Appearance of the Heavenly Demon - Chapter 76

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 76
As Yeon-woo drew near the Spear Training Ground, the sharp crack of strikes echoed through the air.
The spear was a weapon favored by more trainees than the bow.
A dozen or so students seemed to be drilling there.
Gu-yeong, who had been observing their forms, sensed the approaching presence and turned.
Recognizing that it was Yeon-woo, a thin smile played across his lips.
Gu-yeong stepped forward to meet him.
“Have you come to learn Spear Technique?”
“No.”
“Then what brings you here?”
“I want to learn how to close distance. For when I’m fighting someone using a long weapon like yours.”
Yeon-woo gestured toward the spear Gu-yeong was holding.
Gu-yeong let out a soft sound of understanding and glanced briefly at his own spear.
“I see.”
He nodded slowly.
“It makes sense—you use a hand axe, after all, which keeps you at a disadvantage in reach.”
“Right.”
Gu-yeong found himself freshly impressed.
A short weapon was crippling in combat without closing the gap.
If Yeon-woo wanted to learn proper technique with a blade, the sensible choice would be to approach the Short Blade Technique instructor.
Yet he had sought out Gu-yeong instead.
‘A sound judgment.’
To overcome an opponent’s defense, finding the weak point was faster than perfecting one’s own technique.
The trainees had only a month to prepare.
In that narrow window, Yeon-woo had chosen the fastest path to shore up his weakness.
‘Instinct, perhaps.’
Jewang-geom certainly hadn’t taught him to think like this.
Be that as it may.
“Very well. I’ll teach you. However.”
Gu-yeong walked to the weapon rack and retrieved a long staff.
He extended it toward Yeon-woo and spoke.
“For now, strike the Striking Target with this. Once I’ve finished with the other students, I’ll work with you directly.”
Yeon-woo took the staff and examined it for a moment.
“All right.”
Without protest, he took up the staff and made his way to the target.
The trainees practicing their forms watched the two figures approach with curiosity.
* * *
Thack—thack—
Yeon-woo struck the torso of the Striking Target with the spear shaft.
His mental textbook for the spear was Gu-yeong himself.
‘Swinging the shaft like this….’
Whish—thack!
….
Yeon-woo tilted his head.
“That’s not quite the feeling.”
Gu-yeong had more of a sharp whoosh and snap to his strikes.
‘And….’
He used the trembling shaft to prevent opponents from closing distance.
To the naked eye, the vibrating shaft seemed to multiply into a dozen or more versions.
What astonished him was that each one was real, not mere illusion.
‘So then….’
Whoosh—thack! Thack—whip-whip thack—!
Yeon-woo brought the shaft down against the target again and again.
He poured force into some swings, thrust with the tip in others.
If the target were himself—if it were an opponent trying to close in—he moved the shaft this way and that, never allowing any opening, when suddenly—
“Can I try to kill you?”
Yeon-woo’s motion froze solid.
He lowered the staff and turned his gaze.
Since when had it happened?
A young girl’s face had drawn so close to his that it nearly touched his own.
The problem was that Yeon-woo hadn’t sensed this child’s presence at all.
Not until the girl had drawn within arm’s reach.
Yeon-woo stared fixedly at the approaching trainee.
Hair the color of pale, dusty brown, eyes the same shade but clouded, unfocused.
A gaze that seemed to lack force, paired with a smile that bloomed softly across her entire face.
Yeon-woo tilted her head, studying the Young Girl, who bore the impression of something essential missing.
“Who are you?”
“Yu-hwa. Wi Yu-hwa. You’re Yeon-woo, right?”
“Yeah. But who do you want to kill?”
“You.”
Wi Yu-hwa’s finger jabbed sharply at Yeon-woo’s chest.
Her nails weren’t long, but the tip was sharp enough that Yeon-woo’s chest stung.
Yeon-woo’s brow furrowed slightly as she looked at Wi Yu-hwa.
Wi Yu-hwa grinned.
Her teeth, when she smiled, were perfectly aligned.
“Where did that wound come from?”
Wi Yu-hwa’s gaze shifted to the skin around Yeon-woo’s eyes.
Over the wound—one that couldn’t have healed overnight—white bandage was wrapped.
“This was yesterday….”
Wait. They’d told her not to speak of it.
Recalling the parting words of Ui-gak-ju Man-cho as she’d left the Medical Center, Yeon-woo corrected herself.
“I fell.”
“Liar. That’s a wound from Byeok Gyodu, isn’t it?”
Yeon-woo’s breath caught.
Her face went rigid with shock.
‘How did she know?!’
“That’s the face of someone thinking, ‘I never said a word about Byeok Gyodu.'”
“…!”
How did she know that, too?!
Wi Yu-hwa let out a delighted laugh at Yeon-woo’s transparent reaction.
“Byeok Gyodu disappeared, and you got hurt overnight. And you were with him yesterday. How obvious can it be?”
“Obvious?”
Was this really that simple? More importantly—
“How did you know I was with Byeok Gyodu?”
Wi Yu-hwa smiled and leaned in close, speaking rapidly.
“I was watching.”
“Watching who?”
Wi Yu-hwa’s finger jabbed at Yeon-woo again.
“You.”
“Why me?”
“Because I wanted to try killing you.”
“…?”
“Is that okay?”
Yeon-woo knocked Wi Yu-hwa’s hand away and spoke with finality.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I’m doing something important right now. Don’t get in my way.”
Then, as though the matter held no interest whatsoever, she turned her head back and focused once more on striking the Striking Target.
Wi Yu-hwa stood frozen, staring at Yeon-woo in disbelief.
Crack! Thwack!
“…Hey, didn’t you hear me?”
Crack! Crash!
Crack!
The faint smile that had lingered on Wi Yu-hwa’s face slowly faded, replaced by a chill in her eyes.
Wi Yu-hwa’s hand moved toward the hilt of the sword at her waist.
Click.
“…!”
Wi Yu-hwa’s eyes widened slightly.
Someone had pressed down on the end of the sword’s hilt, stopping her from drawing the blade.
Wi Yu-hwa turned her gaze to see who had stopped her.
Byeok Gyodu, dressed in black with a black mask concealing his eyes.
Behind the thin mask, cool eyes of dark ink gazed down at her.
In that instant, a chill ran through Wi Yu-hwa’s entire body, as though every hair stood on end.
“Be careful.”
The low, measured voice carried an unmistakable warning.
Wi Yu-hwa found herself releasing the tension in her sword hand and stepping back without thought.
Gu-yeong’s momentum dissipated just as quickly.
“If you wish to spar, request it formally. Drawing a blade against a trainee without cause is grounds for discipline.”
“…Yes.”
Wi Yu-hwa’s gaze faltered.
Her voice had grown softer, yet Gu-yeong remained a master beyond her reach.
For a mere trainee to face head-on the crushing pressure that came simply from being looked down upon was far from easy.
Turning from Wi Yu-hwa, Gu-yeong approached Yeon-woo instead.
Wi Yu-hwa, who had been watching him gently correct Yeon-woo’s grip on the spear shaft, suddenly spun around and left the training ground.
Gu-yeong’s eyes briefly followed her departing figure.
“Is this how you do it?”
Gu-yeong looked at Yeon-woo.
“Close enough. However, with a spear, the grip hand must bear more force than with a sword. A sword requires a flexible wrist, but a spear demands the opposite.”
The solid strength of the wrist supports and bears the shaft.
Using that strength, one swings the spear shaft.
Being a long and heavy weapon unlike a sword, the manner of using force was entirely different.
Crack—! Thud-thud—!
Yeon-woo struck the target again.
After observing her for a moment, Gu-yeong smiled faintly and took the spear shaft from her hands.
“You’ve grasped the fundamentals of the weapon well enough. Since you’re not here to master Spear Technique, let’s move forward.”
“Understanding the weapon?”
“Yes. To exploit your opponent’s weaknesses, it helps to know them somewhat. For instance, when wielding a spear.”
Gu-yeong swung the spear shaft with a whoosh.
He struck the target with a sharp crack and held his position.
Turning to show his back, he spoke.
“Which parts of your opponent are left unguarded.”
Then she saw his right forearm and hand.
“Which parts bear the force of the strike.”
Then he looked at Yeon-woo.
“Understanding such things makes it far easier to exploit those openings.”
“I see.”
Yeon-woo looked down at her own hands.
The sensation of having swung the spear lingered still.
‘The force used when swinging the spear.’
The legs and arms braced to maintain balance, and the waist.
Recalling each of those sensations carefully, she imagined them as an opponent.
If she were to face a spear-wielder of her own level.
Where to strike, which angle to approach from—naturally, these possibilities formed themselves in her mind.
“I think I understand.”
“That is only the beginning.”
“The beginning?”
Gu-yeong nodded lightly.
“This insight is merely theory—one that only applies when your opponent’s Martial Level is lower than or equal to your own. In true combat, you won’t always face such opponents.”
Gu-yeong walked a distance away and stood across from Yeon-woo.
Then he raised the spear shaft lightly.
“Now, come at me with that understanding you just gained.”
“How am I supposed to strike you?”
Gu-yeong tucked his left hand behind his back.
“Considering the difference in Martial Level, I won’t use my other hand.”
Yeon-woo’s brow furrowed slightly.
She knew, having just wielded the spear, that a long shaft cannot be easily swung or redirected with a single hand.
Which meant Gu-yeong was saying she wasn’t worth his full effort.
That he didn’t consider her an opponent requiring such exertion.
“…You’re not holding back.”
“No. Come at me with your full strength.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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