Infinite Evolution Hunter [NOVEL] - Chapter 5
“From now on, we’ll conduct hand-to-hand combat training. You might wonder why we’re doing human-to-human when we’re supposed to fight monsters, but many monsters are humanoid, so this training is very relevant.”
There were many trainees, so the sparring class was run in groups.
I was placed in Group 1, which gathered close-combat tracks.
“Becoming a master in a month is impossible. I’ll only teach the barest basics, so follow closely. The fundamentals of combat are always the same: offense and defense. Land your own attacks, and evade or block the enemy’s. To do that, you must understand your weapon and the enemy’s—strengths and weaknesses.”
One instructor explained up front while two in the back demonstrated several movements slowly in sequence.
“This is what it looks like when a Hunter does the same thing.”
They repeated the sequence at what looked like ten times the speed. The sword trails were almost invisible, and the clash of blades boomed.
Applause rose among the students.
“Now, I’ll explain the pros and cons of each weapon.”
The instructor continued with weapon explanations, and the students listened carefully—it might be the weapon they use for life.
“Now go try them—hold and swing each one and find what fits your hand. Begin.”
Instructors stood by the weapon racks while students milled around, hefting weapons and taking awkward swings. The instructors corrected their stances as they watched.
I don’t use weapons, but I couldn’t exactly tell the instructor I fight bare-handed, so I chose knuckle dusters.
“Once you’ve chosen, line up in front of the instructor for that weapon. You can change later, so don’t stress too much.”
“Tch… Because of you alone, I have to do this?”
I was the only one who picked knuckles, so one instructor got stuck as my personal coach.
“Ever learned martial arts?”
“Yes.”
On the battlefield, in my previous life.
“Yeah? Then come at me.”
The instructor didn’t even take a proper stance—basically telling me to attack however I liked.
With my current stats, hurting him was nearly impossible. It was a good chance, so I slid in and threw a straight punch.
“Huh?!”
Surprised by the speed, the instructor swatted my fist aside. By minimizing wasted motion and taking the shortest line to target, even with low stats, I forced him to register me faster along that straight line.
But the stat gap was enormous. He moved just before my fist touched him and still parried it lightly. His Strength was high; even through the knuckles, my hand throbbed. Without them, my bones might have shattered.
“You okay? Better than I expected.”
He worried he’d hit too hard when he reflexively countered in surprise.
“I’m fine. May I continue?”
I shook out my struck hand.
“Good. Come.”
This time he squared up a bit more properly.
I charged in with punches and kicks, but his movements were several times faster than mine; I couldn’t even brush his collar.
“Where did you learn? Your basics are solid.”
He asked easily while evading.
“Here and there.”
I was already winded, and answering made it worse.
“I’ll start attacking now—defend.”
He began countering or initiating as he deflected my strikes, but adjusted his speed to me, so it wasn’t unmanageable.
From the side, it probably looked like a decent exchange.
“Hmph… Getting all excited without realizing the instructor’s going easy on him.”
I heard the big guy from yesterday—the one who beat me—talking.
“Stop. That’s enough.”
Catching my punching arm lightly, the instructor ended the drill.
“Phew… Thank you.”
I bowed and steadied my breathing.
The gap between my stronger memories from my past life and my still-weak present body made this kind of sparring very useful. I’d like to do it often if I get the chance.
After a short break, another instructor stepped forward.
“Grab your weapons and pair up. Today, spar without using active skills—only your physical ability. Even dulled, a weapon swung by an Awakener can kill, but healers and instructors are watching. Fight at full power without worry.”
Whether he wanted us to worry or not, students began pairing off.
Right then, the big guy planted himself in front of me as if he’d been waiting.
With his massive build and a training club in hand, he looked like an orc.
“All healed up? So you’ve got a healing-type skill, huh? Great—I can beat you without holding back.”
The pseudo-orc growled down at me.
“Didn’t even tickle.”
“You little—You’re good at getting under people’s skin.”
Why is this guy always fuming? Is he actually an orc?
“Begin!”
At the signal, everyone started sparring.
At first, most took it light. Many students weren’t used to the idea of actually hurting someone.
Meanwhile, the orc’s club swept for my ribs. He’d swung at full force—plenty of speed and weight behind it.
But his wind-up was huge, so dodging wasn’t hard.
When I evaded, he muscled the club to a stop and changed direction. Snapping direction like that isn’t easy—he must’ve rolled very high starting stats.
With attacks coming in succession, I backed off.
“Where do you think you’re going?!”
Thinking he had momentum, he brought the club straight down at my head.
Luckily, he relied on strength with no technique—his motions were big. I slipped inside the gap and drove a punch into his gut.
Thanks to his Enhancement skill, despite the solid impact his stance didn’t break; he countered instead.
Right after my attack, I failed to evade the club. On a diagonal arc, it crashed into my shoulder.
A scream tore out of me, and I dropped to a knee.
[Agility has increased by 1.]
Apparently my body decided it needed to move faster.
“Stop there!”
An instructor hurried over to intervene, and a healer came to treat me.
“I’m fine.”
I clutched my broken shoulder and stood.
“It’s broken.”
“Leave it—it’ll set.”
The pain made me feel faint, but thinking of the skills I might gain later, it wasn’t a bad trade.
“Trainee Chu Kang-min, was that necessary? We said ‘as in real combat,’ but this is still sparring. Ease off a bit before impact. Save your strength for monsters, not teammates.”
The instructor gave the orc—Chu Kang-min—a mild warning.
“Yesssir~”
Chu answered lazily.
“Then, Trainee Chu, find another partner and continue.”
“I can keep going.”
I cut in on the instructor.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m fine now.”
I dusted myself off and stood before Chu Kang-min again.
“We’re continuing, right?”
“Gladly.”
Seeing me not back down but press forward instead, Chu’s smile tightened and a vein popped on his forehead.
I slipped narrowly past his club and threw punches, but his body reinforced by Enhancement took no meaningful damage.
I kept getting knocked down and getting back up; eventually even the instructor stopped paying us much attention.
[Agility has increased by 1.]
Another point in Agility—and now his attacks stopped landing.
With him enraged and swinging wildly, I tagged his torso repeatedly, but he still took no damage.
“Stop!”
After a while, the instructor called an end to class.
“Hah… hah… I’ll see you later.”
He was the one out of breath from trying to stomp me, but I ignored him and left the gym.
—
I was eating in the cafeteria when Chu Kang-min’s gang approached.
“This punk—how can you eat right now?”
“Why not? I’m hungry. You should eat too if you want to keep that bulk.”
“Just come take your beating. Outside.”
“After I finish. Let me eat first.”
I tried to ignore them and keep eating, but he grabbed my collar.
“Hey. I’m going to get an instructor. Stop it.”
A woman, seeing us, came over and stepped in, and Chu let go of my clothes.
“Don’t worry ab—!!!”
I turned to tell her I was fine, but when I saw her face I flinched back in shock.
Her image was so different I hadn’t recognized her at first—up close, I knew.
In my previous life, this was the infamous villain, Bae Nayoung.
Back then, villains were as big a problem as Gates and monsters. If only every Awakener were a hero—but many betrayed humanity.
The Witch of Darkness, Bae Nayoung—she stripped countless Hunters of their five senses, trapped them in darkness, and murdered them mercilessly.
In line with that reputation, her face had been corpse-pale and bloodless—but now she looked like a kind, beautiful girl in her early twenties.
Seeing a villain I could never even touch in my past life made cold sweat run down my back.
“What? Feeling nervous now? Trying to look good in front of a girl, huh?”
Chu said when he noticed.
“Don’t mind him. Please go about your business. He’s our friend. Our friend.”
Chu pressed down on my shoulder and spoke to Bae Nayoung.
“I’ll bring an instructor.”
Bae Nayoung turned away like she had no time for this.
“Alright, alright—we’re going. We’re going.”
Chu and his gang backed off.
“Lucky you—made a guardian angel. It’s not over; see you later.”
He didn’t forget to growl under his breath at me as he left.
“Are you alright?”
“Uh… yes.”
Bae Nayoung came closer and asked.
No matter how I looked at her face, I couldn’t reconcile it with the one from my past life.
She looked so kind. Was she acting?
Was she already committing crimes behind the scenes that made Chu look like nothing?
Or did I misjudge her?
“Um, may I ask your name?”
“Bae Nayoung.”
…Damn. It is her.
“You’re Mr. Lee Jiseok, right?”
“Huh? You know me?”
Why? What is she planning?
If I take a lethal blow, regeneration won’t save me—it’s game over.
Right now, my power hasn’t even begun to develop.
Even if her ability is a fraction of what it was, she could erase me in one hit.
Granted, if she’s attending the Academy, that shouldn’t happen—but I couldn’t help tensing up.
“Yes. I’ve wanted to learn from you—you always train so hard. How do you push yourself like that?”
So she’d seen me constantly drive myself to the brink.
“Gates are dangerous. If you don’t work hard, you die.”
“You’re right. That was a silly question. I need to work harder too.”
No—you should take it easy. If you get stronger, the rest of us are dead.
“Enjoy your meal.”
“Y-yeah…”
She nodded and went back to her seat.
Seeing her eat with other students, she didn’t even seem antisocial.
As soon as she left, the tension drained out of me.
Since my return, I hadn’t been this scared.
Still, I had to eat, so I finished my meal and headed for the dorm.
“Took your sweet time. Come on—now.”
Chu Kang-min’s gang was waiting for me in front of the dorm.