Chapter 8

EP.8 No Matter Which Way, It's Still Seoul (2)

Jinwoo Park is a first-year student at the Academy.

He meets Professor Tak Wonho, a specialist in the Warrior category, and rapidly grows.

Professor Tak Wonho is known for his strong physical strength and endurance, and his aggressive swordsmanship that relentlessly pressures the opponent.

Initially, Jinwoo Park, who focuses more on speed than strength, seems to be a poor match for Professor Tak's style, but he successfully complements these weaknesses, making Jinwoo a more powerful Holder.

A representative skill that Jinwoo Park learns from Professor Tak is [Wave-Sweeping Thousand Swords].

This skill involves a series of attacks like waves, interspersed with magical attacks, allowing for relentless and seamless combat.

This skill later becomes Jinwoo Park's trademark offensive skill.

Despite having such a perfect match in Professor Tak,

Jinwoo Park suddenly came to attend a class taught by Professor Kim Myunghyun, who doesn't even appear in the original story.

I rubbed my aching head and spoke.

"...Why are you here?"

I hadn't spoken to Jinwoo Park since that day, but I felt a strong sense of familiarity and naturally let my guard down.

Jinwoo Park also spoke to me first.

Jinwoo Park smiled at my bewildered expression.

"I asked my classmates and found out. You're the only one who attends the Warrior category class taught by Professor Kim Myunghyun."

"What about Professor Tak's class? Didn't you sign up for it?"

"Professor Tak? Who's that?"

"Wait... Are you serious?"

Is this kid really that clueless?

Professor Tak is the most famous among the Warrior category professors, and he doesn't know who he is...?

Professor Tak has a higher recognition and skill level than the professors teaching the advanced classes.

He is also an educator who prefers to polish unrefined raw stones over finished gems, and he is the successor of the Tak family, one of the two famous swordsmanship families in Korea.

Jinwoo Park is meant to be the exclusive disciple of such a Professor Tak.

Yet, he has forsaken the golden future that awaits him and suddenly decided to follow me to Professor Kim Myunghyun's class...

I knew he had a bit of a weird streak, but I didn't expect him to be this reckless.

"Hey, Jinwoo Park. How about you change your schedule now? Professor Tak is perfect for you."

"So who is he, you ten-der?"

"…Forget it. How can you learn swords if you don't even know who Professor Tak is?"

In fact, I was indirectly saying that Jinwoo Park didn't really care, so I gave up on changing his mind.

I knew better than anyone, having been a fan of his, that once he makes up his mind, he doesn't easily change it.

Moreover, even if the story takes a slight turn, Jinwoo Park is still Jinwoo Park.

Professor Kim Myunghyun is also an excellent Holder educator, and Jinwoo Park has the ability to absorb and benefit from new things, even with a change in mentor.

It's a shame he won't learn [Wave-Sweeping Thousand Swords], but what can I do?

If he doesn't want to learn it.

Besides, even without [Wave-Sweeping Thousand Swords], Jinwoo Park has plenty of representative runes and skills.

"You two are really making a scene."

"Those are the ones who got lucky and advanced to the intermediate class in the practical combat training."

"Even though they got lucky and made it to the intermediate class, they're talking about Professor Tak and Professor Kim... Ugh."

"Why is Jinwoo Park in the intermediate class when he lost the combat training?"

Amidst the noisy conversation between Jinwoo Park and me,

the student Holders preparing for the class began to murmur.

They whispered in low voices, but it was clear they wanted us to hear.

'Ah. Is this it?'

The protagonist's debuff.

As a growth-type Holder, Jinwoo Park has low initial abilities and rune levels.

Because of this, he is often ignored.

I unfortunately got caught in the middle.

And it seemed I was sharing in the criticism.

But Jinwoo Park, who seemed used to such situations, didn't even pay attention.

"Jae-hyun, let's go."

"The lecture starts in a minute, man."

"Then let's go after the lecture ends."

"Where are we going?"

"...The rooftop?"

"Why is the rooftop always the place for a showdown...?"

Was the defeat in the practical combat training during the entrance exam too intense?

Jinwoo Park seems to consider me a rival.

That's why he's not taking the easy route by attending Professor Tak's class and instead came to the class I'm taking, Professor Kim Myunghyun's.

Honestly, I'm not sure I can fully meet that need.

Jinwoo Park is an excellent Holder in terms of rune growth, even without [Sweat of the Seeker], and I still don't know much about my own potential beyond being a [Rune Hunter].

But I'm determined to push as far as I can.

<Next Rune Holder> was the world I once loved the most, and I am growing as a Holder within it.

The world of Holders that I will inevitably face.

If I had to choose a part of it,

running alongside the characters I loved...

was more thrilling and exciting.

"Hello. I am Kim Myunghyun, and I will be teaching the class on the momentum of the sword and combat breathing."

As if to match that resolve,

my first teacher in this place was entering the lecture hall.

* * *

The Academy's lectures are divided into theory and practical sessions, but most are practical, and even the theoretical lectures often require practical results.

Kim Myunghyun's <Momentum of the Sword and Combat Breathing> is a typical practical lecture in the Warrior category.

After a 10-minute orientation in the lecture hall,

the class immediately moved to the training ground to begin.

"In this lecture, I will not teach you sword techniques. Therefore, how you hold and swing the sword is up to you."

The students, lined up, swung their swords.

As he walked among them, Kim Myunghyun continued in a calm voice.

"However, when you swing the sword, maintain a steady stance and a firm mind. When you cut through the space in front of you, remember the wind that brushes against your skin. Everything you feel... can become the momentum of a sword imbued with powerful magic."

Kim Myunghyun finished his advice and looked around at the students.

Over 80 students were all holding swords.

This lecture is a practical session biased towards the [Sword] rune.

It primarily accepts students who possess this rune, and even those without it must use a sword during the lecture.

While students from the Warrior and Assassin categories can also attend,

the weapon they must handle is a sword.

'They're following better than I expected.'

Kim Myunghyun observed a few students he had been watching closely.

First, the Holder named Jinwoo Park.

Despite the chaotic atmosphere and the neglect from his peers, he showed the fastest learning ability and the highest understanding of the lecture.

His posture is a bit sloppy due to his low stats,

but even in his first lecture, he is the one who most clearly demonstrates what Kim Myunghyun is trying to convey.

'And...'

Kim Myunghyun looked at another group of students.

They are students who chose the lecture despite not having the [Sword] rune.

While they are still in the Warrior category and are following along,

they seem to have no grasp of the abstract concepts Kim Myunghyun is explaining.

Kim Myunghyun warns them at the start of each lecture,

but they are the ones who end up bleeding if they ignore it.

There is no other solution for them.

They can either endure the lecture with sheer determination,

or they can give up and apply for a schedule change.

It is the price they pay for ignoring the pre-lecture warning.

'Wasn't his name Jae-hyun?'

On the other hand, there was a similar type of student who was following the lecture well.

The only student from another category, Jae-hyun Do.

Despite being an Assassin category Holder, he is showing almost the same level of learning ability as Jinwoo Park and is following the lecture well.

Considering that the Warrior category students without the [Sword] rune are struggling significantly,

this is a remarkable result.

'This student... has the [Sword] rune.'

But Kim Myunghyun quickly realized.

Jae-hyun Do is a student from another category who possesses the [Sword] rune.

A Multi-Holder.

He is a Multi-Holder with runes for various weapons.

Even though it's not his main rune...

his effort to grow the runes he possesses.

Kim Myunghyun found himself more interested in Jae-hyun Do's passion.

"Holder Jae-hyun Do?"

"Yes?"

"There, you need to use a bit less force and cut more smoothly. Remember, the momentum of the sword is a flexibility based on firmness."

"Ah, yes. Thank you."

Jae-hyun Do immediately grasped the point and corrected his technique.

Seeing this, Kim Myunghyun felt his teaching enthusiasm reignite after a long time.

'Should I take him as my exclusive disciple?'

For some reason, he was more drawn to Jae-hyun Do, who seemed to achieve greater results through education, compared to Jinwoo Park, who excels on his own.

Kim Myunghyun had no idea that Jae-hyun Do lived next door to him

and was best friends with his daughter, Kim Chae-eun.

* * *

'Wow, insane. God Myunghyun. I praise you.'

Swinging the sword with a focused mind,

I sang praises to Professor Kim Myunghyun in my heart.

Before entering the Academy,

I had been training alone all this time.

Without any special methods or clear techniques,

I trained blindly.

Thanks to [Sweat of the Seeker],

my rune level steadily increased.

But today,

after listening to Professor Kim Myunghyun's lecture and internalizing it,

I clearly realized the enormous difference a teacher can make in the growth of a rune.

[Your sword, which cuts through the air, is beginning to gain power.]

[Your rune level has increased.]

[You have obtained the derivative skill 'Combo' of the Sword rune.]

I suddenly felt foolish for blindly recommending Professor Tak to Jinwoo Park.

Professor Kim Myunghyun is one of the top-tier educators among the intermediate class professors, almost on par with Professor Tak.