Chapter 38: The Beginning of Change (2)

“Argh!” Cho Un-hwi cried out in despair.

He had gone to the supply room to pick up some broken dummies, only to be met with devastating news.

“Why are there no dummies?!”

“Well, classes were suspended for a while, so there were no dummies to break.”

Mo Yong So-hye’s face was bright and cheerful. She was clearly enjoying her break from hard labor.

Cho Un-hwi clutched his head.

“Ugh, how am I going to clear my demerit points?!”

“You could just avoid getting demerit points in the first place.”

“You don’t understand the struggles of adulthood.”

He raised his index finger solemnly.

“Adults have a hard time waking up in the morning.”

“And my blankets have been attacking me lately. They’re like a thousand-pound weight! I can’t even get out of bed!”

“It’s not my fault I’m lazy and skip the morning meetings!”

Mo Yong So-hye looked at him, her expression a mixture of amusement and pity.

“How often do you lose to your blankets?”

“Seven days a week.”

He held up seven fingers proudly.

Mo Yong So-hye sighed.

‘He’s hopeless. I’ll never be like him.’

But Baek Ri-seol, who usually kept everyone at arm’s length but was always cheerful around Cho Un-hwi, had a different opinion.

“Oh my! You’re so cool!”

“As expected of Instructor Cho! I want to be a cool adult like you!”

“Hmm, you can be a cool adult like me too.”

“Instructor! Let’s be cool adults together!”

“Sure, sure.”

Cho Un-hwi sighed as he listened to their nonsensical conversation.

He noticed two familiar figures approaching them: Namgung Yun-ho and Jegal Tan.

“You’re late. What happened?”

“Well…”

Namgung Yun-ho scratched the back of his head and handed him a piece of paper.

“What’s this? An insurance policy?”

“…No, sir.”

“I’m not signing any guarantees.”

“It’s not…”

Jegal Tan interjected, “The midterm exam dates have been set.”

“Oh, really?”

“They’ve caught the perpetrators, and the memorial service is over, so they’re resuming the exams.”

It was inevitable.

“Let me see that.”

Cho Un-hwi beckoned him closer.

***

He unfolded the paper.

“The exam format has changed,” Namgung Yun-ho said.

“Already? I heard they were going to focus on training students for real-world combat, but I didn’t expect it to happen so quickly.”

“Master Dokgo has been pushing for it, and it seems Chief Administrator Seon is also supportive.”

Dokgo Yul.

He was thorough and efficient.

Cho Un-hwi thought about his troublesome subordinate and shuddered.

“Hmm… they’ve added a few things.”

He scanned the paper.

“The Four Directions Sword Formation and the sparring matches are the same… but they’ve added a written exam.”

“What?!”

Cho Un-hwi’s face contorted in disgust.

“What’s this? ‘Murim Common Sense’? Does anyone know anything about this?”

“I’ve never heard of it.”

“Me neither.”

“Me neither.”

Jegal Tan, however, seemed to have an idea.

“It’s basic knowledge that students learn before they go on their training expeditions. It’s part of the Euncheon Hall curriculum.”

“There’s no such thing as common sense in the Murim.”

Everything goes out the window when you draw your sword.

Jegal Tan disagreed.

“It’s actually a popular subject. Some students have said that it helped them in dangerous situations.”

“I doubt common sense would be of any use in this barbaric world…”

But it was part of the exam.

He needed to know what it was about.

“What kind of common sense are they testing?”

“For example, there’s a question about what to do if a stranger approaches you while you’re camping alone.”

Cho Un-hwi answered without hesitation.

“The answer is obvious. Kill them if they’re annoying, spare them if you like them.”

“…That’s wrong. The correct answer is ‘Allow them to join you, but keep your weapons close at hand while you sleep, be wary of poisoned food, and watch out for any suspicious movements.’”

“Why would you go through all that trouble?”

Jegal Tan sighed.

“We’re supposed to be righteous martial artists! We can’t just kill people on a whim.”

“You can tell at a glance whether someone’s worth killing or sparing.”

“No, you can’t!”

He sighed again.

These kids were so naive.

“What’s another example?”

“One of the most common questions is about what to do if you’re poisoned at an inn.”

“The answer is simple! Stab the person closest to you, then kill anyone who tries to attack you.”

“That’s wrong! Why are you so quick to resort to violence?!”

“The person who poisoned you is most likely the one closest to you.”

“What if you accidentally stab an innocent person?”

“It can’t be helped. My life is more important. If you feel bad, you can always give the dead person some money for their journey to the afterlife.”

Jegal Tan massaged his temples.

“…I’ll take care of the written exam. I have some old test papers from Euncheon Hall that should be helpful.”

“Thanks, that would be great.”

He was relieved that someone was willing to handle the headache-inducing task.

But Baek Ri-seol was surprisingly resistant.

She jumped up and down, waving her hand excitedly.

“I want to study with Instructor Cho! I want to learn his common sense!”

“Sister, you’ll end up in jail if you do that.”

“It’s okay! My clan will bribe the officials to release me!”

Jegal Tan frowned.

“If you fail the midterm exam, you’ll be the only one stuck in Dongcheon Hall. Are you sure about this?”

Baek Ri-seol immediately calmed down and bowed her head.

“…Instructor, I’m sorry, but I’ll have to study with Jegal Tan this time.”

“Alright.”

The rest of the exam format was fairly straightforward.

The point distribution had changed, and the overall structure seemed more organized.

“Well, it’s not that bad.”

But Namgung Yun-ho, who had been silent until now, spoke up, his voice filled with worry.

“This is the part that concerns me the most.”

He pointed to the last item on the list.

“Sparring matches against Euncheon Hall students?”

“…They’re giving us a chance to spar against higher-ranked students to gain experience.”

It was a good idea.

“But why?”

“It’s not just a regular sparring match. We’re not limited to using the Shinmu Sword Technique like in the monthly matches.”

As Namgung Yun-ho pointed out, the sparring matches against the Euncheon Hall students had no restrictions on martial arts techniques.

This meant that they would be directly comparing their skills, not just their proficiency in the Shinmu Sword Technique.

“The Euncheon Hall students are the best of the best. They’ve all mastered secret techniques from their clans and sects.”

“That’s true. They say Euncheon Hall is the real Shinmu Academy.”

Dongcheon Hall was just a stepping stone. The truly talented students started their training in Euncheon Hall.

In other words, the level of competition was completely different.

Namgung Yun-ho’s voice lost its confidence.

“Do you think I can win against them?”

“What are you worried about?”

Cho Un-hwi chuckled.

He crumpled the paper into a ball and tossed it aside.

“Stop overthinking it and focus on your training.”

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going to help the heavy drinkers train their neglected students.”

The heavy drinkers? Neglected students?

“B-but…”

Namgung Yun-ho tried to stop him, but Cho Un-hwi was already walking away.

“Don’t even think about losing.”

He added, “The bonus points are high,” before disappearing from sight.

Namgung Yun-ho’s face fell.

***

After Cho Un-hwi left, the three students huddled together, their faces etched with worry.

“Yun-ho’s right. We can’t be complacent. I’m worried.”

Mo Yong So-hye said.

“It wouldn’t be a problem if we were facing ordinary students. But if we’re unlucky enough to draw a strong opponent from Euncheon Hall… it could be a close match.”

“I heard the Euncheon Hall students are on a completely different level. We can’t be too confident.”

Namgung Yun-ho nodded, his expression grim.

“The gap in skill will be even wider if they’ve mastered superior martial arts techniques.”

“And there’s also the issue of compatibility.”

“And their internal energy levels will be higher. Hmm.”

Their worries deepened.

It wouldn’t be a problem if they were just sparring for fun. But they had to win.

They had heard rumors that some of the Euncheon Hall students were strong enough to hold their own in the real world.

“We need to get those bonus points. I’m running low on dummies.”

“You’re right, Sister. Some of the Euncheon Hall students are said to be real-world ready.”

Namgung Yun-ho presented a worst-case scenario.

“What if we lose to a high-ranking student from Euncheon Hall?”

The three students’ faces turned pale.

They imagined their instructor’s wrath.

“No, we can’t let that happen. I’m sure he’ll look cool even when he’s angry, but we can’t risk it.”

“Waaah! He’ll probably make me fix dummies for the rest of my life!”

“…He’ll be terrifying if he loses those bonus points.”

The three students were lost in thought.

Jegal Tan, however, was baffled.

‘A close match?’

Did they think the Euncheon Hall students were invincible monsters?

He had been to Euncheon Hall, and he knew that they were overestimating their opponents.

“Don’t worry, I was one of the strongest students in Euncheon Hall.”

“Shut up, dropout.”

Baek Ri-seol’s words stung.

‘Dropout? She called me a dropout?’

His smile vanished, and his face turned cold.

“Do you think I’m that weak?”

“Hmph, have you forgotten how badly I beat you before?”

“Oh, I remember. But we’ll have to wait and see if the outcome is the same this time. I’ve gotten stronger.”

Their eyes met, sparks flying.

Namgung Yun-ho intervened.

“That’s enough.”

“Yun-ho.”

“She’s not entirely wrong, is she?”

Jegal Tan backed down, unable to resist Namgung Yun-ho’s playful wink.

“Fine, do whatever you want.”

He had only wanted to reassure them.

If they wanted to delude themselves, he wouldn’t stop them.

He leaned against the wall, his arms crossed.

“I’ll take care of myself. You do the same.”

Namgung Yun-ho clapped his hands.

“Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles. We need to assess our own strengths before we worry about our opponents. Let’s start with some individual practice.”

Baek Ri-seol and Mo Yong So-hye nodded in agreement.