Insane.

Yu Hana really was a genius.

Before I knew it, it was already 11 p.m.

“Like this?”

Pa-pa-pa-pak!

The blade she swung carved a sharp arc through the air and struck the training room wall dead-on.

Power, speed, flow—everything was perfect.

In just a few hours, she had completely mastered the fundamentals of Hwajeop Sword, which I’d just taught her.

I was a little caught off guard when she teared up as soon as I gave her the sword, but after clashing blades a few times and riling her up a bit, she was back to her usual self.

“Haa...”

Yu Hana slid the sword back into its sheath, steadying her breath.

The gentle traces of mana, which had danced like flowers and butterflies, slowly seeped back into the scabbard.

Then suddenly—

She stepped forward and bowed her head.

Tap.

It wasn’t just a casual bow.

She knelt, hands placed neatly together, and lowered her forehead all the way to the ground.

A perfect dogeza.

I froze for a second.

“Hey, hey—what are you doing?”

She kept her head down, speaking in a low voice.

“I am deeply honored by the instruction you’ve bestowed upon me. Master, I humbly ask for your continued guidance.”

The sincerity and formality in her voice were... unfamiliar.

I could let the honorifics slide, but her tone and posture were downright submissive.

Yu Hana came from a martial household.

So of course, it made sense she’d show respect to someone who taught her swordsmanship.

But even in the original story, she only used formal speech briefly—then dropped it entirely.

This is a bit much.

Thank god we were in a private room.

If someone else had seen this, rumors would’ve exploded.

“Okay, get up...”

Then I remembered—telling her to get up wouldn’t work. She was too stubborn.

There was one easy way to snap her out of it.

“As your master, I order you to stand.”

Twitch.

Then I added,

“And just talk to me like you usually do.”

Her shoulders trembled slightly, still bowed with her forehead against the ground.

Then, slowly, Yu Hana began to rise.

Even as she stood, she looked disappointed—like she was forcing herself to obey.

What’s with her...

Not really my problem, though.

It was time to wrap up the training.

“Here.”

She held out the Dongbaek Sword to me.

Looked like she meant to return it.

I hesitated for a moment, then replied.

“Keep it for now.”

Honestly, even if I wanted to carry it around, I couldn’t.

I took the sword from her hand, just to demonstrate—

WUUUUUUNG!

The moment I gripped it, it reacted violently, vibrating like crazy in protest—as if shouting it didn’t want me touching it.

Stupid sword.

“See that?”

I shrugged.

“It’s a pain in the ass if I keep it.”

She let out a quiet laugh.

Then she returned the sword to her hip.

“Got it. Thanks. I’ll make sure to repay the favor.”

“Sure.”

I replied nonchalantly, and she smiled faintly, walking behind me.

We tidied up and exited into the main hall.

Even though it was late, there were still a lot of students around. Probably because exams were right around the corner.

Everyone was locked into training.

I stretched lightly and looked around.

Midterms were just around the corner.

Ideally, we should be training every day... but saying that outright felt a little awkward.

So I tried asking carefully.

“Can you let me know what days you’re free this week? I thought maybe we could do a couple more sessions.”

“...”

Yu Hana didn’t answer.

I turned my head to look at her.

But she just stared back at me, expressionless.

As if I’d just asked something absurdly obvious.

“Every day.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

She took a step closer and added gently,

“...Weren’t we doing it every day?”

Nice.

I cheered inside.

She was way more driven than I’d expected.

I just gave a silent nod.

And like that, we naturally headed back to our dorms.

Up above, stars had already begun to appear in the night sky.

***

Ding.

A message arrived.

[Luke]: Brother Jeong Haein, the payment proposal for Iano’s Cross is ready. Please feel free to visit the Order at your convenience.

Good news.

Looked like the valuation for the cross I submitted had finally been completed.

I could probably stop by tomorrow—only had morning classes, anyway.

But right now, that wasn’t what mattered.

Scroll, scroll.

“...Are you fucking kidding me.”

Late at night in my dorm room.

I was lying in bed, unable to sleep, endlessly scrolling through the Hero Auction site.

Scroll, scroll.

“Where the hell is it?”

I had to prepare for the demon faction’s ambush during next week’s midterm exams.

I was looking for a very specific item—but it just wouldn’t show up.

After about two hours of searching, I finally found it.

Buried all the way at the bottom, like it hadn’t been updated in years.

[Stone Sickle]

“Pffthaha.”

Just the name alone made me laugh.

The photo on the page was out of focus, lit horribly.

The entire listing was so slapdash it was hard to believe the seller even wanted to sell it.

I checked the description.

[Origin: Central Africa]

[Seller's Note: It’s a sickle made of stone. Got it from a dungeon while on assignment in Africa. Don’t really know what it’s for. No refunds.]

[Price: 1,000,000 KRW]

At a glance, it looked old and ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) roughly made.

The edge was chipped like a wolf missing half its teeth, and it looked heavy as hell.

The seller’s total lack of motivation was obvious from the description and the price.

For reference, one million won was the minimum allowed on the auction site.

But I had to buy this sickle.

It wasn’t just a chunk of stone.

This was Harpe.

Yes, that Harpe—from the myths, the one Perseus wielded.

Granted, it wasn’t an exceptional artifact in terms of combat ability. It had a very specific use case.

Basically a single-use item.

But what it did do was massive.

Click.

Without hesitation, I hit the purchase button.

[“Stone Sickle” has been purchased and will be shipped to your address.]

The seller probably sat up in bed in shock, wondering which idiot had actually bought it.

But if so, they’d be wrong.

***

A towering medieval-style building in the heart of the city.

My second time visiting.

The moment classes ended, I rushed straight here. I happened to need some cash anyway.

Quietly, I opened the door and stepped into the Arcadia Order.

The moment I entered, my eyes met those of the priestess at the front desk.

She shot up from her seat and quickly approached me.

“This way, please!”

Looked like everything had already been arranged ahead of time. She walked with a cheerful bounce in her step, leading me to the same reception room as before.

And there, waiting for me, was the same middle-aged priest—Luke.

“Brother Haein!”

The man stood and extended a warm hand.

I shook it lightly.

“Haha, sorry for the delay. There was a bit of friction during the price negotiations.”

“Yeah, well... it’s fine.”

He looked genuinely pleased.

Between the cross matter and everything else, it seemed like Cheon Yeoul’s influence within the Order was expanding rapidly.

Luke pulled a leather folder from his bag and handed me a document etched with golden engravings.

“I hope the offer is to your satisfaction. If there are any issues with the amount, please don’t hesitate to let me know.”

I met his eyes briefly before lowering my gaze to the contract.

And the moment I saw the amount listed—

Holy shit.

How many zeroes was that?

I hadn’t planned on selling it for cheap, but if they tried to lowball me, I was going to negotiate.

This, though? Was way beyond what I expected.

I blinked, rereading the numbers just to be sure.

Luke watched my reaction with a faint, satisfied smile.

“...You really pulled some strings for this.”

His smile widened even further.

He looked genuinely pleased that I noticed.

“Thanks to you, Brother, things have taken a very positive turn for us.”

Somewhere along the way, my title had changed to “Brother.”

I closed my eyes for a moment, drumming my fingers lightly on the table as I thought.

I could take the full amount.

But...

I slowly folded the contract and spoke.

“Can I donate this to the Arcadia Foundation?”

Luke’s eyes went wide, his body leaning forward slightly.

“Ah, yes—of course, that’s certainly possible, but...”

“Then I’d like to donate this much.”

I turned over the contract and scribbled a number on the blank back side.

One billion won.

It was only a portion of the full amount, but as a donation, it was nothing to scoff at.

When he took the paper, I could see his fingertips tremble slightly.

“...Are you certain? And—may I ask who the donation should be attributed to?”

There was a slight tremble in his voice.

“To Cheon Yeoul.”

The moment I said it, Luke’s expression changed completely.

A mix of awe and emotion welled up in his eyes.

He stood up and bowed deeply.

“Thank you—truly.”

His voice was filled with genuine gratitude.

This level of donation would no doubt help solidify Cheon Yeoul’s standing within the Order, and Luke clearly understood the weight of it.

On top of that, donations to the Order came with a variety of benefits.

I’d had this idea in the back of my mind for a while now.

I quietly observed him, then slowly rose from my seat.

He’d shown proper respect—so I figured I should respond in kind.

I extended my hand.

Luke took it with both of his, holding on tightly.

“May the goddess’s blessing be with you, Brother.”

His words rang with sincerity.

I smirked.

“Since everything’s settled, I’ll be on my way.”

I gave a small nod and stepped out of the reception room.