Chapter 76
Chapter 76
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title: Storm of the Golden Sun (12)
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Thwack-!
"Kuhk!"
The red fist slammed squarely into my abdomen, forcing the air out of my lungs against my will.
The shockwave tore through my abs and reverberated inside my body, sending my lungs into spasms that left me unable to breathe.
My body, which I'd thought I'd trained so diligently, betrayed my will and crumbled. Clutching my gut, I could do nothing but collapse to the ground.
"Cough! Kuhk."
"S-Sorry. I thought you'd block it this time too, like always..."
My first spar with Ryu Jia ended, predictably, in her victory.
I hadn't even considered the possibility of beating her from the start, and the spar unfolded exactly as I'd anticipated, ending just as predicted.
"Huuu..."
When shock causes your lungs to spasm and you can't breathe, the way to restore lung function is to forcibly expel the remaining air trapped inside.
Once I regained my breath that way, I rubbed my abdomen with palms wrapped in Solar Body mana and pulled myself to my feet.
"Oof, you're seriously strong, Vice Captain."
"Huh? Uh, yeah. Of course. Who do you think I am? But is your stomach okay? I couldn't stop midway..."
"Ah, yeah, it's fine. My body's not that tough, but my recovery is pretty good."
Solar Body mana was more efficient than any mana in the Reverse Hero Saga world, so concentrating it on a body part like this could significantly boost the body's natural healing.
Of course, this healing only worked up to torn muscles.
Anything from fractures onward required a proper visit to the infirmary for Baek Woo-hee to treat.
Even accounting for that, activating natural healing was a pretty great ability, so I used it whenever I needed to recover torn muscle fibers after training.
"I even focused mana on my abs to reinforce them before the hit. Though it got pierced anyway, reinforcement or not."
Of course, being able to recover from injuries just by activating natural healing like this was only possible because I'd managed to reinforce my abs with mana right before the gut punch, softening the impact.
"I see. That's a relief."
Confirming I was okay, Ryu Jia shook off her apologetic expression and asked a question.
"By the way, newbie, didn't you lose way too pathetically? You got wrecked in just three exchanges right after close combat started. Losing focus or something?"
"Ugh."
Ryu Jia's question was brutally sharp, but every word rang true.
She initiated close combat, and in just three exchanges, I ate a clean hit to the gut and went down.
But it wasn't because my focus had slipped.
"No. I just... lost track of your movements, Vice Captain."
Taking a punch to the gut and losing in just three exchanges was simply because my reflexes still couldn't keep up with Ryu Jia's speed.
As a Reverse Hero Saga veteran, I had memorized the patterns of every combat-capable character and monster in the game.
That meant if I could just see them, I knew what attacks my opponent would use, and that was my greatest strength.
To exaggerate a bit, it was almost like future sight—an incredible skill. But it had one fatal flaw.
I couldn't respond if I couldn't see it.
Every pattern had a tell, and if you could read that tell, you could counter.
Put another way: no tell read, no counter possible.
That's exactly why I'd been wiped out in three exchanges once close combat with Ryu Jia began.
"Hmm... Not to brag, but a punch from up close isn't as powerful or fast as a charging rush from afar. You handled those fine, but couldn't block a much slower punch? That make sense?"
I could block rushes that were far faster and stronger than close-range punches because rush patterns had visible tells.
But in close combat, she was right in my face, swinging punches at speeds I couldn't even see. In a way, surviving three exchanges was impressive.
"That's why I got wrecked. But you're the one who threw it—why're you asking the guy who took the hit why he couldn't block? You're so mean, Vice Captain."
Of course, this was my lifeline, so I had no intention of explaining my "foresight" to Ryu Jia.
"Ugh, s-sorry about that."
"Anyway, if you're sorry, be more careful next time. Stop right before hitting or pull your punch. I'm fragile compared to you."
I brushed off her doubts with some banter and headed back to my starting position.
"Huh? What're you doing?"
"What else? I'm all healed up, so rematch time."
"Again? After losing that pathetically?"
"Yep. Again. Every day, until I'm sick of it."
With only about a month until finals, I had no time to train my physical stats.
So I'd stick to my usual physical routine and focus on something else instead.
"...Until finals day?"
"Yes."
"Ha, but what if I wanna sleep in or slack off? Then what...?"
But Ryu Jia seemed a bit displeased at the idea of daily spars until I was fed up.
She lived by her whims and couldn't stand boredom, so I'd already predicted she'd react this way.
"You said you'd help earlier. Going back on your word like a typical woman?"
"Ugh. Th-that's..."
That's why I'd gotten her word upfront.
Sure, women were said to have two mouths, so backtracking was fair game, but that wasn't the point right now.
Momentum was what mattered.
"You're all I've got now. I trusted only you and begged, and when you said yes, it touched me deeply. Are you really gonna trample this cute new member's pure heart over something as trivial as it being a hassle? I never saw you that way...! I thought you were a true heroine, worthless without honor and loyalty...!"
I kept the pressure on, using her own words to leave her no room to argue.
"A-Alright! Fine! I'll help every day! Argh, how'd I end up with such a pushy guy."
Overwhelmed by my momentum, Ryu Jia had no choice but to yield.
I grinned slyly and joked about my own cuteness and talent.
"Why? I'm cute, aren't I? Talented too. You won't find a newbie like me anywhere."
"Ugh..."
"?"
'Hey newbie, don't push it. You're talented, but not cute.' I'd baited her for that classic back-and-forth to lighten the mood, but for some reason, Ryu Jia couldn't respond.
Her face even flushed slightly, like I'd hit a nerve and left her speechless.
What? A tanned, muscular blond delinquent like me couldn't possibly be cute. Was she just so baffled she was at a loss for words?
Anyway, with time being of the essence—unsure if I'd even see the results I wanted after pouring a full month into it—I dropped the jokes, assumed my stance, and said,
"Alright, round two."
"Haa... Fine. Let's go."
As I took my position, Ryu Jia reluctantly wrapped her body in crimson energy.
To fire up her motivation even more, I decided to use a cheat code.
"Make something super tasty after today's spar."
"...Like what?"
"Legendary crab fried rice. It's basically sex."
She already loved fried rice, and this wasn't just any—it was crab fried rice. Her eyes were bound to glaze over.
"Crab... fried rice...!"
See? Her eyes rolled back, drool leaking from her mouth. ...Is that okay?
I seriously pondered inwardly, 'Should I have said just regular fried rice instead of crab?' while focusing all my attention on Ryu Jia.
The one thing I'd hone over the next month was my reflexes.
My goal: cultivate eyesight sharp enough not to lose track of her movements within that time.
"Crab fried rice!!!!!!!!!"
Boom!!!
Her charge—crimson energy blazing around her, screaming "crab fried rice"—was more destructive than ever.
※
When Ryu Jia first sparred with Yang Woo-bin, she was a little surprised but ultimately disappointed.
She'd hoped 'Maybe this guy's got something?' after he perfectly handled her powerful rush, but once close combat began, he took a clean hit and crumpled pathetically.
Facing his limits head-on made her realize he was just another ordinary cadet, far beneath her.
That realization quickly turned to boredom, and she struggled to accept why she had to bother sparring with him.
Intellectually, she knew he was her cute junior, and she'd enjoyed his delicious meals and learned about sex from him, so she owed him. But her heart was already elsewhere.
Still, she'd given her word, and his food was top-tier quality you couldn't find anywhere else. So she kept sparring with him, thinking of it as work for meals.
A week passed like that, with their spars reaching 140. As usual, sprawled on the ground, Yang Woo-bin muttered something odd.
"I can... kinda see it now."
That was the day it began.
The day spars with Yang Woo-bin stopped feeling boring.