Despite the harsh training regimen, the mornings were surprisingly free.
There's no set wake-up time before the torture known as Project Steelskin…begins at 9am.
You'd think they'd be up and about by 9 a.m., but that's not the case. After the afternoon training and meal break, everyone is exhausted and sleeps in at eight o'clock.
Naturally, there were many early risers, and Koo Dae-sung was one of them.
"Whoa… whoa…!"
Koo Dae-sung picked up his shield in the morning to train his shield technique. He was the only one who trained on his own in the morning.
"Mr. Koo, your strength is good. Why don't you take a break?"
"No."
Despite Team Leader Kim Do-han urging, Koo continued to practice his shield technique. To be precise, he practiced using a shield and a sword at the same time.
'It's heavier than I thought. And it's hard to swing the sword.'
During a drill to stop Leon's mounted charge, the trainees were allowed to counterattack, so they tried to stop him by swinging their swords.
Even though they were holding swords and shields as long as they were in formation as he tried to swing with his right hand, the man next to him would be in the way.
Inevitably, in the shield formation, he could only thrust his sword.
'I've heard that shields are essential in hand-to-hand combat… but will they work against monsters?'
The attacking stance on this side is too limited. If that's the case, he'll have to hone his stabbing skills to the extreme while holding his shield.
Koo Dae-Sung had been practicing this very thing himself.
He pushed the imaginary enemy away with his shield and stabbed with his sword. During his breaks, Koo Dae-sung would go through the shield sword manuals he found online and try different things. And there was someone watching him.
"Wrong."
"Your Majesty!"
When he saw Leon, Koo Dae-sung straightened up, assuming the posture of a soldier.
"Finish what you started. Stab the sword again."
"Yes, yes...."
Koo Dae-sung awkwardly gripped his shield and stabbed his sword. After a few stabs, he heard Leon again.
"Wrong."
Leon stepped in front of Koo Dae-Sung and grabbed his shield.
"You have a habit of lowering your shield the moment you stab. Do not lower your shield at any time even if you can't see."
"Uh, why?"
Koo Dae-sung asked for a reason for the advice that other trainees might have taken for granted. And in his experience, Leon is not the kind of teacher to let questions slide.
"When you're swinging a sword to protect just you, it's okay. But I've said it many times before. Keep your shield up to the right shoulder of your comrade next to you."
"Ah...."
"If you lower your shield, the man to your left will have an empty right shoulder, which creates a gap, and a gap breeds a crack."
Never assume you are fighting alone. Imagine fighting with your comrades. Teamwork is a basic tenet of modern ganking.
Tanks run the aggro, dealers deal the damage, and backup supports provide the ranged damage. But Leon's group looks more like a regular army than a gate raiding team.
"Your Majesty, your tactic… is for shieldmen like us to hold the enemy at bay while the knights charge in and sweep?"
"Indeed. It is the royal way."
The hammer and anvil tactic was a classic even on Earth.
"But… my opponents are monsters, and they don't seem to be the kind of beings that can be dealt with by the standard techniques."
"Are you trying to teach this king how to fight beings of a different type?"
"No, not at all!"
Knowing full well that this Lionheart King's mindset was that of a medieval classist, Koo Dae-Sung wore a cautious expression however, Leon's expression was much gentler.
"There have been many monsters in the Beast World that you have encountered at the gate."
In fact, the monsters in the gates are rather cute.
The Lionheart Kingdom has been dealing with constant foreign enemies around them, and while most of them were orcs, there were also many monsters of all sorts.
"Giants over 20 meters tall, trolls that regenerate endlessly, snakes with multiple heads, spiders carrying dozens of goblins and a giant dragon that could stamp on mountains like a handle."
All those monsters, all those things that were stronger and bigger than humans, were a challenge for the "soldiers" to deal with.
"To deal with so many monsters, you have to know a lot of hunting techniques and be able to improvise. It's a skill that only comes with practice."
Leon stared at Koo Dae-Sung. Koo Dae-Sung, the soldier.
"Do you have decades of training with the Goddess against monsters, or do you have the grace to honor any battlefield with a single sword or spear?"
Koo Dae-Sung felt his breath caught in his throat. As a high-level Hunter, you'd think they'd have a better survival rate than low-level Hunters, but that's not the case.
Anything can happen at the gate.
You'll encounter orcs, witches casting evil spells, and monsters that are too big to handle.
The Yakt Spinner at the Cheongju Gate alone was an all-around killing machine that was nothing like the monsters he saw before so high-level Hunters facing such monsters will inevitably have a high mortality rate.
Why?
Because if you don't know, you die.
The knights, Leon speaks about, are superhumans who, like the high-level hunters, hunt all manner of mutant beasts, never knowing what to expect.
"That's why we only teach one thing to our soldiers. Versatility is a virtue required of a knight. You are to hone only one skill to increase your chances of survival."
Koo Dae-sung and his shield trainees have only one task, [Block], until the knight kills the enemy.
"But...."
It's a noble task, not one to be taken lightly. Nevertheless, Koo Dae-sung wanted more.
"Do you dream of being a knight?"
"I, how can I...."
Koo Dae-sung interrupted, wondering if Leon, who considered him a commoner, would look down on him like the common fantasy nobility.
"Don't judge this king kingdom by the common sense of your world. Being a knight is not just for nobles."
"What?"
"One who willingly walks the path of hardship with a noble mission. One who protects the common people and does good deeds with courage."
Those who enforce the Ten Commandments and those who swear an oath to the Goddess and her people.
"Anyone who makes that sacred covenant is a knight. If you are courageous and worthy of that duty, you are worthy of my respect."
It felt like a hammer to the head.
All this time, the cadets had been deeply prejudiced against Leon and thought that as a king from this medieval fantasy he world would be a staunch classist and an authoritarian discriminator.
He would treat them only as soldiers and expect nothing but submission and obedience. However Leon was a knight king…and more.
'I want to be....'
I want to be a knight.
It was only because Leon told him that he could be one.
* * * *
The end of the four-week training was near.
The conclusion of the training was a crucial moment to decide on the future "supply of trainees" after a demonstration ceremony with the association president and other relevant people.
It was an important moment to prove the achievements and continue to second- and third-generation trainees. Eventually, Leon's plan was to grow the organization to the size of an army and recruit high-level knights.
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
"Welcome."
Oh Kang-hyuk, chairman of the Association, had traveled to Naju Plain on schedule for the graduation ceremony.
He's joined by a number of his staff, including Chief Kim Jin-soo, who's here because the gate assault will serve as a "grade test" for the trainees.
"Your Majesty, I've heard the plan, but are you okay with it?"
"What do you mean?"
"I've heard that the gate used for this test is a 'yellow' gate."
The average yellow gate has a difficulty level of B. It's not a difficulty level that the average D-rank trainee can tackle unless, of course, Leon takes matters into his own hands. In fact, he might be able to take down the yellow gate on his own.
But that's not how it should be evaluated. The cadets would have to prove themselves.
"There's no problem."
"Only if Your Majesty says so...."
Oh Kang-hyuk was skeptical, but he trusted the otherworldly survivor's abilities. Still, he couldn't help but worry.
Unlike Leon, who was so confident, the trainees were burdened with the responsibility of proving their skills.
There were more Association employees than expected at the Ten Thousand Gods Guild's training completion ceremony…plus members of the Ten Guilds who had heard the rumors.
"Why are there so many people here?"
Koo Dae-Sung felt overwhelmed by the crowd, and as a ten year D-rank, this kind of attention was too much for him.
People heard rumors that the Lionheart King was training the low-rank Hunters, and if he didn't show that he had grown up, he would be the target of ridicule and sneers.
"Damn… Aren't we getting screwed?"
Team leader Kim Do-han feels the same way since he never received this kind of attention before even though Hunters are the most recognized profession in Korea, but that's only for high-level hunters.
Those who simply lead mining teams and collect the byproducts of the hunters' hunts are nothing more than laborers.
"I hear the king isn't even helping this time."
"And a Yellow Gate? That's crazy. Surely it's not an orc gate like last time?"
"Unless it's a second-hand gate, we'll only know when we get inside."
As the trainees express their mixed feelings, Leon, Yappy, and the association's president, Oh Kang-hyuk, approach the podium.
Once they're all assembled, Leon begins to speak.
"The boys have proven themselves over the course of four weeks of training. Of course, there will be questions, and there will be complaints. There must have been a lot of unreasonable complaints."
Leon knows that the last four weeks of training have been the height of irrationality.
The brutal training, where they had to beat each other up and push themselves beyond the limits of their abilities and on top of that, their only meals was water mixed with salt and sugar.
"Nevertheless, the men persevered and demonstrated using their actions the virtues of patience and submission."
-Submission…huh.
-Patience…it's expendable.
When they flinched at the word, Leon was quick to catch them.
"Do not take virtue lightly. It may seem unreasonable, but these trials and tribulations thicken the group and strengthen the outer walls."
There was a pervasive sense of unreasonableness in that complaint. Speaking of the unreasonableness of what was being forced upon the soldiers, Leon says
"The suffering you are going through now, the forced loyalty, will save you. It will make you strong."
Really?
Koo was skeptical, even as he listened to Leon's words.
For four weeks, they'd been through only two drills: a grueling physical workout and a defense drill where they had to hold onto their shields and block Leon's mounted charge.
Not a single group has yet been able to stop Leon's charge. Are they really that strong?
"Do you doubt? Do you not believe in yourself? The time for proof has come."
Leon declared. His voice was crisp, clear, and had the power to lead.
This is why the trainees mindlessly obeyed this absurd medieval fantasy lion king.
"From now on, you will attack the gate!"
Gwangju City Yellow Rank Gate.
"It is there that you will realize what it is like to be a soldier of the Lionheart King, and it is there that you will encounter the Faith that you are meant to serve!"
The departure of the 49 D-rank hunters began.
* * * *
Gwangju Gate was not far from the Naju Plain.
The break started two days ago and the grace period until the dungeon break was estimated at ten days.
Even though Leon had instructed them to get a yellow gate for the graduation ceremony, it hadn't been easy to find one in time, so the Association had been forced to buy a used gate.
"But are you sure it's okay, Ha-ri?"
"Umm… I think it's fine, Chief?"
Chief Kim Jin-soo expressed his concern to Ha-ri, who hadn't seen him in a long time.
The majority of the members were Hunters who were said to be D-ranks and had no room for growth and Leon made them attack a Yellow Gate with them, proving their growth under the watchful eye of the Association staff?
He would have been less worried if Leon had said he was going to attack the Yellow Gate alone.
"Seeing as the robot knight isn't here, are you going to clear it with just the trainees?"
Ha-ri and Yappy were ordered to wait while the cadets attacked the gate since it was Leon's intention to be as fair as possible.
"Eh, thanks to you, I'm going to suffer."
"Good luck, Chief!"
Chief Kim Jin-soo was overseeing the assault. He was the tank of the Association's raid and a B-rank Hunter, so it was calculated that he could safely supervise a yellow gate.
"Let's go!"
Leon shouted and one by one, the armed trainees entered the gate, including Chief Kim Jin-soo.
-Leon.
As Yappy sends them on their way and his eight eyes are turning sharply, Ha-ri speaks softly.
"Lord Yappy, don't worry too much. His Majesty is here, so everything will be fine."
-Trouble.
"Eh?"
-His Majesty. Forty-nine cadets. One observer.
"Isn't that right, what's the problem──?"
-Fifty-two people in the gate.
Yappy brought up a hologram as an infrared image of what he had just witnessed. There, a masked robed person was entering the gate ahead of the trainees.
"Huh? Who is this....?"
-Emergency.
Yappy didn't say anything more, he just charged straight for the gate at full speed.
"Lord Yappy, wait for me!"
And just as Yappy entered the gate, Ha-ri, who was following behind, couldn't make it through the gate and bumped into something.
"Huh?"
Ha-ri realized that something had happened to the gate that Yappy had gone through.
"What?!"
"The gate is fluctuating! Magic power fluctuating!"
The surface of the gate suddenly turned red, as if smeared with blood.
"What, what, red?"
"Why did the yellow color suddenly turn red!?"
Chairman Oh Kang-hyuk was stunned by the change in front of him.
"...Fluctuation Gate."