Witnessing the frail noble young lady, Rebi Folt, successfully execute 'Gyeong', the cadets caused an uproar.
Amazement that even without the instructor's help, she was able to display such an absurd martial art.
Admiration for the fact that a girl who had only been training for a short time had accomplished it.
The expectation that they too could do it.
They were overflowing with the desire to learn, wanting to learn Gyeong.
However.
"Ughhhh...!"
"G-Grandma...? Why are you there?"
"Get a hold of yourself, you bastards! Your grandma is hale and hearty! She'll outlive you!"
...I'm not so sure right now.
The cadets were collapsed, each clutching their stomachs.
Those who had stepped forward first at the instructor's words to let them experience Gyeong were now rolling on the dirt floor crying out in pain, and some were even in a daze as if experiencing a near-death experience.
What is this familiar sight?
Extreme situations experienced several times since coming up to Bulkan.
They only wanted to be taught, but they couldn't understand at all how it ended up like this.
"Alright, next. Come out quickly."
"……."
"Why are you standing there like that, don't you want to learn?"
"...Instructor, why are we treated like this unlike Rebi Folt?"
"Treated like what?"
"I'm asking the reason why you hit us without a word."
When he said he'd let them experience 'Gyeong', they thought it would only be to the extent of kindly placing a hand on their back like he did with Rebi Folt.
The instructor, without a word, drove a 'straight punch' right into the center of their stomachs.
After that, the cadets ended up rolling on the floor, feeling even a distant sense of terror.
'What?'
'Did we do something wrong?'
'Did he find the diary where we wrote bad things about the instructor?'
Not wanting to end up like the log split in half, they wondered if they should immediately get on their knees and apologize.
Wondering if they had somehow offended him.
Incredibly swift survival instincts.
It was the servility they had learned while rolling around in Bulkan.
"What a load of bullshit."
He snorted.
"In Rebi Folt's case, her physical endurance is significantly lower, so the instructor kindly guided her power a bit. But you are different. Your level of training is different, and your full-body motor skills have improved quite a bit in a short period. Therefore, this instructor is personally letting you experience Gyeong through an efficient method."
"D-Do we really have to be hit?"
"Because I have to pound Gyeong into your bodies. Through that, you will fully feel Gyeong and enter a so-called awakened state. Be grateful, this is a technique only I can do right now. It's a technique that requires delicate skill."
Internal Heavy Hand Technique.
Experiencing Balthar's technique was a great help.
To develop such a convenient method as well.
"W-We won't die, right?"
"Don't worry. You'll feel pain as if your insides are tearing apart, but no one dies, I guarantee it."
It was a fact confirmed by experimenting on, no, receiving help from Jake, the only friend in the knight order.
There is a side effect of experiencing the pain and ache of the 'groin' tightening and bursting for over two hours, but...
Wouldn't it be more bearable than being tortured with water all day by the spellcaster?
"...From Kunta's perspective, it seems like a very barbaric method."
A barbaric remark spat out by a race called barbarian warriors.
They also had the exact same opinion.
However, Lee Han was resolute.
"Just experience it first. This is the fastest way."
"T-This is gender discrimination!"
"No, it's fair. How can I treat beginners and experts the same? I believe in your endurance."
"...Please treat us a bit unfairly instead."
That was their sincere feeling.
However.
"Stop talking nonsense and come quickly. The sun will set."
"……."
They had no other options, though.
* * *
-Thud.
"I-I feel like I'm going to die..."
"Ughhhh!"
"……."
Some collapsed and rolled around, while others fainted.
A feeling of filling a lifetime's worth of fainting in Bulkan.
However, even while crying out in pain, they felt a burning sensation spreading from the center of their stomachs.
Rougher than the pulsation Rebi Folt felt, but it was definitely felt.
An intense energy that had been with them since birth, but they hadn't known about.
Thus, upon feeling it, they realized.
The true nature of Gyeong was none other than...
"Manipulating 'mass'... It's absurd."
The Aura technique is a method that instantly amplifies what could be called the 'vitality' or 'energy' within the body.
If mastered, depending on the practitioner's aptitude, their capabilities are augmented by about 10 to 20 times, so it goes without saying how tremendous this technique is.
...Conversely, the Gyeong they newly awakened to is a technique closer to 'enlightenment'.
Rather than amplifying physical abilities, it is a method of manipulating the 'mass' that every human possesses.
Arno admired this novel approach and nodded his head deeply.
'So that's it, that's why such an absurd martial feat was possible.'
The act of splitting the log?
It was certainly surprising just a moment ago, but approaching it theoretically, I can see it's not entirely impossible.
For example, Rebi Folt.
'If she has awakened to Gyeong now, that young lady would be able to do it too.'
Assuming that girl's weight is 39kg, it would roughly be possible.
One might ask how it's possible with such a frail body, but the core is the method of utilizing mass.
'The martial art of freely transmitting the mass of the entire body to various parts. Gyeong is such a technique.'
An object weighing 39kg is not light, but if applied to a person, it is a truly light weight.
This is because the mass of the body is not entirely concentrated in one place, and the mass that makes up a human is finely fragmented, so it inevitably feels light.
But what if all the mass spread here and there could be loaded onto a foot, a fist, or a leg?
'Being hit by a 39kg iron ball would already be no different from a lethal weapon.'
Furthermore, when the average grip strength × 39kg of mass, and even the acceleration of the fist are multiplied, what would it be if converted to force?
'A 39kg slingshot... It would have the power to pierce a castle wall.'
Even Goliath died instantly from a slingshot.
If realized, there is no technique as fearsome as this.
"Theoretically, it means even Rebi Folt could split the wood. However, such a technique will put an enormous strain on the body. Enough to self-destruct if used carelessly."
"I think I understand why the instructor acted that way. You can't even use this in the first place if your body isn't solid."
"If used wrongly, the chicks and sprouts will all pop like balloons. Kunta thinks caution is needed."
"...Still, it's efficient. If you know the trick, you can become as strong as you want. The potential for growth is also infinite."
"……."
It was a remark from Roen, who unusually joined their conversation, and it was also a valid opinion that made them click their tongues.
Yes, just as those words said, the power of 'Gyeong' would continue to rise depending on how sincerely the practitioner trains and develops their physical abilities.
As for body weight itself, if one eats well and trains well, it will naturally increase.
Besides, Gyeong doesn't just handle body weight; it even converts the beating of the heart into energy, doesn't it.
If mastered, one would be able to properly distribute all the mass that makes up the entire body.
In the end.
"In the aspect of 'utilizing' the energy possessed by the flesh, this is the same as the Aura technique. Although the process will be much rougher and require more effort. If you can reach the end of this path, you might be able to reach it."
"...Are you speaking of a superhuman?"
"You already know the answer."
"Umm!"
The opinion that both the Aura technique and Gyeong are paths for humans to become superhumans.
They couldn't bring themselves to deny it.
And if their thoughts were correct, this meant...
'Hah, are we facing the founder of a [School] right now?'
'How ironic. I didn't know there would be a real guy like this besides our old man.'
'Grand Warrior?'
Everyone had their own thoughts and couldn't hide their astonishment.
They looked at the instructor with renewed eyes.
"...You guys are having fun talking."
However, Lee Han, who had already heard their entire conversation, only shook his head and sighed.
An expression wondering when those guys would ever grow up.
Why are they overanalyzing it and making such a fuss.
"At best, it's just an inferior version of the Aura technique. It's not a technique worthy of recognition in the world."
"F-For the person himself to say that..."
"I'm evaluating what I made, so what?"
"……."
The evaluation given by the creator was strict.
"What you're talking about is just a fantasy and theory. I also train this continuously, but there's still nothing I can say for sure, so superhuman my foot! You have good imagination, why don't you write a script?"
"……."
"Because you guys are like that, the kids are already getting delusions of grandeur. If those sprouts act up and die, will you take responsibility?"
"...Umm."
Piercing criticism.
But it wasn't entirely wrong, as the problem was that there were actually quite a few who showed keen interest and sparkled their eyes while listening to their conversation.
...Though they quickly withered under Lee Han's criticism.
Like that, Lee Han sternly reprimanded those who had gotten delusions of grandeur.
"Don't seriously listen to that kind of bullshit. The realm that even a guy who was called a genius since childhood and awakened the Aura technique in a single day couldn't reach until he died of old age is 'Aura User'. If a sparrow tries to walk like a stork, its crotch will tear."
He was an unusually strict instructor who, somehow, extinguished the fire of expectations.
But why was it.
All the cadets focused on his words.
They felt a rough but unadorned truthfulness.
Because it made even a fool realize that it was a reprimand solely for their sake.
"Gyeong is a technique with more disadvantages than advantages. Why? The moment you neglect training even for a day, you weaken. Ultimately, it's a method based on physical ability, so that must be taken into account."
"Is that all? While Aura power matures to some extent even as you age and adapts to your physical abilities, this fellow called Gyeong will inevitably become a huge burden on the body once your physical prime passes. It's the fate of a technique that relies on physical ability."
"...So as you gradually use it, bones will break and muscles will tear more frequently. Therefore, you must always consider how to distribute your power. If you use it ignorantly, it's a perfect way to self-destruct."
Extremely harsh.
A succession of remarks that made their will to learn and their future anxious, completely dropping their motivation.
Nevertheless.
"-Still, if there is clearly one advantage."
The one and only advantage he spoke of was enough to offset all those disadvantages, making their eyes shine.
"Even if you lack talent, as long as you have the 'talent' called 'effort and perseverance', I guarantee that results will surely follow."
The end of a sincere and plain speech.
Sometimes, such unadorned words rather struck a chord in the heart.
Because it gave them the belief that he would at least not deceive them.
"It doesn't reduce our lifespan like the Aura techniques used by guilds or mercenaries, right? That's enough."
"We are truly grateful."
"There is a chance, that we can become stronger someday. ...Knowing just this is enough for me."
"Thank you, Instructor!"
All the cadets sincerely bent their waists and bowed their heads deeply enough to bury them in the ground.
Although the learning process was rough and painful, in the end, he gave them a chance to at least catch the tails of those far ahead.
That alone made them happy and grateful.
─Sincerely.
"These kids..."
A ticklish warmth.
He unknowingly brushed the bridge of his nose.
Did he gain sentimentality as he aged?
When the kids bow their heads in gratitude, his heart twinges.
'This is why I hate getting older.'
...Don't I get more tearful.
That was why Lee Han decided to express his emotion in his own way.
The best he could do for them was none other than.
"-Then you must get used to it now, right?"
"……?"
"From now on, for the remaining 10 days, I will do 18-to-1 sparring with you every single day. Continuously, until you get used to Gyeong!"
"……."
Clang...
There was clearly no glass nearby, yet a sound like a light bulb shattering rang in their ears.
The sound of emotion being shattered and their mental fortresses collapsing.
The eyes that were about to redden vanished as if they were never there, and their eyes died.
What?
Wasn't the atmosphere just now different?
"……."
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"...Are you asking because you don't know?"
"What?"
"...You have no empathy, do you."
"Isn't there no empathy more certain and efficient than making you stronger?"
"……."
"Alright, let's go! Before sparring, let's lightly run 100 laps!"
"......Ugh."
Creatures called instructors, or professors, were apparently creatures that didn't know human emotions.