This Is How You Use a Sword
The training hall at the Incheon branch of the Awakened Management Bureau.
Dozens of Awakened had gathered there.
All to watch a duel between an F-class and an A-class.
One person in particular stood out.
Seo-rin alone could not calm her nerves, fidgeting restlessly.
"Shouldn't we stop this? Are we really going to let them go through with it?"
She shot Elysia a worried glance, but Elysia remained surprisingly composed.
"There is no need for such concern."
Elysia had seen her master's face when he declared he would handle it himself.
In that moment, she understood.
There was not a trace of defeat in his expression.
Beneath his relaxed demeanor, Elysia glimpsed a small but fiercely burning fighting spirit.
It had been a long time since she had seen her master wear such an intrigued look.
"We need only let Master enjoy himself."
"Enjoy himself...?"
"You will understand simply by watching."
Seo-rin stared at Elysia in confusion, but the water was already spilled.
She resolved to intervene herself if the match grew too heated, and watched the arena with a pounding heart.
Meanwhile, Kwon Ho-yeon, the Department Head of Talent Management who had attended the meeting with the director, found the situation distasteful.
Above all, he had roughly guessed what Byun Gi-seok was thinking when he stirred up this mess.
"Director, are you certain it is wise to proceed with the duel?"
"I know exactly what you are thinking. Gi-seok likely did not speak out of genuine concern for Si-ho."
Ho-yeon voiced his worry, yet the director remained calm.
"Still, Gi-seok's words provide sufficient justification to outsiders. If Si-ho fails to demonstrate anything here, it may indeed be better for him to stay out of the operation, just as Gi-seok suggested."
Even as he spoke, the director showed no sign of worrying that Si-ho would lose.
"You seem to have high expectations for that man, Director."
"Haha. My eye for people is rather sharp, wouldn't you say? Do not worry so much and simply watch."
The moment the director finished speaking, two figures stepped onto the training ground.
***
Gi-seok loosened up lightly and fixed his gaze on me.
"I hold no ill will toward you, Si-ho. As I said earlier, I am simply concerned for your safety."
"I see."
How shameless.
It was written all over his face.
He clearly resented the fact that Seo-rin and I had formed a guild.
This whole duel was his way of trying to humiliate me.
Of course, there were ways to slip out of it like a sly fox.
After all, the ranks were mismatched from the start.
But I was not the sort of person to back down so easily.
I had also accepted Gi-seok's challenge because an A-class opponent would let me properly gauge my current condition.
'This will be my first time fighting another Awakened.'
There was one more reason.
A long-awaited duel against a strong opponent.
It had ignited the competitive spirit buried deep in my subconscious.
Three months since returning to the present world.
For the past three months, I had not once touched the sword I had swung to the point of exhaustion over the last ten years.
The peace had been sweet, yet at times it felt dull.
Occasionally I found myself reminiscing about the bloody battles against the Demon King's army in the other world.
That was why, when Gi-seok proposed the duel, I felt exhilaration rather than worry.
'In the end, I am quite the dopamine addict myself.'
Memories of my days as a hero, constantly walking the line between life and death, flashed through my mind.
The side effects of those experiences, no doubt.
With that thought, I drew the sword I had brought along.
"It seems you primarily use a sword as well, Si-ho."
"That is correct."
"How coincidental. My main skills are also specialized in swordsmanship."
Gi-seok produced a greatsword as tall as himself.
Even I could sense the considerable mana infused into the artifact.
"This is my favorite weapon, the Loos Greatsword."
He raised it slightly, as if showing off not only to me but to everyone watching the duel.
"I will refrain from using any skills. As fellow swordsmen, let us settle this with swordsmanship alone."
"Very well."
He seemed quite confident in his swordsmanship.
After saying that, he struck a stylish stance.
"Then here I come."
Tatak-!
Gi-seok charged forward with light footsteps.
True to his word, he displayed sharp sword strikes that spoke of considerable training.
Bang-!
Bang-!
Bang-!
Yet none of Gi-seok's greatsword strikes ever connected with mine.
'It would be foolish to clash head-on with such a heavy greatsword.'
His blade cut through empty air and smashed into the floor again and again.
It never once grazed me or my sword.
The other Awakened watching began to feel a strange sense of dissonance.
"What is going on? That guy is not even moving that fast. Why can't Gi-seok's sword reach him?"
"Exactly. His movements are not large either. It looks weird even to me."
I was not faster than Gi-seok.
Of course not.
Simply possessing mana enhanced physical abilities.
Gi-seok's body, filled with A-class mana, was on an entirely different level from mine.
But that was not everything in a fight.
"It is like trying to push the same poles of two magnets together... He dodges so naturally, as if it is obvious."
I could simply see the length of Gi-seok's sword.
No matter how fast the blade, once its reach was visible, a single step was enough to evade it.
That was why a sword must be ever-changing.
It must strike from every direction.
It must create countless unpredictable paths and leave the opponent lost within them.
But Gi-seok's sword followed only a single trajectory.
I did not need to move much at all. His blade simply could not reach me.
Whoosh--!!
Whoosh--!!
"Tch! You are quite agile."
"I am not moving that fast, though."
"..."
My light provocation made him flare up slightly, and his swings grew rougher.
'This guy uses unnecessarily flashy swordsmanship. His pride must be enormous.'
One could glimpse a person's temperament from the way they swung their sword.
Gi-seok's style could generously be called beautiful, but in truth it was needlessly showy.
Against low-intelligence monsters it posed no real problem.
Such swordsmanship could even dazzle the ignorant and make him appear like a powerful swordsman.
Perhaps his unconscious desire for popularity among the Awakened had shaped his style.
Yet the true essence of swordsmanship was not that.
'To cut down the opponent.'
That was all.
The sharpened steel in my hand existed for that single purpose.
'Crude and simple, yet sharp and keen.'
A gap appeared in Gi-seok's sword path.
I thrust my blade into that opening.
Slash-
My completely unexpected thrust grazed Gi-seok's shoulder.
Blood began to stain his shoulder red.
"Guh...?!"
The attack had come from nowhere.
Aside from Elysia, none of the Awakened watching had seen any preparatory movement from me.
"What was that just now?"
"How did he do that? He was not even in an attacking stance."
Launching a proper thrust normally required several preparatory movements.
Stepping forward, drawing the arm back, shifting one's center of gravity.
The others had seen none of those motions.
The reason was simple.
I had chosen to thrust rather than swing.
That allowed me to strike the opening with nothing more than extending my arm and leg simultaneously.
Of course, the success of the move was also helped by Gi-seok's excitement from my provocation and his complacency due to the rank difference.
"What...? How did you do that?"
Seo-rin could not hide her shock either.
Only Elysia wore a relaxed smile.
"I told you there was no need to worry."
The sudden reversal sent murmurs through the other Awakened.
"He is injured. Should we not end the duel?"
"I did not expect it to finish like this..."
Gi-seok's exaggerated reaction to a mere shoulder wound struck me as rather suspicious.
These were people preparing for large-scale combat, yet they were panicking over such a minor injury after requesting a duel.
"Will you continue? You seem to be having trouble swinging your sword."
I asked Gi-seok with a faint smile.
He tried to suppress his flustered expression and grip the greatsword again, but—
"That is enough. I believe you have proven yourself sufficiently."
The director ended the duel.
"Understood."
Swallowing my disappointment, I sheathed my sword.
Gi-seok clutched his shoulder with a complicated expression.
He had never dreamed he would be so one-sidedly defeated.
"Medical team, please treat Gi-seok."
Following the director's order, the medical staff approached Gi-seok.
"Now then, let us begin the proper meeting. Everyone, please take your seats."
The atmosphere in the conference room settled once more.
Yet the gazes directed at me had clearly changed from before.
***
"First, I will explain the operation outline."
The director began, pointing at the large screen.
"Currently, a total of twelve gates have been confirmed. Among them are three large gates, four medium gates, and five small gates."
A satellite image of the West Sea appeared on the screen, with red dots marking locations throughout the waters.
"Judging by the monsters' movement patterns, they are converging toward Songdo New City."
The director indicated the screen with a laser pointer.
"The expected landing time is around 4 a.m. tomorrow. We plan to establish the first defensive line at sea before then."
Tension filled the conference room.
The reality of preparing for a true large-scale battle was finally sinking in.
"The defensive line is divided into five points: A, B, C, D, and E."
The director pointed to the map on the screen.
He listed the exact locations and estimated monster numbers for each point, then assigned which guild would handle which area.
When he reached the final point E, his gaze turned toward us.
"Point E is an area with four scattered small gates. The number of monsters is expected to be the lowest, but it will require covering a wide range. This zone will be handled by the Terda Guild."
Unlike the other points mixed with medium and large gates, we had been assigned a relatively manageable area.
It seemed they had taken our status as a new guild with few members into consideration.
"That is a relief. Still, four small gates... We should be able to manage somehow."
"Anywhere is fine. Rather, it is a shame. I would have liked to personally sweep away those deep-sea monsters."
After Seo-rin and Elysia had sufficiently reviewed the operation, the meeting concluded.
The operation would begin in three days.
Until then, each guild would complete their preparations and gather at the Songdo operation area.
***
After the meeting ended and we left the bureau, Seo-rin let out a long sigh.
"The schedule is tighter than I thought. Starting the operation in three days..."
"Yeah. The preparation period feels short compared to the scale. That just shows how urgent the situation is."
While we were briefly discussing the operation, Elysia spoke up.
"Master, that duel earlier was truly magnificent. It reminded me of the times you wielded your sword in our world."
"You think so? All I did was thrust once."
"Even that alone was enough to reveal your true worth to them."
"That is good, then."
"Though brief, the duel was also instructive for me."
To me it had not seemed like a particularly impactful match.
Yet to Elysia it must have been quite impressive.
After all, this was the first time she had seen me seriously draw my sword since being summoned here.
She had always admired my swordsmanship, so the duel must have felt special to her.
"I was really worried at first, you know?"
Seo-rin added with a surprised expression.
"That guy has a weird personality, but he is pretty skilled. He is an A-class and a team leader of the Mir Guild. Even if he said he would not use skills, I did not expect you to win so easily."
"It was not an easy win. I simply took advantage of the opening created by his carelessness."
"Still. You never once looked like you were being pushed back."
Seo-rin blushed slightly.
"It made me feel embarrassed for worrying so much."
"What is there to be embarrassed about?"
I gave her a small smile.
I felt a little sorry for making her worry, but honestly, I had enjoyed it a bit.
From the moment I stepped onto the arena and gripped my sword, until the instant I thrust at his shoulder while dodging his attacks.
The thrill of battle I had not felt in so long.
I could feel my heart tightening.
'If I had just a little more mana, I might have been able to fight properly.'
While sharing that impression on the way back, Seo-rin suddenly looked at her phone and began to panic.
"Huh? What is this?!"
"What?"
"Oppa, look at this!"
Seo-rin thrust her phone screen in front of me.
The video of my duel with Gi-seok had already been uploaded.
'This world really has no secrets at all.'
Elysia and I watched the footage on Seo-rin's phone.
The quality was quite good, and the angle was decent.
Someone must have secretly recorded it inside the conference room.
The comments showed quite a heated reaction.