Muddy Dogfight
Jeon Mun-Jae. One of the 12 Vassals, and an SS-class Awakened no less.
Even with the physical enhancement from the suit, Jeong-Hoon was only F-class at best. The very idea of facing this man as an opponent simply did not compute.
"This is cheating!"
"Pardon? What do you mean? There is no rule among Apollon's vassals that says the three I designate—or that I myself—cannot be chosen."
Since that was literally true, Jeong-Hoon could only scowl.
Even if no such rule existed, this was still going too far.
"Hey, President Jeon. Do you not want to hand Apollon over to me?"
"That is not the case. I simply stepped up because I wished to experience the Gaju's skill firsthand."
As if to prove it, Jeon Mun-Jae raised both arms and showed his wrists.
"Oh? Those? It seems Steward Jeon has no ulterior motives after all."
Jeong-Hoon, who had no idea what the devices on those wrists were, merely shook his head at Butler Ju's words and demanded an explanation.
"When we of the 12 Vassals act in the public eye, we occasionally encounter high-rank Awakened. There are times we must reveal our power and times we must conceal it. Those are the tools we use for the latter."
Restraining devices that limited even the abilities of an S-class or higher Awakened. They not only weakened one's powers but also blurred the very fact of whether the wearer was Awakened or not.
"When I, an SSS-class, put them on, they restrict me down to barely scraping S-class. For Steward Jeon…"
"With these, my physical abilities are B-class. No superpowers, no weapons—just pure B-class physical ability. Fairly generous terms, don't you think?"
The conditions were actually more favorable than the previous two opponents, yet Jeong-Hoon felt no relief whatsoever.
The 12 Vassals had not been appointed solely on rank and the raw output of their powers.
And Jeon Mun-Jae was the vassal who commanded the family's most elite combat force among their enterprises—Apollon. In other words, his combat sense was top-tier, rank be damned.
Jeong-Hoon would have to defeat a man with B-class physical ability and SS-class—no, even higher—combat sense. And he had stepped into the ring intending to fight him head-on with no tactics at all.
"Ah. Butler Ju, would you make the starting declaration in my place?"
"Hmm? Would that be all right?"
"Since I, the person in charge, have come up myself, I believe you, who can best match the Gaju's timing for fairness, are the right man for the job."
"Very well, then."
Butler Ju readily nodded at the gesture of fair play and climbed into the ring, extending a hand.
"Then, Apollon Trial, final third match. Begin!"
And without any regard for timing whatsoever, Butler Ju immediately declared the start.
Unlike Jeon Mun-Jae, who was caught off guard by the abrupt call, Jeong-Hoon lunged forward at once and threw a punch.
The reason Butler Ju had declared the start so swiftly, leaving no gap: the drug Woo Do-Il had administered to Jeong-Hoon.
Myeongil had any number of pain-blocking agents. But the ones usable without side effects had short durations.
To give Jeong-Hoon even the slightest advantage, they could not afford to waste time. Thanks to that, Jeong-Hoon had been handed a perfect opening. If things went as planned, he could cleanly take the first point.
But Jeon Mun-Jae's combat sense shone brightest in moments like these.
Realizing Jeong-Hoon was aiming for his head, he snapped his head back and thrust out a palm. Jeong-Hoon's fist never reached his face; instead, Jeong-Hoon took a blow to the chest and was forced back several steps.
Even with pain blocked, the sensation of being hit did not vanish. Recognizing that impact had landed, Jeong-Hoon frowned at the smooth counter and opened the distance.
Relying on the drug and charging in blindly would not work against an opponent this strong. Besides, everything Jeong-Hoon had learned from Butler Ju was self-defense techniques—specialized for countering an opponent's attack. They focused on weapons one could always carry and use to respond to ambushes: pistols, daggers, and the like.
So Jeong-Hoon backed off and drew a dagger. The sheath was still on, so it had no edge, but a weapon was better than bare hands.
Seeing Jeong-Hoon armed, Jeon Mun-Jae charged. As he reached for Jeong-Hoon's collar, Jeong-Hoon leaned his upper body back and snapped a kick upward. Swinging the blade carelessly would only get his arm seized. Yet as if he had anticipated exactly that, Jeon Mun-Jae caught the leg, spun, and hurled him.
Spinning through the air several times in an instant, Jeong-Hoon felt a brief wave of dizziness but still executed a clean breakfall, drawing his pistol and firing in one fluid motion.
The vassal who had caught the rubber bullet in the first match let out a short, involuntary gasp of admiration. With shooting like that, even he would not have been able to dodge.
Jeon Mun-Jae, however, simply caught the rubber bullet.
"Tch! What do you mean B-class?"
"Catching bullets is a trick even a C-class can manage. Of course, a C-class would shred their palm doing it."
As he spoke and reached out, Jeon Mun-Jae twisted his head at a sudden rush of air—yet he still felt something graze his cheek and smiled.
"That's one point taken."
He had never expected the pistol itself to be a feint. His gaze settled on Jeong-Hoon's left hand, which had been holding the dagger. The dagger now lay on the floor; in its place Jeong-Hoon held a long whip—more precisely, a belt.
This was no cheap suit that would fall down without a belt. The belt was closer to a fashion accessory… and at the same time, a weapon designed for exactly this kind of use as a whip in self-defense techniques.
If his SS-class senses had been intact, he could have dodged even that. Restricted to B-class, however, he had not sensed it until the moment it brushed his cheek. Jeong-Hoon's setup had been that precise.
"Haa… My head's spinning, and all I got for it is one point…"
"There is no reason to be discouraged. No one at Apollon has ever succeeded in ambushing me."
An A-class landing a surprise attack on an SS-class, versus a Non-Awakened landing one on a B-class. Both were impossible, but by any measure of probability the latter was far harder. That was why he was genuinely impressed—impressed enough that he wanted to declare the trial passed right then and there.
But he did not. He did not relax his stance and invite Jeong-Hoon to hit him freely either. Instead, he wanted to see the full extent of what his new master was capable of.
Having already decided "pass" in his heart, he charged Jeong-Hoon. A rush that said taking one hit would not matter.
Jeong-Hoon did not throw a punch right away. Instantly reading Jeon Mun-Jae's intent, he seized the incoming wrist, gave the arm a short twist, and locked the joint. In the same motion his other hand shot forward. The sequence was so seamless it was almost simultaneous.
Yet Jeon Mun-Jae raised his free hand and caught Jeong-Hoon's fist. Both of them now had their hands sealed. With a surge of strength Jeon Mun-Jae could easily overpower Jeong-Hoon's mere F-class power with his B-class muscle. But that would keep him from seeing what he wanted to see, so instead he yanked Jeong-Hoon and flipped him overhead.
Even as he hit the floor, Jeong-Hoon extended a leg and kicked Jeon Mun-Jae hard in the thigh.
"Two points. Right?"
"…Hahaha! Whatever else, I will absolutely acknowledge this. Gaju, you possess the talent and qualities of a warrior."
At those sudden words Butler Ju's eyebrow twitched—not out of offense, but because it was the highest possible praise.
The family's origin. The First Gaju had been the hero who sealed the monsters, and the greatest warrior of his age. To say that the current Gaju, his descendant, possessed a warrior's talent and qualities was to praise him for resembling that First Gaju.
"Steward Jeon, those words just now…?"
"I acknowledge it. As one of the 12 Vassals and the person in charge, I exercise my privilege: the trial is passed. Apollon is without question the Gaju's. However… I would like you to keep me company to the end."
Jeon Mun-Jae's voice was nearly boiling with excitement. Jeong-Hoon nodded and smiled. Listening to the man, he felt a fire kindling in himself as well.
And so their bout continued until the drug wore off and Jeong-Hoon collapsed unconscious.
When Jeong-Hoon woke the next day, a subtle sense of wrongness made him frown.
He remembered the pain crashing over him the instant the drug wore off, followed by blacking out. Yet aside from a mild fatigue, nothing hurt at all.
"These potions are something else."
"We administered a special formulation, not the kind you normally take."
It was not merely something that restored fatigue; it was a true potion capable of healing wounds. Mass-producing and selling it would make a fortune. Yet if a family with that goal chose not to mass-produce it, there had to be a reason.
"How much did this one cost?"
"…Won. That is the production cost."
A seven-digit figure. Jeong-Hoon felt as though he had drunk a gold bar. No—more expensive than gold of the same weight.
"It was just some bruises. You could have left them to heal on their own."
"Have you forgotten that the Gaju's life force is the single most critical factor in maintaining the seal?"
"…Does that have something to do with my condition too?"
Jeong-Hoon had thought it only required him to stay alive. Faced with Butler Ju's utterly serious expression, he offered an awkward smile.
"What, if I catch a cold, a dragon pops out or something?"
"…By my estimation, yes. Do you recall your physical condition on the day the seal began to break?"
"…I was down with a body-ache fever, moaning in bed."
At the sudden question Jeong-Hoon cast his mind back and shook his head. Surely there was no connection… yet when Butler Ju silently nodded, Jeong-Hoon's face went pale.
"You're serious?"
"At the time, the previous Gaju was also seriously ill, and his health never recovered before he passed."
Thinking back, Jeong-Hoon recalled that his father had also been suffering from a body-ache fever that day. Faced with a fact that could no longer be dismissed as mere conjecture, Jeong-Hoon shook his head furiously.
"Ah, right! Now that I've secured Apollon, we should start rooting out the people who leaked personal information, shouldn't we?"
Desperate to change the subject from a truth heavier than expected, he brought up another topic. Butler Ju slowly nodded.
"We have already begun work on that matter."
"Huh? Ah, so you handled it on your own again."
Competence was good, but after the Shine Mall incident Jeong-Hoon had specifically asked to be informed and involved. A small sense of grievance stirred. They had said it was not so urgent that every second counted, yet the moment the opportunity arose they had pushed ahead at full speed.
"No. We began on the Gaju's orders."
"…I told you to do it?"
"When we administered the special recovery formulation, the pain of the needle briefly restored the Gaju's consciousness, and you ordered us to commence immediately."
Hearing about an event he could not remember, Jeong-Hoon eyed the butler with suspicion. As if he had expected exactly that, Butler Ju held out his phone. The video began with Jeong-Hoon himself ordering them to record it as evidence.
"Oh. I really did order it. Sorry for the misunderstanding."
"Not at all. In fact, because we hurried, we were able to confirm that the work will take longer than anticipated."
Faced with irrefutable proof, Jeong-Hoon dropped his suspicions—then shuddered at the terrifying expression on his half-conscious face in the recording. It was definitely him, yet the cold clarity in those eyes looked like someone else entirely.