Martial Arts Returnee’s Game Broadcast

Yang Gwi-ho, the master of martial arts obsessed with new techniques.
Thorn Man, whose only reliable support is training.
Kim Je-cheol, who has become increasingly depressed after missing Lee So-hye.

Though their reasons were different, the three of them, whose lives revolved around martial arts, spent more time training than anyone else.
“Hey, today’s Pepero Day. On a day like today, you should at least feel like you rented out the training hall. Go get some Pepero from the girls already.”
“Shut up! Do you think I have the face for that?!”
“If we had started dating back then, we’d be sharing Pepero by now…”
November 11th.
Pepero Day.

“Hey, today’s Christmas. Aren’t you guys going on dates?”
“Shut up, Demon God Suicide Bomber.”
“If I had accepted back then, we’d be alone together now…”
December 25th.
Even on Christmas.
“Hey, today’s Valentine’s Day. Don’t you have any girls giving you chocolates?”
“Shut up, you Demon God Suicide Bomber.”
“If you had accepted back then, we’d be…”

February 14th.
Even on Valentine’s Day.
Despite the rain and snow, the persistent ghosts of the training hall never disappeared!
[Ozone Warning - Critical Alert]
[Ozone concentration exceeds 0.5 ppm/h. Outdoor activities should be stopped to minimize health risks.]

The first day they had a proper conversation was when the outdoor training hall was closed due to the ozone alert, and they had to use the indoor training hall.
“Hey, if your face is that messed up, why not just get plastic surgery?”
“Don’t talk so easily! As an awakened one, my body is already so trained that I can’t even go under the knife. Anesthesia doesn’t even work on me!”
“Hanbok, you’re the same. If it bothers you so much, why don’t you make the first move this time?”
“I’ve already been rejected.”
“Tsk tsk. I thought you guys became martial arts enthusiasts for some noble reason, but no, it’s because you’re actually so unpopular that you dedicated yourself to training…”
Under Yang Gwi-ho’s harsh criticism, Thorn Man yelled through his tears.

“Then how good are you to be spending all your time training! Do you have any popularity with women?!”
“Popularity? Who needs that? It’ll just waste training time. To become a true martial artist, you should avoid dating and marriage.”
“You psycho...”
Not ugly, not rejected by a girl he liked, yet he doesn’t think about dating or marriage, only focusing on training.
Normal people can’t think this way.
He’s 100% a psychopath.
Despite Thorn Man’s scorn, Yang Gwi-ho only smiled faintly.
Born in the modern age, where one can kill NPCs in virtual worlds or go through gates to kill monsters, if he had been born in a different era, he might «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» have made an excellent serial killer.
‘But at least I’m not alone.’

No matter how painfully exhausting, lonely, and sorrowful it was, looking around and always finding companions training alongside him was surprisingly uplifting.
“Cut the mana shorter on that one. You should feel it as a multi-hit.”
“This blockage cleared in one go. Demon God Suicide Bomber, have you been watching my training this whole time?”
“If you make grunting sounds next to me every day, it kind of gets on my nerves too.”
After Yang Gwi-ho accidentally watched Thorn Man’s training, his wariness began to ease.

“Hanbok. If you have nothing else to do, why don’t you spar?”
“Why should I?”
“If you get stronger, there’ll be plenty of good things. Like beating up all the guys who hit on Lee So-hye, the one you’re crazy about.”
“Hmm... That’s a good idea… If I can’t have her, no one should! I’ll get strong enough so no one can touch her…!!”
“What’s up with you? You look normal, but why are you so obsessed with Lee So-hye? It’s disgusting, really.”
Thus, the three of them were born from the training hall.
Baek So-cheon didn’t ridicule or criticize their distorted devotion to training.
“You’re working hard, no matter the reason. Keep it up.”
Baek So-cheon, who occasionally taught martial arts, had no ill feelings toward them.
However, he had plenty of negative feelings toward Whisper.

“Whisper? I’ve been wondering for a while. How do you manage your chat on your broadcasts?”
“We take volunteers for that. There are a lot of righteous people who know what’s best for the cause.”
“Interesting. They’re all guys, right?”
“They’re women. I don’t know why, but there are more women than men.”
“...Do you really talk like that on your broadcast?”
“Of course. What’s wrong? The Silent Swordsman’s manager. Do you want to be my manager too?”
“Not really. I was just curious. But I think I understand now. It’s because of the atmosphere, and some women are drawn to that sort of thing.”
Whisper, who didn’t train but instead just broadcasted, had an overwhelming power that no one could challenge.
Even using outrageous insults, his charisma, atmosphere, and voice commanded a following of female fans.
He casually talked with Lee So-hye, who Kim Je-cheol had a crush on.
“I want to smack him.”
“Can you believe that guy’s more popular than me?”
“Daring to talk to Lee So-hye?”

Everything about Whisper grated on the nerves of the training hall trio!
It was only natural that they continued their training, aiming to defeat Whisper.
And now, the opportunity to realize that goal had arrived.
“Let’s go with the joint attack!”
Even Whisper’s seemingly invincible abilities weren’t truly invincible.
In fact, Haenampa had already proven this by defeating Whisper once.

‘His ability to nullify attacks can’t last forever.’
‘If the three of us pressure him nonstop for even a second…’
‘Even Whisper will hit his limit!’
Five seconds of flickering and shaking figures.
Finally, Whisper raised his arm and blocked the attack.
Boom—

“5500.”
“It’s a reflection! Counterattack!”
Kaang!
Kim Je-cheol’s sword and Whisper’s hand sparked simultaneously.

“Now! Get the damage in!”
“A big attack will be countered. We need to deal quick hits in succession!”
The battle they had visualized and practiced countless times in their minds.
The combination of the three of them was beginning to show results against a different caliber of opponent.
‘Our training on the combined attack wasn’t in vain!’

Yang Gwi-ho remembered the conversation he had while climbing a building with Haenampa, following the pretext of training.
If Thorn Man, Kim Je-cheol, and I train the combined attack, can we defeat Whisper?
[It’s tough.]
So, it’s not impossible?
[Whisper is at an extraordinary level. You and Thorn Man are at the peak intermediate level, and Kim Je-cheol is at the early peak.]
What are the chances?
[20%. But that’s only if you use the combined attack for the first time. He won’t fall for it twice.]
 
Two out of ten.
It wasn’t exactly a high chance.

Is there any way to increase the chances?
[If you understand Whisper’s Awakening ability completely, it’s like knowing the enemy’s techniques in advance. It’ll be a good experience for you.]
 
Remembering the message sent by the guild leader, Yang Gwi-ho looked up at the sky, as the reply appeared.
She furrowed her brow, and with a flash of her hand, she whipped a lightning bundle, electrocuting a flock of pigeons soaring in the sky.

[Analyze and understand thoroughly. Experiencing the breakdown of a master’s technique will greatly help in your growth.]
By the way, I’ve been curious... Why are you targeting pigeons?
[Messenger pigeons are harmful creatures.]
Huh?
[They carry bad memories.]
 
Messenger pigeons.
The birds that were used in World War II to carry messages.
To think these birds were linked to bad memories.
How old is this person, really?

Before he could process this thought, a skill exploded in front of his eyes.
‘Why now? Why am I thinking about such useless things in the middle of this urgency?’
At first, Yang Gwi-ho didn’t understand the reason.
The intense battles continued, and he started to realize that something was wrong.
A situation was unfolding that wasn’t part of their plan.
He analyzed Whisper’s ability, looking for a breakthrough.
He kept pressing forward with their joint attack and gained the upper hand.
That was working... but something changed.

“Why isn’t he falling?!”
“His Awakening ability must be blocked! Does he have other techniques we don’t know about?”
“No, that’s not it. This... we’re being stopped by pure martial arts.”
Kim Je-cheol’s words.
The truth that he didn’t want to admit hit him hard.
“You’ve done well. You rookies. I’ll give you credit.”

They blocked the Awakening abilities.
But Whisper’s strength didn’t come only from his Awakening.
For the past year, staying with Haenampa…
“Your martial arts level is good enough for an entrance exam.”

Whisper’s long arms swept the ground, sending dust flying like a bomb.
[Kim Je-cheol has been killed.]
[Remaining players: 42]
The particles of dirt flew like bullets, and Kim Je-cheol died instantly.
Thorn Man endured the blast and, though battered and bloody, faced Whisper, his arms almost broken from the attack, but barely surviving.
As the dust cleared, dozens of mines gleamed ahead of them.

“Damn. This is cheating.”
“Damn it. I was wondering why this felt like a flashback...”
Guild leader, where’s the fairness in this?
If you’re going to teach, teach only us.
If you teach this crazy monster too, how the hell can we win?
[Thorn Man has exploded.]
[Remaining players: 41]

[Yang Gwi-ho has exploded.]
[Remaining players: 40]
The trio’s lighthearted rebellion came to an end under Whisper’s overwhelming strength and recommended techniques.