Chapter 10. That Woman. (1)
The bloodless standoff between the two bosses had not escalated into a full-scale crisis. Yet the atmosphere remained so delicate that it continued until the weekend.
Starting with the third week, the collective training program underwent a drastic change. The new initiative paired each newcomer with a senior in the same position for one week of intensive, in-person mentorship. It aimed to kill two birds with one stone—build connections and receive proper training—but the results varied wildly depending on the pairing. Some luck was clearly required.
The newcomers, however, looked forward to the program with great anticipation. In truth, arriving for collective training had been their true purpose all along. Heroes who lined up properly would open the path to promotion, and the rest would not.
Thus, the Monday morning of the third week dawned under those hopeful skies. Everyone’s eyes sparkled with curiosity about who would be assigned as their senior. Even Natasha’s gaze held a hint of something different from its usual sharpness.
Inside the auditorium, the trainees waited for the thick-muscled supervisor to appear. Soon the clock struck eight, the heavy soundproof door slid open, and the supervisor stepped out. Ten more heroes followed.
“Silence!”
The thick-muscled supervisor stepped onto the stage and stamped his foot with a booming thud, silencing the excited newcomers.
“As I informed you in advance, starting today we will conduct one week of intensive mentorship. You will gain far more vivid experience and knowledge here than in your current program. Naturally, you are juniors to many seniors who have gone through this before, so you must show the utmost respect. Understood?”
“Yes, understood.”
The supervisor nodded once while glancing at the heroes. The ten heroes strode onto the stage with precision. Kang-jun spotted the one standing fifth. He was the only one among them carrying a sword.
Kang-jun had already expected this arrival. The man’s name was Jang Chul-min. In the third dungeon, where sword-wielding heroes were exceedingly rare, there was no mistaking him.
One by one, the heroes stepped forward to give brief introductions. All were C-rank except for the one assigned to Kang-jun, who was B-rank. The absence of any sword-wielding hero among the C-rank group explained the exception.
Kang-jun’s gaze drifted past Jang Chul-min to another figure. He recognized her immediately. No, it went far beyond mere recognition. She was Belita. Why was she here?
Their eyes met at the perfect moment.
“Very well, then let us begin.”
The B-rank hero, Jang Chul-min, approached Kang-jun at once. His eyes and movements carried the sharpness of a blade forged to perfection.
“Follow me.”
Kang-jun nodded and trailed after him. On the way, their eyes met Belita once more. Her assigned senior was number six.
“Truly rare to see a sword-wielding junior. …To be honest, I’ve been quite curious.”
Jang Chul-min spoke without looking back as they headed toward the private training ground. Kang-jun paused to choose his reply, then simply said, “Yes.”
“Senior, I believe. But a sword-wielding one…”
Curiosity bloomed in Jang Chul-min’s eyes. Even the man who had escorted him to the training ground seemed a bit off. Kang-jun could guess what he was thinking. He wanted to see the junior’s skill for himself.
This was an era where superpowers and magic ran rampant. If that wasn’t your gift, you picked a bow or spear. If not, an axe or club. Only those who had no choice left picked up a sword or scythe.
Yet a sword was no easy weapon for the talentless to wield. Among all arms, it ranked among the most difficult. Even those with talent for swordsmanship had no reason to bother, and the ranks of sword users gradually faded from sight. The fact that no sword-wielding hero among the C-rank group proved it easily.
Jang Chul-min had not expected great things from Kang-jun’s ability, only a spark of interest. In the twilight of swordsmanship whose lineage was vanishing, curiosity toward one walking the same path.
Jang Chul-min pushed open the training hall doors with both hands. A dazzling sunlight flooded the room, and the soft, cushioned floor felt pleasantly warm under the sun’s rays.
He closed the door and locked it with a heavy click. He wanted no one to disturb him while sparring.
“From the very beginning, I must apologize, but I need to assess your level so I can figure out how to train you properly.”
“It’s fine.”
Kang-jun smiled faintly. Jang Chul-min’s right eyebrow rose slightly at the response. *Whoa, look at this one?* No trembling like that of a rookie. If it wasn’t fear, perhaps he simply didn’t understand the situation. Either way, it was impressive mental fortitude.
Jang Chul-min entered the equipment room and carried out two wooden practice swords from the corner. He tossed one toward Kang-jun. Kang-jun snatched it from the air with ease.
“I’m not a fun person. You only need to know that.”
He spoke, then turned and carefully placed the sword on the floor beside his waist. Gripping the wooden sword, he straightened up, and his aura sharpened like a blade.
Kang-jun thought for a moment. Should he treat this seriously?
“Before facing a monster, a sword is the culmination of one’s own cultivation. If you defeat yourself, you can defeat the monster.”
He swung the wooden sword lightly from side to side while muttering nonsense like that.
“Ready!”
Kang-jun closed his eyes tightly for a moment, then opened them. The opponent was B-rank, so by stats alone he might hold an edge. But combat wasn’t merely about stats, especially with swords. The completeness of swordsmanship could overcome a gap of dozens of levels.
And he already knew the world’s strongest sword technique—**Tai Chi Divine Sword**. The word “know” meant he hadn’t fully mastered it to the point of perfection. That was the limit of talent. He wasn’t a true genius, so mastering it completely in a short time was impossible. …If he trained for decades more, who knew, but reaching that level in just a dozen years or so was an unreachable distance. There were walls in the middle that were nearly impossible to cross.
Still, even if only a superficial grasp, the power of the Tai Chi Divine Sword could never be dismissed. It went beyond mere swordsmanship. It delved into the fundamental origin of martiality. And the theory could be applied to all weapons.
Jang Chul-min’s expression changed at the sudden shift in the junior’s aura. *Something’s off.*
“Begin.”
A wave of tension filled the air. Jang Chul-min plunged into the no-contact spar.
The spar began, and they remained motionless for a long time. Yet stillness did not mean non-fighting. They fought fiercely with breath and eyes.
Jang Chul-min moved first. The moment his foot stepped forward, his body flashed to Kang-jun’s right side. He slashed the wooden sword like a streak of light.
Fast. B-rank speed was nearly forty, yet the wooden sword didn’t even graze Kang-jun’s fingertips.
The instant the attack missed, Jang Chul-min pulled back swiftly. But Kang-jun had anticipated it.
Kang-jun, standing close and slashing downward, was visible to Jang Chul-min. The wooden sword aimed straight for his waist. He quickly raised his own sword to block. *Thud!* The two clashed with a sharp sound.
Their distance increased once more. Jang Chul-min exhaled the breath he had been holding in the sudden clash. The man who always focused his mind on one thing had momentarily lost concentration. He had forgotten he was sparring with a newcomer. He was fully immersed in the fight.
He couldn’t lose. Sudden battle lust ignited. That was the natural temperament of the Jang family.
Jang Chul-min attacked again, this time swinging downward. Yet Kang-jun deflected the trajectory with a sharp tap, changing the flow. Strength could not conquer softness. A saying the elders of the Murim often repeated.
“Eh—”
Jang Chul-min had not expected the junior to so easily redirect his attack. The moment he realized the failure, he immediately twisted the sword sideways, but the posture had already broken, and the power was greatly diminished.
Of course his sword rebounded off Kang-jun’s, and his body stood exposed.
If Kang-jun had simply swung his sword, he would have hit, but he merely adjusted his stance without swinging. No need—he had already realized his defeat.
Jang Chul-min stepped back and stood still, stunned. The skill gap was obvious in this short spar. *Is this possible?* A B-rank hero, the prideful Jang Chul-min, losing miserably to a mere newcomer hero? The silence was broken by his own laughter.
“You, how old are you this year?”
“Twenty-two.”
Originally twenty-nine, but in this world the ID said twenty-two. He had been made to look younger by seven years without a conscience, but he could claim he had been shaved down a few years for the moment.
Jang Chul-min was a little shocked. A twenty-two-year-old showing such completion? At least in his eyes, there was no gap in Kang-jun’s swordsmanship. He felt like he was dreaming.
He couldn’t help the excitement. He had known he wasn’t a genius. Of course he would swing a sword until his death, but he knew he could never reach the realm the swordsmen dreamed of. Still, he wasn’t blind to talent.
This man… this man was real.
He could be certain. The talent they had searched for for decades—him.
His hand trembled. He had never imagined finding him this way. For a moment he didn’t know what to do.
“You learned the sword from where?”
“From here and there, over the shoulders.”
“This isn’t something one learns over the shoulder. …Do you have no master?”
“No.”
*Whoa.* Jang Chul-min couldn’t understand. But he didn’t jump to conclusions. Life wasn’t all within his own common sense. The world of geniuses was a different star to ordinary people, after all!
He told Kang-jun to wait here a moment and rushed off to the supervisor at once.
“Senior, what’s the matter?”
The supervisor’s face changed strangely at Jang Chul-min’s urgent expression. This was the first time he had seen the senior so flustered.
“Lee Kang-jun. I’ll take this newcomer with me for a bit. Is that okay?”
“Um… but external outings are prohibited during collective training. You know that, senior.”
“So I’m asking you as a favor. If it’s within the supervisor’s discretion, could you grant permission?”
“It requires a separate form to be submitted…”
“Tell my sister.”
At those words, the supervisor backed down. If he said that, there was no reason to refuse.
“Understood.”
“Thank you.”
Jang Chul-min rushed back to the training hall as if he had to go relieve himself. His heart raced.
Kang-jun sat under the sunlight, eyes closed in meditation. Then he saw Jang Chul-min rushing over. He felt an inexplicable emotion from that strange atmosphere—an overwhelming joy spreading in his chest.
“Let’s go out for a moment.”
“External outings are prohibited during collective training.”
“I got permission.”
An external outing required quite a lot of procedures, yet Kang-jun was sure the man wasn’t bluffing. Then it must be the supervisor’s real permission.
“Let’s go quickly.”
Kang-jun followed Jang Chul-min at once. They left the building and headed for the underground parking lot. They boarded Jang Chul-min’s sleek sedan. The driver, who had been dozing, woke up and asked where they were heading.
“Take us to the family house.”
The luxury sedan glided smoothly with a soft hum. Jang Chul-min made a call somewhere, but the other line didn’t pick up; he held the phone in silence for a long time. He tried another number. This time it answered immediately.
“Ah, Hye-yeon? Where’s Auntie? …No, it’s fine. Dad is going now, so get ready for guests. Also tell your sister. You must pass it on. A very rare guest.”
The call ended right there. Kang-jun spoke to him then, feeling the air lighten.
“Senior, you forgot to bring the sword. You left it in the training hall.”
“Ah, I must have been careless. …My mind is completely elsewhere.”
How distracted must he have been not to even remember the sword left behind? Jang Chul-min accepted the sword case Kang-jun offered.
“Thank you. …I don’t usually do that, but today my mind really isn’t here.”
“It’s fine. There are days like that.”
The sedan sped for about an hour and then exited the city outskirts. The buildings grew shorter, the people fewer, and the air more sparse. The landscape suddenly filled with green. It felt like a pleasant rural city.
The car stopped in front of a grand tiled-roof mansion. It wasn’t just the mansion; several modern buildings stood beside it. The land alone could cover hundreds of pyeong.
Kang-jun stepped out and glanced around. He recognized the place. He had thought it might be the family house, but here it was. This was the Jang family’s estate and sword dojo.
“Has the master arrived?”
“Yes, a guest has come. A rare guest, so treat him with utmost care.”
“Yes. I will escort you inside.”
Jang Chul-min said he had a quick errand to run and left Kang-jun there. Kang-jun followed the attendant into the mansion.
“Sis! Big brother!”
Jang Chul-min rushed to the backyard and searched for his sister. The woman sitting casually in the gazebo by the pond reading a magazine and smoking a cigarette looked up at her little brother.
“…What’s all the fuss about?”
“Sis, sis! It’s a big deal! …No, not exactly a big deal, but, well, it’s really urgent!”
“You said a guest came? I heard from Hye-yeon.”
She said it casually and turned her attention back to the magazine in her hand. Her smoking posture was anything but ordinary.
“I found him!”
“What?”
“You know, sis. This guy is a heaven-given talent. I’ve never seen anyone like him before.”
Only then did the woman’s gaze slowly shift to her brother. She took a long drag on her cigarette until her cheeks hollowed, then blew out a gray cloud of smoke.
“You’re not mistaken?”
“Absolutely! …I lost in the spar. He’s a real genius! He’s the one we’ve been looking for!”
She crushed the short cigarette butt into the ashtray, where it was already piled high with butts.
“Or are you joking?”
“Really, sis!”
“Fine, then let’s go.”
Heavy steps echoed as
S-rank Hero, Ranked 6th,
**Jang Hwa-young** moved.