Chapter 36 Awakening (1)
The scattered puzzle pieces awkwardly start fitting together little by little. The reason why Kim Chae-eun, a talented and charming player, wasn’t in the original work was because she became a victim of indiscriminate murder orchestrated by <Villain> clan and Ha Do-kwon in the end-of-term evaluation.
‘So, Professor Kim Myeong-hyun’s involvement wasn’t also revealed.’ If Kim Chae-eun dies in this incident, Professor Kim Myeong-hyun would have retired from the Academy and disappeared. Then, after discovering the entire truth, he would have sharpened his vengeance sword against <Villain> clan.
The <Villain> Clan is a criminal organization that commits countless heinous and chilling crimes, and naturally, there are many Holders who live their lives seeking revenge against them. If the story followed the original, Professor Kim Myeong-hyun might have been one of those avengers. This development might have been overlooked or appeared later in the original work, which is likely high,since I couldn’t see it and ended up in this situation.
So, I didn’t anticipate that Kim Chae-eun’s opponent would be Ha Do-kwon. “Damn it…” I couldn’t help but swear at my own carelessness. I should have predicted this.
“Why? What’s wrong?” Park Jin-woo, taken aback by my sudden profanity, asked.
While looking at him, I noticed the sword hanging at his waist. “Park Jin-woo, lend me your sword.”
“What? Again? Ah, no way. You’re going to break it like last time.”
He was referring to the sword I borrowed when capturing Grizzly Drake. Back then, I infused the sword with all my magic power and pushed it beyond its limits, using [Sky-Shattering Heavenly Sword]. However, it couldn’t withstand the massive magic power and advanced skills of the opponent, and the sword shattered into pieces. Although I did ask him afterwards, he seemed unhappy that the sword had been broken even for a moment.
I immediately made a deal. “I’ll buy you an even more expensive one. No, I’ll give you double the price.”
“Again, using money to solve things. You’re like a third-generation chaebol. Forget it. I have plenty of money too.”
It seemed like he was still mad about it. Park Jin-woo’s attitude was quite stubborn. I sighed softly and then made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.
“…I’ll give you ten re-duels. Whenever you want.”
“Oh, damn. Why are you asking? I’ll give it to you right away. Should I sharpen it for you?”
“Just shut up and hand it over, quickly.”
After receiving the sword from Park Jin-woo, I surveyed the tension-filled exam room.
-Both Holders, greet each other, and prepare for the duel.
The duel was already entering its initial phase. I needed to plan quickly. ‘I can’t just stop the duel without a plan.’
Honestly, I wanted to shout at Kim Chae-eun to escape quickly and take care of that Ha Do-kwon bastard myself. But that could have backfired. Right now, Ha Do-kwon was just an ordinary examinee who hadn’t done anything wrong. Trying to stop him like a crazy person would only harm Kim Chae-eun.
It was a time to act rationally rather than emotionally. ‘A few injuries here and there won’t be a problem.’
In all practical duels within the Academy, causing harm to the opponent in any way was allowed. There were several reasons for this. It matched the concept of ‘real-life combats’, and because Holders had the stat of ‘Toughness’, they could withstand some rough dueling. Even so, the crucial reason was the existence of the supervisors and the Recovery Medical Team.
The supervisor overseeing the test was a high-grade Holder who could intervene in emergencies, and similarly, the Recovery Medical Team could treat any trauma the Holder suffered. Basic safety measures were in place.
‘But it’s a different story if you attack the vitals.’
In practical duels where everything was permitted, there was only one thing prohibited: attacking the vitals, such as the head or heart, or continuously attacking the same area. Such fatal attacks would cause the Holder to die instantly, without any opportunity for the supervisor or medical team to intervene.
That’s why the Academy strictly prohibited such attacks in practical duels. Even so, Ha Do-kwon disregarded the rules and killed the opponent.
In other words, I had to take advantage of the moment when Ha Do-kwon aimed at Kim Chae-eun’s vitals. I had to turn that moment around. To do that, Kim Chae-eun needed to endure a little longer, and I had to find a clean opportunity to strike.
‘I can do this.’
I tightly gripped the sword Park Jin-woo had handed me. I could do it, and I had to do it. I couldn’t let my first friend become a sacrificial lamb to <Villain> Clan’s cruel and indiscriminate murder plan. The duel began, filled with tension as the stern signal from the supervisor echoed.
-Duel, begin.
‘Such a perfect prey to feast on.’ Ha Do-kwon’s desire to quickly chop off the attractive-looking Holder in front of him with his axe boiled up. He was already a criminal with a history of killing civilians, and the number reached five. Even before becoming a Holder, he used his axe to chop people, and after awakening, he became even more ruthless and committed murders without hesitation.
After joining the <Villain> Clan, he had to suppress his desires while operating in the Academy branch. But after a very long time, he finally received an order from the higher-ups that pleased him. They adjusted the matchups to put him against a mage-type Holder, and the order was to kill the opponent no matter who it was. This was a large-scale operation planned by the Clan to cause chaos in the Seoul Holder Academy and involved multiple spies infiltrating the Academy.
“Hehehe… Tastes like it’s been a while since I’ve enjoyed some blood.” Ha Do-kwon’s entire body was excited at the thought. He volunteered as a player for this operation. Even if he was caught immediately after the operation and became the Clan’s sacrifice, he didn’t care about such bothersome futures. He just wanted to kill someone, to experience the sweet sensation of murder once again.
“Duel, begin.”
“Hehehe-!!”
As soon as the signal from the supervisor was given, Ha Do-kwon rushed towards Kim Chae-eun with his axe. His [Axe] rune was already at level 11, and his abilities were almost close to Grade B. Kim Chae-eun, a mid-tier mage-type Holder, was barely at Grade C even if she was close to the high-tier. She had no chance of blocking this attack. She needed to use her high speed to directly evade the attack or utilize [Magic Barrier] to block it.
However, to skillfully use [Magic Barrier], which was a derivative skill of [Magic Control], she needed to have relatively good grades even in the high-tier. Even assuming they had similar abilities, it wasn’t easy for mage-type Holders to defeat warrior-type Holders.
This was the moment Ha Do-kwon aimed to end it all. If he managed to chop off her head, blood would splatter everywhere, and the arena would fall into chaos. Ha Do-kwon delighted in the thought as he swung his axe with all his might.
“…Huh?”
But suddenly, Ha Do-kwon’s movements stopped. The air around his rushing feet became chillingly cold, and everything began freezing in an instant. It was Kim Chae-eun’s main rune, [Freezing], and specifically, the derivative skill [Field Freezing], which froze everything on the ground and above it.
“Hehe.”
Before him, Kim Chae-eun prepared for her next magic with a bright smile.
‘That son of a…!’ Ha Do-kwon cursed inwardly, feeling the chills spreading. She was a Holder who might be promoted to the high-tier, and it seemed that she was not weak enough to die from a single axe strike.
He nodded slightly and lit up his eyes. He had to be more cruel and inflict more pain to kill her. “Huaaah-!!” Ha Do-kwon poured magic into his axe and brought it down heavily on the ground. It was the derivative skill of the [Axe] rune, [Axe Charging], a destructive skill that could easily shatter even walls made of magic stones.
Breaking the ice that Kim Chae-eun created was no trouble at all. “Ah…!” Kim Chae-eun, who was preparing to follow up with her attack, looked surprised. She hadn’t expected the ice from [Field Freezing] to shatter so easily. Since she hadn’t completed [Field Freezing] yet, the light magic attack she sent at Ha Do-kwon through [Magic Control] was weaker than rune magic, but it was still an effective attack if continued.
“Useless tricks!”
Ha Do-kwon defended against all her attacks with his body. He was a typical warrior-type Holder with high strength and toughness. While his speed was slightly lacking, his superior abilities allowed him to maximize the use of [Axe]. He successfully defended against all her attacks and swung the axe towards Kim Chae-eun.
“Die!”
“…!!”
Woosh- The axe swung by Ha Do-kwon came dangerously close to her head, but she managed to avoid it at the last moment. Her evasion seemed like a miracle, considering her speed. Kim Chae-eun was quick to respond due to her extensive practical experience, and Ha Do-kwon’s lack of high speed allowed her to perform such a feat.
‘It’s over.’
However, Ha Do-kwon was confident that her life would be gone with his next attack. The key to victory for close-range fighters against long-range fighters was to quickly close the distance and land effective strikes before any magic or projectiles could hit. By doing so, they could overpower the long-range fighters and suppress their attacks.
Ha Do-kwon had successfully closed the distance after blocking her two previous attacks and sacrificing one of his own. Now, he was in a situation where the distance was entirely closed.
‘Axe Charging.’
This time, he infused his axe with all the magic and strength he had. Kim Chae-eun’s legs were tangled, causing her to stumble. She lost her balance while trying to evade the previous attack, leaving her in a vulnerable position. Moreover, she didn’t even see Ha Do-kwon’s next attack coming.
If this attack hit her, Kim Chae-eun’s head would be crushed as it is.
‘Huh. finally, finally…. How long has it been since I’ve seen the taste of blood!!’
Excitement runs through his body at the thought of tasting blood. His throat as he swallows his saliva trembles, and his hands holding the axe are sweaty.
Since they hadn’t aimed at the crucial areas yet, even the supervisor could not have predicted that anything special would happen.
If he cut Kim Chae-eun’s head with an axe like this, everyone will find out about his murder.
“For real, die… !!”
His axe was approaching her head, and it seemed like he didn’t plan to change his target. The next moment, however, someone shouted his name loudly.
Ha Do-kwonnn-!!
Ha Do-kw-on, Ha Do-kwo-nnn, Ha Do-kwon-!!
His name echoed. Simultaneously, his axe, which was about to reach Kim Chae-eun’s head…. Stopped right in front of her.
‘What… What’s going on?’
Ha Do-kwon’s face showed surprise. He had put all his strength into the axe, but suddenly, after the shout, his body came to a halt.
Frozen.
His body literally stopped moving.
Ha Do-kwon was somewhat familiar with this state. It was probably the ‘Fear’ status effect. It was already astonishing that someone had a status effect like this in an actual duel match where nobody would normally interfere. Moreover, to use it at the perfect timing, it was impossible to predict without thoroughly understanding <Villain>’s plan.
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