Chapter 187 - Absolute Spear
"I will take her."
historical
Cheon Jeong firmly stated her choice, but there was no reaction. Although Iyeolhan was occasionally at odds with her, he didn't try to discourage the mischievous Blade Spirit. It was absurd and made little sense, but she was simply too compatible with her choice.
"Cheon Yeon pays respect to the teacher."
Yeon only nodded in a slight bow, but Cheon Jeong didn't reprimand her. Although the purpose of this meeting was obvious at this point, she wasn't taking her as a personal student, so there was no need for any complicated ceremonies.
According to what the head instructor had said, today was the day they formally received teachers, but the large hall was eerily silent.
"I.."
'It's a shame, but..'
Iyeolhan opened his mouth as his gaze focused on Leo before parting almost immediately. Just like Cheon Jeong, he quickly made his choice as well.
"Cheon Yong, I will be the one responsible for teaching you."
'It's not mine to take.'
Iyeolhan still believed that Leo was the most interesting out of the three, but being interesting didn't always mean something good. Even as the head instructor, he didn't think he was a good match for the irregular.
On the other hand, Cheon Yong was a simple sword user that suited his criteria, but that didn't help him from feeling regretful. He had seen Leo's 'sword' so this wasn't something as simple as weapon incompatibility. Unfortunately, it was something much more than that.
"I will take the last kid."
Awkward silence pervaded the hall as Cheon Yong nodded hurriedly, but that was soon broken by a voice that suddenly came out of nowhere. This wasn't something out of the ordinary for the trio after living in the Heavenly Furnace for this long, but it was Cheon Jeong's turn to be surprised.
"Eh, really? You came out this time?"
The two instructors were naturally not the only instructors around, but other than the head instructor who had to handle the general procedures, no one was as free as Cheon Jeong to hop around that early. Still, something was obviously out of the norm.
"For your thick spearhead to come out this time.."
[ Plot Change detected. Special Event occurrence has been confirmed. ]
A man holding a towering spear suddenly flashed beside the two instructors, his face was passive like a statue, but that didn't hide his sharp features. He didn't look especially buff, but his black sleeves tightened to show his defined arm muscles.
"He must be really something."
The Blade Spirit's expression had already recovered at this point, but she was still surprised inwardly. Of all the twelve instructors responsible for overlooking the Heavenly Furnace, this stiff man standing beside her was the one to have shown his face the least throughout the past years!
From the very beginning, not all of the twelve instructors were supposed to play a role within the Heavenly Furnace, nor were they needed to. About half of them were put as to fill up the names and show the importance that the Heavenly Furnace played. Some of them ended up helping in one way or another, but the Absolute Spear was a very special case..
"Cheon Baekho pays his respect to the teacher!"
Leo was already expecting a message to pop up in his head, but Cheon Jeong's reaction coupled with the event's rating were more than enough for him to be surprised all the same. Being called spearhead seemed like an insult, but Leo recognized the possibility carried in that word!
In his current situation, relying on the book's original knowledge provided little to no help. Unlike the path he chose this time, Baekho was someone who used the greatsword, so the chances that the same instructor would appear were close to null. Moreover, the rest of the instructors were only mentioned in passing...
[ The Reader's character had resulted in a Special character's emergence, future path had greatly deviated. ]
[ You have received 289 Reading Points. ]
'Special Character..?'
Leo stared at his new teacher in contemplation. The last time that he had triggered a special event was after he coincidentally caused a whole event's erasure, something different than his current situation, but he already reached two possible conclusions.
Although it wasn't directed at a main character, this change had technically erased the event at which Baekho and his original teacher met, in other words, he basically cut a character's screen time. It wasn't mentioned in the event description, but the 'erasure' was still there.
'Or..'
The other conclusion was that this new teacher of his had basically overshadowed the concept of a 'special' event through the creation of his own, in that case..
"Good. I, Cheon Chang, take you as my temporary student."
'Chang!'
All the lines in Leo's head suddenly connected when he heard the stiff man's name. Even though they were mentioned briefly, there were definitely more than one spear user within the dozen instructors. The weapon in the stiff man's hand was enough as a determinant, but this name was more than enough!
The author of 'Murim Supremacy' was known for his simple naming sense, but it wasn't without reasoning. For immersion's sake, he gave most characters the name of what they represented the most! And only one character deserved to be named 'spear'!
'The Absolute Spear!'
He was one of the four pillars of the Heavenly Strength Society! The Blade Spirit was also the same, but she was someone who didn't follow common sense. It was only right for someone like her to appear for the sake of a Secondary Main Character like Yeon, but..
The Absolute Spear's personality was just like his face, stiff. Ever since he ascended to his position and been appointed as an instructor on the side, he didn't guide a single person. He was a training maniac who only took a break by doing missions, for him to suddenly appear at this stage..
'This is..'
"Come on."
'Show me your true worth.'
Leo helplessly stopped forward at his new teacher's orders.. Before he knew it, he was already walking on an uncharted territory.