The Support Ate it All

Mak Dae-wong.

He was a second-year senior affiliated with the swordsmanship club's Black faction.

Our relationship had gone sour ever since we clashed over the Black Market incident, and during both the midterm and final exams, he had Sa Gong-wook's gang try to take me out.

Of course, both attempts ended in complete failure.

I figured enough time had passed for any hard feelings to have faded, but judging by what I saw at the auction a few weeks ago, it seemed he was still holding a grudge.

"Might as well clear the air while I'm at it."

A one-on-one match might be a good chance to talk things out openly.

Or at the very least, a good chance to vent my own stress.

With that in mind, I stepped onto the teleportation portal.

Spacious enough to make running a viable option, though the flat terrain and lack of cover were a bit disappointing.

Soon, Mak Dae-wong appeared on the opposite side.

Even if we weren't on good terms, he was still a senior, so I offered a polite greeting first.

"Good day, senior."

"Not good for me. Though I'll admit, fortune's on my side. Getting to face you in the first match."

Mak Dae-wong bared his teeth in a smile.

Normally, seniors were strictly forbidden from laying hands on juniors. That was the school policy.

Fighting is only allowed within the boundaries of a permitted duel. Since I never accepted any outside challenges, he'd always had to rely on third parties like the Jang Moo-geuk and Wang Cheon-sam assassin duo or Sa Gong-wook's crew.

But now? He could beat on an annoying junior all he wanted under official rules. What's not to love?

I smiled back and played along.

"I agree about the good fortune. You might not believe me, but I've actually been hoping for a chance to talk with you."

"You think kissing up will get you anywhere now?"

"Then what would work?"

Mak Dae-wong's grin turned more vicious as he drew his large blade.

Shhhk.

"Just entertain me. For as long as possible. Resist, run, do what you like."

"That's really all it takes?"

I asked, pretending to be delighted.

He was fine with me running away for a while? How generous!

Mak Dae-wong frowned, clearly taken aback by my unusually positive reaction.

But after a brief moment, he seemed to brush it off. He either assumed I was bluffing or decided it didn't matter and rested his large sword on his shoulder.

"…Fine. Just don't forfeit. We can have the rest of that conversation after the match. At our leisure."

In other words, he planned to beat me senseless and drag me off afterward.

Whether that would go as he imagined… well, we'd see.

[3]

[2]

[1]

[Start!]

[Kim Ho 100% vs Mak Dae-wong 100%]

[Time Remaining: 9:58]

Tack!

The moment the match began, Mak Dae-wong lunged forward, kicking off the ground.

He closed the distance with surprising speed that didn't match his bandit-like build and brought down his large blade.

Each time I slipped away, he quickly recovered and unleashed second and third strikes in succession.

Swiishh!

He's definitely skilled.

He's at a level worthy of a key position within the Black faction.

At this rate, he might rise to a top leader spot by third year.

Though… that's only by second-year standards.

Compared to Lee Soo-dok, he still had a long way to go.

And I had never let Lee Soo-dok land a clean hit on me.

Swiishh!

So, all of Mak Dae-wong's swings kept slicing nothing but air.

Guess it's time for a test run.

I'd learned Frost Spirit Shot just last week, but with Seo Ye-in fleeing at the mere mention of a spar, my practice had been limited to striking training dummies.

Now that I had the perfect practice dummy in front of me, why not make good use of him?

Swiishh!

As his sword slashed past again, I sidestepped and raised my index finger, pointing it directly at him.

A sharp chill gathered at my fingertip and fired.

"!!"

Mak Dae-wong reflexively tilted his sword to block.

Normally, when weapon meets magic, there's a metallic clang. But this time, the sound was different.

Boom!

A small icy explosion burst from the point of impact, covering Mak Dae-wong in cold mist.

[Mak Dae-wong: 100%]

[Mak Dae-wong: 99%]

Frost Spirit Shot was technically a ranged energy attack aimed at pressure points. It was meant to pierce vital spots with pinpoint accuracy.

But it also partially carried the nature of a staff technique.

That's because it was derived from Frostwhite Divine Palm, one of the North Sea Ice Palace's signature martial arts.

Which explained the burst of cold that spreads on impact.

Even if he blocks, it doesn't really matter.

The chill spreads regardless.

Its effect was actually very similar to Chilwind.

"This bastard…!"

Mak Dae-wong's movements had clearly slowed.

He had taken the full effect of the cold.

And on top of that, the cold amplification effect is just like Chilwind.

The difference, though, was that Chilwind spread over a wide area, while Frost Spirit Shot focused on an extremely narrow point.

That meant it was easier for the target to dodge, but also made it far more powerful.

Of course, Mak Dae-wong was one of the top fighters among second-years, so he had likely come prepared with at least one countermeasure against debuffs.

Sure enough, as he let out a sharp cry—

"Hup!"

—a faint wave of energy spread out from his body.

His slowed movements returned to normal.

It was a self-protection-type aura skill to remove debuffs, probably a step above [Purification].

Though it still had a cooldown time.

That means he won't be able to undo the next debuff.

[Activated 'Mutual Destruction Eye'.]

[The target has been inflicted with 'Poisoned (C)' status effect.]

[Mak Dae-wong: 98%]

[Mak Dae-wong: 97%]

Mak Dae-wong's eyes flew wide open.

"You! When did you use poison!"

"You should've been more careful, senior. Ice is cold, isn't it?"

"A cold poison technique, huh?"

It seemed he thought the poison effect came from the Frost Spirit Shot.

But the Mutual Destruction Eye came after that.

Not that I minded the misunderstanding.

[Mak Dae-wong: 96%]

[Mak Dae-wong: 95%]

[Time remaining: 9:23]

Now that he was debuffed, I had no reason to keep fighting.

I spun around and took off running, with Mak Dae-wong chasing after me.

"Poison me and run away, is that it?!"

"You said running was allowed, didn't you?"

Acting all surprised now, even though he was the one who gave me permission.

I did have a little bit of conscience deep in my heart, but right now, it wasn't even twitching.

As I kept running, just like when I fought Han So-mi, the limitations of [Thief's Step] began to show.

No matter how fast I pushed myself, the distance between me and Mak Dae-wong kept shrinking.

We were both C-rank due to the fixed zone, but the difference in skill quality was clear.

Too bad I couldn't copy the teachers' skills.

During the raid on Research Facility No. 4, I had a chance to copy either Lee Soo-dok or Seo Cheong-yong's movement skills.

Both were A-rank, and their footwork techniques were top-tier.

But they didn't match my style.

For example, Lee Soo-dok's technique was all about dominance. It was about advance, advance, and more advance.

It wasn't great for backstepping or changing direction flexibly.

Seo Cheong-yong's footwork was smooth but too slow-paced for my liking.

Oh well.

For now, I'd have to make do with what I had.

And if the gap had closed, I just had to widen it again.

Just as Mak Dae-wong was about to swing his blade again, I pointed at him with my index finger.

A blast of concentrated energy shot out and exploded on contact with his blade.

Boom!

Once again, Mak Dae-wong was engulfed in cold mist.

A vein pulsed visibly on his forehead.

"…I'll give you this. You're remarkably talented at pissing people off."

"Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Oh, absolutely!"

Tatata!

As Mak Dae-wong dispelled the debuffs with his protective aura, he instantly closed the distance between us.

It was probably his trump card movement skill, separate from his usual footwork.

But I've got something like that too.

Swoosh…

I responded with Ghost Dance and instantly increased the gap between us again.

Mak Dae-wong came to a sudden halt, seemingly stunned by how easily his ace move had been nullified.

I watched him and spoke casually.

"Senior?"

"……"

And the moment his eyes met mine, I activated Mutual Destruction Eye.

[The target has been inflicted with 'Weathering (C)' status effect.]

[Mak Dae-wong: 84%]

[Mak Dae-wong: 83%]

"You've got to keep moving, right? Can't have the fun ending too soon."

"This bastard—!"

Furious, Mak Dae-wong came chasing after me.

Just like before, the distance between us slowly began to close again.

Then I spun around once more and pointed my index finger at him.

Mak Dae-wong instantly sidestepped using his footwork.

"Won't work this time!"

The one and only major weakness of Frost Spirit Shot was that it could be dodged.

Mak Dae-wong was a skilled second-year with plenty of combat experience. There was no way he'd fall for the same trick three times in a row.

Of course I accounted for that.

In truth, all I did was point my finger. I never actually cast Frost Spirit Shot.

Instead, I activated a different skill.

Wind Force.

Boom!

A burst of compressed air exploded, blasting Mak Dae-wong backward.

[Mak Dae-wong: 79%]

[Time remaining: 5:48]

"A trick…!"

"Senior, half our fun time has already passed. Let's make the most of what's left, shall we?"

"Stand still, damn you—!"

With his face flushed bright red, Mak Dae-wong came charging after me again.

***

The long chase finally drew to a close.

The match had reached its final moments.

[Time remaining: 0:57]

[Kim Ho 100% vs. Mak Dae-wong 63%]

Mak Dae-wong's face was no longer just red with anger. It had turned a deep shade of blue.

Meanwhile, I was perfectly fine with not a scratch on me.

I decided to strike up another conversation with him.

"Senior, something suddenly came to mind. Would you mind answering a quick question?"

"Shrrrup (Shut up)…"

Mak Dae-wong gritted his teeth as he forced out a reply.

I ignored him and continued.

"Honestly, I'm not sure why you're so obsessed with tearing me apart. I mean, the whole Black Death dungeon thing… didn't we settle that peacefully with Senior Jegal So-so?"

"That's what started it. But that's not what it's about anymore."

"Then what is it about now?"

Mak Dae-wong's eyes gleamed with a chilling light.

"It's simple. Pride. You crossed the line with us, and now we're paying you back. The Black Faction."

"I suppose that makes some sense… but at this rate, aren't you just damaging your pride even more?"

"Heh… That remains to be seen."

Mak Dae-wong let out a low chuckle, then glared at me and practically spat out his words.

"We are far more tenacious than you think. The moment you let your guard down, even slightly, you and your friends will be the ones getting hit. That's when you'll regret not backing down in the first place."

"I doubt you'll suddenly manage what you couldn't do until now… but anyway, thanks for the explanation."

It seemed I'd crossed a point of no return with the Black Faction.

At least, as long as those aligned with Mak Dae-wong remained at Dragon Slayer Academy.

But was I worried? Not really.

If they come at me, I'll do what I've always done. That was to beat them down and send them packing.

At last, the timer hit zero, and the match results were displayed.

[Kim HoWinvs. Mak Dae-wongLose]

Even then, Mak Dae-wong continued to glare at me, so I gave him a nod and left the arena with a light step.