Chapter 60
Chapter 60
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: Unexpected Tenacity
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Hans was quick to read the room in most situations.
The Bednickers, who rarely showed their faces at official events, and among them, Hector, one of the most outstanding talents.
This was the very reason he had been able to befriend him.
He could tally up a person's complexion, subtle changes in expression, tone of voice, and gestures in his head to make a rough guess at what they were thinking—
And right now, that instinct was sounding an alarm.
*I’ve stepped on a landmine.*
Right now, Hans had well and truly stepped on a landmine.
"Hans Vander."
"...Yes."
"Know your place."
"I-I'm sorry."
Hector spoke briefly, then scanned the room.
His eyes met Ruan's for a moment.
"..."
"..."
A brief silence.
Then, without another word, Hector walked toward the water fountain, his expression blank.
"W-Wow..."
"Phew. I thought my heart was going to stop."
Only then did Evan, Karis, and the other Young Leaders let out sighs of relief.
They had heard plenty of stories about the deadly nerve-wracking exchanges between the capital's nobility, but experiencing it firsthand was beyond imagination.
This kind of atmosphere was unfamiliar to them, who were either provincial nobles or from fallen houses.
"Wow... Ruan, it seems like you're close with Lord Hector, contrary to the rumors."
A girl named Pam spoke in a surprised voice.
"Rumors?"
"Yeah. I heard that Ruan Bednicker is a complete outcast in the family, isn't close with any of his siblings, and is on particularly bad terms with Hector Bednicker."
Pam was a girl with orange hair and freckles who harbored a deep admiration for the capital, so she was well-versed in the rumors there.
She had a cheerful and sociable personality, but her only flaw was that she was a bit clueless.
"Hey, why would you say it like that?"
"What did I do?"
"I mean, try to be a little more considerate with your words, you freckle-face."
"You lanky oaf, are you done talking?"
"That's enough, that's enough."
Ruan said with a chuckle.
"You can't believe the rumors about the Bednickers. The family is as secretive as the Cult, to begin with. So a lot of the tales floating around outside are mixed with speculation and exaggeration."
"So what's the truth?"
"The truth..."
After a moment of thought, Ruan said.
"My brother Hector is actually very fond of me."
*Cough.*
The sound of someone choking was heard.
Everyone's gaze briefly shifted to the water fountain, where they saw Hector wiping his mouth.
Hector coughed dryly with an uncomfortable look on his face, then went straight up to the second floor.
"Woooow..."
"It must be true!"
"I'm so jealous!"
Ruan tilted his head, looking at the suddenly cheering crowd around him.
"What's with this reaction?"
"But... it means you're really close with *the* Hector!"
"The Iron-Blooded Duke's third fang!"
"What's that now?"
"You don't know that Hiiro Bednicker and Nero Bednicker are called the Iron-Blooded Duke's first and second fangs?"
Of course, he didn't.
As mentioned before, Ruan at this time had intentionally closed his ears to rumors about his family.
The Young Leaders grew frustrated with Ruan's attitude.
"Those two are the most famous of all the Youngbloods!"
"What are Youngbloods?"
"Heroes under twenty-five! It's not an official classification, but it's what people call them for convenience... Are you really a Bednicker?"
"Sometimes I wonder that myself."
Ruan replied, needlessly fiddling with his hair.
His platinum blonde hair certainly did stand out in a family of mostly black-haired individuals.
"...Anyway. Since the performance those two are showing is incredible, expectations are also high for Hector Bednicker, who will soon become a hero. He's also had amazing achievements in official events like martial arts tournaments."
"Wow, so he was someone amazing."
"He's your brother, you know?!"
Pam said with an ecstatic look on her face.
"I'm so glad I decided to participate in this training retreat! It was a bit scary when the instructor mentioned the survival rate, but just as my mother said, the Bednicker training retreat is worth it."
"What did your mother say?"
"She said the retreat is a golden opportunity to expand my network! And I've organized my thoughts, too. First, I absolutely have to get close to the people called the BIG3."
Karis asked with a dumbfounded expression.
"What's the BIG3?"
"The most outstanding talents in this training retreat!"
"And who decided that?"
"Me, of course."
"...A very credible source, I see."
"Hehehe."
Pam said with a sly smile.
"Anyway, Lord Hector is obviously part of the BIG3!"
"Who are the other two?"
"Naturally, one of them is the Goodsprings'—"
It was then.
*Creak.* The main door swung open, and a girl with pure white hair appeared.
"Ruan Bednicker!"
*Gasp.* The Young Leaders held their breath at the appearance of another major figure.
It was Seren Goodspring, who had entered with a gust of cold wind that whipped her hair around.
"You, come with me for a—"
[Attention, all Young Leaders.]
...However, Seren's voice was cut off mid-sentence.
The instructor's voice suddenly came from the communication crystal.
[It is almost time for lights out. Return to your rooms immediately. Anyone found loitering after 22:00 will receive a deduction.]
Ah.
Ruan stood up from his seat.
"You heard him. Let's talk tomorrow."
"What? Hey!"
Seren called out urgently, but Ruan walked upstairs without looking back.
Karis, who had remained seated, muttered in a daze.
"That Ruan kid... he might be a bigger deal than I thought, huh?"
"He's a Bednicker, to begin with."
"That's true."
"...Still, there's something... special about him."
Evan murmured in a low voice, his gaze fixed strangely on the staircase.
***
The next day.
The Young Leaders, assembled in the clearing before sunrise, fought back yawns as they looked up at the platform.
"In this training retreat, there are four basic subjects you bastards will focus on. Hunting and Survival, Theory, and finally, Miscellaneous."
The one standing on the platform was the Hunting Master Teacher.
He was still glaring at all the Young Leaders with menacing eyes, and those who failed to read the mood and dozed off had already received deductions.
"The maximum score for each subject is ten points, and the condition for completion is to earn a total of twenty points. That means you can pass just by getting half the points in each subject. Seems like a giveaway, don't you think?"
Not a single person laughed or agreed with his words.
Just then, one of the Young Leaders raised a hand.
It was Seren Goodspring.
Even in this grimy place, her beauty was still dazzling.
"What is it, Seren Goodspring?"
"I request a detailed explanation of each subject."
"Hmm... Fine."
The Hunting Master Teacher nodded agreeably and began to explain.
"First of all, every Young Leader here has received a Blessing, which means you all naturally possess an aptitude for demon subjugation. In other words, you have the bare minimum preparation to fight against those disgusting cult bastards."
The Hunting Master Teacher repeated himself.
"The bare minimum, that is."
"..."
"I know that you bastards have received your Blessings and are brimming with confidence right now. But if you set foot in their territory in your current state, I guarantee it. Every last one of you will be dead or captured within a day."
Evan felt a surge of defiance at that declarative statement.
He had received a whopping three Blessings at the recent Blessing Ceremony, and not one of them was useless.
Furthermore, in the Helvin Family, he had been training since he was a snot-nosed kid, for over ten years in total.
In fact, if he were given a mission right now, he was confident he could single-handedly take down any ordinary cultist, so long as they weren't a high-ranking member.
"The process of luring out cultists and demons is long and tedious. It's a quality that you brats lack the most. Therefore, first, you must learn about hunting."
The Hunting Master Teacher held up one finger, then another.
"Furthermore, you will often find yourselves isolated during missions. The Cult's curses are a force that opposes Blessings, and depending on how they're used, they can even nullify them. There will undoubtedly be times when you must simply hold out and wait for support, so survival training is also essential."
"..."
"Finally, if you know nothing about demons, you won't be able to survive, let alone hunt them. They are disgusting creatures, which is precisely why you must know them well. Therefore, we will also include theory."
At that moment, another kid raised his hand.
"Then what's Miscellaneous?"
"Karis Earthman. One point deduction."
Karis's face soured at the response, which was different from the one Seren had received.
"Huh? W-Why..."
"Because I was just about to explain it, and you interrupted the flow."
Evan watched the scene with a pained expression.
*He'd be better off just keeping his mouth shut.*
Evan muttered the truth he'd realized over the past day to himself.
"The Miscellaneous category is everything else. It's a score given by the instructors based on your attitude toward this retreat, your engagement, your everyday conduct, and so on. There are no precise grading criteria. Each instructor focuses on different things."
"..."
"So, for this one week, we will test you bastards in a variety of ways. And the first of these is a stamina test."
*Crack.* The Hunting Master Teacher said as he stretched his body with somewhat rough movements.
"The method is simple. Just follow me to the end. The fastest five get bonus points, and conversely, the slowest five get deductions. Now, begin."
Along with his nonchalant words, the Hunting Master Teacher took off at a sprint, soon disappearing into the distance.
"..."
"..."
"...Ah!"
"Damn it!"
Snapping back to their senses belatedly, the Young Leaders began to chase after him furiously.
***
The Hunting Master Teacher respected each individual's martial arts.
Even if a martial art seemed bizarre or strange at first glance, he believed that others had no right to interfere.
If there were a hundred people, there were a hundred paths to infinity.
But if someone were to ask what the most fundamental thing for a martial artist was, he believed the answer would be unanimous.
Stamina.
No matter what, one had to build stamina first.
"──."
The Hunting Master Teacher glanced back while still running at a high speed.
About an hour had passed since they started running.
By this point, the results were becoming clear.
There were those who followed without much difficulty, those who managed to finish through sheer grit, and those who ultimately fell behind...
Overall, they were keeping up quite well.
It was to be expected, really.
Most of the kids chasing him were treated like precious treasures by their families since childhood.
That didn't mean they were raised as delicate flowers in a greenhouse.
It meant that every one of them was expected to become a future hero, a being who would elevate their family's honor.
Naturally, with such expectations placed upon them, they would have been fed all sorts of precious things since they were children.
They would have had renowned teachers, followed systematic training schedules planned down to the minute, consumed elixirs more valuable than gold, and been taught martial arts with great care.
Of course, even so, an individual's talent varied greatly.
The Hunting Master Teacher saw a few kids staggering as if they were about to collapse at any moment and shouted.
"Is it hard? Feel like you're going to die! Then just sit down and rest! But you bastards haven't forgotten where you are, have you—!"
"...!"
The Forest of Butterflies was teeming with demonic beasts.
Of course, the area they were running in now was the training camp, so it was highly unlikely they would encounter any.
But those Young Leaders would never know that.
He could see a few of the stragglers gritting their teeth and running harder.
Conversely, there were also those who plopped down, declaring they couldn't run anymore no matter what the Hunting Master Teacher yelled.
The Hunting Master Teacher sighed internally.
This was why he hated training nobles.
Talent aside, they lacked the most important thing for becoming stronger.
Grit.
The Hunting Master Teacher hated those who relied solely on talent and strutted about, and he hated those without grit even more.
But these noble kids were either one or, in most cases, both.
...However, what was surprising was...
The one kid who should have been the most like that was showing the most unexpected side.
The Hunting Master Teacher looked at the blonde boy running, drenched in sweat.
Ruan Bednicker.
That kid was the type the Hunting Master Teacher hated most.
No talent, no grit, and yet he still strutted around.
At least, from what the Hunting Master Teacher had seen a few times and heard through rumors, he was a kid who seemed to embody all the pathetic qualities in the world...
But that same kid was now drenched in sweat, gasping for breath, somehow managing to keep up.
*'His stamina must have hit its limit long ago.'*
At this point, even breathing in the cold air would feel like his lungs were on fire, and his throat would feel even hotter.
He would also be dizzy from the lack of oxygen.
*'He's got good grit, but he'll collapse before long.'*
It was nothing to worry about.
Though few of the Young Leaders seemed to have noticed, knights were following them at a set distance.
They were there to collect any who dropped out.
The Hunting Master Teacher lost interest in Ruan and picked up his pace again.
This time, a little faster.
"Ugh..."
"...N-No..."
The Young Leaders groaned as they watched the Hunting Master Teacher pull away.
They were already struggling just to keep up.
The Hunting Master Teacher ran like that for another thirty minutes straight, then looked back again.
The number of runners had been cut in half.
Those who had survived this far were mostly the ones he had been keeping an eye on even before the retreat began.
*'Hm?'*
He was surprised to see Ruan was still among them.
Though he was staggering as if he would collapse at any moment.
*'Not bad. He's got some grit.'*
It seemed he would have to revise his evaluation a little.
The Hunting Master Teacher suppressed the urge to let the corners of his mouth twitch and started running again.
An hour later, when he looked back again.
Fewer than ten Young Leaders were still following.
'...'
And still, Ruan Bednicker was among them.
*'...What is with that kid?'*