Chapter 321: The Festival is Grand! Fun! And Decadent! (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 321: The Festival is Grand! Fun! And Decadent! (5)
When I arrived at the meeting spot to see Master, I was greeted by a rather unpleasant sight.
Several large men were surrounding her.
Seeing the troubled look on Master’s face, I drew Ruyi, intending to blow their heads off. However, I faltered at the words that came out of their mouths in the next moment.
“Please come back to the Swordsmanship Club, Ha-ru!”
The club was called ‘The World’s Greatest Sword.’
Ha-ni had joined it, so I joined along with her, but I didn’t have many memories of actually being active there.
“Um, this is difficult. Seniors, we agreed not to do this anymore.”
“We realized we were wrong! We’ll make sure nothing like the old days ever happens again, so please, won’t you reconsider?”
Well, I didn’t know what happened in the past, but it was clear this wasn’t a pleasant scene. Still, jumping in without knowing the situation could be a nuisance.
Now, what should I do?
While I was deliberating, one of the large men reached out his hand, and a look of distinct discomfort crossed Master’s face.
“Master!”
So, I decided to just jump in.
The guys surrounding her seemed a bit surprised, but Master herself didn’t look shocked at all. It seemed she had already sensed my arrival to some extent.
“Who are you…? The first-year ace?”
Let’s try to be patient for now.
My instinct was to blow their heads off right then and there, but they hadn’t committed a grave sin yet. Besides, showing off mindless violence would only put Master in a difficult position.
“Yes, hello. I haven’t been very active, but I’m Kang So-hyun, also a member of The World’s Greatest Sword.”
“Ah, you’re that kid? The first-year ace?”
“So, what are you doing cutting in while your seniors are talking?”
One senior recognized me, and the other two began to react as well. It was obvious their attitude wasn’t friendly.
“I have an appointment with Senior Ha-ru. I believe the promise she made to me comes first. May we be on our way?”
Except for the one who was clearly wary of me, the other two waved their hands dismissively as if I were a nuisance, turning their heads to tell me to get lost.
“Uh, no. Your seniors are talking about something important right now, so wait.”
It was a bit of a strange feeling.
It wasn’t like they didn’t know who I was, yet they dared to act with that kind of attitude.
Perhaps they thought that just because they were seniors, I would act all polite and subservient?
Well, if that was the case, I felt a sudden urge to inform them just how wrong that line of thinking was.
So, I simply ignored them, walked up to Master, and held out my hand.
“Let’s go, Master.”
“…Hey, what do you think you’re doing?”
For some reason, one of my ‘dear seniors’ asked as if he were utterly dumbfounded. But shouldn’t I be the one who’s dumbfounded?
Still, I decided to exercise some patience and offer an explanation to my senior.
“Since you ignored my opinion, Senior, I decided to ignore yours as well.”
I thought that was a very rational and polite response.
Now that the explanation was over, I figured all that was left was for us to coolly go our separate ways. But ridiculously enough, the guy grabbed my shoulder and started applying a pathetic amount of pressure.
He even used mana, making his intent to threaten me crystal clear.
Hmm. I felt a strange sensation at a grip strength that would have easily snapped the bone of anyone who wasn’t a superhuman.
“What do you think you’re doing…!”
“Ah, Master, I’m fine.”
Master, who had only shown trouble and slight discomfort toward those pestering her, finally began to show anger when I was threatened. However, when I signaled that I was okay, she immediately suppressed her rage.
“Ha, these kids have gone crazy…! You, I heard rumors that you’re the psycho of the academy and think you can do whatever the fuck you want, but I’ve also been known as a bit of a madman…”
Wait, why did I feel so strange?
No, I mean, think about it. If you’re going to clearly threaten someone, you should focus on making sure your opponent can’t even dream of resisting.
I was just genuinely curious why he was flapping his gums instead.
With my shoulder still caught in his grip, I reached out, grabbed the senior’s jaw, and used my reinforced grip to crush the bone right then and there.
The guy screamed and clutched his jaw, but upon realizing it had become perfectly fine in an instant, he backed away in confusion.
It was my final consideration for a senior—healing him. Unfortunately, it seemed my kindness didn’t have much of an effect.
Instead of calming down, the seniors looked even more enraged.
“You crazy bastard…! You’re supposed to be a hero cadet, and you break someone’s jaw just because of a little disagreement!?”
“…You’re the one who threw the first punch, Senior, so why the hell are you throwing a fit? Besides, I healed you right back.”
When I asked as if I didn’t see the problem, the way he looked like he was about to lose his mind was truly pathetic.
What was he going to do if he lost his mind? If he attacked, it would just give me a justification to suppress him, which was fine by me.
As I was building up the justification to thoroughly stomp them, Master took my hand.
“Let’s go, So-hyun. Let’s not waste time.”
“…Hey, Ha-ru, are you crazy? No matter what, we were in the same club. You’re taking the side of a lunatic like that?”
I wondered who this guy thought he was to feel so entitled to a sense of betrayal from Master.
Master looked quite exasperated by his attitude, but she answered him straight.
“I’ve been patient out of consideration for your positions as seniors, but honestly, why are you bringing up a story that was settled cleanly the day I left the club?”
Hmm? When she left the club?
I felt like I had heard something about this a long time ago, but soon, those thoughts didn’t matter because of the words the idiot spat out while trembling—or rather, because of the way Master’s expression changed upon hearing them.
“That’s…! Honestly, back then, anyone could see that you were the weird one, not us!”
It was a minute tremor.
Master was a strong person, so she wouldn’t be deeply hurt by words like that; she would regain her composure immediately.
However.
That strength wasn’t a reason for someone to say such things so recklessly.
“You’re a lost cause.”
The moment I decided I had to wreck at least this one guy even if Master tried to stop me, a massive fist slammed into the guy’s head. Soon, I saw another person bowing their head.
“I’m sorry. We didn’t come here to say things like that. My apologies to the first-year over there as well. I can’t apologize on his behalf, but I hope you can forgive him.”
“Don’t you think it’s a bit late for that? If you were going to apologize, you should have done it before I got this pissed off. And why should I forgive him just because you apologized, Senior?”
“Of course, if you have no intention of forgiving him, that’s fine. However, if you don’t, the incident will escalate, and you won’t be able to enjoy the festival properly. I only ask that you think rationally.”
Oh. I was going to stomp him if he acted all high and mighty as a senior or said something nonsensical, but that was actually the most effective threat against me right now.
Though, of course, that alone was a bit insufficient.
“…If this isn’t enough, I promise we won’t approach Ha-ru ever again.”
This senior was at least quick on the uptake.
Even though the guy pinned under him was still trying to get up as if he were dissatisfied.
I glanced at Master, and she had a strange expression that was hard to describe.
She looked a bit tired and annoyed, but one thing was for sure: she definitely wanted to leave this place as quickly as possible.
“Since you’re asking so earnestly, as a junior, I can’t really refuse a senior’s request.”
So, for now, I decided to reach a reasonable compromise.
“…Right, thank you.”
Without replying, I took Master’s hand, and she squeezed back.
* * *
Fortunately, after that, we were able to have a great time, as if that incident had never happened.
The two of us bought snacks, looked around at various things, and watched demonstrations put on by other clubs.
After playing happily for a long time, we sat down on a bench to take a proper rest.
“By the way, seeing your reaction earlier, does this mean you finally think of me as your woman, So-hyun?”
Master dropped a total bombshell.
What on earth was she talking about…?
She was probably referring to the spat with the guys from the Swordsmanship Club.
“Hmm? Was it not that? I thought it was something like, ‘Don’t get close to my woman!’”
“Why did you think that…?”
“Just because? You came over to me without even knowing exactly what the situation was.”
“That’s just because your expression looked unpleasant, Master. I just wanted to help.”
“Hmm. So-hyun, even if she isn’t your woman, do you just casually help any girl in a situation like that?”
Wait…? I just helped a person, and it turns into this?
…Well, to be honest, despite having intended to reject her confession, I was feeling a strange sense of possessiveness.
But that wasn’t everything.
I genuinely wanted to help her out of pure concern.
“I’m joking. Are you mad?”
“No, well. I’m not mad.”
“Really? That’s a relief.”
A brief silence followed.
It wasn’t an awkward silence, but rather the kind that flows naturally before a story begins.
“Are you curious about what happened?”
“Yes.”
“But you aren’t asking?”
“Because I don’t know if it’s something I’m allowed to ask about.”
“How cool. Yes, that’s right. Living in this world, the sense of distance between people is more important than you’d think.”
Master gave a slightly bitter smile.
“But there are many people in this world who try to close that distance based on mere curiosity, without a second thought.”
— But there are many people in this world who recklessly say things they can’t take responsibility for.
Ah, I remembered.
It was a story she had told me in the past with a somewhat bitter face, but I had forgotten it because I didn’t think it was very important.
“I was originally in the Swordsmanship Club during my first year. But I quit because of a minor disagreement.”
A minor disagreement, huh.
Of course, if you only looked at the events themselves, you might call it that.
However, in a way, that incident was the very reason the Master of today existed.
“Since I suffered from Mana Stone Disease, I was confident in my mana capacity. So the seniors cherished me a lot.”
Well, beyond just her skill, Master had a charm that drew people to her. Unfortunately, this was a case where that charm worked against her.
“Once we got somewhat close, the seniors asked me. They wondered why I was already so strong yet still so devoted to training, and why I was digging so deep into the Plum Blossom Sword Technique specifically.”
So she answered.
Honestly.
That she had a disease and intended to overcome it by reaching a higher realm.
“Then the seniors started crying and pitying me. They said they’d join me in my training. Saying things like, ‘We understand,’ and ‘We’ll be with you.’”
Would it be too cold to call it cheap sympathy?
Unfortunately, it couldn’t be called anything else.
The moment they carelessly betrayed the trust she gave them, their original intentions ceased to matter.
“Only at first, though.”
If she were just a pitiful individual, that sympathy might have continued. But she was far too extraordinary for that.
“Well, rumors started spreading that it was all fake, or that it was just a ‘setting’ I made up to gain popularity.”
Sympathy likely encroached upon and corrupted their admiration. And such twisted emotions always give birth to jealousy.
However, she didn’t care and devoted herself to the sword.
Because there were people swinging their swords alongside her, and she believed those false rumors would disappear on their own.
“After some time had passed, one of the seniors said to me, ‘The others can’t keep up with your training, so take it easy.’ ‘Aren’t you standing out too much on your own?’ They said that when I trained, it created an atmosphere where everyone else felt forced to join in.”
They were the ones who had joined her of their own accord without being asked, yet they harbored such foolish resentment.
“And what else was it? They said things like, ‘I feel like a bad person if I don’t join your training,’ and ‘Is it even possible to cure a disease by training with a sword?’ In some extreme cases, people even believed the rumor that my being sick was a lie from the start.”
That was why she quit the club.
That was why she came to loathe those who were all talk and no action.
…And that was likely why her personality solidified into one where, if she told her pathetic disciple she would be with him a thousand or ten thousand times, she would truly swing her sword alongside him every single time.
“Looking back now, it was no big deal.”
Yes, it was the kind of story that could commonly happen to a student.
Later on, it might be treated as nothing more than a trivial spat.
“Well, what happened earlier wasn’t a big deal either. They were just asking me to come back, saying they’d bury the past. I guess they saw my new swordsmanship during the ranking tournament and realized I’d overcome the wall.”
In other words, they wanted to act as if nothing had happened.
Without even a proper apology.
“Now, story over! So, here’s a quiz! Why do you think I told you this story, So-hyun?”
Somehow.
When I heard it in the past, I didn’t have much of a reaction, but now… how should I put it?
I felt a bit angry.
“Is it to say that you like me even more now?”
“Huh? You’re right, but how did you know…?”
Even though they were words spoken while drunk, I had kept my promise to save her.
It wasn’t just the incident with those guys.
Since her childhood, she had lived exposed to many lies.
‘I will definitely cure you.’ ‘I won’t give up.’ Those were likely the lies she heard most in her life.
Lies told out of kindness to give her hope—lies for which she couldn’t even resent anyone.
To her, a person who keeps their promises held a much greater meaning than one might think.
“Hey, So-hyun. I was just trying to appeal to you by acting a bit weak to get you to lower your guard, so if you look at me that seriously, my conscience starts to prickle.”
She tried to escape playfully, but there was no way I was letting her.
“In that case.”
“…Yes?”
“You shouldn’t have told me those things.”
I already didn’t want to let you go, but now I want to let you go even less.
It makes me want to tell you that you never have to go through something like that again.
“…The effect is much better than I expected.”
And the number of bastards I need to stomp into the dirt just increased, didn’t it?