TL: FoodieMonster007

    "Is it our turn now?" Dokgo Jun asked, breaking the awkward silence.

    He and Bang Baekhyun stepped forward at the same time. As the current and former student council presidents and the strongest upperclassmen in the Azure Dragon Academy, the auras they radiated were formidable.

    Bang Baekhyun glanced at Dokgo Jun. "If possible, I''d like to fight alone, but..."

    "I feel the same way, Senior, but now is not the time for duels."

    "...Yeah. It would be a problem if he escaped because we fought him one-on-one."

    "We have to settle this here so there won''t be any loose ends."

    What should I do? I''m already tired from crossing swords with Senior Yiran. Wiji Cheon''s mind raced. As Mae Geuklyom had advised, he did not immediately fall back on his sword.

    I won''t be able to face both Senior Dokgo Jun and this unknown senior at the same time. To make things worse, I have to watch out for Senior Tang Soso''s surprise attacks and poison, too.

    Wiji Cheon looked around for a way out when he noticed Yoo Yiran standing to the side, looking distracted.

    "Stand back for now, Yoo Yiran. We''ll take it from here," Dokgo Jun commanded.

    Bang Baekhyun grinned confidently. "So I take it that only the two of us are ganging up on him?"

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    "Too many cooks spoil the broth. We need Yoo Yiran and Tang Soso to block the escape route," Dokgo Jun explained.

    Yoo Yiran nodded obediently, turned around, and moved away from the battlefield. Her pride as a martial artist did not allow her, who had already lost to Wiji Cheon, to challenge him again with backup.

    WHOOSH!

    Wiji Cheon acted in a flash, rushing toward the unguarded Yoo Yiran. Now is not the time to be picky about honor and chivalry!

    "Yoo Yiran!"

    "Dodge!"

    Dokgo Jun and Bang Baekhyun immediately cried out in alarm, but they were too slow.

    Wiji Cheon grabbed Yoo Yiran''s wrist, sealed her acupoints, pulled her towards him, and wrapped his arm around her neck. He had expected Yoo Yiran to resist violently the moment her wrist was grabbed, but she was so surprised at being hugged from behind that she only widened her eyes and did not put up any resistance.

    Wiji Cheon was slightly bewildered, but he leaned his sword against Yoo Yiran''s neck anyway. "If you come any closer, I can''t guarantee Senior Yoo Yiran''s safety!"

    "Is that...how one is supposed to take a hostage?"

    "Uhh, maybe...?"

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    Dokgo Jun and Bang Baekhyun stared at Wiji Cheon and Yoo Yiran in puzzlement, their eyes asking Yoo Yiran the same question: Why did you let yourself get caught so easily?

    "Oh, hehe..." Yoo Yiran blushed and lowered her head. Not only was she caught unawares, she never even tried to struggle. This is totally cheating...

    "All of you! If you don''t want your comrade to get hurt, step back!" Wiji Cheon, the only serious person here, yelled.

    "...What a pain."

    "Dokgo, do we really have to take this seriously?"

    Dokgo Jun and Bang Baekhyun exchanged troubled looks.

    Tang Soso, who had been observing the situation quietly, sighed and stepped forward. "Junior Wiji Cheon. What are you going to do if we don''t back off? Are you really going to slit Senior Sword Flower''s throat?"

    "Huh? N-No, but..." Wiji Cheon shook his head. He never had any intention of harming Yoo Yiran, he just held her hostage for a moment to find a way out of this situation.

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    Tang Soso sighed even more deeply. "Taking Senior Sword Flower hostage doesn''t make any sense in this situation. No matter how much you try to think and act like an unorthodox martial artist, you can''t actually kill anyone during an exam, right?"

    "T-That''s true, but..."

    Wiji Cheon flinched. "E-Even if you succeed, Mr. Baek said that he wouldn''t accept any more students into the White Dragon Manor."

    For a moment, Tang Soso''s eyes widened with shock but she quickly regained her composure. "Then... it''s fine as long as one person gets kicked out, right? Hand over your scented pouch, you junior who doesn''t know how lucky you are!"

    Tang Soso launched her hidden weapons at all of Wiji Cheon''s vitals.

    "Senior Yiran, I''m sorry." Wiji Cheon gently pushed the Sword Flower out of the way and deflected all the hidden weapons, but this was only the beginning.

    "No hard feelings, okay? I''m only doing this for the sake of my grades."

    "I''m sorry, but I''m a fourth-year student in need of a good resume for job applications."

    Dokgo Jun and Bang Baekhyun lunged at Wiji Cheon from left and right at the same time. Their eyes shone fiercely.

    Behind them, Tang Suo burst out laughing like a demon queen. "Ohohoho! Be the first sacrifice for my entry into the White Dragon Manor!"

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    So mean! These seniors are all so mean! Wiji Cheon thought as he gritted his teeth and swung his sword. Counterattacking in the midst of the seniors'' onslaught was impossible. All he could do was block and evade as much as possible.

    CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

    There were no openings in the former and current Student Council Presidents'' joint attack. Strong and experienced, they took turns attacking to conserve their energy and always maintained an appropriate distance so as not to give Wiji Cheon a chance to escape.

    Of course, they couldn''t let their guard down either. The moment they relaxed, Wiji Cheon''s sword would slip into the opening.

    Bang Baekhyun glanced at his torn sleeve. "Hahaha! Is this kid really a freshman?"

    "Didn''t I tell you? Don''t think of him as an ordinary freshman."

    "It''s going to take a while to subdue him without hurting him, right?"

    "...He''s resisting pretty hard, so I guess it can''t be helped if he gets a little hurt."

    "Yeah."

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    The two exchanged glances and scattered to the left and right. It had only been a few minutes, but their teamwork had already improved. The Nine Swords of Dokgo roared fiercely as if to tear the air apart, while Bang Baekhyun''s delicate swordplay filled the gaps.

    Tang Soso also fiddled with her hidden weapons, looking for an opportunity to strike, but since the two seniors'' joint attack was almost perfect, she didn''t get a chance to intervene.

    Ugh! They''re both so strong! Wiji Cheon pouted, feeling his hands and feet go numb. It was a good thing this was just an ordinary school brawl. If it had been a real fight, he would have died already.

    I need help from someone, anyone... Even Hyonwon Kang, who stole my Soul Sword...

    As if reading Wiji Cheon''s mind, someone sent him a telepathic message.

    [Cheon! Hold your breath!]

    Wiji Cheon immediately held his breath as told. At the same time, something flew from the sky and landed in the middle of the melee.

    "Senior!"

    "Step back!"

    Sensing danger, Dokgo Jun and Bang Baekhyun quickly jumped backward.

    BOOOOOOM!

    A smoke bomb exploded, blanketing the battlefield in black, pungent smoke and obscuring Wiji Cheon''s figure.

    "This way, Wiji Cheon!" someone shouted.

    "Don''t let him get away!" Tang Soso screamed, throwing her hidden weapons in the direction of the voice.

    Dokgo Jun and Bang Baekhyun charged at the interloper, swinging their swords to clear the smoke.

    ""STOP RIGHT THERE!""