Chapter 83: Whip and Clay

I felt utterly wronged.

But if I were to complain about this injustice, not only would the doting-fool frame never be lifted, it would only grow stronger.

In this world of the novel, Reysir cannot objectively recognize that Yor is a dragon.

“…We need to start training, so don’t disturb me and stay quiet.”

“Okay, got it!”

Reysir chuckled as if my silence and change of subject meant I accepted being a doting fool.

I decided to just ignore it. Either way, it was true that I deeply cared for Yor.

With that in mind, I turned my gaze to the adorable baby dragon.

“Let’s get ready.”

“Myaang~!”

Yor shook the Yeouiju, pulling out multiple clay targets and stacking them on the floor.

Then he grabbed the Yeouiju with his hind foot.

With one hand, I held several clay targets stacked together, and with the other, I prepared to throw them one by one.

“So, when Yor throws the targets, you’ll whip them with your whip, right?”

Not long after I agreed to be quiet, Reysir spoke up again.

“If that’s the case?”

“I want to throw too!”

“…Do as you like.”

“Really?!”

Apparently, I surprised him by granting permission so easily. His eyes widened in shock.

Soon, he would undoubtedly break into a happy smile.

Maybe he’d even misunderstand that I had opened up because I was grateful he revealed the location of my lower dantian.

To prevent Reysir’s thoughts from running wild,

I hastily added an explanation before a smile could settle on his face.

“I figured it would be less burdensome to have you do something rather than just watch me train. Plus, it raises the difficulty of the training—two birds with one stone, right?”

“No, no. You should say three birds with one stone, including the fun I get out of this!”

“……”

Watching Reysir’s innocent, bright expression, I felt ridiculous for overthinking and being so cautious over something so trivial.

Because of that, I unintentionally let out a self-deprecating chuckle.

But fearing Reysir might misunderstand, I quickly hardened my expression again.

With a serious face, I unclipped the snap button on the holder fixed to my belt and gripped the whip.

Then I lightly rotated my wrist to loosen the joints while activating the [Encourage] skill on this body.

The keyword was ‘my possessed body.’

Since it would consume Purple Aether anyway—and the original protagonist also decided to throw targets—I reckoned it would be impossible to hit every target, even using all available buffs.

Feeling vitality rush through my body and my movements lighten, I cracked the whip down onto the floor, triggering the 【Goyang】 skill as well.

Even though the skill level probably wasn’t high, the buffs for increased ability essence and further multipliers made my body feel noticeably different than usual.

“Start now.”

“LFLF!”

***

As soon as I spoke, Yor started throwing the targets as usual, but Reysir only picked up the targets without throwing them.

Looks like he wanted to observe how the training would proceed first.

With the buff active and my body feeling lighter than usual, I was able to hit the targets Yor threw with ease.

If I hadn’t infused the whip with Aether, I might have been hit by shards flying from shattered targets.

But the power of Aether completely pulverized the clay targets instead of just breaking them.

So I could whip away carelessly without worrying about getting hit by shards.

“Wow… Karvald, do you always waste money like this every time you train…?”

Reysir must have thought the constant destruction of targets was some kind of lavish spending.

That’s a misunderstanding. Even if this possessed body is rich, I’m not so careless as to use expensive disposable items in bulk.

I buy cheap clay targets in bulk, which cost about 300 won each by modern currency standards.

There’s a saying about saving pennies to make a mountain, so some might even consider this a waste.

‘I bet the clay targets used in modern shooting ranges cost about the same or maybe even more.’

Besides, my training isn’t for fun but survival.

By that standard, it’s actually pretty cheap.

But I didn’t feel the need to explain the cost to Reysir or defend myself against accusations of wastefulness.

Even if I had, I probably wouldn’t have gotten a chance to answer.

Because Reysir was busy joining in with the target throwing himself.

‘Does the protagonist buff apply even to throwing clay targets?!’

Unlike Yor, who threw targets flying in straight lines all over the place, Reysir stood still and threw targets with a curved trajectory.

There was no doubt his throws were faster than Yor’s, and since he threw right from where he stood, the delay was minimal.

‘Why did I let Reysir throw targets in the first place…!’

Just so you know, these clay targets are quite heavy since they’re made of clay. Think of them like ceramic plates.

Swinging a whip amidst these flying targets bending at various angles at high speed was downright nerve-wracking.

I decided not to chase after targets that flew far away, unlike usual when I try to hit every single one.

Reysir probably wouldn’t try to hit me with the targets, but once the targets leave his hand, they won’t adjust to my movement.

So I had no choice but to stand in place and just keep swinging the whip to avoid being hit.

Fwoosh, sssht, crack, shhh—!

The air was filled with sounds slicing through it, indistinguishable between flying targets and the whip’s crack.

Every now and then, there were popping sounds from targets breaking, but because Reysir’s throws were so fast, I often swung and missed.

Most of the targets I hit were probably the ones Yor threw.

“Wouldn’t it be better to use buffs to enhance your physical abilities?”

“Before… starting… I… already… used… it!”

I had to break off my sentence while whipping hard.

‘Could it be that in this novel world, people can chat non-stop even in the middle of tense battles?’

‘Or maybe it’s because this is training, not a fight, that talking feels more natural? Or is it just because my stats are low?’

“Oh, so that was all you used…? Well, it makes sense since you only started serious training this semester.”

Reysir said awkwardly, easing the power and speed behind his throws.

Even so, the incoming targets were still threatening, so I didn’t take a single step away from my spot.

Still, feeling a bit more comfortable, I tried something else.

Paang-!!

“Hey?! Didn’t your whip just move weirdly??”

You saw that right.

I had just manipulated the Aether infused in the whip to change its trajectory, allowing me to hit a target that I wouldn’t have even grazed if the whip had swung in its original path.

This was possible because the whip was a flexible weapon.

“You’re going to enter the martial arts tournament next year, right? Is it okay to show me such a secret technique?”

Before asking that, Reysir stopped throwing targets.

My arm was hurting from swinging the whip, and I was just about to ask for a short break.

Thinking the timing was perfect, I signaled Yor to stop throwing targets.

“You said you want to win the 1st-year tournament this time, so I guess you’ll enter the overall grade tournament next year. I’ll participate in the 2nd-year tournament next year even if I join. So we won’t meet in any tournament.”

Though I said that, I actually knew Reysir wouldn’t be able to participate in either the overall or 2nd-year tournaments next year.

He’d be leaving the Academy after this year.

‘And if I ever had to risk my life fighting Reysir… no matter how well I hide and use secret techniques, me dying would be inevitable.’

Besides, manipulating the whip’s trajectory with Aether was just a neat trick.

If I kept treating this as a secret technique to hide away, I wouldn’t be able to see how useful it really was.

I’d also block the path to improve it by addressing its weaknesses.

Most importantly, I’d probably end up not being able to use it in crucial emergencies.

When people panic, they tend to reflexively use ingrained movements.

***

While massaging my overworked right arm, these thoughts floated in a corner of my mind.

“Then, do you want to spar now?”

Reysir suddenly said something like that.

I had no idea how we came to that conclusion.

“…Do you want to hit me or something?”

“Why would you jump to that conclusion?!”

The thought I had just been entertaining came right out of Reysir’s mouth too.

Inadvertently, we were paying each other back in kind.

“Since the outcome is obvious, why insist on sparring?”

“Now that I think about it, I’ve never faced someone using a weapon with longer reach than mine. So I want to get some experience before the tournament… That’s all. I’m not trying to hit you. If I wanted to, I would have done it in the first martial arts class.”

True, Reysir’s weapon was a spear, so he probably had the advantage in range during sparring. Wanting to fight someone with a longer weapon at least once made sense.

“Sparring with me will definitely help you! Blocking flying projectiles is different from fighting a person. Even though we spar in martial arts class, swinging a whip and moving arms and legs is quite different.”

That was a valid point.

Still, I hesitated to accept Reysir’s offer immediately.

A sword or spear can be stopped before it reaches the opponent if needed, but once a whip is swung, you can’t stop it halfway.

Like earlier when I changed the whip’s trajectory with Aether, it’s possible to stop a whip infused with Aether.

But I’m not confident in timing it perfectly.

Naturally, hitting someone with an Aether-infused whip is guaranteed to cause serious damage.

Depending on where it hits, it could even be fatal.

There’s also a school rule requiring at least two combat instructors to be present if sparring with Aether-infused weapons…

I fiddled with the whip handle and decided it was better not to.

So I was about to tell Reysir no when…

“Ah! Are you worried about getting hurt by the whip? If that’s why, don’t worry! I’m confident I won’t get hit.”

“…What do you mean by that?”

“Watching how fast you swing the whip, I think I can dodge it easily.”

If Reysir said that just to bait me into wanting to hit him, well, he certainly succeeded.