Chapter 13
Chapter 13
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 013
Chapter Title: The Tutorial Begins (12)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
First defeat? If it was due to complacency, there's no real excuse for that.
Because I wasn't thinking about winning at all—I was judging based on how tough it would be to win and already planning to run away.
My mindset was already tilted toward defeat from the start.
The second defeat doesn't even qualify as a defeat. It happened right after taking down the boss monster, the Twin-Headed Troll. How could anyone call that a loss?
It wasn't a defeat. Just bad luck.
But the third defeat? No excuses there.
"You're no match for me."
Slash!
It wasn't complacency or bad luck. I approached it with full intent to kill, without fighting any other monsters along the way.
I clashed head-on with that damn Choi Tae-seong and got utterly crushed. A complete, humiliating loss with zero room for excuses.
"......"
Magic and swords counter each other?
Or a difference in job difficulty?
Or maybe a gap in talent?
Kang Mu-hyuk clamped his mouth shut and checked his status window. His eyes were vacant, as if his soul had fled.
One person...
Just one person...
Kang Mu-hyuk squeezed his eyes shut against an indescribable despair. Deep in his chest, an unbearable emotion bubbled up.
...Is this my limit?
Shame and despair gripped him tight.
For Kang Mu-hyuk, who dreamed of becoming a lord, three defeats were a nightmare made real.
...Was all that talk of lords just my delusion? Was I just some nobody spouting off without facing reality?
A pain worse than death crushed him. The swelling emotions choked his throat.
Am I just an extra...?
The thought that he might be nothing more made his fists tremble violently.
...No. That can't be! My power isn't just this! I'm chosen! Destined to be a lord! I'm not trash... not by a long shot!!
When Kang Mu-hyuk opened his eyes, fury burned across his face.
"...Fine. Let's end this."
It wasn't anger at Choi Tae-seong. It was rage at himself for that momentary weakness.
"If I lose this time too... then..."
With that, Kang Mu-hyuk burned his bridges.
"...I'll die."
Choi Tae-seong regained his lost confidence after facing off against Kang Mu-hyuk.
"Yeah! I wasn't weak. Just unlucky, that's all. Plus, I was exhausted back then. Got careless too. Whew! Time to snap out of it. I'm strong."
The points he'd gained from Kang Mu-hyuk were more than enough to fuel that confidence.
A smile bloomed on Choi Tae-seong's face.
"75 points! That's gotta be good for first... no, at least second place. But I can't settle for that. Find Kang Mu-hyuk one more time... and kill him."
To the now-confident Choi Tae-seong, Kang Mu-hyuk was nothing but a point-dispensing machine.
So he resolved to take him down one more time before the survival game ended.
"Wait up, Kang Mu-hyuk!"
Was it fate's cruel joke or a clever scheme?
Kang Mu-hyuk and Choi Tae-seong. Choi Tae-seong and Kang Mu-hyuk crossed paths again—with just one hour left until the game ended.
"Kang Mu-hyuk!!"
"Choi Tae-seong!!"
Sparks flew in their eyes the instant they spotted each other.
Ecstasy lit Choi Tae-seong's face, while resolve hardened Kang Mu-hyuk's.
I thought you were avoiding me!
For Choi Tae-seong, who'd already beaten Kang Mu-hyuk three times, this encounter was the golden chance to claim first place.
He had no intention of letting it slip.
"Don't run away, Kang Mu-hyuk!!"
Defeat had no place in Choi Tae-seong's mind—only victory. But he wasn't getting careless this time.
One mistake is enough! I'm finishing you for good!!
Kang Mu-hyuk glared back with grim determination etched on his face.
...I'll win.
No carelessness. No arrogance. No assuming he was number one.
No matter what... I'll win.
The survival game's outcome meant nothing to Kang Mu-hyuk. What mattered was overcoming this 'wall.'
Surpass it, and first place was his again.
Fail, and...
he'd end up as some irrelevant extra, scraping by as a D- or F-rank hunter.
Or swallow his shame and end it all.
Grind!!
A magic sword infused with fire energy slashed diagonally, carving a massive arc.
Kang Mu-hyuk ducked behind a tree to evade it.
BOOM!!
The explosion drowned his ears, black smoke stinging his eyes. His senses dulled under the blast's fury.
A direct hit would've killed him on the spot.
I have to dodge!
Instinct told Kang Mu-hyuk this wasn't over. He charged straight through the thick flames and smoke.
"?!!"
But as if anticipating it...
Choi Tae-seong's attack crashed down on him.
Crackle!
The lightning-charged magic sword gouged his side, paralyzing his body.
...Move... damn... it...!!
Kang Mu-hyuk gritted his teeth and endured. Falling here meant defeat.
His body shuddered!
Luckily, the lightning's power was weak—likely backlash from chaining magic sword strikes. Kang Mu-hyuk shook off the paralysis and kept running.
"Just gonna run like a coward?"
Ignoring Choi Tae-seong's taunts, Kang Mu-hyuk pressed on, eyes hunting for an opening.
A little longer...!
He was waiting for the 'delay'—the gap between magic sword activations.
A split-second vulnerability.
To exploit it, Kang Mu-hyuk held back, patient and enduring.
"Running like a rat won't change a thing! It'll just delay your death!"
Choi Tae-seong sensed Kang Mu-hyuk was biding his time. But he wasn't worried.
Because he had an ace up his sleeve too.
Waiting for me to tire out, huh? You underestimate me. Think I've been going all out? As if! I've never shown this technique before. Heh heh heh! Can't wait to see your face twist in despair!
Choi Tae-seong swallowed a sinister grin, eager for Kang Mu-hyuk to charge.
His trump card? 'Shield.'
A mana shield that blocked all attacks and repelled foes.
That was Choi Tae-seong's secret weapon.
Edge of the Sword didn't answer the question. Instead, it silently watched Kang Mu-hyuk.
It wasn't wrong.
The other candidates, unlike Kang Mu-hyuk, hadn't allowed even a single loss.
But Edge of the Sword didn't care. Whether Kang Mu-hyuk was the 'real deal' or a fake would soon be revealed.
Whoosh!
A razor-sharp gust whistled past his ear. A hair's breadth from disaster—if he'd misread the direction even slightly, his head might've exploded.
But Kang Mu-hyuk didn't flinch. Calmly reading Choi Tae-seong's attacks, he advanced.
A feint!
As the distance closed, Kang Mu-hyuk spotted the trap Choi Tae-seong had laid.
Slash!
The sharp wind sliced his thigh. Luckily, it didn't hit bone—just a shallow cut through flesh.
"Tch!"
A frustrated click of the tongue echoed nearby. Clearly intentional, but Kang Mu-hyuk didn't dodge.
...Now.
Because it was time to fight back. Time to clash head-on with Choi Tae-seong.
Thump!
He couldn't read Choi Tae-seong's hidden intent, or counter it. But one thing was clear: compared to before, the power had dropped sharply.
So Kang Mu-hyuk charged, closing the gap successfully.
The moment he swung his sword down—
Gotcha!
Choi Tae-seong's mana shield activated.
Flash!!
An invisible shockwave erupted from Choi Tae-seong's body.
Kang Mu-hyuk saw it. In a world that began to slow, he saw it clearly with both eyes.
Thump...!
He realized it. This moment was the fork in the road—whether he could surpass the wall or not.
Thu...mp...!
His heartbeat filled his body. At the same time, the will to slash the mana shield exploded.
Sla...sh...!
Body and mind became one.
Higher-difficulty jobs are weak early on.
Of course, some like 'Magic Swordsman' are strong from the start. Same difficulty doesn't mean same challenge.
But Swordmaster is weak early.
Because they can't use any of the 'techniques' that form their foundation.
All they've got is raw body.
Without techniques, how do you beat a Magic Swordsman spamming technique-equivalent spells?
Impossible.
100 fights, 100 losses.
......
Yet Kang Mu-hyuk slashed.
In the slowing world, he brought his sword down on the mana shield and cleaved it.
Slash.
That single strike held a Swordmaster's technique.
Imperfect, rough around the edges—but unmistakably a Swordmaster's 'technique.'
One that required perfect unity of body and mind, a realm to aspire to.
And it had manifested from the hands of Kang Mu-hyuk, who had barely begun to walk this path.
"Gasp?!!"
Choi Tae-seong, expecting Kang Mu-hyuk to bounce off the mana shield, couldn't hide his shock.
He was so rattled he forgot to dodge.
Kang Mu-hyuk didn't miss the opening.
Slash.
Stepping forward, he swung.
Slash!
The diagonal upward strike neatly severed Choi Tae-seong's throat.
"Guh...?"
It wasn't a full mastery—just a desperate reach—so it didn't decapitate cleanly. But it was enough to decide the fight.
"Gr... uh... ugh......"
Thud.
Choi Tae-seong crumpled to the ground. Kang Mu-hyuk gazed down, exhaling the breath he'd held.
Gasp! Heave! Gasp!
The world, once slowed, had returned to normal.
Was it a dream?
No.
It lingered. The sensation of grasping it remained in his hands. Still there, telling him...
It wasn't an illusion.
"......"
Only then did Kang Mu-hyuk realize it. He'd surpassed the wall. Unleashed a Swordmaster's power.
Thump!!
"Ha, haha...!!"
Victory brought Kang Mu-hyuk the glory of first place. And proved Edge of the Sword right.
Kang Mu-hyuk had more than enough qualification for the Strongest 7.