Chapter 45

## Chapter 45. Do You Want to Win?

'So, you're from the Zhuge family.'

I had a feeling you were from a prestigious family, and you turned out to be a daughter of one of the Five Great Families, the Zhuge family.

I returned a bow and said,

"Baek Su-ryong."

"I know. You're the most famous among this year's new instructor applicants."

"......"

"......"

The conversation paused, and an awkward silence hung in the air.

Since there was nothing more to say, I turned my head and looked at the sparring platform.

Nangong Su and Myeong Il-oh's sparring was about to begin.

"Begin when you're ready."

As soon as Norun Junshang finished speaking, Myeong Il-oh stepped forward with a footwork technique and thrust the practice wooden staff at Nangong Su's chest.

Thud!

Nangong Su easily deflected the attack with his wooden sword, and the sparring began.

"Haah!"

With a shout, Myeong Il-oh circled around Nangong Su, attacking with various techniques, while Nangong Su almost remained in place, blocking them.

"What do you think will happen?"

Zhuge Xiao-ying asked me, her eyes shining brightly.

'If you've seen enough, you should leave......'

She seemed to be about to write something down, as she held a thick book firmly with one arm and took out a brush.

I scratched my chin and said,

"Well, of course Nangong Su will win."

I secretly hoped Myeong Il-oh would land a hit, but with his current skills, it was impossible.

"How many moves do you think Myeong Il-oh will last?"

"Probably depends on how much Nangong Su lets him have."

At that moment, Myeong Il-oh was desperately attacking, while Nangong Su, with a blank expression, was casually swinging his sword, which was clearly visible.

'If he wanted to, he could end it in fifty moves......'

But Nangong Su didn't.

As if teaching a beginner, he calmly blocked the attacks, counterattacked, and occasionally gave advice.

"Your lower guard is open. Pay more attention to your footwork."

"......Thank you."

"You're putting too much force into your wrist. It's better to relax."

"......Ah, yes."

"Don't be hasty. In a situation like that, you shouldn't aim for the head."

"......"

After giving advice a few times, Myeong Il-oh's face turned bright red.

Murmurs arose.

"Sure enough, Instructor Nangong......"

"He's overwhelming."

"His expressionless face is so cool today, isn't it?"

"But isn't the other applicant's skill too poor?"

"He seems to be trying hard...... Hmm......"

The students were amazed by Nangong Su's overwhelming skill, but they were disappointed that Myeong Il-oh, despite his best efforts, couldn't even touch Nangong Su's collar.

This would definitely affect the student evaluations.

I narrowed my eyes and looked at Nangong Su.

'That guy......'

The purpose of this sparring was to assess the new instructor applicants' skills.

Since most of the existing instructors were stronger than the applicants, it was natural to give them some leeway.

But there's a limit to that. Treating Myeong Il-oh like a child would hurt his pride.

He was standing there as an instructor, not a student.

However, Nangong Su didn't seem to have the intention to treat Myeong Il-oh as an equal.

Not only that......

"He's using the opponent to boost his own reputation."

"......I can't deny it."

Zhuge Xiao-ying sighed with a bitter tone. She looked at Nangong Su with a complicated expression.

"He used to be kind and gentle......"

"Are you close to Nangong Su?"

"I met him often when I was young, but we weren't that close."

Since they were from the same Five Great Families, there was probably some interaction between their families.

It's hard to imagine that Nangong Su had a kind and innocent past......

"Haah!"

At that moment, Myeong Il-oh, who had retreated, shouted and prepared a large attack.

Myeong Il-oh's martial robe swelled with inner energy, and clear footprints were left on the sparring platform.

Myeong Il-oh's wooden staff left dozens of afterimages as it stabbed at Nangong Su's entire body.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Nangong Su didn't retreat, calmly blocking each attack one by one.

Then, for a moment, Myeong Il-oh's eyes lit up.

He had finally revealed his last move, which he had hidden until the end.

But......

"A bit too fast."

I muttered with regret, but Myeong Il-oh didn't hear me.

Swoosh!

Myeong Il-oh's final thrust, hidden among numerous feints, aimed for Nangong Su's side.

At that moment, Nangong Su's eyes widened slightly as he muttered,

"Decent."

Thud!

In the end, even his best attack was blocked, and the counterforce sent Myeong Il-oh sliding backward.

Nangong Su also took a few steps back before forcing himself to stop.

'What is this?'

I tilted my head at his unnatural movement.

Just a moment ago, Nangong Su should have taken a few more steps back to dissipate the force of Myeong Il-oh's attack.

But he forced himself to stay in place, and his face looked a bit uncomfortable.

His qi and blood were probably slightly twisted.

"Does he think retreating a few more steps would hurt his pride?"

"......It's similar, but different. Nangong-gege has his own rules for fighting."

Turning my head, I saw Zhuge Xiao-ying sighing with a dark expression.

"His own rules?"

"Didn't you know? From the start of the sparring, Nangong-gege draws an imaginary circle and fights without stepping out of it."

I asked Zhuge Xiao-ying, bewildered.

"Why is he doing that?"

Zhuge Xiao-ying looked at me as if I really didn't know.

"Because someone did something similar with the students yesterday."

"......Me?"

I pointed at myself, and Zhuge Xiao-ying nodded.

"Nangong-gege has had a strong sense of pride since he was young. When someone shows off their martial arts skills impressively, he always tries to follow suit."

In other words, Nangong Su was now imitating what I did during the external martial arts demonstration, where I didn't step out of the circle while sparring with the students.

"Really a strange guy."

"......I think that kind of competitiveness is what made Nangong-gege a top instructor."

We turned our heads back to the sparring platform.

There, the two stood with clearly different expressions.

Nangong Su smiled faintly and said to Myeong Il-oh,

"Your last move was good. But the timing to reveal the real thrust hidden among the feints was too early, making your intention too obvious. If you practice harder, it will improve."

"......Thank you."

Though he was pretending to be kind, to my ears, it sounded like, "No matter what you do, you can't even touch my collar."

Myeong Il-oh probably heard something similar.

"......"

The sparring was already over.

The students clapped in admiration of Nangong Su's skill, and the instructors nodded, saying, "Indeed, Instructor Nangong."

Only Myeong Il-oh was clenching his teeth, trying to hide his frustration by bowing his head.

'He's not the type to be evaluated like this.'

I know how much preparation Myeong Il-oh has done to become an instructor at the Blue Dragon Academy.

He came to this city months early to gather information and even made a family tree to organize the students' characteristics and personalities.

His martial arts skills might be a bit lacking, but he has the qualities to be an instructor.

Nangong Su doesn't know this.

He probably doesn't even want to know.

"Do you want to continue? If you have more to show, I'll accept it."

"......"

Nangong Su asked Myeong Il-oh as if offering a favor.

Myeong Il-oh was hesitating.

He hadn't shown his true skills.

The opponent hadn't even given him the chance.

"I know you're disappointed, but I think continuing won't make much difference."

"......"

Myeong Il-oh's eyes dimmed.

His shoulders slumped, and the strength in his hand holding the wooden staff faded.

Everyone expected him to give up at any moment.

But at that moment, Nangong Su slightly turned his head and looked at me.

Chuckle.

A faint smile appeared on his lips.

The moment I understood the meaning of that smile, I decided to wipe it off his face.

"A while ago, you asked how many moves Myeong Il-oh could last, right?"

"Ah, yes. But it's already over......"

"Want to make a bet?"

"......What?"

Looking at me with a surprised expression, I immediately got to the point.

"From now on, fifty moves. Myeong Il-oh will knock Nangong Su down within that time."

"......That's impossible."

"I bet he can."

"......"

"The loser will grant the winner one wish."

"......Alright. I'll bet he can't."

Zhuge Xiao-ying nodded with a determined expression.

I immediately sent a mental message to Myeong Il-oh.

[Il-oh. Do you want to win?]

[Brother? What do you mean all of a sudden......]

[Do you want to give that guy a taste of his own medicine?]

[......Of course.]

[Then from now on, do exactly as I say without questioning.]

There was a pause, as if he was thinking.

[......Yes. I want to win.]

The strength in his hand holding the wooden staff returned, and his eyes gradually regained their light.

Grinding his teeth, Myeong Il-oh sent a mental message to me.

[Help me knock that guy down.]

[Alright. Get ready.]

Myeong Il-oh's sparring was just beginning.

* * *

"I want to continue."

The moment Myeong Il-oh said this, all the instructors and students, including Nangong Su, were surprised.

Just a moment ago, Myeong Il-oh had looked like he had lost his fighting spirit, but now his eyes were blazing as he glared at Nangong Su.

"I still have more to show."

"......Surprising."

Because of what he had said earlier, even though the result was already clear, Nangong Su couldn't just stop.

'I thought he would give up by now...... He's more foolish than I expected.'

Boo! Boo! Boo!

Boos poured from the audience. They were criticizing him for not accepting defeat in a sparring that was already over.

"Come on."

Myeong Il-oh, holding his wooden staff in a neutral position, approached with a footwork technique.

Seeing his unchanged stance, Nangong Su secretly clicked his tongue.

'Not bad, but...... there are already many mediocre instructors like you.'

Myeong Il-oh's eyes had changed, but nothing else was different.

His strength, speed, inner energy, and techniques.

Nangong Su thought he had already gauged his opponent.

But why......

'What is this?'

A chill ran down his neck. What was this eerie sensation?

Swoosh!

The wooden staff sliced through the air, aiming for Nangong Su's shoulder.

Nangong Su, familiar with his opponent's style, thrust his wooden sword to block.

He positioned himself to immediately counterattack after blocking Myeong Il-oh's technique.

'Maybe the earlier sensation was just an illusion.'

In the end, nothing had changed.

He had only been momentarily surprised by the sudden intensity of his opponent.

But at that moment......

Swish!

The wooden staff, like a snake, coiled around and aimed for Nangong Su's wrist, sliding along his wooden sword.

"What!"

Nangong Su quickly shook off the staff and took a step back.

Myeong Il-oh relentlessly pursued, thrusting the staff repeatedly.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The wooden staff and wooden sword clashed continuously.

The instructors widened their eyes at Myeong Il-oh's overwhelming offensive, and the students who had been booing fell silent.

'How dare he!'

Nangong Su's expression twisted in shock at his own reaction.

Moreover, if he took two more steps back, he would step out of the imaginary circle he had created.

Nangong Su forced himself to stay in place, putting strength into his legs.

It was the worst decision he could have made.

As if predicting his movement, Myeong Il-oh moved.

Step.

Just one step.

Nangong Su's eyes widened as his opponent's footwork closed the distance.

For a martial artist with a wooden staff to close the distance with a martial artist with a wooden sword was an unexpected move.

'Oh no!'

Nangong Su quickly thrust his sword to force his opponent back.

But because he had forced his movement, his sword lacked proper strength and speed.

Swish!

Nangong Su's wooden sword struck the air for the first time.

And through that opening, Myeong Il-oh, gripping the staff very short, lunged in.

"I'm coming."

"!!"

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

A completely different sound.

Under the relentless attacks, Nangong Su's body staggered backward, almost falling over.