Hunter Activities
China had organized a second raid party, and I was left waiting endlessly for the results. Of all things, it had to be a Great Forest Gate... Still, with three S-class hunters deployed, shouldn't they be able to close it? At any rate, it would take time for the results to come in, so... all I could do was wait.
So today, I decided to do a light workout at the guild gym. Honestly, I was worried about people staring, but I really wanted to try out the facilities.
Even though it was before lunch, quite a few people were working out. Most of them were men, and as for women...
"Oh, hey, Ah-young."
"Ah, Nix! It's been a while."
"Looks like you're doing well."
Ah-young grinned, pumping her arms. She was wearing skin-tight leggings and a crop top, which put her figure on full display. What caught my eye was her midriff.
Her core was defined with a solid set of 11-line abs. It was a testament to her sheer effort, and the muscle beautifully accentuated her slender waist.
"Oho..."
Not only that, but her arms were impressive too. She had clearly built up some muscle; even at rest, lean definition was visible, and when she curled a dumbbell, her toned biceps popped.
"You've been training hard, I see."
"Hehe."
She gave a sheepish, goofy grin before proudly showing off her muscles.
"My physical strength has improved, so swinging my sword feels much easier now."
"I bet."
That was only natural.
"So I've been training diligently."
Looking at her muscles, her growth was undeniable.
"Plus, I recently acquired a few new skills."
Oho...
"Congratulations. That's great news."
Ah-young was about to tell me exactly what skills she had gotten, but I stopped her.
"Keep your skills to yourself."
"But..."
She seemed to think she ought to tell me.
"It's fine."
Leaving Ah-young to her routine, I began my own light workout. I stretched, warmed up, and picked up some dumbbells...
"Wow, Nix, you're really strong."
It was no wonder she was surprised; I was casually curling a pair of ten-kilogram dumbbells.
"Well, yeah."
Though this body looked slender and delicate, its physical strength was immense. It was on a completely different level than what met the eye.
Ah-young watched me from the side, her eyes drifting toward the ten-kilogram weights.
"Don't overdo it."
Unable to overcome her curiosity, Ah-young tried to pick up one of the ten-kilogram dumbbells.
That's dangerous...
It was a full ten kilograms. That was a weight even adult men could easily injure themselves with if they weren't careful. Handling it with one hand required a serious amount of base strength.
And just as I feared...
"Ah!"
A sharp scream escaped Ah-young's lips.
"Sigh, I told you not to overdo it."
I quickly set my weights down, rushed over, grabbed the dumbbell from her hand, and set it aside. It looked like she had strained her arm; I could see the area glowing with a faint red light of injury.
I deliberately poked the injured spot.
Ah-young winced in pain.
"Why did you push yourself..."
"Ugh..."
"You should have been careful."
I chuckled, channeled my Holy Power, and placed my hand directly over the strained muscle.
As the divine energy flowed, the red, inflamed areas vanished.
"All better?"
"I-I'm sorry..."
I patted Ah-young's head.
"Don't push yourself so hard."
By then, most of the people in the gym were staring at us with wide, fascinated eyes.
"What? Have you guys never seen someone get healed before?"
At my words, they all quickly averted their gazes.
Good grief...
After treating Ah-young, I wrapped up my workout. I wanted to do a bit more, but the men's stares... I knew they couldn't help it, but it made me self-conscious, so I had to stop.
After a refreshing shower, I spent some idle time in the break room. Thanks to the air conditioning, it was wonderfully cool, and I sat there happily scooping giant spoonfuls of ice cream from a large tub.
"Ah, Häagen-Dazs really is the best."
If this were the old me, I would have been miserably scraping by on cheap popsicles. But the current me was rich! Just treating the flood of hair loss patients brought in a massive fortune. There was absolutely no need to live like a pauper anymore.
"Hehehe."
Though it hadn't been a long workout, eating cold ice cream afterward was pure bliss.
Just then, someone walked into the break room. Since it was a communal space, I didn't pay much attention, but...
"So this is where you were."
Huh? Looking for me?
I turned my head.
"Well, look who it is. The Alliance Leader."
It was Namgung Min.
"What brings you here?"
I sat up straight, crossed my legs, and looked at him.
"You must have some free time on your hands."
Of course I did. Right now, my only concern was the Great Forest Gate in China, and since there was nothing I could do but wait...
"Is that so? In that case, would you care to spar with me?"
Wait, what...?
"Excuse me?"
"A duel."
"Oho..."
Now, that was an intriguing offer.
I had seen Namgung Min fight plenty of times, and I knew his skills were top-tier. But we had never fought each other directly. Then again, there was rarely any reason for hunters to fight one another...
"A spar, huh? Sounds fun."
I tipped the rest of the ice cream tub into my mouth.
"Are you up for it?"
Instead of answering, I nodded.
And just like that, our duel was set... and somehow, the rumors had already spread.
"Hmm..."
Honestly, I hadn't expected this many people to show up and watch.
"Does having such a large crowd make you uncomfortable?"
"Not really."
I just thought there were a lot of them.
"If you wish, we can call it off."
"No, it's fine."
I didn't know if watching us spar would be of any help to them, but... either way, we were now facing each other in the B1 training room, wooden swords in hand.
"To be frank, I was somewhat hesitant to spar with a healer."
Is that so? Being a healer doesn't automatically make someone weak... though I suppose I am a bit of an outlier.
"However, from what Seohui told me, you seemed exceptionally strong."
"What did she tell you?"
"She said you observed my swordsmanship once, analyzed it, and replicated it almost perfectly."
"Ah, well, yeah."
Did my little sister really tell him all that?
"Ever since I heard that story, I've had one thought."
Namgung Min's eyes grew intensely serious, burning with competitive fire.
"I wanted to test my blade against yours in a proper duel..."
He slowly raised his wooden sword and took his stance.
When exactly did he hear that story from Seohui? It must have been quite a while ago. It seemed he had been holding back this urge all this time.
I smirked.
"This should be fun."
I took a stance that was slightly different from his.
Holding the sword in my right hand, I turned my body sideways. It was similar to a Western fencing stance, yet subtly different—my own unique combat stance.
"Do we need a referee?"
"No. Even if one of us gets hurt, you can just heal it, can't you?"
Ahaha!
"True. In that case...!"
I moved before he did.
"Don't hold back!"
I brought my sword down with immense force.
Namgung Min attempted to parry the strike and let it slide off his wooden blade. But falling for the same trick twice would make me a fool. I forcibly halted my sword mid-swing.
It was a feat impossible with ordinary physical strength, but I could manage it.
Namgung Min's eyes widened slightly at the sight, and he immediately shifted his hands and feet.
Trying to deflect my blade and back away? Do you think I'll let you?
I pressed in close, sticking to him.
In response, Namgung Min executed a fluid, water-like movement to slip past me.
"Is that a sword technique too? Fascinating."
"It is the Taiji Wisdom Sword..."
I didn't recall that specific movement in the standard form. Was it an improvisation?
Smiling, I continued my assault. My swordsmanship was closer to a wild, chaotic brawl, but my overwhelming physical capabilities allowed me to execute erratic, anatomically impossible movements—like suddenly changing the trajectory of a swing mid-air or stopping a full-force strike instantly.
Normally, such movements would tear a person's shoulders, waist, or wrists to shreds.
"I see. It's your healing ability."
Namgung Min was sharper than I thought.
"Exactly. I use my enhanced physical strength to perform impossible movements, and if I strain myself, I heal it instantly. That is my sword."
One could call it a brute-force, ignorant style, but...
"It is a method that perfectly utilizes your unique gifts!" Namgung Min said earnestly as he blocked my strike.
Fufu...! What an interesting man.
But I didn't just rely on this erratic style. I also knew standard swordsmanship. So, I began to mix the two.
The orthodox and the unorthodox. A fusion of both.
"Splendid! You are truly strong!"
Yet, I couldn't break through his defense.
Crossing blades with him made it abundantly clear: this man was a genius of the sword. He possessed innate talent, which was undoubtedly amplified by his hunter skills. He was incredibly strong.
However... I didn't just use my sword; I began incorporating hand and foot strikes.
"Ugh!"
At that, Namgung Min began using his left hand as well.
How should I describe his technique? It wasn't a punch, but rather using his palm and the back of his hand to block or redirect my strikes. It was a highly sophisticated technique.
"Not using your feet?"
I deliberately aimed a kick at his thigh.
Anticipating this, Namgung Min quickly lowered his stance and blocked with his arm.
"To swing a powerful sword, one's feet must be firmly planted on the ground!"
His posture was slightly broken. Yet, from that awkward position, he unleashed an incredibly sharp counter-slash.
I tried to dodge by arching my back, but...
At this rate, it would hit my chest. My massive breasts were getting in the way.
"Tch!"
I backstepped while keeping my back arched.
The sudden movement strained my lower back, but my Holy Power healed it instantly.
"Tsk. To be able to move from that position."
"Haah... impressive."
His reflexes were outstanding. With this level of skill, he would easily rank among the top combatants even in the other world.
However, he was still a step below the standards of the Hero's party. If it were the barbarian Marcus or the dwarf Balder, they would have subdued Namgung Min much more easily than I was.
This was purely because I was relatively weak. Even though I had fought on the front lines, I couldn't compare to the true vanguards. On top of that, since returning to Earth, I hadn't engaged in proper life-or-death combat, so my edge had dulled slightly.
"Tch...!"
Clicking my tongue, I leaped back to create some distance.
But Namgung Min had no intention of letting me go; he closed the gap instantly.
As if the probing phase was over, he went on the offensive. His strikes were so incredibly fast and mercurial that it was impossible to dodge or block them all. I had no choice but to take some of the hits.
"Ha, what a cheat-like ability."
Normally, taking such hits would cause severe trauma and restrict one's movements...
"This is how I fight."
But because I healed the damage the exact millisecond it occurred, my movements never faltered.
Our spar grew hotter by the second.
It became so intense that I completely forgot about the crowd watching us. Swept up in the thrill, I swung my sword with abandon.
"Hahaha!!"
"Hah!"
I laughed like a maniac as I swung, but Namgung Min blocked every single strike.
And then...
This sword...
I didn't know what kind of technique this was.
Suddenly, my body refused to move, as if bound by some invisible force. The wooden sword was clearly approaching at a slow, deliberate pace, yet my limbs wouldn't budge.
Was this a skill? A sword technique? I couldn't tell.
It was a blade I had never encountered, not even in the countless battles of the other world. I was utterly bewildered.
I couldn't let it hit me. No matter how fast my healing was, taking this hit would be dangerous.
To break free from this binding...
I detonated my Holy Power.
Cosmo Nova
"Ugh!"
The powerful shockwave forced Namgung Min to recoil.
"Haah..."
I lowered my wooden sword.
"This is my loss."
It was a sword duel, and I had resorted to magic.
"No, it is my defeat," Namgung Min said, shaking his head.
"You were not fighting at full strength from the beginning, whereas I was. That power just now... it must be your true strength. Had you used it from the start, I wouldn't have lasted this long."
"Who knows..."
It was simply my way of utilizing Holy Power in combat.
"What was that last strike?"
Honestly, that technique had been dangerous. What if it had hit me? What if it had been a real sword? Even I would have been in serious trouble.
"The Jeowang Geomhyeong... It is an incomplete technique."
He explained that it was a heavy sword technique, but even after hearing his explanation, I couldn't quite grasp it. All I understood was that it was incredibly formidable.
The Sword Saint... He certainly possessed the strength and skill worthy of that title.