The wooden floors gleamed under the dim light, clearly waxed not too long ago and maintained with care.
The surface was so polished that Surya could see his own distorted reflection staring back at him, warped by the grain of the wood. Someone, or something, had been maintaining this place even in this twisted game world.
On the wall hung a somewhat nonsensical handwritten banner that read: "Real men should practice Taekwondo!"
The lettering was bold and aggressive, written in thick black marker with the kind of enthusiasm only teenage boys possessed. It was the sort of motivational nonsense that probably seemed inspirational to whoever wrote it.
Thin beams of light filtered in through the windows, illuminating countless fine dust particles dancing lazily in the air like tiny spirits.
The motes drifted in slow spirals, caught in invisible currents. The quality of light was strange here, not quite natural sunlight but not artificial either. Something in between, something wrong.
The scene inside the Taekwondo club was not much different from what you would expect in reality training mats spread across the floor, equipment racks along the walls, motivational posters showing proper kicking techniques.
Punching bags hung from ceiling mounts, swaying slightly despite the absence of any breeze. Protective gear was stacked neatly in the corner. Everything was orderly, clean, almost obsessively organized.
But at the same time, there was something in the venue that would never exist in the real world.
That was a massive Demon with red in color and enormous in size, with wild, flowing hair that seemed to move despite the lack of wind, and big curved horns coming from its forehead.
The creature was easily eight feet tall, maybe more. Its skin was the deep crimson of fresh blood, marked with darker patterns that might have been scars or tattoos. The horns were thick and ridged, curving upward like those of some ancient ram.
Its muscular chest was bare and imposing, and its expression was absolutely ferocious the kind of face that could only belonged in nightmares of a person.
The demon's features were brutish, with a wide jaw and pronounced brow ridge. Its eyes glowed with an inner fire, twin points of amber light in the dimness. Fangs protruded from its lower jaw, yellowed and sharp.
Based on this terrifying appearance, if someone told Surya that this creature had just finished devouring a human being, he would have believed it without question.
Blood would not have looked out of place dripping from those fangs. The demon looked like something that feasted on flesh and bones, that ground screaming victims between its teeth.
But the massive demon knelt formally in the center of the training area, and positioned in front of it was a traditional Taekwondo uniform folded with precision and a unusual Katana.
The uniform was pristine white, folded according to strict ceremonial protocol. The katana rested on a simple wooden stand, its blade partially visible, gleaming with an oiled sheen. The juxtaposition was jarring. This monster was performing a ritual of respect, of discipline.
"What the hell is this thing? A Demon?"
Surya's voice came out steadier than he felt. His hand instinctively moved to his pocket, fingers brushing against his phone as if it could offer some protection.
"Are those headless students outside afraid of this monster and that is why they will not come in?"
That would explain their behavior. They had chased him with single-minded determination until he crossed the threshold. Then they had stopped as if hitting an invisible wall.
"Did I just fucking stumble into the boss room of the eastern section?"
Of course. Of course he had. Because his luck was just that good. Escaping one group of monsters by running straight into a bigger, scarier monster.
Surya studied the imposing demon carefully, but surprisingly, he was not particularly terrified by what he saw.
Perhaps he was becoming desensitized. Or perhaps his mind had simply reached its capacity for fear and shut down that particular emotion to protect his sanity. Either way, he found himself oddly calm.
From his perspective, he was going to die either way whether it was at the hands of regular monsters or some kind of boss creature did not make much practical difference on his end.
Dead was dead. Whether he was strangled by headless students or torn apart by a demon, the result was the same. At least this death might yield more interesting information.
"Well, since I have already seen the boss and there is really no room left to struggle anyway," Surya decided to embrace the inevitable and simply sat down on the polished floor. "Come on then, do your worst. Do not go easy on me just because I am still technically a beginner."
He crossed his legs and waited, meeting the demon's glowing gaze with something approaching defiance. If he was going to die, he would at least die with some dignity intact.
Even though Surya had essentially given up and was prepared for the end, death did not come as he expected.
The hideous red coloured demon did not launch a sudden attack, but remained kneeling in that formal, respectful position with an almost ceremonial seriousness.
Minutes ticked by. The demon did not move. Did not blink. Just knelt there like a statue carved from blood-red stone, its eyes fixed on some point in the middle distance.
When it spoke, its voice was deep and muffled, like the sound of an enormous drum being struck with tremendous force: "One hundred soul crystals... I will teach you martial arts..."
Surya blinked in confusion.
That was not what he had expected to hear. No threats, no roars, no declaration of impending doom. Just a simple transaction offer, delivered in that bass rumble that made his ribcage vibrate.
Soul crystals certainly sounded like some kind of in-game currency system.
Every game had one. Gold coins, experience points, credits, gems. This one apparently used soul crystals, which had an appropriately dark ring to it given the horror theme.
The current situation appeared to be that as long as he could pay one hundred soul crystals, he could train one-on-one with this red demon and learn various Taekwondo techniques and forms!
It took Surya a moment to process this revelation. This terrifying red demon was actually an NPC instructor in the game.
Not a boss. Not an enemy. A teacher. A vendor of skills, waiting patiently for customers with the right currency. The absurdity of it almost made him laugh.
"But I do not have any soul crystals with me right now," he replied tentatively, testing the waters.
The red demon simply raised its glowing eyes slightly and repeated in that same thunderous voice: "One hundred soul crystals..."
Well, that was typical NPC behavior endlessly repeating the same programmed lines.
Like talking to a merchant in any RPG who only had three or four pre-recorded responses. No matter what you asked, they cycled through the same limited dialogue tree.
Buzz.
The phone in his pocket started vibrating, and a line of text appeared on the previously dark screen.
[The Red Demon of the Taekwondo Club is willing to teach you martial arts, but you must pay one hundred soul crystals as tuition.]
"If I learn powerful martial arts techniques in the game, then in reality I will also become a Taekwondo expert, right? Just like learning the Panchmukhi Art yesterday."
Surya pulled out his phone and quickly scanned the prompt that had appeared on screen.
The implications were staggering. If he could master Taekwondo here, his physical stats would skyrocket. His strength and agility, currently a pathetic seven points combined, could potentially double or triple. He would actually have a fighting chance against threats.
He spent a while longer in the Taekwondo Club, but the red demon did not engage in any additional dialogue or interactions.
No matter what Surya said to or how many ways tried to start a conversation, the creature would either reply with that exact same sentence about soul crystals, or simply remain silent and motionless.
He tried asking about soul crystals. About other students. About the headless monsters outside. About the nature of this game world. Every question met with either silence or that same repeated phrase.
"Seems like there is no point in coming back to the Taekwondo Club until I have managed to collect a hundred soul crystals somehow."
Surya prepared to leave and continue his exploration elsewhere.
He pushed himself to his feet, his muscles still aching from the desperate sprint earlier. The demon did not react to his movement, remained frozen in that kneeling posture like a guardian statue.
He glanced toward the closed door, wondering if those headless students were still waiting outside with their supernatural patience.
Were they still there? Or had they wandered off to resume their mindless patrols? He could not hear anything through the thick wood, which told him nothing either way.
There was no back exit from the Taekwondo Club, and the only two windows were secured with metal bars for security purposes. The main entrance was the only way out.
In the real world, those bars were there to prevent theft of expensive equipment. Here, they served to trap him with only one escape route.
With no other options available, Surya smiled bitterly and steeled himself with the ancient resolve that all people must face death eventually.
He pushed open the main door and stepped outside into whatever fate awaited him.
The hinges creaked ominously as the door swung wide. Twilight and the scent of something rotting greeted him immediately.
"Wuwuwu—"
"Hee-hee-hee—"
The sounds of crying and disturbing laughter immediately filled the air.
They had waited. All of them. Standing in a semicircle around the entrance like they had known he would have to come out eventually.
The headless students who had been patiently waiting threw themselves at Surya with obvious satisfaction, finally getting their chance to finish what they had started...
He did not even have time to run. They were on him instantly, cold hands grabbing his arms, his legs, his throat. He tried to activate the Vajra seal, but there was no time, no space, no chance.
On the dark phone screen, large Red letters appeared.
[BRUTALLY DEAD]
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