I Became a Genius Swordsman in the Pretty Girl Game

Roaarrrrr!!!

The Drake opened his mouth wide, aiming for Kang Do-hee’s head. His sharp teeth looked ready to bite into her skull at any moment.

“Tsk!”

Kang Do-hee quickly lifted her head.

Crack!

Drake’s teeth snapped shut just inches from her face. Seizing the opportunity, Kang Do-hee reached out, grabbed his mouth, and flipped her body. She landed on top of his massive head.

Roaarrrrrrr!!!

Drake thrashed his head from side to side in a frenzy. Normally, she would have easily maintained her balance and launched a counterattack in such a situation. However, she was still not accustomed to the suppressed power coursing through her body. All she could do was cling to Drake’s neck with all her might.

“Noooo! Not my 938,000 won shield!”

Below, Jin Yuha was climbing the cliff, kicking off the shields as he ascended.

Further down, Lee Yoo-ri screamed every time a shield fell.

Thud!

“Ah! Ah! My 2,265,000 won shield! I bought it at a discount for 2,300,000 won, minus 35,000 won!”

Thud!

“Waaaaah! That one was my 3,499,900 won shield! I bought it during the shield frenzy, and now I won’t be able to get it at that price again!”

Thud!

“Noooooo! A mistake by the luxury shield manufacturer, Tough Guys! My 4,217,400 won shield!”

Kang Do-hee and Jin Yuha locked eyes for a moment. Jin Yuha nodded slightly.

Without needing to say a word, Kang Do-hee understood his intention—he wanted her to create an opening.

“Haa!”

Kang Do-hee exhaled sharply, wrapping her legs around the Drake’s neck and crossing her ankles to lock them in place.

Because of its thick neck, she knew this hold would only last a moment.

The Drake went into a frenzy, struggling even more violently.

“Stay still!”

Kang Do-hee clasped her hands together and raised them above her head.

“Now!”

Boom!

With a powerful downward strike, she slammed the Drake’s head into the cliff.

“Well done, Kang Do-hee.”

Jin Yuha had arrived just in time, his sword poised in the air.

Swoosh!

He aimed for Drake’s philtrum.

Jin Yuha’s sword briefly disappeared into the flesh before being withdrawn.

In that moment, Kang Do-hee unlocked her ankles and, with one hand, grabbed the edge of a nearby shield. With her other hand outstretched, she leaped off Drake’s back.

“Little Fool! Grab my hand!”

Kang Do-hee successfully grabbed Jin Yuha’s outstretched hand. With her other hand, she pushed off the Drake’s body, sending him tumbling down the cliff.

Roaarrrrr…

The monster’s roar gradually faded into the distance.

Thud!

Haa.

Kang Do-hee sighed and looked down. Jin Yuha was dangling from her hand, grinning up at her.

“Nice one, Kang Puppy.”

“Don’t call me Kang Puppy!”

Kang Do-hee threw Jin Yuha upward with all her strength. He stabbed his sword into the cliff wall and landed safely. She, too, leaped upward, grasping the shield tightly.

And then…

The shield she had been holding also fell downward.

“Noooo! That’s my brand new shield! I just bought it a week ago! It’s a 7,500,000 won shield that I bought from the Tough Girls without any discounts!”

Lee Yoo-ri’s anguished scream echoed through the air.

.

.

.

Finally, we reached the top of the cliff.

However, Lee Yoo-ri was still staring down at the cliff, her eyes filled with longing.

“My shieeelds…”

Feeling mischievous, I approached her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“It’s okay, Soup. Your shields are probably happier up in the sky now. You can always buy new ones.”

Soup spun around, tears welling up in her eyes, her lips pressed tightly together.

“How can you say that, Jin Yuha?! Don’t you know how much those shields meant to me?!”

“Meant to you?”

“I polished them every day, gave them massages with the finest oils, and even sang them songs to make them tougher!”

‘Hmm, do shields get tougher when you sing to them?’

Lee Yoo-ri was making some strange accusations. I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Heh, I was just kidding. They’re probably fine.”

“Huh?”

“Do you really think they’d break from falling off a cliff? If they did, they’d be a scam. They’re probably still intact down there.”

Hearing my words, Soup seemed to calm down a little, her expression softening. However, her anxiety remained, and she asked in a meek voice:

“Do you really think so…? But what if someone takes them?”

“No one comes to sword Emperor’s Mountain anyway. No one has been here in the last ten years. Why would anyone come here now? We only found this place because of the compass.”

“Y-you’re right… They’ll probably still be there if we go back to look for them, won’t they?”

“Yeah, so don’t worry about it. Let’s go.”

“O-okay…”

Lee Yoo-ri took my outstretched hand and stood up. However, she kept glancing down at her shields, still worried about them.

‘Hmm, no one has really come here in ten years. I doubt anyone will suddenly show up now…’

Unbeknownst to us, we may have set another flag as we continued our journey toward the Sword Emperor’s residence.

Meanwhile, Alice, or Kim Malsook, was pacing back and forth in front of the bathroom mirror, feeling anxious upon hearing Grandmother’s mention of guests.

‘Guests? Out of the blue? This is too sudden! I’m not prepared yet…’

Alice, or Kim Malsook, as she was originally named, had lost her parents to the monsters from the Gate ten years ago. She was then taken in by the Sword Emperor, and had lived her entire life in this remote Mountain ever since.

Although she had occasionally accompanied her grandmother on trips outside to buy necessities, they had only purchased what they needed and returned. She had never really interacted with anyone.

Her only exposure to social interactions came from the comic books and animations she had obtained from outside, and her sole companion was the Sword Emperor.

In the past, she hadn’t understood why, but now she did. The Sword Emperor had been a famous figure, and as a result, there were many who sought to harm her. Thus, her grandmother had chosen to live in this secluded mountain to protect her.

So, when her grandmother suddenly told her that she would be enrolling in the Academy the following year, she had made a decision.

She would never let anyone look down on her.

In the comic books and animations she had read and watched, the characters from the countryside who enrolled in school were often ridiculed and bullied.

-“Your appearance is so unsophisticated.”

-“Your accent is weird…”

-“Your name is strange, too.”

As a result, she had resolved to change her unsophisticated appearance and name, and to introduce herself as New Kim Mal-sook, or New Alice, when she started at the Academy.

She had dyed her brown hair white, worn blue-colored contact lenses, and changed her name to that of a female character from an animation she enjoyed. She wanted to emulate the cold and aloof character who was admired and sought after by others.

She craved attention but felt uncomfortable and burdened by the idea of having to react to it. Thus, the cold and distant personality of the character seemed like the perfect fit for her.

At first, it had felt awkward, but after practicing her expressions and speech in front of the mirror every day, she felt more confident.

‘Maybe I should make my tone even colder…’

Alice looked into the mirror and tilted her head up.

“How boring.”

“Hmm, is that all?”

“Tsk, what a waste of time enrolling here. I might as well have continued training on my own.”

“Haa, friends? I have no interest in such trivial pastimes.”

“Hmph, you… Fine, I’ll be your friend. Consider it an honor.”

She recited lines from the animation, imitating the character’s demeanor.

“…’

The stoic and cold expression on her face slowly crumbled. She covered her face with her hands and began to pace nervously.

“Aaah! I don’t know! I really don’t know! What should I do?! Is this right?! I don’t know if I can do this in front of guests! And what about next year at the Academy?!”

As she fretted, she paused for a moment.

“Wait, if it’s guests for Grandmother, they’ll probably be around her age, right?”

If that was the case, she could use this as an opportunity to test out her new persona.

After all, it was unlikely that people of her grandmother’s age would be attending the Velvet Hunter Academy. Any mistakes she made would likely be attributed to youthful awkwardness.

Slap!

She slapped her cheeks with both hands.

Whoosh.

With her face still red from the slaps, she looked into the mirror.

At least her appearance resembled that of the female character from the animation she admired.

“Welcome to the Sword Emperor’s Forest. I am Alice, the granddaughter of the Sword Emperor.”

She bowed deeply, waving her hand grandly. Then, she lifted her head with determination.

Hmm.

Yes.

Let’s do this.

Alice nodded firmly, her expression reminiscent of a brave warrior facing a demon king.

“Mal-sook! The guests are almost here—go out and greet them.”

Grandmother’s voice rang out.

‘Ugh, I told you not to call me Mal-sook!’

Alice opened the bathroom door and stepped out.

‘Well, even if they’re around Grandmother’s age, it shouldn’t be a problem if they know my real name…’

She had no idea that the guests were, in fact, her future seniors at the Academy.

And among them was someone who would take a particular interest in her.