Manners Education

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Seolhye slowly rose from the stone floor and walked toward me with an air of indifference. The look in her eyes hadn't fully surrendered yet.

"Anyway... now that things have come to this, I'll help with your physical training from now on."

I lifted my head at those words.

"Really? Today... can't we take a break already?"

Seolhye snorted.

"Break? We're just getting started. Looking at your pathetic body, it'll ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠take you a hundred years before you can even hold a sword properly. First we need to rebuild that useless frame from scratch."

I blinked in a daze, momentarily stunned. Without a shred of hesitation, Seolhye grabbed my arm roughly and hauled me to my feet.

"Follow me. I still haven't recognized you as a real master. At the very least, you should have a decent body."

Cheonghwa followed lightly at my side, handing me a water bottle and a towel.

"Master, fight on."

**********

The training ground was bathed in spreading sunlight. Still quiet, still empty—the smell of dust tickled my nostrils. Seolhye retied her hair with both hands and looked down at me with a sharp gaze.

"First, ten minutes of warm-up. Rotate your waist, rotate your neck, loosen your wrists and ankles. If you get some useless injury, you'll be wasting my time."

A groan escaped my lips on its own.

"If it's gonna be like this, wouldn't it have been better to just stay collapsed on the ground..."

But Seolhye showed absolutely no mercy.

"Stop your whining. Follow along."

I rotated my arms, twisted my body this way and that, and moved with whatever strength remained, squeezing it out of my muscles. It felt like the joints were creaking with every motion. The moment the warm-up ended, Seolhye barked an order.

"Fifty push-ups. Perfect ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠form."

I collapsed face-down on the ground, gasping for air. My arms trembled, my palms went numb. By the time I hit twenty, my shoulders were already aching stiffly. Seolhye stood over me, arms crossed.

"Keep your back straight. Don't lift your butt. If you can't do even one properly, we start over."

I continued the push-ups with a flushed face, sweat running down my spine, my palms caked with sand and perspiration.

"Squats, a hundred. Knees out, thighs parallel."

My legs were already done for. With every set of twenty, the muscles burned as if on fire. Seolhye snorted from the side.

"If it's too hard, just say stop. In exchange, from today onward, think of yourself as being under me."

I bit my lip and clenched my teeth.

"Ghh—!"

Cheonghwa quietly handed me water.

"Master, are you alright?"

I gulped down a mouthful of water, still panting.

"Ughhh..."

"You can do it. You have to endure more."

Seolhye immediately had me do sit-ups. My torso felt like it was collapsing inward, but I didn't give up, repeating the motion. Forty, fifty, sixty... Sweat streamed down my forehead. My breath grew shallower by the second, as if my lungs were being crushed under heavy stones.

"Now running. Four laps around the track. Don't walk in the middle."

I started running.

The first lap was manageable.

By the second lap, my breathing had grown ragged.

On the third lap, my legs felt like they were giving out.

Breath jammed in my throat, a burning pain radiated through my chest. My vision blurred, my ears rang hollow.

'This is really too much...'

My mind went distant.

Then, suddenly, a warm energy began rising from my soles.

I instinctively pressed my palms flat against the ground. Strangely, the grass beneath my fingers glimmered green.

'What is this...?'

My breathing gradually eased. The muscle pain seemed to be settling. Fatigue melted away like sweat evaporating.

'Oh?'

"Status window."

It seemed I had a gain.

I checked my system right away.

Stamina and Strength each went up by one. There was a certain thrill in the thought that my scrawny body had finally grown a little.

"Kyaahhoo!"

"What are you so happy about. Did something actually grow while I wasn't looking?"

"Yeah! Thanks, Seolhye!"

My stats had gone up. They hadn't risen much before, but suddenly two points climbed at once.

It could be that exercising even a little today finally showed its effect, or maybe it was because of that skill I got after sleeping with Cheonghwa.

"...Hmph. I simply drove you around faithfully, that's all."

"Still, thank you."

"...Fine."

I said it wasn't a big deal, but a thank-you is a thank-you.

"Heh, if we exercise again tomorrow, won't they go up even more?"

"Tomorrow? What are you talking about. Isn't today far from over yet?"

"Huh?"

"Huh?"

Oh no.

This woman seemed to be trying to make up for the humiliation of losing earlier.

"Again! One! Two!"

"Ghhhh—!"

**********

...And so, I was driven around all day.

Whatever it was, it felt like they were squeezing every last drop out of me—like the post-training recovery index from some wuxia novel. I didn't pass out, but they pushed me as hard as they possibly could.

"Uuueeeeh..."

"Mm, let's stop here for today. You can rest now."

"Uuugh..."

I couldn't even form proper words. The soles of my feet had gone numb, my calves and thighs were streaked with red bruises as if about to split open, and my abdomen was seized with cramps. I couldn't even lift my arms.

"...Did I go too hard?"

"Yes. That's how it looks to me. Remember, Master is still just an ordinary human's body."

I could hear Cheonghwa and Seolhye's voices nearby.

'I know I was worked too hard, okay.'

"What's the matter? As long as you don't die, I can treat you."

Hmm? That was a unfamiliar voice. Not Cheonghwa or Seolhye—someone I'd heard before.

"Yu Ryun, you came. Just in time—I needed you."

"..."

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"No, it's nothing. I just figured the dorm might block sound but not smell..."

Ah.

She must have found out about what happened in the middle of the night. Come to think of it, we did live together.

"...I don't know what you're talking about."

"Just saying. Should I take her with me?"

-thud.

With surprising skill, she lifted me up effortlessly and slung me over her shoulder. Despite her not-so-large frame, she carried me with ease.

"I'll go first."

And so, Yu Ryun and I headed for the dormitory.

-thunk.

Within a few steps, I heard something bump into us, and the body carrying me swayed slightly.

-shiver shiver...

For some reason, Cheonghwa's clenched fist was trembling.

"Mm..."

My body was utterly spent, and I fell asleep before I even knew it.

**********

"Tch. What is this, me playing nanny to some brat?"

Not long after Hwanhyeon and Yu Ryun left, Seolhye spoke.

"Cheonghwa, don't you think the same? Sure, he's the master, but this is just... Ugh, I'm gonna lose it if I keep watching this idiot have a breakdown—"

Cheonghwa thought.

That was far too reckless a thing to say.

She hadn't liked Seolhye's attitude since the morning.

How could she possibly teach this person—someone who defied the master right in front of him—some kind of lesson?

She wanted to pour out the anger she'd been holding inside.

This was the time for etiquette education.

-SLASH!

"W-What are you doing...?!"

"?!"

'My body... won't move. Could it be...?'

"You... that power..."

'You figured it out right away. How...'

Cheonghwa shook her head rapidly. No matter how much her mind was filled with self-righteous pride, there was no hiding it—she recognized it.

"I did not introduce you to the master so you could act like this."

"What... are you talking about?"

"How dare you, how dare you—"

What kind of person speaks such reckless words? What kind of person swings a sword as if to kill their own master?

What she'd learned in her universal knowledge simply didn't apply to this situation.

Because she had been created solely for him.

She could not show the master a disgraceful sight. And so the anger she'd been hiding surged through her nerves once more.

-GASP!!

"Ghhhk—!"

Her fist struck her lower abdomen. The mark carved there as a penalty from the contract made a perfect target.

From the moment Hwanhyeon became aware of Seolhye's existence, there was no option to kill her and request additional forces for the White Tiger Hall.

According to what she'd heard from Principal Geum Yeoryeong, he was rather sensitive about such things. So she was certain he would grieve over Seolhye's death.

Thus, she could only stand by helplessly. Watching the master—someone who deserved to be cared for—be violated by a seed. Unable to say "stop" even once, she stood there dumbfounded as this fool took a full-body beating.

"Remember this on your body."

The power the Blue Dragon once wielded when it humbled the divine king. A power that forces another's actions, paying the cost in spirit energy.

The Command manifested from Cheonghwa's lips.

-crackle crackle!

"Ugh-gh-ghhhk!!"

Her rage triggered a brain seizure. Seolhye crumpled and collapsed, utterly broken—nothing like the arrogant attitude from before.

It was truly a satisfying sight.

"Seolhye, listen well."

-nod nod.

-nod.

"Recovery... you should be able to handle that much on your own, shouldn't you? You're the White Tiger, after all, famous for being a fight-crazy maniac."

-...nod.

"Good. Just collapse there for a while, and get up when you feel like it."

-thud!

With that, Seolhye lost all strength and crumpled to the ground.

"...Hmph."

In a fit of anger, I ended up using the Command. Despite it being the hidden dagger of the Blue Dragon Hall—something no one should know about.

'Well, I took care of it, so it's fine. But still...'

I replayed the words Yu Ryun had muttered as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠she passed by earlier—words only I had heard.

-Today I'm the one who eats you, you dirty bitch.

After beating the haughty tiger, it was this sharp-tongued woman who'd taken the master that now nagged at me.

-clench.

This bitch or that bitch—

I didn't like any of them.

A wretched, shitty day.