Chapter 134 – Bimu and Bimu (7)

It has just begun.

I sent a short message to Heo Gyeong-woo and watched the two people starting the Bimu.

Heo Jeong-ah and Min Ha-rin’s mana levels were similar.

In terms of swordsmanship compatibility, it was also a relationship where it was difficult to argue about advantages and disadvantages.

In the end, the factor that would decide their victory or defeat would depend on who concentrated a little more, and who made fewer mistakes.

I, too, hadn’t made a judgment yet.

Ji-han! I’m counting on you for the commentary!

It was Min Ha-rin who came out with a strong offense from the start.

This was likely old man Han Byeong-cheol’s strategy.

A plan to catch the opponent off guard and decide the match quickly.

It was a good judgment.

In a general assessment, Min Ha-rin was the underdog, and such an early rush from an underdog was difficult to anticipate.

Kwakang!

Kwakakakang!

Min Ha-rin unleashed a flurry of swift sword strikes, advancing and advancing again.

Confidence that she wouldn’t be pushed back in terms of mana.

She had certainly grown.

Even compared to when she crossed swords with me a short while ago, her sword felt decidedly more solid.

Seeing the change she made in such a short time, talent was talent. There was a reason the old man cherished her so much.

Ji-han! Where’s the commentary!

He should have come when I told him to.

The old man was likely to pester me like this throughout the Bimu, so I had no choice but to provide a slightly delayed commentary.

Heo Jeong-ah just retreated five steps back and received all the attacks.

I can’t imagine it with just text. Add some sound effects!

Shushushu! Kwangkwang!

Good!

I didn’t know what was so good, but if he could imagine it, that was enough.

Min Ha-rin’s attacks continued fiercely.

After kicking off the ground and leaping up, her extended sword narrowly missed Heo Jeong-ah’s left shoulder.

The afterimage of the sword lightly cut her clothes.

It must have been a heart-stopping situation.

The sword that pierced the space was quickly retrieved, and Min Ha-rin’s sword was shot out once again.

The momentum, once it had gained inertia, did not easily subside.

Her sword was still cutting only empty air, but if the rain gets heavier, clothes will eventually get wet.

Pooook!

In the end, Min Ha-rin’s kick landed in Heo Jeong-ah’s abdomen.

Heo Jeong-ah’s eyes widened as she was the first to allow a blow.

What’s happening!

She was hit by a kick.

The intensity?

It seems she received a mental shock.

It’s fine as long as her body isn’t hurt! Her mind can be hurt as much as it wants!

After that, Heo Jeong-ah appeared to be pulling herself together.

Heo Jeong-ah’s counterattack had finally begun.

In fact, I hadn’t thought Min Ha-rin’s strong offense would continue indefinitely.

In a duel between rivals, clashes are bound to continue endlessly.

Paat!

Paat!

The results of the private tutoring were showing.

Heo Jeong-ah’s unconventional thrusting attacks had begun.

Her sword was like a rugby ball, thrusting into unpredictable spaces and gradually widening the openings in Min Ha-rin’s defense.

Min Ha-rin seemed to be having quite a hard time with the fast and confusingly created sword paths.

Ji-han! Jeong-ah should have turned to the offensive by now, right?

An amazing intuition.

You could set up a fortune-telling mat. The moves she recently worked hard on are coming out.

The sound effects?

Paat! Paat!

Good! I can guess what the situation is like.

Of course, that didn’t mean Heo Jeong-ah was overwhelming her.

The exchange between the two was like a thrilling tightrope walk, maintaining balance while seeming on the verge of collapsing.

Before the Bimu, both sides must have been confident of their own victory.

That feeling probably hadn’t changed much even now.

Because the things they were counting on were quite significant.

What do you think? Our Jeong-ah will win, of course, right?

As I watched the Bimu, my mind was faintly leaning towards one side.

It was to the extent that it could be overturned at any time by an unpredictable variable, but if I had to bet on one side, I felt I could.

Yes. I think she’ll win.

As expected! I knew it!

If he had actually come to the scene, he wouldn’t have been able to say it so easily. What a carefree old man.

The on-site sound effects?

Shushushushubam!!

Good!

***

Will you come see me before you go?

Understood, elder.

I couldn’t bring myself to refuse old man Han Byeong-cheol’s request.

The shadow that fell over the old man’s face the moment Min Ha-rin collapsed was still vivid in my mind.

The Muwon Sword Family had just suffered its third consecutive loss in a public Bimu.

Han Ye-ji to Shin Ah-yeon.

Min Ha-rin to me.

And today, Min Ha-rin to Heo Jeong-ah.

The reputation of the Muwon Sword Family, one of the 10 great sword families and home to one of the three great martial gods, was in tatters.

“If you’re thinking of consoling me, you can save it. Losing in a Bimu is not a big deal.”

It was actually true.

A Bimu was literally for comparing each other’s martial arts.

If winning was all that mattered, one could simply choose an opponent they could beat.

But the Muwon Sword Family had chosen the most difficult opponent.

Heo Jeong-ah was the most promising female swordswoman in her 20s, while Min Ha-rin was just a rookie who had barely made her professional debut.

“It was a close call.”

“But that close call was quite significant. What do you think is the reason? Frankly, I thought our Ha-rin would surely win.”

“There’s no need to think about it complicatedly. The opponent was stronger.”

This was an immutable truth.

That the one who wins is the stronger one.

“That’s clear.”

The old man nodded as if he understood immediately.

“Actually, even though Ms. Min Ha-rin’s mana had increased significantly due to a recent stroke of luck in the Abyss, it wasn’t at a level that surpassed Heo Jeong-ah’s.”

“I didn’t think she would have the upper hand in mana either. I believed in Ha-rin’s talent.”

I knew the old man thought that way.

Thus, I delivered a sharp remark without delay.

“I think that’s a dangerous thought. The one where you think only Ms. Min Ha-rin’s talent is special. Wasn’t it the same thought when she had a Bimu with me in the past?”

At my question, the old man wore an expression as if he had been hit in the back of the head.

“Actually, I think Ms. Min Ha-rin had already realized it. That her talent alone is not special.”

“So I was the only one living in a delusion.”

“I apologize. You said you didn’t need consolation.”

“I get it. Please stop hitting where it hurts now.”

Seeing the old man react like this made me wonder if I had been too harsh, but it was also a point I had wanted to make at least once.

Because this kind of thoughtless hyping from the family level could also be poisonous.

During my time as Johan Raven, I saw countless talents wither away without ever fully blossoming.

Each had their own circumstances and reasons, but a considerable number of them were talents that could have reached full bloom if they had received proper care.

Of course, Min Ha-rin would do well, though.

“In a few days, there will be a Bimu at our sword family as well. It’s a member of my unit.”

“I received the invitation. I will definitely go and watch. But the Haewon Sword Family’s recent record is…”

“Four consecutive wins.”

Starting with Shin Ah-yeon, followed by me, Im Seong-jun, and finally Choi Ho-joong, my Chamryongdan had never lost a single time.

Even though we were all underdogs.

And this time, Yoon Joo-hee would challenge for the 5th consecutive win.

Winning or losing in a Bimu wasn’t important, but I wasn’t confident in losing this time either.

***

Yoon Joo-hee, who was the first to step onto the stage.

She took a deep breath and waited for her opponent.

Absurdly, this Bimu was a match with her swordsmanship life on the line.

But now that the day of the decisive battle had come, her heart felt at ease.

Because she believed she had done the best preparation she could.

And because of her complete trust in the Unit Leader, Seo Ji-han.

“It’s been a while, Yoon Joo-hee.”

Nam Woo-hyun’s face, as he stepped onto the stage, was full of leisure.

Although they hadn’t visited each other for a long time, she had heard news of him from afar.

The promising second generation and the first-in-line successor of the Suseong Sword Family.

She had even been able to see an article about him in a famous journal not long ago.

“You look good, Nam Woo-hyun.”

“It’s awkward. You being part of the Haewon Sword Family and not the Jeongjin Sword Family.”

He had hit a sore spot.

He probably didn’t intend to hurt her, but he had always been like this since they were young.

It was also the reason this Bimu was being held.

“It would have been better if you had come to our Suseong Sword Family instead.”

“That’s enough!”

“Why, if you had come to our family, we would have treated you much better.”

“Let’s talk after this is over.”

It was a reunion after a long time, but their conversation was going in circles.

It would be troublesome if her heart was shaken before they even crossed swords.

Yoon Joo-hee decided not to respond to Nam Woo-hyun’s words any longer.

“If you had come to our family, you wouldn’t have had to face me like this.”

“Then I wouldn’t have had to put down my sword either.”

In one ear and out the other.

Nam Woo-hyun didn’t know.

What kind of vision she had when she joined the Haewon Sword Family.

And what dream Unit Leader Seo Ji-han of the Chamryongdan had allowed her to dream again.

“Huu.”

With the declaration of the start of the Bimu, Yoon Joo-hee took one last deep breath.

Seo Ji-han’s voice echoed in her ears.

Don’t feel pressured. Does your life end if you lose a Bimu? You can just pack your things and leave.

And the words that followed.

But I don’t think you’ll lose.

He probably wasn’t just saying something nice to hear.

Seo Ji-han wasn’t that kind of person.

“Joo-hee, I’m not going easy on you!”

Nam Woo-hyun came at her with his swordsmanship, with the intent to finish it right away.

His father’s side must have strongly demanded it.

To neatly suppress her so that she would no longer have any lingering attachment to swordsmanship, so that not even a whisper of it would remain.

In return, they must have been promised considerable benefits from the government side.

Swaaaaa!

She heard it.

The sound of the sword.

She could also see it.

What kind of sword path Nam Woo-hyun would create.

Her mana senses tingled.

Yoon Joo-hee imbued her sword with mana without delay.

Hwiiiiii!

Yoon Joo-hee’s sword drew an arc.

The dull sound of friction between sword and sword resounded.

Chaaaaaeng!

She bit her lip gently.

The thrilling sensation from her hand was telling her.

That the last strike was the best possible move.

“Waaaaaaah!!!”

“What!! This is!!”

The crowd’s cheers could be heard.

Nam Woo-hyun was staring at Yoon Joo-hee, having lost his senses.

There was no longer a sword in his hand.

A single sword lay desolately on the floor.

She walked towards Nam Woo-hyun.

Clomp.

Clomp.

And then she pointed her sword at his neck.

The tip of the sword, barely touching, trembled slightly.

Yoon Joo-hee let out the breath she had been holding.

‘…I did it!’

It was a miraculous event.

From the process of preparing for the Bimu to this entire result.

It was a fight she thought would be hard to win.

Because she thought the gap from when she had put down her sword was too large.

But as she started training, she could slowly begin to have hope.

‘Unit Leader was right!’

Nam Woo-hyun hung his head helplessly.

All sorts of sighs poured out from around the training ground.

In that moment, the offer Seo Ji-han had made. It flashed through her mind.

Come with me to Nekarion’s Castle.

The place where the Jeongjin Sword Family was annihilated 9 years ago.

She thought that to find that place again, a force greater than that of the Jeongjin Sword Family from 9 years ago was needed.

Thus, she couldn’t readily answer Seo Ji-han’s offer.

Because no matter how much of a genius he was, an individual’s power could not surpass that of a whole sword family.

That thought still remained unchanged.

But.

‘Somehow, if it’s Unit Leader…’

Now she could make a decision.

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