The Duke's Son :Re-Chapter 21

[You have been breaking through the limits of your mind and body for 2,960 days in a row.]

[If you keep up the current state for another forty days, a hidden Skill will awaken.]

[The newly developing Initial Skill has discovered the potential of the hidden Skill and is resonating with it.]

[It is an unbelievable phenomenon!]

[Time is required for the merging process to be completed.]

There were nearly thirty leeches.

As expected of those summoned by the Leech King, they were ferocious. They attacked viciously as soon as they saw Jae-Hyeok.

On the other hand, Jae-Hyeok’s body was very heavy.

Why do I feel like this?

[The lion’s curse has reduced your stats by two times.]

[The lion’s curse prohibits the use of skills.]

It was due to the lion’s curse that Jae-Hyeok was oblivious to.

Regardless, I like it this way, Jae-Hyeok thought. There was a deep smile on Jae-Hyeok’s face.

It felt like he had become twice as weak. In this state, There was no way he could kill a leech in one strike, not unless he really tried to.

It meant there was no need for him to control his strength.

He could go on a rampage.

He used the mana control technique of the Kang family, which specialized in the concentration and release of mana. It was a technique that arose from endless study and evolution to maximize the power of the sword-drawing technique.

It had many uses.

He concentrated mana on the soles of his feet and released it as he jumped forward, ignoring the swamp's resistance. Then he carried out a downward slash.

The leeches that had raised their heads above the swamp to bite him screamed and collapsed.

The leeches were long and narrow like serpents, so Jae-Hyeok’s horizontal slash struck five or six of them.

The leeches raced to attack Jae-Hyeok where he landed, causing the murky waters to stir violently. Of course, Jae-Hyeok wasn’t stupid enough to be hit when their movements were so obvious.

Clink! Clink clink!

Jae-Hyeok stepped back and repeatedly drew and sheathed his sword. A sound resembling a reloading magazine was heard continuously from the scabbard.

Kieeeeeek!

The leeches couldn’t narrow the distance to Jae-Hyeok.

Every time they came within one meter of him, they were repeatedly slashed and knocked back by his drawn sword.

***

This... this is ridiculous. Kim Jin-Myeong couldn’t believe what was happening in front of him. It was a one-against-many battle, but the many couldn’t make use of their numerical advantage.

The sword-drawing technique.

Every time Jae-Hyeok drew his sword, a slash—horizontal or vertical—or a thrust—perfectly straight—appeared in the next moment.

Every blow was swift and had such great strength that the leeches writhed in pain. But the most overwhelming thing was the diversity of his sword trajectories.

His weapon was the hwando. The scabbard was attached to his belt with a cord and wasn’t fixed in place, so he could change its position at will. Due to this, the trajectories of his sword draws were flexible and dynamic.

And yet...

It isn’t a Skill.

The Skill training teacher had reported that Jae-Hyeok’s Skill was the sword-drawing technique.

However, that couldn’t be a skill. How could an attack that was used continuously without stopping be a Skill?

It was pure swordsmanship. A skill that was trained naturally, independent of the system. Kim Jin-Myeong silently evaluated Kang Jae-Hyeok. The greatest swordsmanship genius ever.

His potential as a player had been judged green because of the low grade of his Skill, but his innate abilities as a person were beyond excellent. His body, his abilities—everything about him was strong, and he had achieved it all through self-improvement.

However, now that he’d become a player, his hard work and skill would inevitably become regret.

God is jealous of that child. Kim Jin-Myeong lamented. That had to be why Jae-Hyeok had received a beggar-like Initial Skill, turning his potential green.

Kim Jin-Myeong’s eyes suddenly widened. Ahead, Jae-Hyeok’s sword-drawing technique was slowing significantly.

The issue was the environment.

Every time Jae-Hyeok attacked the leeches, mud and filth from the swamp stuck to his sword. Jae-Hyeok swung his sword through the air between attacks to shake off the filth.

Still, the muddy filth was thick and sticky. Not all of it came off, and each time he performed the sword-draw technique, more grime built up inside his scabbard, weakening the power of his subsequent draws.

“Jae-Hyeoooooook!”

Kim Jin-Myeong jumped into the swamp.

***

This is one of the weaknesses of the sword-drawing technique.

Jae-Hyeok had sensed it since the beginning of his swamp adaptation training. As expected, the sword-drawing technique isn’t compatible with this place.

Due to the mud and grime, his sword no longer fully fit in the scabbard, which weakened the power of his technique.

In addition, the leeches' body fluids were like glue. It mixed with the mud, coating his blade and dulling its edge.

Still, just this much isn’t a problem, Jae-Hyeok thought.

The reality was many awakeners were killed by E-class monsters. Such monsters were enough to threaten low-level players. That was why the students of Class B and -C feared the leeches.

However, that didn’t mean that E-class monsters were stronger than low-level players.

Newbies were at risk because they were often unable to overcome environmental problems, like swamps, or tactical problems, which arise from a difference in numbers.

In other words, the current situation wasn’t threatening to Jae-Hyeok at all. He had almost completely adapted to the swamp and had stats that far surpassed a level 1 newbie.

Baang!

Moreover, leeches weren’t monsters that used weapons such as swords or bows. They were quick and stealthy in the swamp, but their only means of attack were their teeth.

How could they be a threat when they had to approach so close to attack? He could attack them with his eyes closed while picking his nose.

“Jae-Hyeoooooook!”

“?”

Jae-Hyeok flinched and looked up.

He wondered who would call his name so passionately, but it turned out to be Kim Jin-Myeong.

“Fire Storm!”

Flames shot out from Kim Jin-Myeong’s hands and swept through the leeches as a small storm.

Jae-Hyeok had a thought when he saw it. Huh, I thought his movements were unexpectedly dull when he fell into the swamp. So it turns out that he’s a magician? It really didn’t match the impression he gave off.

Kiyaaaaah!

Dozens of leeches were burned to death in an instant.

There was no incident where Jae-Hyeok accidentally gained experience and awakened. He’d adjusted his strength so that it didn’t happen.

Now that was proper training, Jae-Hyeok thought excitedly. The experience of fighting dozens of leeches while isolated in a swamp was more helpful than he’d expected. He had learned how to move even more naturally in the swamp.

Jae-Hyeok was showing a satisfied expression when Kim Jin-Myeong rushed over.

“A-are you okay? You aren’t hurt anywhere?”

“......?”

Kim Jin-Myeong’s attitude was strange. He grabbed Jae-Hyeok’s shoulders and examined every part of his body while filled with worry.

At first glance, Kim Jin-Myeong looked like Butler Hwang.

Jae-Hyeok wondered, “What? Why are you pretending to be close all of a sudden?”

“If you think that way, why did you save me?”

“It is because I am the son of Duke Kang Dae-Guk.”

“I’m a teacher, so I’m worried about my student. I have no ulterior motives. Cough! Give me your sword. I’ll wipe it clean.”

“Hmmm? Are you trying to steal my sword? Don’t bother. It’s not a special item. I’m just good with the sword.”

“I got it, I got it. Have a glass of cold water. Okay, here. Wipe your body with a towel too.”

“......”

Kim Jin-Myeong’s performance had been better than expected. Even if Jae-Hyeok hadn’t stepped forward, he would’ve slaughtered all the leeches and escaped safely. Of course, he was so deep in the swamp that he couldn’t have avoided being injured.

Still, Jae-Hyeok didn’t think Kim Jin-Myeong had been put in a position where he would consider him his savior.

Strange, why is he being so kind to me? It’s weird. Jae-Hyeok eyed him, not letting go of his suspicions.

Kim Jin-Myeong sighed and confessed honestly, “I just respect your convictions, okay? And... I’m sorry for my verbal abuse last time.”

“You mean that time when you talked about my home education?”

“Yes... I apologize a hundred times.”

“Even when you laughed at me for just being a lucky guy?”

“Y-yes, I’m sorry about that as well. I was foolish and not good enough, so I hurt you a lot. I don’t expect forgiveness. But you should know that I’m sorry for what I did.”

“Well, okay.”

In fact, Jae-Hyeok had been feeling Kim Jin-Myeong’s change recently.

This person had been openly hostile for the first few days. But his gaze became softer as time passed.

Human relationships are unpredictable and organic.

Jae-Hyeok had learned something new.

It wasn’t a bad feeling.

As Jae-Hyeok wiped the dirt off himself with a towel, the Class B students rushed over.

“A-are you okay?”

Surprisingly, they were also worried about Jae-Hyeok.

They’d realized that their quick growth was thanks to Jae-Hyeok. They didn’t know if it was intentional or not, but having realized their own improvements, they’d felt their bad feelings fade and be replaced by a sprouting gratitude.

“What were you thinking when you jumped into the swamp? What were you going to do if the teacher didn’t help you?”

“In any case, you are a madman.”

Because the other students evacuated in advance, they didn’t know what had happened between Jae-Hyeok and Kim Jin-Myeong, and why Jae-Hyeok had jumped into the swamp.

They just thought it was because he was crazy.

“......”

The mood of Class C was gloomy. The students glared with contempt at their homeroom teacher, who had run away without saving Park Si-Woo.

The Class C teacher was going crazy. He’d shown such a stark contrast to Kim Jin-Myeong that there was no end to his embarrassment. But he had more than humiliation to worry about. His actions were serious enough for him to worry about disciplinary action.

In this chaotic situation, several students from Class A arrived at the scene. They were the ones who had shouted from the forest to run away.

“Nothing happened, right?”

“It was just a bunch of E-class monsters. I’m sure you teachers must’ve handled it.”

There was no sign of concern or regret on their faces.

“Our Jae-Hyeok... Thanks to the timely intervention of Student Kang Jae-Hyeok, it passed without any damage. By the way, where is your teacher?” Kim Jin-Myeong suppressed what he wanted to say and looked for the homeroom teacher of Class A.

He wasn’t in a position to hold the students responsible and confront them, so he planned to find the one responsible and demand an explanation.