Seoryeong took a blow to the stomach before she could even react. The moment she toppled over, a second kick came flying at her. Whether he’d trained in boxing or not, the precision of his jabs and footwork was something else.

She immediately raised her elbows and took a defensive stance, but his punches came in at odd angles, cleverly twisted, and they hurt. Her forearm throbbed, and her side ached. If she hadn’t been wearing protective gear, the pain would’ve been unbearable.

As she was being hit senseless by the flurry of punches, unable to do anything, her eyes suddenly brushed past Lee Wooshin’s. For some reason, meeting his gaze now felt strangely difficult, so Seoryeong kept her eyes locked only on Seong Wookchan.

“Ugh... Your name’s Seong Wookchan, huh?”

Smack—!

She got hit straight in the face. Just poking at him a little was enough to blow his lid. His brow twisted violently as Seong Wookchan kept hammering her face, and the room quickly fell silent.

Raising her guard, Seoryeong calmly analyzed the situation. There hadn’t been any other rules given for the sparring match, so it must’ve just meant: fight with whatever skills you’ve got.

The moment that thought hit her, Seoryeong didn’t hesitate or endure any longer. As if she’d been waiting for it, she struck the man’s weak spot, then swiftly climbed up onto Seong Wookchan’s torso.

“――!”

In the blink of an eye, she was up on his shoulders and locked her arms around his neck in a chokehold. As her elbow cinched down around his throat, Seong Wookchan let out a strangled cough.

He flailed, trying to punch upward, but Seoryeong didn’t budge. The more he struggled, the tighter her arms coiled like a snake, constricting even harder.

“Whoa... isn’t that jiu-jitsu?”

“That’s jiu-jitsu... right?”

“Uh...? Isn’t it? It kinda looks like it...”

The trainees sitting in a circle began murmuring among themselves. The instructors watching from the side tilted their heads slightly, puzzled by Seoryeong’s movements.

Jin Hoje cupped his hand over his mouth and whispered quietly.

“Team Leader, what kind of technique is that?”

“What do you mean, what kind? It’s just a rootless dogfight.”

“...Sir? That one? Seong Wookchan can’t even move right now.”

“So you’re saying Han Seoryeong’s not getting hit?”

Lee Wooshin clenched his molars so tightly his jaw ached, but didn’t take his eyes off the sparring pair even for a second.

“Good thing I made them wear headgear. That thing’s pressing down on his windpipe. She’s planning to knock him out even if it means wrecking her own head. Whether it swells up or gets torn and bleeds—doesn’t matter to her.”

“......”

“That vicious thing hasn’t blinked once the whole time she’s getting hit.”

“Sir?”

“Could be luck, or maybe she’s got good eyes. She just stood there watching, then landed a perfect hit in one go. She’s not strong, but she’s agile and flexible. Seriously, how the hell do I beat that masochistic freak.”

Jin Hoje couldn’t tell if his superior was insulting the only woman in the unit, or praising her.

“How the fuck do you purge that deranged poison out of her.”

Lee Wooshin muttered, head cocked at an odd angle like he was talking to himself.

At that moment, maybe realizing it was going nowhere, Seong Wookchan rolled onto the floor. Caught off guard, Seoryeong fell on her ass, and her arms were immediately pinned—he landed on top of her. He clenched his fist as he coughed violently.

“That’s enough.”

A voice—so casual it almost sounded playful—sliced straight through the tension.

Seong Wookchan paused for a second but still raised his hand again.

And wham—! His head snapped to the side.

“Didn’t you hear the instructor say stop?”

Maybe a watermelon would make the same sound if it burst. Lee Wooshin stepped into the sparring ring and punted Seong Wookchan in the side of the head like it was a ball.

Seong Wookchan curled up like a shrimp, clutching his head. But as soon as the instructor flicked a hand, he sprang to his feet on reflex.

Seoryeong too, now reversed and pinned a moment ago, felt cold stares stabbing into her like accusations. Seeing the displeasure in his expression, she didn’t dawdle—she stood up right away.

“What I’m going to teach you is Krav Maga, the military combat system.”

Instructor Lee Wooshin ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) spoke as he personally removed Seong Wookchan’s protective gear. Whatever was going through his mind, he casually tossed the gear on the floor with a dull thud, thud.

“It’s a fighting method based on instinctive reflexes, so those with good intuition and fast reactions will learn quicker. Regardless of age, gender, or physical strength.”

His meaningful gaze passed briefly over Seoryeong.

“And since it’s even possible to take down someone with a gun using your bare hands—”

Suddenly, he pulled a pistol from his waistband and clack—loaded it.

“Why don’t I let you hold mine?”

“...!”

Then, with no warning, he handed the pistol to Seong Wookchan. After getting kicked in the head and stripped of his gear, now suddenly handed a gun—he looked completely dazed.

As he stood there, dumbfounded, Lee Wooshin smiled and lightly slapped him on the cheek.

“Well then, Agent Seong Wookchan, want to try aiming?”

The trainees blinked in disbelief at how naturally the whole sequence had unfolded. As Seong Wookchan hesitantly raised the gun, the instructor continued explaining—and in a flash, smacked his arm away.

“After deflecting or dodging the opponent’s attack—”

The pistol slipped from Seong Wookchan’s hand and dropped near Seoryeong’s feet.

And that’s when Lee Wooshin began to beat the shit out of him for real.

He kicked him in the gut, twisted his arm, and slammed it straight into his jaw. Seong Wookchan flailed and groaned, “Ugh...!” but couldn’t put up any resistance.

“The key strike points are the eyes, nose, jaw, neck—”

“Ugh...!”

With each word, Wooshin landed a precise blow to the corresponding spot.

“—and the groin.”

“Argh...!”

“If you hit them right, you can kill. So memorize those points.”

Blood dripped from Seong Wookchan’s nose. The recruits, tense in the eerie silence, just straightened their backs and stayed quiet.

So that’s a human punching bag. By now, even Seong Wookchan seemed to realize what was going on, his expression hardening. But Lee Wooshin didn’t care. Just like before, with that same bored, indifferent tone, he kept lecturing.

“Most of the techniques are arranged in order of the most damaging impacts. For example, elbow to the jaw—”

“Ggh—shit...!”

“Then back of the neck, solar plexus, abdomen—”

“Keugh...!”

“And using combat boots, a low blow to the bone below—”

Whack—! The sound of blunt impact echoed again and again in the training hall.

Eventually, Seong Wookchan collapsed, trembling in one arm and leg. Lee Wooshin didn’t even lose his breath—he casually cracked his neck and stepped over the writhing body on the floor. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

“Krav Maga is more about technique than strength.”

His jaded eyes landed squarely on Seoryeong.

“Got that through your head?”

For a moment, something unnameable scraped across her chest. Maybe she’d nicked a finger before training even started—it tingled faintly now.

“The point is, don’t just roll over when some big guy comes at you. In an emergency, whether it’s a pen or a finger, use whatever you’ve got and shove it in.”

Then he bent down, picked up the dropped pistol, and tapped the barrel against Seoryeong’s forehead. The cold metal made her freeze up instinctively.

Watching her flinch, he seemed almost amused as he pulled the trigger.

His blank face gave off a crooked malice.

“――!”

But instead of a gunshot—what came out was a stream of clear soap bubbles.

Seoryeong blinked rapidly, exhaled the breath she’d been holding, and then furrowed her brow as she realized she’d been had. She glared at him with tense eyebrows, but Lee Wooshin had already turned away, finishing his speech to the others.

One of the floating soap bubbles drifted toward her and popped against her forehead. She scowled, wiping her slippery forehead with her palm—again and again.

She kept getting called up to spar afterward, and it went the same way: get hit, hit back, repeat. With her body moving on instinct, she quickly forgot whatever fleeting emotion she’d felt earlier.

And that night, without fail, they were ambushed again—and plunged straight into the sea.