Chapter 80: 5th Week Mentoring and Duel Battles (3)

Chapter 80: 5th Week Mentoring and Duel Battles (3)

I stepped onto the teleportation magic circle alongside Hong Yeon-hwa.

The round arena had appeared in the placement test and it was a terrain we would see quite often in the future.

But this time, the arena was significantly larger when taking into consideration that it was designed for a three-person melee.

From a distance, I could see Dang Gyu-young standing with her arms crossed.

Judging by the state of Kwak Ji-cheol and Song Cheon-hye, they had engaged in a fierce battle, albeit brief. Yet, there was no sign of such an intense fight on Dang Gyu-youngs appearance.nove(l)bi(n.)com

Not only the stickers but also her clothes were clean as if nothing had happened.

This only went to show the considerable gap in skill between them.

Dang Gyu-young opened her mouth as she noticed us.

Get ready and come in whenever.

Before we began, Hong Yeon-hwa cautiously gauged my reaction.

Although no words were exchanged, it was easy to guess what she wanted to say because her expressions were something I had seen before.

She hoped we could fight together.

But she couldnt force herself to ask for that.

Yet the idea of facing the battle alone against a third-year seemed extremely difficult for her.

Since she didnt know what to do and hesitated, I took the initiative.

Just fight first.

. Alone?

When I looked at her silently, Hong Yeon-hwas expression shifted vividly in response.

Is he really asking me to do this on my own?

Her face fell,

Ah, I should have known hed do this

She resigned herself,

But maybe, like last time, hell come to my aid if things get too dangerous?

A glimmer of hope flickered within her eyes.

Regrettably for Hong Yeon-hwa, I planned to approach this first challenge with caution.

She needs to learn something from this too.

After all, if I were to resolve everything on my own, Hong Yeon-hwa would gain nothing from the experience.

After going through the trouble of signing up for mentoring, it would be nothing but a waste of time.

True stagnant waters (veterans), after all, should consider the growth of newcomers as their responsibility.

Just like when she faced the twin trolls in the strategy battle, teamwork will be the next thing Hong Yeon-hwa will do after shes been bumped and bruised.

In that regard, Hong Yeon-hwa was a newcomer ready to learn.

She ignited her fighting spirit as if she decided to do her best regardless of whether I helped her or not.

Flash!

The ruby embedded in her staff glowed a deep red.

Flames of fire magic blazed then got absorbed into and spread throughout Hong Yeon-hwas body before fueling her with energy.

[Overheat]

Her physical abilities were significantly enhanced, though it seemed she was not yet confident enough to engage in close combat.

The staff glowed red once more, and a thin stream of lava trickled down from its tip.

Instead of pooling on the floor, the lava stretched out and connected to the staff like a snake coiling on the ground.

With a slight flick of her staff, it whipped through the air following her command.

[Lava Whip]

.

Dang Gyu-young remained motionless with her arms still crossed.

But two small shadow butterflies that she summoned who knows when flitted around her wrist and shoulder.

Following a slight nod from Dang Gyu-young,

Come.

!

Hong Yeon-hwa immediately closed the distance.

As soon as she brought her opponent within striking range, she lashed out with her whip with all her might.

It seemed like she was aiming for Dang Gyu-youngs torso but her real target was likely one of the three stickers.

Swish!

However, at the last moment, Dang Gyu-young swiftly raised her arm and the whip coiled around it.

It was as if she had plunged her arm into lava yet Dang Gyu-young didnt even blink.

Hong Yeon-hwa attempted to send additional fire magic her way, but shadow hands emerged from beneath Dang Gyu-youngs feet, tearing through the lava whip as if clawing it apart.

Hong Yeon-hwa smoothly retracted her whip with an air of not having expected much.

And after flicking the halved lava whip on the ground, its length was miraculously restored.

Swish!

She launched another attack on Dang Gyu-young.

As if to say it wouldnt work a second time, Dang Gyu-young easily swatted the incoming whip away with a hand enhanced with magical power.

Before Hong Yeon-hwa could strike a third time, a counterattack from the shadow butterflies ensued.

Despite their seemingly feeble fluttering and curving trajectories, they moved with astonishing speed.

In moments of oversight like now, they could swiftly close in.

Ugh!

Hong Yeon-hwa hastily retreated and tried to strike the shadow butterflies with her whip.

But the butterflies were nimble. They fluttered back and forth and easily avoided the whips reach.

Realizing the slender whip was insufficient, Hong Yeon-hwa quickly shifted to her next spell.

She went for something with a wider range.

She was nearly caught in the shadow clap when I swiftly pulled her away with Wind Force.

Given the urgency of the moment, the pull was rough, causing her to roll several times on the ground before coming to a stop.

Hong Yeon-hwas temper flared up for a moment and she stood up and yelled in my direction.

You! be gentle please

But then, when she made eye contact with me, she suddenly lowered her voice dramatically as if her head had cooled down.

Her eyes kept darting around as if she was worried I might take issue with her earlier outburst but I simply let it slide.

That wasnt important.

It seems like this might be the end.

It seemed to be virtually impossible for Hong Yeon-hwa to remove one of the stickers in this challenge.

Since it was impossible,

Try close combat.

?

Hong Yeon-hwas expression turned perplexed, as if the suggestion itself was bewildering. After all, she hadnt even managed to get close and now close combat?

On the other hand, Dang Gyu-young seemed quite pleased with the idea as if she liked my proposal.

Its a good idea. Even if you lose, its worth giving it a try.

Now, Hong Yeon-hwa looked somewhat wronged. If one were to interpret her expression, it would roughly translate to:

Ive been fighting hard this whole time, so why is he getting praised?

However, she soon seemed to resign herself to the situation with a deep sigh before steeling her resolve as her eyes gleamed with determination.

This time, Hong Yeon-hwa took a notably long time to cast her spell.

She was one of the fastest mages Ive ever seen in terms of casting speed, so if she was taking that much time, it must be a very high-level spell.

The physical enhancements provided by [Overheat] were proportional to the power of the flame magic absorbed.

Thus, the intent was to absorb as potent a flame as possible to double the physical abilities.

Soon, vivid flames engulfed Hong Yeon-hwas entire body.

After taking a deep breath, she forcefully kicked off the ground.

Dang Gyu-young, with her hands hanging loosely, waited for Hong Yeon-hwa to approach.

As she closed in, she feigned a punch but then swiftly reached for Dang Gyu-youngs waist.

She hadnt forgotten that the objective of this duel wasnt to overpower the opponent but to remove the stickers.

Though there was a prerequisite of blocking or avoiding Dang Gyu-youngs melee attacks.

Hong Yeon-hwas attack was strengthened by Overheat and it obviously became incredibly fast.

However, its straightforward trajectory made it somewhat predictable.

Would a third-year student who went through countless battles not foresee such a move?

When Dang Gyu-young caught Hong Yeon-hwas wrist and yanked it, her balance was disrupted.

But she quickly regained her posture and reached out again.

Just when she thought she was about to touch one of the stickers, Dang Gyu-young spun around and moved right behind Hong Yeon-hwa.

With a shove, Hong Yeon-hwa fell awkwardly to the ground.

Huh.

There was no time to be annoyed.

Hong Yeon-hwa let out a cry of surprise and hurriedly rolled to the side.

And as if that wasnt enough for her, she rolled several more times.

A massive shadowy fist then mercilessly slammed down where she had been moments before.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

She had barely gotten up when Dang Gyu-young was already bearing down on her up close.

And from this point on, it was akin to a one-sided beating.

Shes got a long way to go.

I clicked my tongue as I watched Dang Gyu-young kick away merrily and Hong Yeon-hwa rolling around like a ball.

It seemed about time to call it quits.

If she kept getting pummeled without being able to put up any real fight, shed learn nothing and only deepen her trauma.

I approached the two, slipped in between them, and extended my hand.

Just as Dang Gyu-young was about to swat it away, my hand swiftly flipped and I grasped her wrist firmly.

Instead of trying to pull away, Dang Gyu-young moved in closer and swung her fist.

I gathered Wind Force in my opposite hand to meet her attack.

When the fist met the palm,

Bang!

With the sound of bursting wind, we were both pushed back a certain distance from each other.

In the meantime, Hong Yeon-hwa had managed to steady her staggering body.

I said to Hong Yeon-hwa,

Lets stop here.

At the same time, I pointed to the teleportation magic circle with a light gesture.

It was a signal for her to leave.

Hong Yeon-hwa tried a timid resistance,

I can still go on

I slowly shook my head.

Deep down, Hong Yeon-hwa must have felt it too.

Despite employing every tactic against Dang Gyu-Young, she was no match for her, and she only made it this far thanks to my help during three critical moments.

Even if she was fighting alongside someone else, the outcome would have been the same.

Even if Hong Yeon-hwas numbers had doubled, the result wouldnt have changed.

Though we could have combined our strengths, she must have known that she would only end up being a burden.

I understand

Eventually, Hong Yeon-hwa trudged out of the arena before leaving just Dang Gyu-Young and me.

Dang Gyu-Young looked at me with a slight smile.

Shall we see what our junior-nim can do then?