Reverse Scale
Those from distinguished houses, educated from childhood under the ideology that excellent Hunters must be created, are different from the moment of their birth.
Although they did not appear in the game, the Kim triplets—who had taken the role originally meant for the Woo triplets—were no exception.
Even as people from a swordsmanship family barely maintaining its lineage, their talent and skill could not be ignored.
They surpassed the Woo triplets of the game.
There was good reason they had been chosen by Do Seungu.
‘They’re tired too. If we’re going to settle this, it has to be now.’
Nevertheless, the reason Woo Geumdong, Woo Eundong, and Woo Dongdong could fight the Kim triplets to a standstill was because their destined fate had changed.
Five years had already passed since they came under Do Gyeonu’s protection.
Those five years of being harshly drilled and worked to the bone contributed to their growth, allowing them to surpass their game counterparts.
They had at least caught up to the Kim triplets, if not equaled them.
No, now they had surpassed them.
[Triangle Lv 1]
◆ Skill Classification
―Conditional Trigger-type
◆ Detailed Effects
―Activates when there are 3 or more characters in the party who possess this skill.
―Attack Power and Defense increase by 9%.
―The base stats, HP, and MP of characters who possess this skill converge to the average.
―Mana consumption of all skills decreases by 3%.
Party Play 1, which they had ended up taking at Do Gyeonu’s recommendation.
The skill they had acquired a few days ago as the class completion rate rose led the triplets to grow even stronger.
Born at the same hour and raised together, they maximized the skill’s effect through a deep understanding and trust that let them share one another’s thoughts.
Crack! Ting! Smack!
As if the three had become one, the triplets’ breathing matched perfectly.
Their synergy flowed organically, leading them to complement and strengthen one another.
“Kuh! Kim Isik! Get over here now!”
“I’m dying over here too, so hold on a bit!”
“These guys are really persistent….”
Meanwhile, the Kim triplets’ coordination faltered over time.
The discord that began with mismatched breathing gradually made them vent their frustrations at one another.
At that point, victory and defeat were decided.
Woo Geumdong, Woo Eundong, and Woo Dongdong did not miss the opening created in that fleeting instant.
Woo Eundong quickly joined Woo Geumdong and knocked Kim Ilsik unconscious.
With the 3:3 balance collapsing, the scales tipped completely toward the Woo triplets.
And so.
“Hah, hah… They were asking for it….”
“Everyone… did great… We’re the best!”
“Geumdong hyeong, Eundong hyeo-eong… I can’t put any strength into my body….”
The Woo triplets defeated the Kim triplets and the other students they had been facing off against.
Exhausted, they sprawled on the floor and gasped for breath at the same time.
No strength remained to move.
“This won’t do….”
“We have to go save Haneul….”
“We have to let Gyeonu know too….”
Eventually, even their vision blurred.
The triplets’ eyelids trembled with frustration.
Their consciousness was fading.
“Ah….”
They mustn’t close their eyes like this.
The triplets resisted desperately.
But regardless of their will, their bodies refused to obey.
Lamenting their own powerlessness, they ultimately couldn’t hold on to consciousness.
Darkness veiled their vision.
It was precisely then that a voice rang out.
“…Geumdong! Woo Eundong! Woo Dongdong! Are you okay? Everyone, come to your senses!”
“….”
“There are many wounds, and the bleeding is severe. If you lose consciousness like this, you could die! We need to treat you quickly.”
“Ah….”
“Thank goodness… Are you coming to? Can you tell who I am?”
At the voice ringing clearly in their ears, their consciousness surfaced for a moment.
The triplets strained to lift their eyelids.
Through blurry vision, golden hair and blue eyes flickered.
They recognized Lisa calling out to them urgently, worry etched on her face.
And.
“You okay? Looks like you ended up like this taking them down; what happened?”
The triplets looked up at Gang Hanbyeol, who had entered their field of vision, and felt relief.
Receiving Lisa’s healing magic, they spoke to Gang Hanbyeol, who had detected the unusual situation and hardened his expression.
“Please… tell Gyeonu…”
“Haneul is… in danger right now…”
“The antidote… is with Do Seungu….”
Even as their consciousness grew hazy once more, as though determined to fulfill their duty somehow.
The triplets told him the full story of what was happening in the examination hall.
Gang Hanbyeol nodded after listening carefully to their disjointed words.
To ease their burden, he opened his mouth in a warm tone.
“Don’t worry. Leave the rest to me and get some rest. Lisa, sorry, but can you watch them alone if you have to?”
“…Yes. I think there was a suitable place nearby to use as a hideout, so I’ll treat the triplets there. So Hanbyeol, you….”
“I know. Everything will be fine.”
Even though it was different from the game’s flow.
Gang Hanbyeol recognized the boss of the first-year first-semester midterm exam, Do Seungu, as an enemy.
* * *
A sword invariably reveals emotion.
Facing an opponent’s sword is no different from facing their emotions.
Through crossing blades, one can glimpse the opponent’s true feelings.
‘Deep. And rough.’
The act of swinging is an outburst of emotion; the act of clashing is a collision of emotions.
Recalling the adage that Do Yeik, head of the Divine Sword Do family, had once lectured to his grandchildren, Do Seungu stifled a groan and dealt with the penetrating attacks.
In Do Gyeonu’s sword, there was not the slightest hesitation, as though he truly intended to kill him.
‘So this is your true intention.’
Fast, fierce, and sharp.
Do Seungu laughed hollowly after batting away Do Gyeonu’s sword and widening the distance.
The emotions tugging at the corners of his lips were complex.
The sense of inferiority and hatred toward Do Gyeonu that had built up since childhood.
The exhilaration that the one who had always looked down on him had finally revealed his true feelings.
At the same time, fear that he might have done something he couldn’t handle due to a reaction more excessive than expected.
Contempt for himself for being frightened by that.
Lastly, rage that a mere commoner—and not him—had been the one to make him snap.
‘Unforgivable.’
Do Seungu poured all of those emotions solely onto Do Gyeonu.
Just as there was no hesitation in Do Gyeonu’s sword, his own sword likewise did not waver.
More strength entered his hand gripping the sword than ever before.
The blade reflected a threateningly blue light.
He swung with emotion, clashed with emotion.
‘The next move to unfold here is… Attack Form No. 3, Lion Iron Fragment.’
They had been rivals since childhood, too young to even remember, competing to meet the family’s expectations.
It was incomparably longer than the time spent with some lowly, base commoner.
Thus, they were well aware of each other’s achievements and tactics.
The two read each other’s next moves as they crossed swords.
Crackle! Boom!
In the forest where night had settled, blue light flared savagely.
Repelling all surrounding presences as if rejecting them, jagged, unevenly surging stems of azure lightning tangled and intertwined.
The azure lightning knew no end, and at times swelled in mass to become lions.
Lions illuminating the night bared their fangs and extended their claws as though trying to tear each other apart.
A roar like thunder shook the atmosphere pervading the area.
‘…His hand position changed. Is he trying to deploy a defensive form this time?’
Speed against speed, change against change, illusion against illusion.
Without rest, swords came and went, blades grazing skin by a hair’s breadth.
The situation, initially impossible to tell which side held the advantage, gradually tilted to one side.
“Kuh!”
No matter how desperately Do Seungu struggled, he could not overcome the difference in skill.
He could not keep up with Do Gyeonu’s skill.
Merely chasing his sword with his eyes was exhausting; he was hard-pressed just to block.
Meanwhile, Do Gyeonu nimbly evaded his blade.
Had he broken through some wall?
He had grown stronger than before.
‘Do Gyeonu….’
Do Seungu gritted his teeth.
Time takes no one’s side.
Surely, the time they had spent was the same.
Yet while he himself had been practically treading water, Do Gyeonu had moved further ahead.
Was it because he lacked effort?
No, he had never once neglected his training.
If anything, he worked harder than Do Gyeonu, never taking it lightly.
‘Why am I…’
unable to catch up to you?
It was vexing.
He was forced to acknowledge the skill gap between himself and Do Gyeonu.
The fact that he might never surpass him in his lifetime was mortifying and despair-inducing.
Chewing on his resentment, Do Seungu tried to step toward him.
‘Damn it, my mana…’
But the gap only widened as time passed.
Breaking through the surging azure lightning and onrushing blade to counterattack was no easy feat.
Even the Tempest Brooch, which had helped prolong a battle that might have ended long ago, had reached a point where it could no longer be used.
The mana required to activate the embedded magic was nearly depleted.
The armor of wind enveloping Do Seungu was losing its form.
Do Gyeonu did not miss that moment.
Lion Charge
The moment opportunity arose, immediately.
Taking a stance, Do Gyeonu thrust his sword into the opening.
A sword scattering dark-blue light depending on the viewing angle wedged between the gusts, giving rise to azure lightning.
Scattering azure lightning threaded through the gaps, tearing the wind apart.
A total of twelve thrusts ultimately shattered the sturdy armor.
And it did not end there.
“I told you I’d kill you.”
“…!”
Swordsmanship combining speed and illusion advanced to the next stage.
The azure lightning created by twelve trajectories gathered into the shape of a lion.
A lion clad in blue lightning lunged at Do Seungu and bit off his left arm.
The arm torn off from the elbow went flying.
* * *
It is my fault.
I knew Do Seungu was up to something, but I never thought he would go this far.
He laid a hand on Yeon Haneul.
She is dying from poison right now.
The moment I heard the story, my mind went blank.
Like something inside me had snapped.
‘Has this bastard really gone crazy wanting to die?’
Do Seungu—no, my cousin—no, that son of a bitch touched someone he should never have touched.
He crossed the line, and how.
And he looked down on her.
‘What did he say to Haneul? That she’s a mere commoner? That she’s lowly? That she has no roots?’
All slander and insult toward Yeon Haneul felt as if directed at me.
I couldn’t just endure it foolishly when my precious childhood friend was being scorned.
I’d be an idiot to hold back.
I couldn’t leave him be.
Whether it was the teachings of the family, a shred of sentiment as relatives, the principles of a Hunter, or respect for life—I decided not to care.
Since he struck first anyway, justification was on my side.
So I fought with the intent to kill.
Naturally, my sword could not help but contain killing intent.
“Just who are you to judge Haneul however you want. If you’re so great—”
“We’re the Divine Sw— hurk…!”
“Shut up.”
The gap between him and me was clear.
Even if he received buffs from other students, he couldn’t close it.
What had made the fight evenly matched was the Tempest Brooch he carried.
By consuming mana to wrap wind around his body, he avoided fatal blows every time.
But the end always comes.
When no mana remained to expend, he could not maintain the wind.
‘Now!’
Having waited for that moment, I thrust my dark-blue sword the instant the path opened.
I tore through the wind, wedging my way in.
Opening the gap, I poured out a combination attack.
Do Seungu couldn’t keep up with my speed, which had entered the 70s in Agility.
And so….
“I told you I’d kill you.”
“…!”
I took down Do Seungu.
His eyes went wide as his left arm flew off from the final attack.
Blood gushed from the severed stump, and the retreating bastard lost his balance, falling hard on his rear.
“I’ll kill you, you bastard.”
“K-kuh!”
Veins bulged in his eyes, and an uncontrolled shriek burst from his mouth.
Dark-red blood gushed without stopping from where his left arm had been cut off.
I kicked away his hand trying to stop the bleeding and stomped on the wound.
I pressed with my toes, grinding to intensify the pain.
Whether the bastard screamed in agony or not, I didn’t care.
If I had my way, I would have done far worse without hesitation.
But even while my emotions ruled my body, the consciousness I had not let go of held me back.
Damn it all, he still could not die.
‘I can’t kill him rashly without even checking Haneul’s condition.’
You never knew.
He might have some other scheme in place.
As long as I could not rule out that possibility, he had to stay alive.
It made me want to curse, but there was no helping it.
Time was short.
Finding the antidote that could treat Yeon Haneul’s condition came first.
I searched his pocket.
“…Is this it?”
Since he had taken it out and shown it to me himself just a moment ago, it was not hard to find.
There was even a label attached to the bottle.
I put the test-tube-like bottle into my pocket so it would not break, then hurriedly tried to leave.
However, Do Seung-u was not the only enemy.
“…”
Do Seung-u’s gang, who had been watching the duel from around us, slowly moved and surrounded me.
They had their weapons aimed at me.
Their stance made it clear they had no intention of letting me go.
“Move. Now.”
“…”
I threatened them, unleashing the momentum I still had not reined in.
At that, a few flinched and stepped back, but the majority, though they hunched their shoulders, still did not lower their weapons.
I could guess why they were so desperate.
‘They have no way out.’
If Do Seung-u’s rebellion ended in failure, all that awaited those who had joined him was ruin.
Having made an enemy of me, it would be better for them to give up any thought of living comfortably at the academy.
That was why they could not let me go like this.
Moreover.
‘…Monsters are starting to appear too.’
Monsters drawn by the mana Do Seung-u and I had emitted were gathering as well.
Now that night had fallen and their savagery was amplified, they were surely starved by instinct.
In short, to go meet Yeon Haneul, I had no choice but to break through the encirclement of students and monsters.
It was nothing if not troublesome.
Just then, a voice came from behind me.
“Don’t… let him go.”
“Looks like you’ve got the strength to stand.”
“Do Gyeonu, let’s go again…”
Do Seung-u was standing while receiving treatment from a student who seemed to be a supporter.
As he tried to reattach his arm with healing magic, he seemed intent on continuing the duel.
‘What a nuisance.’
Even at this moment, I had no idea what might be happening to Yeon Haneul.
As far as I knew, the venom of the Darknight Hornet was more effective the greater the amount of mana within the victim’s body.
For her, it was lethal.
On top of that, mana released outside the body after being poisoned and losing control would end up drawing monsters.
With the night deepening—the time when monsters would begin to run wild—it was impossible not to worry.
‘I’ll have no choice but to cut them all down and pass through.’
Surely Yeon Haneul was suffering alone while poisoned.
Imagining the pain she must be enduring, I steeled my heart.
If they were going to block my path, then I would hesitate no longer.
It was then that a new presence suddenly appeared and landed before me.
“Good, looks like I’m not too late. What you’ve got in your hand is the antidote, right?”
“Hanbyeol, how did you…”
“I’ll handle this place. So you go find Haneul.”
“…”
It was an appearance at exactly the right time.
Kang Hanbyeol, who seemed to have already grasped the situation, spoke to me without delay.
Stepping forward as if to protect me, he gave me a quick glance.
It was a signal to go.
“Can you fight on your own?”
“Of course. Just trust me. You don’t need to worry about me.”
“…Thanks. I’m counting on you.”
“Just save Haneul.”
Kang Hanbyeol chuckled with his back turned to me.
Though the process had differed, the flow had, before I knew it, connected to the game’s progression.
This was the boss fight of the first-year first-semester midterm exam.
Deciding to entrust this place to him, I immediately turned away.
“Stop Do Gyeonu from leaving!”
“You’re in the way, so get lost.”
“…!”
It was useless even if Do Seung-u tried to stop me.
Kang Hanbyeol was drawing aggro for me, and once I made up my mind, there was no one here who could keep up with my speed.
Crackle!
My Evasion Instinct activated as well.
Entrusting my body to the plea of my Gift, I slipped through the encirclement without a single wound.
Kang Hanbyeol had not been able to block everything completely, but it was more than manageable.
Shaking off their pursuit, I cut across the forest as night gradually swallowed it.
‘I need to know where Haneul is.’
I created a sphere of light with Light, illuminating the darkness that had begun to obscure my vision.
My destination was set.
The nearest temporary shop nearby.
‘There it is. I see it.’
After racing through the forest without rest, I finally reached the temporary shop.
At the stall sat So Gukjin, the instructor for the Dice Game.
With an unshaven, scruffy face steeped in fatigue, he acknowledged me.
“You’re Do Gyeonu. You seem to have run here in a hurry. What do you need?”
“Please tell me Haneul’s real-time location.”
“…”
Catching my breath as I panted, I placed my hand on the stall.
Speaking from a position where I looked down at So Gukjin, I put strength into my eyes.
He stared up at me for a moment before opening his mouth.
“To purchase another person’s real-time location, fifty percent of your current points will be deducted. Are you truly fine with that? You should think it over again. Is this information valuable enough for you to pay half of everything you have?”
At his admonishing tone, I answered immediately.
“I’m fine with it, so please tell me. To me, it’s worth giving up everything.”
What did a few points matter?
Whether it was half or anything else, I could give it up.
What mattered to me was something else.
As long as I had Haneul, that was enough.
For her, nothing was too precious.
“…Understood. I’ll look it up right away.”
I Became the Childhood Friend of the Mid-Boss