Episode 5: Regressed After Only Doing the Tutorial

Episode 5: Advanced Martial Arts

“Player Han Yeomyeong, come over here. Didn’t you ask me to teach you advanced martial arts?”

“Uwaah! Monster!”

Right now, I’m running away from a monster.

That monster is the kind that beats you to the brink of death, heals you back to full health, and then beats you to death again. A real monster.

“Who are you calling a monster?”

Estelle took a light step forward. With just that one step, the distance I had created between us vanished in an instant.

“And by now, you should have learned that you can’t escape from me with just that.”

‘Damn it, faster…!’

My lungs felt like they were on fire, and my legs were already screaming in agony. But if I got caught now, I’d definitely spend the whole day getting beaten again. I had to run.

I squeezed every bit of strength from my body and bolted. But the moment I heard a sigh behind me, a strong gust of wind surged at my back. It felt like a death sentence, telling me I had no way to escape.

“Haa…”

I instinctively threw my body to the side, trying to dodge, but it was already too late. Estelle’s hand was several times faster than my movements.

The moment her hand touched me, my body froze in midair.

‘No way…!’

Estelle had grabbed me by the hair.

With just one hand, she had completely overpowered me and was looking down at me coldly.

I struggled desperately to escape her grip, but it was pointless. My body wouldn’t budge, as if chained to a steel pillar.

‘Damn it… Is this advanced martial arts?’

The way she used her body was on a completely different level. She wasn’t just fast—her movements were the epitome of efficiency.

With minimal motion, she achieved maximum effect. She overwhelmed greater strength with less effort. It was nothing short of Heaven and Earth shattering and shifting.

I had been training for ten years, but she was still half a beat faster, toying with me.

“Do I look like a monster to you?”

This kind of question was the kind you should never take time to think about. It could tick her off. Think briefly, answer quickly. Speed and accuracy were everything.

“No.”

“Then what do I look like?”

A warning siren blared in my head.

‘If I answer this wrong, I might actually die.’

I ran through every thought I had and picked the optimal answer—the best path to the best future.

“You’re the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen in my life.”

I filled my eyes with sincerity—as if I’d always believed this.

Estelle paused for a moment.

Then she let go of my hair and gave a quiet nod.

“Ahem. As long as you know.”

But I was sure—I could swear her face turned slightly red.

“Are you embarrassed or some—kugh!”

Before I could finish, she grabbed my hair again.

“Alright, let’s get back to training.”

“Uwaaaah!!”

I tried teasing her a little and got wrecked for it.

I was dragged away and spent the rest of the day getting beaten as punishment.

*

And so, day after day, I kept getting beaten up.

Two months had already passed like that.

Through Estelle’s teachings, I gradually closed the gap between my mind and body.

At first, I couldn’t properly control my own strength.

‘Was it always this frustrating to have a body that doesn’t move the way I want?’

When I threw a punch, the power surged at the wrong moment. When I stepped forward, the timing and speed were slightly off. It felt like my body wasn’t mine.

But gradually, I started to get the hang of it.

As I became more accustomed to my body, Estelle’s movements started to become visible to me. My body began to follow my will.

The punch I had never managed to block until now…

I could—however clumsily—block it.

‘Ah… is this it?’

[Skill Acquired: Heaven-Defying Cloud Steps (Lv. 1)]

[Skill Acquired: Emperor-Crushing Fist (Lv. 1)]

[Skill Acquired: Sky-Rending Asura Kick (Lv. 1)]

A new sensation surged through my entire body.

So this is what advanced martial arts felt like—something on another level entirely.

Now, I felt like I could finally keep up with Estelle’s movements.

To confirm whether my previous success was a fluke, she threw another punch.

This time, I used Heaven-Defying Cloud Steps and Emperor-Crushing Fist to counter it perfectly.

The wind brushing my skin, the subtle vibrations at my fingertips—things I couldn’t sense before were now clear to me.

‘So this is advanced martial arts.’

And at that moment, I didn’t miss the subtle change in her expression.

A slight widening of the pupils. Fingertips that hesitated.

Estelle showed a hint of surprise. I had finally succeeded in startling that angel. Just that alone made all the hardships up to now feel worth it.

“You’ve finally realized it, haven’t you?”

Estelle crossed her arms and looked down at me.

I took a deep breath. My body moved in a completely different way now.

“Yes. I’ve learned Heaven-Defying Cloud Steps, Emperor-Crushing Fist, and Sky-Rending Asura Kick without missing a thing.”

Just hearing the names made it clear they were on a different level than the basic Six Harmonies Fist or Five Element Steps. They were a tier above beginner martial arts.

Now I understand. Why they said basic martial arts were just a stepping stone.

Basic martial arts were meant to lay the physical foundation.

But advanced martial techniques were created purely for combat.

Even the same punching motion carried a completely different power, trajectory, speed, and rhythm depending on how it was used.

Until now, I’d thought of “movement” in overly simple terms.

But through Estelle’s teachings, I’d learned how to truly use my body.

“Your movements have improved quite a bit compared to two months ago. At first, you were sluggish under the pressure of your newly acquired trait, but now you’re using it properly. Impressive.”

Estelle evaluated me.

I gave a short laugh and said,

“You were a little surprised when I blocked your last attack, weren’t you?”

“Sigh… This is why I try not to praise you.”

She said that, but I knew very well who deserved the credit for how far I’d come.

“Honestly, it’s all thanks to you, Master. If it weren’t for you, Estelle, I wouldn’t have come this far. I’m truly grateful.”

Even with the same physical abilities, she moved half a beat faster than me.

The reason was in how we handled our bodies. She fully utilized the power emanating from her body, while I was only using part of it.

Now I could feel the difference throughout my whole body. So this was how someone who truly mastered their body could move.

“You’re well aware.”

Estelle hummed as if in a good mood.

“If it weren’t for me, there’s no way a mere player like you could’ve learned to use your body and master advanced skills in such a short time.”

She puffed out her chest like she was proud and took on an attitude that practically screamed for more praise.

At first, I thought she was cold and scary…

Now, I found her cute. And honestly, I liked it.

The way she looked at me with expectation reminded me of a child wanting to be acknowledged for their achievements.

But… where am I supposed to look?

With her chest puffed out like that, my eyes naturally drifted in that direction.

I definitely wasn’t trying to look on purpose. I quickly lifted my face and looked into her eyes, trying to lighten the awkward mood with praise and a little teasing.

“You’re pretty, you’ve got the theory down, you’re great with your body, and you teach well… Is there anything you can’t do?”

I joked. She smiled gracefully.

“Fufu. I’m not sure myself. I’ve never failed at anything before.”

With that, she slowly stepped forward.

But her toe slipped.

“Whoa—”

A small crack in the ground, caused by her earlier attack, was the problem.

She momentarily lost her balance, and her body tilted.

I have to catch her.

I instinctively used Heaven-Defying Cloud Steps and rushed to her side.

I caught her by the waist and supported her body.

“Are you okay?”

Her face brushed against my chest.

“I… I’m fine.”

When she lifted her head, her face was flushed red.

Even redder than before.

She looked up at me in flustered surprise.

“Y-you can let go now…”

Her voice trembled slightly.

As soon as I let go, she quickly created distance between us.

“…Thank you for catching me, but I would’ve regained my balance on my own.”

Of course. She was overwhelmingly stronger than me. Even if she slipped, she would’ve recovered quickly.

“Probably. But…”

I shrugged and said,

“I was worried. I just wanted to help.”

At that moment, her pupils trembled ever so slightly.

“You… were worried about me?”

She murmured like it was the first time she’d ever heard those words.

“Yes. Can’t a human worry about an angel?”

If an angel were truly perfect, they wouldn’t need to interact with others. A complete being would have no reason to be with anyone else. But Estelle was here, in front of me.

She felt close to perfect, but every now and then she made little mistakes—just like me. That’s why I worried about her. I wanted to help.

She pressed her lips together and turned her head away.

“R-Right? Well, I’ll be going now.”

She ended her words awkwardly, then suddenly tore through space and disappeared.

I stared at the spot with a dumbfounded expression.

“…What was that?”

This time, it definitely wasn’t my imagination.

Estelle had clearly changed.

*

While Han Yeomyeong was still confused by Estelle’s sudden behavior, Estelle had returned to her private space and buried her face in a pillow, trying to cool down her flushed face.

“Estelle, what’s wrong with you… You weren’t this kind of angel.”

She wasn’t the type of angel whose emotions would be swayed so easily by a mere human’s words or actions.

In thousands of years, she had never experienced anything like this, but recently, she found herself having such experiences again and again. Even she couldn’t understand what was happening to her.

She thought she had abandoned the Five Desires and Seven Emotions upon becoming an Archangel and mastering martial arts… but apparently, that wasn’t the case.

It was just that, until now, she had never encountered anything that could stir her emotions.

“This is all that pervert Han Yeomyeong’s fault…”

The only one among the originally summoned players who still remained in the tutorial.

Because of him, the other angels had their assignments changed multiple times and even had to manage several people at once, but Estelle had been in charge of only Han Yeomyeong for ten years straight.

‘He sneaked a glance at me today too, didn’t he…?’

Han Yeomyeong was a man obsessed with training, but he wasn’t someone who had completely transcended worldly desires.

Though he did his best to restrain himself out of consideration for Estelle, whenever her chest bounced significantly, his eyes would naturally follow the movement.

Of course, compared to other male angels Estelle had encountered, Han Yeomyeong was quite the gentleman. There were many who would openly ogle her body.

But Estelle had never been able to feel anything from that. The opposite sex held no meaning for her, and how they viewed her was not even something she cared to consider.

Because Han Yeomyeong was the first male she had ever taken interest in, his gaze felt all the more intense to her.

Of course, Estelle, a pure angel with zero romantic experience, had no way of understanding this.

Angels are slow to ignite emotions, but equally slow to let them fade. Even time that might feel like a lifetime to a human wasn’t enough to cool an angel’s heart.

That’s why there was an unspoken rule among angels: never grow attached to mortals.

It was not for the mortal’s sake, but for their own.

But once her heart began to burn, there was no stopping it. Like a runaway train with no brakes.

“Why does that pervert keep coming to mind…”

For ten years, she had seen him every single day.

A man with the worst talent who fought desperately. After losing someone precious because of an outburst of inferiority, he went completely mad and dedicated himself entirely to training.

Watching him push himself relentlessly, as if he had forgotten what rest meant, made her want to help him.

He worked harder than anyone she’d ever seen, but his results were always lacking.

‘He reminds me of myself.’

She said earlier that she had never failed at anything, but in truth, despite being an angel, Estelle had nearly zero aptitude for divine magic (sacred arts), and was always lagging behind other angels.

So she poured herself into martial arts—an uncommon discipline among angels—and eventually became the only ordinary angel to rise to the rank of Archangel.

She was also the one who started the trend of martial arts training among angels after her achievement.

‘I only meant to give him a short demonstration…’

She originally intended to train only the first entrant and then pass the role onto a junior angel, but ended up staying with Han Yeomyeong for ten years and even taught him advanced martial arts.

‘I’ve got nothing to do anyway… Maybe I’ll check in on him?’

Even while desperately trying to deny her feelings for Han Yeomyeong, her daily routine included watching him through her crystal orb, checking where he was and what he was doing.

“Training again? Doesn’t he get tired of it? Seriously.”

He kept repeating the advanced techniques he had just learned, over and over again until they became second nature.

She, too, had invested enormous time and effort to reach the level of an Archangel, but even she hadn’t trained with that level of intensity.

‘Is it because his life is so short that he burns even brighter?’

Born as an angel, she could never truly understand the mindset of finite beings.

“But… why am I watching this again?”

She claimed she didn’t want to see it, yet her gaze kept drifting back to the crystal orb.

‘Anyone watching would think I have a crush on Han Yeomyeong.’

Absolutely not.

She was only watching because it was admirable that he could throw everything away in pursuit of his goal—something no angel could ever do—and she found herself slightly respecting that.

She just wanted to support him on that path. That’s all. She definitely wasn’t harboring any strange feelings for him. No, she had to believe that. She was an angel. Not a human.

She had seen it too many times: immortals falling for mortals and wasting away in sorrow after their beloved’s brief life ended.

If she acknowledged these feelings, she felt like she would end up deeply hurt. So she buried them deep in her heart.

‘That’s right. I’m not attached. I just feel a little sorry for him, so I want to help.’

But every time her fingers reached toward him, those feelings only grew stronger.

I have not fallen for him.

She had to repeat it to herself, again and again.

||Previous||TOC||Next||