I Became a Genius Swordsman in the Pretty Girl Game

After a long walk from the cliff, we finally arrived at the Sword Emperor’s residence.

“Wow…”

“Hmm…”

‘Wow.’

Lee Yoo-ri and Kang Do-hee exclaimed in awe, and I, too, stood there with my eyes wide open, taking in the magnificent structure before us.

The Sword Emperor’s Forest, the residence of the Sword Emperor, certainly lived up to its name. On either side of the grand entrance were massive spears, and the white mist that covered the ground added to the air of mystery.

I wondered how such a large house could be nestled in the mountainside, and how we could have come so close without noticing it until now.

Then, the sound of creaking hinges filled the air as the door opened.

And there she stood—Alice.

White silver hair that shimmered with a lustrous sheen, eyes as blue as the clearest sky, and a pale complexion that exuded a cold and aloof aura.

She was the culprit who had caused me to reincarnate into this world, and the one who had laid the foundation for my survival here.

Alice.

‘It’s really her.’

I stood there with my mouth agape, unable to take my eyes off her. I had only seen illustrations of her before, and now, here she was, in the flesh.

‘It’s really Alice.’

I recalled why I had spent so much money on the gacha to obtain her.

Was it because she was a limited-time new character?

Was it because her abilities were insanely powerful?

Was it because Velvets had been hyping her up for the past three months?

None of the above.

From the very beginning, the only information released about Alice was that she was the granddaughter of the Sword Emperor, her real name was Kim Malsook, and her combat motions and illustrations.

The problem was those illustrations. Her appearance—silver hair and blue eyes—was exactly my type, and it had struck a chord with me.

Unlike the other characters, whose personal stories had been extensively explored, I only knew bits and pieces about Alice, and so encountering her now felt like meeting a character from Velvets for the first time.

‘But… what’s this?’

I stared at her, then tilted my head to the side.

Her eyes were trembling uncontrollably, her lips opening and closing as if she couldn’t quite find the words, and her hands were shaking slightly.

Having spent so much time with my master, I had become accustomed to reading her minimal expressions and body language, and so I quickly realized what she was feeling.

‘She seems flustered… Is she surprised to see us? I thought she came out to greet us…’

Just as we arrived at the main gate, the door opened, and I assumed she had come to welcome us. But it seemed I was wrong.

“…’

“…’

After a long silence, Kang Do-hee fidgeted beside me, so I decided to break the ice.

“Hello. We are students from the Velvet Hunter Academy, referred here by Headmistress Lina to meet with the Sword Emperor.”

Alice’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Ve-Velvet Hunter Academy…?”

Alice stuttered in her surprise.

“Yes, so… we’ve come to see the Sword Emperor. Could you please guide us?”

Whoosh.

Alice turned on her heel and began walking towards the closed door.

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

She repeatedly banged her head against the door, hard enough to hurt.

‘That must hurt.’

“What’s this? Some kind of ritual for the Sword Emperor?”

“Hmm, I’ve heard that the Sword Emperor is eccentric, but this is certainly peculiar.”

Lee Yoo-ri and Kang Do-hee whispered behind me, and Alice’s ears turned bright red, indicating that she had heard them.

Thud.

Alice banged her head against the door again, and I couldn’t help but intervene.

“Um… it says ‘push’ on the door there…”

“Oh.”

Alice opened her mouth in realization, biting her lip. She then pulled the door open.

Squeak!

“Hmm, a little lacking, aren’t you? You don’t seem too young, so that’s unfortunate.”

“Hey, keep your voice down! Kang Do-hee!”

“Your voice is louder!”

I couldn’t help but chuckle.

‘These Velvets producers know how to create a character, I’ll give them that.’

Typically, a character with a cold personality and appearance would have a gap in their behavior, like being a bit air-headed, which is a major draw for fans.

The producers were usually a bunch of foul-mouthed jerks in the mornings and at bedtime, but I had to admit they did a good job with this one.

“Grandmother… I brought them.”

Swoosh!

With her forehead flushed red, Alice briskly led us to the Sword Emperor, then disappeared on the spot.

In the middle of the training ground, there was a woman holding a smoking pipe in one hand, drawing in the tobacco smoke.

Sssss—

“Hmmm… So it’s you, huh? No wonder that child was so flustered.”

The Sword Emperor, looking over me and my party members, let out a nasal sound.

I also looked at her with admiration. She looked much younger than I had expected.

‘Wasn’t the Sword Emperor supposed to be an old woman…?’

Since Alice had said she was the Sword Emperor’s granddaughter, I naturally assumed she’d be an elderly woman. But far from being an old lady, she was a beautiful woman with indigo hair tied up.

‘Well, they do say that possessing mana slows down the aging process…’

But does it make you look this young?

At that moment, her gaze, which had been slowly scanning us, stopped on me. The look of boredom on her face was suddenly replaced with interest.

“This one’s a real find.”

Ah, right. Now that I think of it, Principal Lina had written me a letter of introduction to show when I met the Sword Emperor.

I started to reach into my pocket to take out the paper.

“No need.”

She shook her head, stopping me.

“Huh?”

“It’s just a letter from that brat Lina, right?”

I nodded with a slightly awkward expression.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Well, she probably asked me to teach you some sword techniques. But, are you the only one who uses a sword?”

“Yes! I’m the tank!”

“I’m a fighter.”

Lee Yoo-ri and Kang Do-hee answered in firm voices.

“Well, alright. Since it’s been a while since I had guests sent by that brat… I can’t treat you poorly. Follow me.”

She quickly turned and started walking away. My party and I exchanged glances before following her.

She seemed like a person with a strong sense of independence.

.

.

.

The place the Sword Emperor led us to was behind the building.

“…Is this?”

When I saw the scenery there, I spoke with a surprised voice. The Sword Emperor nodded.

“Yes, this is the Forest of Swords. It’s why they call it the Sword Emperor’s Forest.”

There were massive, sharp blades stuck into the ground like a dense forest of trees. The edges of the blades gleamed a bright, cold blue. The gaps between the blades looked too narrow for a person to pass through.

Swish—

At that moment, a leaf carried by the wind touched one of the blades and was instantly sliced in half.

“Your first task is to pass through here.”

She shrugged her shoulders.

“Hmm, well. It might be a bit overwhelming to suddenly do something like this. Malsook.”

Then, out of nowhere, Alice appeared behind us and quickly walked up to the Sword Emperor, stepping in front of her. She pressed her lips tightly together and glared at the Sword Emperor.

“Show them a demonstration.”

With a deep sigh, Alice kicked off the ground and threw herself into the Forest of Swords.

Swoosh!

Alice twisted her body, swiftly navigating through the forest. The blue blades brushed against her body, but Alice’s expression remained calm throughout.

“You need to cross the Forest of Swords and then return to this spot. What do you think? Can you do it?”

The Sword Emperor smiled slyly at us.

“…Can we do it?”

I couldn’t help but be taken aback.

Well,

It was too easy.

I’d already done this training before.

It was training that my master had made me do within two months of enrolling in the academy. I had to throw myself into a virtual space filled with densely packed swords and pass through it at maximum speed. After about a week of this training, the swords began to move on their own. Another week later, my master’s sword energy would target me, trying to strike me down.

I looked over at my party members. They also looked surprised.

The training I had learned from the instructor had been passed on to the Utopia party as well. In other words, Lee Yoo-ri and Kang Do-hee had also experienced this training long ago.

‘Hmm… My body and mana are a bit restricted, which is annoying… But still.’

I used to do this effortlessly even when my physical abilities were far lower than they are now. There’s no way I couldn’t do it.

As we stared blankly at the scene, the Sword Emperor spoke up.

“Is this too difficult for you from the start? In that case…”

“No, we’ll do it.”

I interrupted her.

Yes. Now that I think about it, the Sword Emperor still didn’t know the level of our party. So she probably wanted to gauge our skills with some basic training.

If we showed her that we could easily pass this, she’d likely adjust the training to match our level.

Swoosh!

With that thought in mind, I threw myself into the Forest of Swords at my maximum speed.

My party members followed closely behind me.

.

.

.

‘Hmm, maybe it was too difficult for the kids…’

The children that Lina had sent to her for training.

When the Sword Emperor first saw them, she was quite surprised. Their physical conditioning and the aura of their mana were anything but ordinary.

Even here, where the unique energy severely diminished physical abilities and mana, she could still sense their strength. This meant that these kids were among the elite.

Especially the boy with the black hair.

That boy was truly exceptional.

He almost reminded her of that monstrous brat Baek Seol-hee from the past…

‘No. That can’t be.’

There couldn’t possibly be another one like her in this world. Still, sensing their unusual aura, she decided to test them with the high-difficulty Forest of Swords challenge.

They were visibly surprised.

‘Perhaps it was too much from the start…?’

But then,

Her thoughts were shattered in an instant.

“Wha…!?”

Thunk.

The smoking pipe she had been holding fell to the ground.

“What the…!”

The lethargic look in her eyes was suddenly replaced by a wild gleam.

“My sword! That child must inherit my sword!!!”