The Duke's Son :Re-Chapter 34

I’m glad he’s going to stay in Class B, Kim Jin-Myeong thought.

Kim Jin-Myeong had encouraged Jae-Hyeok to transfer to Class A.

A class's progress followed the students' average skill level, so Kim Jin-Myeong was worried that Class B’s lessons would hold him back.

However, Jae-Hyeok had different thoughts.

The others are all newbies. There’s a lot of room for me to use them.

That was proven in training today.

The students of Class B had little practical experience and were greatly intimidated by the monsters. Most of them were too anxious to bring out their full abilities.

Well, it might be because I was bothering them too much, but in any case...

The students had run around screaming and attracted the monsters’ aggro. This allowed him to slaughter the monsters easily and gain experience.

Jae-Hyeok had gained three levels.

Am I the first person in the world who hasn’t sweated at all after hunting monsters and gaining three levels?

It wasn’t a joke.

Low-level players would get tired from moving due to their low stats or would break into a sweat out of nervousness.

Meanwhile, Jae-Hyeok had easily killed many monsters thanks to the other students. It was like hiring dozens of workers for mob herding.

This type of growth would never be possible in Class A.

The level of students in Class A was high. Their average level was over 20, and all of them had developed advanced to high-grade Initial Skills. There were also two National Treasure candidates in this year’s Class A.

If he ended up in the same hunting grounds as them, he would spend a lot more time searching for monsters rather than fighting them.

“Look. It’s Kang Jae-Hyeok...”

“So, the rumor that he got his hands on the mad dog and the freshman runner-up is true.”

“If he picks the right last member, then his team will be quite strong.”

After dinner, the students’ attention was drawn to Jae-Hyeok’s group as they headed to the training ground.

Most of the eyes were filled with disbelief and envy, but some seemed to be gauging.

“Uhh... ”

“Wow, Kang Jae-Hyeok is a superstar.”

Da-Hee was intimidated by the fierce atmosphere, but Do-Jin ignored the gazes around him and headed for the weapons rack.

Set in rows along the racks was a selection of dull grey weapons—arcane weapons. Such weapons needed to be infused with mana before they would take on color and manifest their power.

In Lion’s Castle, arcane weapons were used for sparring. Although they could exert the same power as a real weapon, they were set to prevent them from inflicting more than a certain level of damage to others.

“They seem to be very interested in our team, not just Jae-Hyeok. Why is that?”

“We’re part of a team now, and all teams are required to compete in the ranking matches. Also, our team is strong, so each of us deserves attention and vigilance from the others,” Do-Jin answered.

“Ranking battles are held randomly from time to time, regardless of specific events. We can fight anytime and anywhere, so it will be great fun.”

“What’s the benefit of raising the rankings?” Jae-Hyeok asked. He was a freshman but he didn’t know much about these things.

“You can skip the tryouts when participating in various competitions.”

“Is that all?”

“Isn’t that enough? For example, when a competition is held against a foreign school, you will always participate as a representative of our school. But, yeah, there is more to it than just that.” Do-Jin looked mischievous. “We usually make a bet with the other team before the ranking match. Depending on the terms of the agreement, we can gain a lot from the other team.”

“Senior Do-Jin, there are actually times when you act like a senior?” Da-Hee was impressed by Do-Jin’s in-depth answer.

She even suspected that he was a doppelganger.

Jae-Hyeok smiled deeply as he tried to stop the two of them from arguing.

If I climb the ranking battles, won’t I easily find people to fill the stage for the drill? He could force other teams to submit to learning his Kang family’s military drill, raising his family’s status while also clearing his quest.

Wasn’t that killing two birds with one stone?

Jae-Hyeok was happy after finding a path to clearing the quest. Meanwhile, Do-Jin suggested cooperating with Da-Hee without hesitation.

“Should we start with a two-against-one fight?”

Do-Jin admitted that Jae-Hyeok’s skills were one step above his own.

It was the same for Da-Hee. However, unlike Do-Jin, she had some common sense. She wondered, “Do you really want to fight someone who’s broken his arm and is wearing a cast?”

Do-Jin replied, “Is it a big deal to have a broken arm? If you break your arm during a fight against monsters, will you ask for leniency?”

“That isn’t the same thing! Senior Do-Jin, will you take responsibility if he overdoes it and gets a permanent injury from training?”

“I only take care of pleasurable things. You take care of him if something happens. What? Why are you glaring like that?”

“I just can’t look at you in a positive light. Senior Do-Jin, you need to learn noblesse oblige.”

“I’m not even an aristocrat, so what bullshit...Ouch!”

Jae-Hyeok didn’t have time to say anything. The two of them had already started sparring.

Small and light as he was, Do-Jin swung his greatsword mightily to compensate. His every cleave was ferocious. In contrast, Da-Hee’s style was precise. She used rapid attacks to weaken her opponent's greater force before counterattacking.

......

Do-Jin shouted, “You flying squirrel!”

He was wounded, and Da-Hee met his next attack with a swift succession of thrusts, shifting his wide blade off course and exposing a gap in his guard. He used Flash Step.

One might think his Profession was a berserker based on his wild actions.

Unfortunately, the coordinates he’d set had failed. He reappeared and slammed head-first into a nearby wall before falling to the ground.

Da-Hee rushed over. “Are you okay?”

“I knew you would come!”

Do-Jin jumped up from where his face had been buried in the ground and swung his greatsword.

He’d planned this surprise attack knowing the soft-hearted Da-Hee would come over.

Bang!

Da-Hee’s rapier bent like it was about to break.

It was difficult for it to withstand Dojin's powerful strike, which carried the full weight of his greatsword.

“Ahahahat!”

Do-Jin shifted his greatsword's center of balance toward its end and spun with every swing. He looked like a ferocious windmill.

The rapid attacks uncharacteristic of a greatsword pushed Da-Hee back.

“Yield your body to the weight of the greatsword,” Jae-Hyeok advised Da-Hee, who was quickly on the defensive.

She was indeed the freshman runner-up, a genius who realized many things when taught once.

Infusing her rapier with mana, she thrust into the edge of the greatsword, using the rebound to dart back into the distance.

Do-Jin tried to catch her retreat but missed.

Da-Hee landed in a crouch before exploding with mana and shooting forward like an arrow.

“Eek!”

Her rapier snaked past Do-Jin’s sword and stabbed him in the solar plexus. He couldn’t even scream properly as he collapsed on his back.

Jae-Hyeok asked him, “Why didn’t you use Flash Step to catch her retreat?”

“Because it was a critical moment. If the Skill failed, I would’ve been in an even worse position... ”

“So you chose to lose without using it?”

“Ugh... ”

“What can you do when you don’t trust your Skill?” Are you always intimidated every time you use Flash Steps? You need to guide your mana quickly and accurately toward your desired coordinates, but you can’t do that if you’re nervous.”

“I’m nervous?” T-that isn’t the case!”

Jae-Hyeok told him, “If you don’t believe in yourself in critical moments, it means you aren’t confident. If you aren’t confident, then subconsciously, you must feel nervous.”

“Me?”

Baek Dojin tilted his head like a puppet with its strings cut. For a moment, his hair looked white instead of its usual red.

“D-Do-Jin? Did he lose his soul?”

“I don’t know if it’s to the point of losing his soul, but it’s definitely a big shock for him.”

Lack of fear was Do-Jin’s strength. He had always fought recklessly, no matter who the opponent was. That’s why he was called the mad dog.

Yet, he was actually a coward who got nervous every time he used his Skill?

The mad dog’s pride couldn’t tolerate this.

“Nevertheless, you already know how to set the coordinates for Flash Steps. You’re definitely improving, so don’t be too discouraged,” Jae-Hyeok comforted Do-Jin.

“D-do you want jelly?” Da-Hee randomly asked while pulling out some jelly from her pocket.

It could be seen why her pant pockets were always bulging.

......

“C-crazy! What did you feed me? Is this poison? It’s poison!”

“It’s red ginseng jelly! It is Duke Kang Dae-Guk’s third favorite snack.”

“Shit! You eat this thing!”

Do-Jin was awakened by the taste of the red ginseng jelly and resumed sparring with Da-Hee.

Kang Jae-Hyeok stepped back and leaned against a nearby bench as if he was tired. By all appearances, his arm injury seemed serious.

***

“See you tomorrow!”

Do-Jin and Da-Hee parted ways with smiles, both looking like pandas from the bruises around their eyes.

There was no lingering hostility despite fighting each other with the intent to kill.

They were the type of people who fell asleep as soon as they lay down at night—not because they were simple-minded but because they were too busy getting stronger to worry over trivial things.

Do-Jin was determined to kill a National Treasure candidate, while Da-Hee was determined to inherit Yaksha’s will.

The walls of a Baus family necromancer were as high as a great mountain, while the choice to become a true aristocrat was a thorny path.

They were people who would fight just as hard as Jae-Hyeok.

Is it starting already? The effect of wearing a cast is pretty good.

After separating from the group, Jae-Hyeok was walking down a remote path when he suddenly laughed.

Looking at the giant tree fifteen steps ahead, there was a shadow clinging behind it in the darkness of the night.

That person had been following Jae-Hyeok since he’d headed to the training ground. They were pretty good at hiding their presence, but their choice of ambush point was poor.

The moment the wind blows, the smell of the rosin sticking to his body is clear.

If he were him, Jae-Hyeok would’ve placed the ambush in the valley three kilometers ahead.

Observing a few more days to be confident in my route also would’ve been better.

Jae-Hyeok’s footsteps maintained a constant pace and sounded exactly fifteen times on the dry ground.

Then, a silver flash erupted from the shadow of the giant tree. It was aimed at Jae-Hyeok’s right shoulder.

Jae-Hyeok expected this.

He lifted his left hand, which was in the cast, and slapped the flat of the enemy’s blade, knocking the dagger aside. Then he drew his sword with his right hand.

“Gasp!”

The assassin’s groan was filled with shock as he was cut by a dark-colored blade that had slashed up from the blind spot in his vision.

It was clear that he hadn’t expected to fail in this surprise attack, nor had he expected a counterattack.

“You are just... a level 10 kid... how... cough!”

The assassin could maybe understand if a Bloodline Skill had been used, but Jae-Hyeok’s eyes hadn’t shone gold. Rather, they were as dark as the night.

A single blow had seriously wounded him. The assassin couldn’t believe it even after experiencing it firsthand.

“Does the level really matter that much?” Jae-Hyeok asked with an expressionless face. “Players are still people. They die when stabbed by a sword.”

Jae-Hyeok’s goal had always been to get revenge and restore his father's and his family's honor.

The enemy he saw when he swung his sword ten thousand times daily was human, not a monster. Unlike ordinary players, he had been honing skills to kill people.

He was different even from those who became assassins just because they obtained an assassin-type Initial Skill.