"...I have the worst luck with draws."
"You took the words right out of my mouth."
Hyonwon Kang and Dokgo Jun sighed as they looked at each other. Both of them held bamboo tiles marked with the number 6.
The Test of Courage was conducted in pairs or trios, with students in the same year being grouped together in teams decided by a random draw. Once a team was formed, it could not be changed.
Everything boiled down to luck. Depending on their partners, the students alternated between joy and despair.
"Of all people..."
"Hoo..."
Team 6's gloom made it clear that Hyonwon Kang and Dokgo Jun were not each other's ideal partners.
Suddenly, Hyonwon Kang tilted his head and asked, "By the way, hasn't this happened before?"
"Yes..." Dokgo Jun sighed. "It was during Defense Against the Unorthodox Arts class, remember?"
They had been a team back then, too. At that time, they helped Cheong Cheon patrol the slums of Nanchang and maintain public order. Dokgo Jun subsequently ended up in a life-or-death battle with the Scarlet Tiger Gang's martial artists and gained enlightenment in the Nine Swords of Dokgo, making great progress in his martial arts.
However, Dokgo Jun was not the only one who had grown stronger since that day.
"Damn it! This was the perfect chance to be alone with her..." Hyonwon Kang scanned the area, searching for someone.
Dokgo Jun regarded him with a new perspective. What a difference. The worst delinquent has now become a prodigy representing the Azure Dragon Academy.
Although not much time had passed, an unbelievable number of things had transpired. He decided to pin a shred of hope on Hyonwon Kang's shift in attitude.
"Hyonwon Kang, since it has come to this, let's do our best and aim for first place..." Dokgo Jun sighed deeply. Hyonwon Kang was glancing around furtively instead of focusing on the Test of Courage. "...You're not listening to me at all, are you?"
"Team 1 and Team 2, depart!"
The teams set off two at a time on different paths based on whether they had drawn odd or even numbers. After a set interval, the next teams departed. It wasn't long before it was Team 6's turn to depart.
"Team 5, Team 6. You may now proceed."
"Yes!" Dokgo Jun answered spiritedly before glancing to his side.
Hyonwon Kang was still grumbling unhappily. "Damn it! Since it's come to this, I'll just finish quickly and go back to the dorms."
Dokgo Jun nodded. "...For the first time, our goals align. I'll definitely take first place in the Test of Courage... No, we will take first place."
Their reasons for wanting to finish first were different, but that didn't matter as long as the end goal was the same.
"If you had been this sloppy in real combat, both of you would have died. Keep that in mind."
The pair nodded and sprinted forward, unleashing their movement arts. Soon, however, they hit a snag. A fork in the road appeared, presenting them with a choice.
"We should go to the right."
"I think we should head left."
"Hyonwon Kang, I would appreciate it if you followed my lead here."
"But my gut has been screaming 'left' this whole time, you know?"
"...You want me to trust your gut in a test?"
"Shall we fight it out? Winner decides which way we go!"
"Your eyes are swollen like a panda's, Hyonwon Kang."
"I see no reason not to."
Even after all this time, both parties were as stubborn as ever. They argued from the very beginning and made hardly any progress. To make matters worse, the Four Heavenly Kings appeared and obstructed them.
"Muhahaha! Take this surprise attack from the Infernal King of Annihilation!"
Contrary to the terrifying alias, the attacks from the darkness consisted of nothing more than pebbles.
After swatting away all the pebbles, Dokgo Jun tilted his head and eyed the man in the tiger mask hiding behind a tree. "Mr. Myeong Il'oh, are you going to keep throwing rocks from a distance?"
"...You guys are too strong."
Hyonwon Kang shook his head at the honest confession from the weakest of the Four Heavenly Kings. "I'm planning to finish this quickly and rest, you see? You know you can't stop us, so just get out of the way."
"You damn brats...! Out of mercy, I'll let you pass this one time! Wahahaha!"
After easily breaking through the Infernal King of Annihilation's defenses, the two soon found themselves walking in circles, trapped in a formation created by the Primeval Witch.
"Ohohoho! This is an inescapable formation. You can't leave until you die," the Primeval Witch muttered timidly, as if she were embarrassed. Still, she gave a subtle hint to help the students escape the formation. "If you had paid attention in Miss Jaegal Soyeong's Basic Formations class, you should be able to find the exit..."
"Hey, let's just smash this thing with brute force."
"I'm sorry, Miss Jaegal. I think destroying everything will take less time than finding the exit."
"Huh...? NOOOOOOO!"
CRAAAASH!
The Primeval Witch stood dumbfounded as her meticulously crafted formation crumbled around her. Glaring at the two sturdy boys slipping through the breach, she shouted, "You two are really too much!"
Hyonwon Kang and Dokgo Jun quickly executed their movement arts, ignoring the heartbroken woman's wails. The Four Heavenly Kings would not pursue them, as they had to oversee their respective areas. Besides, the two top prodigies among the Azure Dragon Academy's upperclassmen were a formidable force even for them.
Of course, just as not all students were equal, the same went for the Four Heavenly Kings.
KZZZZZZT!
Suddenly, the Cold-Blooded Asura Demon King appeared before the two in a flash of white lightning. A chilling voice echoed from behind the dragon mask , "I permit you to attack me together. If you cannot prove your worth, you will not leave this place alive."
"...A woman's heart, all of a sudden?" Dokgo Jun spluttered. "Are you asking about how one engages in psychological warfare against a woman?"
"You sound really serious..."
"You're Mr. Namgung Su, right?"
SHING!
The tip of the slowly drawn sword was aimed at each of the two boys' foreheads in turn.
"I am the Cold-Blooded Asura Demon King."
A terrifying storm of slashes and lightning raged for a good long while.
After barely escaping from the Cold-Blooded Asura Demon King—he had let them go on purpose—Dokgo Jun and Hyonwon Kang finally encountered the Handsome Playboy.
Posing nonchalantly on a large rock, the Handsome Playboy chuckled, "Kukuku... You're an unlucky pair. Who would've thought you'd cross paths with me at the very end?"
"The Handsome Playboy...!"
"Shut up."