A Gentle Afternoon at the Academy
From now on, you'll be more careful.
***
The next morning, before Yuna woke up, I told Beatrice, "I'll go visit Sword Princess, and don't tell Yuna." I left the room.
I threw on some clothes and called Sword Princess. Before the third ring, she picked up.
"Now you're calling? What's up?"
The tone sounded like chatting with a close friend, but I didn't care. I mentioned what Ryu Se-rin wanted.
"Training. Let's start today."
"[... Wait at the cafe in front of the department store where we met last time. I'll come find you.]"
After ending the call, I put on my shoes to head outside. At that moment, I felt a presence behind me and turned around.
Thud.
When I looked back, something soft and moist touched my lips. My pupils reflected the beautiful onyx-black hair and the golden eyes like pumpkin slices peeking between them.
"Come back safely. I'll be waiting. Don't come back too late."
The words and tone sounded like a wife seeing off her husband heading to work, but there was a small jealousy hidden inside.
Beatrice felt jealous because I was going to visit Sword Princess.
Looking at Beatrice, who was jealous without even knowing why I was leaving so quickly, made me wonder if the first Heavenly Demon really existed. She was adorable.
"Then go safely—"
Whoosh—! Grab.
I reached out to pull her close as Beatrice was leaving and kissed her deeply.
"If you keep doing this, I won't hold back anymore. For your sake, I'll come back soon. Don't worry. I love you, Beatrice."
Clang.
"[... I know it's hard to hold back, but you're really too much...]
The door closed, and the only thing left in the living room was Beatrice's face, filled with deep embarrassment and pink-tinged white cheeks.
***
"Um... Could you give me your number—"
"I have a girlfriend."
"Ah... Okay."
It had only been about thirty minutes since I entered the cafe, and I'd already rejected the fifth number request.
It was because I'd walked in with my bangs carelessly swept to the side without thinking.
When I later lowered my bangs, the girls in the cafe who had seen or photographed my face were already crowding in, and even with mind-blocking magic cast, the ones with unique abilities kept annoying me since earlier.
"Hah... Damn, when is Ryu Se-rin coming?"
"She's here now, you bastard."
Thud!
From behind, I grabbed Ryu Se-rin's flying arm and turned around. There stood Ryu Se-rin, wearing sunglasses, a mask, a hat, and even mind-blocking magic.
"Not even a slowpoke, and you're late."
Ryu Se-rin crossed her arms with an incredulous expression as I casually tossed my hand.
"Crazy bastard, you only say that because you've dumped your work on me."
If it was work I'd dumped on Ryu Se-rin, it was handling the previous department store terror incident.
"As Sword Princess, you only handle a trivial thing like that and act so serious."
Standing up, I said with a cold tone. Ryu Se-rin muttered "Crazy bastard" again toward me, then left the cafe. I got in Ryu Se-rin's car parked in front and headed to her private training room.
Uuuuuuuuung—!
Since it was a sports car, the ceiling was open. As speed picked up, wind blew and swept my bangs across my face.
"By the way, why do you keep lowering your bangs?"
Ryu Se-rin glanced at me and asked with a puzzled look why I was always lowering my head.
I answered in a tired voice.
"My girlfriend told me to lower them. Women get tangled up."
After saying that, I wondered if she thought I was handsome or not. Ryu Se-rin said in an incredulous tone.
"With your looks, you're handsome enough."
She'd seen famous actors and handsome heroes enough as Sword Princess and said it objectively. But I took it as Ryu Se-rin teasing me and just replied vaguely, "If you say so," while looking outside.
As we talked about various things during the ride, we arrived at Ryu Se-rin's private training room. I loosened up while Ryu Se-rin brought a sharply sharpened training sword.
"I'll say this in advance: even if it's a sparring match, I won't go easy. At the very least, you should assume some part of you will break."
My words were rough and came out fiercely, but this state had worsened a lot from today's morning incident and yesterday's events.
Compared to the killing intent I felt at the amusement park, it was now like children's play. Ryu Se-rin answered without hesitation as she loosened up.
"If I don't, it would be unfair to me. That's why I made a contract with you."
Muscles tear and regenerate, becoming tougher. Bones break and reconnect, becoming stronger.
Ryu Se-rin believed that even if a person and their muscles and bones broke, they grew stronger by enduring it. So my words not going easy were heard by her as "it'll make me stronger."
Her thoughts were conveyed to me through words. I liked the rare Ryu Se-rin who shared the same philosophy and told her while loosening up.
"If you're ready, come at me with full power. I'll go easy on the first move."
"Then without going easy... I'm coming."
Ryu Se-rin's figure disappeared. At some point, she had moved in front of my eyes and swung her sword down toward me.
Competing against Upper was still hard, but that was when I was hiding my dark mana. Even now, Ryu Se-rin had only recently risen from Upper to Highest and was still immature.
Whoosh—!
A faster and heavier strike than before. I unleashed dark mana without hiding it around my arms and clashed with Ryu Se-rin's sword.
Black mana clashed with Ryu Se-rin's blue mana, spreading out and rippling in all directions.
Kang—!
No matter how much Ryu Se-rin was, the inevitable difference in affinity between dark mana and mana meant she was pushed back by the White Night's dark mana. She retreated first, then asked me.
"Hey, what kind of sword is that? And you, your main attribute isn't magic, right?"
Dark mana was one of my secrets I had to keep from the public. Ryu Se-rin had asked what dark mana was upon seeing it. But I didn't stop her.
No matter how much she asked and investigated, she couldn't reveal information about me to others. But even so, I didn't easily explain dark mana.
"If you want to know, find out by any means."
"I knew you'd say that."
After saying that, Ryu Se-rin laughed as if she knew, and rushed at me again. I deployed the first form of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art—White Night.
Hwaaak!
The destructive light of White Night shot out, trying to annihilate everything in front of me.
Ryu Se-rin, who couldn't believe the power was from someone younger than herself, braced herself and swung her sword with full force.
[Hanbing Jeol-yeommu (Cold Ice Cutting Edge Dance)]
One dance
Yusu Cheong-nyeonmu (Flowing Blue Lotus Dance)
Chwaeak—!
A dance that seemed to flow like blue water paths, followed by a graceful water sword, clashed with White Night's light.
This was why Ryu Se-rin was called Sword Princess and could be called Sword Princess.
The first dance of Hanbing Jeol-yeommu, which harmonized with Ryu Se-rin's unique ability—Yusu Cheong-nyeonmu—blocked the light of White Night.
The light of White Night that swept away everything like a tsunami and the calm dance of Yusu Cheong-nyeonmu that tried to calm it collided, causing a huge impact that knocked Ryu Se-rin and me back.
Twit, tszztzzt!
Ryu Se-rin, who stabbed her sword into the ground to endure the shock, immediately tried to continue attacking. But no matter how high her cultivation was now, she couldn't catch up to my battle sense, honed from fighting Celestials.
Heavenly Demon Divine Art
Form of Will
Black Night (Heukya)
The pitch-black night strike of Black Night, which swallowed everything in a chain after the bright destructive light, swept Ryu Se-rin before she could respond.
***
Whoooong
"Well, I'll only heal you to this extent. The rest, treat naturally on your own."
The result of the sparring was lighter than expected—Ryu Se-rin was sent flying by Black Night and knocked out.
The reason was that Ryu Se-rin, who had no resistance to dark mana, couldn't endure the backlash between dark mana and mana.
"This should be enough. Thank you."
I did heal her too, but I couldn't completely heal the dark mana wounds without Beatrice. All I could do was treat the broken limbs and ribs with cracked bones.
Of course, Ryu Se-rin didn't expect me to fully heal her wounds, and even if she could, I had no intention of doing so completely anyway. It was a good thing.
Anyway, with Highest level, even bones with cracks would heal completely in 1-2 days.
"So when are you going to tell me? That sword."
As I tried to leave after healing, Ryu Se-rin stopped me and asked when I'd tell her about dark mana.
"I said earlier. Find out by any means."
Even if I couldn't reveal it, dark mana was one of my main powers, so I had no intention of explaining easily. I turned to leave.
But before leaving, I suddenly remembered something, stopped, and asked Ryu Se-rin, who was still sitting on the floor.
"Hey, I'm trying to get a ring made. Do you know any good places?"
"...A ring? Suddenly asking about getting a ring?"
Ryu Se-rin blinked in confusion at the sudden question. I stared at her without a word.
Even I thought the question was too sudden.
"Hey... I'll tell you, so tell me about that thing earlier."
"...Alright."
I accepted her request to explain dark mana since I said I'd tell her. Looking at Ryu Se-rin standing up, I thought it was really fortunate that she agreed.
***
"If it's a ring, what kind of ring were you thinking of?"
"I'm planning to get couple rings... Is it possible to have them custom-made here?"
[Rian Jewel]
Ryu Se-rin had brought me here because the accessories here were durable and used only the highest-grade gems.
"By the way, are you okay? This place is pretty expensive."
From the side, Ryu Se-rin asked if it was okay since it was expensive. I knew it was expensive too. I knew how famous it was.
[I know, so shut up.]
She complained that it was annoying she was worried, but I yelled that it didn't suit her age with a sharp tone. Through telepathy, it came back strongly: "Crazy bastard."
"Custom making is possible, but... the cost will be high. Are you sure?"
"Money doesn't matter... Make them like this. Contact me when they're ready."
I drew the ring design on paper and handed it over, then gave her a pre-made other contact number. The employee who received it looked at me with questioning eyes.
"Um, for three matching rings, is the gem a mix of brown diamond and black diamond?"
Three rings were second, but brown and black diamonds were among the rarer diamonds.
There were some here, of course, but due to rarity, the price would be astronomical. I looked too young for the cost, so the employee was asking if I could pay.
It was natural to doubt because the price was high and I was barely an adult.
Three rings meant two would be worn and one decorative, and there were people like that anyway.
I knew the two gems were among the rarer diamonds, so the cost would be high.
Even if I didn't know gems well, I knew it would be a big expense from the stocks I had made money on.
But no matter how much the cost, what did it matter? I couldn't give the two people I loved a cheap ring made with low-grade gems.
"It doesn't matter. Just calculate with this."
The employee, receiving the card, calculated with a dazed face. Ryu Se-rin sent telepathy: "Are you serious? Really okay?"
I ignored Ryu Se-rin's telepathy without caring and waited for the calculation.
At that moment, Ryu Se-rin sent a telepathic message that deeply stirred my heart—a message I couldn't ignore.
[Hey, your girlfriend... what kind of flower bouquet...]
[Shut up. Before I kill you.]
Ryu Se-rin had seen me on a date with Yuna before and even said I was her lover, so that message was definitely for Yuna.
It was fine if she used rough language and teased me with informal speech, but I couldn't stand words that demeaned Yuna.
A cold, sharp killing intent like ice blades poured out toward Ryu Se-rin standing beside me.
Not as intense as at the amusement park, but close—enough to make skin freeze and crack.
"Ah... ugh... ack...!"
Ryu Se-rin's breathing gradually choked, and sweat poured down like rain.
Thud.
"A... ack... s-sorry... sorry... I'm... sorry..."
Finally unable to endure the killing intent, Ryu Se-rin knelt on the floor and apologized to me for forgiveness. I looked at her eyes and said coldly.
"If you say something like that even as a joke again, contract or not, you're dead. I'll cut off your fingers, gouge out your eyes, and stuff poisonous insects inside to kill you. So... from now on, you'll have to be more careful."
"Yes... yes."
Ryu Se-rin had always treated me like a close friend before, but this time she couldn't. Her words were sincere—more than sincere, she felt the intent to carry it out right now, restrained only by the contract wall. And... that wall was something I could smash right now.
"And you... forget everything you saw just now. Delete the CCTV too."
"N-no, I can't... Ye-yes, I understand..."
The employee, looking confused at the sight, was dealt with by dozens of layered mind-control magics and had all the CCTV deleted. Ryu Se-rin, still puzzled for a moment, but I naturally created words and slipped out cleverly. I received the card and, leaving Ryu Se-rin sitting on the floor, entered the alley to teleport.
"I'm going now."
But as I was about to teleport, a flower shop caught my eye. I entered it entranced and bought two bunches of red roses, then teleported back home.
Tap tap tap tap.
Light, familiar footsteps running toward this side, and another calm yet slightly embarrassed footsteps, came.
"Daddy! You're back!"
"C-Cheon-seong, you're safe?"
Yuna, my beloved daughter Hana and yesterday's incident made her face red with embarrassment, yet she had endured the shame to come pick me up.
When I hugged Hana and looked at Yuna, Yuna avoided my gaze, shy.
It was truly... curious how I could even call her a flower snake with such a lovely Yuna in front of me.
