Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Duel with the Sword King
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Lee Ho-seok and Choi Shin-hyeok's sparring match.
Most people reacted with admiration and excitement at the news, but Sang-cheol, the master of the training hall, was not one of them.
"Hold on a second, Oseong Guild Master. No, Sword King senior. Even if that kid provoked you first, you can't stoop to his level."
Just as Choi Shin-hyeok had anticipated, Sang-cheol understood the code of the martial world and knew to show consideration for the weak.
It wasn't just because Shin-hyeok was a scion of the Shinwa Group; it was consideration for a young player who hadn't fully grown yet.
Shin-hyeok wasn't oblivious to that, but he waved it off lightly.
"It's fine, Master. Do you really think a senior of the 'Sword King' caliber would launch dangerous attacks at a lowly junior player like me? Not with all these spectators watching."
"...This punk?"
Lee Ho-seok, who had been planning to teach Shin-hyeok a lesson deep down, ground his teeth as he saw the kid pretending ignorance while clearly knowing full well.
"...I'll limit my physical stats to Silver level. No Sword Energy or Sword Aura either. That should suffice, right?"
"More than enough. Thank you for your generosity, Sword King senior."
In the end, Shin-hyeok smiled as Lee Ho-seok went beyond restricting his stats to Silver—he was even forgoing Sword Energy and Sword Aura, techniques usable only by players who had attained their own unique enlightenments.
"And how about a little wager on top?"
"A wager?"
"If I win, what can you offer?"
A wager declaration.
At the question of what he'd give upon defeat, Lee Ho-seok didn't hide his incredulity.
"...Ha! Already sipping the victory broth? The gap between you and me isn't something that narrows just because I limit my stats and enlightenment a bit."
"Which is exactly why you should do it. It's a chance to take something from me for free."
"You know who I am, right?"
"Of course. The sole heir to the Oseong Group, owner of the Oseong Guild, a titan in the player world. Sword King Lee Ho-seok senior."
"Do you think someone like me has anything to gain from a fresh Silver player who's just finished placement?"
Lee Ho-seok's thinking was spot on.
The sole heir to the Oseong Group.
Owner of the Oseong Guild.
Sword King, one of the Two Emperors, Three Sovereigns, and Five Kings.
Even on a global scale, few people could offer him anything worthwhile.
But there was one thing Lee Ho-seok didn't know—
"I'll put up the Shinwa Workshop."
"...What?"
"Oseong Workshop gets flak for having great gear but subpar artisans. Meanwhile, Shinwa Workshop's craftsmen are top-tier. How about it? Don't you want to seize the overwhelming number one spot this time?"
"...Gulp!"
Shin-hyeok was one of those rare few.
Even Lee Ho-seok swallowed hard at the audacity of casually putting the Shinwa Workshop on the line.
Perhaps it was drool he swallowed. Regaining his composure, Lee Ho-seok scolded him.
"You're not even second-gen Shinwa Group, just third-gen. You think you can decide something that big on your own? Ridiculous. Cut the nonsense and come at m—"
"Hello? Grandfather? It's Shin-hyeok. I have something to discuss."
"...What?"
But his scolding didn't last long.
Lee Ho-seok froze as Shin-hyeok, who had whipped out his phone mid-sentence, uttered those words.
Grandfather.
Not a strange word on its own.
But 'grandfather' from Shin-hyeok? That was plenty strange.
"Grandfather says he wants to talk to you."
"...For real?"
"Why would I lie?"
"You wouldn't... Of course not... Sigh..."
A phone call with the man who could freeze even Lee Ho-seok—someone who lived thinking nothing in the world scared him.
After a deep breath, Lee Ho-seok took the phone, and an aged voice—old, yet brimming with immeasurable power—rang in his ear.
"...Y-Yes! It's Ho-seok."
"I should have reached out first, but ending up like this... I'm truly sorry, Chairman."
"...Really?"
Even the words of Choi Cheol-ho—Chairman of Shinwa Group and a living fossil of the business world—didn't convince Lee Ho-seok.
"N-No! Of course not. I believe you."
"You're... saying I should put up Oseong Workshop too?"
"...No! Of course I have it. I'll put it up."
"Yes, sir. Good night, Chairman."
At Choi Cheol-ho's sharp final words, he could only nod.
By the end, Lee Ho-seok—half-bowing at the waist—ended the call with a rigidly stiffened face and accepted Shin-hyeok's proposal.
"Defeat conditions?"
"If you arbitrarily lift your restrictions or admit defeat, you lose."
"Arrogant. How about if you so much as scratch me, it's your win?"
"I'd appreciate that... You sure about it?"
"...You little—"
It was a courteous offer, and considering the opponent was Silver, his terms were generous. Yet Lee Ho-seok couldn't readily say 'yes'.
'This guy's got something. Can't treat him like a normal player.'
His instincts as the Sword King screamed it, so he stuck to the original conditions.
Even that bruised his pride, darkening his face, but Shin-hyeok ignored it and assumed his stance.
Whoosh!
'Different. His aura changed the instant he took stance. Definitely... not on Joo-ho's level.'
At the same moment, the chilling gaze and piercing pressure made Lee Ho-seok feel the gap between Shin-hyeok and his own son, Lee Joo-ho.
With Joo-ho, it was a paper-thin difference—he might win someday. But Lee Ho-seok knew better.
Joo-ho would at best become a solid Diamond player.
He'd never reach the Two Emperors, Three Sovereigns, and Five Kings like his father.
But Shin-hyeok was different.
'Maybe even higher... Better crush him while I can.'
At the thought that Shin-hyeok might soar even higher, Lee Ho-seok resolved to go all out.
Shing—
Finishing his thoughts, he drew his Sword King main blade.
Like Shin-hyeok's sword, it was Unique+ grade.
Not forged, but a reward—still nothing to scoff at.
With both sides ready, Sang-cheol—naturally taking referee duty—glanced nervously with a stiff face before slashing his raised hand down roughly.
"Begin!"
The duel between the Sword King and the future Challenger had begun.
Screeeeech!
'...Throwing his weapon?'
No sooner had the duel started than Shin-hyeok unhesitatingly hurled the sword from his hand.
To Lee Ho-seok, who'd lived his life as a swordsman—treating his blade like his very life, never letting go even in Arena defeats—it was a shock.
Clang!
"Kgh!"
And so, an attack he could've parried instantly was deflected a beat late, drawing a groan from Lee Ho-seok.
Already heavy as waterlogged cotton from self-imposed stat limits, the exploited opening struck true.
But Shin-hyeok's assault was just beginning.
Pew-pew-pew-pew!
The moment he tossed the sword, he pulled a bow from his inventory and unleashed arrows relentlessly.
Not yet able to form energy, but infused with ample mana, each carried rock-shattering force.
Barrage unrelenting, Lee Ho-seok involuntarily shifted to defense.
Ting-ting-ting-ting!
He blocked every arrow flawlessly, but his face burned beet red.
Never dreamed he'd be purely defending against a Silver player.
"You bastard!!"
Unleashing his rage, Lee Ho-seok charged like a bullet.
In a blink, he closed in—his footwork mysterious and masterful, befitting the Sword King.
Slashslashslash!
Staring unflinchingly at the Sword King blade slicing air, Shin-hyeok tossed his bow without hesitation and leaped back.
"Discarding weapons twice! Have you no pride as a player?!"
"True pride comes from victory. And my real weapon isn't sword or bow."
Enraged, Lee Ho-seok bellowed, but Shin-hyeok calmly replied and gathered ambient mana.
"Salamander, Undine, Sylph, Gnome."
⟨ Elemental Shower ⟩
"...!"
Roooaaar!
Fire, water, wind, earth.
Four elemental torrents hammered Lee Ho-seok mercilessly.
Nature's fury battered his sword barrier relentlessly; he gritted his teeth.
As the storm-like onslaught gradually ebbed, Lee Ho-seok smirked.
"So, spirits, huh? Not sword or bow, but spirits. Impressive ability. But meaningless against me!"
Convinced Shin-hyeok's weapon was Spirit Summoning.
And truly, Shin-hyeok's spirit arts were flawlessly powerful—beyond words.
No wonder Lee Ho-seok assumed so.
"Spirits aren't my weapon either."
"...What?"
Rumble rumble!
"Rise."
"...When?!"
Undead began rising from bone fragments Shin-hyeok had scattered unnoticed, clamping Lee Ho-seok's legs tight.
No escape possible; for the first time, Lee Ho-seok showed alarm.
"My weapon is myself."
Calmly revealing the answer, Shin-hyeok pulled an item from inventory—one he'd hastily grabbed before coming.
"A throwing knife?"
A single throwing knife.
Not even made by the future Meister Se-jin—just some random one from the workshop shelves.
Lee Ho-seok snorted at Shin-hyeok gripping it.
Ruuuumble!
"...What?!"
The instant he gripped it.
Had he not felt the surging aura, he surely would've.
A pressure crushing the entire training hall.
Realizing it focused solely on him, cold sweat trickled down Lee Ho-seok's back.
"Urgh! Let go, you filth!"
Thud! Crunch! Thud!
Sensing danger, Lee Ho-seok tried shaking off the undead grasps.
But futility proved swift.
"Take this. Heaven-Annihilating Extreme Thunder Flying Dagger."
"...Ah."
A single knife became heaven-shattering extreme lightning, hurtling at Lee Ho-seok.
Roooaaar!
The massive quake engulfing the training hall came next.
As vibrations faded, Shin-hyeok smiled at Lee Ho-seok standing tall amid it.
"You released it? The restriction."
"...!!!"
Lee Ho-seok's body clearly exceeded Silver, and the brilliant Sword Aura gleaming blue in his hand was proof he'd broken his own limits.
In other words—
"Oseong Workshop. Thanks for the meal, senior."
Shin-hyeok's victory.