I was subdued without even being able to react. By the time I realized it, my back had already been taken by the opponent.

‘An incredible master.’

Even if I had known in advance, I wouldn’t have been able to respond. The difference in skill between the opponent and me was that overwhelming.

“Where are you… g.”

[I thought I told you not to speak.]

In an instant, along with the telepathic message, a massive impact was delivered to my side. It was a pain as if all my internal organs were being twisted, as if he had struck with his internal energy.

‘It hurts like hell.’

I was dragged away as he led me, unable to even breathe properly from the pain.

Providentially, there was no one outside the student room.

I couldn’t tell if it was because it was time for the shift change or if they had relaxed their patrol thinking there would be no intruders this deep inside the academy, but what was certain was that there was no one to find me right now.

‘If I cause a commotion here, the instructors patrolling the area will come running right away.’

This was strictly the central part of the Martial Academy. Naturally, it was also a place where a large number of instructors and other masters were concentrated.

In other words, if a commotion arose, there was a high possibility that a large number of masters would come running immediately.

‘The problem is that if I do that, I’ll be in more danger.’

My eyes calmly settled. To gamble in such a way in front of a master with such a gap in skill was nothing short of a suicidal act.

The dilemma of the fist right in front of me versus the public power that would arrive someday. This was a dilemma that applied everywhere, from ancient times to the present, but usually, the more urgent the situation, the more the former prevailed.

‘So I have no choice but to do it secretly.’

I prepared wind magic cautiously while pretending to walk. I was thinking of shooting a few wind magics over the wall to draw attention this way.

“What are you doing?”

But I tensed at the voice I heard at that moment. I never thought I would be caught like this. Thanks to [Absolute Magic], my mana control ability was at its peak, so I was honestly shocked.

I maintained my silence. I was planning to buy time to think, using the excuse that he had told me not to speak.

‘Was the first circle not enough?’

The first thought that came to mind was a reflection on my own judgment.

As the circle level increases, mana sensitivity and mana control increase dramatically. Conversely, this also meant that the lower the circle, the more mana control drops.

No matter how much I had the talent of [Absolute Magic], with just the first circle, I couldn’t guarantee that I wouldn’t be caught when using mana against a master this close.

‘I was complacent because it had worked until now.’

But the reflection was short, and reality was right in front of me. His urging continued.

“Answer.”

“You… told me not to speak?”

I brought out the excuse I had prepared in advance and quickly racked my brain.

What are the chances that I can use magic right now to call the people around and survive from this person in the meantime?

‘None.’

Along with the conclusion, I cleanly gave up on escaping on my own and made an excuse.

“I have a condition where my energy veins are severed. Sometimes, when I get nervous like this, my internal energy churns.”

“You seem calm for someone with that.”

Damn it. As expected of a master, his observation skills were considerable. I felt the sensation of my two hands still moving as I wished and recalled a certain kind of belief. And then I opened my mouth.

“You too. For a master who has infiltrated the Martial Academy.”

Thwack! As soon as my words ended, an impact rose from my abdomen, and I soon couldn’t breathe.

“Keoheok!”

Soon, I collapsed on the spot with the sound of air escaping. The intruder who was watching me opened his mouth coldly.

“Stop, get up.”

But I didn’t get up. Instead, I just made gasping sounds as if I were about to stop breathing.

“Uuugh!”

As I started rolling on the floor, the intruder, as if it were unexpected, immediately tilted my neck and tried to open my airway.

“Cough! Cough!”

When he added a martial-style CPR that pressed on my abdomen with his internal energy, I couldn’t hold on any longer and let out my remaining breath.

“This bastard…! If you try to play tricks again, I’ll kill you.”

The intruder’s eyes crumpled. Although he was covering his face with a mask, his anger was evident.

‘He’s certainly quick-witted.’

As he had checked my acupoints just now, he would have realized. That I had collapsed not because of a real seizure, but because I had deliberately stopped breathing.

“…Isn’t it a loss to kill me again after saving me?”

It was a remark that could be called not just arrogant, but haughty. If I were in my right mind, I wouldn’t be able to say such a thing to the person holding my life in their hands.

However, I was certain. That this intruder was not a being who had come to harm me.

The opponent, as if flustered, revealed his killing intent to hide it.

However, it had no effect on me, who had the talent of [Will of the Extreme], and on the contrary, it gave me room to be certain of the opponent’s identity.

I spoke in a different tone than before.

“Now, please tell me your real purpose. Why did you come to find me? And an academy official at that, even in disguise.”

At my words, he flinched for a moment. Normally, he would never have shown it, but he had momentarily lost his composure at my overly firm attitude.

“…When did you know?”

It was already too late to deny it. Since it had come to this, it was difficult to deceive him any further, so Jeongmuk asked as he took off his mask.

He was quite flustered right now. No matter how spontaneously he had acted, he had never expected to be caught so easily.

“I was suspicious from the beginning. For someone being kidnapped, my body was too free.”

Even while holding a dagger to my neck, he had not pressed my acupoints.

If he had really intended to kidnap me, or if he had only wanted to get information from me, there was no reason not to subdue my acupoints.

Because all he had to do was leave the acupoint that allows the mouth to move.

But Jeongmuk had not done so. That meant that my complete subjugation was not his purpose.

‘Although I was certain he was an official after I pretended to collapse.’

It was a self-defeating move that could have been dangerous, but I had some grounds.

Because when he had attacked with his internal energy before, there was a feeling that he had held back somewhere.

Just as Mi Tae-eul had before, I, who had the talent of [Limitless Martial Body], could instinctively deduce the intensity or intention of the attack inflicted on me.

But Jeongmuk’s fist, although it was certainly rough, was not the kind of attack that caused damage to the internal organs. Jeongmuk, who had been silent for a moment at my words, asked again.

“What if I didn’t subdue you because I was confident in my skills?”

“If that were the case, I would have been shattered when I ran my mouth. If you were that arrogant.”

Even that arrogant attitude he had shown before was all a calculated act. Jeongmuk’s gaze sank coldly as he realized that fact.

‘He’s no ordinary guy.’

The more this happened, the more the suspicion grew. The guts and action to test the opponent even while his life was on the line, and the intelligence to reveal the truth of the incident with a small clue.

It was to the point where he thought he might be a spy sent from the outside.

But if Zhuge Cheonwu was really some kind of spy, there was no reason to reveal his extraordinariness like this. That’s why he had no choice but to ask purely.

“Why did you come to the Martial Academy?”

Jeongmuk formed a sword seal and checked the pulse on my neck. It was a simple way to judge the presence of a lie by the heart rate.

Of course, it was a method that wouldn’t work on a trained assassin, but he seemed to think that I was not a very trained being, judging by my weak body and internal energy.

For a moment, our gazes intertwined in the air, and a brief silence followed.

It was a topic that was difficult for me to judge easily. At first, it was just to survive.

I was stimulated by the mysterious message to clear the game in a strange world, but that was a secondary problem.

I had always pursued only survival.

But after entering this place, experiencing the miracle of magic, and understanding the insight of the Heaven-Shattering Demon and embodying it with my body, I could tell that something was changing within me.

I thought that perhaps it was not a change, but a process of discovering something hidden within me.

Many complex thoughts came to mind, but in the end, I gave a simple yet heartfelt answer.

“To survive. By getting stronger.”

At my words, Jeongmuk’s gaze wavered slightly. It was probably difficult for him to grasp my intentions.

“And yet you provoked an assassin and then even took off his mask…”

Jeongmuk muttered. It was probably a result of his evaluation of my actions leaking out, rather than a question.

“You overestimate me.”

I slyly showed some modesty. In fact, there was a separate reason why I was able to act so boldly. Because I already knew about the kidnapping event in [Martial Academy].

‘Although I didn’t expect to encounter it so soon.’

This was also the reason why the early part of [Martial Academy] was criticized. There were several crazy developments where, if you suddenly became active and did well, some master would come and kidnap you.

For a user who was training while preparing for the next episode, it would be absurd for their character to be kidnapped by a random master.

And it was even more so because if you chose the wrong option, it was a murder ending where you were buried in a remote mountain.

“I don’t know why you did this, but I will believe that there is a reason. If you have any questions in the future, please call me formally.”

As I said that, I took a step back. I had ended the kidnapping event in a relatively gentle way.

In fact, I could have asked for responsibility for this matter, but for now, it was better to just let it go.

I also had things I wanted to hide, and there was also the intention of subtly making him indebted to me.

‘And most of all, I can’t completely trust the instructors.’

[Martial Academy] was a game with a structure where the villains, such as spies, changed very slightly with each playthrough, so there was no way to completely know which instructors and professors in the academy were spies right now.

I had to be cautious as I didn’t know how far Jeongmuk was involved either.

Jeongmuk stared at me silently and then disappeared in the blink of an eye.

‘This is why I couldn’t avoid it.’

I looked at the path where Jeongmuk had disappeared with a bewildered heart. Even if it weren’t for [Dulled Senses], I wouldn’t have been able to detect his movements.

Because I had the talent, I could tell. There was a vast difference between him and me.

“When will I get that strong?”

I muttered as if lamenting and headed to the student room.

* * *

“What martial art are you learning?”

Jeongmuk’s return visit was surprisingly fast. He had come to find me from the very next training session.

Because Jeongmuk, who was usually a taciturn chief instructor, had come to find me, all the attention in the training ground was focused on me and Jeongmuk.

In the end, I brought out the words I had prepared in preparation for this situation.

“It’s just the Three Talents Sword Art.”

A cheap martial art that could be learned anywhere.

At the name of a martial art that even the poor in the slums wouldn’t look at since the Great Martial Arts Era had opened, the attention of the surroundings instantly focused.

“No way. The Three Talents Sword Art?”

“It must be a lie. He’s from the Zhuge family.”

“No matter how much he’s the top student, that’s too much of a joke.”

The other students each threw a word at me. From their perspective, I would be an eccentric who never once came out to the training ground properly during free training and was cooped up in my room.

And on top of that, a detestable scion of a prestigious family who had taken the top spot.

Of course, they didn’t know that I was practicing my circle and cultivation method in the student room, and that I was building up my basic stamina in the back mountain in the remaining time.

I also had a feeling that I had neglected it because I didn’t feel the need to explain this. Because most of those who chattered like that were just extras anyway.

“Then I will teach you.”

Jeongmuk said to me out of the blue. It would have been absurd to hear the words ‘Three Talents Sword Art’, but he was seriously trying to teach it. Of course, it was true that I was learning the Three Talents Sword Art.

Because there weren’t many things as good as this for training the body without overdoing it.

“First, I need to see your level, so come at me.”

Jeongmuk said as he drew his sword. I sighed inwardly at that.

This had become quite troublesome.

There were too many eyes watching. Baek Cheong, who had openly come over and taken a seat, Peng Geun-u, who was glaring this way while pretending not to, and even Lee Huimun and Gu Dong.

My skills were not yet ripe to be shown under their sharp gazes.

I had been avoiding this kind of duel with excuses until now, but I was caught in a checkmate like this.

‘It can’t be helped.’

With a resignation, I slowly drew my sword.

The hesitation was over. It was time to show the skills I had hidden until now.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep