Chapter 330

Chapter 330

Simon looked startled as he climbed up the cage. “Deputy Director, why are you trying to spar all of a sudden?"

Simon had brought the apprentice crusaders to the cage to familiarize them with the deputy director, yet Jin-Seo suddenly wanted to spar. Simon couldn't grasp Jin-Seo's intentions at all. But Jin-Seo's eyes were filled with resolve, and she nodded confidently, certain of her judgment.

"Yes, to test their skills."

"But, why test... Wouldn't it be better if I were the opponent? To be honest, Deputy Director, you’re... how should I put this..."

Simon glanced at the two apprentice crusaders under the cage. "The skill gap between you and the apprentices is too big. And you're not the type to go easy."

"I’ll go easy on them."

"Well, if that's the case... But why do you want to spar?"

"Because it's necessary," Jin-Seo said calmly. "It’s necessary that we do this before the start of the mission. If I judge that their skills are lacking, I will remove them from the mission."

She anticipated that there would be a battle on this mission. Sun-Woo could use this event as an opportunity to strike. If he did, it would be a large-scale battle. Many people would get hurt, and some might even die.

It would be safer for civilians, as they needed to evacuate following the guidance of the paladins and crusaders assigned as event security. However, crusaders with inadequate skills, like the two apprentice crusaders in front of Jin-Seo, might challenge Sun-Woo into an unnecessary fight and risk their lives. Therefore, Jin-Seo needed to assess the skills of the two apprentice crusaders. If she deemed their skills to be disappointingly weak during the training, she planned to remove them from the mission.

"Now, get out of the cage. Both of you, come up," Jin-Seo commanded.

The two stiff apprentice crusaders climbed up into the cage.

Simon still had a puzzled look on his face. "W-what does sparring have to do with the mission this time? I still don't quite understand.”

Jin-Seo glared menacingly at Simon, who had yet to leave the cage. "And what if you don’t? I said it’s necessary. Why are you talking back?"

"..."

Jin-Seo's oppressive attitude sent a chill down Simon’s spine. However, Simon did not back down and faced Jin-Seo squarely. "Then I will fight too. I am also going on this mission. Wouldn’t I need to spar as well?"

Jin-Seo nodded and tightened her grip on her sword.

"Do as you wish," Jin-Seo replied nonchalantly.

"Are you sure about this? It's three against one. This might be a bit tough even for you, Deputy Director," Simon provoked as he fixed his grip on his sword.

In this sparring match, Jin-Seo had to face two apprentice crusaders and Simon, a total of three people. Since the cage was narrow, Jin-Seo had an overwhelming disadvantage in terms of terrain and numbers. However, Jin-Seo smiled. She seemed to find the whole situation amusing.

"It's okay," she said as she gripped her sword. “Try and attack me as if I’m the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult."

***

Simon touched the lump on his head he had earned from the spar with Jin-Seo.

"Damn it," he muttered.

The sparring match that Simon and the apprentice paladins had ambitiously tackled was short-lived and ended with Jin-Seo's victory. Jin-Seo had led with a strike to the back of Simon’s head with the back of her sword. Her blow had been so quick that it was almost invisible to the naked eye. Simon had no chance to resist and ultimately lost consciousness. Technically, he was still conscious, but he could not continue the fight as he had no strength in his arms and legs.

The two apprentice crusaders fiercely resisted Jin-Seo. The male apprentice swung his sword vigorously, but Jin-Seo evaded all of his attacks. There was no real need to dodge his strikes. The male apprentice crusader had resorted to swinging his sword around in panic when Simon suddenly lost consciousness. Jin-Seo subdued the male apprentice crusaders without much effort.

Surprisingly, the opponent that gave Jin-Seo a hard time was the female apprentice crusader. She was clever and did not give Jin-Seo any chance to approach. Utilizing agile movements from her petite frame, she skillfully kept her distance and attacked Jin-Seo with her training bow. Of course, the arrows she shot did not successfully hit Jin-Seo, as Jin-Seo cut them down with an amazing display of skill.

Jin-Seo capitalized on a brief opening when the apprentice drew her bow. She closed the distance between them and subdued the female apprentice as well.

Jin-Seo passed by Simon and the male apprentice crusader and said, "Good effort.”

She reached out her hand as she approached the female apprentice crusader who had resisted in her unique way. The girl took her hand, stood up, and looked at Jin-Seo with a surprised expression.

"What's your name?" Jin-Seo asked.

"Han Sol!" the apprentice crusader answered powerfully.

"So, just Sol?"

"..."

Jin-Seo had sparred with Han Sol and noticed a peculiar habit of hers. Han Sol attacked only when she felt safe. In other words, she only attacked after she distanced herself from Jin-Seo after Jin-Seo rushed toward her. Han Sol lacked the initiative or boldness to counterattack Jin-Seo's assaults.

"I liked that about you."

Jin-Seo chose Han Sol for that reason. She needed that side of Han Sol.

***

The three people arrived at the event venue and met the East Paladin Order director, Han Dae-Ho, exchanged light greetings, and wandered around looking for 'dangerous elements.'

As the director had mentioned, they had little to do, thanks to the East Paladin Order taking care of most things.

At that moment, a voice called out to Jin-Seo.

"Jin-Seo!"

It was a loud, booming voice. As soon as she heard the voice, Jin-Seo knew who had called out to her. It was Dae-Man. He strolled toward her, his massive frame towering over people.

"It’s nice seeing you here. Are these your colleagues from the North Crusader Order?" Dae-Man said, looking back and forth between Simon and Han Sol.

Jin-Seo nodded. "Yeah, I'll be with them tomorrow for event security."

"I see! I am Dae-Man from the East Paladin Order."

Dae-Man shook hands with Simon and Han Sol.

Simon smiled lightly and casually shook Dae-Man’s hand. "I am Simon from the North Crusader Order."

Han Sol awkwardly took Dae-Man’s hands. "I am Ha-Han Sol from the North Crusader Order!"

After exchanging handshakes with the two, Dae-Man briefly exchanged some words with Jin-Seo before he left. Simon watched Dae-Man leave absentmindedly.

He gazed at Dae-Man in admiration as Dae-Man disappeared. "He's incredibly huge... I heard rumors, but I didn't expect him to be that big."

Jin-Seo chuckled and replied, “He’s big. That’s all."

The three visited many places. They entered the cathedral, where a mass announcing the event's start was supposed to occur. They thoroughly explored the square where the main event would be held. They even carefully examined the interiors of the buildings surrounding the square.

"There's nothing here."

However, as Simon had mentioned, they couldn’t find anything. That meant there were no 'dangerous elements' at the event venue, so in a way, they had been lucky. But Simon couldn’t shake off the sense of emptiness, as it felt like they had wasted a few hours to achieve nothing. Han Sol seemed tired after walking around continuously, her eyes hazy while staring blankly.

Suddenly, Han-Yeol asked, "Is that a person over there?"

Jin-Seo and Simon turned their heads, following Han Sol's gaze. In a narrow alley where only one person could barely fit, a man was lying down with a tattered blanket covering him. He seemed to be homeless. Simon approached the man without hesitation.

"Simon, wait!" Jin-Seo said.

For some reason, Jin-Seo felt uneasy and tried to stop him. But Simon didn't listen and approached the man.

Simon woke up the sleeping man and flashed his North Crusader Order badge.

"I'm from the North Crusader Order. We're here for the Festival of Light. Do you have any ID on you?" Simon questioned.

Even if they were conducting a pre-event security check for the Festival of Light, they had no right to drive people off the streets arbitrarily. However, the man looked like a homeless person. Naturally, he wouldn't have any form of identification. Simon was prepared to drive him away because he could potentially be dangerous. If he couldn't provide an ID, Simon would transfer the man to the Eastern Paladin Order, trying to take action in any way possible.

"Northern Crusader Order," the man muttered as he slowly rose from his seat.

Simon looked at the man. For one, the man was tall. Furthermore, the contours of muscles were visible even beyond his clothes. He didn't seem like an ordinary homeless person. His hair was very long, and his beard was so thick that his face was hard to make out.

He glared at Simon, his eyes filled with hostility. "..."

‘A dangerous element,' Simon thought as soon as he saw the man's gaze. He placed his hand on the sword at his waist.