The Academy Tournament spans two long days. On the first day, the semifinalists are decided, and on the second day, the matches proceed from the semifinals to the finals.
Yesterday was that first day.
At the Academy Stadium, the matches took place, and I advanced to the semifinals with ease.
Now, even extras can be defeated by my sword skills alone, without using any special abilities.
This is the result of continuous private lessons from ‘Weapon Master.’
Today is the second day, where the semifinals and finals take place. It’s quite different from yesterday.
The venue is the Olympic Stadium.
The matches are broadcast on public channels, and the audience includes regular citizens.
Of course, students get free entry, while citizens have to buy expensive tickets.
The audience also includes students from other grades.
They are reportedly taking another practical exam next week, which involves dungeon exploration.
Perhaps Isiah and other club members might also be in the audience.
Moreover, there is a sudden, specially arranged event within the tournament.
“Did you hear? The champion of this tournament will have a friendly match with a student from the Chinese Academy. It will even be broadcast live in both countries.”
Yang Min-seo shared the information she had gathered with her teammates.
Friendly match against a Chinese Academy student.
The opponent is said to be the strongest first-year high school student in China, with a population of 1.4 billion.
“The champion will have quite a burden, I think.”
Oh Haena said this with a confident expression.
She too is one of the semifinalists and, according to the matchups, is scheduled to face me.
The other two are Park Hayeon and Hwangje-seong, and their match is about to begin soon.
Yang Min-seo was happily watching over me, Park Hayeon, and Oh Haena.
It’s understandable that she’s happy; three out of the final four have ties with her.
“Yesterday, I looked up some videos of those Chinese guys, and they’re no joke. They were using Awakened Ones like an army.”
Oh Haena said this with a look of disdain.
Most Awakened Ones strongly dislike being controlled by the state.
I also saw the video she mentioned.
It was the intro to the later chapters.
China had gathered several divisions composed entirely of Awakened Ones and held a military parade.
The Yangshan-type artificial Awakened Ones, with their white hair and crimson eyes, performed drills without a single flaw, striking a chilling sight.
“Yes, I saw it as well. Facing a nation like that makes this seem like a disaster.”
Yang Min-seo hugged herself and shivered as she answered.
Although it’s a common setting in this kind of game, North Korea collapsed when the Gate first appeared.
Upon confirming the collapse of the North Korean government, the South Korean military immediately advanced north, seemingly ready to achieve unification.
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as smoothly.
Under the pretext of protecting North Korean civilians and offering blood alliance aid, China descended upon and occupied North Pyongan and Hamgyong provinces.
They reestablished a nominal North Korean government in the occupied territories and, in reality, turned it into a puppet state.
Thus, South Korea came to share a border with the world’s second-strongest superpower, China.
Additionally, the puppet government of the New North Korea continues to demand the return of the occupied North Korean territories, day by day.
Facing border disputes with China, South Korea also became entangled in territorial conflicts.
“Hmm, if by any chance we lose, it seems like we’ll be in for a lot of criticism. It might be better for Shinoda and Haena to just give up…”
Ji Soyeon expressed her worries cautiously.
This was a fight concerning national pride.
It was something greater than the past Korea-Japan matches.
If we lose the friendly match, it is certain that we would receive nationwide criticism.
“What? Are you kidding? How can you let such an opportunity slip? I’m definitely going to win first place.”
Oh Haena growled, making her declaration.
Her eyes were fixed on me.
We participants went to the bench to watch Hwangje-seong and Park Hayeon’s match, while Yang Min-seo and Ji Soyeon moved up to the audience seats.
As participants, Oh Haena and I were able to watch the match from the closest position.
Oh Haena kept glaring at me with burning eyes whenever there was a chance.
If our eyes met accidentally, she never looked away first.
‘This is such an exhausting style. Really.’
Oh Haena may be pretty, but this kind of persistent obsession is quite troublesome.
It would be better if it were a more positive kind of fixation.
The announcer’s voice echoed through the stadium.
They were all former Heroes.
“Today’s first match is the semifinal Group A! A match between Awakened One Park Hayeon, who wields electricity, and Awakened One Hwangje-seong, who wields ice!”
“Hwangje-seong is the son of the famous S-rank Hero, ‘Bloody Striker.’ There must be a lot of pressure on him!”
“Haha! Our mentioning it like this might be even more pressure, right?”
The announcers took turns talking about Hwangje-seong.
They seemed much more interested in the son of the famous father than the lesser-known Park Hayeon.
There really wasn’t much to say about Park Hayeon, who possessed the rather common electrical powers.
The form of the arena was simple.
Tiles made of stone laid across the existing stadium. If anyone steps outside the tiles, they’re disqualified.
Park Hayeon and Hwangje-seong stepped into the arena.
They wore fencing-like suits and masks, with simple protective gear over them. The suits were made of special materials which do not tear from sharp edges and absorb impact.
Furthermore, sensors embedded throughout the suit measure the damage inflicted when struck.
Park Hayeon wore protective gear over her chest and abdomen, while Hwangje-seong wore none.
Dungeon gear was disallowed; only Earth-made equipment was permitted.
As weapons, Park Hayeon wielded a sword, and Hwangje-seong wore steel guards on his arms and legs.
The sword’s edge was dulled for safety.
“Alright, the match will start in 10 seconds.”
The commentators raised the excitement.
*
Park Hayeon steeled her nerves as she grew tense.
‘Is it okay to use this against a person?’
She had devised a new technique.
Even ‘Weapon Master’ had acknowledged its strength.
The only concern was her opponent’s safety.
Its destructive power was too strong.
Even though they were wearing special suits designed for practice, she worried that the suit might be pierced and Hwangje-seong might get hurt.
She recalled the advice of Lee Chan-hyuk.
“As I’ve told you repeatedly, Miss Park Hayeon worries too much about her opponent. Please, think of yourself first. Even when students think this way, it still falls under the category of kindness.”
Park Hayeon had made her decision.
“I’m going to do it.”
Now was the time to win.
Her gaze was fixed on the scoreboard, counting down the start of the match.
3.
2.
1.
“The match begins!”
The audience erupted in cheers at the commentator’s opening declaration.
Park Hayeon immediately extended her hand towards Hwangje-seong and fired a bolt of lightning.
“Right at the start! Park Hayeon fires an electrifying attack—fierce!”
Zzzzzt.
An ice wall formed in front of Hwangje-seong.
The bolt was blocked.
He had anticipated this attack, knowing Park Hayeon’s electrical powers from before.
“Looks like he was prepared for this?”
“Yes, it seems like students from the same school know each other’s attack patterns.”
Without drawing her sword, Park Hayeon rushed forward, closing the distance to Hwangje-seong.
“Interesting. She didn’t draw her main weapon, the sword, and is rushing forward.”
“Hwangje-seong uses kicks as his primary technique. If she gets this close, it will be disadvantageous for Park Hayeon!”
This was something new, but she was the protagonist of the game, ‘Hero Name: ZEUS.’
One day, Park Hayeon would be called ‘Zeus,’ the God of Lightning.
What Park Hayeon was about to do was the simultaneous use of ‘Draw Technique’ and ‘Shard of the Thunder God.’
Using the ‘Shard of the Thunder God’ skill at maximum output, a powerful magnetic field would form on the sword’s rail inside the specially-made scabbard.
Then, using the principle of a railgun, she would accelerate the sword to its maximum speed with the ‘Draw’ skill.
Although the rail was short, making it slower than a military railgun, it still generated an incredible speed.
Park Hayeon, with her sword hand raised, closed the distance to Hwangje-seong.
The golden current swirling through the scabbard was clearly unusual.
“Ah! Park Hayeon’s moves are too obvious! She’s telling everyone, ‘Right now, I’ll use the draw technique’!”
“Seems like she might have some kind of draw skill, but can it be that strong? I don’t know what she’s thinking!”
Hwangje-seong slowly stepped back, estimating the trajectory of the incoming sword in his mind.
Zzzzzt.
An icy surface began forming on the ground.
He intended to freeze Park Hayeon’s feet and restrict her movement.
Seeing this, Park Hayeon immediately jumped and flew towards Hwangje-seong.
The sword was about to reach striking distance.
“Roar!”
Park Hayeon demonstrated her original technique to everyone.
Electric Rail Draw Technique.
ZeroSecond.
Zzzzztttt.
Golden lightning surged through the rail within the scabbard, accelerating the draw.
A speed indiscernible to the naked eye.
Hwangje-seong swore he had never seen a faster attack in his life.
Even Shinnoda was left speechless.
“Using the draw skill in this way!”
It was a method he had never imagined.
In the game, the concept of combining skills simultaneously by using them together didn’t exist.
Hwangje-seong hastily erected an ice wall.
But it was futile.
Kwaang!
The lightning-encased sword shattered the ice wall in an instant, striking Hwangje-seong straight on.
He fell, cut diagonally by the electrified sword.
The audience was in a frenzy of excitement, and the commentators were left speechless.
“Hmm… I’ve never seen a draw technique this powerful. What exactly is it?”
“If this happens, Hwangje-seong, what damage did he take? Let’s see for a moment.”
The audience focused on Hwangje-seong’s model on the scoreboard’s two figures.
The damage judgment: 0.
“Huh? What’s going on? Did Hwangje-seong manage to block it?”
“It seemed like a final technique. If Park Hayeon loses points this way, it might be… Hmm?”
The referee blew the whistle to declare the end of the match and quickly sent a message to the commentators’ side.
“Ah, yes, understood. We have new information. Park Hayeon wins. Everyone, she defeated Hwangje-seong with a single blow!”
“What happened? It seems the practice suit malfunctioned, so damage wasn’t calculated. That shows how powerful it was!”
The sight of Hwangje-seong looked pitiful.
The practice suit was half-torn, and the face guard was completely crushed.
Had the attack been slightly stronger, Hwangje-seong might have been in mortal danger.
Though she collapsed awkwardly after unleashing her ultimate blow, no one paid attention to how Park Hayeon looked as she got up, dusted herself off, and checked on Hwangje-seong’s condition.
“Are you alright?”
The medical team had already arrived swiftly to tend to him.
“Ah, yes. Just a fainting spell. Thanks to the practice suit, my body isn’t hurt.”
“Phew. That’s a relief.”
Park Hayeon sighed with relief and followed the referee’s guidance to leave the arena.
“Advancement to the finals. Congratulations.”
Shinnoda was waiting below and congratulated her as she returned after achieving victory.
“Eh? Thanks. Let’s see each other in the finals.”
Park Hayeon’s face turned red. She thought Shinnoda had witnessed her impressive performance, causing her heart to race.
“Tsk.”
From behind the bench, Oh Haena clicked her tongue.
She found both the atmosphere they created and Park Hayeon’s declaration of seeing each other in the finals to be extremely distasteful.
“Shinnoda… wait for me. No matter how strong you are, you can’t match my power. I am the strongest in personal combat.”
After confirming that Hwangje-seong had been carried off, the referee called Shinnoda and Oh Haena.
It was the start of the next match.
