Vs. Cheonma
"Ugh, fuck."
[My dear, are you alright!]
Spitting out curses and a mouthful of blood, I tried to stand. But it was impossible. Both arms were gone. My left leg below the pelvis no longer existed. My abdomen was crushed under immense pressure. All that remained was my right leg. I couldn't even stand—sitting up was the best I could manage, and even that meant crawling pathetically across the ground.
In the distance, countless students watched. None of them looked inclined to help. Their faces held only shock, awe, and a hint of reverence.
"Stand up at once!"
"Who the hell demands that a guy who's lost three-quarters of his body stand up?"
The one barking orders at me was none other than Cheonma. The Heavenly Demon loomed over me with overwhelming presence, grinning smugly.
This scene of sudden, senseless violence had begun several hours earlier.
When Cheonma and I exchanged formal bows, he spoke again—his voice clearer than ever, despite the dark circles under his eyes.
"From this day forth, I recognize Cheonmaichael Jackson as the true Heavenly Demon."
His eyes began to well with tears. He still couldn't get over the emotional impact of Cheonmaichael Jackson.
"Then, Lord Cheonma, please sign here."
"Understood. I shall sign. Lord Michael Jackson is the legitimate Heavenly Demon."
He even received the official Cheonma-brand HACCP certification mark on the spot. Once the signature was done, Cheonma turned his gaze to me.
"Though you are younger than I, you have given me true enlightenment. I shall regard you as my master."
"You're too kind. I'm just grateful you acknowledged it!"
Everything seemed to be going smoothly. Except—
"Knowledge must be repaid. Therefore, I shall become your master this time."
"......What?"
Two reactions followed. The students gasped in admiration. Jeong Ayeon radiated pure envy.
I thought I'd misheard. No—I wished I'd misheard.
"Brother! I mean, Lord Cheonma! What are you saying?"
"Exactly what I said. My master possesses enlightened vision, yet he is too frail for this world."
Unfortunately, I'd heard correctly. Cheonma drove the final nail into Professor Pilyong's coffin. The professor offered a perfectly reasonable rebuttal.
"Then what about your hunter duties? If you're not here, who will deal with the monsters?"
"A world that relies on only one person has no meaning! Even without me, you must be able to stop the monsters yourselves!"
"But still, Lord Ryu Kanghyuk has already retired, and now you too..."
"Do not worry. The current active hunters can handle most threats. I will step in only when truly necessary."
"Ha...... Let's just talk this through."
Of course, his objections were ignored. After some back-and-forth, Cheonma and Professor Pilyong reached an agreement: Cheonma would stay at the Academy for about two weeks, then return to active hunter duty. My opinion was, naturally, not included.
"Lord Cheonma, just a moment. Why me, of all people?"
"I heard you lost your left arm while training body reinforcement."
"No, fuck—how do you even know that?"
"I looked into the one who crushed those martial artists and heard about it."
Very few people knew about the arm incident. The fact that he knew this much meant he had come here specifically to beat me senseless.
"Especially since you also eliminated that Magal race."
"Oh, you know about that too."
"Indeed. Your powerful punch using the Ten-Thousand-Geun Hammer was impressive, but you spoke in another race's language."
[I also found it fascinating. How exactly does one mate a pig with a human?]
'That's just human potential, so it's still a human anthem, right?'
At least Cheonma had the right mindset—he treated the Magal as a different race rather than human. Because that thing definitely wasn't a person.
"However, your skills clearly have limits. That is why I shall personally become your master."
"I appreciate the offer, but I must respectfully decline. I couldn't possibly take up your valuable time."
"It is fine. For two weeks, I shall thoroughly instruct you as your master."
Seeing Cheonma stubbornly insist without taking no for an answer, I got a very bad feeling. A really shitty feeling.
"......Be honest. You just want to beat me up because I messed with you earlier, right?"
"......Of course not."
Cheonma avoided my gaze. I pressed him again.
"You have zero intention of hitting me?"
"Not zero. Quite a lot, actually."
"Fuck."
In the end, Cheonma had only offered to be my master so he could beat me up. The moment our conversation ended, he left the classroom. As soon as he was gone, someone rushed over to me.
"Young Master! You have truly obtained the greatest opportunity!"
"No, fuck. I just want to live peacefully hunting small fry."
It was Jeong Ayeon. Her eyes sparkled with envy as she spoke.
"A personal lesson from Lord Cheonma! You have achieved every martial artist's dream!"
"Dream, my ass. I'm going to die."
"I am so moved and jealous! I wish I had such an opportunity!"
"......Are you even listening to me?"
She wasn't. Jeong Ayeon was already lost in her own fantasy, staring into empty space. Hye-ji, standing beside me, looked worried.
"Shinu, can you even win? Want me to make you a Fire Punch?"
"Haa. I'll just give it a shot. He's still human, after all."
There was no avoiding it anyway. At least I'd gotten my hands on the bone. No matter how strong he was, a hunter was still a hunter. If I reinforced my body while fighting, it should be fine.
[My intuition says this is a terrible idea.]
'It's fine. I'm going. Just wait. Human Butcher Kim Shinu is coming.'
But a little later, I realized how completely wrong that thought was.
The moment practical training began, Cheonma entered the dueling arena. Students who had been hunting monsters instantly became spectators, abandoning their training. There were far more onlookers than expected—students from other grades, second- and third-years, even professors had come to watch.
While I was struggling with body reinforcement, Cheonma began walking toward me. By the time I noticed, he was already waiting on the opposite side of the arena.
[It is time to fight.]
'Ha, that bastard actually showed up.'
"Why is a pro crashing a trainee match?"
"Did I not say I would teach you?"
"Teach, my ass. You just came to beat me one-sidedly."
"......Let us begin."
Having essentially admitted it was a one-sided beating, Cheonma urged me to start. Class wasn't over, and running away was no longer an option. I quietly picked up my weapons—a mace and a gauntlet with spikes. Modest armament for fighting the Heavenly Demon.
"I shall yield the first move. Come at me!"
"If you even give me that, you really have no conscience."
I poured strength into my legs and charged. The distance closed in an instant. I swung the mace down at his head with full force.
- Clang!
It didn't do much. The sound was like striking steel. Cheonma stood completely still while my right hand went slightly numb.
"Why the hell is everyone's head made of vibranium?"
[My dear! Here it comes!]
Cheonma laughed savagely and threw a punch with his right arm. Heeding the voice in my head, I pulled the mace back and twisted right.
- Boom!!!
His fist struck where I had been standing. A moment later, the shockwave hit. I braced with my legs and stomped on his bent left thigh with my right foot. At the same time, his left fist came flying toward me.
[That one is dangerous too!]
'What the fuck, every single punch is an instant-kill move.'
Using my right foot as a pivot, I grabbed his shoulder with my left hand and launched into the air, flipping over him. His punch missed, the wind pressure brushing past the back of my head.
'Shit, if my physical specs hadn't improved, I wouldn't have dodged that.'
I used the momentum of the flip to bring the mace down on his crown again.
- Clang!!!!!!!!
A louder metallic ring. The mace shattered into pieces. Cheonma was completely unharmed. As my body pitched forward in midair, our eyes met through the flying fragments.
"You little rat!"
"I'm fucked, shit."
I discarded the broken mace handle and grabbed his thick hair with my left hand. Clenching tightly, I used the falling momentum to swing back up—like using his head as a swing. Cheonma's face twisted in bewilderment.
"You! Wait! My hair!"
At that moment, numbers appeared above his head and mirror fragments formed. Through them, I glimpsed the future he had experienced before regressing. It was short. 'I' kneed him in the temple, punched him once more, then yanked out his hair with my left hand.
I returned to reality and pulled on the hair I was holding, just as I'd seen. My body shot toward his head. Recalling the knee strike from the future, I reinforced my right leg and drove my knee into his temple.
Short, but intense.
'Single-roll success! I'm a VTuber now too!'
- Crack!!!!!!!
A proper impact sound—different from before. But I wasn't satisfied yet. In the future vision, I'd also landed a right punch. So I began reinforcing my right arm.
Then a problem occurred.
- Bang!!!!!
"Motherfucker!"
My right elbow exploded. I'd gotten too excited about succeeding and failed to control the mana flow.
'Yeah, fuck. Who am I kidding? I'm no VTuber.'
[You and single-rolls do not suit each other. Your ceiling is clear.]
The follow-up attack failed. All that remained was falling from the air. At the same time, the red number above Cheonma's head increased by one.
The price of failure was steep. Realizing my attack had stopped, Cheonma immediately drove his fist into me.
- Thud!!!!!!!!
His punch landed squarely in my abdomen. Good news: my stomach didn't get pierced. Bad news: my left arm and left leg were both ripped off.
My body flew across the arena at tremendous speed—far beyond what the author had anticipated. Thanks, Midori.
And so we return to the beginning. The arena's safety system deactivated, and my limbs began regenerating. I still couldn't stand, so I remained seated.
"Do not live on your knees! Die standing!"
"No, how the hell is your body that tough?"
"My protective qi cannot be pierced by mere scraps of iron."
"...Is it your fault that all martial artists use weird terminology?"
"...Shut up."
Cheonma was probably why martial artists were all slightly unhinged. If I stayed down any longer, he'd force me up, so I stood obediently.
At that moment, Cheonma muttered while deep in thought.
"Your movements... I've seen them somewhere before. They resemble that bastard I hate."
"Uh.... Who?"
Cheonma's expression turned vicious. He ground his teeth so hard the sound echoed through the arena.
"That dog Ryu Kanghyuk!!!"
"Are you going to call that tooth-grinding 'Cheonma Grinding' too?"
"Do you think you can slap 'Cheonma' on everything just because it's Cheonma Divine Art?!"
"What the fuck even is Cheonma Divine Art in the first place?!"
Cheonma glared at me. I glared right back.
"Whether it's throwing a punch or breathing, you slap 'Cheonma' on every random technique!"
"GRAAAAAHHHH!!!!"
Cheonma's roar shook the arena. Still fuming, he kept complaining.
"Female Cheonma this!!! Slapping 'Cheonma' on everything that!!! The world has gone mad!!"
"Ah, but there is a secret technique only female Cheonma can use."
"What is it?"
He crossed his arms and stared, demanding I speak. I proudly declared the technique exclusive to female Cheonma.
"Cheonma Semen Extraction."
"I'll kill you."
[You're fucked.]
Cheonma immediately activated the arena and drove his fist toward me.
[Why do you always ask for punishment?!]
'It's not like a male Cheonma can use it anyway. If he really wants to, he should go to the J Platform.'