*
After the initial exchange of blows, Kim Jeong-ho sensed a change in the goblin's demeanor and decided to take it down.
Although a professional team had unilaterally captured it, it was a dangerous creature that would have certainly caused injuries if faced head-on.
Unlike typical goblins, it showed a remarkable ability to suppress its instincts.
And a student who's only in their first year is fighting such a monster?
That was practically a death sentence. Other guild members realized this and were about to move, but...
The moment they saw Kim Si-woo's movement, they all stopped in their tracks.
Each time their swords met, a massive shockwave reverberated, shaking their chests.
The goblin's sword wasn't a wild, instinct-driven weapon. It was the sword of a warrior, honed through countless battles.
If he were to fight purely with swordsmanship, without using any abilities, even he couldn't guarantee a victory.
Using its bulging muscles, it relentlessly struck with its sword, never pausing for a moment.
It wielded the sword at a speed that ordinary Hunters couldn't even react to. The sword relentlessly targeted openings, and it charged forward without stopping, even when its own body was wounded.
Rather, as its injuries increased, its movements became more violent and heavier, yet there were no openings.
Usually, when people get angry or lose control of their emotions and become agitated, they tend to create many openings.
However, that champion goblin continued its attacks without any gaps between them.
Each strike seemed to possess lethal power.
As the heavy impact struck from all directions, Kim Si-woo began to be pushed back.
"Si-woo... is he going to get hurt?"
"Why is everyone just watching..."
As it seemed like Kim Si-woo was being unilaterally beaten, worried voices erupted from among the students.
However, the experienced Hunters, not the students, knew that wasn't the case.
'How the hell is he blocking all that?'
To the eyes of ordinary students, it looked like Kim Si-woo was being pushed back, but the truth was different.
Defending against such attacks was impressive in itself, but unlike the goblin, whose breathing was becoming increasingly labored, Kim Si-woo's reaction was calm.
To fight monsters, you don't need advanced swordsmanship.
You need equipment suitable for the situation, a strategy tailored to the opponent, and adequate combat power.
Being good at swordsmanship isn't bad, but it's not versatile enough to be used in every situation.
Depending on the situation, you may need to use projectiles or other equipment more often than a sword, and sometimes it's impossible to fight monsters with a sword at all.
That's why most Hunters focus on training to respond to different situations rather than mastering one particular area.
'Was he handling a sword even before awakening.?'
That's why he couldn't understand Kim Si-woo's movements. Such movements were nearly impossible without deep knowledge of swordsmanship.
Even he wasn't confident he could fight like that.
Purely in terms of swordsmanship, he was above him.
Despite the minimal movements of his wrist and arm, he was blocking all of the goblin's attacks that were flying in with terrifying force.
A C-Rank tanker wouldn't be able to withstand that attack and would quickly collapse. It was that sharp of an attack.
How many students could withstand that clearly shining sword aura?
'Is he deflecting instead of blocking?'
Despite the heavy sounds and impacts, Kim Si-woo didn't seem to be shaken at all.
It was nearly impossible to withstand such impacts without being a tanker. So, he wasn't blocking, he was deflecting.
The goblin's expression was gradually darkening, as if it knew its attacks weren't working.
As the color of defeat deepened, it roared and raged even louder.
It was difficult to judge other aspects, but in terms of swordsmanship alone, he was the real deal.
'Indeed... he's worth the Master's attention....'
But was he only good at swordsmanship?
That wasn't the case either. He had an excellent ability to assess his surroundings while deflecting his opponent's attacks.
Even while appearing to be pushed back, he was constantly changing direction to prevent those around him from getting hurt.
Could a student really do that?
Kim Jeong-ho was genuinely impressed as he watched Kim Si-woo. It was a battle that even he could learn a lot from.
"Is it okay not to help him now?"
He was so engrossed in the battle that he didn't realize someone was approaching until they spoke. The person who called out to him was Kang Min-ah, a member of the former Death God Guild and a professor at the Academy.
"What are you referring to?"
Today's activities were under the jurisdiction of the Death God Guild, so it wasn't right for her to interfere, but she couldn't just stand by and watch him narrowly avoid the goblin's sword.
She was worried that he might get hurt or that something terrible might happen, so she ended up taking action.
She spoke to Kim Jeong-ho because she knew there could be problems if she acted unilaterally.
"He's going to get hurt like that. That goblin is beyond what a student should be facing. What are you going to do if he gets hurt?"
She tried to remain as calm as possible, but it was impossible to do so while watching Kim Si-woo's acrobatics in front of her.
"That won't happen."
"He's in such a dangerous situation...!"
"Are you talking about the goblin?"
"I'm talking about Kim Si-woo student! He's going to get hurt like that! Making only Kim Si-woo student face such a monster is..."
Kim Jeong-ho chuckled. It certainly looked like Kim Si-woo student was being pushed back.
It was natural to see it that way since he was only blocking and not attacking. Although she was a higher-ranked Hunter than him, he was superior when it came to swordsmanship.
"Kim Si-woo student is overwhelming, so you don't have to worry."
"How is that..."
Kang Min-ah was about to argue with Kim Jeong-ho, but she stopped when she heard his confident voice.
Her vision, which had narrowed due to her concern for Kim Si-woo, began to widen. Even though he seemed to be unilaterally pushed back, Kim Si-woo didn't have any injuries.
On the other hand, the goblin, who she thought was unilaterally attacking, had numerous scratches on its body.
"..."
Kang Min-ah was ashamed of herself for not noticing such a thing, even though she had been away from the field for a long time.
"Ahem... Even so, it wasn't a suitable monster for educational purposes."
"I didn't know it would be this strong either."
"Wait a minute... Are you serious right now?"
Kim Jeong-ho scratched his head at Kang Min-ah's murderous aura.
"Well... that's..."
"Gobbbbbbb...."
__Daebak!!!
__Si-woo... is crazy... Wow, he's so cool!!!
__Kim Si-woo!! Kim Si-woo!!
Just then, a loud noise was heard, and when they turned their heads, they saw the goblin kneeling.
Kim Si-woo was standing in front of it, finally catching his breath. Kim Si-woo plunged his sword into the heart of the goblin, who had dropped its sword.
"No joke. Seriously."
*
He did have some feelings of looking down on goblins. When he first saw the tied-up one, he just thought it was a somewhat special Hobgoblin.
He could feel it the moment he entered the actual battle and exchanged blows.
It was ridiculous that a goblin was using sword aura, but this guy wasn't just using it, he was a real swordsman.
With skillful movements that seemed to have crossed the line between life and death dozens of times, it was a rare breed among monsters that were supposed to move according to instinct.
If other students had faced this goblin, there would have been an absurd number of casualties.
'Well... barely crossing it dozens of times isn't enough to face me.'
Still, it was below him. Wild swordsmanship was no match for swordsmanship created by countless hours of training.
'Still, it has become sharper.'
Opportunities to meet a swordsman of this caliber were rare, so he wanted to see how much the goblin could do and didn't attack.
At first, he thought it was lacking, but the goblin showed a terrifying ability to grow stronger with each clash of swords.
He wondered how far it could reach if they met again in the future. I took my eyes off the goblin, which had fallen with its heart pierced, and put my sword away.
"Hey, was it Kim Si-woo student?"
"Yes..?"
"Do you have any thoughts of joining the Death God Guild? If you're thinking of joining our team, I'll give you the best conditions..."
He didn't expect such an offer from a large guild like the Death God Guild. His skills had improved recently, but was he really being evaluated this highly?
He didn't know because he didn't have many opportunities to show his true skills, but it seemed like he was now in a position where he was quite recognized.
"Do you know that it's illegal to scout students?"
"Ahem...."
When he turned his head, he saw Kang Min-ah glaring at Kim Jeong-ho. He didn't know what had happened between them, but Kim Jeong-ho was watching Kang Min-ah carefully.
I discreetly sized up the situation and returned to my original seat.
When I returned to my seat, the girls around me made a fuss and started talking to me.
"Si-woo! I saw you sparring! How can you do that?"
"Can you teach me how to use a sword later?"
"Si-woo, maybe..."
They usually just exchanged light greetings, but after seeing my skills, I felt like they were approaching me more actively.
"..."
"..."
When I turned my head at the chilly feeling, my girls' expressions didn't look good. Just as I was about to refuse and move on, I felt a very familiar energy.
It was a power I had felt once before. A nasty and unpleasant power was approaching from afar.
"Go..bb...."
"?"
The goblin, who I thought I had definitely killed, began to tremble and get up. I definitely cut off its breath.
So, it didn't make sense for it to get up like that.
"Wasn't it finished off?"
Kim Jeong-ho was about to attack to finish it off, but the champion goblin rolled on the ground and retreated.
It was moving too well to be a dying creature.
The guy who had created distance began to roar.
"Gobbbbbbbbb!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
At the same time, a large group of Hobgoblins could be seen from afar.
"Kim Si-woo.... Why do they look like that?"
Min-ji, who was behind me, muttered.
As Min-ji said, the goblins were all in strange states.
There were those with one arm missing, those with no legs, and even those with no heads.
"Zombies..?"
Yes, this energy was very familiar.
"The Eternal Life Church? Why are those bastards here?"