Chapter 55: The Hero Goes to the Academy (Part 2)

“A dojo challenge? What’s that…?”

Ji-eun frowned, feeling a slight headache coming on.

A dojo challenge?

Was that even something a modern person would say?

‘It’s like she’s from a martial arts manga.’

Shihyun often displayed a disconnect from common sense, but even considering that, this was absurd. And coming from such a beautiful woman, no less.

Was this real? Really real?

But Shihyun didn’t seem to think anything was amiss.

“Why? Is there a problem?”

That kind of reaction could only come from someone completely oblivious to the strangeness of their statement.

Ji-eun rubbed her forehead and muttered, “…Shihyun, are you going on some warrior’s pilgrimage?”

“Warrior’s pilgrimage?”

“You said ‘dojo challenge’ without even knowing what it is?”

Ji-eun smacked her forehead again at Shihyun’s innocent response. Her forehead was turning slightly red. She had the absurd thought that she might actually get a bruise. She slowly began to explain.

“Shihyun, a problem? Of course there’s a problem! Why would you barge into a swordsmanship academy and try to take their sign? Are you planning to open your own academy? Or hang it in your house?”

“Barge in and take their sign? What are you talking about?”

Shihyun tilted her head. She didn’t even know what a dojo challenge was! Ji-eun felt a tightness in her chest, like she had just eaten a hundred sweet potatoes without any water.

“That’s what a dojo challenge is. You go to someone else’s dojo, challenge them to a fight, and if you win, you steal their sign. The sign is a symbol of the dojo, you see? Taking it proves you’re stronger. Losing the sign, on the other hand, shows that the dojo is weak.”

“I see.”

Shihyun nodded.

Then, she tilted her head and asked, “But we can’t do that?”

“We…can, I suppose.”

Ji-eun stopped herself from yelling.

Well, it wasn’t impossible.

It would be incredibly bizarre and outlandish, but not impossible. If the other dojo accepted the challenge, that is.

“And I’m not really interested in the sign.”

“…Then?”

“I thought of it as…content.”

Shihyun said, dipping her spoon into the bubbling sundaeguk. She stirred the rice mixed into the soup. Ji-eun rested her chin on her hand and watched her.

“Valuable content? How so?”

“Well, it would be good to have content outside of gaming, right?”

“And?”

“Duels are traditionally popular. Look at individual matches in Arfellium Saga. Confrontations, duels…they excite people.”

That was true. Competitive content, especially 1v1 matches, was always popular. It was true for older RTS games, and even during the AOS craze, 1v1 matches were considered romantic.

“And I won’t lose.”

Shihyun grinned.

That was also true.

Considering Shihyun’s gameplay, she seemed incredibly skilled, or perhaps talented, in swordsmanship. That meant she would likely have no problem with a dojo challenge.

‘Of course, reality is different from a game…’

But considering Arfellium Saga’s realistic combat system, someone skilled with a sword in-game was likely skilled in real life as well.

“And…”

“And?”

Shihyun smiled sweetly. Ji-eun thought she looked like a model in a photoshoot. Although no photoshoot would ever take place in a sundaeguk restaurant.

“I’ve always wanted to visit a swordsmanship academy.”

“…You’ve never been to one? Then where did you learn swordsmanship?”

“Uh…self-taught?”

Self-taught.

Well, it wasn’t entirely wrong.

Shihyun learned swordsmanship in ‘that world’.

And in ‘that world’, she was essentially self-taught. She had a sort of teacher, but he wasn’t much help. Shihyun surpassed his skill within weeks.

“Self-taught…”

Of course, Ji-eun, unaware of this secret, interpreted Shihyun’s words as bragging about her natural talent.

“Well…I guess you would want to visit one if you’ve never been.”

“Haha.”

“But there’s not much to see. They just teach you how to use a sword. Like a kendo academy? A bit more practical, maybe… practical… Actually, not practical at all. Modern people don’t carry swords around.”

“…That’s true.”

Shihyun subtly adjusted her coat, conscious of the dagger strapped to her waist. Fortunately, Ji-eun didn’t notice. It would be strange for anyone to expect her to be carrying a weapon.

Shihyun clicked her tongue while Ji-eun stirred her sundaeguk, lost in thought.

‘A dojo challenge… Well, not really a dojo challenge anymore.’

A swordsmanship duel? A warrior’s training? What should she call it?

The name wasn’t important.

What mattered was whether Shihyun’s idea was worthwhile.

‘Expanding her content is what Shihyun needs most.’

She would definitely run out of content eventually. While it wasn’t a problem now, she would need to find new ideas soon.

Targeting swordsmanship academies wasn’t a bad idea in that regard.

‘Shihyun’s unlikely to lose anyway.’

A loss would damage her perfect image, but that was unlikely. This could be a good way to showcase her exceptional swordsmanship.

‘Duels are popular, too.’

Look at how popular boxing, MMA, and the UFC were. Even old manga often featured tournaments like the Tenkaichi Budokai.

1v1 duels were thrilling.

Ji-eun quickly finished her calculations. The potential benefits outweighed the risks. Significantly.

Having reached a decision, she quickly finished her sundaeguk. After breakfast and her hangover cure, she sipped her water and said, “Actually, it’s a good idea. Though it seems a bit early for your second stream… But I don’t see any major problems.”

“Right?”

Shihyun’s eyes sparkled at Ji-eun’s approval. Ji-eun couldn’t help but laugh at her bright, sparkling eyes, a stark contrast to her cold, aloof image.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Oh, nothing, nothing. Anyway, you’ll need equipment for outdoor broadcasts, right?”

“Can’t I just use my smartphone?”

Ji-eun smacked her forehead again.

It seemed she was destined for a bruise today.

“The quality would be terrible… And how would you even film? Are you going to set it up somewhere while you’re having a sword fight?”

“Ah, right.”

“You’ll need a camera crew. Usually, the manager handles that, but…”

Ji-eun trailed off. They had signed with Five Star, but Shihyun hadn’t been assigned a manager yet. It had only been a few days since the contract. They would probably assign someone this week, but for now, she didn’t have one.

“I’ll lend you my equipment. I don’t do outdoor streams often. You can borrow it for a while.”

“I feel bad about that…”

“Then buy me a meal later. And buy your own equipment.”

“A camera?”

“A camera, and other things. You’ll need a hard drive to store the videos, and you might want to stream PC games to diversify your content, so you should get a new computer. And a microphone, too.”

“That’s a lot of stuff.”

“You’ll need to hire people, too.”

“A manager?”

“No, Five Star will assign you a manager. But you’ll need a video editor. And someone to manage your YouTube channel.”

Ji-eun wagged her finger, her expression serious.

“A video editor is especially important. You’ll get a lot of traffic from YouTube. And you need good videos to attract viewers. An editor is essential.”

Shihyun nodded. It was a lot to handle, but it was all necessary. And with her signing bonus, money wasn’t a problem.

‘I should do this all at once while I remember.’

It would be a hassle to forget and have to do it later.

“So, the dojo challenge is a go.”

“Dojo… Sure. If you call it a dojo challenge, then it is.”

Shihyun smiled, watching Ji-eun sigh.

‘I’ll finally get to meet other swordsmen.’

Ever since she learned about their existence, she had wanted to meet them. Or rather, she wanted to cross swords with them.

And now she could do it legitimately, as part of her work! It was a delightful prospect.

As Shihyun grinned, anticipating the duels, Ji-eun shook her head. Shihyun’s goofy smile made her uneasy.

Ji-eun asked, her voice laced with concern, “…Are you sure you can do this?”

“Yeah, it’ll be just like the game, right?”

Ji-eun’s face hardened slightly.

‘Just like the game?’

She recalled Shihyun’s gameplay.

A beautiful girl sword master, smiling as she decapitated her enemies.

“…”

Looking at Shihyun’s grin, Ji-eun started to worry that she had made a terrible mistake.