Ch.178Chapter 178: Frantically, That Is

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Leaving behind the small insights gained from the training grounds.

I made my way to my room to complete the last item on today’s schedule.

As I walked, many thoughts appeared and disappeared in my mind.

Though I spent the least amount of time there compared to my other activities today, I gained the most from it.

Lightly sweating while performing sword dances in the training grounds.

Thanks to gaining insights even lighter than that sweat.

On the marble floor of the training grounds where I couldn’t leave even a trace no matter what I tried before.

I left clear sword marks proving my strikes.

For what counts as a small insight, I achieved quite good results.

If I still had the pathetic character I possessed before my regression.

I would have certainly acted like I owned the world with this level of achievement, but.

“Even this insight seems trivial as I’m going to meet someone who can teach me, making my steps feel heavy again.”

Unfortunately… or perhaps fortunately.

Since I had to meet someone who could instantly calm this excitement.

My footsteps toward my room had already changed to a composed pace.

It might seem like my emotions fluctuated too much right after gaining insight.

But how could they not?

[Huaaahm…]

Making a long, thin yawning sound as if just waking up.

[Today my condition is better than other days. Young one, look forward to it.]

Standing before Fafnir, who eagerly awaits our match.

It’s clear he’ll present me with a wall much larger than the one I broke through with my insight.

How could I be excited about something like that?

Well, even so, I don’t dislike it.

At least I can gauge how much my sword, which has taken a small step forward with insight, will work against him.

“…Instead of taking all ten hits, maybe I can get away with just nine, so let’s do our best.”

Though it sounds pitiful.

Since I always approach my matches with Fafnir in the mist as if I’m putting my life on the line.

Even this much is something to be grateful for.

As I continued walking while calming my mind, the unusually bright full moon’s light shone down on me like a spotlight.

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After returning to my room with all preparations made.

[I’m ready.]

As if he had been waiting, Fafnir called to me.

“…”

Silently drawing the dragon sword at my waist with my right hand.

Infusing it with fighting spirit.

Wooong-!!

The now-familiar resonance sound pierced my ears.

Without my vision blurring like before.

I arrived in the mist-covered space where I always came to train.

The thick fog obscuring my view remained the same.

But now I was used to even this.

With body strengthening techniques enhancing my vision significantly, I could afford to look around.

“…It’s really amazing how I get here every time, by whatever principle.”

Before I could even process it, I arrived in this unfamiliar… no, I shouldn’t call it unfamiliar anymore. I’ve already spent months here.

Anyway, as soon as I arrived.

“I thought my neck would fall off waiting for you, Inseok.”

Unlike before, I could immediately face Fafnir who was waiting for me.

Sitting on a magnificent chair that could be called a throne, glowing with a subtle red color.

When I first set foot in this space.

I repeatedly wandered through the impenetrable fog.

And barely managed to meet him by walking toward the bright red light I could barely see.

Now I see Fafnir as soon as I arrive in this space, which means I have more time to train, which is an advantage.

“Both my condition and yours are good, so there will be no holding back.”

Whether he knew my thoughts or not, Fafnir’s voice, as he looked down at me intently from his throne, revealed anticipation.

Since I grew stronger day by day, albeit slightly, each time I entered this place.

It could be called a kind of exhilaration from feeling the worth of facing me.

It was always up to me to live up to that expectation.

And Fafnir always showed me a wall, as if to spur on my efforts.

What would it be like today?

Let me try a light provocation before starting to induce him to move first.

“Well, when have you ever held back? You’re the one who said you were happy to have a sandbag that doesn’t get injured no matter how much you hi—”

Shiiik-!!

Ah, damn. Did he fall for such a cheap provocation too easily?

You could at least give me time to finish speaking.

Before I could finish my sentence, Fafnir rose from his throne and rushed toward me with a physical attack….

“Oh? You dodged?”

I… dodged?

Anyway, I narrowly avoided Fafnir’s fist that came flying without giving me time to react.

…This actually worked?

I’m simply amazed.

Until now, my matches with Fafnir in this mist always started with him taking the initiative.

There’s an expression about knowing something is coming but still not being able to block it.

No phrase better matched Fafnir’s opening attacks in our matches.

No matter what stance I took, his attacks accompanied by admirably fluid movements were incredible.

If I saw his body leaning forward in a rush and protected my upper body expecting a punch, I would inevitably be struck by a sharp kick to my vulnerable legs.

Conversely, if I lowered my center of gravity and focused on protecting my lower body when he obviously targeted it.

He would twist his body at the perfect moment and plant a fist in my chin—that was Fafnir’s style.

This time, without using such tricks.

He showed me an attack demonstrating his overwhelming skill.

Unlike the past where he forced me into binary choices, blocking was difficult and dodging was even harder.

Yet I managed to dodge this….

The wind pressure created by his punch.

Barely grazed my cheek.

Leaving a slight wound mark on my cheek, but.

My super-regeneration ability erased the wound mark the moment I tried to perceive it.

“…”

“…”

Both Fafnir and I maintained silence in the face of this unexpected situation, but only briefly.

Toward Fafnir, whose balance was slightly disrupted due to the punch he had thrown with full force, expecting it to hit.

Clank-!!

The locking mechanism in the dragon sword’s scabbard naturally released in sync with my will.

Sruung-!!

With the gleaming white blade of the dragon sword flashing as it emerged from its scabbard.

My counterattack began.

“Eek!!”

Fafnir, making a playful sound as he saw the sword being drawn, quickly moved to a place where the sword’s path couldn’t reach him.

But fortunately, faster than Fafnir’s dazzling footwork.

“Haaaa!!”

My movement of drawing the dragon sword with a powerful shout was faster.

Unfortunately, since it was a hasty counterattack without activating my breathing technique.

I couldn’t use my lethal spirit sword, but.

At this rate, my sword’s path might not damage Fafnir’s Red Dragon Armor, but it would at least touch—

Screech-!!

…What is this sound?

Surprised by the cutting sound I had never heard before during my matches with Fafnir here, my body froze.

My gaze fixed on Fafnir’s right side where my sword had made contact.

At the edge of my vision, I could clearly see a sword mark that I had certainly made on Fafnir’s Red Dragon Armor.

It wasn’t enough to cut through the armor and slice the flesh and bone beneath.

But it was clearly an effective hit that anyone could see.

It was the first time this had happened in my matches with Fafnir.

It was astonishing.

During my matches with Fafnir.

I had targeted his Red Dragon Armor with my sword countless times when momentary openings appeared.

But just like at the end of the Subjugation Festival.

True to its reputation as the armor that firmly protected my body against the mighty demon god Renum and other powerful figures of the demon realm who targeted me.

The dragon sword couldn’t even leave a trace on the surface of the Red Dragon Armor, let alone a sword mark.

Even when I used the spirit sword that would have inflicted fatal wounds on ordinary demons or demonic beasts with just a graze.

But now, what happened?

Without even using the spirit sword, just executing a basic drawing and cutting motion due to the hasty counterattack.

A clean sword mark that even I couldn’t find fault with was engraved on Fafnir’s Red Dragon Armor.

It was simply baffling.

And because of this, a fatal opening was created that would have been life-threatening in a real battle.

I was so stunned looking at the sword mark I had created that I couldn’t respond at all.

Based on my experience from months of matches with Fafnir.

When such an opening occurred, it was natural to receive Fafnir’s terrifying counterattack, but.

“…Huh?”

Fortunately, it seemed I wasn’t the only one surprised by this situation.

“Why is there a sword mark on the Red Dragon Armor?”

Forgetting even to counterattack, Fafnir was stroking the sword mark engraved on his Red Dragon Armor with a voice filled with surprise.

I couldn’t read Fafnir’s expression since he wore a full-face helmet that didn’t reveal a single piece of his expression.

But Fafnir, standing there stroking the mark as if it were a wound on his own body, seemed more intent on calmly organizing what had just happened to him in his mind.

Fortunately, I didn’t have to worry about receiving his angry counterattack….

Whack-!!

“…Ugh.”

Fafnir’s palm strike, shattering my expectations, hit my chin hard.

Damn it.

My knees naturally gave way and touched the ground after taking the full brunt of an attack that came with movement impossible to follow with the eyes.

“It seems you haven’t yet internalized what I taught you about being careful when I intentionally create openings.”

The voice of Fafnir that reached my ears as I knelt wasn’t the excited voice he made when using me as a punching bag.

It carried the solemnity of a master passing down teachings to a later generation.

“Can you stand?”

How could I? I took a direct hit to the chin and my head is still ringing.

“I took a solid hit. I can speak, but I still can’t stand up.”

But I couldn’t say that outright, so I spoke with a much more refined response while raising my head.

“Wait.”

Fafnir, who had no intention of ending our match yet, waited for me to stand up with his arms crossed.

Taking a deep breath, my brain, momentarily shaken from the hard hit to my chin, gradually regained its function, and I slowly began to rise from the ground.

Shiiik-!!

The sound of cutting wind near my ear made me roll hastily instead of standing up.

Oh, he’s not giving me any slack at all.

Crack-!!

A fierce, chilling sound of rupture came from where I had been just moments ago.

As my gaze, finally regaining its function, turned toward the source of the sound.

“…I think I would have died if that had hit me.”

Barely suppressing the urge to gasp, I evaluated Fafnir’s failed heel drop.

This wasn’t just empty talk.

If his heel had connected with my head or body instead of the innocent ground.

I would certainly have suffered injuries so critical that even with my super-regeneration ability, I wouldn’t have been able to move for about 30 minutes.

Given the ruins left behind, to the point where I can’t even remember what was originally there, this thought isn’t wrong.

Hearing my words, Fafnir, once again showing no sign of disappointment despite his attack failing, shrugged his shoulders toward me, still unable to rise from my position.

“You won’t die, you won’t die. Since you managed to land such a blow on me, you won’t die from something like this.”

With a voice full of composure, revealing unlimited trust in my durability(?).

Shiiik-!!

He swung his right foot, which had turned everything at the end of its trajectory to dust, toward me like a whip.

I’ve seen a few times where superhuman beings who have reached the pinnacle of sword mastery can launch sword energy that physically damages opponents beyond the reach of their swords, even without infusing fighting spirit.

The vacuum blades originating from Fafnir’s dazzling kicks were similar to such sword energy.

The difference was.

Despite not wielding a blade, the vacuum blades from Fafnir’s kicks were far more threatening?

If I had to compare, I’d say the sword energy from Sister’s formless sword that brilliantly marked the climax of the Subjugation Festival would be comparable to this.

‘Am I going to die?’

I won’t really die, but.

The thought crosses my mind because the majesty of this attack is so great that it feels like I might.

Seeing the display of vacuum blades filling my vision while my body was still not fully recovered from being knocked down.

“Haha…”

A hollow laugh, encapsulating all the bitterness of life, burst from my lips.

This is why I like Fafnir.

He makes me understand my place.