Chapter 155
SWAAAAK-!!
“Keugh-!”
Jongrimun Leader Yeon Mae-Hyang defended against the countless blades flying from nearby and slowly launched a Counterattack.
The other Jongrimun disciples also followed their Sect Leader and responded calmly.
The one fortunate thing was that, following the Zhongnan Sect, Jongrimun’s Martial Arts was focused on Defense.
True to Zhongnan Martial Arts, which could block attacks pouring in from all directions no matter the situation, Jongrimun was able to maintain its Formation even in this mess.
However, …
“Eot-!”
…that did not last long.
They were used to the orderly and organized Sparring matches unique to the Righteous Faction.
This kind of reckless dogfight was unfamiliar to them.
“Iyaaaaat-!”
“A-Ah, wait a moment…!”
The swords of the Unorthodox Faction martial artists, who had not learned proper Martial Arts and survived solely on combat sense, had no set form.
You were bound to get stabbed in the gut by a blind blade.
Faced with a Sword Path that lacked fundamentals but showed no mercy, the Jongrimun disciples could only be flustered.
Not only that, but the Unorthodox Faction Martial Artists used all sorts of tricks to subdue their opponent.
CRUNCH-!
“Aaaagh-! M-My eyes!”
They would secretly throw sand while crossing swords…
“Chomp!”
“Uwaaah-! No, you’re not even a Beast!”
They would bite with their teeth if they saw an opening…
“W-Wait! Shall we join forces for a moment? Let’s watch each other’s backs to Survive this chaos!”
“An Alliance? Then I’ll take this side…, urgh-!”
“He actually believed it. What an idiot.”
…They would betray without hesitation and stab their opponent in the back.
“Aaaaaagh-!”
“Please help us! Sect Leader!”
Like that, the Jongrimun disciples thoroughly collapsed under the despicable tricks of the Unorthodox Faction Bastards.
And it was the same for Jongrimun Leader Yeon Mae-Hyang.
“Ooh-hyo! It’s a woman!”
“Y-You Beast-like Bastards…!”
CHWAAK-!
Until now, she had somehow managed to hold out with her formidable Swordsmanship that even Muyeon had acknowledged, but her stamina was thoroughly ground down by the tricks of the surrounding Unorthodox Faction Martial Artists.
“Heuff…, heuff…”
CHWAAK-!
The Unorthodox Faction Martial Artists rushing at her were several levels below her, but she could not shake them off quickly.
She had to feel her limits to the bone.
“I-Is this…, Actual Combat?”
It was on a completely different level from swinging a Sword comfortably in a Martial Arts Hall.
‘If I’m struggling this much, the disciples must be dying out there…’
Yeon Mae-Hyang barely defeated the nearby Unorthodox Faction Martial Artists and turned her head toward the other Disciples.
And…
“Uh…?”
…she couldn’t help but be surprised by the sight before her eyes.
“Kyahaha-! Die, you Bastards-!”
“This is the Sword of the great Jongrimun! Uwahahaha-!”
…Weren’t two Jongrimun Disciples running wild and tearing through the battlefield?
And those Disciples were…
“Jong Hyo…, A Hyeon…!”
…the guys who had the experience of staying in the Green Forest for two months.
“In just two months…”
It was true that Jong Hyo and A Hyeon were promising Disciples even within Jongrimun. However, compared to the Jongrimun Leader, their skills were severely lacking.
But looking at the two of them now, aren’t they showing a much more outstanding performance than the Jongrimun Leader?
CHWAAK-!
CHWAAAAK-!
The two Disciples were mixing Jongrimun’s uniquely solid Martial Arts with the Unorthodox Faction’s uniquely free movements, producing a more efficient effect.
Seeing that, Yeon Mae-Hyang gripped her Sword tightly.
“…Right, I can do it too.”
With her Disciples performing so well, she couldn’t just stand still as the Sect Leader, could she?
PAAT-!
Like that, she threw herself into the battlefield with a slightly more tenacious mindset.
Without realizing it, she was slowly becoming closer to an Unorthodox Faction member.
* * *
“Uuuugh…”
After that, she swung her Sword without rest for One Shichen.
Because everyone refrained from using killing moves, no one died, but most collapsed from exhaustion.
“Heuff…, heuff…, heuff…”
Jongrimun Leader Yeon Mae-Hyang also looked like she would collapse at any moment, but she barely managed to stay standing.
“W-Why…, why was I fighting like this again…”
She barely squeezed her oxygen-deprived brain to recall the reason.
An Executive, she was fighting for an Executive position in the Green Forest.
‘What’s so great about that…’
In truth, she didn’t desperately need an Executive position in the Green Forest. But as she became intoxicated by the Sword and obsessed with her own tenacity, it had come to this.
“Heuff…, heuff…”
The other Jongrimun Disciples had long since collapsed, and there was barely anyone left standing to begin with.
‘Right…, since it’s come to this, let’s just see it to the end.’
Yeon Mae-Hyang moved her steps to Strike Down those who remained.
“Heuff…, heuff…, yeah, come on, you crazy bitch! I, the great Heuk Su-Dol, will take your Sword.”
“…”
The first person she faced was the Water Bandit of massive build, Heuk Su-Dol.
He had held out with his innate Physical Strength and Martial Arts Skill until now, but his stamina was also nearly depleted.
“Eeeeek-!!”
“Iyaaaaa-!”
The moment the two raised their swords to finish each other off…
CLANG-!
“Stop.”
At the same time their Sword and blade bounced off, a figure revealed himself between the two.
It was Muyeon.
“You don’t have to fight anymore. There are exactly six people left now.”
“Ugh…”
“Heu-eok…”
At his words, the two collapsed onto the floor.
“Congratulations.”
It was the birth of six new Green Forest Executives.
* * *
“Uh, Leader.”
“Hmm?”
“…No matter how much we value Actual Combat, isn’t this too much?”
Dongryong said, pointing at the mass of humans slumped in front of us.
All the newly recruited Martial Artists were completely exhausted and lying flat on the floor.
There were even guys who had completely fainted.
It seemed this sight was off-putting even to Dongryong, who had received the most rigorous Training under me.
Well, yeah…, this Avici Hell of killing and being killed probably didn’t look too good.
However…
“It can’t be helped.”
“…Pardon?”
“Is this the time for us to be Training peacefully? A war broke out up there, you Bastard. We don’t know when we might get swept up in it, you know?”
“If so…”
“Yeah. I plan to thoroughly train them so they can be thrown straight into battle in an emergency, like today.”
Actually, a more efficient method would be for me to personally spar with them one by one and make them internalize it with their bodies, just like I did for the Executives in the past.
But how am I supposed to do that one by one for a thousand guys?
Having them fight each other and build experience like this was an unavoidable next best option.
Still, with this method, I could have them build up a lot of experience in a short period of time.
Understanding my words, Dongryong clicked his tongue and shook his head.
“Wow…, Leader. Are you going to make them train by fighting each other like this every day? I know you’re the Leader, but you’re truly ruthless. What are they going to do? I feel bad for them…”
“Hmm? Why do you think you won’t be doing it?”
“…Pardon? Then I have to do it too?”
Leaving the flustered Dongryong behind, I called out to the Haomun Leader I saw in the distance.
“Haomun Leader! Did you bring what I asked you to bring?”
“Ah, yes, Great Hero.”
As soon as I said that, she handed me the things she had in her hands.
They were none other than identification tags with numbers written on them from one to twelve.
“Oh, you made them quite stylishly. Thanks.”
As soon as I received them, I thanked the Haomun Leader once and immediately pinned the tag with the number one (one) on Dongryong’s chest.
“…Leader? What is this?”
I didn’t answer Dongryong’s question and called the other existing Executives, pinning the tags on them one by one.
Like this, Bang Sam-i got two (two), Bongchun-i got three (three), Youngest got four (four), Jeokyeom got five (five), and Eungchil-i got six (six).
And then I approached the newly selected Executives and pinned on them the tags corresponding to seven through twelve respectively.
“…?”
Now, not only the Executives with the tags but also the other guys around started looking at me with curious eyes.
At this, I shouted to everyone.
“Ah, what I just pinned on your chests is a symbol proving you are an Executive, and at the same time, it indicates your rank. For example, Deputy Leader Dongryong here has the number one (one) written on his tag, right? This means Deputy Leader Dongryong is Rank One among the Executives.”
“Ah…”
Only then did everyone nod as if they understood, reading the numbers on the Executives' tags and beginning to figure out the ranks.
And when everyone’s attention was gathered, I continued speaking.
“Ah, right. I didn’t tell you about the Executives' benefits, did I? All Executives receive several times the pay of a regular Green Forest Member, are provided with a Private Room, and have the authority to Command multiple Subordinates depending on their rank.”
“Ooh-!”
“Wow…, I’m jealous…”
As the Executives' benefits were relayed, everyone sighed in envy. They also looked at the Executives' tags with eyes dripping with regret.
“Yeah…, you must be jealous. And you must be regretful.”
Taking advantage of the moment when everyone’s emotions were conveyed, I asked the guys.
“Do you guys want to be Executives too?”
“…”
At first, there was no answer from the guys, but…
“There is a way for you to become Executives too.”
“…!”
At my next words, everyone’s eyes changed.
Even if they didn’t show it much, I could feel that everyone was waiting for my words.
I grinned at those guys and pointed at the Executives' tags.
“Steal the Executives' tags.”
“Steal…, the tags…?”
“Yeah, whether it’s day or night, whether you use a Surprise Attack or a Direct Confrontation, use any means necessary to render the Executives Incapacitated in Combat and extort their tags. Then that person becomes the Master of the tags, in other words, an Executive.”
“…!”
“Oh, fuck.”
Understanding what I said, the Executives spat out curses, and the Martial Artists without tags began to look at the tags with greedy eyes.
Their gazes were so fierce that they were no different from a pack of hyenas targeting an elephant.
Now those guys Charge recklessly at the Executives day and night.
If that happens, it will be a great help in developing the Combat Sense of both the Executives trying To Block them and the guys trying to steal from them.
Wow…, even I think it’s a truly amazing Training Method.
“Now, then it starts from now! Fight, everyone, you Bastards!”
PABABAT-!
As soon as I said that, the energetic guys headed toward the new Executives who were already exhausted to their limits.
From now on, it is the start of a 24-hour full-time Executive Rank Challenge Battle.
* * *
Two months later.
“Mmm…! I slept well…!”
Jongrimun Leader Yeon Mae-Hyang welcomed a refreshing morning in her Private Room.
A tag with the number five (five) written on it hung on her chest.
She stroked her tag and fell into reminiscence for a moment.
Having started from ninth (nine) place, she had already climbed up to fifth (five).
Meanwhile, in the North, the Murim Alliance was defeated by the Demonic Cult and began to lose ground in the war, while the Green Forest spent peaceful days.
“Right…, they were peaceful days…”
In fact, she was currently satisfied with having entered the Green Forest.
Receiving a high salary, she was able To Prepare the initial funds to rebuild Jongrimun, and in the meantime, she was able to develop her Martial Arts Skill along with a great deal of Combat Sense.
‘I’ll have to take revenge on the General Stronghold Master someday…, but for now, I’m quite satisfied…’
Thinking so, Jongrimun Leader Yeon Mae-Hyang got up from her spot and folded her bedding.
It was then.
“Sect Leader! Have you awakened? May I come in?”
“Hmm? Yes, come in.”
When she permitted him to enter, Jongrimun Disciple Jong Hyo entered her Private Room in a polite manner.
He was holding a plate full of something in his hands.
“Jong Hyo? What’s the matter this early in the morning?”
“Ah, that is… I wanted to deliver this to you.”
Saying so, what Jong Hyo handed over was…
“Dumplings?”
“And they are meat dumplings, Sect Leader, which you like the most.”
…It was meat dumplings, her favorite food.
“I saw the cook steaming them today, and I immediately thought of you, Sect Leader. This unworthy Disciple braved the rudeness of coming this early in the morning.”
“Oh…, as expected of Jong Hyo. You have good manners.”
“Hehe, not at all, Sect Leader. More importantly, please try one.”
Jongrimun Disciple Jong Hyo waited with a truly polite demeanor until Yeon Mae-Hyang ate a dumpling.
Seeing that, Yeon Mae-Hyang reached out her hand toward the dumplings.
Pause.
“Jong Hyo, you try eating one first.”
“…!”
Right before touching the dumplings, she said so with a smile on her face.
A Sword was already held in her hand.
“It’s not like we’ve only known each other for a day or two… Don’t you think this trick is too shallow?”
When the Jongrimun Leader, who noticed something Strange was in the dumplings, smiled and interrogated him, Jong Hyo also immediately pulled out the Sword he had hidden behind his clothes.
“Tch, Attack-!!”
PABABABAT-!
CRACK-!
At the same time Jong Hyo shouted; swords lodged around her Private Room, and other Martial Artists began to pour into the entrance like a swarm of bees.
Seeing that, Yeon Mae-Hyang unfolded her Stance very calmly.
“A Surprise Attack this early in the morning! How petty!”
“That’s not something someone who sleeps with a knife under their pillow at night should say!”
CLANG-!
Along with the cheerful sound of swords clashing, smiles bloomed on the faces of Yeon Mae-Hyang and Jong Hyo.
“Sect Leader! Today is the day! Today is the day I will inherit your Executive position!”
“You’re 100 years too early, Jong Hyo!”
It was another peaceful morning in the Green Forest.