The Demon of the Retake Academy's In-Seoul Class

"Yes... I'll try."

Lee Seon-hee smiled inwardly. That hesitant yet slightly courageous attitude is quite endearing.

The maids collected the rings and drew a thirty-meter-diameter circle on the floor with white tape. It was a simply constructed circular arena. Yoo Ji-tae and Lee Ah-rang stepped inside and began loosening up. When Yoo Ji-tae glanced at Lee Seon-hee, she waved her hand gently. Watching him, Lee Seon-hee apologized in her heart. I'm sorry, baby.

Yoo Ji-tae had no chance of defeating Lee Ah-rang. Ah-rang has already mastered Taeguk Four Divine Arts to Lv.2, and both her stamina and strength have reached the late 2-point range. With the support of her A-rank skill Seochopaewang, her speed is at the upper tier of the In-Seoul class.

Of course, it seems Yoo Ji-tae has learned one extreme magic from Taheo Singun, but against the combat-specialized Taeguk Four Divine Arts, he falls short. Even in the previous situation, he only barely escaped by destroying the ring.

From what I can see, his techniques focus on striking, which has the worst compatibility with the flowing and evasive Taeguk Four Divine Arts.

Lee Seon-hee imagined how the match would unfold. Lee Ah-rang would pin Yoo Ji-tae to the floor, wrap her legs around his waist from above, and press him down. Women are born with many desires toward men. Among them, the largest shares are sadism and possessiveness. They want to make men cry, dote on them, pin them to the ground and dominate them until their faces flush red. They want to make them cry, to control everything as if handling a baby. That is why men are wary of women. Lee Seon-hee vividly fantasized about Yoo Ji-tae's tearful face.

"Eut."

Lee Seon-hee squeezed her legs together. She scolded herself. Despite having been avoided by her husband her entire life because of such tendencies, she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠still could not hold back. Lee Seon-hee looked at Lee Ah-rang. Lee Ah-rang's eyes sparkled. She stared at and observed every inch of Yoo Ji-tae's body as if gazing at a treasure, trying not to be noticed. Yoo Ji-tae glanced at her and raised his hand.

"I'm feeling nervous. May I go to the restroom for a moment?"

Lee Seon-hee nodded. "Go ahead."

Watching Yoo Ji-tae head toward the restroom, Lee Seon-hee smiled contentedly.

EP 5 The Demon of the Retake Academy's In-Seoul Class

I locked the restroom door and recalled Lee Seon-hee's gaze. Though her appearance looked the same age as Lee Ah-rang, whenever she sent that inscrutable, sinister look, I truly felt how old she was. Standing in the restroom, I recalled the basic forms of Taeguk Four Divine Arts. I had no intention of perfectly mastering it. If I revealed that I had learned it just by watching, it was obvious they would prohibit any demonstrations of precious magic in front of me from now on. To obtain the extreme magic Lee Ah-rang would acquire in the future, it was best not to expose this ability as much as possible. For now, I would only reach Lv.1 to understand Taeguk Four Divine Arts and use that to find its weaknesses.

Standing in the restroom, I practiced the forms of Taeguk Four Divine Arts. There was no need to demonstrate the forms in detail. Even a rough, half-hearted performance counted toward the repetitions. Thanks to the small number of forms, I easily completed ten repetitions in twenty minutes.

The moment the window appeared, my knowledge and understanding of Taeguk Four Divine Arts increased overwhelmingly. Profound knowledge danced inside my brain to the point of giving me a headache. Blood trickled from my nose. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠It was because I had overloaded my brain. That was the only drawback of Hephaestus. Compared to what I gained, it was hardly a drawback at all.

"Good."

When I returned to the training room, Lee Ah-rang was stretching. "Sorry for making you wait."

Lee Ah-rang grinned widely and took her stance. Her mouth was stretched ear to ear. "It's fine. Shall we begin, then?"

Everyone's gazes were focused on us. We stepped back into the white circle and lowered our postures again. The strength of Taeguk Four Divine Arts lay in its high speed and fluid posture changes. It charged quickly, narrowly evading attacks, and exploited openings. Its weakness also stemmed from its strength. Its characteristic, perhaps. For rapid speed and directional changes, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Taeguk Four Divine Arts kept its center of gravity in an unstable state. From there, unpredictable footwork and bouncing steps were formed. However, an unstable center of gravity was easily disrupted by even small impacts. That's why Lee Ah-rang is concentrating all her nerves on my movements.

I spread both arms. Against her, even grazing me would be impossible. To achieve that, one would need a considerable level of combat sense. But impacts came in many forms, and depending on their classification, they could produce various effects. Adding an ability user's physical capabilities further enhanced those effects.

Lee Ah-rang accelerated as she closed the distance. Her speed was nearly eighty kilometers per hour. In an instant, she narrowed the gap and was suddenly five meters in front of me. From there, the possible movement paths were nearly infinite. I quickly brought my spread arms forward and clapped my hands. But this was no ordinary clap. It was a clap that applied an ability user's physical capabilities and the form of the Manifold Wave Grasp Fist Technique. The sound was on a completely different level from the applause of ordinary people. That sound became an instantaneous explosion that burst in all directions.

Of course, if we had been facing each other normally, she would not have been affected by this. However, Lee Ah-rang's center of gravity was extremely unstable, and at the same time, she was concentrating all her nerves on me. It did not stop at mere surprise. Her consciousness was blown away as if struck by a bomb. Moreover, her unstable posture was the problem. Losing consciousness while accelerating, her body shot forward as if falling.

I dodged and grabbed Lee Ah-rang's body from behind. Taeguk Four Divine Arts included ground and wrestling techniques. Therefore, I had to seal both her arms and legs. I placed my hands around her abdomen from behind and tightly embraced her, sealing her arms. Then I folded her legs against her torso and secured both her legs and torso at once, as if making her sit cross-legged. Lee Ah-rang's body was small. She was thirty centimeters shorter than me. So from behind, it looked as if I had trapped her inside me with a bear hug. Lee Ah-rang tried to move belatedly, but I embraced her even more tightly. Lee Ah-rang's face was red. As she squirmed and tried to escape, I stuck close and pressed our bodies together even more. When I hugged her tightly, Lee Ah-rang's body trembled.

"J-Ji-tae-ya! You're touching my back! You're touching it...."

Well, bodies do touch during sparring. Lee Ah-rang looked at me pitifully. "Wait a moment. This is my first time.... Everyone's watching...."

She was sweating as if hot, creating a somewhat sensual atmosphere. Lee Ah-rang raised the corner of her mouth and shook her head back and forth. "...I lost... Ji-tae-ya... I lost, so.... Stop.... Stop...."

But if I let go here, she would probably say, "I never said I lost, did I?" It might seem paranoid, but in the world of competition, such things had to be made certain. I knew women who broke promises as easily as eating a meal.

"You lost?"

"Yeah. I lost... I lost, so... let go... eung? Please...."

When I let go, Lee Ah-rang leaned her back against my chest and clutched her chest. "This is bad for the heart. Feels like it's going to burst."

"Does it hurt somewhere?"

Come to think of it, Lee Ah-rang had been a patient. She had even been in critical condition where her life was at risk. I placed my hand on Lee Ah-rang's forehead to check her temperature. Lee Ah-rang let out a short groan and immediately stood up.

"Th-that was against the rules."

I knew it. "What was against the rules?"

"Th-that, suddenly pressing our bodies together and squeezing so tightly, I don't know what to do...."

"Ah. That story? During sparring, bodies rubbing against each other is unavoidable."

Personally, I disliked bodies touching as well. But in real situations, the opponent would not understand such things. I had to do my best to subdue them. "You have to use every weapon you can."

"Th-then I wouldn't know what to do either."

"......Eum? What?"

The conversation seemed to be going in circles. "Th-then, Ji-tae, if I touch your body here and there, put my hands on your stomach, even touch your toes, and rub my face against your chest, would that be okay?"

"Yeah. It doesn't matter."

Ah. So that was what she meant. Of course, it was not without discomfort, and if it actually happened, my thoughts would probably freeze for a few seconds out of fear. But Lee Ah-rang was paying that much money. I was somewhat used to being treated like a punching bag. If I clearly recognized that it would happen openly, the fear subsided. Fear lay in the sudden drop between hope and despair. Rather, the thorough despair that came to the body was cozy.

"If you want, you can do anything with my body. I've been ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠treated that way since I was young, so I'm somewhat used to it. Ah, whether I can do it well is another matter."

I said this while placing my hand on my chest. Lee Ah-rang's mouth opened slightly. The heat that had momentarily filled her eyes quickly turned cold, as if she had glimpsed a terrible darkness. She tightly closed her mouth for a moment as if struck on the head with a hammer, then barely managed to open it while stammering.

"N-no, Ji-tae-ya."

The corner of her mouth that had been raised until just now trembled. "N-no. I, I didn't want that. I just... wanted to be with you, Ji-tae. I would never do something like that. Never. I'm sorry. I... I...."

"It's really fine."

Thus, the sparring was temporarily halted. I had roughly grasped it. If I only knew the timing to step forward, it seemed I could disrupt her movements just by stomping hard and creating a shockwave. Now it's time to receive the reward.

I approached Lee Seon-hee. "Yes. Well. Is this enough? I'd like the medicine now."

"....Eum. I see...."

Lee Seon-hee's reaction was strange. Covering her mouth, she placed ten pills in my hand. "Baby."

"Yes, Singun-nim."

Tears welled in Lee Seon-hee's eyes. "If there's anything painful or difficult, you can tell me anytime. We would never do anything that cruel. Regardless of the outcome of the match, I will always think of you as my child. And if any women approach you and try to do bad things, I'll scold them. So you don't have to... recall the past. Here, there are only people who like and care for you. So...."

"Thank you, Singun-nim."

"...Yes."

I swallowed the medicine and met Lee Seon-hee's gaze. Afterward, I resumed sparring with Lee Ah-rang, whose eyes were red.

*****

Returning to the study, Lee Seon-hee struck the wall. A gale blew through the room, instantly tearing the study apart. "...Damn them all...."

Lee Seon-hee cried and clutched her chest. Yoo Ji-tae's words would not leave her mind.

"If you want, you can do anything with my body. I've been treated that way since I was young, so I'm somewhat used to it. Ah, whether I can do it well is another matter."

At first, she had thought it impossible. No matter how much they had abandoned human ethics, they would not do such things. When he was abused, it was only during his childhood, after all. Surely they would not have done something so merciless to a child. She had dismissed it that way. Why did I think that?

Yoo Ji-tae's gaze was filled with despair, as if vividly showing the scenery of that day. The attitude of clutching his chest and saying his body had no value. That stimulated Lee Seon-hee's sympathy and hatred toward evil. Usually, those who suffered such abuse would fall into tremendous fear and be filled with disgust and murderous intent toward women. But Yoo Ji-tae was different. Because the abuse had continued for so long, he had twisted his thinking to the point of accepting it as natural. There was the image of a once-pure soul that had been broken and repaired.

"How... how...."

Tears flowed down her cheeks. She was disgusted with herself for thinking the abuse he suffered was merely simple beating. She could not bear how disgusting she felt for having imagined Yoo Ji-tae crying even for a moment.

"How... could they do such things?! How... how...! How!!!"

When she stomped her foot, the window shattered. Paying it no mind, Lee Seon-hee groaned and collapsed to the floor. She cried because she felt so sorry for him, who had been thoroughly violated and had to set his own value to zero as a defense mechanism.

The Singun covered her mouth and leaned against the wall. Magical power gathered in her tightly clenched fist. She wanted to rush to the Femi District right now and annihilate those demons. But in that case, the agreement would be broken, and it would mean war with their home country. Such a thing would never be permitted. The only thing I can do now is to lick that child's wounds.

The pitiful smile of Yoo Ji-tae would not leave Lee Seon-hee's mind. She wanted to heal his wounds somehow, but approaching him itself would stimulate his wounds, so she was not even sure what she should do.

Ding.

Lee Seon-hee hugged her phone to her chest. One thing is certain.

"How could he have grown up so kind...."

This child must be made happy.

The Singun smiled as she looked at the text message screen.