Wall Thunder (劈轟)

I was grabbed by Instructor Wi Seoyeon and hauled toward the center like a pig being dragged to the slaughterhouse. It wasn't a particularly pleasant feeling to be standing there in the middle of the training ground, surrounded by fences and screens, alongside the instructor.

"...Instructor. I'm sorry."

"Today we'll learn how to respond when you face a villain inside a Gate. You know that the villains—corrupted awakened ones—can enter the same Gates you do, right?"

"...Hmph."

She completely ignored my words and kept going with whatever she wanted to say. I must have looked really insufferable.

"What's your name?"

"Hwanhyeon."

"Got it. Let's give a round of applause to Hwanhyeon, the excellent assistant who'll help us today."

—*Clap clap clap clap!*

Chunghwa, thrown off by the instructor's sudden demand, and Il Lena, watching me with worried eyes.

And then there were the hostile glares of the male students staring at me.

—What a sight. Always groping girls' chests.

—I think the instructor finally decided to rein him in.

—Good. Just turn that bastard into a half-wit.

...That's my fault, I guess.

My girls are all pretty, no question. But they all follow me around like ducklings, and when I touch them they only turn a little red. From the other male students' perspective, hating me is kind of inevitable.

"From now on, Hwanhyeon will attack me. Show the various ways to neutralize that attack."

"Huh? Attack?"

"If you manage to land a hit on my body in any way, I'll end today's lesson right now. Do I have to say it twice for you to understand?"

"N-No, I'm sorry."

My words seemed to fall on deaf ears, judging by the way her killing intent kept rising.

"So don't even think about practicing. Today we're only doing observation for everyone."

"But what about me?"

"You're not a student—you're training equipment. Obviously you're the exception."

Fuck.

"Anyone who wants to can film it. I think I can show you quite a few methods, so just watch."

Wi Seoyeon's face was etched with a lopsided grin. That was clearly a masterstroke designed to spread around something like "Academy Senior Student's Perversion.mp4."

—*Snap snap!*

"Begin."

"..."

Wi Seoyeon, the instructor, was standing just a few steps away, snapping her fingers. It really didn't sit well with me.

I just wanted to land one hit, finish the lesson quickly, and go meet Ha-rin.

"HYAHH!!"

I charged straight at her, but she sidestepped at the same time and caught my arm.

—*Thwack!*

My face hit the ground in an instant, and her voice rang down over me.

"First—keep it simple. Against close-combat opponents, just breaking the joints is enough to subdue them. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠When they're writhing in pain like that, they won't have time to gather their energy."

"Krrrrgh...!"

The moment my twisted arm was freed, I got back up and charged again. This time I went in low, but she tripped my ankle.

—*Thud!*

My back of the head slammed into the ground and my vision flashed white.

"Second—disrupt their center of gravity. Once they lose their balance, abilities or whatever mean nothing. No matter how strong a villain is, a human body is the same."

"...Dammit...!"

I gritted my teeth and focused my spiritual energy into my fingertips. I was about to hurl ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it at the instructor—

—*Flick!*

The moment her fingers pressed against my wrist, pinpointing the exact path my energy was traveling, the flow was cut off.

"...Huh?"

"Third—ability users have to channel their spiritual or magical energy along a specific path to use it. Block that path, and they can't do a thing. Watch—see how the energy you gathered at your fingertips disappears."

—*Whoosh whoosh whoosh!*

I widened the distance and hastily gathered my energy again. This time I tried to pull it up from deep in my chest, but—

—*Pshh!*

The faint energy she shot hit my dantian and my breathing seized. The flow of my spiritual energy twisted and warped.

"Krrrghhh!"

The spiritual energy surging inside me eventually reversed course and vanished.

"Fourth—disrupt their breathing and focus. Abilities are built on extreme concentration. Even a small disruption to the energy flow, like just now, will cause the power to collapse."

Like that, for a long time, not a single attack of mine could reach her.

Meanwhile, the group watching from the sidelines grew increasingly worried.

"Hey. Is he okay?"

"There don't seem to be any obvious external injuries. Since she adjusts her strength even during regular ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠combat drills, we can be relieved on that front, but..."

Yu Ryun's question, laced with concern, was answered by Chunghwa. Indeed, there didn't seem to be any serious injuries—just a few more scrapes than usual on Hwanhyeon's body, nothing like fractures.

"The problem is internal. If she blocks the flow of energy like that, in bad luck it could cause serious injury."

"...Does that mean Master is in danger?"

Jinyul, furrowing her brow as she watched, spoke worriedly.

"It should be fine. The Wi Seoyeon instructor I sensed is skilled at handling energy and magic with great precision."

"You could sense that? Well, Ilya could probably tell."

"Huh? Doesn't Chunghwa also react sensitively to energy? How could you not notice?"

The normal curriculum ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was proving very helpful in understanding what was happening right now. The techniques of Wi Seoyeon, whose A-rank hunter status was unknown, were simply neutralizing Hwanhyeon—not actually hurting him.

"In a situation like this, the most important thing is Master's will."

"Will? Saintess, why'd that come up all of a sudden?"

Yu Ryun's jibe didn't faze her. Il Lena continued.

"As long as his heart doesn't break, he'll find the answer eventually."

I didn't know how many times I'd rolled on the ground.

The energy inside my body kept getting tangled, then barely untangling, over and over.

My breath rose to the very tip of my throat.

"Hah... hah..."

"Already done? There's still half the lecture time left."

Wi Seoyeon's voice stabbed down sharply. Her tone was either mocking or indifferent—it scraped at my heart either way.

"......I'm not done yet."

"Tch, stubbornness and guts are nice. But I don't know how far they'll take you."

The irritation welled up the moment I heard her words. I wanted to land at least one hit, no matter what.

'But I can't do it the way I've been doing it.'

If so, I needed something stronger. Something powerful enough to deal damage to an A-rank hunter—one devastating strike.

I abandoned all reason and swept up the remaining energy in my body like a madman.

My heart hammered like crazy. My whole body grew hotter and hotter, as if my blood were boiling.

"Hmm."

The instructor, watching my state, flicked her finger.

—*Pshh!*

I'd already experienced this several times. A simple energy sphere that creates a slight ripple at the center of my energy gathering and dispersing. She was disrupting my focus.

—*Tss tss tss tss.*

I moved my hand signs and created a defensive barrier in the shape of mist, just like Jinyul had done. Her shot was a very weak attack, so fortunately I managed to block it.

"Oh? You're only just starting to block now."

"Hrrrrgh..."

I was trying to say something, but her words were getting hard to hear.

At some point, all I could feel was myself, my sword, and the energy I'd gathered.

—*Thud.*

A vibration came from under my feet. Pressure enveloping my entire body. Pain so intense it felt like my bones were shattering—but suddenly, a shape flashed through my mind. Lightning streaking past my eyes. Thunder rumbling in my chest. The power about to explode merged into one.

"...This is..."

My body moved on its own. I bent my torso forward and swung the sword far behind my shoulder, drawing power from my toes up through my waist.

"Wall Thunder...?"

A name I'd never heard surfaced in my mind. Instinctively, I knew. This was the second form of the Hwanguk Sword Method, following Severing the Heavens.

"Thirty-third. You don't have to block an attack head-on. Simply deflecting it to the side is enough to disrupt the opponent's balance."

I raised the sword above my head and golden light surged around it. The air split with a howling sound.

—*Jiiiiing!*

[Hwanguk Sword Method, Second Form: Wall Thunder .]

—*KWAARRRRAAANG!*

When the sword came crashing down, the ground exploded apart. Lightning-like shockwaves spread in every direction. Sand and rocks erupted, and an earsplitting roar swallowed the training ground whole.

"...!"

Wi Seoyeon didn't take this one head-on either. Without even drawing her sword, she swung the sheathed blade and deflected the attack sideways.

But the rage I'd poured into Wall Thunder was far too violent.

—*KWAARRRRAAANG!*

The remaining energy in the sword stuck in the ground detonated, and a storm-like pressure swept past her.

"This level of shockwave can be easily blocked with physical reinforcement. If you use combat techniques to disrupt the enemy's balance at this moment...!"

In that instant, shards of her uniform scattered into the air.

—*Thwack thwack!*

The pale skin hidden beneath the tank top was exposed right before my eyes.

"What the—?!"

Shock was written all over Wi Seoyeon's face.

Of course—she'd given permission to film, and yet she'd exposed her bare skin in front of so many students.

"S-Stop the cameras right now! Today's lesson is over!"

She hastily covered her groin and nipples, shouting.

Then, without even properly wrapping things up, she vanished from the training ground in an instant.

"Hrrrgh... hrrrgh... Shit..."

My breath surged. My body and mind were already exhausted from her constant mocking.

"Hwanhyeon! Are you okay?"

"Aaagh... Hahh... Um, I'm fine. Didn't get seriously hurt."

The power was greater than I'd intended. The Wall Thunder born of rage was beyond what I could handle.

Skill.

I'd successfully learned a new technique too. The process was thoroughly irritating and painful, but this changed everything.

"I should tell the instructor thank you when I see her."

Now that I thought about it, my clothes were a mess. Should I apologize first?

—*Bwoooerk!*

"Without an ounce of propriety, who—Ah, Seoyeon. What brings you here at this hour?"

The office door of the main hall burst open as usual.

"Chunho-nim! Expel that perverted psycho bastard from my class!"

Wi Seoyeon, dressed neatly, entered and called Geum Yeoryeong by a name for this world that wasn't publicly known.