The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family – Chapter 16
Optimum Headquarters.
Because her son had gone through the Gate, Kim Yeon-hee had arrived at work early this morning. She was enjoying a warm cup of morning coffee as though in prayer while looking at a photo taken with her youngest child.
“Honestly, who else could have such a good-looking son~ Must be because he’s taken after me.”
However, her peace was shattered by the words of a secretary who had just rushed in.
“Chairwoman! The knight I-Youngjae’s squadron of knights!”
“I’m going now. Tell me on the way.”
She didn’t bother to hear it all the way through.
The urgent expression, the intensely quivering voice. Something huge must have happened, and when it came to incidents with agents, they were often life-and-d*ath affairs.
Unfortunately, her fears were not off the mark.
“There are currently five injured. Among them, Knight I-Hyunsoo has sustained grave injuries and has already proceeded to surgery.”
“Knight I-Hyunsoo, isn’t he Knight I-Youngjae’s younger sibling? How did things escalate this far?”
“It seems the contamination level of the ‘Purple Gate’ entered was much higher than imagined.”
“Huh, I told them to be careful.”
Gates come in three major types.
The ‘Blue Gate,’ which we commonly use as a hunting ground, is one that can be entered and exited freely.
Then there’s the ‘Red Gate,’ which immediately causes ‘backflow’ upon creation, bringing about disaster.
And in between these two types lies the ‘Purple Gate.’
While it allows for free access like a Blue Gate, it also randomly appears in various unspecified areas, much like a Red Gate.
However, unlike a Blue Gate, it continuously undergoes ‘contamination’ and eventually, much like a Red Gate, leads to backflow.
As Optimum’s representative, Kim Yeon-hee considered these Purple Gates, which were created dozens or even hundreds of times a month, to be much more dangerous than Red Gates, which appeared only once or twice a year.
This wasn’t merely Kim Yeon-hee’s personal opinion.
Anyone in charge of a country or a large agency would agree. This is why nations and agencies desperately mobilize hunters and knights to erase these Purple Gates.
Fortunately, Knight I-Hyunsoo’s surgery went well. Although rehabilitation will be necessary, his severed legs were successfully reattached.
Yet, despite everyone celebrating that their comrade was safe, Kim Yeon-hee couldn’t easily laugh along with the crowd.
Before being the CEO of Optimum, she was first and foremost a mother.
Her thoughts inevitably strayed to her son, who had just ventured into a Purple Gate to hunt.
“Ki-hyuk, are you okay?”
“Aaah!”
The piercing scream came from somewhere.
That was Merhem’s voice. Park Ki-hyuk pushed aside the orc he was fighting, swinging his great sword broadly.
Schhhk!
A feeling of flesh being torn apart filled the air as red orc bl**d splattered into the sky. The orc that had been aiming for Merhem’s back was neatly split into two halves with an ax still in its hand.
“Are you alright?”
“Y-Yes, I’m fine. I was just startled.”
“Stay alert. This is a chaotic battle. An attack might come from anywhere at any time… Duck!”
At Park Ki-hyuk’s shout, Merhem quickly ducked. Ki-hyuk twisted his body’s muscles to the max, swinging his massive great sword.
Kurgh! Kwa-angh!
The enemies in the mob were bisected, spine and all, and tumbled onto the ground.
Following that, Merhem immobilized the orcs charging at Park Ki-hyuk’s back by entangling their legs with mud chains.
Shamanic art: ‘Mud Chains.’
The orcs were effectively sealed in place with the sticky chains. And as always, Han Jun-woo took it upon himself to finish them off.
Thud! Thud!
Flying in like a butterfly, Han Jun-woo pierced the orcs’ hearts. A clean and silent strike, entirely free of screaming. This was a lethal form of swordsmanship that was different from the overwhelming swings of Park Ki-hyuk’s great sword.
The stage was set. It was time to dance.
Han Jun-woo’s dual scabbards sprang to life, whirling like butterfly wings.
Dual swords spun in dazzling, complicated motions. The cries of suffering from the orcs resonated like music through the air, while sprays of bl**d blossomed beautifully like crimson roses.
In the center, Han Jun-woo performed a massacre in the form of a dance. In his wake, Park Ki-hyuk and Merhem exchanged glances, then split apart instantly.
Merhem’s mace shattered the torso of the orc in front of her. Park Ki-hyuk’s charge crushed the chest of another orc.
Next, Merhem delivered a single devastating blow with her ‘Ice Mace,’ while Park Ki-hyuk delivered one with his ‘Smash Down Cut.’
Merhem wiped out more than ten orcs with ‘Sand Fangs,’ and Park Ki-hyuk cleaved through more than ten orcs using ‘Focused Smash Down Cut.’
Thanks to the frenetic attack by the two of them, the sides of the orc army were demolished like autumn leaves being battered by a fierce wind.
Finally, the orcs made their decision.
“Guuuaaahh!!”
They chose retreat. They fled.
The orcs scattered in all directions, not merely to survive, but to return with a report of what had happened to their village. They were desperately trying to get at least one member to deliver the message back.
Unfortunately for them, there was no escape route.
Skeletons blocked their path of retreat.
The skeletons pulled out their axes in unison.
The moment the ominous red light flashed—
“Keeeeekkkk!!!”
It was time for the massacre.
After the fierce battle ended, feedback time arrived.
I poured each of them a cup of coffee and spoke first.
“Good work. Here, have a cup each. You’ve certainly improved a lot from the beginning.”
“Don’t flatter us. It was terrifying.”
“True. It was terrifying, precisely why you’ve improved so much. To develop, you first have to know where you stand exactly, and it seems you did.”
“…You’re annoying.”
As I sipped my coffee and glanced at both of them, their expressions were far from cheerful.
Looks like they were quite irritated.
After all, someone like them, who possess extraordinary skills and a strong drive to improve, would be unhappy with rough, less polished engagements in their previous battles.
“Cheer up. It was only an ‘experiment,’ after all.”
Yes, an experiment.
Understanding the positioning, I had an idea.
While it’s true that splitting roles for efficiency works, and that these roles can create synergy when they function organically, is it really necessary to be rigid about adhering to just one position?
What if someone had the ability to handle two roles? Or even all three?
Wouldn’t that mean they could handle more diverse variables?
This experiment was the beginning of the concept of the ‘All-Rounder.’
“Still, we saw potential, right? Jun-woo could handle being a tank or a melee damage dealer, as well as a support capable of crowd control….”
To be precise, Han Jun-woo could fulfill both the role of ‘Linebacker (L)’—maintaining lines through exceptional evasion—and ‘Linebreaker (LB)’—single-handedly breaking through an opponent’s formation.
With Merhem’s excellent ‘sensory manipulation’ crowd control technique, if they grew as I expect, they’d become an excellent taskforce capable of surviving even in desperate situations.
“Especially Mary exceeded expectations. She did excellent work as a tank, melee damage dealer, ranged damage dealer, crowd control, and healer.”
This wasn’t just empty praise.
Just looking at the various roles Mary had taken on during the previous battles would show that.
She managed to fulfill the roles of Safety (S), Warrior (W), Target, Zone, Dot, Nuker, and the role of a ranged damage dealer. Moreover, she handled support roles like healing and buffs effortlessly.
In other words, all existing roles in positioning were possible for her.
All of this was thanks to the almost instantaneous casting speed of shamanic arts combined with Mary’s innate talent.
The only issue at the moment is her lack of understanding of ‘immovability.’ Due to that, there were noticeable floundering moments during emergencies, like when she got her back taken in earlier battles.
“Have some confidence. You’re already doing excellent work. Honestly, I didn’t think this was possible.”
“Are you teasing me? Ki-hyuk pulled it off too.”
“True, but you’re completely different from him.”
“Hmph.”
“Yeah.”
I chuckled as I glanced at Mary glaring at me.
Look at these two. They’re trying to go head-to-head with a former Demon Lord. Truly fearless.
Still, they were adorable in their own way. Even praiseworthy.
From their perspective, I’m just another friend of their age. Asking someone of a similar age to do something like that isn’t easy at all. The more confident one is in their abilities, the harder it is.
But these two never hesitate to ask.
That’s incredible.
Is it because I’ve shown them so much?
No, they’re teenagers, not very rational for their age. Even now, most people from the academy still doubt me, even though I’ve proven myself countless times.
In comparison, these two see me for who I am.
Mary, who complains but absorbs everything I teach, and Jun-woo, who pesters me daily to extract every ounce of my experience and knowledge.
How endearing.
“So this is what it feels like to be an inspiration.”
For the first time, I understand why my mentor used to laugh when he looked at me.
It’s the talent, the youth, the passion, all the vibrant energy in these two that makes me so happy.
“Alright, let’s briefly go over the points to note, then try it one more time.”
“Ugh… now?”
“Good.”
“You’re clueless, Jun-woo. If we finish now, that demon will definitely say, ‘Got time left? How about we try one more quick round before bed?’ and make us do it again.”
“That’s better. I welcome battles anytime.”
“d*mn it, can you all just disappear for a bit?”
“Kick.”
I laugh as I watch the bickering duo.
Am I laughing like my mentor right now?
Probably.
And just like that, our day at the gate was drawing to a close.
*
Han Jun-woowas compelled to admit the truth.
“I was wrong.”
Honestly, when he had first entered the academy, the name Park Ki-hyuk hadn’t even crossed his mind.
He had too many other goals; becoming stronger to resurrect his fallen family line was consuming enough. To him, Park Ki-hyuk was completely irrelevant information.
But the first impression of Park Ki-hyuk was shocking enough to rattle even Han Jun-woo’s mindset.
“Congratulations. You now have the opportunity to choose me. Whether you seize that opportunity or not, is up to you. I wish you luck. This is all.”
I have nothing to regret. If you don’t choose me, it’s only your loss.
Was that self-confidence or haughtiness? Jun-woo had been curious right from the start.
Perhaps it was right then that Han Jun-woo became interested in Park Ki-hyuk.
The youngest of the Sword Master family. The unfortunate genius who succumbed to Mana Deficiency Syndrome…
A simple search brought up a vast amount of information.
Among it all, the one fact that most fascinated Jun-woo was this:
“The Sword Master family’s greatest talent…”
Even more so than Park Su-hyeok, the Mountain Lord, or Park Min-ji, the White Tiger.
Even Park Geon, their father and the contemporary Sword Master, declared his youngest son as his greatest talent.
But Han Jun-woo only believed what he witnessed personally.
And so, he approached Park Ki-hyuk’s team, to share the sword with him.
The moment they met, Park Ki-hyuk was an enigmatic figure, difficult to define with just one word.
For one thing,
“He was strange.”
He lacked fear. Calmly enjoying a meal even though there were only three of them in the group.
Fearless enough to challenge a professor just for cursing his brother, and shameless enough to openly display his abilities that were supposed to mask his overcoming of Mana Deficiency Syndrome.
But that wasn’t the end of Park Ki-hyuk.
“He was astonishing.”
Summoning unheard-of skeletons and transforming the excellent sorceress Merhem into an even more powerful shaman.
And above all else, the sword he shared with Jun-woo.
That sword, inherited from the Sword Master family, brought not just shock but astonishment—no, horror. It was sheer terror.
“Still, the kid complained it wasn’t well-controlled.”
Truthfully, even Jun-woo agreed with this.
This was only a 2-Level Gate, and in Jun-woo’s eyes, Park Ki-hyuk’s abilities weren’t fully utilized here. Honestly, just summoning skeletons could clear this place in a day.
But the reason he still came here was for learning.
“Jun-woo, there’s always something to learn no matter what. A trivial battle? Where is such thing as a trivial battle? There’s nothing trivial in the world. Once you start thinking something is ‘trivial,’ you’ll end up gaining nothing.”
“There’s always more to learn.”
If you aim higher, you must continuously question and contemplate.
Park Ki-hyuk doesn’t stop.
Whether it’s magic or swordsmanship, he doesn’t settle no matter what he possesses. Always striving to learn more and aiming higher.
Compromise? Give up? Words like those don’t exist in his dictionary.
Han Jun-woo appreciated Park Ki-hyuk’s approach very much.
“Yes, this is the kind of life I wanted.”
Han Jun-woo leaped onto the orc chieftain’s head.
Like defying gravity, he glided effortlessly through the air while the orc chieftain stared dumbly as he passed.
At that moment, Park Ki-hyuk’s great sword divided the air.
“Take this!”
The moment Park Ki-hyuk’s blade reflected Han Jun-woo’s face.
In that split second.
Grabbing the hilt,
He slashed!
Schhhk!
Between the luminous moonlight, crimson bl**d sprayed.
A few moments later, the orc chieftain’s head rolled on the ground.
