developing a panic disorder. I think leaving Aegis is the cause.
That was what the school nurse had told her. Not someone who would ever lie about something like that. And last week, when An Yumin learned that fact, she'd been deeply shaken.
That can't be… Surely Lee Junwoo founded Aegis… just to meet more girls…
But if the shock had been enough to trigger a panic disorder, then Aegis must have meant more to him than she'd imagined. And so An Yumin was deeply unsettled. Perhaps she had been wrong about Lee Junwoo all along.
And in the replay—watching Lee Junwoo calmly burning with fighting spirit against Song Sia despite the overwhelming disadvantage, finally landing a clean hit on her—An Yumin's anxiety only grew larger. Perhaps she had made a mistake with him. With someone who, even while enduring that panic disorder, could grow this much beyond his powerless past—someone who was the right kind of person.
No. That's… that's…
And one thing was certain: without Lee Junwoo, she was far more shaken than he was.
That's… ugh…
Enduring the headache that returned once more, she turned off the replay. Then she searched for another cadet's name in the app. Choi Hana. That Choi Hana was also in the same Middle Class as Lee Junwoo.
Click—
Right then, the office door opened. It was Song Sia. Their eyes met. And as it happened, there was something she needed to ask her.