Sweeping the Academy with a Wooden Sword

Choi Bit-na gazed at the night sky.
It had been a very long time since she’d seen a scenery adorned with stars.
Her whole body, stretched out flat, was soaked in sweat.

Lee Dojin, sitting on a rock, filled his stomach with a roll of kimbap.

Choi Bit-na let out a hollow laugh as she watched Lee Dojin eating kimbap neatly.

“After fighting so much, can kimbap even go down your throat?”

“I’m eating kimbap because we fought so much.”

Lee Dojin handed the remaining roll of kimbap to Choi Bit-na.
Choi Bit-na peeled off the wrap and chewed the kimbap voraciously.

“…It’s delicious.”

It was really delicious.

It had been just a month since entering Iroaz Academy.
For Choi Bit-na, today spent with Lee Dojin left a deeper impression than any lecture or encounter so far.

“I thought it was a curse, you know. My instinct.”

So she lived like a dead mouse during her high school years.
Because she was scared after almost killing someone.

That’s why she became isolated. At , an awakened special high school like .

Kim Ye-rim, who picked a fight at the cafe yesterday, was the class president from that time.

“Now I know that this is a power I can control with my will, thanks to you.”

“If you’re grateful, just do your part properly tomorrow.”

Choi Bit-na nodded.

“Yeah, I’ll do my part for teaching me. Teacher.”

Lee Dojin’s brow furrowed sharply.

“Tea… what?”

Choi Bit-na raised the corners of her mouth in a grin.

“Teacher.”

Lee Dojin stared at Choi Bit-na with a dumbfounded expression.

“Why am I your teacher?”

“Wow, it’s the first time I’ve seen the teacher flustered. You only get flustered by things like this? Teacher?”

Choi Bit-na laughed heartily, not caring at all about her hair disheveled with sweat.

A moment later, Choi Bit-na wiped the laughter from her face and opened her mouth again with just a gentle smile remaining.

“You’re my teacher, of course. You’re the first person to give me a real lesson at the academy.”

Lee Dojin was at a loss for words because he felt sincerity in Choi Bit-na’s words.

“…Still, don’t call me teacher. It’s not like I’m going to teach you spear techniques or anything.”

“You taught me how to fight. If that’s not a teacher, what is? I’m going to keep calling you teacher!”

Choi Bit-na said with a bright smile and then started descending the mountain cheerfully with her bag on.

Lee Dojin clicked his tongue and followed Choi Bit-na.
Then they took the train back to Seoul and arrived at Iroaz Academy late at night.

**

Monday came.

All first-year combat division students gathered in front of the mock dungeon gate.

All combat division students were wearing navy blue battle suits provided by Iroaz Academy.

Battle suits were essential items for hunters who frequented dungeons.

“Wow, is it for real that these mass-supplied items are all lightweight? Academy class.”

The students were amazed at the elasticity and light weight of the navy blue armor.

Lee Dojin was also quite surprised.

‘It’s sturdy but this light. It should be plenty usable even when performing body techniques.’

It was always for emergencies.
Because Lee Dojin’s ego was that of a swordsman to the bone.

Park Cheol-ung, the homeroom teacher of combat class 1 and the supervisor in charge of this mock dungeon exam, took the microphone again.

“The dungeon form is cave-type. The motif is the cave-type dungeon from the entrance-type gate that occurred in Incheon last year. It’s famous for its vast size.”

Excluding the magic class, the number of students in the combat classes was about 500.

The exam dungeon had to be vast.

“It’s just a motif, we’ve twisted the terrain quite a bit, and the monster appearance locations are set randomly, so even if you’ve studied the occurring dungeons thoroughly, there won’t be much advantage.”

As soon as Park Cheol-ung finished speaking, sighs flowed from here and there.

“Ah, cave-type.”

“The one with the most variables.”

Kim Ji-hoon also sighed.

“It’s the worst for archers. Cave-type.”

Indeed, archers were bound to be at a disadvantage in caves where space was severely restricted.

Because it’s neither open nor has things like trees or structures.
However, hunters were beings that had to prove their worth in all types of dungeons.

Kim Ji-hoon had to find a way himself.

“Everyone get on the portal.”

Following Park Cheol-ung’s words, all groups got on the portal leading to the mock dungeon.

Park Cheol-ung confirmed that everyone had gotten on, and opened his mouth once more.

“Lastly, there’s something I need to emphasize. A mock dungeon is still a dungeon. The filter showing light clusters instead of blood that most of you have experienced won’t be applied this time.”

The sound of students gulping in tension was heard.

“Except for the unique sexual harassment and forced sexual attempts by monsters, actions like biting off flesh and slashing will be reproduced. Bones and flesh will be separated. Blood will be everywhere.”

The horror of dungeons.
This mock exam was meant not just for the exam itself, but more to show the combat division students this horror.

“Of course, pain will be implemented at about 4 if reality is 10, and if you’re in a subdued situation where you’re likely to receive torture-like treatment, we’ll immediately disqualify the subject to prevent psychological damage.”

Park Cheol-ung clapped his hands.
A flash of light appeared before the eyes of all the first-year cadets present.

**

The white light cleared from their vision.
Lee Dojin, Choi Bit-na, Ryu Jia, and Kim Ji-hoon. The four first confirmed each other’s presence.

Lee Dojin began to voice what he had organized in his head before going to sleep last night.

“Until the final hour, if you kill someone, not just the group member but the entire group will be disqualified, so be careful.”
The three nodded simultaneously at Lee Dojin’s words.
While the three put aside thoughts of person-to-person combat, Lee Dojin was still thinking about it.
‘But they said subduing without killing is possible. It must be a rule considering competition over monsters.’
After organizing his thoughts, Lee Dojin began giving instructions again.
“Bit-na and I will take the front. And Jia, you take the rear.”

Ryu Jia, as always, nodded with a smile with her eyes closed.

Lee Dojin stared at Choi Bit-na.

“I’ll be at the very front, so support from behind me.”

“Okay, teacher.”

Kim Ji-hoon cautiously approached Lee Dojin’s side.

“What about me?”

“You’ll have to be flexible depending on the situation. Don’t worry. You won’t die.”

Whether the opponent was a monster or a person.
Lee Dojin had no intention of letting any of the three die and be disqualified.

“Let’s move quickly. Killing many monsters is the easiest way to get first place.”

Person-to-person combat only becomes legal for just the final hour.

Until then, everyone would clearly do their best to hunt monsters.

Lee Dojin didn’t let go of the tension.
Most of the monsters appearing here might not be a match for him, but the scariness of dungeons isn’t just monsters.

Because the dungeon itself can be seen as a huge monster.

Kieeeek!

Monster cries were already starting to be heard.

Lee Dojin’s group hurried their steps.

“What monsters usually appear in caves again?”

In response to Kim Ji-hoon’s muttering, Choi Bit-na said,

“Goblins, lizardmen, giant bats, cave spiders… gargoyles.”

“Gargoyles would only be in boss areas. How could first-years defeat a gargoyle?”

“That’s true.”

Gargoyles were A to S-rank danger monsters.
Choi Bit-na thought Lee Dojin might be able to, but she held her tongue since they hadn’t encountered monsters yet.

Ryu Jia suddenly stopped her steps.
Still with her eyes closed, she opened her mouth.

“…I smell blood. I hear signs of life too.”

Lee Dojin raised his right hand to stop the group.

“From the front?”

Though he didn’t specify, everyone knew who that question was directed at. Ryu Jia answered.

“Yes.”

Lee Dojin trusted her words because he had heard a lot from Ryu Jia while meditating and sparring with wooden swords with her every dawn.

He had concluded in his mind that her senses like hearing and touch were superior to others.

“Stay together in a triangle formation, each watching a direction. I’ll go ahead alone for a bit.”

Lee Dojin advanced alone, holding his wooden sword.

Kihihihihit!

A chilling laugh was heard from right beside, behind a huge rock.

Blood and flesh were scattered everywhere.
In the brutish hand of a goblin with blue-green skin was a man’s head.

He seemed to have died with his eyes wide open.

Lee Dojin turned his gaze from the dead man’s eyes to look at the ground.

There were three more corpses. One woman had her heart area cleanly pierced through.

There was also a male corpse with no feet.

Kihihihihit!

The laugh was heard again. Lee Dojin raised his head.
He saw a goblin hanging from a huge stalactite.

‘As expected.’

It seemed to have ambushed suddenly after hanging like that like a bat.

‘So this is a dungeon.’

This is a monster, and this is combat.
With half-hearted resolve, with half-baked skills, venturing into dungeons means only death.

Fortunately, these deaths were fake, but
Such tragedies would occur daily in real dungeons that weren’t virtual.

Kiaaak!

Three goblins rushed at Lee Dojin simultaneously.
Two charged from the front, and one dropped from above.

The wooden sword was swung horizontally just once.

Swish!

Red blood droplets embroidered a round circle in the air. The waists of the three goblins tilted sideways simultaneously.

The corpses disappeared, scattering red smoke, and in their place were small black beads.

Lee Dojin beckoned with his hand to call the three group members.
The tragedy of corpses from one group mixed with goblin corpses was etched into the group members’ eyes.

“Urgh!”

Kim Ji-hoon immediately fell to his knees and started retching.
In contrast, Choi Bit-na’s brow was deeply furrowed, but she didn’t do anything else.

Ryu Jia was still standing calmly. Even though the smell of blood must have overwhelmed her sense of smell.

“This seems to be what they meant by beads.”

Lee Dojin showed the black beads to the three, then put them into the black cloth bead pouch allocated to each group.

As if it was a magic tool made only for this mock dungeon exam, even after putting in three beads, the weight or volume didn’t increase.

“It’s okay.”

Lee Dojin looked alternately at Kim Ji-hoon and Choi Bit-na, who seemed quite shocked by the torn corpses of the group killed earlier.

“I have no intention of becoming prey. We need to become hunters.”

Going ahead alone is poison.
As it’s a team battle, the team’s harmony would also take up a considerable portion of the exam results.

“Let’s go.”

After organizing his thoughts, Lee Dojin started to advance again, leading his group members.