I Became a Swordsmanship Genius at the Academy

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“How is this someone else’s business?”
“…Huh?”

Hana-Rin’s actions halted at Kim Il-Shin’s words. She stood there for a moment, blank, but eventually resumed walking and asked,

“…What do you mean by that?”
“……”

What followed was silence. As no answer came even after waiting, Hana-Rin asked again.

“Hmm? What do you mean by that?”

But again, there was no response.

“Hey, answer me…!”

Unable to hold back any longer, Hana-Rin looked up and finally noticed Kim Il-Shin, who had lost consciousness.

“…Sigh.”

Suddenly feeling deflated, Hana-Rin let out a sigh and opened the bedroom door, supporting Kim Il-Shin.
Inside, she laid him down on the bed and sat on the chair beside it.

Originally, she intended to leave right after laying him down, but that was no longer possible.

“…He didn’t collapse from an illness or something, did he?”

Sudden anxiety gripped her, preventing her from leaving.

With a belly full of strong beer and intoxicating drinks like Captain W, it’s more surprising if there wasn’t an issue with his body.

Compared to the dwarf Park Kwang-Seok, Kim Il-Shin, being human, couldn’t be safe from risks like acute alcohol poisoning.

Even if superhumans who have mastered mana have superior bodies to regular people, they were not invincible.

Hana-Rin stood up and placed her hand under his nose.

Fortunately, his breathing was even and regular. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong.

He really looked like he was just sleeping deeply.

Still, just to be safe, it seemed she had to keep an eye on him.

Sitting back down in the chair, Hana-Rin took out her notebook and began to read. She had the intention of reviewing the stabilization process for the current month’s sword.

The authorization to use the mountain range workshop would come through soon, so it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that what remained depended on her hands.

Hana-Rin quickly began to focus, while not forgetting to check on Kim Il-Shin’s condition every now and then.

As an hour passed, a memory suddenly struck her.

‘He said, “How is this someone else’s business…”’

That comment Kim Il-Shin made while she was helping him here continued to echo in her mind.

‘So does that mean he doesn’t see himself as an outsider…?’

Outsider, others, strangers, and so on. Hana-Rin had led a life familiar with such words.

She lost her entire family during her childhood, a time she barely remembered, and had never formed personal connections with those she met afterward.

The main reason for this was ironically her exceptional talent.

Her ability, which had shown itself since childhood, caused the dwarves around her to evaluate her solely as a blacksmith.

Hwang Deok-Soo was just another outsider, despite having a somewhat closer relationship with her than others. He was simply a kind mayor to everyone.

After leaving Jangsan Cave, she could only form relationships as a shopkeeper with the humans she met. Those who approached her did so with the intent to use her.

Thus, Hana-Rin had lived in a solitary world, and loneliness had long since become familiar.

But Kim Il-Shin had just said it was not someone else’s business.

She couldn’t comprehend the exact meaning, yet hearing those words had made her feel a swell of emotions.

‘…I don’t know. I’ll just continue my review.’

Suddenly overwhelmed by inexplicable embarrassment, Hana-Rin fixed her gaze on her notebook.

Rustle, rustle.

Following that, time passed until the morning sun rose, and Hana-Rin remained beside Kim Il-Shin.

*

“…Ugh.”

Waking from a deep sleep, I opened my eyes to see the ceiling of a bright room. Unsurprisingly, it was a ceiling I had never seen before.

Grabbing my throbbing head, I pushed myself up. My stomach was mildly upset, and I desperately needed something to settle it.

Staring blankly ahead, memories of what happened before I fell asleep came flooding back.

‘After winning the drinking bet, I was helped by Hana-Rin to come up… and then what did we talk about? I must have fallen asleep then. So Hana-Rin must have brought me here.’

As I had managed to stay conscious until the very end, my memory was intact without any gaps.

The hangover didn’t seem as severe as I expected.

Other than a bit of pain in my head and stomach, there were no issues.

After resting for a bit and filling my stomach, I figured I would be fine.

‘At this level, it’s hardly even there.’

Considering the amount of liquor consumed, it was quite a stroke of luck to have ended up this way.

Even with a superhuman body, it would be difficult to get over forty-five beers and seven Captain W drinks and come out fine.

It seemed that during my sleep, my talents [Stamina (A)] and [Regeneration (A)] had been working diligently.

‘For now, let’s drink some water…’

Just as I finished my thoughts and was about to move to quench my thirst,

“Drink this.”

Hana-Rin appeared by the bed, holding out a steaming cup.

It smelled sweet, so it seemed to be honey water.

“…Thanks.”

I took the cup and immediately took a sip. The honey water had a sweet yet slightly sour taste.

‘This is interesting.’

What Hana-Rin had given me seemed to be something different from the ordinary honey water I knew.

The moment I drank it, my upset stomach relaxed instantly.

It felt like it was coating my throat and stomach.

“It’s a dwarf’s hangover remedy. Dwarves drink this after drinking.”

As expected, it wasn’t just honey water.

Considering that they lived alongside alcohol, the effectiveness of their hangover remedy was on another level compared to the market stuff.

I found myself wondering why they didn’t mass-produce and sell it.

This kind of hangover remedy could rake in a fortune.

“It’s not that they don’t sell it, but that they can’t. The ingredients are expensive, and they have to make it one by one.”

I realized it was not feasible to sell externally.

‘Well, if they could sell it, they would have done so long ago.’

After that silly thought, I polished off the hangover remedy.

Thanks to its excellent effects, any hangover symptoms I had vanished completely.

I felt that after a little rest, my overall condition would be fully restored.

“Did the authorization to use the mountain range workshop come through?”

I set the cup down on the side table and asked, to which Hana-Rin immediately responded.

“It’s already come through, and I’ve prepped everything. Now, all that’s left is for you to show up to start.”

“Really? That was quick.”

Although the drinking game seemed to have gone until dawn, I was surprised that the authorization had come through and everything was ready already.

Even for dwarves, their efficiency seemed unreal.

“Let’s hurry and get going. If we take too long, we might not finish today.”

“That sounds a bit rushed.”

While I welcomed the quick start, there was no need for such haste.

Having departed from the academy to here on Friday night, it was now Saturday morning.

There was still a whole day left until I had to return, so I thought there was still time.

“…Do you know what day it is today?”

“…Isn’t it Saturday?”

“Hoo…”

Hana-Rin sighed and shook her head upon hearing my answer.

“Today is Sunday.”

“…Huh?”

“Today is Sunday. You’ve slept the entire Saturday away and just now woke up.”

“…”

That was a fact I never could have imagined.

No wonder I felt oddly okay despite having drunk so much.

It was precisely because I’d literally slept the entire day away that I was in this decent state.

“I’ll head out first, so come out as soon as you’re ready.”

Saying that, Hana-Rin left, and I immediately went into the bathroom to take a shower.

*

After finishing my preparations, I stepped outside to find Hana-Rin waiting for me.

“You’re quick. Let’s set off right away.”

“Sure.”

Hana-Rin and I began walking toward the mountain range workshop located at the north end of Jangsan Cave.

The morning scenery of Jangsan Cave didn’t differ much from what I had seen on Friday night.

It seemed like the view here would remain unchanged no matter the time.

As we walked down the path, I spotted a group of dwarves running down the street from the opposite side.

“Did it collapse again? How many times is this now!”

“Let’s think about that later and hurry on!”

They all dashed toward the entrance with shovels and pickaxes in hand. Listening to their words, it seemed the mine outside Jangsan Cave had collapsed again.

“Why’s it been happening so frequently these days?”

“Yeah, seriously. There haven’t been any earthquakes or heavy rain.”

Hearing the conversations of the passing citizens, I immediately recalled what might be happening.

‘Is it already starting?’

In Geumgangsan, where the dwarves had settled, there was a giant rock elemental sealed away.

A highly volatile and powerful creature, if it were to be released, it would pose a danger, but as long as the seal remained undisturbed, there shouldn’t be any issues.

However, as the dwarves excavated Jangsan Cave and various mines, they inadvertently provoked the elemental.

The strange phenomena were occurring with some part of the seal having been disturbed as the creature stirred in its slumber.

‘But for now, it’s fine.’

The awakening of the rock elemental was still far off.

There was no need to worry so soon.

‘Let’s stay focused on the stabilization work.’

Finishing my thoughts, I continued onward, heading towards the mountain range workshop.