Chapter 13

Chapter 13: What Is a Slash?

“Did you say your name was Joo Donghoon, hm?” the old man asked me while training Boney 1.

“Yes, elder.”

“So, Donghoon, what do you think swordsmanship is?”

It was a random question. It felt strange to someone like me who had never held a sword. But since he asked, I had to answer.

“Hmm, since it’s swordsmanship, doesn’t it mean a technique with the sword?”

“Such a simple thought, just like you.”

The old man nodded as if he expected that answer. However, his expression was not one of disappointment. Instead, he seemed pleased.

“You’re correct. There’s no need to complicate it. Swordsmanship is the handling of a sword, nothing more, nothing less.”

The old man’s teaching was directed at me, not Boney 1.

I realized he intended to release his ‘resentment’ through me completely. He planned to teach the techniques meant for the skeletons to me as well. In this way, he aimed to pass on his ‘All Techniques’ entirely.

I should have known from the strange technique he used to change my skeletal structure.

“Now, pick up that wooden sword over there.”

I picked up a piece of wood lying on the ground.

“Grip it.”

“Grip it... in what way?”

“As I said, don’t overthink it. Hold it in the way you feel most comfortable.”

A bit confused, I held it as he instructed.

“Are you holding it?”

“Yes.”

“Good, now swing it with all your might.”

“Like this?”

—Whoosh! Whoosh!

I swung the sword several times into the air—the pure, untrained swings of a complete novice.

“Yes! Well done.”

“Excuse me?” I tilted my head.

Was this old man joking? Was this supposed to be well done? Am I not understanding because I’m not a genius?

Even to my eyes, no, to anyone in the world, it looked like a sloppy ‘slash.’

Is this guy really a top-tier instructor?

The old man spoke again as a sliver of doubt crept into my deep-seated belief.

“Look at how you grip the sword with your right hand. How does it look? Your thumb stands firm, and the other four fingers grip tightly, don’t they? And look at the direction you swung. Once from the direction of 2 o’clock to the 8 o’clock position. Then again from the 10 o’clock to the 4 o’clock position.”

The old man described my posture.

“I didn’t teach you anything. You swung the way you thought was most cool and comfortable for a ‘slash.’ Your perception of ‘slash’ is based on everything you’ve experienced throughout your life.”

“...”

“Do you not understand what this means?”

“...I don’t.”

“You put your ‘life’ into that swing.”

Huh?

It sounded like nonsense.

Nonsense, yet somewhat profound.

Damn, am I losing my mind?

As I stood there with my mouth open, the old man continued.

“Now, let me ask. If that ‘slash’ you just performed had power and speed, would it be effective?”

Hm? I don’t know.

Wouldn’t the traditional ‘slash’ performed by an expert be stronger than my swing? Like a kendo practitioner or a samurai.

Hm. Honestly, I don’t know.

“Tsk, tsk, you’re making that foolish look again. Any ‘slash’ becomes powerful with strength and speed. Whether a tiger swipes its paw one way or another, the rabbit’s innards will burst just the same. Do I need to explain such a simple concept?”

“Aha?”

I seemed to understand the old man’s teaching. First, I need to create my own ‘slash.’ That ‘slash’ would take into consideration my life, physique, and so on. Then I’d practice it repeatedly to add strength and speed. Eventually, I would develop a stronger ‘slash.’

Translator – Dawn

Proofreader – BringTheRayn

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* * *

At the headquarters of the Parang Guild, the Dark Empress Gi Soyul visited her only sibling for the first time in a while.

“Brother.”

He was a figure respected by all Korean hunters, a global VIP, and giant who single-handedly established a major guild. Currently ranked 58th in the world, his name was Giparang, the Fine Bow.

“What’s the matter? This is just about the first time you have come to see me.” Giparang looked at Gi Soyul curiously.

Although she was a vice guildmaster, she had never involved herself in the guild’s internal affairs. She was with the guild only to make the name Parang more prestigious as a ranker and a blood relative.

“Well, actually, I’ve been worried about something recently.”

“You?” Giparang’s eyes widened in surprise.

His sister had never shown interest in anything other than training.

“Could a hunter around D-rank suddenly exhibit strength beyond that of a ranker?”

“Hmm. That’s a rather odd question, no?”

“Hurry and answer.”

“Well, usually, even with getting a fortuitous opportunity or earning a skill, it takes time to make it one’s own... I’d say it’d be very unlikely. If such a case existed, the only explanation would be that they had been hiding their ability.”

“He definitely wasn’t hiding it.”

“Really? I believe you since even rankers can’t hide their abilities from your eyes.”

Her assassination skill, ‘Search’ (S-rank), accurately assessed the target’s level.

Giparang shook his head. “So it doesn’t make sense. Why, what’s going on?”

“...”

Gi Soyul had yet to report the dungeon incident to Giparang out of pride. Or rather, she had reported it but hid the exact details.

How was this possible? It was because there were over a dozen unranked dungeons that Parang was involved in every week. Most of them were assessed or cleared by the reconnaissance party, so the guild master couldn’t keep track of everything. Moreover, he only paid attention to failures or discoveries of A-rank or higher dungeons.

“Hmm, never mind. So it’s impossible?”

“At least that’s what common sense tells me. But I’m sure you already know this. Common sense can always be broken.”

“Yeah, I know.”

It had only been ten years since the world turned upside down. Just ten years ago, the existence of ‘hunters’ themselves was beyond common sense.

The old man.

Gi Soyul ground her teeth secretly.

He was the first to make her feel powerless. She had lost to other rankers before, but the feeling of powerlessness she had experienced was unprecedented.

And yet, how could a mere porter...

From his first impression, she had been curious. He was a man with eyes more like a snake’s than a wolf’s—a fierce gaze. It reminded her of herself five years ago at 20 years old.

So she became interested. Though it may have been rude, she played a bit of a prank for the first time in her life.

But that was it. From her ranker’s perspective, he was just another hunter among many.

And yet, he surprised me.

He confidently demanded entry into the dungeon that she continuously failed to clear. While all the survivors were trembling with fear, he was calm, like a beast eyeing its prey.

She thought he would fail. She thought it would be a waste of time. She gave him a chance only because she liked his spirit.

But he actually cleared it?

She was too curious. Curious to the point of losing sleep.

He’s definitely an interesting person.

If she had been interested in the guild’s internal affairs, she would have immediately recruited him. If he gained strength and fortuitous opportunities with that much ferocity as a necromancer, he could grow into a ranker like Dark Lord in a short time.

He promised to tell me once he sorted things out.

Surely, there had to be something.

She wanted to press him immediately but decided to give him time. Because she had promised.

“Hmm? My sister. You’re being quite suspicious. You had a serious face earlier, and now you’re smiling?”

“Oh, huh?”

“Why? What is it? You never cared about anything but wielding your dagger before, no?”

“It’s nothing.”

Gi Soyul frowned at her brother’s teasing and quickly left the guildmaster’s office.