Chapter 46 : Debt
Slap— Slap—.
A sharp sound echoed continuously in the forest.
A whip flying through the air in time with the sound.
The place where that whip was now heading was none other than Gwangcheon.
"Haa... haa..."
The woman was breathing heavily, holding the whip.
'Why isn't that brat falling?'
The woman thought with a fed-up face as she looked at Gwangcheon, who was still standing.
She couldn't even remember how many times she had already swung the whip at Gwangcheon.
Usually, if one were to be hit by the whip even once, one would immediately bow one's head... why wasn't that brat falling?
Just by looking at his torn clothes, Gwangcheon was at a level where he should have fallen several times already.
"Hehe... is this the end?"
"...!"
"You can't defeat me with just that much of a whip!"
Gwangcheon spread his arms and provoked the woman.
Tremble, tremble—
Seeing that, her two hands trembled.
The woman clenched her teeth and swung the whip at Gwangcheon once more.
Slap—
"Yes! A little harder!"
Slap—
"Good... no, is this the end? You're still a long way from making me submit with that much!"
"Ugh... just die already! You perverted baldy!"
At Gwangcheon's provocation, the woman swung the whip even harder.
An unknown sound flowed from Gwangcheon's mouth every time he was hit by the whip.
Jong Seo-eon was watching this strange sight from behind, as if he were dumbfounded, where the person swinging was having a harder time than the person being hit.
'Young Hero Gwangcheon... is he intentionally getting hit by the whip right now?'
He had been a little confused at first, but now he could be almost certain.
Because no matter how he looked at it, that expression felt more happy than painful.
Moreover, Gwangcheon was now even going to the whips that were missing and deliberately getting hit by them with his body.
"I'll take care of this place, so you stay back, Young Hero."
"B-but..."
"It's fine. I'm already trained in getting hit."
Since Gwangcheon had said so, Jong Seo-eon was watching the situation from behind for now.
As expected of the martial arts of the Shaolin Temple, the woman's whip did not seem to work on Gwangcheon at all, just as he had boasted.
'...In a different sense, it seems to be a problem that it doesn't work too well.'
Anyway, all of the woman's attacks were now focused on Gwangcheon.
Jong Seo-eon was planning to take this opportunity to secretly approach the woman and launch a surprise attack.
Swoosh—
So that the woman wouldn't notice, Jong Seo-eon slipped to the side from behind.
Jong Seo-eon, who approached the woman while stealthily killing his presence.
When the distance got close enough, he held the Beggar's Staff that he had been carrying on his back in his hand.
'...Is it okay to use the Beggar's Staff at a moment like this?'
Thinking that, Jong Seo-eon couldn't help but hesitate for a moment.
Squeeze—
No... he wouldn't be able to not use this Beggar's Staff forever.
After making up his mind, Jong Seo-eon began to move.
Phat—
Taking out the Beggar's Staff, Jong Seo-eon rushed at the woman.
But as if she had been waiting for that moment, a whip flew towards him.
Fortunately, Jong Seo-eon was able to narrowly avoid the whip by slightly lowering his head.
Thwack—!
The tree that was hit by the whip was half-dented.
Seeing that sight, Jong Seo-eon's expression couldn't help but harden.
"Where do you think you're secretly approaching like a rat!"
"...!"
"I'll take care of you first before the perverted baldy!"
The woman shouted and swung the whip at Jong Seo-eon once more.
Swish—
A whip flying at a tremendous speed.
As the target turned from Gwangcheon to him, it became not so easy for Jong Seo-eon to approach the woman anymore.
Whirl—
Just then, the woman's whip wrapped around Jong Seo-eon's Beggar's Staff.
"Hmph—"
With a strange laugh, the woman pulled the whip.
And so, the Beggar's Staff slipped out of his hand too easily.
The woman held the Beggar's Staff she had taken from Jong Seo-eon in her other hand and swung the whip again.
"...!"
The whip flew towards Jong Seo-eon's eyes.
The movement of the whip was too fast to avoid.
In the end, Jong Seo-eon protected his body with his arms and tried to take the whip with his bare body.
Slap—!
A strong sound echoed around.
But for some reason, Jong Seo-eon could not feel any pain, and when he lowered the arm that had been covering his face, he was immediately able to know the reason.
"Y-Young Hero Gwangcheon! Are you alright?"
"I can't yield this whip to anyone!"
"...Pardon?"
"Ah, no... I'll hold the whip tight, so please finish it in this gap!"
Looking closely, Gwangcheon was holding the woman's whip with his bare hands.
In other words, it meant that the woman was now in a state of being bare-handed.
Just then, the woman shouted at Gwangcheon in a nervous voice.
"L-let go of this!"
"It was fun while it lasted, but it seems it's the end now, young lady."
"What are you talking about! You perverted baldy!"
"Be careful. My comrade is going to finish it."
"...?"
At that moment, the woman belatedly realized that Jong Seo-eon's figure had disappeared from behind Gwangcheon.
But by the time she realized that, Jong Seo-eon had already approached right in front of the woman's nose.
Swoosh—
Jong Seo-eon's right hand went towards the woman's abdomen.
At the same time, a shockwave spread from there.
The woman's figure was sent flying back at a tremendous speed and finally stopped after hitting a tree.
"Keoheok—"
Leaning against the tree, the woman vomited blood.
Although she seemed to be barely maintaining her consciousness until then, in the end, the woman could not come to her senses and her body went limp on the floor.
"...Hoo."
Seeing that, Jong Seo-eon let out a sigh.
'In the end, I couldn't properly use the Beggar's Staff Style this time either.'
On the contrary, hadn't he even had his Beggar's Staff taken away by the woman?
Jong Seo-eon picked up his Beggar's Staff, which had fallen on the floor, with a dark expression.
"Oh, that was a really clean move."
"..."
"Young Hero?"
"...Ah."
At Gwangcheon's call, Jong Seo-eon was able to come to his senses.
"I'm sorry. What did you say just now?"
"It was a clean palm strike. This is the first time I've witnessed the martial arts of the Beggars' Sect, and it certainly has a strong sense of exhilaration."
"Haha... but are you alright, Young Hero Gwangcheon?"
Jong Seo-eon said and looked at Gwangcheon's body.
Gwangcheon's clothes, which were almost like rags.
Although he looked fine on the outside, since he had been hit so much by the whip like that, he usually wouldn't even be able to stand like this.
"I'm fine. Didn't I say I'm used to getting hit?"
"Ah... you did."
"It would have been better if the intensity was a little stronger... no, don't mind me."
Seeing him talk like that, it seemed he was really fine.
Just then, Jong Seo-eon belatedly remembered Namgung Il and hurriedly said to Gwangcheon.
"By the way, is the captain still fighting?"
"Uh... I guess so?"
"Let's go and join him quickly!"
It was then.
Just as the two were about to move, someone suddenly appeared in front of them.
"...?"
The person who had appeared in front of the two was Namgung Il.
Gwangcheon's ragged clothes, and the whip that had fallen on the floor, and the woman who was lying there unconscious.
Namgung Il quickly grasped the situation and said to the two, as if he were a little surprised.
"To think you two would defeat that woman before I came."
"C-captain! Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. More than that... Gwangcheon, are you alive?"
Namgung Il's gaze naturally focused on Gwangcheon first.
"I don't even feel this much!"
Gwangcheon said and began to laugh loudly.
Well... if he's laughing like that, it must mean he's really fine.
Since the situation seemed to be sorted out, Namgung Il was about to go back.
"Then, since we've gathered all the beads, let's go back to where we were..."
It was then.
At the new presence that had appeared from somewhere, Namgung Il turned his head that way.
"Huh?"
"...!"
"What, it was you?"
A man who was approaching with a strange smile towards Namgung Il.
At the sudden appearance of Ak Simin, Namgung Il's expression couldn't help but darken rapidly.
'For that brat to be here...'
He had heard that Ak Simin was a student currently enrolled in the Flying Dragon Academy.
Why would a brat like that be in a place like this?
Namgung Il immediately knew that Ak Simin was the supervisor who was supervising this exam.
"Also, there will be supervisors wandering around in that forest. So if by any chance a violent act is detected, they will be eliminated on the spot."
Cha Yul-ryeong had surely said that before the exam started.
The woman who was lying there bleeding and Gwangcheon's ragged clothes.
Since it looked like a trace of a battle to anyone, it was a situation where it would not be strange to be eliminated right away according to the rules.
"Look at this?"
"..."
"You've caused quite a spectacular incident."
"...I don't know what you're talking about."
When Namgung Il said that, Ak Simin grinned.
At the same time, his gaze turned to Namgung Il's chest.
Confirming Namgung Il's examinee number written on the nameplate, Ak Simin opened his mouth.
"Examinee number ten thousand."
"..."
"You know what happens if you get caught fighting in this exam, right?"
Hearing that tone, it seemed that Ak Simin was indeed the supervisor of this exam.
He had been trying to leave this place as soon as possible, concerned about a situation like this... his luck was too bad.
"C-captain! What do we do now?"
"Ah, Buddha! Please take care of these pitiful beings!"
From behind, Jong Seo-eon and Gwangcheon also looked quite confused.
The same went for Namgung Il.
Since it was clear that he would be eliminated if he stayed like this, Namgung Il was racking his brain as much as possible.
'...It can't be helped.'
He couldn't be eliminated here like this.
That was the conclusion Namgung Il had finally reached.
So he had to get through this situation somehow, even if it meant using force.
'If there are no witnesses, I won't be eliminated.'
In this case, he had no choice but to eliminate Ak Simin.
Of course, he wouldn't kill him.
It was enough if he just stayed unconscious in a place no one knew until the exam was over.
"...I'm going to catch that brat from now on."
"...?"
"When I give the signal, rush at him all at once."
Namgung Il whispered to the two.
Was he going to attack the supervisor now?
Although the two were so surprised for a moment that they couldn't react at all, before they could come to their senses, Namgung Il was already quietly counting the signal.
"Three, two, one...!"
"It's fine, just go."
"...?"
At the voice that suddenly came from the front, Namgung Il's movement stopped.
'...Just go?'
Ak Simin had surely said that just now.
As Namgung Il was looking at him with a puzzled expression, Ak Simin laughed as if he found it amusing.
"What, if I hadn't told you to just go, you would have hit me?"
"...Why are you just letting me go?"
Namgung Il asked honestly.
"Well, let's just say I'm a little interested in you."
"..."
"When we meet at the academy later, don't you ever forget this debt. Junior."
A very playful tone. But Namgung Il did not feel any lies in those words.
In the end, Namgung Il returned his momentum to its original state and turned back.
"...Let's go."
A moment later, the three left the spot.
Ak Simin, who was standing still and watching them.
Ak Simin's playful expression soon turned serious.
"...Be sure to pass the exam, number ten thousand."
So that he could collect the debt he had erased.
Ak Simin muttered and soon approached the fallen woman.
(End of Chapter)