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chapter-28

Breaking out of the Egg – 6

“Ha.”

Kang Shin-hyuk’s opponent was Yuta Mitsui, a Japanese international student and a freshman in the Magic Department. Yuta laughed at Shin-hyuk, who charged at him as soon as the game started.

‘I was nervous because he is the best in Shinyoung with his skill, but there’s nothing to see here.’

The British woman that fought in the semi-finals lost rather quickly, and he didn’t think this would be any different. With his normal eyesight, he wouldn’t be able to follow the movements of Shin-hyuk at all, but he was currently using an artifact that increased his vision and reaction speed. Right now, it was as if Shin-hyuk was running slowly, and was easy for Yuta to hit with his magic. Even though he was running at his best, he was caught in those eyes reinforced by artifacts.

‘Not that I was expecting much from the knights.’ Yuta laughed and lifted his staff; it was an artifact that increased his casting speed and guided his magic projectiles. With that staff and his characteristics that allowed him to use high-speed chanting and multiply, there was no-one among Shinyoung’s freshmen that could surpass him.

“Now!” Colorful petals bloomed from the end of the staff as nearly twenty fire arrows immediately formed to seek out Kang Shin-hyuk.

“Hm?” Surprisingly, Shin-hyuk didn’t make any attempt to avoid it. He whisked his sword around as he lifted it. The weak wind propelled by the blade was enough to redirect some of the flame arrows’ trajectories slightly. Shin-hyuk continued to run along the path he created, right across the small arena. Fighting against a wizard was a game of taking advantage of the gaps in each other’s defenses. In avoiding this preemptive attack, the edge was definitely on Kang Shin-Hyuk’s side.

‘He turned the arrows’ direction with the wind from his sword? That’s no martial art! But it doesn’t matter!’ A small smile crossed Yuta’s lips as the flame arrows that missed Shin-hyuk turned in the air began to pursue him. But he had already narrowed the distance between himself and his opponent, and it didn’t matter if an arrow hit him if he could defeat Yuta right away.

“It’s over!” Yuta exclaimed, dozens of flame arrows blooming once again from the staff right in front of Shin-hyuk. A wave of magic approached him from both sides; it was clear to see why Yuta was already the strongest in the magic department. Anyone would be hard-pressed to find someone who could match his firepower at his age, even when you considered the support he had from his artifacts.

“Hm…” In this situation where the game seemed to be over already, Kang Shin-hyuk still drew his sword forward. At that moment, everyone watching immediately recognized it as a skill. All of the flame arrows in the way the sword cut through were extinguished.

-Oh my! Those arrows contain quite the punch, but they were cut off in an instant by Kang Shin-hyuk’s sword! A skill that destroys magic is the most desired one for close combat, but who knew Kang Shin-hyuk had it!

“He didn’t divide them; he destroyed them. It was possible because it was low-leveled magic. If he can grow that skill, it would be worth having.”

“I thought I could use that card too, but it wasn’t worth using in the quarterfinals!”

The auditorium was heating up due to the words of the moderator. Kang Shin-hyuk, however, had no real idea of what he had just done. He swung the sword because his intuition had told him it would be best to cleave through the arrows with his sword.

‘Well, I suppose it’s a skill incorporated into my sword dance now.’ Perhaps it was due to the spiritual force that moved according to the sword’s trajectory, but he knew now wasn’t the time to consider the reasons. Now was the best chance to push his attack. He thrust his sword forward, aiming at his opponent’s head, but something blocked him.

“Hot!” Yuta had done everything he could to block the sword, sending flame arrows from all directions at him immediately after. Even with that, though, he would probably get hit before they landed.

“Khhh…!”

“Shield!” Kang Shin-hyuk swung his sword again and rolled back to create some space. Instead of chasing after him, the fire arrows stopped in place as Yuta began to chant defensive magic once more.

-The tides have turned again! There were some sharp movements from Kang Shin-hyuk, but Yuta Mitsu has created an enormous number of magic arrows! It’s incredible how quickly he can chant his defensive magic while managing all of them!

Yes, that was the problem Kang Shin-hyuk faced. He breathed in deep, gripping his sword tightly. A wizard that could control dozens of magic arrows, and even summon a shield to protect them. They were a frustrating foe to fight; even a master swordsman would have been easier. It was an uphill battle for a martial artist like Shin-hyuk, but he knew it was pointless to bemoan that fact.

‘If I were a little stronger, I would’ve finished it already. Still, it’s not over yet. Let’s try again.’ If he gave him any more time, he would use that to summon more magic arrows or hinder him with secondary magic. He hit the floor and rushed back towards his opponent, done with thinking. His spiritual power swirled around his body, and through his sword, a figure of a dragon clearly formed on it for anyone to confirm.

-Just like the previous matches, a dragon has appeared on Kang Shin-hyuk’s sword! Is that an ability of the artifact, or his skill?!

A magic arrow rushed to meet Kang Shin-hyuk as he fiercely charged. He didn’t avoid it, cutting the magic at once. He had concluded that the amount of spiritual power he consumed doing so was manageable.

“Huh.”

He kept sprinting forward, his sword cutting down the magic arrows flying at him. At least one vanished each time his sword flashed out in his beautiful dance. The sword flew through the air like a swallow, much faster and lighter than before.

-Wham! Bang! Kablam! Bam!

Kang Shin-hyuk, who was pushing himself to the max, had no blind spots at that moment. The magic arrows gave off too much energy to be able to sneak around him. The belt around his waist shone brilliantly, enhancing his abilities. The sight of him running around and cutting through the magic arrows as they closed in on him from every side was dazzling. However, as he cut through about half of the arrows, and his feet hit the floor…

-Kablaaaaam!

“Kh…!”

The remaining magic arrows exploded all at once.

-Kang Shin-hyuk was caught off guard! He didn’t know that the magic arrows could remotely detonate!

Kang Shin-hyuk broke through the explosion, his body gliding briefly through the air as he rushed at Yuta. His clothes were slightly singed, but the sensor hadn’t gone off; it wasn’t a clean hit. The answer to how he avoided it was in his sword, the engraving of a dragon wrapped around it. It had grown only larger.

“Hold!” Yuta had already prepared himself for that not being the finishing blow, activating his restraint magic that he had been preparing to tie Shin-hyuk in place. But that was what Shin-hyuk had been waiting for.

“Kh…!” The moment his feet stopped, Kang Shin-hyuk stood firm, twisting his waist to put all of his strength into his upper body. He threw his sword forward, letting it sail toward Yuta.

-There it is! The throwing technique that finished off his opponent in the quarterfinals! But Mitsui Yuta was already prepared for it with a stone wall!

With a terrible crashing noise, the stone wall Yuta summoned collapsed to the ground; Yuta himself was unharmed. Kang Shin-hyuk ground his teeth but could tell the power of the magic shackles was loosening. Yuta couldn’t maintain concentration on that many defensive spells. Shin-hyuk didn’t miss the opportunity, rolling his feet forward violently to break through the shackles. He attempted to summon his sword to hand as he charged once more, but it did not return to him.

“Urgh?!”

“Artifacts with a retrieval function aren’t common, but I expected as much. “Shin-hyuk’s sword was entangled at the base of the ring, bound by Yuta’s magic. At the same time he had been defending, he had chanted a spell to neutralize the sword as well.

“You wouldn’t throw it if you didn’t have a way to get it back, after all. But if I do this, you can’t get it back.”

“…” Amid the battle, such a thought had occurred to him, and he had sealed the sword with his magic, proving that it wasn’t just his artifacts that made him such a dangerous foe. Shin-hyuk couldn’t call back his sword without tearing up the entire floor.

“I was worried about your ability to cut through my magic, but if I just nullify your artifact, then it doesn’t matter.” He was trying to talk calmly, but it was easy to see Yuta was anxious. The sword that was stuck to the floor was still trying to break free from its restraint. He knew he couldn’t afford to wait any longer, chanting attack magic to finish the fight.

“Go!”

At that moment, Kang Shin-hyuk instinctively stretched his arm forward, thinking he had to stop the attack. But that didn’t mean he was able to snatch away his opponent’s staff or block the magic attack.

-Woowooong.

The belt about his waist began to vibrate. While the simple explanation was that the belt’s power assisted in activating a trait, it would be more accurate to say; it stimulated the very core of a capable user. And so, it was perhaps thanks to that…

“Ah…!”

Deep inside of him, a dragon was sleeping in the depths of Kang Shin-hyuk’s consciousness. One he had yet to reach. But just a little… a little bit… it began to open its eyes.

-Know yourself.

Golden eyes flashed awake, a weak part of a much greater power flowing out.

“What…what is this?” Yuta, who had been trying to fire his magic, began to tremble as if he was shocked. His mana wasn’t cooperating with him at all. A terrifying presence wrapped around his staff, forcibly breaking his synchronization with the artifact.

“I broke his connection with the artifact…that’ll be a useful skill.” Kang Shin-hyuk muttered to himself. He was beginning to realize that the power of his trait, which he had been applying only to himself and his own weapon, could affect the weapons of others.

‘The moment I listened to Yuta, I thought I could do it. I tried it on a whim, but…it actually worked. I didn’t think I could seal the artifact away, but thanks to this belt…’

“Now, this seems fair.”

“You…!” Yuta cleared his confusion and began to chant again, forming a new attack.

-Bang!

“Wow!”

Kang Shin-hyuk hit him with a solid kick backed by all of his might, breaking straight through his defense magic.

-Kang Shin-hyuk, how did you do it?! Preventing the opponent from using their magic, and then breaking through their defenses with a kick! I heard you were good at all martial arts, but this is insane! Oh, another jab landed! A one-two punch!

The easiest way to mess with a wizard’s magic chant was to apply constant physical and mental pressure to prevent them from focusing. Kang Shin-hyuk knew this well and was putting that knowledge to good use.

“Ow! Stop, ah!”

“Let’s keep going.”

-Bang!

His right fist, containing a part of the spiritual power he had been using to amplify his sword, slammed into the enemy’s face. The shock knocked Yuta down, his sensor ringing out, announcing that the battle was finally over.

-Kang Shin-hyuk sent Mitsui Yuta flying with a right straight! The final of the Rookie’s Game has ended with a punch! The winner is Kang Shin-hyuk, the Rookie King from the Knight’s Department! That must hurt for the Magic Department!

Kang Shin-hyuk raised an arm, calling the sword back to his hand, now that it was free from its magical restraints. The hall around him immediately filled with cheers and applause.

“Wow!”

“He really did it! He broke through that magic fire and beat that wizard up with his fists!”

“Looks like we have a new magic killer. How fun.”

“Kang Shin-hyuk! Kang Shin-hyuk! Kang Shin-hyuk!”

“I bet Vanguard wants him.”

“…This is insane.”

Kang Shin-hyuk felt like the main character in some TV show. He stood there blankly, thinking that this all might be a dream when two lines of text formed in his retina.

Only

―Talent [Awakened Wyrm (A+)] has satisfied one condition for growth. As soon as the other conditions are met, the trait will grow.

―A 100HP bonus from a manager who is impressed with your proud appearance!

‘Oh, so it’s not a dream.’ Kang Shin-hyuk smiled and raised his arms even higher in victory for the growing cheers of the crowd and the countless eyes upon him. Kang Shin-hyuk looked around for Yoo Minjoon, who had already been shocked by the belt he wore.

“Yeah…!”

“Ha.” Yoo Minjoon looked as if he couldn’t believe his eyes, grinding his teeth as soon as he made eye contact with Kang Shin-hyuk. He turned away and left in a hurry, the sight of which made Shin-hyuk feel a little relieved.

‘Hopefully, Do Woojin is alright. Though, he was probably already prepared for this.’

A mixture of feelings was present in the crowd. Some were astonished and admired him; some were wary. Some were happy or surprised, and some were angry. But one thing was for sure.

Kang Shin-hyuk’s fate at Shinyoung academy had changed entirely.