The Academy’s Sashimi Sword Master

A reddish glow trembled slowly over the Han River.

As the saying goes, the sun is most dazzling just before sunset, and that was the feeling. The same must have been in the minds of the people nearby, and also Kang Geom-Ma.

Wasn’t it as if the end of the world had just swept everything away?

That was what they thought.

The night after sunset seemed to mean the crisis was finally subsiding.

But then, something completely unexpected happened.

Choi Seol-Ah suddenly jumped from a helicopter and confessed her love to Kang Geom-Ma!

“Ha… haha.”

Balor Joaquin let out a dry laugh at how absurd the scene looked.

Apparently, his disciple was quite successful as a man in his homeland.

‘In his past life, well, he had a somewhat decent face, but his personality was so problematic that he stayed a virgin.’

Although the scene seemed a bit too staged, precisely because of that, all the attention was focused on Kang Geom-Ma.

And that was exactly Balor Joaquin’s original plan.

Kali Yuga wanted to be at the center of humanity. His intention was to seduce them with “magic” and enslave all of humankind.

Not long ago, while Balor Joaquin was killing time in the Demon Realm, he had heard news of the world thanks to the squirrels, with Lycan leading them.

So he more or less knew what was happening.

That there were many people against Kang Geom-Ma’s recent actions, for example.

It wasn’t such surprising news. In the days when he was active, it was the same.

The rulers always meddled in everything. Every time he tried to do something, they would say: “Ah, the founding hero has struck a person!” and spread it everywhere.

In any era, in any part of the world—even on Earth—those parasites always existed.

And for that reason, Kang Geom-Ma’s popularity had been declining lately.

And what if, at that exact moment, Balor Joaquin appeared literally transcending time and space?

And what if on top of that he publicly declared that Kang Geom-Ma was his legitimate successor?

It would be the perfect chance to improve his image.

But then.

“That beet-head stole the role from me.”

So that’s what he was doing, disguised as a reporter. I was wondering where he had gone.

It was annoying, always so animated, but he couldn’t be hated entirely, because what he did was charmingly absurd.

Well, thanks to that, the scene of the dramatic reunion between master and disciple had been lost.

“I suppose it doesn’t matter.”

As long as Kali Yuga was eliminated, that was enough.

Balor Joaquin sighed in relief.

‘Hmm…’

But he felt a strange unease in his chest. And it was because of the noise around him.

He began to look around.

Murmurs…

The citizens covered their mouths with their hands and whispered. If they were going to talk, why not do it directly?

‘Look who’s here, the gossipers…’

He was about to look away with a tongue click, when his eyes met directly with Kang Geom-Ma’s.

A silhouette outlined by the sunset light.

For some reason, his face had a fatally pale tone.

“What’s wrong with you? Are you hurt?”

“Ah, no, sir. I’m fine, really…”

But his face said otherwise.

Kang Geom-Ma’s face turned red and then blue, as if at any moment he would clutch his neck.

“Tell me. What’s happening?”

The Sword Master bit his lower lip.

But since the founding hero himself was asking, he had no choice but to confess “the truth.”

“The thing is…”

The Sword Master began to explain.

Balor Joaquin listened with interest, but little by little his gaze stiffened.

“…Ha…”

A laugh escaped him.

One completely different from before. This one was cold.

“Are you serious?”

“How would I dare lie to you?”

It was about his disciple’s family composition.

And for someone like Balor Joaquin, who had just returned from Earth, it was a shocking blow.

“My disciple has… two wives?”

“…Yes. Including my granddaughter, and also the daughter of a former comrade of his from the past. Besides, the Heavenly Sword is also my disciple.”

“What the hell happened in this world while I was gone? Two wives at the same time!? Does he think he’s some ancient emperor!? And on top of that, he’s my disciple!?”

“Heavenly Sword is also my disciple, but…”

“……”

“Even if he’s such a son-in-law… he’s still my disciple. Sniff…”

What the hell has this guy been saying for a while now?

***

“My loooord…!”

Choi Seol-Ah threw herself at me while I collapsed all of a sudden. She spread her arms to hug me. She was insane.

“A slap for every step you take.”

With the sashimi, of course.

“…!”

With her good ears, Choi Seol-Ah stopped dead like a wind-up doll.

She seemed like she would back away, but no. She moved sideways like a crab, looking for a way to get closer to me.

What the hell got into her?

I’m exhausted, damn it.

If she was acting like this for no reason, I myself was thinking of drilling a hole in her head to air out her brain.

“What’s wrong? Who do you owe money to?”

“Excuse me?”

“When you jumped from the helicopter you said you liked me. How much debt did you pile up to be selling my image to the point of deceiving the whole TV station?”

“…Huh?”

“It’s because I don’t understand that I’m asking you. I’m the one who should have questions, why are you throwing them back at me?!”

“…Wow. Really, sir, your common sense…”

I had to hold back the dark impulse crawling up my palate—I wanted to rip her eyes out for looking at me like I was crazy.

In the middle of it all, the background was unnecessarily beautiful. The harmony between a half-devastated Seoul and the purple sunset light was like a painting of the word “twilight.”

While throwing out endless comments like “Wow” or “this isn’t easy,” Choi Seol-Ah asked again.

“I mean, it’s not in the sense you think, sir. It’s something simpler… Don’t you get it?”

“Since you started grad school, did you pick up the habit of speaking in riddles?”

“Ugh…”

Choi Seol-Ah brought her fingers to her temples. With that sigh, the rubble on the ground shifted. Just as she was about to open her mouth again—

“Eh?!”

Instead of words, she let out an exclamation. Her gaze was beyond me.

But I felt no presence. Instinctively, I turned my head, following her eyes.

“…Sa…”

I couldn’t finish the word.

I didn’t know if it was a dream or reality. The scenery also looked surreal. And I was physically and mentally exhausted. It wouldn’t have been strange if I had fainted and this was a dream.

“Hey.”

The image of a man was etched into my retina. Black-haired, waving his hand at me.

“Long time no see. You look well.”

“…”

How many years had passed?

If we assume that incident right before the final battle against the false gods wasn’t a dream, then it’s been ten years.

But breathing the same air as him—that hadn’t happened for at least fifteen years. Even in my past life, I never once ran into him while traveling the whole country.

“Sa…jang…nim.”

“Don’t call me that in such a broken way, it’s cheesy.”

Him.

Chief Ho Ah-Hyun.

The founding hero Balor Joaquin rubbed his chin with his thumb, looking a bit embarrassed. Then, without saying much else, he spoke.

“Have you been well?”

Sunset was falling. The hazy glow of the evening reflected in the glass of the 63 Building. Even though it resembled Earth, the brilliantly shining stars made it clear this was the world of “Blessing of the Apocalypse M.”

The world I inherited from my adoptive father.

I smiled so hard that my dimples showed. If I relaxed my expression, I felt a hot tear would fall.

“Yes. Thanks to you.”

My father smiled.

“I see.”

For a moment, we simply looked at each other in silence. At some point, the Sword Master also joined us. Seeing the dust on his clothes, he must have evacuated people before coming.

“Heavenly Sword.”

Just as the Sword Master tried to speak, something disrupted the sky. Everyone looked up.

“(One last effort, squeak!)”

“(Use every last drop of energy, squeak!)”

“(Damn it! How does the commander’s invincible army end up humiliated like this? What a disgrace, squeak!)”

It was Lycan’s supposed elite. They descended from the sky like rays of light, each carrying one of my companions.

“Heavenly Sword!”

Rachel shouted.

“(This woman is heavy, squeak!)”

“(Breathe, breathe, squeak!)”

“(We’re not pack squirrels! What kind of torture is this, squeak!)”

As if one wasn’t enough, several squirrels carried a companion each, holding their arms and legs.

Rachel, Leon, Media Poison, and Speedweapon were approaching in the same state. By the way, Leon is a Nephilim, doesn’t he have wings? Why is he riding?

Awoooo!

Awoooo!

Just as I was about to get indignant, a deep howl resounded. It was the roar of a beast that blended perfectly with the twilight.

A wolf.

Sköll and Hati ran after the squirrels, swift on all fours. On their backs rode Ryozo and Abel.

The group landed first. The squirrels didn’t waste time fleeing.

“(Save us, Heavenly Sword!)”

“(Those wolves have been licking their lips at us for a while! We’re not even a decent snack, squeak!)”

They hid behind my heels and started gossiping.

Taking advantage of the moment, Rachel spread her arms to hug me. I felt like she was about to crush me like a can. I twisted my abs hard to avoid it.

Rachel, dragged by inertia, smashed face-first into the asphalt.

“Pfff!”

So slow.

“That was cruel, Geom-Ma.”

Rachel rubbed the lump on her head with tears in her eyes.

“This isn’t the time for that.”

“What does the timing matter for love? In my twenties it was all passion, you know!”

Huh?

While grumbling, Rachel twisted her neck. She had spotted a black-haired man. That was suspicious. In the whole world, only one person had completely black hair—Kang Geom-Ma.

Rachel’s eyes curved. She could see people’s secrets as if they were fog. It was an almost supernatural intuition. That ability whispered in her ear who that middle-aged man was.

“Father.”

Rachel knelt with elegance. She joined both hands with decorum and bowed respectfully to the man.

“I am Rachel de Mura, daughter of the Changseong family. Lord Richard de Mura is my uncle…”

“R-Rachel. What are you doing? Get up.”

Kang Geom-Ma took her by the shoulder. That was a bad sign. Obviously. Rachel acting modest and humble wasn’t normal, nor should it be.

‘Iron block.’

But Rachel pushed him off with her shoulder and slipped free. Kang Geom-Ma looked at his hand, stunned.

“I greet the father of the Heavenly Sword.”

Ryozo and Abel also dismounted. They didn’t fully understand what was happening, so they stayed quiet. Balor Joaquin watched the scene in amazement.

“Then, what are you to him?”

“I’m his girlfriend.”

“……?”

Since when?

Kang Geom-Ma was about to step in, but Balor Joaquin beat him to it.

“That guy’s already married to two women.”

“They say a true hero doesn’t love just one flower, but stirs the whole reed field. In that case, I am but one more blade among them.”

Rachel replied solemnly.

“I am heir of Changseong, but also a woman who admires Kang Geom-Ma.”

What a fluent way of speaking.

“……”

Kang Geom-Ma rolled his eyes like a rusty hinge. He was receiving the intense stares of his two wives.

‘Save me.’

This was hell.

He had just finished saving the world, and now his home was about to collapse.

Rachel stayed prostrate. Balor Joaquin, with a vein throbbing on his temple, spoke to Kang Geom-Ma.

“Disciple.”

The chief smiled.

I also smiled like nothing was wrong.

“Yes.”

“Do you remember what I told you when you came down from the mountain?”

“This clumsy disciple has already forgotten.”

“There are three things a man must be careful of.”

The chief raised three fingers.

“By the way, you speak very well, huh?”

“My tongue could never compare to yours, master.”

“Yes. You always had a talent for speaking, though your lack of eloquence was due to your evasive nature. But yes, your way of speaking has improved.”

“How embarrassing.”

He folded his pinky.

“And you use the sword well. I’m impressed.”

“No, I still fall short. I can’t even reach your feet…”

“Shut up and listen.”

“Yes.”

He folded his index finger. The order was strange.

“…But compared to the last thing, all that is nothing.”

Obviously, only the middle finger was left.

The chief pointed it at me with a gesture.

“What the hell have you been doing?”

“Well…”

“Two wives?”

He looked at Ryozo and Abel. Both flinched and clung to my arms, competing for my side.

“Nice to meet you, father.”

Ryozo usually doesn’t speak without certainty, so this was surprising. Even without clear confirmation, she politely addressed Balor Joaquin.

“I am Kang Geom-Ma’s first wife and…”

Abel cut in.

While trying to push her with her cheek, she said.

“Hello. I am daughter of the Nibelung family and granddaughter of the Sword Master…”

“Cough!”

“Hey, Abel. Introductions always follow the order of arrival, you know?”

“Oh. I didn’t know such a rule existed. What a recent discovery.”

“…Could it be that Kali Yuga hasn’t been eliminated yet? A dear family of mine seems to still be trapped in an illusion, apparently.”

And so began an open fight on Hangang Bridge.

While Balor Joaquin and I watched the scene in disbelief, Media Poison quietly approached.

“Hello.”

Balor Joaquin glanced sideways at her.

“I see. And what’s your relationship with that guy? If you’re his girlfriend, go line up with the blonde over there. She cut ahead.”

“Yes, understood.”

Media Poison trotted with short steps to where Rachel was.

That way, I was left alone with the chief.

“Disciple.”

“Yes, chief.”

Under the starry sky, a nearly poetic dialogue began.

“Did you dream a sad dream?”

“No, not at all.”

“Then why do you cry so sadly?”

Another star shone at the corner of the disciple’s eye.

“I’m so moved to be able to speak with my master again… I couldn’t help it.”

“I feel the same.”

The master folded the middle finger.

Clack! It turned into a rock.

“Come, let’s talk.”

The chief’s favorite means of communication has always been the fist of love.