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Chapter 41: Duel Battle (3)
[Used Rank Up (F)]
[The rank of Monarch increased. (F->E)]
Monarch.
It was one of my assets left from starting the EX-rank reincarnation quest.
It was as powerful as amplification and copy, but as of now, the conditions were not right for it to see the light of day.
Still, it was best to upgrade it whenever the opportunity arose.
It was a trait almost impossible to upgrade in other ways.
[Kim Ho]
Skills
Wind Force (F+)
Inferno Fist (C)
Amplification (E)
Copy Skill [2/2]
1. Hummingbird (E)
2. Thiefs Step (B)
Traits
Blessing of the West Wind
Core (D)
Monarch (E)
Copy Trait [1/1]
1. Elemental Resistance (S)
Equipment
School Uniform (D)
Earth Staff (E)
Inventory
10 Silver Coins
Heart of Thunder x2
[Duel Battle Score: 386 points]
[Strategy Battle Score: 2,266 points]
(3,123pt)
I shifted my gaze from the status window back to the front.
The wooden dummy was making a clattering nose as it fervently rushed towards me.
It had been doing this for quite some time.
Whenever it got a bit closer, the headwind which was enhanced with [Wind Force] pushed it back. And as it attempted to approach again, it was repelled once more, essentially making no progress.
Whoosh
Extending my hand forward, the wind blowing straight ahead intensified.
The wooden dummy was helplessly flung backward and crashed into the wall of the training room.
[Wind Force] was a freshly mastered skill and only F-rank currently, but since it was a wind-type magic, it received a bonus from the [Blessing of the West Wind] trait.
Hence, it was ranked F+.
Somewhere between F and E.
To be effective in a duel, it needs to be at least D+.
As the rank of the skill increases, so does its power.
With Wind Force, the higher the rank, the more wind I could control and the stronger the force I could exert.
Simply overpowering Kwak Ji-chul would be feasible with E+, but that alone wasnt satisfying enough for me.
I need to completely overwhelm and smash him to the ground.
Therefore, I set my goal at D+.
The skill I created through the Blank Skill Book was more difficult to rank up compared to regular skills, but with two days left, I was confident I would achieve it comfortably.
When I operated the terminal attached to one wall of the training room, the wooden dummy that had been rolling around following the winds direction disappeared, and an iron dummy appeared in its place.
This iron dummy was significantly heavier than the wooden one, making it more difficult to push away with Wind Force.
I need to increase the challenge to train effectively.
I concentrated the wind toward the charging iron dummy.
The wind, imbued with physical force, gradually made the iron dummy falter.
***
[The rank of Wind Force has increased. (F->E)]
By training with Wind Force until dawn, I finally reached the E+ rank.
I then took a short break in the dormitory and sent a message to Seo Ye-in.
[Kim Ho: Awake?]
[Seo Ye-in:]
[Seo Ye-in: (Rabbit yawning emoji)]
[Kim Ho: Food?]
[Seo Ye-in: ]
[Kim Ho: Meet at the cafeteria, OK?]
Todays breakfast menu featured round mini rice balls.
The variety was quite impressive.
Every time curiosity struck her, Seo Ye-in would ask me a question.
Whats this?
Looks like anchovies.
And this?
Not sure. It looks spicy. Can you handle spicy food?
No.
Yet, driven by curiosity, she picked up a bright red rice ball.
Seo Ye-in and I filled our plates with various flavored rice balls and moved toward a table.
Then, coincidentally, we ran right into the pair of Kwak Ji-chul and Jeong Soo-ji.
Jeong Soo-ji offered a light nod and seemed eager to leave quickly, whereas Kwak Ji-chul wore a smirk and taunted me.
Are you managing well with your skill creation? The duel is tomorrow; I wonder if youll be ready.
I had already created it.
And even raised its rank.
But revealing that now would spoil the fun.
I feigned distress and let out a deep sigh.
Yeah, it turned out to be tougher than I thought.
Why waste your efforts on a mediocre skill? Save the Blank Skill Book, okay? Im just looking out for you.
No, I want to keep trying.
Suit yourself.
Make sure youre prepared too. Remember, if you lose, youll get kicked out of the Emerald club. Just looking out for you as well.
Kwak Ji-chuls face, which had been mocking moments ago, suddenly turned ice-cold.
Dont worry about me. Because I will never lose.
You seem well-prepared.
Of course. I have a gole
Jeong Soo-ji elbowed him in the side and cut him off.
Realizing he was about to spill crucial information, Kwak Ji-chuls face registered a moment of shock.
. The duel is after school tomorrow. Dont be late.
After saying that, Kwak Ji-cheol started choosing rice balls with Su-ji Jeong.
Seo Ye-in asked me,
Youre dueling him?
Yeah, thats the plan.
Hes weak.
Thinking about it, Seo Ye-in had a score in the 600s, and so did Kwak Ji-chul.
They must have clashed in last weeks duel battles.
Yeah, the guy is a bit of a pushover.
It took two hits.
So, Kwak Ji-chul was a two-hit knockout.
No matter how much I looked, it didnt seem like he had the skills to pick fights with anyone, but his confidence was on par with many of the promising students.
As Seo Ye-in chewed on a mini rice ball she stared intently at me and then as if something had occurred to her, she spoke.
I have something for you.
Something for me?
Mhm.
She rummaged through her inventory and pulled out a rectangular-shaped box before pushing it towards me.
When I opened the box, a pair of high-quality sneakers came out.
Suddenly, I remembered the conversation we had last week.
Do you want something?
Out of nowhere?
There should be a balance of giving and receiving. Thats what our butler said.
If theres something I really need right now, it might be something to increase my movement speed. I wish I had a pair of shoes.
It seemed she had remembered that.
I had expected her to give me a pair of ordinary shoes, but what I received far exceeded my expectations.
The sneakers were almost identical to Seo Ye-ins, with only a slight difference in color.
Considering the level of equipment she usually wore, it meant these were extremely high-quality.
They were white-based with neat blue accents, and traces of magical engineering were evident throughout.
[Cloudstepper(B)]
Bonus to movement skills.
Inertia Ignoring (C) applied.
Automatic durability recovery.
Upgradable.
Upgradable.
Incredible.
These were B-rank sneakers.
Like the [Blessing of the West Wind] that enhances wind magic, wearing these sneakers grants a bonus to movement-related skills.
This meant that my [Thiefs Step] skill would upgrade to B+.
[Inertia Ignoring] is a skill that allows you to ignore the shift in your center of gravity when you abruptly stop or change direction while running.
This makes movements much smoother and reduces vulnerabilities.
These two features alone were impressive, but there were also two upgrade slots available.
Depending on what I added, this item could potentially reach A or even S-rank.
This is too good. Im not sure if I should accept it.
You should give a gift as good as your gratitude.
Your butler said that too?
Mhm.
The butler, I thought to myself, must be a person of truly great kindness.
I conveyed my heartfelt thanks to Seo Ye-ins butler in my mind.
Thank you. Ill wear them well.
?
!
Suddenly, Seo Ye-in fell silent.
Seeing her pupils dilate, I glanced at the plate and noticed that the bright red rice ball had disappeared.
Here, drink some water, water.
! !
***
In the training room.
Several iron dummies from all around targeted me.
As I subtly stepped back, a hefty gray fist struck the air with force.
Continuously I continued to dodge punches by a hairs breadth and then gathered mana in my legs and unleashed the [Thiefs Step] skill before strongly kicking off the ground.
Bang!
With just one step, I escaped the encirclement of the iron dummies.
When I landed, I drastically slowed down without much strain on my legs.
This was due to the application of [Inertia Ignoring].
These shoes are excellent.
The closest iron dummy lunged at me.
Pushing the exposed shoulder of the iron dummy, it spun wildly in the air as if hit by a tackle.
Crash!
I extended my hand towards another approaching iron dummy.
The wind blew towards me, pulling the iron dummy closer.
After dragging it within arms reach, I pushed its chest and forcefully sent a gust forward.
The blown-away iron dummy collided with others and they toppled like bowling pins.
Crash!
[The rank of Wind Force has increased. (E->D)]
And with the Blessing of the West Wind the skill was now at D+.
Preparations complete.
***
The arena was exceptionally quiet.
The first reason was that it was the week of the strategy battles, and most students were spending their time in the dungeon building.
The second reason was that neither Kim Ho nor Kwak Ji-chul had much name value, so there was a lack of interest in their duel.
Some might be curious enough to watch the replay later, but coming to the arena seemed too bothersome.
Thus, the spectators for this duel were mostly acquaintances of Kim Ho and Kwak Ji-chul.
From the Emerald Magic Tower, there were president Mok Jong-hwa and Jung Soo-ji.
And Kwak Seung-jae who came from the disciplinary committee club to watch his younger brothers duel.
From the Mother Nature Club was president Ha Soo-yeon and Park Na-ri.
And for the unaffiliated Kim Ho, it was just a few friends.
Or so it should have been.
Mok Jong-hwa frowned.
What brings you here?
What else? I came to watch my junior.
Dang Gyu-young replied with a sly smile.
She had a rough idea of the situation based on a previous conversation she had with Kim Ho.
Something about trading the [Cube of Life] with either the Emerald or the Mother Nature Club.
Even so, she still thought that getting four season passes seemed like a daunting task, but somehow they managed to do it.
But then, she was surprised when she heard some stuff.
Noonim, Kim Ho and Kwak Ji-chul have scheduled a duel battle.
What? Why a duel if theyve already made a trade?
Shin Byeong-chul was the one who delivered the news, and it left her puzzled.
Upon investigation, it turned out that the situation was a complete mess.
The whole thing started with Mok Jong-hwa.
Trying to gain an upper hand in the trade, he sent Kwak Ji-chul and Jung Su-ji to show off their strength, but they ended up being completely defeated by Kim Ho.
And it was a one-on-two fight at that.
Isnt that obvious?
Kim Ho even defeated Kwak Seung-jae one-on-one, right?
Comparing a second-year disciplinary committee member like Kwak Seung-jae with two first-years makes it even clearer.
They stood no chance at all.
Anyway, if they had just accepted the loss, it would have been less embarrassing, but they went ahead and challenged Kim Ho to a duel for a chance at redemption.
Dang Gyu-young was waving her finger in a scolding manner.
Ugh, you little brat. Youre like a little green beetle. And yet youre making the kids duel?
Its not a matter for a thief to interfere with.
Why not? Hes a junior I care about.
Dang Gyu-young casually slung her arm over Kim Hos shoulder.
Kim Ho expressed his discomfort with a look.
Senior, were not that close, are we?
Ah, just act a bit friendly for now.
She then resumed waving her finger at Mok Jong-hwa.
If you play any tricks, watch out. Ill turn everything upside down.
.
Mok Jong-hwa only furrowed his brows but offered no response.
Even Ha Soo-yeon, who was usually very articulate, stepped back and just sighed heavily.
Dang Gyu-young who now roughly grasped the situation let out a small mocking laugh.
So theyve already started their scheming?
She dragged Kim Ho away for a moment.
Hey, why did you accept this duel?
I accepted it because I believe I can win.
You sure you can win? That cunning guy seems to have set up all sorts of tricks.
Im aware of them and accepted it anyway. Dont worry. I have a plan.
His faint smile revealed overflowing confidence.
Dang Gyu-Young, although she hadnt known this brash junior for long, had seen enough to know that he could handle himself.
She thought that if she interfered, it might just make things awkward.
Alright, fine then.
Despite still being somewhat skeptical, Dang Gyu-Young watched as Kim Ho returned to face Kwak Ji-cheol.
Mok Jong-hwa took out the VIP ticket and initiated the deal.
Before we start, lets confirm the condition one last time. If Kim Ho wins, I, Mok Jong-hwa, will hand over this ticket to him.
On the other hand, if he loses, the victorious Emerald club would at least be able to salvage some of their lost face.
Mok Jong-Hwa continued speaking.
Also, this duel battle will be recorded as a replay and be accessible for anyone to view. Do you agree?
I agree.
Good. Then lets begin.
The terrain and rules appeared on the display above the stage.
MAP: [Rocky Terrain]
RULE: [Deathmatch] [10-Minute Limit]
Kwak Ji-cheols face lit up instantly.
The heavens are on my side!
Out of the many possible terrains, it was rocky terrain that had been selected.
This was an ideal battleground for an earth-element mage like him.
Everything was turning in his favor.
Feeling triumphant, he taunted Kim Ho.
How about that? The terrain should have been to my disadvantage for a fair fight. Looks like this will be over quickly.
.
Youve become quite quiet all of a sudden, havent you? Starting to realize the situation yet?
Kim Ho maintained an expression of nonchalance.
It seemed he still hadnt realized his predicament, but Kwak Ji-cheol thought that he would soon feel it and painfully so.
The two of them entered the arena through the teleportation magic circle.
Everywhere they looked, there were stones; everything they stepped on was stone.
The place was filled with rocks of all sizes, from boulders to pebbles.
[Kim Ho 100% vs Kwak Ji-chul 100%]
[3]
[2]
[1]
[Start!]
Wham!
A fist-sized rock rolling on the ground exploded against Kwak Ji-Chuls face.
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