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Chapter 81

At Se-Hoon’s words of gratitude, Miles waved his hand dismissively from the driver’s seat.

“No, not at all. This is the least I can do after what I’ve done. I really am sorry about what happened earlier.”

Experiencing Miles’s polite behavior and repeated apologies for grabbing his shoulders, Se-Hoon wondered if he was indeed the Mad Sword he knew. He shook his head, still amazed.

“It’s okay. To be honest, I did look pretty suspicious up there.”

“Right? That’s what I was—”

“Uncle.”

Miles flinched when Jake interrupted him in a subdued voice, then quickly fixed his previously relaxed expression.

“Cough. Never mind. It’s entirely my fault. If your shoulders feel uncomfortable later, you can immediately inform Jake. I’ll take full responsibility for it.”

“Understood.”

“Oh, and about the succession ceremony...”

Seeing Miles glance around subtly, Se-Hoon roughly guessed what he wanted to bring up, so he spoke first.

“You don’t have to worry about asking me to keep it a secret; I’ve already discussed it with Aria sunbae.”

“Oh, really? Well, Aria is quick to handle such matters...”

Nodding in acceptance, Miles then made an awkward smile.

“Given that this is an unprecedented situation, our family might conduct an investigation. Depending on how things go, we might ask for your cooperation. I’ll make sure you’re well compensated, so please take accepting into consideration when the time comes.”

“I’ll do my best when the opportunity comes,” Se-Hoon earnestly responded, completely satisfying Miles.

“Thank you. If we had more time, I would have loved to grab a drink with you, but my brother... no, the head of the family is hurrying me.”

With a bothered sigh, he extended his left hand to Se-Hoon.

“Let’s meet again when we’ve got time.”

“Sure, I look forward to it.”

The moment Se-Hoon shook Miles’s hand, a notification message appeared in front of Se-Hoon.

[A bond has been successfully established with the subject ‘Miles Myers’.]

Woah...

This was a bond that hadn’t been established before the regression. Taking the opportunity, Se-Hoon quickly extracted the bond.

[Extracting bond from ‘Miles Myers’]

[The bond with the host is Lv. 1.]

“I’ll be going then. See you next time; you too, Jake!”

Vroom!

With that farewell, Miles quickly drove away in his sports car, prompting Jake to sigh deeply.

“I’m sorry. It seems like I got you involved in a troublesome matter.”

“Indeed.”

He had an inkling that he had gotten himself involved in a slightly unusual incident when talking with Aria, and now, after speaking with Miles, he confirmed it.

So the outcome of Aria’s succession ceremony was kept a secret, even within the family.

If Miles had known about the result of Aria’s succession ceremony, he wouldn’t have been so surprised by Jake’s.

A secret not even known to the family head’s own brother... it seems like I’ve stepped into deep waters.

Taken positively, it could lead to a deeper relationship with the Myers family, but when taken negatively, it could mean risking getting his neck chopped off, depending on the situation.

The Myers were relatively honorable, but... I still need to be careful.

He had learned the hard way that one should never let their guard down when dealing with any group or individual. That was why, even before the regression, he hadn’t joined an alliance.

If I want to build a strong foundation for the relationship with their family... I’ll have to deal with this guy first.

He turned to look at Jake, who was making an awkward face.

“Jake.”

“Oh. Yeah, what?”

“Do you know why I struck the Luminescent Sword with my hammer?”

“Uhm, isn’t it because...”

Hesitating, Jake paused for a moment before he sighed deeply and finished his answer, “Because I wasn’t able to create the blade properly.”

“And what do you think the reason for that is?”

“Well, isn’t it just because I wasn’t proficient at handling the sword aura? I even broke the blade at the end...”

Recalling the embarrassing moment when he couldn’t handle his own sword aura, Jake grew ashamed.

“Nope. You’re wrong,” said Se-Hoon with a firm shake of his head.

“I’m wrong?”

“If it were due to your lack of skill in handling the sword aura, there would have been an issue the first moment you received the sword aura from Origin. The actual reason lies elsewhere.”

“The actual reason...?”

Jake looked perplexed, unable to guess what it could possibly be.

And seeing that, Se-Hoon calmly gave him the answer.

“Strength control.”

“...Strength control?”

“Mhm. To be more precise, the problem was with your strength control when you created the blade. The blade came out incomplete because you unconsciously eased the strength in your hand.”

“That, that can’t be...”

To Jake, who was fairly certain that he had gripped the handle with all his might, it was hard to believe that he had actually somehow unconsciously eased up on his strength. However, he wasn’t able to confidently deny it either.

Regardless of what he thought though, Se-Hoon, the one who noticed the fault in the blade and immediately fixed it on the spot, was the one Jake was talking to.

If the problem is actually me...

Jake looked down at his hands, a determined glint in his eyes. He then turned to Se-Hoon.

“Is there a way to solve this issue?”

“There are a few that I can think of.”

While Jake’s issue seemed challenging to fix due to how it was related to the subconscious, ultimately, it was just one of his habits that had been ingrained in his body. And since it was just a habit, it definitely could be solved by just erasing that habit with a light shock and then reconstructing a new one from scratch.

“Let’s see. Somehow making you bedridden for at least a week to maximize your sensation, restricting all of your senses and putting you in a cave, reversing all of the mana in your body temporarily—”

“Wait, hold up.”

Alarmed at the horrifying methods coming out of Se-Hoon’s mouth, Jake stopped him for a moment.

“Are these methods even doable?”

“Of course. I have... not tried them myself, though. But I have clearly witnessed their effects before.”

Each and every method was something Se-Hoon learned from high-ranking heroes he had met before the regression. Thus, despite how they sounded, their effectiveness was certain.

I’ve also tried them all myself too.

Though some of these methods could be dangerous enough to be fatal if carried out carelessly, even those were relatively safe with proper preparations and adjustments.

But despite the confident look on Se-Hoon’s face, Jake decided to ask something just in case.

“And... where did you find these methods?”

“On a... video platform?”

“...”

“...”

The two fell into awkward silence.

Seeing Jake looking at him strangely, Se-Hoon squinted back.

Here I am, offering to teach him invaluable know-hows for free, yet he’s being picky about it...

In the past, Se-Hoon would have just told him to figure it out himself at this point, but he realized that his method did seem dubious from Jake’s perspective, so he decided to show a bit more consideration.

Given his personality, he won’t refuse just because it seems tiring.... So it’s more important to make it seem plausible then.

Shifting through the numerous methods in his head, he eventually brushed by a certain memory from the past.

“If your body seems perfectly fine but doesn’t move as you want it to, it means you’re not using it properly. But don’t worry, I’ll make you understand your entire body from your head to your toes without missing a single thing.”

That was what his master had told him during his first lesson. And just recalling it made him shiver, but he realized that there was no other method that better suited Jake right now.

“Anyway, I’ll teach you a technique that’ll be useful for your current situation.”

“And it’s not something you learned from a video, is it?”

“No, it’s not. It’s a technique I often use myself, so don’t worry.”

“...Really?”

Hearing that it was a technique Se-Hoon used himself, Jake’s skepticism was immediately blown away and replaced by curiosity. Given that it could be one of the things he used to surpass everyone’s expectations numerous times, it was obvious that Jake would be intrigued.

“Yes, but it’s not any easier than the methods I mentioned before. There will be moments when you look back and wonder if this is really right. So, are you sure you’ll trust me and learn it to the end?”

“...Of course.”

Determined, Jake believed that he was prepared for anything as long as he could properly wield his sword and its blue sword aura.

“You can throw me anything. I’ll try my hardest to learn all of it,” Jake vowed.

Within Jake’s solemn demeanor, Se-Hoon saw a reflection of his past self.

So this was how she felt...

He remembered how his master had looked at him with a peculiar smile when he told her of his resolve. Back then, he couldn’t understand why she was laughing at him like that, but now, he sort of understood how she might have felt.

She was looking forward to how long my resolve would last... that’s why she made that expression.

He thought his master was rather ill-spirited, but decided not to blame her too much.

“Good.”

Because he was also looking forward to how long Jake’s resolve would last too.

***

Walking through a corridor of the Department of Martial Arts, Kwang-Soo chugged down a large bottle of vodka after a long visit to the chairman’s office.

“Hah...”

Tasting the alcohol and mana linger in his mouth, Kwang-Soo grimaced as he felt the buzz start to kick in.

“That damn Ludwig...”

If anyone had heard him, such curses would have made them break out in a cold sweat. And yet, Kwang-Soo continued shouting out loud as if he wanted everyone to hear.

“He should have done a favor as a friend.... Why is he so narrow-minded with all the money he has?!”

Having racked his brain for days on how to make Se-Hoon his disciple, Kwang-Soo eventually sought help from his old friend and boss, Ludwig. He thought about negotiating using the support Ludwig had promised to offer him, knowing that he could force Se-Hoon to become his disciple if Ludwig used his authority as Chairman.

“He won’t be able to learn properly, then. You should try harder.”

Shattering his plan, Ludwig had declined him outright with a smile, leaving Kwang-Soo empty-handed even after much lamenting.

I swear he used to tell me to teach the Celestial Infinity Blade to some random Joe. Yet, he’s making a big fuss now, when I’m just asking him to lend me a hand in making Se-Hoon my disciple.

Perhaps he shouldn’t have mentioned that Se-Hoon had learned the Celestial Infinity Blade just by examining it for a moment. Recalling Ludwig’s sly behavior once again, he cursed under his breath and took another gulp of vodka.

“Hah... how am I even supposed to persuade him...?”

Se-Hoon was easily able to acquire materials without having to go through him, and it seemed unlikely that someone who refused to properly learn the Celestial Infinity Blade and his other sword techniques could be enticed with the promise of learning even more techniques.

In desperation, Kwang-Soo had also considered threatening him with his grade, but given Se-Hoon’s character, he was more likely to just walk away than submit.

If there’s something that he might be interested in, it would be Celestial Night.

He sunk deep into his thoughts about his cherished sword, Celestial Night. It was a Legendary sword that many blacksmiths around the world would treasure, wishing to catch a glimpse of it even once. But despite knowing of its allure to any blacksmith, there were concerns that he still harbored.

It might be fine to show to anyone else, but he might glean more secrets about the Celestial Infinity Blade by just taking a look at Celestial Night.

Celestial Night was essentially akin to the manual for the Celestial Infinity Blade. And although it wasn’t like one could understand just by looking, it was a different matter for Se-Hoon. He was someone who had learned the Celestial Infinity Blade by just seeing it once.

Torn over whether to go this route, he suddenly reconsidered his stance and frowned.

“Wait, why do I have to go to such lengths?”

No matter the talent, why should he reveal all his secrets just to beg someone to learn the Celestial Infinity Blade? Realizing how humble his approach had been, he firmly resolved himself.

In the end, he will be the one regretting not being able to learn such techniques, not me.

Remembering the many who begged to be taught his technique, he smirked at Se-Hoon’s apparent ignorance of its value.

He must not realize the fortune he’s spurning. He’ll probably be begging on his knees if I just show him a few application techniques... damn.

Catching himself still struggling to devise ways to somehow entice Se-Hoon, he sighed at his own patheticness.

“It’s this damn alcohol...”

Telling himself that he wouldn’t have entertained such folly as long as he was sober, he grabbed a new bottle of vodka and entered the classroom. Upon entering, he heard a faint voice from the training area.

“Give it to me!”

The cry, filled with earnestness, sharpened his gaze as he kicked open the door to the training area.

Boom!

The door burst open with a loud noise.

He quickly looked toward the source of the sound as he assumed a fighting stance.

“You’ll die at this rate! You’re going to die!!” yelled Se-Hoon.

In front of him, Jake was standing on his hands, covered in blood.

“If this is all you’ve got, you’ll die! Draw in the blood already! Do you want me to smash this and never forge something for you again?!”

And Se-Hoon was threatening to smash the Luminescent Sword with a hammer held in one hand.

Staring blankly at the abnormal scene, Kwang-Soo thought, I really should cut down on the alcohol.

Fearing the hallucinations caused by alcohol, he tucked the vodka back into his void pocket.