Sweeping the Academy with a Wooden Sword

Ryu Jia opened her eyes.
Of course, she couldn’t see anything. But even so, she had to move.

Congenitally totally blind.
Ryu Jia’s world had been black from the beginning, and she had spent 20 years learning and adapting to living in that darkness.

In her second year of middle school.

Thanks to her father, who was an S-rank hunter, she was able to receive education in an affluent environment.

Walking through an invisible world was not an easy task.

Purpose.
The reason for living was hard to grasp.

The more she “learned” about this world by listening and learning braille, the more she realized how absurd it was to not be able to see. Not just her vision was dark, but the world seemed dark.

Movies. Reading. Even enjoying cultural activities that others enjoyed so easily required secondary and tertiary processes.
Everything in this world was ultimately based on an average point.

Ryu Jia heard her female classmates who usually accompanied her talking when she briefly left her seat.

-She can’t see, right? Why do we hang out with her?

-Her face is pretty decent. Better than most girls.

-I’ll admit that. But then, is this just, what, moral superiority? Like a trophy? Kekeke! This crazy bitch.

-Well, it’s not bad. Yeah, moral superiority. We’ll have the same commute route anyway. We’re just keeping her company. Doing some concept cosplay too.

-Hey, let’s stop talking about this. She might be coming back. She might hear us if we’re not careful.

-So what if she hears? She’ll probably just be stuck at home after graduating high school anyway. We won’t see her again.

When she stood still and listened to their conversation, Ryu Jia saw herself not being as hurt by their words as she expected.

Rather, she repeatedly questioned herself about the last thing the girl said.

‘After graduation… stuck at home.’

Ridiculously.
If she graduated middle school like this and then a regular high school, it really seemed like she would end up stuck at home just as that girl said.

Having drawn that conclusion, Ryu Jia distanced herself from everyone from the next day and reduced unnecessary emotional expenditure.

And she sought something new.

“Please teach me the sword too, Father.”

It was the sword.
At first, it was just interest that arose from seeing her sister, who was a year older, receiving sword instruction from their father.

Quite paradoxically, it was Ryu Jia, the blind one, not her sister, who inherited her father’s combat talent.

After confirming her talent, she grasped the sword to break the limit of ‘blindness’ that the world had placed on her.
She became obsessed with the sword like that.

“This is truly amazing.”
Ryu Jia’s father couldn’t stop marveling every time he taught his second daughter.

Energy sense.
Ryu Jia was much more sensitive to sound than others.
And much more sensitive to presence.

These points gave her far superior judgment compared to swordsmen who swung their swords based only on what they could ‘see’.

“If you can just distinguish between friend and foe, you could certainly make being a hunter your profession.”

Ryu Jia’s father spoke what he felt without any exaggeration.

And when he finished a raid on a high-grade dungeon, a martial arts manual appeared as if by fate.

Heart Sword (心劍).
It seemed to be a martial arts manual written by a martial artist who was blind like Ryu Jia.

Ryu Jia, who had achieved 2-star in the Heart Sword, became able to distinguish between friend and foe through the energy currents flowing in people’s bodies, as written in the divine technique manual.

“I want to go to Iroaz.”

The girl who had devoted herself to swordsmanship for four years became interested in the world again.

Even without using divine techniques to open her energy sense, there existed a very small number of hunters whose presence she could clearly feel.

Her father, or her father’s colleagues and former colleagues. The common point among all of them was that they were people who had crossed the death line dozens of times through raids and dungeons.

So she didn’t expect to feel that presence from her classmates or seniors.

But.

‘It’s light.’

She saw that light on the platform of the entrance ceremony on the first day of admission.

A very bright light.

Without having to make efforts like using divine techniques to perceive existence. Just by being still. There was a classmate whose presence she could clearly feel.

For some reason, the corners of her mouth turned up.

Second day of admission.
6:30 AM.
Ryu Jia set foot in the training ground exclusive to first-year combat division students.

Even though Iroaz Academy students were serious about training, she thought she would be the only one at this time, but she glimpsed a powerful presence.

Again, for some reason, the corners of her mouth turned up.
There was only one person who could emit such a presence in the first-year training ground: Lee Dojin.

Swish!
“…”

After briefly observing Lee Dojin swinging a practice wooden sword placed in the training ground, Ryu Jia swung a wooden sword alongside him.

Whoosh!

Two wooden swords fell in parallel.
With the same breath. The same posture. At the same moment.

I looked at Ryu Jia swinging a wooden sword standing parallel next to me.

With her eyes closed, she was continuing a steady downward cut.

Swinging a wooden sword from the crack of dawn was closer to mental and physical training, that is, an act like meditation, rather than for the purpose of honing swordsmanship.

And it seemed Ryu Jia was swinging for that purpose too.
Deliberately matching the speed and moment was probably her own consideration not to break my rhythm.

“It’s refreshing.”

At my words, Ryu Jia, who stopped her sword following me, smiled.

“Yes, it is refreshing. Student Lee Dojin.”

“You can speak casually to me too, Ryu Jia.”

Ryu Jia slowly shook her head.

“It’s really a habit. It’s become too ingrained to change.”

I was curious about her sword. Very much so.

“Can you spar with wooden swords? Lightly, just enough to warm up.”

Ryu Jia laughed, covering her mouth at my words.

“You really, really like swords, don’t you?”

“Yeah. Swordsmanship is fun.”

Ryu Jia nodded.

“Yes, that’s fine. I like swords too.”

Ryu Jia readjusted her grip on the wooden sword.

Early dawn.
A training ground with just the two of them.

Two pure wooden swords, without sword energy imbued, began to clash.

Clack clack clack!

All three sword strikes connected.
I looked at Ryu Jia’s face. Her fine hair had become disheveled with sweat.

And the corners of her mouth were turned up.
It was a clear smile.

‘Amazing.’

Ryu Jia’s sword was literally fresh to me.
Her movements were agile and sharp to the point it was hard to believe she couldn’t see.

Her sense of predicting the opponent’s sword path seemed as developed as mine.

I couldn’t even begin to imagine how much time, effort, and blood it must have taken to turn such a huge blind spot of being blind into a weapon like this.

Clang!

Over 40 sword strikes were all blocked without passing each other’s wooden swords.

“Let’s stop here, Ryu Jia.”

I could see beads of sweat forming on Ryu Jia’s forehead. Her training clothes were already damp.

I was the same.

It was just for the purpose of warming up after all.

‘If we go further…’

I felt like too strong a desire would arise.
The desire to see Ryu Jia’s all-out effort.

“Phew…”

“Haah…”

Lee Dojin and Ryu Jia, who finally stopped sparring, sat side by side on resting chairs and caught their breath.

“Haah… can we train together like this again tomorrow?”

Lee Dojin slowly nodded at Ryu Jia’s words.
It certainly felt invigorating to sweat thoroughly and move his body from the morning.

“Yeah, I’d be grateful if you train with me.”

Ryu Jia smiled.

“Then shall we get going now? Today’s the day we get assigned to our respective instructors. We shouldn’t be late.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Lee Dojin and Ryu Jia stood up together.

Lee Dojin towards the right where the male dormitory was, and Ryu Jia towards the left where the female dormitory was.

Just as Lee Dojin was about to leave the training ground.

“Kyaaah!”
Ryu Jia’s high-pitched scream, which he had never heard before, was heard.

“What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

Lee Dojin hurriedly ran over and saw Ryu Jia clutching her left index toe with both hands.

“I-I think I hit my index toe on the door frame. Ugh…”

Lee Dojin looked at Ryu Jia’s face.

In the eyes that hadn’t wavered even when clashing swords over 40 times.
Tears were slightly welling up.

“Wait a moment. I’ll bring some medicine and ointment.”

“Y-yes…”

The girl who had completely penetrated all surrounding terrain through spatial sense and the opponent’s movements through hearing.

Was caught off guard by a slightly protruding door frame.
And quite strongly at that.

Lee Dojin brought disinfectant, ointment, and a small bandage.

He carefully held Ryu Jia’s right foot with his hand.
He gently applied disinfectant to the reddened big toe.

“Ungh… ouch!”

Ryu Jia’s fine brow slightly furrowed as if it stung.

“Bear with it a little.”

“Yes…”

Swish-

Lee Dojin focused on applying the medicine.
So he didn’t notice the very faint blush on Ryu Jia’s face.

“I’ll help you to the front.”

Lee Dojin supported Ryu Jia to the front of the dormitory.

“Thank you.”

“Why thank me, we’re friends. Just say thanks.”

“Th-thanks.”

“Yeah, see you later.”

Ryu Jia stared at Lee Dojin’s fading light for a while, then messed up her hair violently.

‘Door frame! Door frame! Door frame!!’

She had always thought to be careful.
But because she was a little excited, she didn’t properly observe her surroundings.

“He touched… my foot.”
Someone she had only met twice touched her bare foot.
Her face flushed red again.
Ryu Jia engraved it in her mind several times.

That there’s a slightly raised door frame in front of the training ground door.
That damn door frame.