I Became a Swordsmanship Genius at the Academy

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“Shouldn’t I be safe…?”

Park Eun-ho’s voice was thick with anxiety as he ran, treading on the wind.

He had received information that the ascetic was heading towards Kim Il-shin, who was dealing with the members of the Jeokcheon Cult.

No matter how gifted Kim Il-shin was, it was impossible for him to face the ascetic alone.

He could only hope that by some stroke of luck, he was still alive. There was no way such a genius could meet his end in a place like this.

“Just hold on…!”

In such a state of urgency, Park Eun-ho soon discovered the corpses of the Jeokcheon Cult members.

A clean strike that had claimed their lives in one blow.

While it was a relief that the body wasn’t Kim Il-shin’s, these were just ordinary cult members.

‘Even so, there’s no way he can deal with the ascetic—’

Park Eun-ho’s thoughts came to a halt.

At the end of the passage, beyond a rather unusual corpse, stood Kim Il-shin, gently closing the eyes of the victims.

Seeing him unscathed and without any wounds, Park Eun-ho mumbled in shock.

“…This is absurd.”

He was a monster, not just a genius.

*

“Why are you handling things like this?”

Choi Sang-il, the clerk at the request management office, was in a foul mood.

The Gangnam Police Station had requested to process the order all at once, which forced him to postpone other tasks.

While this wasn’t unprecedented, the fact that the order was taken up by Kim Il-shin left a bitter taste in his mouth.

It was a rare occurrence for a police station to directly contact an academy student for a personal request.

‘And it’s related to the Jeokcheon Cult as well?’

To top it all off, they were assigning Kim Il-shin to a request connected to the Jeokcheon Cult, a group they were currently on high alert against.

It was hard not to acknowledge his abilities, which made it all the more frustrating.

“I’m here to submit a request.”

At that moment, a hand came forward with paperwork.

A friendly smile appeared on Choi Sang-il’s face as he looked up at the person.

“Oh, Baek Ha-yeon! I’ll process this right away!”

The person submitting the request was Baek Ha-yeon.

He aimed to boost his grades with a successful request and solidify his position as top student.

Wanting to make a good impression on the Baek family, Choi Sang-il quickly got to work on processing the request.

Ding—

Just then, an email arrived from the Gangnam Police Station. It was, of course, the request results report.

“Oh, let me just check this and I’ll assist you further.”

“Yes.”

Choi Sang-il asked for Baek Ha-yeon’s understanding and opened the email without a second thought.

With B-rank hero Park Eun-ho accompanying him, the request was bound to be successful. He thought he would just quickly verify and move on.

‘Just pass through… huh?’

Bam!

In the moment he was skimming the contents, Choi Sang-il jumped up in horror from his seat.

The chair made a loud noise as it rolled across the floor.

Ignoring the reactions around him, he read the email again.

[Single-handedly annihilating the ascetic Seo Joo-han, who was wanted for the serial murder of seven Jeokcheon Cult members…]

Even Choi Sang-il was well aware of the infamous name of the ascetic.

It was said that they were beings with strength unfathomable compared to ordinary cult members.

Moreover, Seo Joo-han had not only slaughtered civilians but had also previously killed active heroes who were pursuing him.

‘Me, against someone like that…’

Choi Sang-il felt a wave of fear wash over him.

Memories of his cold treatment towards Kim Il-shin flooded his mind.

If Kim Il-shin rose to a high position in the near future, he would surely seek revenge.

With his narrow worldview, Choi Sang-il had no choice but to think this way.

“Is something wrong?”

Just then, Baek Ha-yeon’s voice brought Choi Sang-il back to his senses.

After muttering that it was nothing, he continued the request processing with trembling hands.

Having drawn his gaze away from him, Baek Ha-yeon looked at the monitor, which was partially visible, and pondered.

‘Did he overcome the ascetic?’

To Baek Ha-yeon, it was an astonishing achievement.

The more remarkable Kim Il-shin’s achievements became, the more he began to look forward to the duel that was about to take place.

With the practical exam day drawing near, the duel applications would start soon.

The day he would face Kim Il-shin with swords was not far off.

“All done…”

“Thank you.”

Once Baek Ha-yeon completed the request, he stepped outside. That day, Kim Il-shin’s rank rose to mid-level.

*

After dealing with the ascetic, Kim Il-shin reunited with Park Eun-ho and suggested they further investigate the passage.

There might still be remaining enemies.

However, during another round through the passage, they found no enemies.

Having confirmed that, Kim Il-shin and Park Eun-ho went upstairs to report their findings.

Hearing the report, the police were relieved that the Jeokcheon Cult members had been subdued without incident but were also stunned to learn that Kim Il-shin had dealt with the ascetic alone, even requesting a handshake.

They predicted he would become a very famous hero in the future.

Then they completed the final investigation and cleared away the victims’ bodies.

“Thank you both for your hard work! We’ll take it from here.”

Police Officer Ahn Tae-young bowed and expressed his gratitude.

His gaze towards Kim Il-shin was filled with respect.

“If you discover any other information or traces, please contact us.”

“Yes, understood. And if you ever want to be a police officer, please let me know. I’ll be sure to help you out.”

Kim Il-shin nodded vaguely. He didn’t really want to become a police officer in this world.

“Oh, and here’s the reward for the request. The additional compensation I mentioned earlier will be deposited into your account.”

Ahn Tae-young handed over a thin envelope. It was unnaturally stiff and solid.

One could tell that it contained the scales of a demon lord. The amount was more than he had expected.

“Thanks for your hard work.”

Park Eun-ho, who had approached Kim Il-shin after receiving the envelope, said with a pleased smile.

“Let me know if you need help later, and contact me through the number I gave you earlier. Even if there’s no chance, you never know.”

“Understood.”

Building a rapport with an active hero was a significant gain. Especially with a hero of B-rank.

In case of unforeseen circumstances, he would be able to receive assistance from various directions.

“Sure. See you again.”

Park Eun-ho gave Kim Il-shin a light pat on the arm before getting into a car and leaving.

Kim Il-shin also gave a final wave before returning to the academy. The sun had already set.

He wanted to test his newly acquired Moonlight Sword, but first, he headed to Hanarin’s weapons shop.

He intended to inquire about the peculiar phenomenon he observed with the Moonlight Sword and also to leave the demon lord’s scales there.

*

The weapons shop’s door was still locked from the day before, which likely meant the owner hadn’t woken up yet.

It was understandable, given that she hadn’t slept more than ten hours in a week.

Knock knock. Knock knock. Clank.

After knocking a few times, the door opened.

An still-sleepy Hanarin peered out, squinting her eyes in a cracked voice.

“What do you want…?”

“I have something to ask.”

“Just come in already…”

As Kim Il-shin stepped into the weapon shop, he explained the phenomenon that occurred with the Moonlight Sword during the fight against the Jeokcheon Cult.

It was similar to the bloodstone showing the raw material behavior of greedily sucking in blood.

Hanarin’s reaction after listening to everything was quite calm.

“Didn’t I tell you? That sword contains the properties of a bloodstone.”

“That wasn’t mentioned before.”

“…You should have asked.”

Seeing her so nonchalant while missing such important details made Kim Il-shin want to give her a playful smack on the head.

However, knowing she must have been very tired at that moment, he held back and asked.

“What happens when the gauge is filled?”

“I don’t know for sure. But there definitely won’t be anything bad. That much is certain. Hmm… maybe something like awakening?”

“……Hmm.”

It was a relief to hear that there wouldn’t be anything bad. It was a bit disappointing not to find out the details, though.

“I get it for now. I want to take on another request.”

“Right now? I’m tired…”

Kim Il-shin took out the scales of the demon lord from the envelope and showed them to Hanarin.

Looking rather indifferent, as if these were common materials, her eyes widened at what followed.

“Make me just one glove by compressing this.”

“Wh-what? With all of this? You could even make a shirt with this much…”

“I don’t want anything that hinders movement. Is it possible?”

Hanarin, holding the demon lord’s scales close to her chest, responded energetically.

“Of course! But you have to pay for it! I’ll text you the bill later!”

Hanarin, now speaking formally, muttered how glad she was that she opened the door as she dashed into the workshop.

It seemed the sleepiness had completely vanished.

Having completed his errand, Kim Il-shin quickly closed the door behind him before heading to the training hall.

It had been a long day, but he didn’t feel tired at all. He wanted to test his new achievement as soon as possible.

*

In a dark and narrow room underground, no light could penetrate, and only a pair of red eyes glowed.

The owner of those red eyes was Chu Hyun-seung, a member of the Jeokcheon Cult’s assassination unit, Blood Rock.

He was engaged in a moment of penitence, seeking forgiveness for the last failed mission.

Tap, tap.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps echoing through the quiet corridor, the first external sound he’d heard in a week.

The footsteps stopped in front of his isolated room. A piece of paper slid in through the feeding hatch below.

“The bishop has issued a mission. Eliminate the blasphemer, who will be a significant thorn in the future.”

Chu Hyun-seung weakly took hold of the document. It was filled with information about the target for assassination.

Kim Il-shin, a third-year student at Cosmos Academy. He was Chu Hyun-seung’s new target.

Vowing to not fail this time, he engraved the contents of the document deep in his mind.

“The day the great hero’s ambush operation is executed, you will infiltrate separately and strike down the blasphemer. It must be done covertly.”

“I will serve the will of the divine.”

As he answered, Chu Hyun-seung recalled an artifact he had obtained last time.

An artifact capable of temporarily sealing the mana of the danjeon and circle.

Though it was a one-time-use item with many restrictions, using it would guarantee the success of the mission.

No one could avoid drawing mana into their danjeon or circle.

‘The divine has paved the way with this outdated item; if this isn’t guidance, then what is?’

Chu Hyun-seung lowered his head to the ground, thanking the will of the divine.