Chapter 48
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: Weakness
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Jeong Seohee glared at me with fierce eyes.
I wasn't sure if something like killing intent truly existed, but the overwhelming pressure bearing down on me right now certainly felt like it deserved the name.
'Daehan International High's She-Tiger.'
The nickname she'd earned for always acting alone.
The "she" part had been tacked on to put her down.
Literally meaning a "female" one.
As far as I knew, one of the guys in our class had come up with it.
'But even as a female, a tiger is still a tiger.'
She's no wolf or hyena.
When she fights, she has no weaknesses.
She's deadly serious and never shows an opening. Even when it seems like she does, it's often a trap.
I'd rushed in countless times after spotting what looked like an opening on her back, only to get countered.
Whew.
I steadied my breathing and lowered my stance.
Her skills were superior. Charging at her would just give her an opening to attack.
I quietly mirrored Jeong Seohee's movements with my eyes and body.
Crunch. Crunch.
She prowled about five meters away, circling me to find the perfect angle.
And thanks to sparring with her every day these past few days, I could at least catch the moment she lunged.
'Here it comes.'
Whoosh!
A ferocious, razor-sharp movement.
She charged at me hard, slamming me to the ground.
'Ground fight?!'
Was she aiming to end it in one go? From the start, Jeong Seohee went for a grappling technique.
Her intent was clear: force me into a ground position and twist my joints until I submitted.
I quickly twisted my body to protect my limbs.
But Jeong Seohee, mounted on top of me like a spider, wasn't about to let me off easy.
She watched for any chance, probing for an opening to lock in a hold.
Whoosh. Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh.
We rolled and grappled in a fierce exchange.
Thud. Whoosh.
The sand churned repeatedly in a chaotic, muddy brawl.
But my skills weren't going to skyrocket just from learning for a mere five days.
"Ngh."
It wasn't long before Jeong Seohee caught my arm and locked me in an armbar.
She hugged my arm tight, pressing down on my upper body with both legs, a sly smile on her lips.
"Not bad. But the match is already over. Give up."
"I haven't lost yet."
"Stubbornness won't help. You'll just hurt your arm for nothing. Though I wouldn't mind seeing you cry and tap out once."
Jeong Seohee grinned and tightened her grip on my twisting arm.
Crack. Creak. My arm began to scream in protest.
'Ngh. Damn. It hurts, but the feeling is horrifying.'
It felt like my arm was being torn right off.
That razor-edge tension, the pain, the fear—it kept flashing red alerts in my head.
Give up now. Submit before it's too late.
'No. I won't submit.'
I ignored it and endured.
It wasn't over yet.
If someone asked if I was holding out because I could really win, I'd shout yes without hesitation.
Of course, because I knew I could win.
"Pull any harder, and it'll really be bad. Submit now!"
"No."
"I said submit!"
I refused and held on.
"What an idiot."
Muttering that, Jeong Seohee released my arm and backed off.
I rubbed my throbbing arm and stood up.
"I'm not giving up."
Truth be told, I didn't think I could beat Jeong Seohee in a fight.
And for good reason—I'd never fought before. Not once in my life.
This was my first time learning how to fight.
Clashing bodies fiercely, trading blows—it was all new to me.
'Me, with no experience, beating a professionally trained Jeong Seohee? At first glance?'
Absurd nonsense.
Even if my strength or speed surpassed hers, I couldn't win.
That's what long-honed technique means.
'But this fight is my victory.'
I was certain of it just moments ago.
If she wanted to take me down, she could've smashed my head or vitals.
One hit, and it'd be over.
'But Jeong Seohee went for a grappling technique.'
An armbar, which even experts struggle to land cleanly against a resisting opponent.
The implication was obvious.
Jeong Seohee didn't want me hurt.
The troubled look on her face as she stared at me now was proof.
"If anyone's giving up, it should be you, Jeong Seohee."
"Eek!"
Jeong Seohee lunged at me and threw me down again.
Every time I got up, she'd knock me down; if I stayed down, it'd count as submission, so I desperately absorbed her throws and stood back up.
"Give up!"
"No."
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Judging that throws on the sand wouldn't do much damage, Jeong Seohee started kicking my legs.
But my smile only deepened.
'Hitting just the muscles carefully to loosen my legs without breaking bones?'
This much? I could grit my teeth and endure it!
I willed my staggering body upright through sheer grit and malice.
"Hah. Haah. Why... why won't you fall? Your stamina shouldn't hold up to this...?"
Jeong Seohee stopped, breathing hard, while I, with trembling muscles, barely stood and flashed a sly smile.
She still didn't know. About my daily quests. Or why I hauled 400 buckets of water every evening.
After six days of daily quests, my stamina had risen from 11 to 12.9.
Holding back from banging Jeong Seohee for six straight days meant no stamina drain, letting me gain a full 1.9.
And that wasn't all.
Hauling water and eating plenty of meat while resting had bumped my strength up by 1 too.
From her perspective, my freakish stamina boost made no sense.
I gave Jeong Seohee a deep smile.
'Even without that effect, you couldn't beat me.'
To win against me, she'd have to knock me out at least.
But knocking someone out is incredibly dangerous.
Delivering a knockout blow is risky in itself, and depending on how it's done, things could go very wrong afterward.
Especially on an island with no medical facilities.
'As long as she cares about me, she absolutely can't.'
How could she beat her prized student unconscious?
In other words, from the moment the bet was on and sparring began, my victory was sealed.
All I had to do was provoke this stubborn tomboy onto the battlefield.
'I don't even need to beat you. Just endure.'
"Eek!"
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Another attack came, but I poured everything into holding my crumbling body upright.
Even when thrown down, I dragged myself back up with all I had.
Stagger.
Jeong Seohee hesitated to strike me like this.
A few more hits now, and I definitely wouldn't get up, but she couldn't land that decisive blow.
Instead, she wore a strange expression.
I might've been seeing things, but it was like, 'What do I do? He's cheeky, but so admirable.'
A pleased look on her face as she gazed at me.
But she quickly realized this wasn't the time and hardened her expression.
Her watch, removed before sparring. Jeong Seohee glanced at it.
'Five minutes left.'
Suddenly, I wanted to test it—how much she cared for me.
"Seohee. Remember the bet? You have to take me down in twenty minutes for your win. Fail, and you lose. Five minutes left now."
"Ngh."
"If you can't, we'll roll right here. My dick sliding in and out of your pussy. Might even knock you up."
"!!"
Her eyes flashed as she charged and kicked my legs again.
Thud.
"Submit already!"
Thud. Thud. Thud.
"Stay down and tap out!"
Of course, I didn't submit. I gritted my teeth, summoning every last drop of strength to endure.
Realizing this wouldn't work, she hesitated a moment, then came behind my prone body and hugged me tight, wrapping around my neck in a choke.
"Submit, Woojin!"
I clenched my jaw desperately against the choke too. It was almost over. This grueling struggle was nearing its end.
"Tap out! Please!"
"Guh. Kh."
The world flashed yellow for a moment.
Was this the end?
"Damn it."
Suddenly, oxygen rushed in, and my vision flickered bright to dark and back.
Cough. Cough-cough.
My dazed mind stung as thoughts resumed.
Slowly, the blue sky, palm trees, and Jeong Seohee's face came into view.
"Why... why won't you give up no matter what?"
In the end, Jeong Seohee released the choke. A little longer, and she'd have knocked me out—but she couldn't.
"Why on earth..."
Having affection for something is so terrifying.
Who could've guessed the iron-walled Jeong Seohee would crumble so easily, riddled with weaknesses?
Right now, my very existence was her weakness.
Jeong Seohee couldn't cast me aside.
That was love.
Love and hate intertwined.
With my barely functioning brain, I answered her question.
"You said it yourself. Don't give up easily on anything. I'm just faithfully following what you taught me."
"!!"
Jeong Seohee's eyes widened as she stared down at me for a long while.
Even lying with my head on her thigh, I could clearly hear her pounding heartbeat.
"You really are... worth teaching, Woojin."
"Praise?"
"Of course."
Jeong Seohee let out a deep sigh and checked her watch.
About one minute thirty seconds left.
Plenty of time to pin me again. But instead, she stroked my head gently and said,
"I lose. Your victory, Woojin."
Her cheeks and earlobes flushing red, as if she'd anticipated what came next.