The Moment You Step Onto the Sparring Stage, the Outcome Is Sealed
The Gyomaguan was the sole educational institution of the Sun Moon Demonic Cult. It was not a place that churned out martial artists in the conventional sense. Instead, it gathered the most exceptional talents from the various demonic sects under the Cult and forged them into true warriors. In other words, it was a place to sharpen a well-crafted blade, not a place to process raw ore. In that sense, this particular class at the Gyomaguan was unique, for three pieces of "raw ore" had been inserted into its ranks.
They must have been jealous. The other students had crushed countless rivals within their own sects to earn this opportunity. Yet, who were these nobodies who hadn't even mastered basic martial arts, standing on the same level as them? They must have found it laughable, too. Perhaps in the distant future, things might be different, but how long could these half-wits, who hadn't even held a sword properly, possibly last here?
They must have wanted to trample them. These were martial artists with immense pride. Even the righteous martial artists of the White Faction would never look upon these "raw ores" with kind eyes, let alone the practitioners of the extreme Demonic Faction. However, the favoritism of the Gyomaguan did not end there. They granted the three raw ores various special privileges to ensure they wouldn't be pointlessly broken by the other students. It was unprecedented. Instructors were assigned to provide them with dedicated, one-on-one guidance until they mastered their arts, and they were even exempted from life-or-death training sessions.
The "blades" who already looked upon the raw ores with disdain kept their eyes peeled, waiting for the day those privileges would end. But by the time enough time had passed for the three raw ores to become decent blades themselves, it was already too late. The three had already crushed those who dared to pick fights with them, following the law of the jungle.
'It’s brutal.'
Seo-ah swallowed hard. The gazes of the martial artists who had tried and failed to crush the twins were filled with a vicious, envious jealousy. The looks from the servants and maids—people who, until recently, had been just like her, or even lower—were filled with resentment that these people were now standing above them. The instructors' gazes toward the twins, who had forced the Gyomaguan to make exceptions to its long-standing traditions, were equally cold and sharp.
Seo-ah looked beside her. Shin So-so, sensing the heavy atmosphere, had turned pale.
However, the twins wore their usual expressions, as if they were accustomed to such gazes. The weight of the past year they had endured was, if only slightly, palpable. Seo-ah spoke in her usual, calm tone. Of course, she didn't feel particularly comfortable inside, but she couldn't afford to show any signs of shrinking—not when she was the one acting as the twins' mental anchor.
"Kids. You know what to do, right?"
As if it were the correct answer, the twins replied with smiles.
"Of course, Boss."
Following them, the grey-haired young master appeared behind us.
Jin Geuk, having made his appearance, didn't even glance at the twins and stared straight at me. The twins, as if they had discussed it beforehand, naturally stepped in between us, and Jin Geuk headed toward the sparring stage as if his interest had been piqued. The twins followed behind him.
As long as they followed the practice, there would be no problems. The whispering of the Gyomaguan students reached my ears.
"Do you think Jin Geuk can win?"
"Try using your brain for once. Jin Geuk is a Gold-Badge student, and one of the top-ranked at that. Do you really think he'd lose to people who just started learning martial arts?"
"If you put it that way, the top student this time has also only been learning for a year, right?"
The "top student" seemed to refer to So-yul. Even listening to other voices echoing from various places, everyone seemed to share a similar opinion. It meant they were all betting on Jin Geuk's victory. If one thought about it logically, that was the correct assumption.
"Hey... hey!"
One of the two students who had brought up So-yul's name spoke urgently. When I looked to see why, Jin Geuk on the sparring stage was glaring at them with a murderous look. The two students, noticing it late, hid themselves among the crowd. I wasn't sure if that would be effective, though.
'Come to think of it, the start of this whole thing was also, in a way, because of So-yul.'
Honestly, from Seo-ah's perspective, it was truly an absurd situation. He had lost because his own skills were lacking, and now he was out to retaliate against the twins, who were close to her, while So-yul was away. There was no way our kids would lose to such a petty person. Of course, it wasn't just blind confidence.
'Because the counter-technique was perfect...'
There was no need to worry. The moment I shattered Jin Geuk's sword amidst my realization was still vivid. Even the twins, who possessed a talent that countless students envied, couldn't keep their mouths shut after seeing my counter-technique. There shouldn't be any problems. Even if the counter-technique didn't land, all they had to do was slightly disrupt Jin Geuk's balance. The twins were not two, but one.
Nevertheless, I felt anxious. Was it because of the Demonic Cult's custom where it wouldn't be strange to lose one's head in a spar? Or was it because of that ominous dream? Seo-ah watched the twins and Jin Geuk on the sparring stage. Over that image, the sight of the twins as cold corpses and Jin Geuk shedding tears of blood overlapped.
From back in the village, I had always carried "that" with me for the sake of "what ifs" when dealing with big tasks.
'If it comes to it...'
Seo-ah toyed with the dagger hidden in her robes. The chief instructor, acting as the referee, stepped onto the sparring stage.
"The grievances between these three martial artists will be settled here. The loser shall submit absolutely to the winner and not raise this matter as an issue in the future. It does not matter if you use lethal strikes, but I will not forgive anyone who takes the life of an opponent who is already incapacitated. Do you have any objections?"
"None."
"We feel the same."
"Good. Begin the spar."
As soon as the chief instructor gave the order, the three martial artists lunged at each other.
The aspect of the battle was not much different from before.
"Nothing special."
The weak and fragile fast-sword was merely being crushed powerlessly by the absolute Tyrant Sword. Foolishly, those vermin didn't seem to realize that fact. Of course, even if they did realize it, they wouldn't be able to abandon the sword they had learned until now and master the Tyrant Sword in just three days. If that were the case, the normal thing to do would have been to bow their heads immediately and beg me to cancel the spar. Therefore, the moment those wretches stepped onto the sparring stage, the outcome was already decided.
I would swing my sword as usual. And when their fast-swords lost momentum...
'I will trample them.'
I felt nothing but contempt for the people of the Ilshin Palace who had handed me the Demonic Explosion Pill without even being able to see through such a simple fact. In the previous spar, if not for the chief instructor's intervention, that would have been the end of it. Therefore, Jin Geuk thought about what lay beyond this spar, where the result was already fixed. First, the maid down there.
'Her eyes had changed.'
The weak, fragile gaze of the underdog from last time was gone, and though faint, a martial artist's killing intent was clearly dwelling there. Whatever had happened, Jin Geuk was half-convinced as he looked at those eyes. That she was practicing the Ash Dust Heart Art, which is said to be passed down only to the direct line of the Sword Family.
Last time, she had tried to deceive my eyes by pretending she couldn't even dodge a simple dagger, but it was no use. How she had learned it... I would find out once this spar was over. If only those twins died, no one would care if a maid or two disappeared.
— *Clang!*
"You bastard. Can't you focus?"
Baek-ak, having noticed that they weren't even in his thoughts, said fiercely. Jin Geuk sneered.
"I'm just bored of watching you lunge at an opponent with no hope, without any improvement."
"Bullshit. You're describing yourself."
"?"
Baek-ran continued.
"It's not like you have any room to talk, considering you came here to harass innocent people after getting absolutely thrashed by So-yul unni."
Jin Geuk's ears turned red with shame. Because their words were not wrong. Like everyone else, Jin Geuk had grown up hearing that he was a genius in his family. He had entered the Gyomaguan carrying countless expectations. It would be a lie to say he had thought he wouldn't experience a single defeat in this Gyomaguan. Perhaps a genius from another of the Eight Families might have luckily beaten him once. So, the humiliation he felt when he lost to a young girl who hadn't even been learning martial arts for three months was indescribable.
'Sim So-yul... Sim So-yul!'
That hateful name.
— How pathetic. Don't show yourself in front of me again.
Even after that, he had sought her out several times, but the words she spat out were always the same.
— What has changed from before?
What has changed from before, she asked? A lot, excluding the fact that he had lost. His sword was becoming heavier by the day, and his internal energy was becoming deeper. The medicinal herbs and martial arts guidance provided every time he achieved results at the Gyomaguan had made him that way. Yet, that genius didn't look at him. Because he wasn't the only one improving. Gradually, she stopped even receiving his sword and began to ignore his very existence.
He had to defeat her somehow. Before that, he had to make her pay attention to him again. Even if it meant killing the four precious vermin in front of his eyes.
Jin Geuk gritted his teeth and swung his sword toward Baek-ak's neck. And Baek-ran's eyes flashed.
"Now!!"
Baek-ak's sword, which had been using the fast-sword style until now, became heavy in an instant. Jin Geuk panicked, debating whether he should withdraw his sword, but it was already too late. If he withdrew his sword now, he would be attacked while defenseless.
'I'll crush them just like this!'
That was what Tyranny was. An absolute power that crushes everything in front of it.
— *CRACK!!!*
Jin Geuk's sword, which he had intended to bring down, was pushed back powerlessly.
"Huh?"
For the first time, a voice of panic escaped the lips of the always-confident Jin Geuk.