Chapter 131: 7th Week Mentoring and Duel Battle (16)

Chapter 131: 7th Week Mentoring and Duel Battle (16)

“.........”

After the clash, Kim Ho glanced over as if he had lost interest, then turned his back and started running again.

Jo Byeok immediately resumed the chase and thought.

What was that just now?

He had fought countless experts until now, but it was very rare for him to be pushed back like that.

Usually, this result occurred when he was overwhelmed in a battle of internal energy, but this felt quite different.

[Jo Byeok 100% vs Kim Ho 100%]

[Crystal: 24%]

If there was a gap in their internal energy, he should have taken some damage.

However, there was no change in either side’s health.

It was a new experience in many ways but,

I just need to confirm it again.

Jo Byeok increased his speed and quickly caught up to Kim Ho’s back.

Then just as he thrust his fist forward, Kim Ho who had been glancing over his shoulder turned around and extended his hand to meet it.

Bang—!

Jo Byeok’s body was pushed back again.

But this time, he observed more carefully with a wider field of vision so he thought he understood what had happened.

Wind.

The wind gathered and compressed in Kim Ho’s hand.

It exploded in a vortex-like form and pushed him away like a spring.

Considering that Kim Ho was a caster-type class, it was almost certainly wind magic but if it pushed him back so far, there must have been some physical force added.

In that case.

As Jo Byeok closed in on Kim Ho for the third time, he drew up his internal energy and enveloped his body like armor.

In his duel with Go Hyeon-woo, he had responded similarly to the technique of [Clear Stream].

Soon, when Jo Byeok threw his punch, Kim Ho unleashed his wind magic to counter.

Bang—!

Jo Byeok was pushed back again, but this time the distance was less than half of what it had been before.

Although the internal energy consumption was significant for just one block, it was the correct answer.

Kim Ho’s eyes gleamed with interest.

“You figured it out quickly.”

Despite having his technique seen through, there was no sign of alarm on his face.

Instead, he seemed pleased with Jo Byeok’s keen perception.

Such composure could only be shown by someone with many remaining tricks up their sleeve and absolute confidence in themselves.

To think such a person was rumored to be a coward, it just goes to show how unreliable rumors can be.

Although Jo Byeok was growing more tense, he didn’t miss the opportunity he gained by answering correctly.

Since the distance pushed back wasn’t much, it was enough to continue his attack.

He stepped forward and unleashed a rapid series of punches like lightning.

Papapapat!

Kim Ho leaned and twisted his body to dodge the incoming punches while deflecting a few with his dark spear.

At the same time, wind quickly gathered and compressed in his empty hand.

When Jo Byeok immediately surrounded himself with internal energy to counter,

Bang—!

While Jo Byeok remained still, it was Kim Ho the one who cast the spell who flew in an arc and landed gracefully on the layered cliffs before he turned and began to run.

Though Jo Byeok was not easily flustered, he couldn’t help but be momentarily stunned by the sight.

...So it can be used that way too.

Since the opponent wasn’t being easily pushed back, it seemed he had sent himself flying instead.

However, he couldn’t just stand there like a dog chasing chickens, so he immediately kicked off the ground and continued his pursuit.

And when he checked the scoreboard,

[Jo Byeok 100% vs. Kim Ho 100%]

[Crystal: 48%]

Jo Byeok’s powerful move shattered and destroyed large and small cliffs and bizarre rock formations.

The area became a wasteland that was covered in thick dust.

Kim Ho’s figure was obscured by the dust but,

[Jo Byeok 100% vs. Kim Ho 100%]

[Crystal: 88%]

Looking at the scoreboard, it was clear that he hadn’t taken any damage.

Jo Byeok silently nodded his head.

Impressive.

He might have been able to make excuses by saying he lost only because it was a crystal duel battle or due to the handicap. However, now that even his ultimate move had been perfectly neutralized, there was no room for excuses.

Jo Byeok spoke to the shadow emerging from the dust.

“I acknowledge my defeat. I hope we can have a proper match someday.”

“Later, if there’s a chance.”

Kim Ho replied with a nonchalant attitude.

It was at that moment that Kim Ho’s name was added to Jo Byeok’s list of strong opponents.

[Jo Byeok Lose vs. Kim Ho Win]

***

Song Cheon-hye had a hard time believing what she saw.

“...You really won.”

“I told you, I had a plan.”

Son Hyeong-taek’s strategy was highly successful.

As expected, Jo Byeok was quite vulnerable in the chase compared to his actual skills.

Still, he was a tough opponent.

His keen observation allowed him to understand the connection between Wind Force and Twister in just two moves.

Despite his bear-like build, he was surprisingly quick-witted.

His subsequent responses were excellent, so the “Jo Byeok Infinite Pushing Strategy” I had prepared alongside the “Son Hyeong-taek Strategy” had to be quickly abandoned.

Of course, there seemed to be no way to counter the technique of propelling myself though.

Additionally, the final technique would have fallen on my head whether I responded or not, so I took it head-on. If the shock absorption through the storm cloud had been even slightly off, [Distortion] might have activated.

That’s how powerful his ultimate move was.

“Well done.”

Dang Gyu-young approached and offered compliments.

Then she lowered her voice and asked me,

“...But are you okay with this? It was a perfect game against Jo Byeok.”

I had won by dodging all the attacks against a promising student of the disciplinary committee. This would naturally draw the attention of those who watched the replay.

Moreover, it was even more impressive given the score difference was around 500 points.

This raised the question of whether this was the opposite of my intention to stay low-key.

I answered casually,

“It won’t stand out as much as you think.”

It was only a crystal duel battle and I had the handicap of a 2.5x charge speed.

Plus, I spent the whole time running away with my back turned, so even if I dodged everything, I wouldn’t shake off the label of “coward”.

If my evaluation were to change, it would probably be something like “a coward but good at dodging”.

“You can’t hide everything anyway.”

It was wishful thinking to defeat a strong opponent like Jo Byeok without revealing anything.

Therefore, it was much better to show that I was good at running away and dodging rather than revealing my spatial trait of [Distortion].

After listening to that, Dang Gyu-young acknowledged the logic.

“Okay, as long as you’re fine with it.”

“Let’s go settle the score now.”

“Sure, let’s go, everyone.”

Next, it was time to extort a handful of elixir from Toad Senior.

We left the arena with steps that were as light as a feather.