CHAPTER 8

The cadets murmured in hushed voices.

"Don't tell me that instructor… is scared?"

"Well, of course he'd be nervous. If he loses, it's humiliating. If he wins, it's just whatever."

"Seriously, he should've just stuck to teaching spear techniques. Why'd he take on the homeroom role too…"

Just then—

"You punks! What kind of disrespectful talk is that toward an instructor?"

The cadets turned their heads.

At that moment, Deung Buhyung appeared around the corner of the building.

When Sabi Gang glanced back, Deung Buhyung grinned and spoke.

"Just came by to observe for a moment. It's Instructor Sa's first class after all, and I was worried some disrespectful kids might act out…"

"I appreciate the concern, but you can leave now."

A vein throbbed on Deung Buhyung's forehead.

'This arrogant little brat…'

But he couldn't let his inner thoughts show.

With a practiced smile, Deung Buhyung continued.

"Still, the cadet had a point, didn't he? It might seem a bit strange. After all, these students have never seen Instructor Sa's swordsmanship."

"They'll come to recognize it as I teach."

"No, no. These days, kids don't trust even what's true unless they see it for themselves. So, with that in mind…"

"...?"

"Let me help. I'll show the cadets just how incredible your swordsmanship is. You can't exactly spar with a cadet, now can you? So, I'll be your opponent."

Deung Buhyung grinned slyly.

'Heh… Let's see you get humiliated in front of the cadets. I have my Jahanak Sword, a weapon like an army of ten thousand. Though honestly, I could beat you even with a damn broomstick.'

Hearing his offer, the cadets stirred with excited anticipation.

"Wait, are Instructor Deung and Instructor Sa going to spar?"

"But Instructor Deung uses a saber, right?"

"So what? Instructor Sa can just use a sword."

Sabi Gang stared at Deung Buhyung and asked calmly,

"You sure about this?"

"Hmm? Hahaha! Are you worried about me right now? Hahaha! That's funny! I'm more than fine!"

"Heh. Good. Then don't say I didn't warn you."

Deung Buhyung nodded.

'You crazy bastard… Putting on a brave face to the end. The more you do, the deeper the hole you're digging.'

He suppressed a mocking smirk and gave a ceremonial salute.

Sabi Gang also returned the salute before taking his stance.

As Deung Buhyung drew his saber and moved to ready his form, he frowned slightly.

'Hmm? Why isn't he drawing his sword? Did he freeze up?'

Deung Buhyung laughed aloud.

"Hahaha! Instructor Sa, nervous or not, you can't forget to draw your sword!"

The cadets chuckled.

But Sabi Gang merely shrugged and replied nonchalantly.

"Don't mind me. Just begin when you're ready."

"But if I attack while you're unarmed—"

"Man, you talk a lot. I said just start."

Sabi Gang muttered while gazing at the distant mountains.

But he said it loudly enough for everyone to hear, and Deung Buhyung's face flushed red with embarrassment.

"F-fine! Don't regret this!"

"Please, go ahead."

Deung Buhyung ground his teeth inwardly.

He had planned to go easy.

But now? After that arrogance? All mercy evaporated.

'Fine, I'll send you straight to the infirmary today.'

The Jahanak Sword glowed red in the light.

He was ready to strike at any moment.

And yet, Sabi Gang didn't move a muscle.

'Heh heh… He's completely frozen. He can't even twitch a finger.'

Even the sword in Sabi Gang's hand looked bizarre—like it was imported from the West. Probably just some flashy junk picked up from the marketplace.

Deung Buhyung curled his lip.

In a flash—

"Here I come!"

One last courtesy.

If he attacked without warning, people might say it was a sneak attack.

But then—

Shiiiing! Chakaang!

A flash of light exploded.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion.

Sabi Gang had already drawn his sword and raised it—and Deung Buhyung's Jahanak Sword struck it… and shattered into pieces.

'It broke…?'

The Jahanak Sword scattered like red flower petals in the wind.

In the span of a single second.

'W-what is this…!'

Time felt frozen as the fragments of the Jahanak Sword clattered to the floor.

The cadets were speechless, mouths agape.

Thud!

Deung Buhyung fell to his knees without realizing it.

His eyes lost all focus, drifting into the void.

He stared at the red fragments of his shattered sword, and tears welled in his eyes.

"M-my… my Jahanak Sword…"

He had cherished it for over a year.

Hadn't he sharpened it every morning without fail?

"U-um… Instructor?"

A cadet nearby hesitantly called to him.

Only then did Deung Buhyung snap out of it, blinking at the current situation.

'What… what kind of pathetic sight is this? I'm on my knees!?'

He jumped to his feet and forced a loud laugh.

"Ha! Hahaha! HAHAHAHA!"

The cadets stared at him, confused by the manic laughter.

After a while, still laughing with tears in his eyes, Deung Buhyung addressed the cadets.

"Did you see that?! Instructor Sa's skill is more than enough to teach you! Even if I was going easy, to display such mastery in just a second is no small feat. You'd do well to follow him closely from now on!"

The cadets still looked stunned, unable to respond.

Deung Buhyung glanced once more at the shattered pieces of his sword before turning away, pretending not to care.

But inwardly, grief for his sword was crushing him.

Someone seemed to say something to him, but he didn't even hear it.

All he wanted was to get away from this place.

Just then, someone grabbed his arm.

"Who the hell—!"

He snapped irritably, only to see Sabi Gang looking at him with a puzzled expression.

"You didn't respond when I called, so I grabbed you. My apologies if I overstepped."

Only then did Deung Buhyung notice the cadets still watching him.

He cleared his throat.

"No worries. I was just… thinking."

"You seemed fond of that saber. I'm sorry."

"Hahaha! Not at all. That thing? Just a piece of junk I picked up off the street. Don't worry about it."

"Ah, so I was right. I thought it seemed strange. Heh."

"Well then, I'll be going—"

"Ah, wait."

Sabi Gang called out to him again.

When Deung Buhyung turned back, suppressing the irritation rising within him, Sabi Gang approached and whispered into his ear.

"I received the gift you sent. Heh heh."

"Gift?"

Deung Buhyung frowned in confusion, but Sabi Gang's face suddenly twisted into something sinister.

"Why pretend you don't know? Heh. Though I wonder… if you'll be okay."

"What are you talking about? I've never sent you a—"

"If word gets out that an instructor from Yongcheon Pavilion is colluding with a demonic sect… that would be a bit troublesome, wouldn't it? Gifts are fine and all, but you might want to be more careful from now on."

Deung Buhyung's face went pale in an instant.

'H-how does he know about that…?!'

He looked stricken, about to speak when—

"Hahaha! Anyway, thank you for your help today!"

Sabi Gang suddenly raised his voice and shook Deung Buhyung's hand.

Noticing the attention from the surroundings, Deung Buhyung forced an awkward smile.

"Don't mention it. Well then, I'll take my leave."

He turned stiffly and walked away with large strides.

His beloved Jahanak Sword—destroyed like it was nothing but glass.

And now, his connection to the Guiyeong Division was exposed.

Not only had he been humiliated in front of the cadets, but now he was even being blackmailed.

'I'll kill him… I'll fucking kill that bastard! I swear, Sabi Gang! I'll kill you with my own hands!'

His face twisted like a demon's mask.

Meanwhile, Sabi Gang stood still, watching his retreating figure with a cold, sneering smile.

***

"Did that weakling really beat Instructor Deung?"

"I still can't believe it—even though I saw it with my own eyes. It ended in one second."

"So… our homeroom instructor is stronger than Instructor Deung?"

The cadets tending the weeds in the yard gossiped amongst themselves.

Yeon Woo-gyeong and Gok Bo-ok's group watched them with serious expressions from beside a large rock.

"Looks like Instructor Sa really is going to be our homeroom instructor. But there's no way he actually beat Instructor Deung, right?"

"Of course not. Instructor Deung said he was holding back."

Another cadet interjected.

Gok Bo-ok nodded.

"Right. We all saw the two of them whispering at the end."

"Yeah. He was probably thanking him for going easy on him. That has to be it."

"Anyway, you really can't trust instructors."

At Gok Bo-ok's comment, Yeon Woo-gyeong chuckled faintly.

Since it was the Academy's decision, it wouldn't be easy to overturn it overnight.

But—

"It's fine. Taking our time to make his life miserable can be fun too."

"Hehehe. True. And it's not just us—other cadets don't seem happy either."

Gok Bo-ok's eyes scanned the other cadets.

Some were doing as Sabi Gang instructed—pulling weeds and stones, straightening the crooked name plaque.

But most were gathered in small cliques, chatting and snickering among themselves.

None of them acknowledged Sabi Gang as their true instructor.

The reason was simple.

Instructor Taming.

Though Yongcheon Pavilion once basked in glory, it was now little more than a stepping stone for the post-core students' careers.

Still, there were a few reasons why so many students flocked to Yongcheon Pavilion.

First, there was Seungryonggak, a library that held countless martial manuals.

These were secret tomes collected by the Justice Alliance during the Great War against the Demonic Cult. The sects had agreed to store them at Yongcheon Pavilion, and that policy still held.

Seungryonggak was accessible only to cadets and strictly forbidden to be loaned out.

Furthermore, outstanding cadets were provided with various elixirs and even recommended directly to core positions in the Justice Alliance.

In fact, the Alliance was typically composed of Yongcheon Pavilion graduates.

While not an absolute rule, it was an entrenched tradition.

On top of that, students from prestigious sects and noble families were able to build long-term relationships here, a rare and valuable opportunity.

Given all this, it was no surprise that influential factions tried to plant their successors here—and tried to bribe or manipulate the instructors to suit their interests.

As a result, many cadets viewed the instructors merely as pawns in the game of status and opportunity.

In such a situation, someone like Sabi Gang, who refused to play along, was a thorn in their side.

Yeon Woo-gyeong narrowed his eyes and murmured to himself.

"He'll either fall in line or quit on his own soon enough."

"Hehehe. Academy life is going to be interesting."

Gok Bo-ok grinned slyly.

But from a distance, someone else was watching them intently—

"Hoo… To end Deung Buhyung's first move in just a single stroke…"

A white-bearded old man standing upright atop a cliff smiled gently as he stroked his beard.

Though short and lined with the wrinkles of age, his bearing carried the air of an immortal sage.

Beside him stood a warrior in sleek black light armor and a bamboo hat. Despite the armor, her curvaceous figure was hard to conceal.

She spoke in a voice like jade beads rolling across a tray—clear and elegant.

"It seems Sabi Gang truly was the one who took down the Guiyache Assailant."

"I see. So he's the one who's been causing such a stir in the academy lately."

"Just days ago, he was the assistant spear instructor who came back injured from a fight with some nobody."

"They say Bushingak Master was the one who recommended him, yes?"

"Yes, Pavilion Master."

Pavilion Master.

The woman in black had just called the old man Gwanju—the Pavilion Master.

Indeed.

The dignified, sage-like elder was none other than Eun Gilung, the master of Yongcheon Pavilion.

Eun Gilung slowly nodded.

"If the recommendation came from Bushingak Master, then even if his martial skills were lacking, he must be upright in character. But if he also possesses martial strength… well, we should welcome that even more."

"There seems to be considerable discontent among the instructors."

"He'll have to endure that much. If he truly is the spark that will ignite change in our pavilion, he must."

"Do you believe he could be?"

"We'll see. But I'd like to see him make a bold move—shake things up."

Eun Gilung let out a hearty laugh as he turned away.