I Became a Swordsmanship Instructor at the Academy 48

Became a swordsmanship instructor at the academy

Chapter 48

I feel completely empty after not eating all day yesterday.

The day before yesterday, I had stomach problems after eating the food Teacher Kim brought, and I was in and out of the bathroom all day.

How could anyone think of putting chocolate in galbi-jjim (braised ribs)….

Not only was the galbi-jjim incredibly salty, but the vegetable side dishes were sour, astringent, and even spicy.

She said she added a little bit of fire chicken sauce to create a special flavor….

It’s horrifying just thinking about it.

If only Teacher Min hadn’t initially said it was good, I could have passed on it.

Moreover, Teacher Min took a few bites and then dishonestly escaped, claiming she suddenly had urgent business.

Thanks to that, I thought I was going to die eating it alone.

I was about to boil some water to make ramen when my phone rings.

It’s Eunsu’s mother, what could it be… Ah, I was supposed to go there this afternoon.

I completely forgot.

“Hello, Eunsu’s mother.”

―Teacher Kang, you’re awake. Did you enjoy the holiday?

“What? Yes. Did you enjoy yours as well?”

―Yes. I heard you told the kids you were coming. Thank you for accepting our invitation despite the inconvenience.

“Not at all. Actually, I’m wondering if I’m causing you trouble…”

―Not at all, so please don’t feel burdened. After all, Teacher Kang, you saved our Eunseo’s life. You also stepped up to clarify when controversy arose, and I’ve wanted to treat you to a meal at least once.

“I only did what I had to do. I feel awkward receiving so much praise.”

―Please don’t say that. Our entire family is sincerely grateful to you, Teacher Kang. We don’t even know how to repay this kindness.

“Oh, no, really.”

―Um… Teacher Kang, how does lunch at 12 o’clock sound?

“Yes. That works for me.”

―Then I’ll prepare everything for that time. Do you have any favorite foods?

“I eat pretty much anything.”

―That’s good to hear. Then I’ll see you later.

“Ah, yes. Take care.”

Actually, there are many things I can’t eat.

I won’t even touch things like cheonggukjang (fermented soybean paste stew) or hongeo (fermented skate), but I’m sure Eunsu’s mother won’t serve those.

I was going to boil some ramen and even mix it with rice, but I held back for lunch.

After finishing the dishes and cleaning my room, it’s already 10 o’clock.

I search for the address I got from Eunsu on my phone’s navigation, and it says it will take about 30 minutes, so I should start getting ready.

Even though I was invited, I can’t go empty-handed.

Fortunately, there’s a department store near Eunsu’s house, so I’ll buy something like a cake.

***

“I’ll process your payment.”

I handed my card to the employee.

I only bought one small cake and a few macarons, but… Is it because it’s a department store? The price is quite high.

Normally, I would never buy this with my own money, but it’s a gift.

Well, I was worried the store might not be open, so I’m glad it is.

I returned to my car and drove for about 10 minutes to reach Eunsu’s home.

I’m not sure if it’s a premium brand or not, but from the outside, the apartment looks quite nice.

Well, both parents are hunters, so their household probably isn’t struggling financially.

I pass the security office, park my car, and press the intercom at the address, and the door opens.

It’s the 23rd floor, but the elevator is fast so I arrive quickly.

“Teacher!”

“Welcome.”

Eunsu and Eunseo are standing at the door.

“Hello.”

I entered the house with the two kids guiding me.

“Welcome.”

“Hello, ma’am. Have you been well? Ah, this… I couldn’t come empty-handed, so I bought this on the way.”

“You didn’t have to… Why did you go to such trouble?”

“Oh? This is from the Hansung Department Store, right? The cake there is really delicious.”

“There are macarons too. These are my favourites.”

“Teacher, you’re the best!”

They’re clearly happy, but somehow I feel like they’re more excited about the pastries than about me.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Eunsu and Eunseo’s father.”

The father extends his hand for a handshake and greets me – he’s a handsome man with sharp features.

Thinking about it, Eunsu seems to resemble his father quite a bit.

Eunseo looks more like her mother.

“Hello. I’m Kang Shin-hyeok.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you from the kids. Instead of standing here, please come in.”

“Yes.”

They said they still have some preparations to make and asked me to wait on the sofa, which feels a bit awkward.

If the kids were here, I could at least talk to them, but they’ve all gone to help their mother, so it’s just the father and me.

As I was wondering what to say, the father broke the silence by thanking me for saving Eunseo.

I responded as I did to the mother, saying it was fine and that I only did what I had to do, and after that, the conversation flowed naturally.

“The kids talk about you a lot, and now that I meet you in person, I understand why.”

“Pardon?”

“You look much better in person than in photos. You must be popular at school.”

“You’re too kind. You’re quite handsome yourself, sir. They say daughters take after their fathers… I wondered who Eunseo and Eunsu took after to be so pretty, and now I see it was thanks to you.”

“Haha. Is that so?”

“Of course.”

“You’re speaking too highly of me. How are the kids doing at school?”

“Both Eunsu and Eunseo are doing great. They have excellent grades, good manners, and other teachers praise them a lot too.”

“That’s good to hear.”

He looks very satisfied – it seems parents truly love hearing praise about their children.

“Teacher, everything’s ready. Come eat. Dad too.”

“Shall we?”

I followed the father and Eunsu, and I was shocked.

Braised beef ribs, seafood stew, japchae (stir-fried glass noodles), various jeon (savory pancakes) and namul (seasoned vegetables), and what looks like at least three kinds of kimchi – no exaggeration, the table seems about to collapse under all the food.

“I heard you didn’t go anywhere for the holiday, so I prepared holiday foods, but I’m not sure if they’ll suit your taste.”

“This is a real feast.”

“My wife is an excellent cook. Please dig in.”

I take a spoonful of the seafood stew first, and it’s a masterpiece – refreshing yet spicy.

The galbi-jjim also has a subtle sweetness with a tender texture that’s just perfect.

The dishes are similar to what Teacher Kim brought two days ago, but the taste is literally heaven and earth apart.

No, it would be disrespectful to even compare them.

“How is it?”

“It’s delicious. You could open a restaurant.”

“I’m glad it suits your taste. Please eat plenty.”

Not only the main dishes but also the side dishes were so delicious that I cleaned my rice bowl and asked for another serving.

After eating the cake I brought and fruit for dessert, I was about to leave when the mother asked me to wait a moment, then came out of the kitchen with a shopping bag.

“I packed some of the dishes you enjoyed during the meal.”

She said “some,” but when I received it, it felt quite heavy.

“Ah, you didn’t have to… Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”

“It’s nothing special. Please continue to take good care of our children.”

“I’ll do my best. Well then, I’ll be going… Ah, you don’t need to see me out.”

“We’ll walk you out.”

“No, I’m fine…”

“We were planning to go to the park in front anyway to help with digestion.”

After saying goodbye to the parents, I took the elevator down with the children.

“Our mom is a good cook, right?”

“She really is skilled. Tell your mother I enjoyed the meal very much and thank her.”

This isn’t just politeness – it really felt like homemade food I hadn’t had in a long time.

“If you run out of side dishes, let me know. I’ll ask my mom to make more.”

“Eunseo, that’s not right. How can I keep imposing? Your mother must be busy with work.”

“It’s okay. If it weren’t for you, teacher, I wouldn’t be here right now.”

That’s true, but…

Like the mother and father earlier, although I didn’t bring it up first, it feels like they’re milking the one time I saved her, which makes me a bit uncomfortable.

“When a student is in danger, it’s natural for a teacher to step in. Let’s stop talking about that now. Weren’t you going to the park? Go on to the park. My car is right in front.”

“Teacher, are you very busy?”

“Not really… Why?”

“There’s something I’d like to discuss.”

“Discuss? What is it?”

“I’m thinking of signing up for the martial arts tournament. What do you think?”

“Martial arts tournament? Isn’t the festival still quite far away?”

The martial arts tournament is held during the school festival, which starts after the December final exams.

“The preliminary rounds start in November, and our homeroom teacher said she would take applications after the midterm exams… Don’t you know?”

Come to think of it, I think there was something mentioned about this at the faculty meeting a few days ago.

“I heard about it, but are you really going to participate?”

“It seems like you don’t think it’s a good idea?”

“To be honest, I think it will be difficult for you to place.”

The martial arts tournament is open to students from all hunter schools in the country.

Since they don’t separate by grade, mostly third-year students participate and achieve good results.

Of course, our school’s student council president Se-jin and the novel’s protagonist both won championships starting from their first year, but those are special cases.

While Eunseo and Eunsu are excellent students, they might be good among their peers, but it would be difficult against second and third-year students who have already experienced practical training.

Actually, I’ve even sparred with the student council president who apparently won for two consecutive years.

I won easily, but if our kids were to face her, they would lose a hundred out of a hundred times.

“Um… Senior Se-jin participated and won from her first year, didn’t she?”

“Se-jin hasn’t graduated yet. Isn’t she not participating this time?”

“No. I don’t know for sure, but I think she will.”

“Then imagine meeting the student council president. Are you confident you can win?”

“No…”

“Teacher, I heard the preliminaries are against students from other schools.”

“Really? So your goal is to pass the preliminaries? If that’s the case, participating for the experience isn’t a bad idea.”

Whether they achieve their goal of passing the preliminaries or get completely destroyed by a powerhouse from another school, either way, it will be helpful for the kids.

“So can we participate?”

“Of course. If you want to do it, do it. Why are you asking me?”

“The supervising teacher needs to sign the application form. But the teacher of a friend learning sword arts refused…”

“Huh? Why?”

“He said first-years will just embarrass themselves without winning a single match if they’re unlucky, so why bother participating…”

Wow, that’s a bit…

“Did he really say that? That’s too harsh.”

How can someone say something like that to a student they’re teaching?

“Senior Se-jin said it’s because teachers get embarrassed when their students lose in competitions, so they don’t usually allow first-years to participate. She said when she was a first-year, her supervising teacher refused too, so she had to go to the vice principal for permission…”

“We were worried that if we participate and lose without winning a single match, it might tarnish your reputation…”

They’re talking with such serious expressions that I can’t help but laugh.

Have I ever seen such adorable kids?

“Teacher?”

“Why are you worrying about that? I don’t care about that at all, so if you want to participate, go ahead.”

“Really?”

“We’ll work really hard.”

“Good. Since you’re participating, it would be nice to win at least one match. By the way, from what I know, if you participate in the competition, there are supplementary classes in the evenings and on weekends.”

“Sup-supplementary classes?”

I think I heard about this at the faculty meeting, but since I thought it didn’t concern me, I didn’t pay much attention, so my memory is vague.

Anyway, in the original story, the protagonist participates in the martial arts tournament and has supplementary classes, but he doesn’t attend them because he finds them bothersome.

Then the angry supplementary class teacher comes to punish him, but he fights and defeats the teacher.

“Why, don’t you like supplementary classes?”

“What student likes supplementary classes?”

Well, that’s true.

“So we’ll have classes with you in the evenings and on weekends too?”

“Well, I’m not sure who will teach them, but it probably won’t be me.”

“What? Why not?”

If I were to take on the supplementary classes, I would receive overtime pay, but I can’t give up my rest time for such a small change.

“I’m a new teacher. It will probably be a more experienced second or third-year teacher.”

I never intended to do it anyway, but I didn’t want to disappoint them by telling the truth, so I made up an excuse.

“We don’t like supplementary classes, but it would be better if you taught them…”

“Me too. What does being new have to do with anything? Among the sword arts teachers, you’re the best.”

“Stop flattering me. But your teacher is busy, so it’s not possible.”

For a moment, I considered taking the classes after the kids’ praise, but what’s not right is not right.