episode_0015

“You are….”

Yoon-gi’s mind raced.

An overwhelming atmosphere that couldn’t be described as ordinary.

Seeing a woman with a different charm from Aliyah Valenstine, whom he had met in the first match, I couldn’t help but show my guard.

After all, she lived in a slightly peculiar fantasy world where I, who also lived in a world where people liked me too much, couldn’t say that our first meeting was pleasant.

“….By the way, you’re really a peculiar child.”

….But was my worry unfounded?

She, who had been exuding an unfriendly atmosphere, was now asking me about the reason for my sudden appearance in front of her in a gentle tone without any guard.

“An unimpressive aura, a body and blood so damaged that it’s impossible to tell if you’ve been practicing martial arts. Hmm…. How did you manage to break through that barrier with such a body and reach where I am?”

Break through?

What barrier? Who? Me?

What nonsense is this? I just used an app.

I used it and found myself meeting her.

….But experiencing such things was not new to me, and I was not unaware of the situation, so I decided to watch the situation unfold by roughly skirting around it.

“….I just ended up like this by chance.”

To my surprise, she easily gave up on hearing my answer.

“Well, that’s not really important. What’s important is that you managed to reach me…. Were you climbing this mountain to learn my martial arts, like those ignorant people down there?”

“Yes?”

Martial arts…. and martial arts?

No, by this point, I couldn’t help but realize what kind of world I had come to for the second time.

In the world where Aliyah Valenstine, from the first match, lived, there was a fantasy world that was destroyed by the confrontation between demons and heroes, with races like orcs and elves, humans, monsters, and a demon king.

Then, with talk of martial arts and aura, wearing Chinese-style clothes and speaking in a challenging tone, what kind of world did she live in?

“Tsk. I don’t like being swayed by the rumors spread by those disgusting sects, but I can’t think of a way to get revenge on them…. Well, this must be fate. I’ll give you three chances to attack me.”

With a flick of her finger, she made a provocative gesture.

“Show off your skills to your heart’s content. From now on, I’ll judge if you’re qualified to be my disciple. What, even though I have no weapons, I won’t hold back. With your mediocre skills, just touching my clothes would be quite an accomplishment…. Let’s talk more about this later.”

What kind of situation was I in?

Why do I have to fight this extraordinary-looking woman all of a sudden?

Taking advantage of her waiting for me to move, I checked who I had been matched with.

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[Name: Ju Hwa-ryeon] [Age: 37 (23)] [Race: Human] [Hometown: – (S-33 Earth)] [Occupation: (Former) Sage/World’s Greatest] [Martial Grade: C(S)]

[Compatibility with User: 52%]

-Feeling hurt by those he thought were close to him recently betraying him.

-Life is a solo journey, and he must live alone….

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And upon confirming her martial grade, I couldn’t help but be shocked.

‘So, the slightly intimidating woman’s martial grade is S-rank?’

The status window indicated that she was comparable to an S-rank hunter.

‘No….’

Then I soon noticed something strange.

C(S) rank….

So, does that mean she’s originally S-rank but can only use the power up to C-rank currently?

Come to think of it, her occupation is also strange.

“If you’re the best in the Four Realms, then you’re the best in the Four Realms, and if you’re the best in the world, then you’re the best in the world. What does it mean to be the best in the Four Realms or the best in the world anyway?”

…It seems that I have met another woman with a complicated background, judging by the description of being betrayed by those I thought were my comrades and the disgusting factionalism that was going on.

As I was pondering all this complexity in my head, she spoke.

“….Are you not coming?”

“W-Well, that’s…”

I was still hesitating, not having fully checked her information, when she asked a penetrating question.

“Are you not looking at me while I’m talking to you?”

“Yes?”

“Tsk. I see. It’s done. I offered you a chance to become my disciple personally, but if you lack the will, I don’t want to waste my time talking to someone without determination. If you lack the will, I will look forward to the next one instead of you.”

And then, in the blink of an eye, she closed the distance between us.

Instinctively, I swung my sword as she disappeared from my sight.

“Ha. Is that what you call a counterattack? Your skills are as lacking as your blocked blood flow. No, is it because your skills are so lacking that you only appear to be in your prime? You were clearly lacking in skill to even ask for my teachings in the first place.”

Well, I haven’t learned swordsmanship systematically like you all!

I know she’s a martial artist, but trying to fight a hunter who fights monsters is futile…

“Kwak!”

Before I could even grasp what was happening, she had lunged at me with a square attack, leaving me sitting there in shock.

She was standing in front of me, brushing off her hand.

“Hmm…. With that kind of skill, how did you manage to break through that barrier and come here? It’s starting to make me curious. No, now that I think about it, are you really the one who broke through that barrier and came here? It was strange from the beginning. My energy has been unusable for a long time, and my senses have been distorted because of the barrier, so maybe it’s just my imagination…”

I realized too late.

That’s right, that’s it. So…

“Are you not the one who broke through the barrier and reached me through conventional means? Who are you? Who sent you here? Could it be that bastard master? Did he order you to come and confirm whether I’m dead or not?”

…But instead of clearing up any misunderstandings, I felt like I was sinking deeper into an unfathomable swamp of misunderstandings.

She was looking down at me with a cold gaze.

“No, I…”

“Enough. If you can’t honestly reveal what you have, don’t disturb my peace of mind. I will ask you after I personally undergo the ordeal. Let’s talk about it later.”

I realized that now was not the time to choose means and methods as she approached me with a threatening atmosphere.

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[Muscle Fiber Enhancement (E)]

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I immediately used my only superhuman ability.

In an instant, a huge amount of magical power surged through my body, inflating and strengthening my muscles.

Seeing me like that, she sighed.

“Ha! You Four Realms people have always been weaklings. What is that grotesque appearance? Have you resorted to such a petty ability because you can no longer overwhelm other factions with martial arts?”

…I really shouldn’t be angry right now, but I’m sorry for having such a petty ability!

I wanted to awaken a cool and powerful ability too! But what can I do with this kind of ability!

Anyway, a head-on confrontation is out of the question.

The status bar labeled her as the best in the Four Realms and the best in the world.

Even though I haven’t read many martial arts novels, I couldn’t help but understand what that meant.

Although the situation was from the past and she seemed to have lost some power since then, she was still not someone a weakling like me could handle.

With the mindset of enduring until the matching time was over, I relentlessly swung my sword to prevent her from approaching me.

“Ha. The destructive power has definitely increased compared to earlier, but what good is it if it’s not accurate?”

Well, my only goal was to buy time until the matching time was up and it was time to return to Earth.

I had no reason to suppress or kill her.

But even so, it was not an easy task as she approached me with ghostly steps, showing no fear of the sword I wielded.

Oh.

How did I end up in the midst of a horde of monsters…?

It was an unavoidable situation to survive, but at this point, I questioned if this was the right path to survival.

She spoke.

“From your posture to the force you put into swinging the sword, everything is a mess. There is no philosophy or doctrine to be found in your swordsmanship. What are you thinking, and what is your purpose in wielding the sword?”

“….”

…She probably wanted to teach me a lesson as a senior who had entered the martial arts world first, but as a modern person not involved in martial arts, her words were like gibberish.

What philosophy, what doctrine.

When all I did with the sword was to kill and render the opponent unable to fight, what importance did philosophy or doctrine hold?

The purpose of the sword was simply to kill the opponent and render them unable to fight.

…Yes, she was definitely a master far above me, so she probably wasn’t speaking complete nonsense.

But the problem was that I wasn’t in a state of mind to accept her words as they were.

I closed my ears and focused on using my strength to prevent her from approaching me.

“What do you seek to gain from wielding the sword?”

This was the only weapon I could handle well with my psychic abilities.

The reason I wielded the sword was simply that.

Swish!

As she dodged my horizontal swing, she said, “People wield swords for various reasons. Some do it to earn a living, some for honor, some for their own ambitions. There are many reasons, but the fundamental desire is always there.”

…So, the world we live in is all the same, huh.

In the end, the sword exists to fulfill one’s own desires through violence.

“But you…”

Even after all this, she remained unfazed.

I realized how strong the person I was facing truly was.

Regardless of the reasons people attach to wielding the sword, the actions taken with the sword are not far from killing.

“…All I sense from your sword is self-loathing and resignation. Is wielding the sword a torment for you?”

…But she kept spouting strange words.