Breaking Up With the Heroine in an Otome Game - Breaking Up With the Heroine in an Otome Game chapter 95

95 – Baek Yurin and the Ranking Battle (9)

095.

“…”

Within Baek Yurin’s dry, ashen eyes, a faint desire was gradually emerging.

Until now, it seemed like she was just warming up her body, as she concentrated a significant amount of magical power into her blade and stared at me quietly.

The shimmering magical power scattered dim lights, making it extremely menacing, like a jagged edge.

That was a Martial Pill Sword, a sword technique.

I wonder if there are any academy students who can use Martial Pill.

Even Ishiwoonjo, who was renowned throughout the world, hesitated to master it, but Baek Yurin tried to use Martial Pill against someone like me.

Hey, Baek Yurin, isn’t using Martial Pill a bit excessive when we’re just students sparring with each other?

The murmurs from the spectator seats reached my ears.

Perhaps she was quite surprised because even first-year academy students could use Martial Pill.

Many of those below intermediate rank were unable to use Martial Pill.

That showed how high the difficulty level of Martial Pill was.

Although it was difficult to determine which technique was more challenging, since Martial Pill and Kyungisangin required different skills, Martial Pill was generally considered more advanced.

Indeed, she is a genius among geniuses.

I don’t even know if I’ll be able to use Martial Pill in my lifetime if I train in the normal way.

I could probably use Martial Pill by utilizing the trick of a relic.

Anyways, Baek Yurin was undeniably the best in terms of pure skill. He was said to be the strongest in the academy during his first year, based on the original game standards.

Well, he has been following the protagonist and his group like a dog since the second year! But anyway…

“Baek Yurin.”

“Yeah?”

I called Baek Yurin, gesturing.

Baek Yurin looked at me with a puzzled expression.

There was nothing I could do when Baek Yurin decided to use Geom-gang.

I could only rely on a gambling move to determine the outcome.

“Let’s settle this with our best skills, how about it?”

“……?”

The longer I dragged it out, the more disadvantageous it would become for me.

Just a few exchanges of attacks, yet my left hand was already causing trouble.

Ignoring the severe swelling, a tingling pain was gently crawling up my bones and muscles.

Considering the condition of my left arm, I had to reach a conclusion quickly.

“In terms of character settings, Baek Yurin’s basic physical abilities aren’t that high.”

Baek Yurin is a typical agile character.

His characteristic was to dominate opponents with quick movements and precise techniques.

That’s why Baek Yurin’s basic physical abilities were not significantly higher than mine, although they were indeed higher.

Of course, the story would be different if he enhanced his physicality with magic.

“Not confident?”

“……”

“Well, if you don’t like it, then forget it.”

“……”

I purposely grazed Baek Yurin’s pride.

From my perspective, Baek Yurin had to accept the proposal.

If it were someone else, they would probably think, “What a pushover,” and reject it. But considering Baek Yurin’s personality, the chances of refusal were low.

That was because, for Baek Yurin, this proposal was not the type that could be refused.

Declining to compete with our best skills would be no different from running away with our tails between our legs.

Baek Yurin, who had abnormally high pride and self-confidence when it came to swordsmanship, would never refuse.

Of course, Baek Yurin was quite wary of me.

There is a possibility that I might be the man from the past.

But paradoxically, because I could have been the man from the past, I will never back down.

I have to show you.

How different you are from the past.

“…Are you confident?”

Bae Yoorin murmured as if she found it interesting, and nodded slowly.

“Alright… Let’s have a match… It will be fun.”

“Hmm.”

With this, I achieved the minimum prerequisite.

In order to give a blow to the monster-like Bae Yoorin, I needed to have a decisive match with a pretense of strength.

Since we decided to compete with our most powerful techniques, it was possible to guess Bae Yoorin’s technique to some extent.

Because in a one-on-one match, we both would use our most powerful techniques.

I knew most of the techniques that Bae Yoorin could use.

Of course, I didn’t know all the techniques, but I knew all the techniques that could be considered her ultimate moves.

Among them, what technique would Bae Yoorin use?

Most likely, the technique called ‘Baekgae-ryu’ Baek-a, which is known as ultra-fast thrusting.

Because Baek-a was a sword technique developed for the purpose of defeating the man from the past.

Moreover, this technique has never been leaked to the outside world.

Unlike other techniques, which have been leaked to some extent through matches, sparring, and tournaments, Baek-a was not.

It has never been used in an official arena.

It was truly a hidden card that was tightly guarded.

It could be said that it was one of the techniques that would be mentioned as Bae Yoorin’s most powerful ultimate moves in the future.

However, I had no choice but to know quite a bit about Baek-a, the sword technique that Bae Yoorin had diligently kept hidden.

Because it was one of the sword techniques representing Bae Yoorin, I had to go into quite a bit of detail in character setting.

The distinctive preparatory movements, principles and methods, the circulation of magic power for using Baek-a, and so on. I had a rough understanding of them.

Of course, I didn’t remember them in detail. And even if I knew them in detail, I didn’t have the ability to block them.

It was not a technique that could be easily countered just because I knew it in advance.

If I had the abilities and talents of Ishiwoon, I could have easily countered it, but… Unfortunately, I was not Ishiwoon.

As a dumb person like me, even if I knew a certain degree about Baek-a, I didn’t have the confidence to succeed in countering it.

No, I couldn’t even avoid or block it?

As if humans were powerless to do anything even if they expected a meteorite to fall.

“Well, it doesn’t matter.”

Unable to stop it, unable to avoid it?

Well, then, it will be okay if I get hit, if I get hit.

“Yeah, just get hit.”

From the beginning, I never had any intention of blocking or avoiding Baek Yurin’s attack.

I assumed that I would be hit by Baek Yurin’s attack.

“The important thing is… hitting the desired place with the desired technique.”

I glanced briefly at my abdomen and swallowed a dry gulp.

With my physical abilities, it was practically impossible to withstand Baek Yurin’s attack.

The moment I’m pierced, defeat is certain, certain.

It was clear that blood would gush out and I would fall down.

But there is one thing.

There is one method.

A way to take a hit from Baek Yurin’s attack and endure it.

Although I had practiced quite a lot, this was my first real battle, so I was quite nervous, but there is no other option besides this method.

Really, nothing else.

“…Are you ready?”

I held the shield with my left hand, covered my abdomen, and raised the sword with my right hand, assuming a posture to swing it down from above.

Baek Yurin brought one hand close to the end of the blade and slightly bent her body as if she was trying to thrust with all her strength.

The heroes in the spectator seats could feel a slight sense of wonder at seeing such a preparatory posture for the first time.

There is no such preparatory posture in white swordsmanship.

But I can understand.

That posture is the precursor stance of the ultra-fast thrust that Baek Yurin developed based on white swordsmanship.

I guess she intends to use Baek A’s swordsmanship after all.

Well, it was a technique she worked hard to develop specifically for a situation like this.

“…Planning to counter-attack? Do you really think you can block it with that shield?”

“…”.

A bluish magic power shimmered around the blade in a menacing manner.

With that level of sword power, no matter how much protective gear and shields I wore, it would easily pierce through.

I know that during a duel, one can suffer minor and major injuries such as being pierced through the body, breaking bones, or internal organs rupturing.

I am well aware that there are numerous recovery potions and healing ability users awaiting in preparation for such situations.

However, fear is still fear.

Not only could one be hit in a vulnerable spot by mistake, but also no one likes being in pain.

Oh, by the way, didn’t they say that the tournament can be viewed in real-time by outsiders as well?

Of course, I heard that the intensity is lowered through mosaic and cognitive filters.

“…Interesting. Let’s give it a try.”

Baek Yurin erased her expression of being free and revealed a faint smile.

It wasn’t merely to block her abdomen to defend against her attacks.

I, too, knew very well that I couldn’t block her attacks with just a shield.

A shield is nothing more than an illusion, an illusion.

“Alright, let’s fight once….”

“!”

Paat!

Without giving me a chance to finish speaking, Baek Yurin charged towards me.

She rushed towards me like a bullet, reaching right in front of my nose in the blink of an eye.

Simultaneously, she detonated her magic power and swung her sword with all her strength. I, too, quickly swung my sword towards the upper region.

Of course, Baek Yurin’s sword was much faster.

It was a given that Baek Yurin’s sword would pierce through my body before my sword touched her.

That was an unchangeable future, no different from a predetermined fate.

“I am faster….”

Modified White Tooth, Bakma White Fang.

According to the game’s setting, it accelerates the speed by detonating magic power consecutively when thrusting the sword, creating an ultra-fast stabbing technique known as the sequential high-speed thrust.

If the opponent is seeing this technique for the first time, they can’t help but be bewildered by the speed and timing of the sword’s attacks.

Well, I don’t have anything to be bewildered about.

That’s because, from the start, the sword itself wasn’t clearly visible.

“Your response is too slow. It’s disappointing, huh…?”

“Ugh!”

Thunk!

The blade of Baek Yurin’s sword pierced deep into the abdomen.

The speed of the thrust, utilizing vigorous energy, easily penetrated the shield and protective gear as if they were made of tofu.

From the location of the piercing, it seemed that an important vital point was avoided, but with the abdomen being penetrated, there was no way to continue fighting.

Ah, of course, that’s assuming my body was actually pierced.

“……?”

Baek Yurin blinked her eyes in confusion for a moment.

I had stabbed her abdomen with the shield, but I looked perfectly fine, didn’t I?

Moreover, without shedding a single drop of blood, she continued swinging her sword without hesitation, as if it didn’t matter whether her attack pierced through my stomach or not.

“……You?”

Baek Yurin questioned with doubt.

Why was I unharmed?

Because, obviously, Baek Yurin’s sword did not pierce through me.

“……What is that?”

As Baek Yurin moved the penetrated shield to the side, she could finally see it.

The crack in the empty space that was not visible behind the shield.

Unfortunately, Baek Yurin’s sword had forcefully stabbed into the crack of the empty space, not my body.

“As expected, it’s useful, the spatial ring.”

A spatial ring that could create cracks within a radius of 6 meters and store or retrieve objects from it.

In the game, it was nothing more than an inventory, but in reality, if this characteristic was well-utilized, it could be used in various ways.

For example, pouring heavy objects out of thin air could turn them into mass weapons, or opening cracks secretly on the ground could create traps, or opening a crack and hiding behind it could block the opponent’s attacks.

Of course, the speed at which the crack opened and contacted was quite slow, so it couldn’t be used in unexpected situations.

If I wanted to use it, I had to open the crack in advance.

“Using it openly was impossible because there are too many cameras and people’s eyes, but what if I open a crack right behind the shield and hide behind it with my body? It should be fine, probably.”

If I ever got caught, I could just pass it off as a superpower or something.

“……!”

Unexpectedly, the sword I swung reached right in front of her nose.

Baek Yurin quickly tried to move her body backward, but it was futile.

Because I was already tightly gripping her right wrist, the one that Baek Yurin had used to stab me with her own sword.

Since I used my magic to enhance my body as much as possible, preventing Baek Yurin from escaping, there was no way she could knock away my hand in an instant.

Even if it was Baek Yurin, she wouldn’t be able to break free from my grip in an instant.

If Baek Yurin had been a body-enhanced ability holder at the level of a Seonari, it would have been understandable, but she did not possess that level of strength.

Of course, given enough time, I could easily fend off her hands, but the current situation was that my sword was right in front of me.

Even if I tried to dodge and retreat now, it would be too late.

No matter how much she was Baek Yurin, she could not avoid it.

“…… impressive!”

Baek Yurin swiftly drew the sword she had brought with her using her free left hand.

Her footwork was as fast as a flash of light.

Although she drew her sword much later than me, she was able to block my sword by crossing it in the middle.

Clang, Ahh!

My sword clashed with Baek Yurin’s sword.

Orange flames scattered in all directions.

It was a quite powerful sword energy.

It seemed like she didn’t even have the spare energy to use Sword Vitality.

It was like the collision of lightsabers.

Indeed, she lived up to her reputation.

Thanks to the use of the Baek Ara technique, her weight was leaning forward, which made her posture quite unstable, but she used the sword she drew late to block my attack effortlessly.

She’s not called a monster for no reason, Baek Yurin.

However.

“Combined!”

I waited for the moment when Baek Yurin’s sword touched mine.

I quickly activated the artifact called Tears of the Moon that had absorbed the magical power when I fought Lee Siwoon during the midterm exam.

Just like absorbing Lee Siwoon’s magical power at that time, I absorbed Baek Yurin’s sword energy to the fullest.

“…… huh?”

Due to the instant absorption of magical power, Baek Yurin’s sword energy became disarrayed.

For a brief moment, Baek Yurin became almost defenseless.

I poured out all the absorbed magical power from Baek Yurin and my own magical power and swiftly slashed her training sword in one go.

As the training sword broke into pieces, Baek Yurin had a slightly bewildered expression.

Without any hesitation, I immediately swung my sword.

My relentless attack continued without pause, and eventually, my blade was able to touch Baek Yurin’s shoulder.

Even though she was wearing protective gear, my sword effortlessly sliced through her flesh.

Shuaak!

Dark blood spattered.

Bae Yurin kicked me, biting her lower lip, and leaped backward. Oof! This, this person?

“Sigh, it’s nothing. Are you hurt?”

“……”

Bae Yurin gently checked the wound on her shoulder.

Since she twisted her body and avoided the blade, the injury wasn’t serious. Wow, she even managed to dodge this. Damn, isn’t she going too far?

“……Blood, it’s been a while.”

Bae Yurin runs her hand over her shoulder.

She stares blankly at the flowing blood and mumbles to herself.

“…Not many of my peers can make me bleed.”

Bae Yurin clenches her fist tightly.

She throws the half-broken weapon that was held in her left hand onto the ground.

“You, did you just… absorb my magic? …And what’s with that rift?”

“Sigh, huff.”

There was no energy to answer.

She had used up almost all of her magic.

“An extraordinary ability? Interesting….”

Bae Yurin’s mouth curled up slightly.

She seemed to be enjoying herself as she smiled.

That Bae Yurin.

“You have more hidden, right? Show me more…”

“Surrender.”

“Huh?”

“I surrender, I lost.”

Unless the surprise attack with the dimensional ring and tears of the moon didn’t work, there was no other way.

Bae Yurin, a genius like herself, wouldn’t fall for the same trick again.

It was only because she was in an unfamiliar situation that it worked. But now that she had been exposed, there was nothing she could do.

‘…With my current abilities, is causing a wound on her shoulder with just two relics and having more information really satisfying? Tsk. Well, fine. Maybe I should find some meaning in having inflicted a wound on the great Bae Yurin.’

Honestly, it wasn’t a completely satisfying outcome, but it would do, it would do.

“It’s just a duel anyway.

If it’s not a matter of life or death, it’s enough to have come this far.

“… Surrender? Out of nowhere?”

“Huh?”

In an instant.

“Are you kidding with me?”