<The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Chapter 13>
There is a process called “acquisition.”
Whereas “tempering” strengthens the skeleton’s frame and external structure, “acquisition” enhances the skeleton’s motions and behavioral patterns.
Thanks to this, skeletons can gradually learn various forms of martial arts, dozens of weapon techniques, and battle strategies, transforming from walking corpses into formidable warriors of d*ath.
Though it sounds simple, it’s actually an incredible feat.
Skeletons lack intelligence. Because they lack intelligence, they know no fear. An army that doesn’t fear d*ath can become the ideal military force—how remarkable it is.
However, in the empire, very few people can truly master this “acquisition.”
Why is that?
Because it’s difficult.
No, it’s outrageously difficult!
The method of acquisition itself isn’t complicated.
You simply have to practice with your mind and body. Once you’ve fully mastered these behaviors, even a mindless summoned creature will naturally follow them, as they will be imprinted in the summoner’s body.
Simple enough, right?
The problem arises here.
The summoners themselves are quite capable.
Wizards, shamans, spirit masters, and the like.
However, these groups share one thing in common:
They are the types who avoid physical activities.
Isn’t that right? If they were confident in physical combat, why would they summon? They would just fight themselves.
These are the kinds of people who would don elegant robes and support from behind their summoned creatures with magic. Yet now they need to learn martial arts. Can you imagine it?
And that’s just the beginning.
Martial arts are merely the foundation. Once the basics of physical combat are mastered, one must learn weapon techniques; next, they must also learn shield techniques and formations.
Can they perfectly memorize and embody these actions?
The answer is clear.
Few wizards can endure, let alone even attempt, this process of “acquisition.”
Of course, I was one among this rare group.
While others abandoned acquisition and learned high-level summoning magic, I swung weapons. My wretched body cried out, but I continued to swing.
Even though it was a hard and grueling process, I wielded weapons every day.
And I became the Demon Lord of the d*ath Army.
Now, I seek to become the Demon Lord again. I intend to walk this path once more.
But why walk the same road again? It would be boring, wouldn’t it?
This time, I intend to make it new. More perfect.
That’s why I need it.
A sparring partner for “acquisition.”
So…
“Make it more fun!”
With a whistling sound like a sweeping gust of wind, Park Ki-hyuk’s kick slashed through the air. Han Jun-woo narrowly dodged the attack by inches and thrust his sword.
A flash of piercing light, but Park Ki-hyuk, just like Han Jun-woo moments before, narrowly evaded the strike with a mere paper-thin margin.
In the instant when the blade passed by his ear,
The two pairs of eyes simultaneously lit up.
KWAJJIK!!
The wooden sword and glove collided.
It wasn’t just any wooden sword—it had iron inserted to give it the balance of a real sword.
And it wasn’t just any glove—it was made from stitched monster leather, allowing it to withstand even a sharp blade.
And yet,
With one powerful strike, the wooden sword shattered into two, and the glove tore apart.
Aggravated, Park Ki-hyuk and Han Jun-woo hurled the wooden sword and glove behind them, shouting:
“Mary!”
“Merhem!”
Merhem, who was watching from a little distance, threw new weapons.
“We’re already on the third set. There are plenty of spectators here, so take it easy.”
Don’t you think you’ve caused enough trouble for now, acting this way?
But they paid no attention to her. Equipping the thrown weapons, Park Ki-hyuk and Han Jun-woo immediately resumed their duel.
KWANG! PAJIK! PAK! SHWAK!
Monstrous force roared in the punches.
A frosty blade summoned winds of a storm.
One step forward, one step back (一進一退).
Evenly matched (莫上莫下).
As if they had crossed paths with their ultimate adversary, the two poured relentless attacks on each other.
This spectacle most shocked the onlookers. They were those who had wandered onto the field due to the commotion.
“Hey, did you see that? He just dodged the strike with the edge of his hand.”
“I saw the guy spinning midair and releasing a sword thrust.”
“They’re insane. Park Ki-hyuk is one thing, but who’s Han Jun-woo?”
“d*mn, if I had known this would happen, I should’ve stayed with Team 20.”
While the peers looked on with a mixture of jealousy and admiration,
“The hell am I seeing? Are they really first years?”
“Do you think they’re part of a club?”
“Wait, isn’t that Park Ki-hyuk? The kid who’s been mentioned in the papers.”
“You’re right! They’re talking about this year being one of the best cohorts. We need to recruit them. We must get at least one.”
The seniors were fixated on recruiting the two during the club recruitment period, one of the big events at the start of the semester.
In this way, everyone’s attention was drawn to them, but to the two combatants, such matters were of no interest.
There was only the opponent before their eyes.
CHOENG!!
Han Jun-woo’s sword struck down, and Park Ki-hyuk crossed his hands to block it.
“Pretty good.”
“You too.”
As though they were being thrown back, the two moved apart.
A brief lull. However, both remained poised, ready to attack at any moment.
“You’ve got perfect fundamentals.”
“You too.”
“Honestly, I can’t see any flaws in your foundation.”
“You’re exceeding my expectations. Your physical prowess.”
The two smiled at each other.
“I was curious. Why did you join my group? But now I get it—you’re a wolf.”
A wolf doesn’t lower its head to weaker beings. In Han Jun-woo’s view, it was a statement that the other group leaders were beneath him.
“I was curious too. The kid who surpasses ‘Mountain Lord’ and ‘White Tiger.'”
Mountain Lord and White Tiger.
Park Ki-hyuk’s older brother and sister.
The brother, known as Mountain Lord (山君) Park Su-hyeok, earned the title because his strength carried the majesty of a king.
The sister, known as White Tiger (白虎) Park Min-ji, was famed for possessing a speed akin to a celestial claw.
These two belong to the world’s top-tier class. What kind of talent could surpass them? Han Jun-woo had always wondered.
“So, is your curiosity resolved?”
“Almost.”
“Almost? Your answer sounds lukewarm.”
As Park Ki-hyuk expressed his doubts, Han Jun-woo responded with a smirk before launching a back kick. The kicked foot caught the wooden sword, twirling it miraculously into his left hand.
And at that moment,
Han Jun-woo’s aura changed.
Whereas before, Han Jun-woo was like a prestigious swordsman, now he was this:
A Butcher (屠殺者).
The eyes of a weapon designed to k*ll humans.
“Be careful.”
That’s all he said.
The moment the single word left his lips,
Han Jun-woo dispersed into the air.
A speed too fast to follow with the n*ked eye. Despite having seen him clearly, he vanished in an instant.
Danger!
Instinctively, Park Ki-hyuk swung his fist in the indicated direction.
WIIRRLL!!
Han Jun-woo gracefully evaded the punch and retaliated fiercely at his chin.
In panic, Park Ki-hyuk blocked it on the opposite side with his sword. Yet,
At that same moment,
SHIIIK!!
His shoulder was sliced, and drops of bl**d sprayed into the air.
“…”
Clearly, Park Ki-hyuk had defended.
He had defended and still been hit.
One could consider it an accident. On that occasion, Park Ki-hyuk took the initiative to charge forward but again only left his shadow behind as Han Jun-woo scattered.
A repeated pattern of intersecting strikes—sword against fist.
The results were the same.
And once again, bl**d sprayed as his side was slashed.
It was then that Park Ki-hyuk noticed Han Jun-woo’s sword.
“…Perception manipulation?”
Han Jun-woo’s sword was distorting senses—albeit not his own, but that of others.
“Is this what you call your ‘bloodline’?”
A power completely different from magic or swordsmanship.
A type of energy that flowed through bloodlines, the reason why a prestigious family is truly called prestigious.
It was the inheritance of a bloodline.
“Dancer (舞姬). This is the bloodline passed down to me.”
No sooner had the words ended than Han Jun-woo disappeared again.
Immediately after, Park Ki-hyuk’s arm was cut, followed by his opposite shoulder being slashed, and as Park Ki-hyuk stepped back, bl**d began to stream down his thigh.
No sound, no wind, nothing could be detected.
All senses were distorted.
“d*mn, this is a bad match.”
Currently, Park Ki-hyuk’s giant physique provided his senses with an abnormal level of development. Under these circumstances, sense manipulation proved to be almost fatal.
Instantaneously, Park Ki-hyuk’s clothes were shredded. bl**d dripped along the torn strips. From the opposite side, murmuring was heard, suggesting the need to interrupt this duel immediately.
“Shut Up!!”
This is the first truly engaging fight since the opening of the world.
Now it’s getting interesting—no interference, please.
“Since you’ve shown yours, I’ll show mine too.”
Park Ki-hyuk grinned like a delinquent and then clapped his hands together before forcefully slamming them into the ground.
A rising heap of sand.
The vision was momentarily obscured.
“Too shallow.”
However, Han Jun-woo is a dancer. A dancer’s eyes are attuned to gestures and movements. So with his eyes closed, Han Jun-woo entrusted his body to his senses.
He could see it.
Over there, plunging deep into the sand just one step further, he unleashed his famed “dancing sword.”
But then,
KWHANG!
“…?”
The sound of collision was completely different this time.
As the dust cleared, the figure of Park Ki-hyuk emerged.
“In any family, it’s hard to stay out, isn’t it?”
There, for the first time, Park Ki-hyuk held a sword.
Meanwhile, at the headquarters of Optimum, Kim Yeon-hee was looking at a photograph.
“Following Princess, is it this child’s turn now? Han Jun-woo—the sole survivor of the dancer family, massacred in the ‘Busan Terror Incident.’ ”
The Busan Terror Incident.
Five years ago, the ruthless slaughter orchestrated by the conglomerate of mad groups called “Villain League” left countless victims.
“The dancer family has consistently produced exceptional swordsmen. It was unfortunate, but now, it seems destiny has intertwined with our Ki-hyuk. Great work, Secretary-General. Please inform me promptly about any further developments. By the way, wasn’t it Hyo-jung?”
As the Secretary-General bowed out, the new hire hurried after, out into the corridor.
“Thank you, Hyo-jung.”
“Yessir, thank you!”
Successfully finishing her onboarding ceremony, Choi Hyo-jung relaxed ever so slightly, melting like ice cream.
“Whoooh~ I’ve met the CEO! I’ve met CEO Kim Yeon-hee…!!”
“Surprised?”
“Extremely!!”
Who is CEO Kim Yeon-hee, after all? The person who single-handedly led Optimum Agents to world supremacy!
The idol of everyone who dreams of becoming an agent!
Success! Choi Hyo-jung! Bravo, Choi Hyo-jung!!
As Choi Hyo-jung celebrated internally while working, curiosity she kept hidden from her supervisor bubbled to the surface in the break room.
“So, Director, I have a question.”
“Go ahead.”
“I’m in charge of Park Ki-hyuk, aren’t I?”
“Yes, I assigned you. What’s your question?”
“Well, I just wanted to…is it true? Could this be possible?”
The first task given to the new hire was exclusive research on “Park Ki-hyuk.”
It wasn’t merely because he was the CEO’s son. Optimum has a dedicated scouting division, yet the secretary’s office also took pains to uncover talents and managed top-tier prospects separately.
“Um, after the incident, he fell into a coma and woke up after six months, right? Then, in less than two months, he was back to normal.”
“Correct.”
“I got that part. He is Park Ki-hyuk after all. His physical specifications are already infamous. But look here at what I’ve found. Graduating top of his entrance exam, recommended by Yggdrasil.”
“Also, the group scores were insane.”
“28:1! A legendary incident! He smoothly passed the evaluation too. From what I heard privately, the decision was unanimous. Even his previously criticized magical aptitude passed! Which means he can use magic! And look at this evidence—raising his teammates like this.”
“So what is it you’re trying to say, Hyo-jung?”
“That’s strange, isn’t it? How can a person change overnight? Could it be…?”
The new hire, trailing off her sentence, whispered as if sharing a secret.
“Could his soul have been replaced?”
“…Hyo-jung, do you like movies?”
“A lot! I watched one last night.”
“Stick to the point. Your imagination is running wild.”
“Hehe.”
“Replacing souls? Even a saintess couldn’t accomplish that. The things you say…”
“Then, perhaps it was a curse…?”
The supervisor shook his head back and forth as he stared blankly at the new hire.
“Hyo-jung.”
“Yes?”
“Where are we?”
“Optimum! The representative of Korea, standing tall on the world stage! And, by the way, the acceptance rate this year was 6000:1!”
“Stop exaggerating. Anyway, Optimum. Do you really think we haven’t investigated such things?”
“Ah, have you?”
“Long ago.”
As the supervisor threw away the used coffee cup, he casually replied.
“And those doubts you expressed… Well, they’re the doubts of a newcomer.”
“Doubts of a newcomer?”
“Let me think how to explain this… Let’s say our secretariat office has criteria to distinguish between two kinds of superhumans.”
“What are they?”
“Ordinary superhumans and Sword Masters.”
“……!!”
At one point, the supervisor himself questioned, ‘how is this even possible?’ when observing this family.
Like Park Su-hyeok establishing his own knight order at 18 years old in his first year, or Park Min-ji of the same age decimating an entire villain group.
But now he accepts it as a norm.
This isn’t unique to the supervisor—it’s true for the entire secretariat office.
Isn’t the phrase “a Sword Master simply being a Sword Master” justly coined for a reason?
Whatever they do, however shocking the events they create, they simply accept it.
Because,
“We understand the Sword Masters who wield their swords.”
*
“Are you satisfied?”
“Yeah.”
Park Ki-hyuk looking down, extending his hand to Han Jun-woo who was lying down with relief on his face, smiling.
And,
The sports field in chaos around them.
As if clawed by beasts, the ground itself was brutally slashed open.
