Chapter 16 - Haewon Sword Style (2)

“So, the movements you just showed me are the entirety of the Muyoung Sword Style. Is that right?”

“That is correct, Young Master.”

Choi Ho-joong wore a pleased expression, as if satisfied with the swordsmanship he had just displayed.

As it turned out, the Muyoung Sword Style was very familiar to me as well.

Thinking about it, it was only natural.

There was no way the sword style used by Choi Ho-joong, who was always by my side, could be anything else.

“This isn't bad.”

This was my honest impression.

I had always thought it was pretty decent, but after seeing it from beginning to end, I felt I could raise my evaluation of the Muyoung Sword Style a little more.

With this level of depth, this swordsmanship would be more than acceptable even on the Kalia Continent.

However, it wasn't without its flaws.

The Muyoung Sword Style was a degraded version of the Haewon Sword Style, newly created as a mass-market version by removing the profound parts.

Because of that, there were jarring openings here and there.

A feeling of getting stuck—thwack, thwack—somewhere, instead of the perfect, fluid naturalness.

Of course, those openings were minor enough that only someone of my level could spot them, but it was difficult to just ignore them knowing that clear errors existed.

‘I should tell my father later to have it revised.’

A rough picture was already beginning to form in my mind.

Though I would have to do a little more research.

“Young Master, can you try to follow it right away?”

“Of course.”

“You can do it right away?”

“Why? Is there a problem?”

“No, it’s just, that.”

“You're a very strange guy. Were you perhaps hoping for me to say I couldn't do it?”

They called this fishing for an answer, and I felt a little resentful.

“No, sir. Then please, try to do as much as you can!”

Choi Ho-joong’s expression was full of doubt.

His eyes were wide open, as if he would pounce on me the moment he saw any mistake.

Well, regardless of his intentions, that focused gaze was a very good thing in a moment of learning.

“Watch carefully.”

I took out the Reapersword and replicated all the forms of the Muyoung Sword Style that Choi Ho-joong had demonstrated.

It was too early to correct the errors, so for now, I just reproduced it exactly as it was.

Of course, it was inevitable that there would be some inadequate parts in between.

That was because I couldn't pour mana into the parts that required it.

At times like these, Seo Ji-han’s cursed body was just a shame.

“Young Master!”

But even with just that, Choi Ho-joong’s eyes were wide like a startled rabbit.

“What?”

“You said you couldn't remember it at all! The Muyoung Sword Style, I mean.”

“I did. But it seems my body remembers.”

“Your body remembers?”

“Why, you punk, what's wrong with my body?”

“Originally, Young Master, you were…”

The guy couldn't finish his sentence, wearing only a puzzled expression.

“Originally, I was just weak due to a chronic illness. But now I'm in the process of treating it, and things will be much different in the future. More than you can imagine.”

“Y-Young Master…”

“Why? Do I seem like a different person?”

“You have changed a lot.”

“Of course I had to change. I'm not terminally ill anymore.”

At my words, Choi Ho-joong nodded his head.

Suddenly, his expression became unnecessarily serious.

“Ah! And I remembered one thing.”

“What is it?”

“First, perform the Muyoung Sword Style from the beginning again. ”

There was something that had been bothering me for a while.

A minor but incorrect habit that would occasionally appear when he performed his swordsmanship. I wanted to fix it for him.

“Yes. Understood.”

Choi Ho-joong gripped his sword again.

With an expression that said he would show me the essence of the Muyoung Sword Style, he focused more than ever and began to perform the swordsmanship.

It was impressive how he performed the swordsmanship as if he had laid out a textbook, making it easy for the viewer to understand.

This was something that couldn't be done without a deep understanding of the swordsmanship.

On one hand, I felt a sense of pride, but now the moment had come when I had to point out his flaws.

“Stop for a moment, right there, that part.”

“Pardon?”

Choi Ho-joong looked at me with a blank expression.

I walked steadily towards him and said.

“Now watch carefully. How you’ve been doing that part wrong.”

“Pardon? What do you mean by that?”

“You must have listened to what I said before with only one ear.”

I raised the Reapersword.

From now on, I am the teacher.

***

5:27 AM. The elevator.

I pressed the button for the underground training hall.

It was my first time coming to this building.

This was because the underground training hall was a place where only a limited number of people could enter for secret training.

The door is closing.

The moment the announcement was heard, a powerful aura shot towards the elevator.

Through the closing gap in the doors, a silhouette began to appear.

Paaat!

And where that shot of aura reached was the button outside the elevator.

The exquisitely controlled power activated the button, and the door immediately opened.

Click-clack.

Just from the sound of the footsteps, I could tell it was a master.

The owner of the silhouette was none other than Seo Ji-won.

Despite the early hour, his hairstyle and clothes were neatly arranged.

He frowned upon seeing me in the elevator.

“Seo Ji-han, are you in your right mind?”

His tone was filled with irritation.

“Why?”

“Why, you ask. This is absurd.”

Seo Ji-won pointed to the watch on his wrist.

5:28 AM.

There seemed to be no problem at all.

The time we had agreed on was 5:30 AM.

“There are still 2 minutes until the appointment time, is there a problem?”

“I thought you had changed, but I see your attitude is still rotten.”

It was logic that I found difficult to accept.

“Even if you are my older brother, I'll pass on that kind of baseless criticism.”

“What?”

The door is opening.

We had finally arrived at the underground training hall.

Just from the travel time, I could tell it was built quite deep underground.

“It’s still 5:29. There’s still a full minute left.”

“I am dedicating my precious time to you! For a whole 30 minutes, for 2 weeks. And you show up at the meeting place at the same time as me? On the very first day?”

“My time is just as precious.”

In fact, I was the one who divided the 24 hours of a day and spent time like it was gold.

I could have come here a little early and trained, but that would have been inefficient.

This musty underground training hall was not the optimal place for mana training.

“There is one definite change. You've become surprisingly arrogant.”

As he said that, Seo Ji-won momentarily aimed his sword at my neck.

I didn't react because there was no killing intent, but it would have been unimaginable during my Johan Raven days.

If anyone had even tried to do something like this to me, even as a joke, their body would have been split in two on the spot.

I looked at Seo Ji-won and raised the corner of my mouth slightly.

Then, a moment later.

Sreureu.

A small aura of mana shot towards me along the blade of the sword.

Then it stopped precisely at the tip of the sword, perfectly maintaining its initial energy.

It seemed Seo Ji-won wanted to scare me one way or another.

But for a joke like this to a younger brother, it had crossed the line.

Moreover, it was even worse if he did this knowing only the old version of Seo Ji-han.

So this time, I also responded slightly.

Sreureu.

I grabbed the sword blade with two fingers and sent the mana back.

The mana energy quickly flowed along the sword and reached Seo Ji-won. And then.

Paaat!

The mana was extinguished entirely under my control.

It wasn't a great technique, but it was enough of a display to fluster Seo Ji-won in this situation.

“It's 5:30 now. Wouldn't it be best to start right away? For your and my precious time.”

For a moment, Seo Ji-won's expression hardened.

“Not bad.”

“I am my father's blood, after all.”

This was a convenient setting.

One where I could reveal my hidden genius and have it accepted as a matter of course.

“Alright. Then let’s start right away. I plan to first check your Muyoung Sword Style.”

It was just as Choi Ho-joong had said.

If I fumbled here, the transmission of the Haewon Sword Style would be off the table.

And Seo Ji-won would have a perfectly good excuse to tell our father.

“What's the method of inspection?”

“Use the Muyoung Sword Style to attack me. Of course, I will only defend.”

“That's a lie. Depending on the situation, you’ll probably throw in a light counterattack, am I wrong?”

I knew the habits of a master dealing with a novice better than anyone.

At first, they would go easy and show mercy, but occasionally they would fall into the impulse of wanting to show a taste of something spicy, and it was highly likely that Seo Ji-won would do the same.

“If your swordsmanship is too pathetic, you should be prepared to be counterattacked.”

“I knew it.”

“Try to at least graze my collar. If you succeed, I will teach you the Haewon Sword Style today.”

“Wasn't it supposed to start from today anyway?”

“That depends on how you do.”

“That's a convenient bit of wordplay. Well, it doesn't matter anyway, and I have one condition to ask of you, brother.”

I raised the Reapersword.

“A condition?”

“While you face me, you must also use the Muyoung Sword Style. It's unfair for you to use the Haewon Sword Style alone, isn't it?”

“Not difficult. I accept.”

A cool acceptance.

Seo Ji-won seemed to think it was no big deal, but this condition drastically lowered the difficulty of the mission to graze his collar.

Last night, while thinking about correcting the errors in the Muyoung Sword Style, I had thoroughly finished my research on this sword style.

It would be a different story if it was someone at my father's level, but the Muyoung Sword Style that Seo Ji-won wielded would have prominent errors and openings, and I planned to exploit that.

“Then come at me. I'm curious to see just how much you've changed.”

“I’ll be in your care.”

In that moment, Seo Ji-won began to summon his fighting spirit.

The aura I felt from him was greater than that of Hwang Tae-hoon, whom I had met during the license exam.

If we were to duel formally, he was an opponent I couldn't dare to face yet, but against a defending Seo Ji-won, I was confident I could settle the match in a short time.

Whoosh!

My Reapersword cut through the wind.

For now, I planned to pressure Seo Ji-won very lightly, within a range that wasn't overbearing.

Since he had already foreshadowed the possibility of a counterattack, I would have to keep that in mind as well.

Whoosh!

Not flashy, but concise and precise.

I began to wield the Muyoung Sword Style in such a manner.

Whooosh!

The Reapersword predicted the path Seo Ji-won would move and thrust forward.

Of course, it was impossible for my attack to succeed in one go, but I could at least make my opponent tense.

Even though it contained only a faint amount of mana, the energy gathered at the tip of the sword was perfectly refined.

Whooosh!

And from now on, I needed to figure out the implicit line that Seo Ji-won had drawn.

From the position of a master, Seo Ji-won would be maintaining his own line of using only a little of his strength.

There was no guarantee that he would stick to that line, but it would be unseemly for him to suddenly lash out beyond it, so it was highly likely that he would stick to it as much as possible.

Moreover, I had heard that Seo Ji-won even had a mysophobic tendency.

Chaeng!

Chaeng!

Chaaaeng!

Swords clashed violently against swords.

With these three exchanges, I was able to grasp the line that Seo Ji-won had set to some extent.

Perhaps because he was underestimating me, Seo Ji-won wasn't putting much power into it.

And since this line would be maintained to some extent, I was grateful for it.

“Not bad.”

“I'll gratefully accept the compliment.”

“But you still haven't touched my collar.”

“You weren't expecting it anyway, were you?”

After catching Seo Ji-won off guard like that, I resumed my attack.

In response to my continued attacks, Seo Ji-won still maintained his poker face, but before I knew it, a little more power began to enter his sword.

I could tell right away what Seo Ji-won was aiming for now.

To release power at the moment our swords clashed and make the Reapersword fall from my hand.

This was a scene often staged by masters when dealing with novices.

Especially in a situation like this, where the novice was gradually getting bolder, it would be an even more timely measure.

Looking at Seo Ji-won’s eyes, I had a feeling he was waiting for that timing.

‘I can't let you have your way.’

I immediately changed my attack style and focused on thrusting.

Against my thrusting attacks that aimed precisely at points, all Seo Ji-won could do was to let them flow past him through footwork.

There would be no chance to make my sword fall.

“Your style suddenly changed.”

“Because I had a bad feeling.”

I grinned at Seo Ji-won.

Everything was flowing according to my intentions, and the time to make my decisive move was gradually approaching.