A Veteran Teaches Very Well - Chapter 57



part 57

Men sprawled on the ground, limbs severed, screaming in agony. It was a scene of utter chaos.

Though it was my doing, it was a brutal sight.

—

But there was no sympathy.

I asked the man at the front.

“Who sent you? Speak.”

“Do you think I’ll tell you? You filthy… gack…”

I pierced the man’s throat.

It looked like I had killed him with a type of sword, but I hadn’t.

It was merely a device to instill fear.

“Speak.”

“W-wait, I don’t know anything… ugh!”

Next.

Eight left.

“Are you thinking of talking?”

“W-wait… I’ll tell you… just let me heal first… ugh!”

These guys really had no capacity to learn.

In the end, it would only be a nuisance for both sides.

Just as I was about to interrogate the next man, someone shouted from behind.

“Professor Jeon Tae-jin! He ordered us to kill you!”

“Roy! This b*stard, is he crazy?”

“Mentioning the professor’s name here…”

“Shut up! We’re all about to die, what’s there to be afraid of? What’s so scary! I’ve said everything, so please spare me… ugh!”

Again with Jeon Tae-jin?

What a tiresome fellow.

If they resisted, it would be a hassle, so I just knocked them out and stopped the bleeding.

“I want to go save the kids now, but… it seems I can’t do that.”

Swoosh—

Someone else entered the gate.

I hoped they were just another bunch of lowlifes like the previous ones, but a chilling atmosphere filled the air.

The energy flowing through their bodies was heavy.

“I warned you that the mercenaries are no ordinary bunch.”

“It seems you’re just disregarding the young master. How could you send such scum?”

—

Three warriors, one assassin.

All were familiar faces.

Though I had never met them in person, they were named NPCs from the game.

Especially the assassin at the back—I could not forget him.

“Ryeoun.”

Song Seok-hwan’s loyal subordinate, Ryeoun.

Why was he standing before me instead of protecting his master?

“How do you know Lord Ryeoun’s name?!”

My head spun.

These guys would only move at Song Seok-hwan’s command, even if a knife was at their throats.

So, did Song Seok-hwan join hands with Jeon Tae-jin to kill me?

If that were the case, everything made sense.

An incident occurred in the dungeon.

To manage the situation, the professor threw himself into danger to save the students.

And then, they cleared the dungeon to erase the evidence by eliminating the gate.

It was a perfect scenario to kill a single person.

“Answer me! How did you know Lord Ryeoun’s name?”

Song Seok-hwan had been dissatisfied with me since day one.

Just recently, he had voiced his complaints about the class.

If all those grievances had built up to the point of hatred, it made sense.

“This is your last warning! Lord Ryeoun…”

“Shut up.”

“What, what?!”

“Did Song Seok-hwan order you to kill me?”

Song Seok-hwan’s subordinates neither confirmed nor denied it.

The warriors began to exchange glances.

It was Ryeoun who broke the silence.

“Kill him.”

“Yes.”

The warriors responded in unison.

—

He charged at me, exuding an aura from his sword.

Clang!

The moment our blades met, I could gauge his level.

He was no easy opponent.

These guys, each one surpasses even Baeksulhwa.

I knew they were C-class heroes, but now I truly felt how strong that was.

“This professor knows how to wield a sword.”

“Don’t let your guard down.”

Had they been practicing their coordination? Their teamwork was impressive.

They took turns attacking, leaving me no room to catch my breath.

Having only been in the academy, facing real heroes made the difference clear.

They were strong.

If I continued to face all three at once like this, there would be no way out.

I had to take one down first, even if it meant pushing myself.

Clang!

The strike was blocked.

What did Baeksulhwa do? I mimicked her movements exactly.

I let my sword flow and attacked.

Swish—

“Gah!”

“What, what kind of swordsmanship is that?”

Baeksulhwa’s swordplay was ordinary for a playable character, but it was enough to astonish C-class heroes.

In an instant, one of them fell, and the others took a step back.

“Let’s attack from both sides at the same time!”

“Okay!”

Song Seok-hwan.

Did I send these guys because I hated him? Because I felt such a deep-seated rage that I wanted to kill him?

“……”

No, that couldn’t be it.

A scene from the game flashed in my mind, a conversation between Seo Da-yoon and Song Seok-hwan.

─Seok-hwan, you hate me, don’t you…?

─Yeah. I feel sick every time I see your damn face.

─Then why… why did you save me…! Why not just take care of yourself…?

─If I can’t save the life of the person right in front of me, how can I call myself a hero?

Song Seok-hwan’s moral compass was severely twisted.

He wielded violence based on his feelings.

He understood how much pain his actions could inflict on others.

Perhaps Song Seok-hwan was the closest to a villain among the playable characters.

But at the very least, he valued human life.

He believed that was the minimum sense of duty a hero should possess, and no matter which route he took in the game, that conviction never changed.

Did that same Song Seok-hwan tell me to die?

Chaeng!

It made no sense at all.

I twisted my body to dodge the sword and then asked Ryeo-un.

“Ryeo-un, answer me. Did Song Seok-hwan really order me to be killed?”

“…….”

“Or did you betray Song Seok-hwan?”

“Don’t speak his name carelessly.”

Only when I mentioned Seok-hwan did Ryeo-un finally react.

Something was happening.

If the Seok-hwan who had lost his conviction also lost his identity as a hero.

The repercussions wouldn’t end with just one student going astray.

I had to save him.

As a hero.

As a user who loved the game.

And as a professor, as a mentor.

Ryeo-un spoke to his subordinates.

“Kill him now.”

“Yes!”

A fight between heroes cannot ignore even a single attack.

—

Unless you’re a tank, allowing a direct hit soon leads to a fatal wound.

It’s impossible to control all variables with just reaction speed.

That’s why the battle of wits is important.

Just like a boxer predicts punches by observing shoulder movements, I had to anticipate what kind of attack would come and move in advance to respond.

Swish—

I gripped the sword and pulled my arm back.

From noble mtl dot come

Through my movements, Song Seok-hwan’s subordinate would be envisioning the sword’s trajectory in his mind.

If I were to change the sword’s path here…

Whoosh—

As my sword twisted sharply with the technique of the white snow flower, his reaction was delayed.

He might have had a plan to counterattack in his mind, but it all fell apart.

“Annoying…”

If I were to introduce one more variable here…

I feigned again before launching my attack.

“Inferno.”

This time, it was magic, not a sword strike.

For the one who had been focused on my sword, the magic that activated right in front of him without any casting became the decisive blow.

“Graaah!”

“M-Magic…!”

As Song Seok-hwan’s subordinate, he would have already known that I could use magic.

But because I had only fought with my sword, he hadn’t been aware of the magic.

Only one opponent remained.

Yet he bravely charged at me.

“Uwaaah!”

However, there was a gap between us that could not be bridged by courage alone.

I alternated my attacks with sword and magic.

The remaining foe soon found himself overwhelmed and lost his sword.

Then, I lightly struck him with the back of my blade, knocking him out.

All the warriors were finished.

Only Ryu-un, who had been watching from behind, remained.

—

“The captain just stands by while his subordinates roll around in chaos. You are unfit to be a captain.”

Though those words were spoken, inside, there was a sense of relief.

With only three of them, it could have ended easily, but if Ryeoun had joined the fray, the outcome would have been uncertain.

“How did it come to this?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Professor Cha, you are right.”

The conversation was not aligning.

I had no idea what this guy was saying.

“I betrayed him. I betrayed the young master… I should have stopped him, ah…”

Ryeoun began to sob quietly.

Seeing him cry so pitifully stirred a sense of compassion within me.

What could be making him weep so sorrowfully?

I understood that something had happened to Song Seok-hwan.

“Tell me what happened.”

“What happened, you ask?”

“Yes. There’s no way Song Seok-hwan would order me to be killed. What has happened?”

“Ugh…”

Ryeoun laughed.

It was a sad laugh, like a wail of lament.

“Yes, you are right. Ah, it’s so frustrating. I’ve served him for ten years, yet I know less about him than the professor, who has known him for over forty days.”

Ryeoun lowered his head deeply and asked.

“Professor, if it were you, could you save the young master?”

“Yes. I can save him. So tell me what happened.”

“Then prove it to me.”

Ryeoun pulled out two daggers.

Weapons finely crafted with blades as red as blood.

The fangs of a wolf.

A treasure given to Ryeoun by Song Seok-hwan himself during their childhood.

“Show me that you are someone who can save the young master.”

* * *

—

Emergency Guild.

One of the oldest guilds in South Korea.

It has consistently ranked within the top ten in the guild rankings announced by the Hero Association each year, and for the past twenty years, it has never fallen outside the top five—an elite group.

Commonly, Emergency, Geumok, and Dangun guilds are referred to as the three major guilds of South Korea.

Among them, those who regard Emergency as the foremost often cite its authenticity and long history.

Dangun and Geumok do not share the same lengthy history as Emergency.

For Emergency, authenticity and history were synonymous with pride.

Thus, the Emergency Guild valued authenticity more than any other guild.

In such a guild, the issue of succession was a painful thorn.

─I heard the children of the Emergency Guild Master have died.

─The heart of the Emergency Guild Master must be shattered.

─By the way, what about the successor of the Emergency Guild? The Song family has always carried on the legacy.

One day, Song Ji-hyuk’s two sons lost their lives.

The cause was an accident in a dungeon.

Those around him sympathized with Song Ji-hyuk, but he remained a composed father.

Upon hearing the news of his children’s deaths, he offered a brief reflection.

‘If I have another child, they won’t be ready to inherit when I retire.’

Given the tangled circumstances, Song Ji-hyuk decided to think positively.

He lied publicly about their talents, but in truth, his sons had no talent whatsoever.

Sons whose deaths would not be mourned at all.

He made excuses about missing his deceased sons and resolved to find a capable child.

‘Find the most outstanding child in the country.’

Song Ji-hyuk was able to find a decent child without much difficulty.

An orphan with the best talent among his peers nationwide.

Song Ji-hyuk gave the child a name.

‘From now on, your name is Song Seok-hwan.’

Thus, Song Seok-hwan became the successor of the Emergency Guild.

─The Guild Master’s son, you say?

─I cannot accept that the adopted child is the successor of Emergency.

At first, Song Seok-hwan was rejected by everyone.

In the realm where tradition was held in high regard, Song Seok-hwan received no recognition.

No matter what he did, the same words always followed.

The adopted son.

Adopted son, adopted son, adopted son, adopted son, adopted son…….

It was maddening.

It felt like his head would explode.

Song Seok-hwan loathed that word, “adopted.”

One day, that monotonous life changed.

─You’re the adopted son of the Emergency?

A social party where famous hunters and the children of conglomerates mingled.

It was there that Song Seok-hwan met Ahn Se-hyun of the Geumok Guild.

Ahn Se-hyun was the king of the party.

The heir of Geumok, one of the three major guilds.

Everyone gathered at the party followed Ahn Se-hyun.

Though Song Seok-hwan was also an heir of the Emergency, he was different in terms of bloodline.

Song Seok-hwan was an adopted son, while Ahn Se-hyun was a biological son.

That difference led to Song Seok-hwan being ostracized in the social scene, while Ahn Se-hyun reigned like a king.

─You’re the adopted son of Uncle Song Ji-hyeok? A filthy brat whose origins are unknown, just stay quiet from now on.

Again, that tiresome talk of being an adopted son.

Song Seok-hwan hated those words.

So much so that he was prepared to be expelled from the guild and overturned everything.

The man who was the heir of Geumok was nothing special.

─That guy, Ahn Se-hyun, like that…….

─The heir of the Emergency defeated the heir of Geumok!

It was strange.

He thought he would be scolded. He thought he would be criticized.

But instead of condemnation, everyone spoke well of Song Seok-hwan.

─They say the young master knocked down the heir of Geumok?

─Wow, this is the difference in talent.

─Indeed, our young master.

But that was not the end.

Song Seok-hwan saw his father smile for the first time.

‘If he is my son, he must not be looked down upon by Geum-ok. Well done.’

Well done.