Episode 183 Week 9 Midterm Exam (7)
The conflict with the swordsmanship club was settled with a promise to rescue Jang Bo-do.
On the other hand, there were those who continued to show hostility towards me, especially the Black Sword faction that Ma-da-woong belonged to.
They tried to subdue me by using the promising assassins Jang Sam and Wang Pil, namely Jang Mugeuk and Wang Chun-sam, but they failed to achieve their goal due to the timely intervention of the vanguard.
And just as Jang Moo-geuk warned the day before the midterms, he is going to release his swords and wipe me out.
I didn’t know we would meet like this on the morning of the second day, but it was going to happen eventually, sooner or later.
I asked the leader of the swordsmen.
“So what’s your name?”
“It’s Sakonguk.”
“406? That sounds like a hotel room number.”
“It’s not flesh, it’s anger.”
“I see.”
Sakong-wook, who had been glaring at me for a moment, then turned his gaze to Ko Hyeon-woo.
“Go Hyun-woo, I’ve heard a lot about your excellent swordsmanship. However, if you interfere with the swordsmanship club’s events, you won’t be safe either. Stay back.”
“I am grateful that you think well of me.”
“But it seems you’ve never heard of such a rumor. Here, Hyung Kim is the first close friend I’ve ever acknowledged. When such a close friend gets involved in a dispute, I can’t just stand by and watch because the other party is a member of the fencing club.”
Go Hyun-woo smiled brightly.
“Why would you take such a risk? How foolish.”
“I hear it often. One young lady used to call me ‘idiot tank.’”
How did you happen to hear that from Han So-mi?
My curiosity was piqued, but it was time to put it on hold for now.
I asked Sakonguk another question.
“But are you guys confident?”
What I mean is, even if promising prospect Jang Moo-geuk and 0.8 promising prospect Wang Chun-sam joined forces, they couldn’t do anything to me, so do you think you can do it?
Sakong Wook answered with a laugh.
“You don’t have to worry about that. The six of us will have no shortage of things.”
What he could say with confidence was that all six swordsmen were of fairly decent skill.
Sakong-wook and Han are estimated to have scores in the 900s, and the rest are estimated to have scores in the 600s or higher.
Well, that’s why he sent these guys instead of sending the two of them back to Bard Woong.
– Bang! Bang!
Gunshots continued to ring out from the top.
In addition to the six swordsmen in front of him, there are multiple teams approaching the tower, so the calligrapher must hold them back alone.
This means that you can’t expect the calligrapher’s concentrated support, and that you have to end the battle quickly if you want to go protect the tower.
‘I have to show my skills here.’
I lifted my head and pointed at the two swordsmen positioned behind me.
“You two.”
“… … ?”
“It’s too close.”
“What is that?”
-Whew—
A whirlwind formed between the two swordsmen, pulling them together.
They were caught off guard by the sudden tornado and tried desperately to escape, but their bodies were being pulled and twisted, making it difficult for them to even stand upright.
And the moment they were tangled in one place, the compressed air exploded.
– Boom!
“Ugh.”
“Ugh.”
One of them lies face down on the ground, the other kneels, both in a state of groggyness.
They said six people would be enough.
I looked at Sakonguk and smiled.
“There are four of you now?”
“… … Hit!”
Led by Sakong-wook, the swordsmen struck all at once.
But as soon as they reached me, they had to hurriedly distance themselves again,
– Kkwadduk,
Because Go Hyun-woo’s clear stream swept past me.
In the gap, as I pointed to the third swordsman with my root, a whirlwind gathered towards him.
-Whew—
“profit……!”
I struggle to break free, but it is only an empty resistance.
Even third-year student Dang Gyu-young’s movements were temporarily restricted, so there was no way a first-year student could escape.
– Boom!
“Ugh.”
He, like the two before him, was left half-lying and groaning.
– Chae chae chae chae!
Go Hyun-woo protecting me from three knife wielders.
It focuses only on blocking and deflecting sword strikes while mixing in the occasional slash.
They are formidable opponents, so it seems like they are struggling a bit, but they are somehow holding on.
Meanwhile, a look of bewilderment was evident on Sakonguk’s face.
“These guys… … ?”
The ‘guys’ he is so amazed by are not us, but the fallen, groaning swordsmen.
At best, it was just a ball of wind exploding, but everyone was left floundering around, unable to come to their senses.
The reactions are so intense compared to the simple effects that it feels disjointed.
You probably won’t understand why you can’t escape the whirlwind and just get hit by it.
My answer to that question was simple.
“You’ll know when you see it.”
A set of prerequisite skills that form a spiral explosion.
When viewed separately, their pros and cons are clear, but when combined, they complement each other’s shortcomings almost perfectly.
The single point explosion has a high degree of freedom, but has the disadvantage of a narrow range and not very high destructive power, but with the addition of the Air Burst explosion, it has both range and destructive power.
Airburst is a projectile spell, so it has a low hit rate, but if you combine it with the freedom of a single-point explosion and the ability to lock on to enemies with Twister, it becomes more difficult to miss.
This is a skill that is difficult for the opponent to predict or avoid, and almost impossible to block because it ignores defense. That is the Spiral Explosion.
The destructive power of a C-rank spiral explosion is enough to tear apart the steel dolls in the training room in an instant.
It instantly pierces through the various defensive equipment worn by the students of Yongsal Academy and inflicts damage.
If we were to compare the damage to an ordinary person, it would be like the shock of being kicked in the chest or abdomen with all your might.
– Boom!
“Ugh… … .”
So, it was only natural that those who were hit by the spiral explosion were all unconscious.
“There are two left now?”
“… … .”
Suddenly, only Sakongwook and a 900-point swordsman were left.
The initial confident attitude is nowhere to be found, and now he is very serious.
Soon, the two of them started to build up their momentum without any hesitation.
Each one is trying to unfold their own best season.
“No way.”
I pointed to Sa-gong-wook with my root without giving him time.
Sakong-wook quickly dodges away from the scene before trying to spread his wings.
As expected, his reflexes are in the 900s.
however,
“—was fake.”
-Whew—
The target of the whirlwind was not Sa-gong-wook, whom I was pointing at, but another 900-point swordsman.
Since the Spiral Explosion inherits the characteristics of the Point Explosion, it can be cast anywhere in front, back, left, or right that my perception can reach.
Sakong-wook, who didn’t know that fact, couldn’t help but fall for my fake.
– Boom!
“Ugh.”
A 900-point swordsman who can withstand an explosion of compressed air without falling.
It’s as if I’m saying that I’m different from the 600s.
But that was it.
– Boom!
Then, the calligrapher’s sniper shot flew in and hit his head, causing him to fall backwards and be ejected from the dungeon.
“this……!”
Only then did Sa-gong-wook realize that he had been tricked and his face turned pale.
But before he could get angry, Go Hyun-woo charged at him and swung his sword.
I watched the two people exchanging sword strikes,
– Boom!
The spiral explosion was properly detonated.
“Ugh… … .”
“Does it hurt? I see.”
“… … .”
Sa-gong-wook is unable to speak due to extreme pain.
He glares at me with bloodshot eyes as if he’s going to kill me.
I shrugged my shoulders and waved nonchalantly in greeting.
“Give my regards to Senior Makdaeung.”
– Crunch!
He was declared incapacitated by Go Hyun-woo’s sword and disappeared.
What remains where the six swordsmen fell are two crystals.
I handed one of them to Koh Hyun-woo.
“I guess we can just take them one by one.”
“I don’t know if I should accept it. I didn’t do anything this time.”
“You said you didn’t do anything, what stopped you?”
If Go Hyun-woo hadn’t built a solid wall in front of me, I wouldn’t have been able to fire spiral explosions like this.
We also cannot overlook the fact that Shin Byeong-cheol was in charge of charging the crystal.
Thanks to that, the remaining three could focus on defense.
If the calligrapher and I had to face the six swordsmen alone, we would have had a much harder time than we did now.
“So it’s right for each team to have one.”
“Hmm, if Hyung Kim says so, I will gratefully accept it.”
“Are you done, brothers?”
Shin Byeong-cheol, who happened to run over, joined the conversation.
In his hand he held a fully charged green crystal.
As we showed off the loot we had just acquired, Shin Byeong-cheol died in a flash.
“Add one crystal at a time.”
“Oh my~! As expected from you guys. Don’t you think it’s okay for me to ride the bus like this?”
“Your role is important too.”
I took the crystals that Shin Byeong-cheol had charged and handed over the uncharged ones.
“You can go and recharge.”
“Oh, of course not. I have to go. Of course.”
Shin Byeong-cheol, who keeps bowing and accepting the crystal.
Since his fighting power is far inferior to that of Nana Ko Hyun-woo, the calculation is that it is better to just keep charging rather than switching.
That’s also comfortable for the body.
Shin Byeong-cheol quickly jumps into the tower,
– Bang! Bang!
At the top of the tower, the calligrapher was still sniping here and there.
Go Hyun-woo and I also flew to help with the defense.
* * *
After charging, we took some time to rest and settle down a little away from the sanctuary.
As a result, I and the calligrapher have a crystal set,
Go Hyun-woo and Shin Byung-chul now own two crystals.
▷Crystal
[Red Crystal 100%]
[Blue Crystal 100%]
[Green Crystal 100%]
Red Crystal No. 2 is exchanged for a green crystal,
I took the blue crystal from Sakonguk and charged it.
Now, if we just get the yellow one, the midterm exam sub-quest will be over.
Of course, crystals are a good thing, so I try to get as many as I can.
I made a suggestion to Koh Hyun-woo and Shin Byung-chul.
“Let’s move separately from here.”
“I think that would be good too.”
When searching for crystals, it is more efficient to split up into groups of two rather than rushing in as a group of four.
The combat power may be higher, but the crystals obtained are distributed alternately between the two teams.
So we made plans to meet up tomorrow after the distribution.
Since they know each other’s location with twin GPS, it won’t be difficult to meet again.
“One more thing before you go.”
I took out the crystal detector I had taken from Cha Hyun-joo yesterday.
This item indicates the location of the nearest crystal.
Cooldown is 12 hours.
As we manipulated the detector, three diamond-shaped icons appeared around us.
Since all three were pointing in different directions, I decided to leave it to Bokdeungi to decide.
“Take your pick.”
“… … .”
The calligrapher stared down at the detector, then slowly raised his hand and pointed in a direction.
I nodded and spoke to Koh Hyun-woo and Shin Byeong-cheol.
“I will go to the place that Bokdeungnim has chosen.”
“Then let’s go somewhere else. I wish you good luck.”
