I Became a Swordsmanship Genius at the Academy

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The venue had turned into chaos. Voices of shock erupted without pause.

“Quiet! Be quiet there!”

It wasn’t until Guhanseok shouted several times that the practice room finally calmed down a bit.

However, he couldn’t stop all the large and small voices that kept spilling out.

Guhanseok moved past them and approached Kim Il-shin. He asked with a trembling voice as he looked him straight in the eye.

“Did you complete the dungeon raid?”

“Yes.”

It was just a confirmation out of caution, as there was no doubt. The gate had signaled the dungeon was cleared, so it couldn’t be wrong.

“…I’m sorry, but may I check the internal recorded footage? It’s purely for verification, I’m not doubting you at all. It’s just hard to believe for those outside. Can you understand?”

The interior of the artificially generated dungeon is recorded on video.

It’s a feature included in case of incidents like disappearances within the artificial dungeon.

As the responsible teacher, he had the freedom to access those videos.

However, viewing them during normal times was considered improper etiquette for a teacher against a non-combatant.

In a way, it was like peeking at someone else’s techniques.

So Guhanseok sought understanding and asked for permission, which Kim Il-shin readily agreed to.

“Yes. That’s possible.”

He didn’t really care, and besides, it seemed that the noisy situation wouldn’t settle otherwise.

“…Thank you.”

Guhanseok went over to the monitor next to the gate device and began to play the internal recorded footage.

Although the students clamored to see it as well, that was not permitted.

‘Is it a cave-type dungeon? The difficulty doesn’t seem high…’

The beginning was ordinary. Kim Il-shin entered the artificial dungeon, looking around as if exploring.

Then he soon encountered enemies and quickly dealt with five of them.

But things changed from there.

“…Huh?”

A voice full of questions slipped from Guhanseok’s mouth.

Just then, Kim Il-shin lowered his posture and began to run.

“Ah! Teacher! What is it?!”

“What’s over there! Please give us a chance to open Pandora’s box!”

Students screamed and pulled their hair in response. They were curious to the point of madness.

Guhanseok couldn’t hear their cries. He leaned closer to the monitor, as if being drawn into it.

The speed of the run was incomprehensible. He didn’t stop even when facing enemies.

While it was similar to the strategy of the top-ranked team, the details were different.

At that moment, they pushed forward using all kinds of buffs, enduring attacks.

No matter what they did in front, they couldn’t react to attacks coming from behind.

As a result, their state when they cleared the dungeon was in tatters.

They were in such a state that they needed to be carried to the infirmary.

‘How is that… even possible?’

But Kim Il-shin was different. Attacks from any direction couldn’t touch him.

‘It’s not just recklessly deflecting.’

It felt like witnessing divine skills. Kim Il-shin precisely discerned which attacks would reach him.

And what about his movements? Each step he took, slipping through enemy gaps, was close to perfection.

It was as if attacks were dodging Kim Il-shin, moving of their own accord. It resembled a scene from a movie.

Having run like that, Kim Il-shin reached the boss in less than three minutes. It was an unbelievable speed.

And at that moment, the space in front of Kim Il-shin grew hazy.

“…Huh?”

The boss’s head fell.

“…Huh?”

A weak voice escaped again. He couldn’t comprehend what he had just witnessed.

Even when he rewound it, it was the same.

As Kim Il-shin approached, the large boss’s head rolled on the ground, as if the thread connecting it had suddenly snapped.

‘…This is absurd.’

After watching the footage a few more times, Guhanseok was finally able to grasp the situation.

The answer was simple. Kim Il-shin had swung his sword at a speed that the video could not capture as he reached the boss.

With that strike, the boss’s head fell, and thus Kim Il-shin’s dungeon raid was complete. The record was 3 minutes and 12 seconds.

“Ha, haha.”

Guhanseok let out an empty laugh and stood up. After swallowing hard, he spoke.

“Kim Il-shin. Congratulations on achieving rank one.”

As soon as he finished speaking, cheers erupted.

Everyone in the practice room believed that record would never be broken.

“Well then.”

At that moment, Kim Il-shin quietly spoke up.

“What about the grades? I heard that achieving first place results in perfect scores for that semester’s classes.”

“Oh, right… that was a thing.”

It was a rule that had started as a half-joke, ultimately pointless.

However, since there was the principal’s approval for such a rule, they couldn’t ignore it.

“Alright. I’ll give you perfect scores for all your subjects this semester.”

“Thank you.”

Saying that, Kim Il-shin left the practice room. There was no reason to stay longer.

Guhanseok didn’t mind Kim Il-shin’s actions. It was his rightful privilege.

“Kim Il-shin is a god!”

“No! Kim Il-shin is a devil! A devil of speed!”

However, he felt at a loss about how to calm down the students, who were going wild like that.

When Kim Il-shin stepped outside, he headed for the training hall, deep in thought.

‘I’ll just do this next semester too.’

Now that he had certainly gotten the hang of it, he believed he could shorten the time even more next time.

If he could break records in every first class of each semester, he could coast through a class by the time he graduated.

‘Maybe even in the one-minute range later.’

Wiiing—

At that moment, his phone buzzed. Checking it, he saw a text from Hanarin.

He didn’t need to open the message to guess its contents.

[Completion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

Just as he expected. The timing was perfect.

Turning on his heel, he headed to Hanarin’s weapon shop, his steps quickening with rising excitement.

*

Inside the practice room, where the heat had finally subsided a bit.

Seo Ye-ryeong, sitting alone in a corner, asked into the air.

“…Is it really possible? Did I see it right?”

It wasn’t just a monologue. In the air where her gaze fell, a small green light was fluttering.

It was Haru, the wind spirit that she had formed a contract with long ago.

Since only the contractor could see the spirit, Haru had been her close friend since she was little.

Though she had difficulty expressing her emotions due to her pride, she could share anything with Haru.

Her thoughts and feelings about Kim Il-shin were no different.

She had gradually resolved lingering feelings through consultations with Haru.

He was definitely a kind and good friend. But there were also many days when he caused trouble like today.

“Hey, who told you to go see that? I was curious, sure. I was, but still…”

As mentioned earlier, no one other than the contractor could see the spirits.

Haru had used this to watch all of Kim Il-shin’s internal recorded footage and then told Seo Ye-ryeong about it.

“Okay, I get it, thanks for thinking of me for real.”

Haru, who felt it was unfair despite having gone to all that trouble, was brushed off by Seo Ye-ryeong, who fell deep in thought.

What Haru had described about Kim Il-shin’s unmatched prowess was beyond her imagination.

It almost made her resentful. He had such skills, yet he forfeited during the match.

But soon, she was puzzled.

Why had he hidden that ability for two years? Why reveal it now? Why had he suddenly left the military?

‘…Why exactly?’

The influx and intertwining thoughts pushed her towards one choice.

‘I need to investigate.’

First, starting from when Kim Il-shin left the military.

*

With a fluttering heart, she opened the door to the weapon shop. As she walked in, a black sword resting on the counter caught her eye.

Without needing to ask, she knew that sword was hers. Her gaze was drawn to it and couldn’t pull away.

Hanarin, who stood behind the counter, spoke with a weary expression.

“Hyunwol (玄月). That’s its name. Pull it out quickly.”

The return to casual speech didn’t bother her at all.

Kim Il-shin nodded and picked up the sword. He felt a pleasant vibration from the grip of the sword hilt.

Sluuuuu—

The revealed blade was an even darker black. It seemed to have crafted the calm night sky.

The swirling waves at the bottom resembled the softly shimmering moonlight.

With artistic talent (A), it was flawless in appearance.

Even the name engraved at the bottom, belonging to Hanarin, felt like part of the artwork.

Wuuuu—

As he infused mana into it, a fierce light erupted. The Hyunwol sword connected with him like a part of his body.

Without even moving it, he instinctively felt how to use it.

Information unfurled naturally in his mind. It felt as though the sword was speaking to him directly.

Wuuuu—

With the continuous light of the sword, his consciousness sank down.

Strange waves flowed into the hand gripping the sword, and at the same time, inspiration flickered through his mind.

Yet, he couldn’t grasp beyond that. He was frantic about the thread of inspiration that seemed just out of reach.

‘Just a bit more, and I feel like it will come to me.’

He wanted to swing the sword right away, but that was impossible in this place. One wrong move, and he’d lose all his wealth.

As he sheathed the Hyunwol sword, he said,

“Good work. It’s beyond my imagination.”

“Of course. Who made it? If you’ve confirmed everything, hurry and go out. I want to sleep now…”

Hanarin, with her eyes fully closed, spoke with a tired voice. Given her condition, it seemed best to leave quickly.

Kim Il-shin told her to get some rest and exited the shop.

After ensuring the door was properly closed, he headed towards the training hall. He chased after the inspiration that had popped into his head.

*

“Excuse me… are you Kim Il-shin, a student? Oh, it is you!”

After stepping outside and walking a bit, a man called out to Kim Il-shin warmly.

He was a face Kim Il-shin had never seen while playing the game. He introduced himself as a police officer from Gangnam Police Station.

The reason he had come looking for Kim Il-shin was to propose a new request.