Chapter 29

＜Chapter 30＞ There’s no way I could fight, right? (It wasn’t impossible?!)

“You, how do you plan to break this?”

“No, it’s not that I did it on purpose. I was just trying to practice what the senior taught me. I’m a victim too! If there’s compensation needed, we can handle it from my house…”

“Shut up. You’re scatterbrained.”

!

!…

……

“Yes sir…”

Kim Tae-jin stared at the rock split perfectly in half.

Even a top-tier Scorpion Rank Hunter would have trouble breaking such a special rock.

And yet, this guy shattered it with one hit?

‘He didn’t even rely on any weapon.’

Meaning he crushed it purely with brute strength.

What kind of body is this?

Does Hwagcheon mix ginseng into their rice or something?

“I thought I’d teach him casually and send him back, but I guess that won’t work.”

Tae-jin hadn’t seen someone with this level of talent in a long time.

Even for a future hero, this was impressive. Someone like this couldn’t be let go—it would hurt his pride.

The more he looked, the purer this kid seemed, unlike anyone else from Hwagcheon.

‘Well, if this guy goes astray, it’ll give me an excuse to take down Hwagcheon. Not bad either way.’

If a disciple strays toward evil, it’s the teacher’s duty to stop them.

When that day comes, who cares what they say about her?

She decided to teach Eugene while making excuses in her mind.

“Do you know how valuable this rock is?”

“That… this rock is super special?”

“It’s extremely expensive. Anything I touch becomes pricey.”

Eugene’s shoulders slumped.

He was enjoying life, but now another accident happened.

Tae-jin chuckled silently as he watched.

“Anyway, since you made a mistake, you need to take responsibility.”

“Yes…”

“Don’t worry. It’s not that hard.”

Tae-jin kicked the rock with his foot.

“Break this thing into smaller pieces and dump it in the nearby forest. Obviously, you need to do it bare-handed.”

“What?! Are you asking me to carry this by hand?!”

He wasn’t some Egyptian pyramid worker.

Lifting rocks like this and dumping them was ridiculous.

“Huh? Breaking it was easy, but cleaning up is too hard?”

“If you don’t finish today, there will be no dinner.”

Wow, what a devil.

She looks cute but acts horribly.

And she cooks with her own hands too!

“And starting tomorrow, serious training begins. Just keep that in mind.”

Kim Tae-jin mumbled tsundere-like and left the spot.

In her mind, she was already planning how to make Eugene stronger.

…

“What? You’re going to train under that woman?! Are you out of your mind?!”

As Eugene lay down under the blanket, the slime inside his soul spoke up.

Except for the girl, there was no one else to talk to in these mountains.

Loneliness hits loners harder than expected.

Eugene was chatting more than usual with the slime.

‘I don’t really care, but she wants to teach me. Maybe it’s just for fun?’

-Are you saying this because you don’t know her skills?

The slime was shocked by Eugene’s calmness.

Is he stupid, naive, or both?

‘Is she that strong?’

-Strong enough to kill someone like you with just a flick of her finger.

Whoa, I thought she was just a young lady, but she’s that powerful?

No wonder she’s the disciple of a Strong Hero.

If the disciple is this good, how strong must the hero be?

‘Ugh, I don’t want to meet that Kim Tae-jin anymore.’

From what I can tell, this hero Kim Tae-jin seems to have a twisted personality.

Still, considering she entrusted her disciple to train, maybe she doesn’t think much of it?

Eugene forced himself to stay positive.

-If a hero is training the successor of Hwagcheon, there must be something else on her mind.

‘Something else?’

-She’s using training as an excuse to kill you!

‘Nah, surely not~’

Eugene smirked.

Why would she kill someone like me? She could’ve done it anytime if she wanted.

Besides, despite pretending otherwise, she actually took good care of me.

‘She’s not that bad.’

-Haaah, you naive fool! The world is all about killing or being killed! People like you always end up losing!

The slime delivered a long lecture about human treachery.

Of course, Eugene didn’t really agree with it.

-Anyways, seeing how much effort she’s putting in, she probably doesn’t intend to outright kill you. It would give Hwagcheon a reason.

‘I said, she’s not going to kill me.’

-Shut up and listen! If you die, I die too!

At first, I thought it was fine since you were technically Hwagcheon’s successor.

But after spending so much time with you, I’m getting worried.

Can someone this naive survive in Hwagcheon’s darkness?

If you get stabbed unexpectedly, I’m going to heaven too!

This is messed up!

I have no choice but to snap out of it and act properly.

-Anyways, even heroes can’t completely ignore public opinion. They can’t just kill you easily. But they’ll definitely try to kill you during training as an excuse.

‘How could I die during training?’

-There are many ways. Sending you on dangerous missions, making you swallow poison, or suggesting a duel—100% staged as an “accident.”

Of course, they can’t fully avoid responsibility.

But we’re dealing with a current Strong Hero here.

Punishing them would be complicated.

And there’s no witness around here, right?

If they claim it was an accident, there’s no real way to verify.

There’s a high chance you’d disappear quietly without a trace.

-So wake up! If you don’t want to die unnoticed!

‘Geez, stop nagging. Are you my mom?’

-I’m worried you might die! Pay attention!

‘Relax. She’s not as bad as you think, alright?’

-Are you even listening to me?! Don’t trust people so easily, idiot!

‘Yeah, I’m happy to meet you too. Good night.’

Saying that, Eugene burrowed under the blanket.

He was a bit tired from moving the rocks earlier.

Newbie loners sleep early.

-Geez, you dumb idiot, jellyfish! Disgrace to Hwagcheon, trash!

The slime sighed inwardly.

For someone this naive to be Hwagcheon’s successor…

If my life weren’t tied to yours, I’d just ignore it.

-Now that it’s come to this, I have no choice but to protect you.

Looking at the moon shining in the night sky, the slime resolved itself.

…

The next day, Kim Tae-jin’s training began.

Though, it was unclear whether she was training Eugene or teaching the slime how to poop like a dog.

-Head! 12 o’clock!

“Hmm?”

Eugene, who was happily eating mixed grain rice, raised his arm.

It wasn’t a conscious reaction.

He simply moved reflexively following the slime’s request.

-Pow!

However, that simple movement blocked Kim Tae-jin’s water attack.

Kim Tae-jin’s eyes sparkled.

‘Blocked again?’

This wasn’t the first time.

Ever since waking up and washing his face, Kim Tae-jin had been launching surprise attacks repeatedly.

And Eugene had managed to block them all.

Of course, it was all thanks to the slime’s efforts,

but Kim Tae-jin had no way of knowing that.

‘What kind of reflexes… No, is he habitually preparing for attacks?’

She thought she had perfectly targeted his weak point this time.

How could he block it so easily?

Is he constantly on guard even during daily activities?

‘Looks like he’s lived through quite a lot in Hwagcheon.’

Even as a successor of Hwagcheon, you wouldn’t be recognized without this level of skill.

Many, including executives, aim for that position.

That means plenty of assassination threats.

Living in such an environment must have made him sensitive to killing intent.

‘His everyday life is basically an assassination scene. In a way, it’s pitiful.’

Look at him now.

After blocking an attack, he’s calmly eating his meal as if nothing happened.

Above all, his mental fortitude deserves the title of Strong Hero.

“Hey, senior. They say even dogs aren’t disturbed during meals.”

“Dogs bark, so they’re left alone.”

“Well, I can bark too. Woof woof!”

“Just eat your food. You’re annoying.”

Kim Tae-jin’s surprise attacks didn’t stop there.

Rather, at some point, they stopped being surprises.

Kim Tae-jin started attacking Eugene mercilessly.

-Head! Head! Chest! Stomach! Leg! Head! Side! Leg! Neck! Head again!

Aaaaaaaaah! I can’t move this fast! Can’t I just take one hit?

-That’s exactly what they’re waiting for! Think about dying with just one hit!

Suddenly thrown into combat with a Strong Hero, Eugene was having the worst time ever.

Of course, with power control in place, it wasn’t lethal—but barely.

‘Ha! Who would’ve thought he’d block my attacks?! What a crazy kid. To reach this level at his age…!’

How many duels had they gone through by now?

Unbeknownst to Eugene, he was growing stronger.

【You have obtained the ultimate skill, ‘Heavenly Piercing Divine Authority’.】

In a way no one could have imagined.

What kind of impact would it have when Hwagcheon’s successor learns ‘Heavenly Piercing Divine Authority’?

At that moment, Eugene had no idea.

Thus, a week passed.

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