Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Clap!

At Yu Seol-ah’s clap, everyone focused on her.

“Now, since a new family member has joined us, we should introduce him to everyone, right? Let us hold a ‘Battle Banquet’ for the first time in a while!”

“Ooooooh!”

The members of the First Squad cheered.

“A Battle Banquet?”

At Dokgo Jin’s question, Gwak Hyo explained.

“It is a kind of martial contest banquet. Anyone who wants to step forward fights while everyone watches. Well, it is quite rough, though.”

The corners of Gwak Hyo’s mouth rose.

“There are many fellows who have been curious about how impressive the new recruit must be to have received the Dragon-Tiger Tablet anyway. Can you show us your skill once?”

Rather than a provocation, it was pure curiosity and fighting spirit toward a strong person. Dokgo Jin chuckled and answered briefly.

“That is not difficult.”

Dokgo Jin himself had been curious about the skill of the Iron Soul Unit members anyway.

One could roughly gauge a person’s level through their aura, but true skill was revealed in actual combat.

Gwak Hyo spoke to a member who looked nimble.

“Heh heh heh. Hey, Shin Pyeong! Tell all the members. In one meal’s time, a Battle Banquet will be held at the training ground.”

“Yes, understood!”

The member called Shin Pyeong excitedly dashed out, and Iron Heart Hall soon began to stir with anticipation for the Battle Banquet that was about to take place.

***

One meal’s time later.

Over eighty members of the Iron Soul Unit gathered at the training ground.

All the members had gathered except for the Ninth Squad and the Tenth Squad, which were away on missions.

Even Yeom Baek, who usually did not attend such things, was watching from a short distance away with his arms folded.

He was also curious about the true skill of Dokgo Jin, who had received the acknowledgment of the Master of Dragon-Tiger Hall.

He had seen Dokgo Jin’s duel with the wanderers of Sword-Selling Street, but they could not be compared to the members of the Iron Soul Unit.

Dokgo Jin stepped into the center of the training ground.

“Good to meet you all. I am Dokgo Jin.”

Waaaaaaa!

“Welcome, Dragon-Tiger Tablet Holder!”

“A big shot has joined our Iron Soul Unit!”

“What a pity. Why did they not put him in our squad?”

“I know. We could have kicked out an idiot like you and taken the Dragon-Tiger Tablet Holder instead.”

“What did you say?”

“Heh heh heh!”

Amid the noisy commotion, gazes full of goodwill and curiosity poured onto Dokgo Jin.

Yu Seol-ah said,

“Now, he is part of our family, so remember his face! We will begin the Battle Banquet in earnest.”

Waaaaaaaa!

“Ooh! Do we get to see the Dragon-Tiger Tablet Holder’s skill directly?”

“I am looking forward to this.”

However, at Yu Seol-ah’s next words, the members had no choice but to be disappointed.

“First, the Dragon-Tiger Tablet Holder should see how the Battle Banquet works. He will step forward at the right time, so others should start.”

“……!”

As soon as she finished speaking, the members became silent as if it were a lie. They only watched one another, and no one stepped forward.

Considering the Iron Soul Unit members’ tendencies and the usual atmosphere of a Battle Banquet, it was strange. However, Yu Seol-ah quickly grasped the reason.

“You bastards. You are all thinking the same thing.”

The Iron Soul Unit members looked awkward.

If they stepped forward now, it would be difficult for them to spar with Dokgo Jin when he stepped forward, so they were reluctant to go out.

“You bastards, are you really going to do this?”

“…….”

Yu Seol-ah had no choice but to point someone out. She met eyes with one of the unit members.

“It seems you have made some achievements lately. Jang San of the Third Squad, come forward.”

“……Tch, what a shame.”

Jang San, who had been pointed out, stepped forward. He wore small hand axes at both sides of his waist.

Then, a member sitting off to one side sprang to his feet.

“If the opponent is Jang San, I should step forward.”

He was a member of the Fifth Squad named Cho Myeong, and he had been Jang San’s longtime enemy.

“Jang San, give me back the money you borrowed!”

“How ridiculous. You said I did not have to pay it back.”

“That was nonsense I said because I was drunk. If I say pay me back, pay me back!”

“Hmph! Not a chance!”

Since the two growled at each other for the same reason every time, the other members looked bored.

They omitted formalities such as a proper clasped hands greeting. Instead, they glared at each other and immediately clashed.

CLAAANG!

A fierce metallic sound burst out from the very start.

The iron staff swung by Cho Myeong and Jang San’s twin axes collided head-on. Sparks flew in every direction, and the screech of scraping metal tore through their eardrums.

An ordinary master would have exchanged a move, stepped back, and measured the distance, but the Iron Soul Unit was different.

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG!

The twin axes and iron staff collided dozens of times in the air. A violent duel that resembled a life-and-death battle continued.

However, that lasted only a moment.

Suddenly, Cho Myeong seized an opening and caught Jang San by the waist, changing the atmosphere again.

In an instant, the two tangled together like dogs fighting in the mud.

The subtlety of forms and the depth of inner arts did not matter.

It was a fight decided only by who could endure longer and target the opponent more persistently.

THWACK! THUD!

“Well done!”

“This is what a Battle Banquet should be!”

The watching members struck their weapons against the ground and went wild. That heat filled the training ground.

In the end, the contest was decided after a desperate hand-to-hand struggle. Cho Myeong won by forcing in a headbutt even after allowing a punch to the face.

“Krrgh…… You ignorant bastard, is your head made of stone?”

As Jang San sprawled out on his back with a nosebleed, Cho Myeong panted roughly and held out his hand to him.

“I told you to pay back the money, bastard.”

Jang San took Cho Myeong’s hand and got up while grumbling.

The two, who had been fighting as if they would kill each other just moments ago, slapped each other’s shoulders and chuckled as if nothing had happened.

Cheers for the victor, wine for the loser.

Dokgo Jin’s eyes narrowed as he watched that spirited and close-knit scene.

Their level was not extraordinary, but it was a duel where he could feel the fierceness and desperation directly.

‘I see.’

Dokgo Jin folded his arms and nodded. He could grasp the essence of the Battle Banquet at once.

‘Neither of them used their full strength.’

They aimed for each other’s vital points, but they did not inflict fatal injuries. The offense and defense exchanged on that exquisite boundary line were sharp.

In truth, the aura he felt from Jang San was slightly higher. Even so, Cho Myeong had won.

‘This is not a contest of the highs and lows of martial arts. It is training that cultivates adaptability and wildness in combat itself.’

Combat on the battlefield was not a formal spar.

The strong one was the bastard who survived, even if he had to throw dirt into the opponent’s eyes and kick him in the groin during the time one would normally spend showing courtesy and unfolding forms.

The Battle Banquet was training that engraved that “survival instinct” into the mind.

Yu Seol-ah said, “How is it? Do you understand what the Battle Banquet is?”

“I do. It is a very efficient method.”

“As expected of the Dragon-Tiger Tablet Holder. You noticed.”

“…….”

“Of course, before overwhelming martial force, it might be called a petty trick. But anything can happen on a battlefield.”

She looked at the members chuckling while covered in dirt and added,

“This is our own struggle to raise the probability of surviving that hell, even by the smallest margin.”

Yu Seol-ah sprang to her feet.

“Good! Since it looks like the warm-up is over, shall we see our new recruit’s skill now?”

Her gaze turned toward Dokgo Jin.

In an instant, hundreds of eyes moved after him. They were sticky gazes mixed with expectation and curiosity.

Without hesitation, Dokgo Jin stepped into the training ground.

The fishy smell of earth rising from the ground and the scent of men’s sweat stung his nose.

Yu Seol-ah grinned and looked around.

“Ordinary members would not be interesting. Let us see. The pillars of our Iron Soul Unit should step forward, right?”

“Ah!”

The ordinary members could not hide their disappointed expressions. They knew very well that they would not be his match. Even so, their faces showed that they wanted to spar with Dokgo Jin.

“…….”

At Yu Seol-ah’s words, the squad leaders exchanged glances, and before long, one man cut through the crowd and walked out.

He was a slender man, and his entire body was covered in tiny knife scars like snake scales. His gaze had sunk coldly enough to send chills down one’s spine.

He wore two uniquely curved daggers at his waist.

“Ooooooh! It is the Seventh Squad Leader!”

He was none other than Mun Heum, the Venomous Snake and the Seventh Squad Leader. Even Yu Seol-ah’s eyes shone with interest.

Mun Heum swept Dokgo Jin up and down with a fishy smile.

“I have been curious from the beginning. Just how impressive are you that you received the Dragon-Tiger Tablet?”

His voice was eerie, like a snake crawling.

“I am Mun Heum, the Seventh Squad Leader. Watch yourself. I don't know how to hold back.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than Mun Heum’s form blurred.

SWISH!

His movement was different in nature from that of the rough Iron Soul Unit members.

It was stealthy and fast, like a snake targeting its prey.

‘So a squad leader is different after all?’

However, Dokgo Jin did not lose sight of Mun Heum’s movement.

In an instant, Mun Heum slipped into his blind spot, drew his dagger without hesitation, and aimed for his neck.

‘He is certainly sharp. But.’

Dokgo Jin lightly leaned his upper body back.

The cold blade grazed beneath his chin and passed by. It was a strike that would have caused a fatal wound if it had landed.

Mun Heum’s eyebrows twitched.

‘Did he barely avoid it? Or is he making it look that way?’

He could not judge easily.

‘Let us confirm.’

WHIRR!

Rather, Mun Heum lowered his body and spun, then cut toward the back of Dokgo Jin’s knee with the dagger in his other hand.

It was a cruel method meant to avoid a fatal wound while thoroughly incapacitating the opponent.

However, in Dokgo Jin’s eyes, the path of the attack was plainly visible. His foot kicked the side of the dagger.

CLANG!

‘Kuh!’

A fierce shock traveled through the dagger and into Mun Heum.

‘Insane! Is this really a foot?!’

He was aghast at the sensation, as if he had struck a heavy hammer.

‘I will not be able to use my right hand for a while.’

It was hard to believe that this was merely the result of his attack being blocked. It was fortunate enough that he had not dropped the dagger.

Mun Heum staggered and stepped back. However, it was not a simple retreat.

‘It looks like he is buying time to disperse the shock, but.’

A squad leader was indeed different.

While pretending to retreat, he skillfully kicked up the sandy ground mixed with black debris.

FWOOSH!

Sand mixed with black ash flew toward Dokgo Jin’s face. Rather than a direct attack, its purpose was to block the opponent’s vision.

‘I know you are strong. But actual combat is different!’

Before anyone knew it, a dagger was also gripped in his left hand.

SWISH!

Through the sand, the dagger aimed for Dokgo Jin’s chest. Cheers and jeers burst out from the audience at the same time.

“Waaah! That is brutal!”

“Is that not too dangerous?!”

The sand struck Dokgo Jin’s face.

In truth, if he used Nine Nether Traceless Step, he could have avoided it without difficulty, but he did not.

That method would not suit the Battle Banquet.

PAK, PAK!

Though he was hit by the sand, Dokgo Jin did not lose track of the incoming dagger’s trajectory.

Dokgo Jin’s hand stretched out nimbly and caught Mun Heum’s wrist.

GRAB!

“……!”

Mun Heum’s eyes widened.

‘How, with his vision blocked?’

Dokgo Jin’s face was covered in black sand, but within it, his eyes burned fiercely.

‘Would this be about right?’

He drew Mun Heum’s wrist into his embrace like flowing water.

There was no rough physical force to be felt. However, Mun Heum could not even resist, as if he had been caught in a massive whirlpool.

“……!”

Dokgo Jin’s relaxed smile brushed past right before his nose.

When Dokgo Jin twisted his wrist, Mun Heum’s body floated lightly into the air like a feather.

‘This cannot……’

Just as the world seemed to spin upside down, a heavy impact dug into his back.

THUD!

It was a clean suppression that gave him no time to even scream, and Mun Heum’s vision flickered black.

“……!”

For a moment, silence flowed through the training ground.

The Seventh Squad Leader, one of the strongest even within the Iron Soul Unit, had been defeated in an instant.

“…….”

Dokgo Jin brushed the sand from his face and looked around.

Waaaaaaaa!

The members’ cheers exploded loudly enough to make the training ground shake.

“T-That was amazing, was it not? How does he adapt that quickly?”

“The Dragon-Tiger Tablet Holder is definitely different!”

If he had crushed Mun Heum with overwhelming martial force, this reaction might not have appeared.

Everyone was surprised because he had won perfectly in the manner of the Battle Banquet.

Around the time the cheers began to subside.

“You are even better than I expected. You can still keep going, right?”

Before he knew it, Yu Seol-ah was standing in front of Dokgo Jin.

SHING!

The twin swords on her back were drawn.

“I will show you why I am the Vice-Captain.”

A smile appeared on Yu Seol-ah’s lips.