The Support Ate it All -
Chapter 49: 3rd Week Duel Battles (4)
A desert bathed in hot sunlight.
The heat radiated from the sun-soaked sands to those standing upon them.
The occasional gust of wind which was as rare as a raindrop in a drought brought no relief and only added to the sweltering heat.
[Kim Ho 100%, Go Hyeon-woo 100%]
vs.
[Ilgong 100%, Seo Ye-in 100%]
“……”
Seo Ye-in waved her hand gently from the opposite side, acknowledging us with a familiar gesture.
Go Hyeon-woo and I awkwardly waved back in response.
“Going for the win?”
“Of course.”
Losing here wasn’t just about failing the quest; it would also mean kissing any chance of Seo Ye-in doing mentoring goodbye.
I decided to set aside any feelings of guilt and focus on giving her a hard time.
Ilgong was a monk with closely shaved hair and he exuded a strong Buddhist aura even in his school uniform.
The fact that he only had prayer beads in his hand with nothing else meant he practiced the art of unarmed combat, making him a perfect match for Go Hyeon-woo.
“You’ll take on that monk… Ilgong. I’ll handle Seo Ye-in.”
“That sounds like a plan. Understood.”
Close combatants clashed with their own, while ranged fighters engaged from a distance. It was a straightforward strategy with nothing special about it.
From the opposing side, Ilgong seemed to issue brief commands but it was unclear if Seo Ye-in would actually follow his instructions.
[3]
[2]
[1]
[Start!]
Seo Ye-in’s twin pistols spewed blue flames, while Ilgong gathered golden energy in his hands and unleashed it repeatedly.
Tutututu!
Blam-blam-blam!
Go Hyeon-woo and I split to either side to dodge the onslaught of ranged attacks.
The spot we had just vacated was overturned and sand was sent flying everywhere.
We couldn’t just stand there and take it.
A thunderous hummingbird flew from my hand.
Tutututu!
As the hummingbird rapidly closed in, Seo Ye-in aimed her pistols at it.
The hummingbird nimbly dodged the barrage of magic bullets and drew ever closer. Sensing the danger, Ilgong also fired his energy to help Seo Ye-in.
And they managed to intercept it just before it hit her.
Not bad at all.
Intercepting a single spell with two people might not seem remarkable, but considering how few opponents had managed to do it properly before, it was commendable.
Ilgong’s energy seemed fierce enough to suggest he possessed skills in the 600-point range.
“Hmm!”
Go Hyeon-woo drew his iron sword and sent out a wave of sword energy, which Ilgong countered with his own energy.
They exchanged blows from a distance and they gradually started closing in on each other.
However, Ilgong was so focused on Go Hyeon-woo that he could no longer assist Seo Ye-in.
My second hummingbird hit its mark on Seo Ye-in.
Fzzt!
Her next move was predictable:
A smoke bomb and the invisible ghillie suit.
Pufffff!
As expected, thick smoke billowed up.
When I used [Wind Force] to clear the smoke, I noticed the sand indented in the middle where there was supposed to be nothing.
The nearby sand was blown around by the wind and Seo Ye-in’s invisible form was now faintly visible.
When I focused the wind force on that spot, Seo Ye-in tumbled sideways and rolled across the sand.
I clenched my jaw to suppress a laugh.
“Ahem…”
Clang! Clang! Crack!
Go Hyeon-woo and Ilgong were engaged in close-quarters combat.
The clash of steel against bare hands resonated with a metallic sound.
This was made possible thanks to the golden color that enveloped Ilgong’s hands.
It looked like he was blending techniques of hand and palm strikes.
Go Hyeon-woo wasn’t just swinging his iron sword; he interspersed his attacks with punches, kicks, and knee strikes.
Overall, the momentum favored Go Hyeon-woo as he pressed the advantage.
I shifted my attention back to Seo Ye-in.
A quick dusting of the sand revealed that she was still lying face down on the ground.
She was likely biding her time to target either me or Goh Hyeon-woo.
With a one-hit knockout
My only defensive trait was the S-rank [Elemental Resistance].
This could nearly nullify elemental attacks but I was still vulnerable to physical or non-elemental magical attacks.
This meant a successful snipe from Seo Ye-in could spell instant defeat for me.
And likely Go Hyeon-woo wouldn’t last much longer against her either.
Therefore, preventing her snipe was paramount.
Whoosh!
A strong gust of wind swept over the spot where Seo Ye-in was lying.
As if in response, a blue light flashed from the location where the rifle would have been located.
Bang!
The magic bullet veered off course and disappeared without a trace.
Sniping is an exceedingly delicate task.
Even a slight nudge of the gun barrel with [Wind Force] could drastically reduce accuracy, making me the perfect nemesis for Seo Ye-in at the moment.
After I stirred the wind further and made it more troublesome for her, I then shifted my focus back to Go Hyeon-woo.
Clang! Clatter! Clang!
In the battle, Go Hyeon-woo still held the high ground but the situation with the weapons was the opposite.
While Go Hyeon-woo’s iron sword developed more cracks with each moment, Ilgong’s hand grew increasingly radiant with a distinct golden color.
And eventually,
Crack.
The durability of the iron sword gave out, and it shattered.
Go Hyeon-woo leaped back and retreated with a great bound, prompting Ilgong to pursue him closely.
I had no choice but to lend a hand to give Go Hyeon-woo a moment to breathe.
Fzzzzt!
A hummingbird, sent at just the right moment, darted between Go Hyeon-woo and Ilgong.
Ilgong paused to unleash a double palm strike, but the hummingbird momentarily retreated and then zigzagged forward in a swift charge as if it was alive.
Fzzzt!
However, even though the hummingbird made contact with Ilgong, it merely sparked slightly and vanished without causing any paralysis.
There was no sign that Ilgong was affected, thanks to the faint golden energy enveloping and protecting his body.
It’s starting to be ineffective.
Just as Baek Jun-seok had immediately shaken off the paralysis from the hummingbird, now it didn’t even penetrate Ilgong’s defenses.
As opponents’ levels continue to rise, the instances where the hummingbird proves ineffective will only increase.
It’s crucial to understand that it’s not the hummingbird itself that’s ineffective,
but rather the “E-grade hummingbird”.
One of the limitations of copied skills is their inability to grow.
The E-rank hummingbird I copied from Song Cheon-hye at the time will be maintained forever.
Had I mastered the hummingbird directly, it might have reached D or C rank by now through extensive use.
It might be better to replace the E-rank hummingbird with a different skill when the opportunity arises.
Especially if Ilgong demonstrates a worthwhile skill to acquire.
Despite its limitations, the hummingbird did buy a momentary respite from Ilgong.
It provided Go Hyeon-woo with enough time to switch to a new iron sword.
Go Hyeon-woo then resumed his offensive once more.
Clang-clang!
I turned my attention back to Seo Ye-in.
I gathered all the winds I had been swirling around and concentrated them downward in a single, forceful sweep.
Thump!
The rifle spat fire again in reaction, and a magic bullet struck the ground a few steps from where I stood, kicking up sand. The aim was severely off.
I had to cover my mouth.
I couldn’t help but smirk as the corners of my mouth twitched uncontrollably.
Although I couldn’t see Seo Ye-in’s detailed movements due to the invisibility provided by her ghillie suit, the oppressive wind from above must have flattened her.
If there were a sound effect, it might have been a “squish”.
[Kim Ho 100% Go Hyeon-woo 85%]
vs.
[Ilgong 72% Seo Ye-in 96%]
Seo Ye-in’s health hadn’t dropped much because I wasn’t wielding Windforce as brutally as I did when beating up Kwak Ji-cheol.
The point of this battle was to stir up her desire for growth, so mere interference was sufficient.
Realizing that her stealth and sniping were completely blocked, Seo Ye-in deactivated her ghillie suit and switched her rifle for dual pistols.
Tututututu!
There was no way this would work against me either.
I dodged the incoming magic bullets with [Thief’s Step] and cast Hummingbird twice in succession.
Fizz, Fizz!
After pushing the stiffened Seo Ye-in slightly with Wind Force, she toppled over and rolled across the sandy ground.
“……”
Her gray eyes met mine.
I could feel her motivation swiftly diminishing from her expressionless face.
No matter what she tried it wasn’t working, so naturally, her will to fight was fading.
This side is done.
It seemed that things were wrapping up on the other end as well.
Ilgong, who had been on the defensive the whole time, seemed to have decided to make a decisive move.
As he poured out his energy towards Go Hyeon-woo, he widened the distance between them, and his momentum surged dramatically.
[Roaring Demon Buddha Shadow Vajra Qi]
[Great Hand Seal]
All the golden energy concentrated in the palm of Ilgong’s outstretched hand, which made it appear several times larger.
The gathered energy was released in an instant, creating the illusion of a giant golden Buddha extending its hand forward.
[Roaring Demon Buddha Shadow Great Vajra Hand Seal]
Kwaahhhhh!
A giant golden palm descended upon Go Hyeon-woo.
With a faint yet confident smile on his lips, Go Hyeon-woo slowly raised his iron sword above his head.
A refreshing breeze blew from somewhere, swirling around.
The area that had been scorching under the hot sun was suddenly enveloped in a cool aura.
The wind gathered around the sword blade and formed an even sharper edge.
[Clear Stream]
He swung down at the incoming golden palm.
The iron sword began to crumble from the tip and it was disintegrating…
Flash!
“……”
“……”
In the next moment, Go Hyeon-woo’s hand was empty.
Even though the iron sword had vanished completely, he momentarily appeared to grasp an invisible blade in the air.
Then, he relaxed his grip and withdrew his empty hand.
Ilgong also looked fine on the outside, so it seemed like nothing had happened between the two.
“Hmm…”
But then Ilgong staggered and he half-kneeled on one leg before straightening up again.
He seemed to struggle to maintain his stance.
Go Hyeon-woo asked,
“Do you wish to continue?”
Ilgong’s gaze lingered on Seo Ye-in, who was still rolling on the ground as if asking for her opinion, then shifted to me.
Deciding that a conclusion had been reached, he formally acknowledged us.
“I admit defeat. I have learned much from this encounter.”
“It was a good match.”
[Kim Ho, Go Hyeon-woo Win]
vs
[Ilgong Seo Ye-in Lose]
Should I settle this now?
The skill “Great Hand Seal” wasn’t particularly versatile, but since I planned to switch my current skill slot out anyway, it seemed better to borrow and use it for a while.
So I quickly copied the skill before Ilgong left.
[Activate ‘Copy-Skill’.]
[Registering target’s skill ‘Great Hand Seal (D)’ in the slot.’]
▷Copy-Skill[2/2]
1. Great Hand Seal (D)
2. Thief’s Step (B)
Meanwhile, Seo Ye-in was still sprawled out on the sandy floor.
When I approached her and looked down, she was staring back up at me while lying down, as if the arena had become her own living room.
We were in the middle of the desert yet she didn’t seem to be hot at all.
I extended my hand, and she grabbed it to pull herself up.
“…….”
Seo Ye-in looked at me with an expressionless face for a while, then suddenly turned and left the arena.
Upon reflection, it seemed she was indeed quite upset.
“It looks like Miss Seo is angry.”
“That would be the case.”
She had been tormented by [Wind Force] throughout the match, so that was for sure.
When her gradient of anger started to rise like that, it was best to give her some time alone.
Conversations could be attempted later.
“Let’s go.”
Go Hyeon-woo and I also stepped outside.
We immediately set up for the next match.
[Kim Ho: 489 points]
[Go Hyeon-woo: 717 points]
While we were waiting, I observed Go Hyeon-woo’s condition.
“You look fine. Using clear stream usually consumes a lot of internal energy.”
“Haha, I’m not the same as I used to be.”
When he had used [clear stream] in the match against Jo-byeok, he had almost depleted all his internal energy and had to spend the entire lunchtime recuperating his mana.
But now, he seemed unaffected even after using the same technique against Ilgong.
This was because the rank of his [Core] rose by two levels and his maximum internal energy increased significantly.
Go Hyeon-woo grinned.
“It’s all thanks to Kim-hyung. Without the special cultivation room, I wouldn’t have been able to overcome this barrier so quickly. How about you? Do you think your skills have lived up to your expectations?”
“Almost. Let’s watch one more match.”
Just then, the next match was set and the opponent’s information appeared on the notification screen.
[Kim Ho: 491 points, Go Hyeon-woo: 718 points]
vs
[Wang Pil: 460 points, Jang Sam: 689 points]
“…..Quite ordinary names.”
“Indeed.”
When we entered the arena through the teleportation circle, I scrutinized the two opponents we were now facing.
Their appearances were as ordinary as their names.
Wang Pil could blend seamlessly into an inn as a waiter and Jang Sam would fit perfectly as a doorman.
Their faces were the kind you’d forget within three seconds of walking past them.
I took a closer look at them, then nodded my head in approval.
“Looks like we’ve got good matchups today.”
Encountering Hong Yeon-hwa twice yesterday was neither beneficial nor fun and I felt slightly sorry about it.
But today, it seemed Go Hyeon-woo would gain valuable experience from these opponents.
Go Hyeon-woo tilted his head as if he didn’t understand my reaction.
“What’s so special about these guys?”
“Just look, both have overflowing personalities.”
“……?”
The kind of personality that comes from being excessively ordinary.
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