The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family – Chapter 74
Agencies of considerable size commonly require a ‘Gate’ to be prepared.
Though it may sound somewhat compulsory, it’s the truth. Duels between Superhumans could easily escalate into accidents.
There’s a reason why Superhumans are called weapons. Why would the Administrative Bureau react so sensitively towards fights between Superhumans? Even a 2nd-Class Hunter could demolish an ordinary building as if it were nothing, given the right time.
The higher one’s level of mastery, the stronger the power, and the greater the impact of this force grows.
This is where the ‘Gate’ becomes essential.
Break it if you must. Destroy it as you wish. It doesn’t matter, feel free to unleash your full potential. It’s essentially a sparring ground where affiliated Superhumans can freely unleash all their might.
Naturally, Optimum Corporation also possessed its own ‘Gate’ within the head office.
A 3rd-Class Gate that spawns monsters resembling giant boars called ‘Desert Boars.’ Due to its poor monetary value compared to other monsters of the same level like Goblins, Kobolds, or Ain Race creatures, it became a lesser-used Gate. However, because of the dry yet comfortable early summer climate and vast open field, it was perfectly suited as a sparring ‘Gate.’
This was Optimum Corporation’s ‘Sparring Gate.’
—
Whirling winds. Flickering killing intent.
Her senses screamed as Park Min-ji shifted her footing.
And in that instant,
Park Ki-hyuk’s Great Sword struck down.
Bang-!
With a single strike, the ground fractured, and with a second, the earth heaved upward.
Park Ki-hyuk’s signature technique of the Geomho-ryu school—Mountain Collapse.
True to its name, Mountain Collapse was a powerful technique that delivered a heavy force over a broad area. Given its wide-area attack property, defending against it in close range was incredibly difficult, especially when the opponent was Park Ki-hyuk, possibly the strongest in raw power in the world.
Indeed, even Park Su-hyeok, the perfect swordsman, was cautious about his younger brother’s close-range Geomho-ryu strong sword techniques.
But Park Min-ji was different. It was possible for her.
Amidst the aftermath left by ‘Mountain Collapse,’
She found a pathway.
“…Hm.”
As Park Min-ji opened her eyes slightly,
The world slowed down.
From the piles of dirt to rocks, the roots of plants, and the shards before her eyes, everything moved in slow motion.
What she needed to be wary of were the bundles of sword qi hidden behind those fragments.
She just needed to evade them. She only needed to evade 217 sword qis.
As Park Min-ji took her first step,
31 sword qis passed behind her.
On her second step,
She let go of 63 sword qis out of 186.
With her third step,
She allowed 79 sword qis out of 123 to pass her.
Leaving only 44 sword qis.
And she could handle these herself.
Squelch.
As Park Min-ji extended her hand, glimmers of light appeared between her fingers.
As widely known, the Sword Master is specialized in swords. Their instincts react only to ‘swords’ and not to other forms of weapons.
Hence, the Sword Master is famously stubborn in their attachment to swords… but,
Do you know? There are various kinds of swords in this world beyond your imagination.
The sword in Park Min-ji’s hand was a shuriken.
Shurikens are also ‘swords.’
Geomho-ryu: Variable Sword Technique
Mirror Trick
Swish-swash—
Launched shurikens cleared away the sword qi. What was interesting was that the shurikens fragmented upon colliding once.
One became two, two became four, and Park Min-ji’s shurikens rapidly proliferated in quantity.
With this, Mountain Collapse was neutralized, and the situation reversed.
“You asked me to fight like a Spirit Master, didn’t you?”
Watch and see.
Geomho-ryu Variable Sword Technique
Mirror Trap
A follow-up technique to Mirror Trick, the Mirror Trap was activated.
Shurikens that had multiplied through the Mirror Trick now ricocheted off in strange trajectories toward Park Ki-hyuk.
It was as though there were mirrors floating in the air, reflecting the shurikens. These reflected shurikens were faster and deadlier, eventually stopping Park Ki-hyuk’s foot movements.
“Spirit Masters are known for their messy fighting style, aren’t they? How is it? Messy enough?”
Surrounded by shurikens from all sides, Park Ki-hyuk clenched his lips.
Messy? It was enough to make a stream of curse words erupt.
Could he trace their trajectories? Impossible.
Could he dodge? Impossible.
Could he counter? Absolutely not.
Both evasion and counterattack were impossible.
This was a technique that demanded he just take the blows.
“God d*mn it!!”
Crack!
Park Ki-hyuk plunged the Devil into the ground.
As the Hexagram symbol emerged on the Devil, a castle made of magic circles formed.
Absolute Shield (Reformed)
Fortress (Iron)
Tata-tata-ta-tang!!
Shurikens were effortlessly deflected.
Yet Park Min-ji didn’t show even the slightest flicker of hesitation. Instead, she moved around Park Ki-hyuk more busily and continued to throw shurikens.
“Raising a guard against a Spirit Master is also a good strategy. Except…there are exceptions…”
Spirit Masters are known for their worst mana efficiency among all professions. Maintaining a guard while leading it into a war of attrition usually wears out the Spirit Master first.
But Park Min-ji believed her younger brother wouldn’t have sought her out just because of a Spirit Master of this caliber.
She had a rough idea. The noisy American exchange delegation these days—perhaps the disciple of that Elemental Master.
In that case, she’d have to meet the standard.
“You, as a magic specialist, probably know better: at a certain level, Spirit Masters overcome the weakness of mana expenditure using various methods.”
People are not fools. With sufficient skill, the first thing one usually tries to erase is one’s own weakness.
Spirit Masters are no different.
As an example, according to Park Min-ji’s standard, most ‘useful’ Spirit Masters utilized something called ‘Mana Drain.’ On reflection, she remembered that during that time, it was also the disciple of the Elemental Master.
“So, what I’m trying to say…”
As Park Min-ji threw her final shuriken,
“When facing powerful adversaries, only raising a guard will eventually…”
She grasped the pure white blade at her waist, the White Heron.
“Get you killed.”
Swish.
She sliced the air.
Geomho-ryu Strong Sword Technique
Fireworks
Bang-ga-ga-gang!!
Shurikens surrounding Park Ki-hyuk exploded all at once.
A silver explosion covered Park Ki-hyuk like a storm.
Moreover, the special effect of ‘Fireworks’ activated, triggering chain explosions from the mana caught in the blast and slowly chipping away at Park Ki-hyuk’s ‘Fortress.’
Finally, a small hole emerged.
A gap just large enough for a basketball to slip through.
Although this hole would soon recover, Park Min-ji would not miss this fleeting moment—her hands already extended with a ready shuriken.
Geomho-ryu Swift Sword Technique
Falling Star
Eight beams of light shot out.
A speed hard to discern with the n*ked eye.
Drawing a sword would be too late. Casting magic would be too late.
Park Min-ji’s mind told her—this was guaranteed to hit.
But then…her heart told her otherwise,
It was blocked, prepare for the next move.
The result was…
It hit her chest.
Whish-whish-shh!
Black chains shot out. No, not just shot out—they were waves.
Waves made of chains.
Whish~! Swish-swash-swash!
Park Min-ji’s ‘Falling Star’ was entirely swallowed by the chain waves. Not only that, the chains expanded their territory as if declaring this area as their own.
Park Ki-hyuk stood on top of the chain waves with his Great Sword while smiling cheerfully.
“I can still do more, you know?”
Park Min-ji, with her shurikens still in hand, smiled back.
“Of course.”
The two, cutting across the plains.
The split earth, scattered sword qi—the place they were at was
The most fun playground in the world.
To a Sword Master, a battlefield is such a place.
—
As soon as the sparring concluded, before even having the chance to change clothes, we rushed to our appointment spot.
We had planned to eat with my older brother, but maybe because we were having so much fun, we’ve slightly run late.
“…What are those people?”
“Is it cosplay?”
“Halloween is still far off though.”
“Check out that woman in a leather jacket. She’s totally gorgeous and totally my type!”
“Look at the guy. Is his height for real? He’s definitely over 2 meters.”
“Isn’t he familiar? Haven’t we seen him somewhere before?”
“Probably an actor.”
“No, I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere else besides on TV…”
It seems we’re drawing quite a bit of attention.
Given how bruised and battered we are, and dressed in tattered clothing, it would be more strange if we didn’t get attention walking around like this.
“Did you hear that? They called you pretty.”
“Be quiet.”
“That guy thought you were an actress. Apparently, that girl is crushing on you. Likes it hardcore. What’s a crush anyway?”
“…What exactly do you hear?”
“Mostly everything. But it’s disappointing. I wanted to see you dance with your sword. Your true charm is cutting through swords…choke!”
“Shut up…”
When with my elder sister, I’m deliberately playful.
Because our usually stern older sister actually enjoys some softness. Therefore, throat-punching is her unique way of expressing love—an expensive commodity.
After a few more playful jabs, by the time we got several hits, we’d already arrived at the meeting spot.
Our family’s regular barbecue restaurant.
Whenever we crave meat, we mostly come here. The place mother has actually pre-paid an entire month’s worth once.
“Oh, welcome… What… Oh my goodness, what a state!”
“Hahaha. Rushed out here.”
“Look at that… Do you have spare clothes? I can lend you if necessary.”
“No need. My older brother always eats here, right?”
As soon as we entered the restaurant, all kinds of attention were drawn to us. Given the high-end clientele, many of the visitors here are actually quite famous.
We usually shy away from being in the spotlight, but it seems our siblings don’t quite fit in this pattern. They were busily scanning us.
Then, one woman turned to me in sudden surprise and looked away.
“Who is she?”
“Huh?”
“Ah, someone seems to know me.”
My older sister glanced and smirked.
“That’s Cherry Black Swan. Didn’t she post about you being her ideal type on SNS?”
“Ah, really? How does sister even know that?”
“Heard it from Bitna. Apparently, she knows her younger sister. Interested? I’ll introduce you.”
“Out of nowhere? At this moment?”
“When is there a right time for introductions? Think about it.”
By the time we caught up, it seemed our older brother had already arrived. As the guide knocked on the door, a familiar voice called out—it was him.
The first words out of his mouth when the door opened were,
“Next is me.”
I laughed.
Instead of greeting first, he outright declared the next turn was his.
What kind of competitiveness is this? But, despite my thoughts, my body’s anticipation for a fight with him was disgusting.
While chatting, little Spring, who was playing with Berrie in one of our brother’s rooms, came rushing up and hugged him tightly.
“Daddy!!!”
“Meow, meow!”
“Well, look at that. Daddy’s dirty.”
“Yes, Daddy smells terrible.”
“Terrible? He smells?”
“Yup, stinky.”
“…”
A heavy blow.
With her cheerful smile, little Spring delivered cold, hard truths.
Our daughter is strong, huh.
“The auntie smells too.”
“…Excuse me? What does ‘terrible’ mean?”
“It’s regional slang she learned from Mom, meaning ‘dirty.'”
“Yeah, Grandma taught me!”
“Mom, why are you teaching her dialects?”
My older sister said she was going to wash up and headed to the bathroom. I followed soon after with a clean bead in hand to wash up.
As we emerged coincidentally, my brother was already pondering over the menu.
“Is this not the face we usually see?”
“Yes, the manager is off today.”
“Ah, is that so? Hmm… Hey, Ki-hyuk is here.”
“Yep.”
“Understood.”
With a cheerful smile, my brother told the staff,
“From here, to here. Give us everything—10 servings each.”
“…Pardon? Did you say…?”
“Everything on this page—10 servings. We’ll order more if it’s insufficient.”
With a bright smile, the brother sent shockwaves through the server who was turning green from panic and almost rushing out the door.
Just as the door was about to close, out came my sister asking,
“Did you order cold noodles?”
“Ah! Min-ji said it well. Wait, please, give me 3 bowls of plain noodles and 3 bowls of spicy noodles.”
“Beef slice.”
“Beef slice.”
“Doubles.”
“Everything doubled, please.”
I saw it.
Through the closing gap, the server wobbling away outside.
Mom’s words aren’t false.
Even though they are my family, this house really is unique—I’ll give you that.
