Chapter 57 – The truth behind the name

After the fun lunch, Rachel took Evandel with her back to her dorm to have some mommy-daughter times.

Since Nayun didn't have any duels lined up the rest of the day, she went along with Rachel as cover.

Hajin had more duels, so he headed off to finish those up, muttering under his breath about 'alternative incapacitation strategies' and 'air juggling as a viable tactic.'

Yeonha, the dishonest enamored woman she was, tagged along with a recording device and insisting she was going to record his duels 'just for Essence of Strait asset review.'

Lee didn't buy it. And everyone who heard her also didn't buy it.

But there was a tacit understanding to play along until she openly admitted she was in love with Hajin, so Lee and everyone in earshot played dumb.

But that meant that Lee had a bit of free time.

Since he had pulled a Lu Bu... almost literally considering he used a halberd.

But anyway, since he pulled a Lu Bu move a la Dynasty Warriors and dealt with all the mob characters challenging him in one go, he was cleared up until the final day of duels tomorrow on Tuesday.

And because of that, Lee deliberately went to a deserted area of the campus to wait for his mysterious observers.

It was 5 PM now, close to evening.

Because of that, Cube's campus had died down a bit since the only ones left dueling were the lower ranked Cube Cadets. Most of the people who had come to scout promising talents had already gone home.

Which meant that, when Lee sat down at the park bench on the opposite side of campus from the dorms, no one else was around.

At least, that should have been the case.

But the moment after he sat, a shadowy puddle approached him from the distance.

It was fast, closing hundreds of meters in an instant.

But the moment it reached Lee's armspan, it dissolved and a beautiful woman with silky black hair and obsidian eyes emerged, wearing a skin-tight black leather suit.

Lee stared at her and said, "Did Goryeo's First Sword head off early?"

The woman sat down at the bench on Lee's left and said, "Cheok Jungyeong went to play with a serpent dragon."

"That makes sense. He probably wants to see if he still has his abilities in water."

Lee vaguely remembered that the guy had a lot of ocean themed sword abilities in Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint...

Although it probably wasn't the same guy... though it'd be funny if it was.

Heh.

Kim Dokja in a world with Kim Hajin... the shenanigans...

But anyway.

Since Cheok Jungyeong looked like he was doing a prestige run, he would probably be seeing if he could still beat up a dragon in the water with martial arts instead of a sword.

The woman tilted her head and said, "...You seem to know a lot about Cheok Jungyeong."

Lee nodded. "Well of course. He's a respectable martial artist. If the murim existed, he'd probably be heading up the Orthodox Faction or something and fighting against Cheonma and the Heavenly Demon Sect."

The woman was quiet, mulling something over. Then she slowly said, "Your name. Is it really Lee Shin?"

Lee paused and looked at the woman.

...Considering that she approached him first, she was definitely important.

And Lee vaguely remembered that Cheok Jungyeong was involved in that group that Hajin joined later on... What was it? Reptile or something?

...Lee was starting to wish he'd actually read through The Novel's Extra a few more times. At least the good part in the beginning.

This woman definitely had to be one of the main characters... but Lee didn't remember her.

Well.

Either way...

"If you're recruiting, it's usually polite to introduce yourself first, you know?"

The woman stared at Lee.

Lee stared back with a blase expression on his face.

Then the woman's lips quirked into a smile. "...You're quite fearless."

"Nah. I just know you won't hurt me. I don't know exactly why, but you want my help with something, right?" Lee hummed, tapping his finger on the side of the bench. "It's not because of my academics. Those have been high, but it's not revolutionary. Not because of my fighting skills either, because Suho's better. You aren't here for my daughter or Rachel because you were looking at me specifically those past two times... so if I have to guess, it's my physique or ability to manipulate mana. Right?"

The woman paused. Then she said, "...And quite intelligent- Wait." She blinked. "Ability to manipulate mana? ...The way you phrased that implies more than just sword ki and qi reinforcement."

Lee smiled. "Exactly. So, if you're here to recruit... let's negotiate. This is technically illegal, but honestly, with everything I'm doing, it's only adding to the dad lore."

"...Dad lore?"

"You wouldn't get it." Lee chuckled. "But anyway... You're here to make me an offer, right? Go ahead. I'm very open to them since you don't have any ill intentions against Rachel or Eva."

The woman blinked and stared at Lee with a blank expression. "...Are you serious?"

Lee nodded. "I'm very serious. You have Cheok Jungyeong on your side. That guy was already a monster with a sword, but now he's even climbing the path of martial arts with his bare body... and he's already ridiculous enough that he could probably claim the title of Cheonma and leader of the Heavenly Demon Sect and no one would bat an eye. I am VERY interested."

The level of power in the world...

Lee didn't know how it ended up because he stopped mid-way. But considering how strong Cheok Jungyeong was... and considering he was just a casual side character... probably...

Yeah, no.

The more powerful allies he could have, as well as the more resources he could access, the better he'd be able to keep Rachel and Evandel safe.

...Technically, Lee should be concerned about Hajin, Yeonha, Suho, and Nayun too...

But they all had strong backing.

Yeonha was the daughter of the number one guild in the world, making whoever targeted her enemy number one. Even if she wasn't, she was now Hajin's wife... even if they hadn't quite filed a marriage certificate yet to make it public.

Considering Hajin had the cheat to use SP to do whatever the hell he wanted, she was fine.

Suho... Well, he was literally a protagonist and had protagonist armor. Not to mention he already was ridiculously strong and had that crazy Gift that Lee was absolutely sure let him cut through concepts.

And Nayun... Her grandfather was the world's boogeyman.

Like, unironically.

The Immortal, Chae Joochul, wasn't talked about lightly. Even if he was old, considering he was basically in a permanent Avatar State like he was a bender of all four elements...

Yeah. No one was messing with her either.

Rachel though... She didn't have any real backing.

So Lee was going to be that.

Especially since Hajin had definitely hopped on the Yeonha ship.

The mysterious woman... The 'Boss' that Cheok Jungyeong had mentioned would come by to say hi with an offer.

She looked at Lee and then slowly nodded. "Understood. Then I will be candid." She held out her hand and said, "Join us. We will give you the world if necessary. In return, help us kill one man."

Lee blinked. "Huh." He stared at the Boss's outstretched hand and then her face. Then he said, "Sorry, I'm a taken man so I can't take another woman's hand." He held out his fist for a fistbump. "But I'll team up with you guys if the offer still stands. Can't be a partner to any female other than my Rachel though."

Boss blinked and Lee's response. But then a faint smile crossed her face as she shifted her hand into a fist to tap against Lee's. "...You are a strange one. But that is fine." She looked at Lee and said, "...You never answered my first question. On whether Lee Shin is your name."

Lee nodded. "And you didn't give me your name either."

Boss paused. Then, after some thinking, she said, "...Yi Byul. That is my name. And if I hear it from anyone else, I will know it came from you. Do not use it lightly."

Lee nodded. "Got it. Should I just call you 'Boss' then otherwise? Like Cheok Jungyeong did?"

"Yes." Boss nodded. "...And now you."

Lee hummed. "Well..."

If Lee was honest, it had been a while since he thought about who he 'really' was.

For the most part, he just treated 'Lee Shin' as himself. Since he was back in a teenaged body and functionally regressed in age and time... especially since he came from 2026 when it was 2025 here...

Well, Lee had equated 'Lee Shin' as himself.

But, if he was being serious about who he was. Who the 'real' Lee was.

Not the 'Lee Shin' of this world, but the one who he was.

Not the Korean American who was lost in the Korean foster care system after his parents were killed by Djinns.

Not the crazy guy who had done all sorts of things to train his spearmanship and reach the pinnacle of the human body without mana.

But the Lee... No, the 'Li' who had taken that guy's place.

Lee chuckled and said, "It's a funny coincidence. But my real name is Li Shu Wen. First name, Li, middle name, Shu, and my last name, Wen. My mother was a pretty famous actress who did voicework for Mulan in the animated movie. It's part of the reason why I got into martial arts to begin with. And anime. And video games, since she also was in Kingdom Hearts... Ah, my dad was a film writer though. He also took my mom's last name since he was cool like that."

Boss slowly blinked. Then she said, "...Your mother voiced Mulan?"

"The English version, yes." Lee paused. "Ah, well. My family history is complicated. If anyone asks, my parents are the ones that died in that Djinn accident."

Boss stared at Lee.

Lee smiled.

Boss slowly said, "You're serious."

"Yes. And no one will ever believe you if you repeat this information. So it's a good way to verify things, right?"

Boss stared at Lee. Then she chuckled. "...You are interesting. But fine." She nodded and said, "You are correct. If there ever comes a time where we must verify identities... that will be useful."

"Right? Now." Lee smiled and said, "...Tell me more about this shadowy organization I've signed up for. And does it involve an Eminence in the Shadows?"

"...What?"

===

Late Monday evening, in the Chameleon Troupe's temporary hideout. A pitch-black abandoned factory.

After a long talk with Lee Shin, Boss finally headed back to the meeting spot.

Cheok Jungyeong paused in the middle of practicing some martial arts forms and raised a hand in greeting. "Hey, Boss. Did it go well?"

Another person looked up too. A Western beauty with blonde hair and golden eyes. Typing in a laptop, Jain glanced up and smiled. "Sooo, I guess talking worked?"

Boss's eye twitched, but she kept a calm face as she entered. "...Yes. Candid discussion proved fruitful. Lee Shin has agreed to join us."

Jain looked smug and said, "I told you~ He's a straightforward guy, isn't he? Even more than Cheok Jungyeong here."

Cheok Jungyeong nodded and said, "As expected of Godspear Li."

Boss was quiet. Then she said, "Cheok Jungyeong."

"Yeah, Boss?"

Boss looked at him and said, "...You were correct. It appears he is indeed the reincarnation of Li Shuwen. Or at least, he inherited that man's legacy."

"Hah! I knew it!" Cheok Jungyeon nodded, a content smile on his face. "There was no way it isn't Godspear Li." He paused. "...But Boss. I'm curious. Did you find out why he knows how to use a sword?"

Boss's eye twitched again. "I did."

Jain looked interested. "Ooh? And why's that?"

"...Apparently, he was an avid lightsaber duelist in his youth."

Jain gave Boss a blank stare. Then she said, "...Seriously?"

"...Seriously."

Cheok Jungyeon, on the other hand, let out a wide grin and said, "As expected of Godspear Li...! To go so far as to bring fictional swordplay into reality as a true sword style... And for those flashy techniques to mix into Bajiquan's straight forward strikes..."

"Uh." Jain blinked. "I don't think that's-"

Cheok Jungyeon smashed a fist into the palm of his hands and said, "I can't lose. Jain! What are famous fictional fighting styles?"

Jain blinked again and said, "Uh. I guess... maybe stuff like Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat?"

Cheok Jungyeon nodded and immediately started walking out. "I'll be back after I've mastered a new martial art." He laughed. "I can't let Godspear Li beat me when I'm from an earlier generation..."

After he left, silence filled the factory.

Jain slowly turned to look at Boss and said, "...Was Cheok Jungyeon always like that?"

Boss sighed. "...He's been like that since he talked with Lee Shin in person."

"...I see. Well." Jain stretched. "...Should I tell the others?"

"...Yes. I... need some time to process."

Jain waved her hand. "Sure, Boss. Take it easy."

Boss nodded and then headed towards her bedroom... or what served as her bedroom for the time being.