I Became a Swordsmanship Instructor at the Academy Chapter 24

Became a swordsmanship instructor at the academy

Chapter 24

“Teacher, hello.”

“Yeah. Good morning.”

I’m a bit tired.

Did I overdo it on the weekend?

After declaring control over the laptop and ramen, I was taught directly, but as time passed, I returned to a somewhat slack mode again. Unlike before, my master was really enthusiastic.

Minimizing sleep and pushing aside his beloved food, saying he could eat it when I wasn’t around anyway, he packed the entire weekend with training.

It’s good that my master is being cooperative, but he seems to have high expectations, which worries me.

I said I would hit him five times, but reality is reality.

Even if I set the standard, unfounded confidence is just arrogance.

Even if I fail the five hits I mentioned to my master, to save face, I’ll need to land at least two hits.

Thinking I really need to do my best in the remaining time, I finished my meal.

After eating, I arrived at the faculty office and clocked in, but somehow I feel eyes on me again.

Wondering what it is this time, I was about to ask Teacher Park, but they say even dog poop is scarce when you need it as medicine, and of course he’s not at his desk.

However, when I logged into the educational information system to finish entering the performance assessment scores for students that I couldn’t complete yesterday, I immediately understood why.

[Notice regarding selection of outstanding teachers for the first semester.

For general subject outstanding teachers selected by the principal, criteria are the same as the previous year.

For practical subject outstanding teachers selected by the vice principal, the decision will reflect the results after a duel with the vice principal.

*Advantages will be given differentially according to rank.

How to apply for a duel: Visit the vice principal’s office in person.

Application and implementation period: From today until the day before the closing ceremony.

Current duel applicant: First-year swordsmanship instructor Kang Shin-hyeok (scheduled for 07.30).]

Such a banner appeared as soon as I logged into the system.

I don’t know what this is all about.

Did they think I would suddenly cancel the duel?

When I first accepted the proposal, I even mentioned that a man’s word is worth gold, this is ridiculous.

“Looks like he’s lost all perspective after beating Teacher Jung last time. What on earth makes him so cocky?”

“You can tell just by looking at his size. A half-wit who didn’t even graduate from a Hunter School doesn’t know his place and is coveting the outstanding teacher title.”

“It says there are advantages, could that make a difference?”

“Nah, the vice principal is… He could win with one hand tied behind his back, eyes closed.”

I had anticipated this after seeing the banner, but they’re really tearing into me with gusto.

They seem to think they’re speaking quietly to themselves, but since becoming a peak master, my physical senses have improved, so I hear it even when I don’t want to.

Suppressing my irritation, I headed straight to the vice principal’s office.

After knocking at a level close to pounding, I entered, and the vice principal greeted me with a smile, seemingly having anticipated my visit.

“Oh, Teacher Kang, good morning. What brings you here so early?”

“What’s with the banner on the educational information system?”

“So that’s why you came? It couldn’t be helped. I can’t just give the opportunity to become an outstanding teacher only to you, can I?”

“What?”

“Other practical teachers might complain about preferential treatment. Opportunities should be given fairly to everyone. Anyway, I’m sure no other teachers will apply except you.”

At first glance, it sounds quite plausible, but honestly, I think it’s an excuse.

If that was truly the purpose, there would have been no need to post the current duel applicant in the notice.

It seems like he doesn’t trust me… Which is ridiculous.

The vice principal looked at me as if asking what the problem was, which was annoying, but since he wasn’t entirely wrong, I had no choice but to leave the vice principal’s office without achieving anything.

If I had known this would happen, I should have added a condition when making the initial promise to do it quietly with just two or three witnesses…

Forget it.

Regretting it won’t turn back time… Nothing will change.

The vice principal’s petty approach only fuels my determination.

At this rate, five hits won’t be enough.

At least ten hits… No, I’ll definitely kick his butt at least once.

***

“Not even two hours have passed, and you’re already tired?”

My master taunts me, but with breath coming up to my chin, I don’t have the energy to respond.

I blocked a branch aimed at my lower body with my sword, but couldn’t block the fist coming toward my abdomen right after.

THUD.

“Tsk tsk, you say your duel is the day after tomorrow. How do you expect to land even a single hit like this?”

It hurts.

There’s almost no pain since my master pulled his punch at the end.

But the fact that I couldn’t launch a proper attack again is too painful.

“How can you suddenly use your fists?”

“Am I supposed to kindly tell you I’ll use my fists during the duel? Besides, doesn’t that guy you’re dueling use his fists too?”

“Well, that’s true, but… Haa. Alright, master, are you really fighting at the ultimate master level… OW!”

Another flick to the head.

“Didn’t you say you’re at least an ultimate master? If I were serious, would you even be able to block me?”

In preparation for the duel with the vice principal, I’ve been training every weekend as well as engaging in intense sparring.

No matter how I think about it, my master’s standard seems a bit higher, but I can’t argue when I can’t even dodge a flick to the head.

“Still, didn’t I hold out longer this time?”

“So you’re just planning to endure during the actual duel?”

“Fine, let’s take a short break and try once more.”

“Tsk tsk, I don’t think doing more will change anything. Why not just give up?”

I don’t think he’s serious, and he’s probably trying to provoke me to improve my skills, but his sneering is very annoying.

It reminds me of the saying about whipping a running horse.

But a horse can’t run indefinitely just because you keep whipping it.

You should also offer carrots and coax it sometimes.

They say even a whale dances when praised.

Maybe I’ll reduce the amount of ramen next week.

“Looking at your training results so far, your chances of winning are less than 10 percent.”

He’s pouring oil on the fire… No, on a burning house.

“Even last week I succeeded with sword energy, isn’t that too harsh? It seems like you want me to lose, master.”

“What good is succeeding if it takes too long to use in actual combat? It’s like a chicken-rib dish, neither useful nor useless.”

Even though it may seem like a chicken-rib dish, I have my reasons… That’s too much.

It’s not like I went all-in on sword energy alone, I really worked hard to achieve it…

“You’re really spewing venom.”

“Venom? I’m saying you can’t do it because your skills are only at that level. Would I deliberately underestimate you? At your age, defeat is also an experience, so go get thoroughly humiliated.”

Looking at my master snickering, I’m irritated and want to refute something, but I don’t have anything to say… Ah, right.

“I forgot to tell you something. If I lose the duel, I won’t be able to come for three weeks.”

As soon as I finished speaking, my master, who had been giggling, froze.

The new teacher training is held for three weeks at a training center in Daejeon.

I heard about it while talking with Choi Seo-ra about new teacher training before, and at the training center, once the education time is over, you have free time afterward, so going out is more flexible than at school.

However, since education is mostly concentrated in the morning, overnight stays outside are not allowed.

“What? No, why are you only telling me this important detail now, you brat!”

“I thought it wouldn’t matter if I won anyway. So I just forgot about it.”

“Y-you’re coming next week, right? When you go down tomorrow, I’ll write you a list of things to buy for next week.”

“No. If I lose the duel, I won’t be able to come from next week.”

It’s not a lie.

The closing ceremony is on Tuesday, and the new teacher training starts right away on Friday.

“No, you brat! Then why did you bring ramen and snacks as usual this time…”

“I told you I forgot, didn’t I?”

Serves you right.

“…Stand up.”

“You said there’s no point in continuing, right? My internal energy hasn’t recovered yet. I’ve been moving a lot and I’m hungry, so I think I’ll cook some ramen.”

My master eats so well that I usually buy plenty of groceries.

Of course, even with that, he probably can’t last three weeks, but I’m deliberately going to use them up.

My disciple is about to waste three golden vacation weeks in a crappy environment full of people he dislikes, and you think you can be comfortable? No way.

I have to eat at least 2 packs of ramen.

And snack on some chips for dessert too.

Go ahead and chew on tree roots for three weeks, see how you like it.

As I get up and try to enter the cave where the ramen is, my master grabs me.

“What are you doing? Surely you’re not being stingy?”

“Urgh, I’ll teach you a technique.”

He’s making groaning sounds as he speaks, which is ridiculous.

“The duel is the day after tomorrow, and you’re telling me this now?”

“It’s not that difficult, so you’ll be able to learn it quickly.”

“Will learning one technique make a difference? As you said, I should accept defeat as an experience.”

“This kid, really!”

“Really or not, I just want to eat ramen. I’m going to eat 2 packs, are you eating too? How many do you want?”

“No, it hasn’t been that long since we had dinner… Listen, if you master this perfectly, you’ll have at least a 30 percent chance.”

Just a moment ago it was less than 10 percent, and now suddenly 30 percent?

Ha, this old man is hopeless.

With that mindset, did he really want me to lose after building up the atmosphere and pumping me up, saying I’d lose before even starting?

“If such a technique existed, you should have taught me earlier.”

“It’s not my martial art.”

“What? What does that mean?”

“In my younger days, I wandered the martial world and met many people, but there were only two fellows I could call close friends. This is a technique used by one of them.”

“A friend’s martial art? Do martial artists share their martial arts if they’re friends?”

In typical martial arts novels, the setting is usually that one never teaches their martial arts to others unless they’re disciples, so this is strange.

“Nonsense. I naturally learned it after sparring many times. In the martial world, stealing another’s martial art is a great sin, and of course, teaching it is also forbidden. But since you’re the only one using martial arts now, it doesn’t matter.”

“Oh, was that friend as strong as you, master?”

“Not as much as me, but he was decent enough. It was a technique that perplexed me, then at the peak level, when I was one realm ahead.”

“When you told me about your martial world stories before, you said you never lost, but it seems you did?”

Just as I thought our master is lying whenever he opens his mouth, he seems about to flick my head again, so I quickly rolled my body to avoid it.

“I can see you’re trying to hit me without warning, so I must be right… OW!”

I couldn’t dodge this time.

“Who said I lost! When did I say I lost? I said I was perplexed!”

They say strong denial is affirmation, and seeing him get heated, he really must have lost.

“Of course, of course. Master, you’re the king of kings. But can a technique that only managed to perplex you increase my win rate by 20 percent?”

Originally, learning techniques doesn’t take that long, but if the master says it’s easy and I can master it perfectly in two days, it’s probably not that impressive.

“Even though I was less skilled then than now, my experience was by no means small. It was a groundbreaking technique that even I had never seen before. Since you’re the only one who learned martial arts in the outside world, wouldn’t that give you at least a 30 percent chance?”

He’s talking more than usual, and at first, I thought he was just trying to stop me from eating ramen, but listening to him, it seems to make sense.

“Alright. It’s worth a try anyway, so let me learn it.”

***

I arrived at the swordsmanship training hall after lunch.

Even though I used an umbrella, the strong wind left me completely soaked.

Since we’ve been under the influence of a typhoon since yesterday, it rained all night, and it’s been pouring all day today as well.

Time flies so fast.

Tomorrow is finally the closing ceremony at the Hunter School.

So today is the day of the long-awaited duel with the vice principal.

The duel starts at 7 PM.

From a month ago when I accepted the vice principal’s duel proposal until yesterday when I trained with my master.

I really gave it my all, not having slept more than four hours a day.

The sound of wind and the eerie sound of rain are hitting the windows of the swordsmanship training hall office.

The calm before the storm.

During all this time, I haven’t said a word to the teachers who mocked me, both at school and on the SNS community ‘Together Time’, to those who are probably still laughing at me even now.

The result will speak for itself, whether they’re the ones who are pathetic or I am.