"He defeated an A-class hero?"
"It was an overwhelming fight."
Agna furrowed her brow at her subordinate's report.
Then she picked up a document detailing the match and began to read it carefully.
"A-grade, level 34 "Magic Girl"...
She did not care about Gu Dong-hwan's appearance.
What caught her attention was the grade, level, and profession.
"At this level, how high would the ranking be?"
"If we exclude the five S rank and above, it's estimated to be around the 4th rank. However, since we can't accurately measure the abilities yet, there's a possibility that it could be even higher."
At least 4th rank or higher.
At that level, it was undoubtedly a presence that the Empire and Cruciel needed to pay attention to.
'And yet he lost?'
Agna thought of Seo Woojin.
He was certainly a hero who couldn't be judged by his rank alone.
'I should meet him soon.'
After all, she had planned to meet Seo Woojin in person soon to learn more about him.
Agna decided to move that meeting up a bit.
"Tonight, as soon as the sparring session is over, invite him to have dinner with me."
"I will convey that."
The subordinate left.
Agna, who was left alone, read the document that contained the details of the match between Seo Woojin and Gu Dong-hwan.
Over and over again.
***
Seo Woojin wore an embarrassed expression.
'I didn't think that someone would be listening from behind.'
He never expected Gye Suji to be behind him.
"I didn't mean to upset you."
Seo Woojin bowed his head to her and apologized.
"It's okay. More than that…"
Gye Suji scanned Seo Woojin up and down.
Then she said with a smile,
"I also want to face you in a match sometime."
Seo Woojin expressed his dissatisfaction with a groan.
'I really want to face her at least once, too.'
However, it is impossible now.
They were in the middle of training, so it couldn't happen.
Even meeting her during the match was difficult.
The results of the match could only be seen in the finals.
"Wouldn't you be in trouble now?"
When Seo Woojin spoke, Gye Suji nodded as well.
"I wasn't suggesting that we fight right away."
"What do you mean…?"
"Take some time soon. I heard that you guys gather separately for training."
Seo Woojin didn't deny Gye Suji's look, which seemed to question whether it was true.
The fact that he was training with some heroes was widely known.
"All right."
Seo Woojin, who had wanted to face Gye Suji from the beginning, gladly accepted her proposal.
'Fighting with a woman…'
Apart from profession, there was no other information.
The only thing known was that she was skilled in unarmed combat, just by watching Lee Ji-ah's match.
Even that wasn't accurate since it ended in one blow.
'That's not the important part.'
The fact that Gye Suji was strong.
If she also participated in the training, it would undoubtedly be a big help for Seo Woojin.
'Let's get closer while we're at it.'
Among the Heroes, Seo Woojin was gradually increasing his influence.
***
"Hahaha! This is really embarrassing."
Gu Dong-hwan approached, scratching his head.
"How's your body?"
"As you can see, it's in great shape!"
It wasn't just a saying.
There were no traces of injury on the body that had been split open.
"Thank goodness."
If the priests of the Holy Kingdom of Aier had not been dispatched, he would not have recovered so quickly.
'His mana is also amazing.'
To heal such injuries in just a few hours was impressive.
Becoming friends with Heroes with that kind of profession would be quite helpful.
'The problem is that Seong Yura…'
Seo Woojin furrowed his brow.
No matter how much he thought about it, he didn't want to become friends with that girl.
Well, she probably didn't want to be friends with Seo Woojin either.
Thinking that he should check if there were other Heroes specialized in recovery, Seo Woojin shifted his gaze to the training ground.
"Mr. Woojin, you've already secured your spot in the finals, right?"
"Yes. I was lucky."
Since Koo Dong-hwan, he had only encountered mediocre Heroes.
Although they had some skills, they were far from enough to attract Seo Woo Jin's attention
Casually dealing with opponents and winning one by one, he had unexpectedly made it to the finals.
"The opponent is undoubtedly that person, right?"
Although the name was not mentioned, it wasn't difficult to notice that it referred to Baek Siwoo.
"I guess the probability is quite high, don't you think?"
The match they were watching right now was the last semifinal.
A duel between Baek Siwoo and Gye Suji.
The battle between the two seemed quite intense.
"That person fights well too."
Koo Dong-hwan pointed at Gye Suji, expressing admiration.
"To deflect the sword of the 'Sword God' with bare fists."
Seo woojin nodded.
Certainly, Gye Suji boasted a level higher than other Heroes.
"What profession does she have, anyway?"
"They call it 'Battlemaster.'"
In response to Seo woojin's answer, Koo Dong-hwan raised his eyebrows.
"Is it related to the Baekje Dynasty by any chance?"
"I'm not sure about the details."
To them, 'Battlemaster' was a profession that appeared in novels or games.
They didn't know exactly what kind of existence they were.
"It seemed like they were rivals of Hwarang, roughly speaking."
That wasn't accurate either.
In Seo woojin's eyes, Gye Suji's 'Battlemaster' was closer to Boxing, as expected.
But it wasn't limited to striking; it was more like mixed martial arts.
'Catch, break, and crush.'
Those three words seemed to describe Gye Suji's attacks.
"It's the first time I've seen Baek Siwoo cornered like this."
Koo Dong-hwan stuck out his tongue, watching Gye Suji endure for over 10 minutes.
'He is just looking at her.'
To be precise, Baek Siwoo was observing Gye Suji.
He felt curiosity towards a type of Hero he had never seen before, wanting to experience even a bit more.
If Baek Siwoo truly swung his sword, Gye Suji could never withstand more than ten strikes.
"It will end soon."
At Seo Woojin's words, Gu Dong-hwan focused on the match.
The tense fight was gradually shifting towards Baek Siwoo.
'It's definitely me against him.'
Since the beginning of the match until now.
Baek Siwoo dominated the battle exactly as he intended, without missing a single second.
The appearance of Gye Suji, who seemed to be struggling, also meant it was under his control.
'Next, three strikes.'
Seo Woojin's prediction was correct.
Baek Siwoo's sword precisely struck Gye Suji's throat in just three strikes.
"Heh, as expected of 'Sword God'…"
Gu Dong-hwan looked at Baek Siwoo with astonished eyes.
The way he neatly retrieved the sword and put it into the scabbard was so thorough that even Seo Woojin could not help but admire it.
"As expected, that guy is my opponent in the finals."
"I'm looking forward to this, haha!"
Anticipating the showdown between the strongest hero and the Hero who defeated him, Gu Dong-hwan had an excited expression.
'Can I win?'
Until a while ago, he was confident enough.
However, after watching the match with Gye Suji, he felt a slight burden.
'I guess killing Rosie Ruby helped a lot.'
Baek Siwoo also showed much-improved skills compared to before.
'How much has he leveled up…'
Since Seo Woojin also rose two level, he couldn't guess how much Baek Siwoo had leveled up.
"Mr, Woojin."
Watching Baek Siwoo coming down from the stage, Irene's voice was heard from the side.
"Huh? Why?"
"You can win."
She said with a small smile after seeing Seo Woojin's expression.
"…Did I seem uneasy?"
"A little, it seemed like that."
At Irene's words, he smirked.
"It's not a real battle, just training. What's there to be uneasy about? Just do it like usual."
Honestly, he was interested.
To Seo Woojin, who received Sion's support, the opportunity to obtain such a famous sword was not common.
However, he didn't plan to strain himself to get the sword.
"If I lose, so be it."
When he shrugged his shoulders, Irene shook her head and repeated the same thing again.
"You will win."
It wasn't just cheering.
She seemed really confident that Seo Woojin could win.
"Alright."
Seo Woojin stood up from his seat.
Now it was time for the final match.
"Mister, fight! You must win!"
"Fight."
"After the victory, let's all do squats as a celebration!"
Behind Seo Woojin, slowly heading towards the stage, came the cheers of the connections he made.
'… Let's just pretend I didn't hear the last part.'
Squats.
Just thinking about it made muscle pain come rushing in.
"Really, D-class made it to the finals."
"Isn't it impressive?"
"It is. It's only possible because it's sparring training. If it were a real match, he would have lost already, right?"
The voices of the Heroes were also heard.
There were contents acknowledging Seo Woojin, but most were still skeptical.
However, he didn't pay attention to such comments.
He was focused on Baek Siwoo, who was climbing onto the stage from the opposite side.
'Thanks to the priests of Aier?'
Even though he had just finished a match, there was no sign of fatigue.
They had taken care to ensure he could play in the best condition.
"Seo Woojin."
Baek Siwoo opened his mouth towards Seo Woojin with a heavy expression.
"I don't know how long I've been waiting for this day."
Since the day they first met, Baek Siwoo had been interested in Seo Woojin.
Whether it was unfortunate or fortunate, there had been no chance to face each other directly until now.
With the current situation set up like this, Baek Siwoo could no longer contain his curiosity.
"I was already curious about your skills."
"…Really?"
"Since Gerald, up until the last ruins. You've shown a presence that is different from your rank."
Seo Woojin lowered his head.
"I don't know about Gerald, but there was nothing special in the ruins. It was you who killed Rosy Ruby."
"I heard about it from Yura."
He clicked his tongue at that.
Until he met Baek Siwoo, Seo Woojin had been holding off the monster called Rosy Ruby for over an hour.
Although he didn't deliver any significant blows, the fact that he endured for such a long time against that creature itself was remarkable.
When Seo Woojin didn't say anything, Baek Siwoo drew his sword.
A famous sword among famous swords.
'It's worthy of being called the Empire's treasure.'
Seo Woojin sighed inwardly and drew his own black sword.
It had fancy decorations, but compared to Baek Siwoo's, it looked quite humble.
'I wonder if other people see it that way too?'
Famous sword and black sword, Baek Siwoo and Seo Woojin.
He felt a sudden annoyance.
"Then let's start the final match now."
Ludian declared the start, looking at the two with eyes full of anticipation.
"Thunder Bolt."
Baek Siwoo's sword blazed with lightning.
It was the skill that cut off Rosy Ruby's head and incinerated it.
An absolute sword that an ordinary Hero could never counter.
But…
Swish!
"…I was also curious about you."
Your skill.
Seo Woojin's sword blocked 'Thunder Bolt'.