Chapter 18 - The Duel (1)

“This kind of duel is a tradition of the 10 great sword families?”

“That is correct, Young Master.”

To summarize the story, there was a tradition where, when a successor of the 10 great sword families obtained a license, they would choose a suitable opponent from a prestigious surrounding family for a duel.

A suitable opponent here meant someone within the range of being beatable, yet not lacking as a debut opponent.

For that reason, I heard that the side requesting the duel would dispatch analysts to thoroughly analyze the data.

This was because if they were to lose in their debut match, it would wound the pride of the prestigious family, or so they said.

And the opponent that the Muwon Sword Family had chosen in such a manner was none other than our Haewon Sword Family's Shin Ah-yeon.

“Shin Ah-yeon, what do you think?”

“Of course, I don't feel good about it. It means that the Muwon Sword Family has analyzed that I will lose to their rookie.”

“Then let me ask one more thing. If by any chance you win, will something troublesome happen?”

In fact, I felt that the purpose of this kind of duel was impure from the start.

It was a case of sacrificing someone of a mediocre background to make the dignity of a distinguished lineage stand out.

And the part I disliked the most was that they would dispatch analysts to carefully weigh the possibility of victory before even requesting the duel.

What kind of duel was this?

“If, I were to win.”

“If you win?”

“The successor of the Muwon Sword Family would be humiliated.”

“Is that all? For example, is there nothing like you having to write a letter of apology, or being called in by your unit leader and getting a scolding?”

“That's unlikely. The outcome of a duel itself must be clean. Rather, I think manipulating the outcome would cause great damage to the honor of both families.”

“Then that means it's okay to choose to win.”

“…Pardon?”

“For this duel, you, Shin Ah-yeon, will win.”

“Young Master, that is not as easy as it sounds. As I mentioned, they have nominated me based on their judgment that their chances of winning are high.”

“But they don't choose an opponent who is of a lower class, do they?”

Since a duel was not a fight where one swings a sword with their life on the line, the variables were not large. The Muwon Sword Family would have chosen an opponent they could beat within the range of these variables.

In that case, what could turn this match around was to slightly increase the size of those variables beyond their expectations. And this was something that was entirely possible if I intervened.

“The Muwon Sword Family probably calculated an advantage of about 6 to 4.”

“That kind of difference can be easily overturned. A sword fight is not a card game. And I do not want you, Shin Ah-yeon, to lose.”

“Are you, by any chance, telling me to use some trick in the duel?”

“No. I plan to teach you a way to win legitimately.”

At my words, Shin Ah-yeon’s pupils momentarily wavered.

Choi Ho-joong was the same, why did they all have the same reaction when I said I would teach them?

“Do you want to ask what kind of bullshit this is?”

“N-No, sir.”

“The hell you don't.”

I can tell just by looking at their eyes.

What they are thinking right now, and how much they trust my words.

“Ho-joong.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

“Pick up your sword.”

“Pardon? Why are you suddenly telling me to pick up my sword?”

“It's a duel with Shin Ah-yeon.”

““Pardon?””

This time, Choi Ho-joong and Shin Ah-yeon spoke at the same time.

“You two are very much in sync. You'd be perfect duel partners.”

To get a proper grasp of Shin Ah-yeon's swordsmanship skills and to gauge her talent, a duel with Choi Ho-joong interested me as well.

“What are you doing? Not starting? Ho-joong, if you're too shy to attack, tell me in advance!”

“Young Master! What nonsense are you talking about! I will attack right away!”

At Choi Ho-joong's sudden outburst, Shin Ah-yeon also picked up her sword in a daze, and thus, the sudden duel between the two began.

Chaaaeng!

Both of their swordsmanships were based on the Muyoung Sword Style.

In terms of experience in the Haewon Sword Family, Choi Ho-joong was far superior, but I had heard that Shin Ah-yeon's talent was also extraordinary.

Chaaaeng!

Chaaaeng!

Perhaps because of that, the aspect of the duel did not lean heavily to one side.

It was true that Choi Ho-joong had the upper hand, but it wasn't to the point of completely overwhelming her.

In that case, the level of Muwon Sword Family's Han Ye-ji would be somewhere between these two.

Recalling her appearance during the license exam back then, it seemed so.

‘This isn't bad.’

What I liked the most was that there were no bad habits in Shin Ah-yeon's Muyoung Sword Style at all.

Its completeness was a bit lacking, but it was much easier to increase completeness than to fix bad habits. I was confident that if I could just help her break through the blocked parts, a revolutionary leap would be possible.

“That's enough. The duel ends there.”

Of course, I had already finished figuring out which parts needed to be broken through.

***

The fishing rod I had cast out finally started to get a bite.

After secretly releasing one of the assassins Seo Young-joon had sent me and leaking information, they had reacted.

The released assassin had secretly sent a message to our side.

“Young Master, but is there a chance that the released assassin is deceiving us? Since he was hired by Seo Young-joon in the first place.”

“That's unlikely. We have his younger brother as a hostage, don't we?”

“Well, that's true, but.”

“And weren't you the one who educated him before releasing him? You did a proper job, right?”

“Of course! The education was thorough. I even made a firm threat that if he tried any funny business, I would immediately slit his brother's throat!”

“Good, then there's nothing to worry about.”

The previous assassination attempt had been adapted to have ended in failure due to an unforeseen variable.

Seo Ji-han’s skills seemed very poor, but the dungeon had suddenly created a variable, forcing them to retreat in a hurry.

“By the way, I hope that assassin cooperates well until the end.”

According to the information sent by the assassin, Seo Young-joon's father and my uncle, Seo Chang-woo, had taken the bait.

It seemed he had decided to take matters into his own hands to cover up the mess his idiotic son had made.

“Seo Chang-woo's side is said to be waiting for your next dungeon trip, Young Master. They will probably send an assassin again, don't you think?”

“Probably. This time, he'll send a trustworthy one from his own entourage as an assassin. Since he has to make sure it's done properly.”

“Then shouldn't we set a trap as well? For example, telling the family head and securing reliable escort personnel before heading to the dungeon…”

“No. There's no need for that. Compile information on Seo Chang-woo's people and prepare it. Then we'll have a rough idea of who will step up as the assassin.”

“What on earth are you planning to do? Surely you're not planning to handle this by ourselves, are you?”

“We'll see about that.”

“Pardoooon?”

If possible, I planned to reel in the big fish without making a fuss.

If I wasn't confident, I wouldn't have started this in the first place, and I wanted to create a more dramatic scene.

And if this matter was handled well, it would be possible to form my own sword unit earlier than planned.

“It's a good opportunity, Ho-joong.”

“A sense of foreboding is washing over me!”

“Trust me. I don't play games I can't win.”

Strictly speaking, there was one time I played a game I couldn't win.

That was why I was sent to hell by a dragon and then reincarnated like this.

***

The area around the Haewon Sword Family's grand training hall was already bustling with noise.

“Ho-joong, is a brat who just got his license swinging a sword once really something that draws this many people?”

“It’s a way of congratulating a child of a prestigious family on their debut in this field. A tradition isn't a tradition for nothing, is it?”

“It’s a tradition I really can't understand.”

Moreover, it was said that even more guests than expected had visited today.

Forty from the Muwon Sword Family alone. In addition, other surrounding sword families had sent a few people each ahead of this duel. On top of that, our Haewon Sword Family also filled the numbers, so the area around the grand training hall was packed with people.

“There, that woman walking over. That is Han Ye-ji.”

“I know.”

“She got prettier after turning twenty. Well, she was already getting attention for her looks alone even before her debut.”

“Why? Do you think she's better than Shin Ah-yeon?”

“W-Why are you suddenly bringing up Shin Ah-yeon?”

“But you always stutter whenever Ah-yeon's name comes up, don't you?”

“When did I ever do that! Listen carefully. Isn't this almost at an announcer's level of pronunciation?”

“It's so awkward.”

He was truly a character whose insides were easy to see.

Which was also why I trusted him more.

“Young Master, but I think Han Ye-ji is walking towards us.”

“That's right.”

That gaze was clearly directed at me.

In the end, Han Ye-ji stopped in front of me. And then.

“Oppa.”

She called me with a title I wasn't used to.

“Why?”

“What do you mean, why.”

“You ignored the text I sent you.”

“There was no reason to reply. I had no intention of being treated to a meal by you.”

“Still, I don't think that's polite. You must have known I was waiting for a reply, was it that hard to take a moment to send one?”

“It would have made you feel bad in its own way to receive a rejection message.”

“Still, I'd rather have that. I'm not used to waiting.”

“Alright. If the same situation happens next time, I'll make sure to reject you clearly.”

“Wow! You're really too much.”

“I'll watch the duel well today.”

“You like to bet, don't you?”

“Why a bet all of a sudden?”

“Make a bet with me. If I win the duel today, instead of a rejection message, you give me an okay.”

I wondered why a bet out of the blue, but then I remembered that we had made a bet at the Cheongunhoe social gathering as well.

The guy who lost to me in a duel back then had kneeled and bowed his head to the ground.

“How about it?”

It was a bet I was unlikely to lose, so it was worth accepting.

If something was at stake, it would also be more fun to watch the duel.

“What if you lose?”

“I'll grant you one wish. Anything I can do.”

I didn't really need to ask a wish of Han Ye-ji.

But the moment I thought that, something useful came to mind.

And at a very opportune timing.

“Alright. I accept.”

“Then I have one more reason to win today, don't I?”

Han Ye-ji left those confident words behind and walked away.

“Young Master. What on earth is this situation?”

“Why?”

“Isn't this Han Ye-ji clinging to you, asking you to meet her?”

“She's been wanting to buy me a meal since last time, do I look that poor?”

“Wow! It really seems that being handsome is all that matters! For Han Ye-ji to cling to you even when you're making such lame jokes!”

I didn't know if she was clinging, but I had decided what wish I would make when I won the bet.

I planned to take Han Ye-ji with me on the upcoming dungeon trip.

If that happened, Seo Chang-woo would become an enemy of both the Haewon Sword Family and the Muwon Sword Family.

It was certain that it would create a sufficient picture to cut off Seo Young-joon's and Seo Chang-woo's family.

Now, all that was left was for Shin Ah-yeon to cleanly overwhelm Han Ye-ji in the duel.

With a bet made, it was a moment where I was even more curious about the results of the special training.