NOVPUBThe small enemies, sensing an unusual power, quickly stopped charging toward Maeng Hyo-don and erased their forms.
However, the two black blades, resembling wings, had already deeply embedded themselves into the enemy's ranks.
Whoosh!
The two swords, Dual Wings, drew flashes in the air.
The small enemies that had only belatedly erased their forms were instantly destroyed as soon as they came into contact with the sword strikes.
In just one swing, a third of the small enemy horde disappeared.
Amid the residual effects of the enemies’ vanishing, the swordsman turned toward Maeng Hyo-don.
It was Jo Su-hyeok.
‘Why is Jo Su-hyeok here? Does this have something to do with the vice president from earlier?’
Maeng Hyo-don’s mind was filled with both excitement and confusion.
He briefly wondered if Jo Eui-shin and Jo Su-hyeok had coordinated their movements, but quickly dismissed the thought.
‘No, there’s no way the vice president would send Jo Su-hyeok into such a dangerous place!’
If Jo Eui-shin were selecting a rescue team for such a perilous location, he would either go himself or send a trusted adult, just like when he had brought Maeng Hyo-don’s homeroom teacher, Ham Geun-hyeong, to rescue him, not a schoolmate.
“How did you get here...?”
Tak Geo-san, recognizing Jo Su-hyeok, spoke in surprise.
Tak Geo-san had been about to use Gwanglim to blast the area when he saw Jo Su-hyeok and stopped, causing his balance to falter slightly.
Before the floor master could take advantage of this opening and use a corrosion skill, Jo Su-hyeok’s assistant, Kim Cheol, intervened.
Boom!
Kim Cheol’s energy-infused shoe kicked the floor enemy, interrupting its skill.
Before the floor master could strike again, Kim Cheol backed off with Tak Geo-san.
After distancing themselves from the floor master, Kim Cheol spoke.
“Tak, long time no see.”
“Cheol! You came with Su-hyeok?”
“Yes, we’ve come to escort the young master.”
With the addition of Jo Su-hyeok and Kim Cheol, two powerful players, the enemies began to hesitate.
The enemies, who had been ready to tear Maeng Hyo-don apart, shifted their focus, keeping watch but not immediately attacking.
Tak Geo-san and Maeng Hyo-don wondered why the garden’s owner hadn’t noticed the surprise attack by Jo Su-hyeok and Kim Cheol.
Even if the owner didn’t have full knowledge of the internal situation, it would have been normal to detect the presence of these two. Yet, the enemies were not responding at all.
Although many questions remained, Maeng Hyo-don decided to ask the most pressing one.
“...How did you end up here?”
“I followed because I was concerned. I also wanted to see your teacher again,” Jo Su-hyeok casually responded, as if tagging along to a school store.
Although Jo Su-hyeok must have carefully considered his actions and made a plan, it seemed he wasn’t ready to explain it right now.
“This garden is strange. The air feels off. I think that’s why neither I nor Cheol-hyung’s entrance was properly detected.”
As Jo Su-hyeok said, Maeng Hyo-don also felt something was off.
This place was different from typical otherworlds.
There was a strange sensation, as if the energy controlling the otherworld was intermittently bubbling up.
Having never been to another garden, Maeng Hyo-don had assumed it was simply because this was a garden, but after hearing Jo Su-hyeok’s words, it seemed there was something odd about it.
“Now that you mention it, the air does feel strange... Have you ever tried to conquer a garden?”
“I haven’t conquered one. But I’ve participated in purification work for garden remnants. Back then, a Jin tribe member, who was the owner of the garden, invited me to a new garden. I observed it then.”
Jo Su-hyeok briefly summarized his past experience, but it was actually a significant event.
Last summer, Jo Su-hyeok had performed purification work along the borders of Eun-gwang District to prevent spatial distortions and the expansion of the otherworld.
During that time, Jo Su-hyeok gained the favor of a Jin tribe member, which allowed him to explore the garden.
Using his experience and sharp instincts, Jo Su-hyeok quickly came to a conclusion.
“It seems someone is forcibly moving this garden in place of the real owner. That’s probably why, despite being a high-rarity garden, it can’t unleash its full power. The enemies just now didn’t respond well to the surprise attack.”
Jo Su-hyeok had correctly identified the essence of this garden.
The owner of this garden was Unsa.
Although the garden was maintained with Unsa’s power, it was currently being manipulated by Do Cheol.
Because of this, Do Cheol could conserve a significant amount of energy, but he had limited control over the garden.
Jo Su-hyeok, without any prior knowledge, was able to deduce this fact simply by observing the flow of energy and the movements of the enemies.
Maeng Hyo-don, relying on his intuition, also felt that Jo Su-hyeok’s words were correct.
“I’ll take care of it here.”
“Su-hyeok, you brat! How old do you think I am, treating me like an old man?”
“Tak Geo-san’s Gwanglim is powerful, but it’s inefficient. There are at least two Jin tribe members here. Save your Gwanglim.”
Jo Su-hyeok persuaded Tak Geo-san, who then reluctantly agreed.
According to Jo Su-hyeok, there were at least two Jin tribe members here.
One was the garden’s owner, and the other was controlling the garden.
They might have to face both of them, so it was important to conserve energy for the upcoming battle.
But there was a concern.
“Hey, these enemies don’t respond well to physical attacks.”
Maeng Hyo-don spoke, worried about Jo Su-hyeok.
Jo Su-hyeok’s main attack method was dual swords.
Although different from Maeng Hyo-don and Tak Geo-san’s martial skills and fighting techniques, it was still a physical attack.
Considering Jo Su-hyeok’s abilities, it would be possible to fight using his swords while infusing them with energy.
‘Even though Jo Su-hyeok has a large amount of energy, it’s still going to be tough. How long will we need to fight?’
Players typically use energy to enhance their weapon-based attack skills.
However, it’s rare to infuse energy so heavily into a weapon unless it’s for special circumstances, as it severely reduces efficiency.
It would be like using an electric stun gun but generating the electricity from your body to activate the device rather than using the trigger.
“Yeah, that’s right. But these incorporeal enemies have clear weaknesses.”
Jo Su-hyeok slowly raised his dual swords.
It seemed as though Jo Su-hyeok was talking as if he could target the incorporeal enemies’ weaknesses.
Maeng Hyo-don hesitated, wondering if he should stop him, but decided to just observe.
‘The Taoist and that bodyguard aren’t stopping him. He must be serious.’
Jo Su-hyeok seemed confident that everything would be fine.
Pah!
A blinding light covered the area.
Wings sprouted from Jo Su-hyeok’s back, and light radiated from them.
For a moment, Maeng Hyo-don wondered if he had misinterpreted the light coming from the dual swords, but it was truly a wing-shaped power.
‘Wings...? It’s not a skill or item effect. It’s Gwanglim!’
As Jo Su-hyeok raised his swords in sync with the angle of his wings, the light began to flow from the dual swords.
It wasn’t just the glow of energy—light seemed to emanate from the very effects of his abilities.
“I think I’ll infuse wind properties to blow away the clouds and mist.”
As Jo Su-hyeok spoke, the power in his wings and swords transformed into wind magic.
Gentle winds began to swirl around the swords, and eventually, they turned into a violent gust.
It was an impossible ability.
Elemental abilities were rare, and those who could handle more than one element were even rarer.
Yet, Jo Su-hyeok seemed able to control any element he desired.
In front of Jo Su-hyeok’s Gwanglim, Perfect Wingbeats, nothing mattered—whatever the enemy’s weakness was, it was irrelevant.
Whoooosh!
Jo Su-hyeok shot forward with the wind.
It looked like the Perfect Wingbeats, flawless in its execution.
Maeng Hyo-don was momentarily distracted by Jo Su-hyeok and his sword turning into wind, but quickly refocused, preparing to fight alongside his friend.
Creak...
The incorporeal enemies, sensing the wind magic, tried to scatter quickly, but Maeng Hyo-don had already trapped them in his designated battleground.
Maeng Hyo-don predicted the trajectory of Jo Su-hyeok’s sword and rushed toward it.
He found an incorporeal enemy that had strayed from the range of the sword and clenched his fist.
Boom! Smash!
In a very short time, Maeng Hyo-don added energy to his punch, mercilessly striking the enemy.
Although he couldn’t destroy the enemy with his punch alone, he was able to force it into Jo Su-hyeok’s sword strike.
As Maeng Hyo-don looked back after throwing the punch, Jo Su-hyeok, having already obliterated many of the incorporeal enemies with his sword, was rushing toward him.
Jo Su-hyeok moved, confident that Maeng Hyo-don would come to his aid.
For the first time since entering this garden, Maeng Hyo-don smiled.
Whoooosh! 𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒑𝒖𝒃.𝙘𝙤𝒎
After the wind-sword swept the area, the battleground Maeng Hyo-don had designated vanished.
All the enemies he had trapped with Fighter’s Gravity had been destroyed, and Gwanglim automatically deactivated.
With so many enemies obliterated in such a short time, the floor master, who had been facing off against Tak Geo-san and Kim Cheol, froze in place.
It seemed to doubt its own senses.
“We’ll take down the floor master now. Hyo-don! Cheol-hyung!”
“Got it!”
“Understood.”
When Jo Su-hyeok called out Maeng Hyo-don and Kim Cheol’s names, he raised one of his swords to point toward the dark corner.
Though he didn’t speak in specifics, it was clear he was asking for the exit to be blocked.
Maeng Hyo-don immediately rushed toward the gap between the floor master and the exit.
‘I don’t even need to bind the floor master with Gwanglim—with this much power, Jo Su-hyeok will finish it in no time!’
Jo Su-hyeok crossed his swords and gathered his strength.
It seemed he was planning to end it in one swift strike.
The floor master tried to retreat, but its escape route was blocked, and Tak Geo-san stood in its way.
Judging it impossible to escape, the floor master prepared for a final desperate attack.
Its core began to swell with energy, ready to burst.
But Jo Su-hyeok was faster.
Boom!
Before the floor master could release its energy, the wind wings pierced its core.
A soft light emanated from the two wings lodged in the core.
The enemies that had been rampaging slowly melted into the wind and scattered.
Swoosh!
When the floor master lost its form completely, Jo Su-hyeok’s derived skill, Dual Swords Unity, activated, and the two Dual Wings returned to his hands.
The Perfect Wingbeats was released, and no wind remained in the swords.
As Jo Su-hyeok caught his breath after several seconds, the traces of the battle disappeared completely.
It was hard to believe there had been such a fierce fight moments ago.
‘Even if the matchup was favorable, this is...’
Maeng Hyo-don realized just how much Jo Su-hyeok had grown.
In terms of close-combat ability, he and Jo Su-hyeok were rivals, equally matched.
But after this fight, the difference between them was clear.
Jo Su-hyeok had grown.
Maeng Hyo-don had felt it during his fight with Jin Jeong-muk, but watching Jo Su-hyeok fight the enemies now made it feel even more apparent.
‘I was only thinking about sacrificing my left arm!’
Had that happened, Tak Geo-san would have recklessly used Gwanglim to try to save Maeng Hyo-don, making the following fight even harder.
“You... why... how...”
There were so many questions Maeng Hyo-don wanted to ask.
His emotions overwhelmed him, and he couldn’t speak.
Seeing that Maeng Hyo-don couldn’t form a proper question, Jo Su-hyeok spoke.
“If I do nothing, my friend gets hurt.”
Even without Maeng Hyo-don asking the question, Jo Su-hyeok answered it perfectly.
Jo Su-hyeok had come here for his friend, and he had grown stronger.
And Maeng Hyo-don was sure that the "friend" Jo Su-hyeok was talking about included not just himself, but Jo Eui-shin as well.
