I Entered an Academy in a Ruined Game

Chapter 136 : Challenge Right (3)

"Well then, I'll be in your care."

Min Hae-na smiled nonchalantly as if she hadn't just made a bombshell declaration.

"Urgh!"

Principal Min Jeong-gap winced as the back of his head stung.

"A-are you alright, sir?"

"Y-yes, I'm fine."

He hastily waved his hand.

"My Hae-na, that child just..."

"I-it must be psychological warfare! To shake Su-hyeon..."

"Y-yes, that's right!"

"Of course. Hae-na is a master of strategy and tactics!"

"Indeed, I'm impressed. Even we were momentarily fooled."

"What extraordinary scheming. Hahaha."

The Instructors tried to placate the principal's anger by eagerly agreeing.

"Hmm. I don't think that's the case. That child doesn't say such things as mere flattery."

Min Jeong-gap pressed down on his throbbing temple.

"Not before dirt enters my eyes, you bastard."

Min Jeong-gap.

He too was just an ordinary grandfather who wasn't mentally prepared to let his granddaughter go yet.

[...W-well then, I will now begin the match between first-year Jeong Su-hyeon and second-year Min Hae-na. The match ends the moment one surrenders, becomes incapacitated, or falls outside the boundary. Both sides, do your best but refrain from malicious attacks.]

Vice Principal Gong Gi-jeong continued the proceedings despite his confusion.

"Yes."

"Understood!"

Min Hae-na smiled brightly.

[Begin.]

At that moment.

Swoosh!

The playfulness and innocence that had filled Min Hae-na's face completely disappeared.

Instead, what appeared on her face was the overwhelming pressure of a powerful combatant.

"Then shall we begin."

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Boom!

As Min Hae-na planted her foot firmly, the mana in the area trembled and submitted to her.

"Urgh!"

In that moment, I staggered under the gravity pressing down on me as if I had arrived on another planet.

'Damn, what is this, some kind of divine dominion...'

No.

Actually, if you think about it, it's a similar concept.

'Thanks to that, she was commonly known as "Celestial Demon" on community forums.'

But the biggest reason Min Hae-na was called Celestial Demon was undoubtedly due to her overwhelming strength itself.

'Even the characteristic name alone sounds broken. What kind of name is "Imperial Dominion"?'

Creeeeak.

I clenched my teeth, deliberately ignoring the screams of my creaking joints.

'I'll delay the activation of [Resistance] as long as possible.'

Saved cards should be used for reversal, as is the rule.

However, the problem is that during that time, I'll be exposed to that intense pressure.

'It's heavy.'

Were my body, my feet, my head ever this heavy?

'Those who fight Min Hae-na must always defeat her while having their abilities severely restricted.'

"My, you seem quite burdened."

Min Hae-na took out the staff she had been carrying behind her back and rotated it freely in the air.

Staff techniques.

Though somewhat minor compared to the spear as a weapon.

Its power is not inferior.

Moreover, the staff she wielded had reached a level unmatched among the academy cadets.

Even Jeremy McGarr, the first year's best spear user, might only last ten seconds before her staff.

'The material of that staff is not ordinary either.'

It's a weapon made from processed leg bones of a flying demonic beast.

'It's hollow so it's light, yet incomparably solid.'

Its strength and durability far surpass modern steel.

As a staff made of such material, it was the most suitable weapon for Min Hae-na's style of staff techniques - light, sturdy, and elastic.

Of course, the reason she stubbornly sticks to the staff is also because it better serves the purpose of the Execution Force.

'Because spears are easier to kill with.'

In the realm of subduing, the staff is a more suitable weapon than the spear.

'Either way, if you get hit properly, you'll be incapacitated similarly.'

Just like being hit by a wooden sword or a real sword would be similar.

'In any case, compatibility is unfavorable for me.'

Weapons with longer range are always disadvantageous for swordsmen.

Just as it's very difficult for a one-handed sword to defeat a two-handed sword with equal skill.

'How annoying, Min Hae-na.'

Superior range from the difference in weapons.

The pressure of mana, atmosphere, and gravity bearing down.

A body that won't move as intended, mana that won't flow as desired.

I'm facing an intelligent warrior who knows how to utilize all those advantages very well in battle.

"How long are you going to stand there?"

Min Hae-na asked, taking a basic stance with her left and right feet placed vertically to narrow her target area.

'Tremendous pressure.'

Her tall height of 173cm is the same as an average adult male.

However, the strength from her well-trained body is in the superhuman realm.

Woooong.

Pure colored staff energy rose from Min Hae-na's entire staff.

'What remarkable proficiency.'

"Are you done with your observation?"

"Yes, thanks to you."

"That's good."

Min Hae-na nodded.

"Here I come."

Bang!

In an instant, Min Hae-na lowered her posture as if about to drop to the ground, then dashed in.

'Eye Power activated.'

Kiing!

Even Min Hae-na's [Imperial Dominion] has no way to counter the effect of Eye Power.

Shwaaak!

The first move was a thrust aimed at the middle section.

Clang!

I deflected the attack by swinging my hwando with minimal movement.

'She's fast! And heavy!'

Even for a strike with the momentum of a charge.

The fact that my hand tingled after just one parry was certainly an ominous sign.

'The density of her staff energy easily surpasses my sword energy.'

Cheng! Clang!

Without giving me time to breathe, she thrusts, strikes my wrist, seems to thrust at my neck and forehead simultaneously, and then suddenly spins around to strike my waist.

'Urgh!'

Not to mention her speed and weight.

'My responses are getting slower. My endurance is dropping.'

The pressure weighing down on my entire body continued to force an awkwardness on me, as if I had sandbags weighing dozens of kilograms attached to my limbs.

"Jeong Su-hyeon is being pushed back!"

"Of course. No matter who he is, he can't show his full abilities before Hae-na!"

"It's overwhelming. He's struggling just to defend."

I clearly heard the second-year cadets whispering as if they had expected this.

'Hmm.'

I don't mind.

"Hmm, you're holding up well. Maybe I attacked too straightforwardly?"

Min Hae-na smiled and changed her tactics.

'The tip of the staff is wavering!'

An irregular, unpredictable wavering, and attacks that come suddenly from within it.

Kakakakakak!

Under that impenetrable pressure, I was helplessly dominated at medium range without being able to make even a single counterattack.

'This reminds me of when I practiced with Instructor Lim Jeong-tae.'

In terms of pure weapon skill, Lee Yu-jin surpasses Min Hae-na.

But with all these penalties weighing me down, I couldn't utilize my physical advantage at all.

And the result was a cumulative disadvantage with every exchange.

Moreover, from the beginning.

'While my physical abilities are superior, Min Hae-na's mana quantity is superior.'

To use an analogy, I have a body of 100 with mana of 10, while Min Hae-na has a body of 10 with mana of 100.

'The gap between the two isn't that large.'

This is the result.

Cheng cheng cheng cheng!

Ran - she swings her staff from inside to outside, deflecting my sword.

Na - she wraps her staff from outside to inside, pressing down my sword.

And Chal - a thrust that compresses the shortest distance in one breath!

The spear techniques delivered without a moment's respite, sticking the spear shaft close to her body, using a solid lower body and flexible waist to give it springy recoil, were certainly of a different texture from those of a swordsman.

'Thrusting spear, crossing spear, even rising spear. She mixes all sorts of basics in a single breath. Orthodox yet exquisite.'

Cheng cheng cheng!

Without my left arm thickly wrapped in Mana Shield, my ribs and collarbone might have already been broken.

Furthermore.

True to her nature as a staff user, Min Hae-na didn't rely solely on thrusts but also utilized strikes from top to bottom and side to side at appropriate moments.

And when I narrowly avoided those strikes and tried to close in...

Whack!

Min Hae-na immediately blocked my approach with a kick using her long legs, then retrieved her staff and delivered follow-up strikes in a solid defense.

'Damn.'

While my secondary armament after the sword is my left hand and then my legs.

Min Hae-na's secondary armament after her staff is precisely those legs.

'At this rate, it becomes difficult to even create situations to enter close-quarters combat.'

But if I fight within Min Hae-na's range?

I would inevitably be the one to collapse after being steadily whittled down.

'Definite dominance shown in her own domain. She's fully utilizing her characteristic of [Imperial Dominion].'

And look at that footwork.

'Left? No, it's right!'

Diligently stepping on the ground and using the recoil, the staff and her body move with a time lag, swaying and continuously changing positions left and right, up and down while unleashing attacks.

Isn't it like an out-boxer who pressures opponents with movement alone, mixing weaving, ducking, side steps, slipping, and back steps?

'Stealthy like a ghost walking through a city, yet swift as a waterfall, and flexible as a feline predator.'

Indeed different from Lee Yu-jin, different from Kwon Seung-yeon, different from Han Soyul...

'She's definitely strong.'

Min Hae-na at her current class can already defeat even lower-ranked Instructors.

While I was admiring that.

Cheng!

My hwando was greatly deflected.

Whack!

Min Hae-na's staff coiled like a snake and struck my wrist hard.

"Urgh!"

Clang!

Having dropped my sword from the tremendous impact, I hastily retreated to avoid the follow-up attack.

"Wow!"

"Jeong Su-hyeon dropped his sword!"

"This is practically the end!"

'If I hadn't quickly wrapped Mana Shield, my wrist bone would have been shattered.'

Nevertheless, I flexed my right hand that felt tingling pain from side to side.

'Fortunately, I can continue fighting.'

The damage accumulated on my right arm over the past few days was not insignificant.

'If it weren't for Unlimited, it might have been dangerous.'

It was a continuous cycle of adversity.

'My body still doesn't respond as I intend.'

My injured right hand had reduced sensitivity.

Moreover, coupled with the situation where I couldn't exert my usual strength due to [Imperial Dominion], my reflexes and motor skills were severely diminished, as if I were back to pre-enrollment levels.

As if all my training had been for nothing.

"Whew."

Heavy.

My body is heavy, the pressure is heavy.

Above all, a body that won't move as I think, reactions that are half a tempo slower were making even my accumulated techniques dull.

'How long has it been since I've had such an uncomfortable and unnatural fight?'

"Should I return your sword?"

"I'm fine."

"Alright then."

Min Hae-na smiled leisurely.

'She must be confirming her advantage. Yet she doesn't let her guard down.'

Feints and reality.

Min Hae-na's true nature is extremely cold and rational.

'Saying she's fallen for me, to think she'd use such psychological warfare.'

Indeed, Min Hae-na.

A highly cunning strategist.

"But aren't you going to do that?"

"Do what?"

"You know. That thing where you copy the opponent's style. The thing you're good at. Don't you have the leisure to do that with me?"

Of course, I'm not someone whose training is so inadequate that I would fall for Min Hae-na's provocation.

"Unfortunately, my weapon isn't a staff."

I said.

"But I think I can manage something like this."

"Huh?"

At that moment.

Min Hae-na's expression changed.

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Ratatatatat!

Su-hyeon utilized Min Hae-na's footwork exactly, moving irregularly back and forth, left and right, diligently circling her flanks.

"This is!"

As the cadets and Instructors in the stands widened their eyes at the sight.

'Now!'

Su-hyeon rushed toward Min Hae-na.

Swoosh!

Min Hae-na's impeccable thrust cut through empty air.

'Fast!'

As Su-hyeon entered close range in a single breath, Min Hae-na threw a kick.

'What?'

But Su-hyeon had already side-stepped before the kick arrived and retreated on his own, gracefully withdrawing while retrieving his fallen hwando.

"He got it back!"

"Amazing!"

"So he was aiming for that from the beginning."

"As expected of Jeong Su-hyeon! He won't go down easily!"

The first-year cadets, who had been discouraged by Su-hyeon's continuous disadvantage, finally perked up.

"Hmm, you got me there."

Min Hae-na smiled.

'He followed my footwork so convincingly after seeing it just once?'

It was the first time in today's fight that Su-hyeon had surprised Min Hae-na.

"Don't overdo it, you bastard!"

Instructor Lee Ho-seung, watching the scene, cackled.

'This kid, he kept stealing my techniques whenever he saw them too. Isn't his intelligence a bit too outstanding?'

"Impossible. The completeness is too high for something he's copying for the first time."

Instructor Kang Jun-man shook his head repeatedly.

"Indeed, it's considerable."

Instructor Kim Cheol-han commented calmly.

'I suppose Unlimited also has the effect of outstanding learning ability.'

That was certainly a logical inference, but.

In reality, for Su-hyeon, it was nothing more than recalling and implementing the principles of footwork he had directly learned from her in some previous playthrough.

'Nice. I'm getting fired up.'

Min Hae-na, unaware of these circumstances, ignited her fighting spirit.

"But I'm not generous enough to be devoured while letting you catch up bit by bit."

Neither overconfident nor complacent.

That was the creed of Min Hae-na as a warrior.

Kuuuung!

As Min Hae-na drew up her power, the mana surrounding her responded and emitted a brilliant light.

It was a technique developed by Min Hae-na based on hints from her grandfather Min Jeong-gap, who had deeply studied her characteristic.

'Overwhelming control over mana, when combined with the characteristic of Imperial Dominion, works to elevate the user's level.'

And the result leads to a dramatic increase in combat power, similar to Su-hyeon's [Liberation].

Principal Min Jeong-gap, watching his granddaughter's fight from afar, smiled contentedly.

'You've grown stronger again in the short time I haven't seen you, Hae-na.'

"Can you follow this too?"

Min Hae-na, wrapped in an aura like a halo, asked.

Bwaaaang!

Su-hyeon flew more than ten meters from the staff technique struck with tremendous force.

"Urgh!"

Just one blow.

Even though he had blocked it securely with both hands, he was helplessly pushed back.

'This is truly remarkable.'

Looking down at his trembling forearms, Su-hyeon thought.

'It would be impossible to receive it head-on without using Liberation.'

At this point, already.

Min Hae-na's power clearly surpassed that of Seo Jun-seong.

'The problem is that she still hasn't used her full power.'

Min Hae-na's strength, having crossed the barrier of A-rank, was indeed on a different level from the first-years.

'A monster is a monster.'

Su-hyeon gave a bitter smile.

"How about it? Is this the end?"

"No way."

It wasn't time to end the match yet.

Nor was it time to reveal his hidden card.

'Yes, not yet. The time to use [Resistance] hasn't come yet.'

Nevertheless.

"I've found your weakness, sunbae."

Su-hyeon threw a bold provocation at Min Hae-na, who was displaying her most powerful strength today.

"It's that stance."

Min Hae-na smiled.

"What sets you apart from other cadets."

"Is that so?"

"I sincerely hope those words aren't empty."

The two faced each other and smiled.

"They won't be."