Ch 92
Became a swordsmanship instructor at the academy
Chapter 92
"Is there anything you don't understand about what I explained?"
"No."
"There isn't."
When he said he would use a tree branch instead of a sword, I doubted my ears, wondering if I had misheard.
Right. When we spoke on the phone the day before, he did flatly refuse... But I thought he was going easy on me because I'm Se-jin's father, but I was completely mistaken.
No need to use a butcher's knife to kill a chicken?
I know that anger is of no help whatsoever in fighting, but I just can't stand it.
Clearly in our last duel he had the advantage, but the match wasn't decided and it's not like I was just taking a one-sided beating.
"Then we'll start right away, so please both of you create some distance."
Thinking about it again makes my chest burn with rage, but let me calm down.
Anger is of no help whatsoever in fighting.
Right, this is actually an opportunity for me.
If that bastard goes all out like last time, it would be hard for me to win, but if he's looking down on me and underestimating me like now, there's no reason I can't win.
I'll make him pay dearly for his arrogance, daring to look down on me.
***
Kim Dae-chan's expression is quite menacing, but I don't really find it threatening.
Shortly after we created distance, two layers of transparent barriers appeared.
"Then I'll start the countdown."
I immediately drew up my internal energy and charged as soon as the start signal dropped.
This is an opponent I've already faced once, and with so many eyes watching, there's no need for meaningless probing.
Unlike before, when I charged right in, Kim Dae-chan showed a flustered expression but immediately swung his sword like the S-rank Hunter he is.
I twisted my body to lightly dodge and struck Kim Dae-chan's abdomen directly with the tree branch.
THWACK!
"KUGH!"
It doesn't have the cutting feel of a sword, but the tree branch also has quite a nice feel to it.
Kim Dae-chan quickly retreated, but dark red blood flowed from his mouth.
The good thing about this method is that while it lacks the cutting power of Aura or Ganggi, if you just hit, it causes at least internal injuries.
He wiped his mouth and charged again, swinging his sword, but this time the trajectory was hard to dodge so I met it head-on.
CLANG!
An incredibly clear sound rings out, unbelievable for the sound of a tree branch and sword colliding.
Kim Dae-chan looked much more flustered than before, but when I applied force, he was pushed back ungracefully.
Kim Dae-chan quickly corrected his stance, but still couldn't hide his flustered expression.
He can't help it, because Kim Dae-chan's sword is wrapped in a distinct Aura Blade, but my tree branch is just an ordinary tree branch no matter how you look at it.
Seeing how the arena suddenly became quiet, the audience seems quite shocked too.
"Seeing how you can't manage your expression at all, you must be quite surprised."
"You, you bastard... What sorcery did you use?"
"Sorcery? What hurtful words."
As I answered, I dashed again.
He created distance and sent Ganggi like last time.
BANG!
The Ganggi deflected by the tree branch hits the upper barrier and disappears with light and sound.
Actually, if I had wanted to dodge, I could have easily dodged, but I deliberately met it head-on to show it wasn't a coincidence.
Naturally, my tree branch is perfectly fine without a single scratch this time too.
I approached Kim Dae-chan, who had a completely stunned expression, and swung the tree branch horizontally.
He dodged a few times and tried to counter-attack while trying to create distance again, but I immediately followed and didn't give him any breathing room.
Kim Dae-chan was one-sidedly pushed back and busy just defending, which is natural since I have the advantage in speed, strength, and technique.
Right now I'm in serious mode.
He's holding up fairly well for an S-rank Hunter, but it doesn't seem like he can hold out for long.
Sure enough, an opportunity came in less than 5 minutes.
THWACK!
Taking advantage of the moment when his steps got tangled while only defending, my tree branch struck Kim Dae-chan's face squarely.
From the moment his balance collapsed once, the duel was over.
From then on, it was just my one-sided time.
I struck his hand as it unconsciously moved toward his face.
CRACK!
Then I tripped him and used not just the tree branch but also my feet to beat and stomp on Kim Dae-chan.
He quickly became a wreck, but perhaps still having some pride left, he didn't declare forfeit.
The referee doesn't intervene either.
It seems like I'd need to cut off an arm or so for it to end, so I created Ganggi for the first time.
"That's enough. The match seems to have been decided already, so stop."
"The forfeit declaration hasn't come out yet."
At my answer, Seong Jin-cheol looked at Kim Dae-chan.
Kim Dae-chan, who was trying to lift his completely ruined face, just lowered his head without saying anything.
"Is that enough now? You're not strangers to each other, and for a young person... really."
Seong Jin-cheol glared at me once, then raised his hand to signal, and the barrier disappeared as people came up.
I tried to approach Kim Dae-chan who was staggering to get up, but Seong Jin-cheol blocked me.
"Calm down? The duel is over."
"I know that too. Since the duel is over, I was going to help support him."
To express that I had no intention of causing further harm, I threw the tree branch on the ground.
Seong Jin-cheol looked at me with a dumbfounded expression, unable to understand me beating him up and then acting like this.
Well, from Seong Jin-cheol's perspective, I must look like a psychopath.
Still, perhaps because I threw away the tree branch, he didn't block me anymore.
I approached Kim Dae-chan who was staggering to get up and whispered while pretending to support him.
"Father-in-law, surely you don't think this is the end? The real thing hasn't even started yet."
***
It's not as much as the arena earlier, but there are quite a lot of eyes looking at me here too.
Rather than before the duel when I wasn't nervous at all, I'm slightly nervous now.
It can't be helped.
As I told Kim Dae-chan earlier, the real thing is just starting now.
Today's main event wasn't the duel earlier, but this time right now.
"Ah, mic test. Well then, let's begin Hunter Kang Shin-hyeok's victory press conference. Before taking questions from the reporters, please give us your thoughts first."
"Hello, I'm Kang Shin-hyeok. I never once thought I would lose, so I don't have any particular thoughts. Still, since I've been given time, there's something I'd like to say first before moving on to questions, if that's okay?"
"Yes. That's fine."
"What I'm going to talk about is the reason I designated Kim Dae-chan. I'm sure some of the reporters here are curious too, so I expected questions would come up, but I really wanted to say this part first."
I started calmly talking from when I met Kim Dae-chan through the A-rank promotion exam.
I spilled everything: how I dueled to persuade Kim Dae-chan who was pushing Se-jin to a level close to child abuse, how even though I had practically won that duel, Kim Dae-chan stubbornly made other proposals, and how Kim Dae-chan was behind the article that became a hot topic recently.
I had organized my thoughts beforehand and practiced a few times yesterday, so I think I did fairly well.
"I'm not usually one to talk much, but the story got longer than I thought. I've briefly said what I wanted to say, so... Moderator?"
"Yes? Ah, yes."
The moderator seems a bit flustered, but actually not just the moderator - everyone here has surprised expressions.
"I think we can move on to question time now."
"Yes. Then... We'll now take questions. If you raise your hand, I'll designate you and give you the opportunity. Since we need to give opportunities to others too, please keep questions brief and ask just one thing at a time."
Everyone quickly raises their hands without hesitation.
They seemed quite shocked, but everyone has a thorough professional spirit.
"The reporter in the white dress sitting in the middle of the second row, please ask your question."
"I'm Kang Ji-young from KBD. What you just said is so shocking that it's hard to believe - do you have any proof or evidence?"
"I have evidence and of course witnesses too. The facts I mentioned earlier are known not just by me but by Se-jin as well. Unless Kim Dae-chan's side denies my words, I have no intention of separately releasing evidence."
"Excuse me, then..."
"Reporter, it's one question per person. Next, the reporter in the navy shirt in the fourth seat of the back row, please ask your question."
The next question was asking how I blocked the sword Ganggi with a tree branch, asking if it was an artifact like others.
It was a question I somewhat expected, so I answered as I had thought, vaguely saying it was a hidden technique but since it's a secret technique, I couldn't explain it in detail.
In this world where there's no concept of martial arts, it would take forever to make ordinary people who aren't even Hunters understand the concept of mental focus.
Anyway, this question seemed mostly formal, and all the following questions were asking for additional explanations about the Kim Dae-chan story I had told.
Since I had summarized it earlier, I explained each thing in detail.
Every time I spoke, the reporters' hands moved busily.
There aren't separate desks for the reporters' seats so no one is using laptops, but seeing everyone busily pressing on their phones or tablets, it seems breaking news articles have probably already gone out.
"Due to time constraints, we'll only take exactly two more questions. The reporter in the navy cardigan in the third row, please ask your question."
"I'm reporter Song Kyung-mi from Barun Newspaper. Before my question, I sincerely congratulate you on winning today's duel."
"Thank you."
"However, I think it's too early to celebrate. According to the detailed regulations of the STB system, if the challenger wins, any S-rank Hunters who cannot accept the result can apply for a re-duel with the challenger."
"I'm aware of that."
"Several S-rank Hunters were watching today's duel too, so I'm curious if you have any concerns about that part."
Hmm, originally the purpose of applying for STB was to expose Kim Dae-chan's true nature, not to become an S-rank Hunter, so it doesn't really matter, but would there be anyone who couldn't accept today's duel?
I didn't allow Kim Dae-chan's attacks even once and showed an overwhelming difference, completely destroying him.
Kim Dae-chan isn't in the upper ranks among domestic S-rank Hunters, but he's not at the very bottom either.
"I'm aware of it, but I'm not particularly worried."
"Does that mean you're confident you can win no matter who applies for a duel?"
I really don't understand why they interpret it this way.
It seems like they're subtly trying to start a fight.
Well, considering what Kim Dae-chan has done to me so far, do they think I went easy on him out of guilt?
"That's not what I meant. I gave my best in today's match, and I don't think Kim Dae-chan went easy on me either. Personally, I hope there won't be any S-rank Hunters who can't accept it, but if there are and they apply for a re-duel, I have no intention of avoiding it."
Frankly, except for Cha Su-hyeok, the Principal, and Seong Jin-cheol, they're all below me.
"Well then, we'll take the last question. Um... The reporter in the white knit in the front row, please ask your question."
"I'm reporter Choi Ye-ri from CBC. I'd like to ask a slightly different question - Mr. Kang Shin-hyeok, whenever there were scandal rumors with Kim Se-jin, you always clarified that you weren't in a romantic relationship, right?"
"Yes. That's correct."
"But if everything you talked about earlier is true, Mr. Kang Shin-hyeok tried to have conversations to persuade for Se-jin's sake, took on WHCU competition coaching after the duel and even led her to victory. Today's STB too... Having invested so much time and care, do you really have no feelings?"
From the start when she brought up Se-jin's story, I had a bad feeling, and it seems this female reporter is probably a malicious shipper.
"It would be nonsense to say I have no feelings."
"Yes? Then..."
"Se-jin is my most cherished student. Ah, now that she's graduated, I should say my dear business partner."
"Mr. Kang Shin-hyeok was in charge of first-years last year. You wouldn't have originally taught student Kim Se-jin."
"As the reporter said, I was in charge of first-years last year, but I came to teach Se-jin when I was assigned to supplementary lessons for the martial arts competition."
"Even if you were in charge of supplementary lessons, it would have only been a few times."
Just a few times? After all the hardship I went through...
"That's not true. Supplementary lessons were a minimum of fifteen hours per week - two hours after regular classes on weekdays, and five hours on Saturday mornings. It wasn't just a few times, I saw her almost every day."
"Ah, no... But even so, the supplementary period was less than two months, right? For a student who wasn't your homeroom student or even your grade level, whom you only saw a few times through supplementary lessons, to go that far is strange, isn't it?"
"What's strange about it? Whether I taught for one hour or one day, the fact that Se-jin is my student whom I taught doesn't change."
"..."
"Reporter, you expressed it as if I did something amazing, but honestly I don't think so. I might not have known if I was unaware, but if you know your student is in a difficult situation or having troubles, there wouldn't be any teacher who would turn away."