110 – Yeongsan (4)
“This is the centipede.”
[Hing.]
After the sparring ended. I was trembling in a corner with Flügel.
I said I would do my best, but I never thought I would lose.
…… Of course, considering my opponent’s level, it would be strange for me to win.
Still, I honestly didn’t want to lose, so it’s a bit disappointing.
Although I accepted the defeat, I continued to talk to Flügel for some reason.
“If I had given 100%, I would have easily won. Don’t you think so? Flügel.”
[Oh, that’s right. Dante. But people usually call that a mental victory.]
“…… sh*t.”
Of course, it was sunk with just one word.
This guy also talks too much.
‘…… Well, today is not the only opportunity.’
Anyway, as Flügel said, I decided to just lie down and have a mental victory.
I came here to practice.
Next time I become stronger and take on the challenge, I might be able to win.
“Well, I’d like to go out soon…” ….”
I muttered and stood up.
Because catching monsters is one of the plans.
If I remember correctly, I should be able to find a few suitable ones.
A guy I can deal with, but who also has quite a useful inner circle.
First of all, a supernatural ability is a power that is expressed based on mental power, so things like increasing magical power will not be helpful.
To begin with, my body doesn’t have a reasonable amount of magical power.
However, this does not mean that Naedan is not helpful. If I can shorten the time required to train my body, it will ultimately be of great help to my strength.
“Okay, then.”
First, let’s go to the Sword Saint and see.
No matter what, I had to get permission to go out.
I will never be able to go to the area where the fog is thick by myself, but I know that near the castle, the surrounding monsters are weakened by the barrier’s ability.
No matter how foggy the mountains are, it won’t be so bad that you can’t move around.
Thinking like that, I looked around to find the Sword Saint’s residence. Now that you think about it, where does the old man usually stay?
It was then.
“Were you here?”
“…… “f*ck, I’m surprised.”
Someone suddenly appeared without warning and thrust their face in front of me.
Because of that, I almost cursed for a moment…….
“…… “Young man?”
I had to blink after quickly confirming the identity of that person. Because none other than the person I was looking for, Geomseong, was there.
He looked at me and furrowed his eyebrows as if disapproving.
“How can that rude way of speaking not change? Even though it seems like they are afraid of me, it’s really amazing how they are secretly comfortable with me.”
“Ah. hahahaha… ….”
Hearing his words, I scratched the back of my head with an embarrassed expression.
Unfortunately, even Tsumei couldn’t correct my way of speaking.
Anyway, I quickly changed the topic.
“Why did you come to a corner like this? “Are you looking for me?”
When I think about his first words, it seems like he was looking for me on purpose, but I can’t really guess why.
Why is Geomsung me?
“I was looking for you.”
Of course, such doubts were quickly resolved by Geomsung’s reply.
“I couldn’t bear to look at that poor sword.”
“Uh… ….”
The sudden harsh words left me with a blank expression for a moment.
No, old man, no matter what, it is a poor sword.
“That.”
I wanted to refute for a moment, but I couldn’t say anything in the end.
It’s a poor sword.
No one feels good after being criticized, but if it is true, it is embarrassing to refute it.
It seems like the swordsman is currently focusing on the ‘sword’ rather than my abilities.
“…… It can’t be helped, right? “You may not know, but it hasn’t been that long since I picked up a sword.”
So I had no choice but to make such poor excuses.
Honestly, there are some unfair aspects.
Well, the time since I held the sword is less than a few months since I was with Flügel.
If I was able to perfect something remarkable in swordsmanship in such a short period of time, I would be blessed with talent.
Unfortunately, not only Dante’s body, but also the person inside it, was not very talented at using my body, so I did not get good results.
Until now, and probably forever.
However, it seems that even my reasonable words did not sound very good to Geomsung.
For the first time, his expression was slightly crumpled, showing sincerity.
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“You idiot, you know that’s a pretty bad excuse, right? It hasn’t been that long since you used a sword, so you can’t handle it properly? If so, have you made any efforts to solve that weakness?”
“…… That.”
And with those words, I couldn’t come up with any more excuses either.
Purely, I couldn’t find anything to say.
Because that certainly wasn’t wrong.
I touched the flugel shamelessly.
At that time, the eyes of the Sword Saint also turned towards Flügel.
“What’s worse, you have a sword like that and it’s rotting away, tsk tsk… ….”
I had no choice but to stop her hand, which was stroking her, with a big flinch.
“You are now in a much worse condition than the old Aria, let alone that Grisha guy. Aria had outstanding talent, and Grisha combined her talent with hard work and good weapons.”
“…… “Did you know Grisha?”
“Then you know. “The head of the Finnier family is also one of my friends.”
Geomseong gave a cursory answer to my question, looking slightly surprised, and glared at me with a displeased expression once again.
“But isn’t that important now? Grisha’s divine spear is clearly an ego weapon, but even so, the user’s capabilities do not lag behind the weapon. On the other hand, what about you?”
I briefly stiffened at the words that followed.
Because there was a strange tone in Geomseong’s words.
I carefully observed his behavior, and the Sword Saint clicked his tongue and winked at Flügel as if he knew everything.
“For you now, it is actually poisonous because it is an ego weapon. “It would be much better to use the iron swords found everywhere.”
“… ….”
“Even if you think about it, you don’t have anything to refute, right?”
Needless to say, I remained silent, and Geomseong continued to click his tongue with an even more disgusted look on his face.
Did this guy really come to me just to hit me with facts?
[…] … Wait, wait. Aren’t these words too harsh?]
It was at that moment that Flügel, who had been quiet until now, spoke up. Since it was discovered that he was an ego weapon, there was no need to stop him.
The Sword Saint’s gaze turned to Flügel again, and despite receiving such gaze, she did not give in and began to scream loudly.
[Why do you keep doing this to our Dante? It’s true that he treats me a bit poorly, but he’s still working hard, right? Why are you killing our Dante!]
“… ….”
“… ….”
And Geomseong and I fell silent at the same time.
The corners of the Sword Saint’s mouth twitched meaningfully as he looked at me.
Should I say that he has something to say, but it is an expression that makes him feel sorry for me and only tolerates that?
It hurts even more because I could read the meaning.
[Anyway, if you’re going to say something to him about swordsmanship, at least suggest a countermeasure and tell him! If you insult Dante further, I won’t stay quiet!]
…… I wanted to tell Flügel that your few words hurt me more, but she held it back with great effort.
Still, it pricks my conscience to say something like that to a child who offered to help me.
However.
“…… “I came here with the intention of suggesting a solution, even if you didn’t say so.”
The Sword Saint’s words that followed contained content that neither I nor Flügel had expected.
[Uh, huh?]
Frugel let out a confused voice, and I also blinked and looked at the Sword Saint.
“…… “What do you mean by that?”
“Hmm.”
In response to my question, Geomseong briefly stroked his chin.
Then he turns around and says one word.
“Follow me.”
I kept blinking but exchanged glances with Flügel, and at that point, the Sword Saint turned his head and spoke to me.
“This sword saint is saying that he will personally fix that poor sword of yours.”
“…… Yes?”
“The Yeonhwageomgyeol should be a sword that you are quite familiar with by now.”
I was truly embarrassed, but the swordsman didn’t care and pointed at me.
“If you have the will to move forward, I will have your back. Are you willing to accept my teachings?”
“… ….”
It was a word I could not refuse.
This is the most helpful suggestion for me right now.
I nodded as if fascinated…….
‘I shouldn’t have done that.’
On that day, hell began.
*****
The time when the sun begins to slowly set.
The quiet sky was dyed scarlet.
Slap-
The sunset seen from the high peak of the mountain range was definitely something that could be called a spectacular view.
The fog spread moderately under the scarlet sky, and even the cool breeze.
It was a bit cold for bare skin, but even that was a problem that could be solved by slowly soaking the body in hot water.
The steam that rises along with the fog that originally spreads over Yeongsan Mountain creates a mysterious atmosphere in the space.
“Hiyaa… ….”
Jibril captured the true scenery of nature with his eyes and let out a pleasant voice from his lips.
Enjoying a hot spring like this in extremely cool temperatures can certainly be said to be one of Yeongsan’s few advantages.
“I guess you came to have fun? “You look so carefree.”
“… ….”
If there wasn’t someone next to me constantly grinding on me, I would have been able to enjoy the ultimate pleasure.
Jibril timidly pouted his lips and spoke softly.
“You can enjoy this much…….”
“Hmm, do you really think so?”
“Then didn’t you come here to have fun in the first place, saintess? Why do you do this to me…… ?”
“You should know better why.”
Jibril drooped his shoulders helplessly. He didn’t have anything to refute, but he didn’t think doing so would result in any good results.
And at her reaction, Beatrice chuckled and laughed.
She gently twisted her wet ivory hair with her fingers.
“You are so bold, Miss Jibril. How did she get the idea to invade the dormitory herself? “I didn’t share that information with you.”
“Hey.”
“Don’t fuss. Because it doesn’t work for me.”
Beatrice blatantly glared at her, and Jibril had to cower away from her once again.
Because at this point, she was afraid of her Beatrice’s presence more than anything else.
All she could do was sigh inwardly.
“Well, well. Lady, don’t be like that too. “We all came here to rest together, right?”
Still, if there is one thing that is fortunate for Djibril, it is that she is not without someone who can mediate between her and Beatrice.
Jibril’s eyes moistened at the appearance of such a savior.
“As expected, there is only you, Aria… ….”
“Ahahahaha, I’m glad I can see you too after a long time. Jibril.”
Aria, who belatedly took a dip in her bath, briefly held hands with Jibril, and Beatrice also seemed to stop ‘craving Jibril’ at that point.
As Aria said, it would be too much to bother her even if she came to rest.
“…… I didn’t know these two people knew each other. “Is this also the wonder of fate?”
However, she just opened her mouth in a calm voice.
In contrast to the hot spring water, I placed my arms on the very cold stone floor.
It was around that time that Aria left Jibril’s side and brought her body closer to Beatrice.
“Of course I was surprised too? “I never thought that the saint and Jibril would know each other.”
“This is a relationship that happened quite suddenly.”
Beatrice responded calmly. She was also busy enjoying the hot springs.
However, in response to her reaction, Aria changed her expression as if she was slightly disappointed.
“You still won’t tell me what happened?”
“…… Hmm.”
Beatrice, who was burying her tired body deep in the water, flinched slightly.
Aria’s expression became noticeably sadder.
“Saint, this is too much. “I thought you were a friend.”
“…… Oh no. Because this is not like that. “It’s because it’s something that really can’t be said.”
Uncharacteristically embarrassed, Beatrice hurriedly slapped her hands together to soothe her aria.
The reason she couldn’t tell me what happened with Jibril was because it bothered her.
“…… “Really, really.”
Of course, it’s not that Aria couldn’t read Beatrice’s expression of apology, but she quickly returned her expression to its original state.
Even if you’re just friends, there are things you can’t say.
It wasn’t that Aria didn’t understand that either. She
She just wanted to express that she was upset.
“Okay, I won’t ask any more questions about this. “The saint and Jibril, both of them are keeping their mouths shut, so what can I do?”
“…… “Um, um.”
Beatrice was embarrassed and rolled her eyes.
She didn’t know how to comfort her ‘friend’.
It was an unfamiliar and embarrassing thing at the same time. Beatrice’s eyes wavered with complex emotions, and Jibril happily watched such a rare scene from a distance.
It was at that moment that Aria’s eyes sparkled sharply.
“Saint, don’t you feel sorry for me?”
“Uh, um. Yes?”
She asked her question in a meaningful voice, and Beatrice looked puzzled.
“Uh, yes…” ….”
Still, she gave her answer without realizing it was a handshake.
At least until just before.
“Then give me a pat.”
“…… Yes?”
“Hug it tightly and be kind.”
Beatrice fell silent at Aria’s words that came out of nowhere.
It was a very deep silence.
It was something I had never imagined, and I was so embarrassed. Suddenly asking for a pat? Want a hug?
Beatrice’s eyes began to take on a very subtle glow, but-.
“Eight!”
“…… ?!”
As if that was none of her business, Aria moved first before Beatrice could say anything.
He clung to Beatrice’s back and hugged her tightly like I said just before.
“Oh, Miss Aria?!”
Beatrice’s eyes opened as wide as ever.
Of course, Aria didn’t mind.
“Ha, actually, I wanted to touch it ever since I first saw it. How can someone be this pretty? The skin is smooth…….”
“…… ! …… !!”
“Our hot springs are also good for beauty. It’ll definitely help, huh…….”
Beatrice had to stiffen her body, unable to even utter a voice. The fact that I can’t shake off Aria’s touch is a bonus.
As for Aria, even that was a reaction she had predicted…….
“…… To suppress her saintliness, Aria’s help is essential. Memo… ….”
An astrologer somewhere was just muttering to himself in a corner.
It happened in the cold on a mountain, in a hot spring on a midsummer evening.
*****
“Huh, huh, huh…” ….”
“Well, ten more laps.”
“Please save me… ….”
“People do not die that easily. What you need now more than anything is basic physical strength. “Remember that without a foundation, even the best swordsmanship is of no use.”
Where am I? Who is this?
Why did I do this…… ?
“In fact, it is impossible to complete a body in one or two months. It will be difficult to meet even the minimum standards in the first place. “Now is the time to address that.”
I could definitely hear the voice, but in fact, it felt like it was lingering in my ears and then dissipating again. Should I say that I can’t understand it properly?
My body is already on the verge of exhaustion. I’m sure it is, but why are my legs still moving?
I knew the reason well.
Actually, I couldn’t not know.
…… The cause of all this would be the one sword that Geomseong gave me before this terrible training began.
If it weren’t for that evil drug, I definitely wouldn’t be like this.
“Oh, that is a precious altar that is not usually given out even to disciples. Do you know how difficult it is to obtain the medicinal ingredients used in it?”
What is it? Is it mind reading? Or did I say it out loud?
Actually, it wasn’t an important issue.
“…… Is it okay, something like that, huh…….”
I simply responded by following my instincts, and at the same time, Geomseong fired sword energy at the back of my heel.
With the sound of ‘liquid removal!’ The dirt floor cracks slightly.
For me, it was hard to breathe because I narrowly escaped it.
“This crazy old man is really planning to kill someone…” ….”
“Well, I guess I can still run a little more. After all, it is a dream. “The performance is solid.”
Geomseong didn’t care about my backlash at all.
It just mechanically whips me.
“Let’s run for one more hour. “I’ll let you rest after that.”
Geomseong smiled with the brightest expression on his face, and I couldn’t even get my voice out and just chewed him out dozens of times in my mind.
If I only learn the Yeonhwa Sword, I will be the first to get hit by the sword.
The word Cheongchuleoram is definitely meant to be used in situations like this.
Probably so… ….
Man finally decided(?) to enter his training arc