Chapter 61
Chapter 61
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: The First Test
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As I chased after the Hunting Master Teacher who had suddenly taken off, a thought crossed my mind.
‘So he plans to test our stamina first.’
It was, in order, the first thing that needed to be checked.
If I were to draw upon my internal energy, I could run for three days and nights straight, but I decided against it this time, choosing to rely solely on the strength of my body.
In truth, since my return, I hadn’t focused much on external training.
Unlike internal energy, which could be explosively enhanced in a short period, external arts required consistent effort and time.
Of course, that didn't mean I could neglect it forever.
To become the World's Greatest, one had to master both internal energy and external arts.
‘I don’t think I’ll fall behind anyone in internal energy.’
With the incident in the Jewel Mountains and the spirit jade I recently acquired…
Not just for now, but in the long run, it was highly unlikely I would ever be outmatched in internal energy.
Conversely, when it came to external arts, to my physical body, I was undoubtedly at the bottom of the pack here.
The body is honest.
It grows stronger the harder you push it and weaker the more you indulge it.
And at fifteen, I had despaired after the first Blessing Ceremony and wasted about a year of my life.
This weakness was my own doing.
Naturally, the pain that came with rehabilitation was also a burden I had to bear.
I steadily followed behind the Hunting Master Teacher.
After running for about thirty minutes, I was out of breath. After another thirty, my head started to spin.
The pace was faster than I expected.
And my stamina was even worse than I thought.
In that case, today’s goal was to supplement this stamina.
‘I guess it’s a good thing I built up a tiny bit of stamina in the mountains…’
Without even that, I would have collapsed within ten minutes.
Before long, my vision started to blur.
‘Not yet.’
Still, I clenched my teeth and kept running.
The human body is tougher than one might think.
By my standards, a person truly reaches their limit when they throw up.
Right now, my throat was a little raw, but I didn't feel nauseous yet.
Proof that I hadn't reached my limit.
‘Is this why he called us without even feeding us breakfast?’
If we’d eaten anything, a good number of us would have thrown up by now.
In any case, the Hunting Master Teacher’s role was that of an instructor.
While he was pushing the young nobles hard, there was no malice in his actions.
And he wouldn't expect results beyond their level.
Therefore, I was certain this run would end sometime in the morning.
* * *
The run, which had started at dawn, came to a halt just before the afternoon, exactly as Ruan had predicted.
“…”
The Hunting Master Teacher looked at the six who had followed him without ever falling behind.
‘Barring any incidents, these ones will complete the training alive.’
It was a meaningful piece of data he had gathered from conducting countless training sessions.
Hector Bednicker, Seren Goodspring, Evan Helvin, Mir Giant…
All four were promising talents who had been highly anticipated by their families not only for this training but even before the Blessing Ceremony.
Among them, the one who most caught the Hunting Master Teacher’s eye was the boy who had never been more than ten paces away from him until the very end.
‘Karon Woodjack.’
The son of Hyde Woodjack, known as the empire’s strongest ranger.
He was sweating slightly, but his breathing was completely undisturbed.
‘This one already shows some promise.’
The Hunting Master Teacher looked at Karon’s face.
A scar ran across the bridge of his nose.
To those warriors of the plains, scars were not blemishes but medals of honor, and the Hunting Master Teacher thought so too.
The Hunting Master Teacher imagined that there were probably a few similar scars hidden beneath his outer clothes.
In any case, it was not common for someone so young to bear such a scar.
As they say, see one thing and you know ten.
It was easy enough to see how Hyde had educated his only son.
In fact, Hyde had been one of the candidates for Grand Master Teacher that the Iron-Blooded Duke had personally tried to recruit.
The Iron-Blooded Duke had changed his mind for some reason after meeting him in person, but considering the immense importance of Hyde's mission in the swamp, it wasn't strange.
‘And…’
The Hunting Master Teacher’s gaze shifted to the very back.
There stood someone who had captured his attention for a different reason.
‘He actually finished.’
Ruan Bednicker.
He was gasping for air as if he were about to pass out, but he hadn't fallen behind and had followed all the way to the end.
That boy possessed a level of grit the Hunting Master Teacher had never seen before.
Although he ranked last among these six.
He had endured the most pain and overcome it.
It would be a lie to say he didn't feel a sense of pride.
Honestly, he wanted to give him bonus points, but…
“Karon Woodjack, Hector Bednicker, Seren Goodspring, Evan Helvin, Mir Giant.”
He could not.
The Hunting Master Teacher was the instructor for this training session.
If an instructor's rewards and punishments were not fair, the order of the training would collapse.
“The five of you will receive two bonus points each.”
After speaking, he glanced at Ruan, who seemed composed, merely catching his breath.
Did he not yet understand the importance of points?
‘No, that can’t be it.’
He didn't seem like the unperceptive type.
“…Afternoon training will begin after the meal. The exact time will be announced then, so for now, return to your quarters and rest.”
“Yes.”
The Hunting Master Teacher left the young nobles and headed for his quarters.
The instructor’s quarters looked splendid from the outside, but the interior wasn't actually all that glamorous.
The reason they put so much effort into the exterior was to motivate the young nobles participating here.
The Hunting Master Teacher headed to the dining hall for a meal that was both breakfast and lunch.
After receiving a portion of bland food and sitting down, he suddenly felt someone lingering nearby.
“A rather early lunch, I see.”
It was the Martial Arts Master Teacher, Huan, who sat down opposite him with a gentle smile.
“I skipped breakfast.”
“As expected of Master Teacher Tanko. You couldn't bring yourself to eat when all the young nobles were starving, is that it? Haha. I've learned something new today.”
“…”
This man was the type the Hunting Master Teacher disliked.
He acknowledged his talent and his excellent results in teaching, but his methods just didn't sit right with him.
It was strangely unpleasant.
“Come to think of it, the afternoon session is with you, Master Teacher Huan, isn't it?”
“That’s right. Haha. I’m a bit nervous. I hear there are many children from especially esteemed families in this batch…”
It might be nitpicking, but he didn't like that perspective either.
No matter how noble their bloodline, once they entered the training, they were just another young noble.
Therefore, as an instructor, what he should be focusing on was their aptitude, talent, and grit.
The Hunting Master Teacher felt too uncomfortable to remain seated any longer. Shoving the half-eaten loaf of bread into his mouth, he stood up.
“I’ll be on my way.”
“Of course. By the way, were there any young nobles who caught your eye?”
“…”
There were several.
Among them, the one who had captured his attention the most was an unexpected individual.
But he felt no obligation to reveal that fact, so the Hunting Master Teacher simply shook his head and left.
* * *
“Hooo…”
Once my breathing had calmed, I stood up.
I felt grimy from the sweat and dirt, but I had no desire to wash up.
There would probably be a class just as grueling in the afternoon.
‘Besides, it’s not like the bathrooms are open anyway.’
I headed to the dining hall to fill my stomach.
Fortunately, there were no set portions for this meal.
It meant I could eat as much as I wanted.
I piled my tray high, focusing on the meat, then sat down at a suitable spot and began to eat.
The training camp’s food didn't have a very good reputation among these noble brats, but surprisingly, it wasn't bad for my palate.
It was a bit bland, but it didn't have any gamey smell or feel unclean.
Most importantly, the overall nutritional balance was excellent.
“Hey…!”
Just then, someone plopped down in front of me.
It was a face I had briefly seen yesterday, Seren.
I greeted her while chewing on a piece of meat.
“Hello. We seem to run into each other in the dining hall quite a lot, don't we—”
“Shut up. What happened?”
Seren cut me off and asked.
Only then did I recall our last encounter.
I had set the mood as if I were about to die.
I swallowed the meat with a gulp and replied.
“I took care of it.”
“What?”
“I said I took care of it. That’s why I’m here, isn’t it?”
Seren gave me a look of disbelief, then lowered her voice and asked.
“You mean you took down that monster by yourself?”
She probably wouldn't believe me even if I told her the truth.
For the sake of a smooth conversation, I added a small lie.
“Someone from my family helped.”
“Who.”
“You wouldn’t know them even if I told you.”
“Just tell me.”
“Hey. We’ve only just met again, why are you bringing up such gloomy topics? The important thing is that we both survived and met again, right?”
“Stop changing the subject and answer me.”
This girl.
I’ll show her what changing the subject really looks like.
“More importantly, what’s the secret?”
“…What secret?”
Seren tilted her head with a nonchalant expression, but I didn't miss the slight flinch that followed.
“You said you’d tell me a secret if we met again alive.”
“…Hmm. Did I say that?”
“Yes. You did. I swear on my life, I heard it with my own two ears. So tell me. What is it?”
“…”
“What’s with that look? Is the secret that big a deal? Are you secretly a man or something?”
“O-Of course not!”
Seren said, startled.
Of course, my eyes weren't so poor that I couldn't even distinguish someone's gender.
“Or maybe there’s no secret and you just said it for show. Like you said it to sound cool, thinking I might actually survive, but you never thought about what you’d do if I did?”
“No!”
Seren’s voice rose slightly.
She quickly glanced around, then sighed and said.
“…It’s just, I didn’t think I’d have to tell you like this. Damn it.”
“Then why did you make such a promise so carelessly?”
“…You’re right. If I could, I’d go back in time and punch myself.”
Unexpectedly, I almost flinched at the words Seren had casually uttered.
What she had just said was a thought I, who had regressed, often had myself.
“…It’s a bit much right now, I’ll tell you later when I see an opportunity.”
“Alright. More importantly, why did you join the training?”
“I should be asking you that. Why are you here? Don’t you know how dangerous this training is?”
Anyone would think she was the Bednicker, not me.
“It’s a family event. I’ve already received the Blessing, so I’d be a laughingstock if I didn’t participate.”
“That’s… true, but.”
After a moment of hesitation, Seren spoke.
“…This training, is there no way to leave once you’ve joined?”
“None.”
“What if you get seriously injured?”
“They’ll probably let you rest in the infirmary in the instructors’ building. There’s a Medical Master Teacher, a Grand Master Teacher who’s an active priest, and he’ll treat your wounds.”
“…”
Her reaction was strange.
I knew the Bednicker training was dangerous, but… was it something for a daughter of the Goodsprings to be this frightened about?
The mortality rate of the training was high, but with Seren's skills, she was unlikely to die.
From her attitude, it didn't seem like she had joined to see me, and it looked like she had some other purpose.
“What is it?”
“…I’ll tell you later.”
“Why?”
“Because I don’t want to be treated like a crazy woman.”
What did she mean by that?
In any case, Seren said no more and left.
She then deliberately sat down at the table farthest from me and began to eat her meal.
As if to spite me, she didn't even glance my way, no matter how much I stared.
‘Her personality is really strange.’
She wasn't a bad person, but she was too foul-mouthed to be called simply nice, and she wasn't an easy type to deal with.
Besides, it seemed like she was hiding a lot of things.
Anyway, from now on, I’d have to drill into my head the fact that Seren Goodspring was a fundamentally prickly person.
“I remember now…!”
And as soon as Seren left, someone came running up and sat down next to me.
It was the freckle-faced girl, Pam.
“Remember what?”
“The marriage proposal that was said to have been exchanged between the youngest of the Bednickers and the third daughter of the Goodsprings!”
She then pointed a finger at me.
“The youngest of the Bednickers!”
“That’s me.”
“The third daughter of the Goodspring family…!”
“That’s Seren.”
“I knew it!”
Pam panted, out of breath.
She looked a little unstable.
“I was wondering why a scion of the Goodsprings would participate in the Bednicker training…! If there was this kind of backstory, it makes perfect, perfect sense!”
“Hey, quiet down.”
Karis came over and pressed down on Pam’s head.
My roommate, Evan, also spoke with a curious expression.
“So you were fiancés. I thought you two seemed close.”
“We’re not close. Besides, that engagement was called off ages ago.”
“Ack! Right, it was! Wait, hold on! The engagement may be off, but their pining love for each other has not faded, and at last, leaving their families behind, they elope in a flight of love…”
Pam shouted in a rapid-fire burst, even as her head was being squashed.
Evan glanced at me for a moment, then said.
“Anyway, you were amazing during the morning session. Honestly, I didn’t think you’d finish.”
Was he deliberately changing the subject?
What a thoughtful guy.
“I pushed myself for the first time in a while, felt like I was going to die.”
“Haha. Don’t be so dramatic.”
“You passed in third place or something, didn’t you?”
“I’m pretty confident in my stamina.”
“…”
I briefly looked at Evan, who was smiling awkwardly.
Evan Helvin.
The third son of the Helvin family, his primary weapon was the sword.
He was a user of the secret sword art [Raven], created by his father and the family head, Doze Helvin.
There was zero chance he was someone else with the same name.
I thought to myself as I poked a piece of meat with my fork.
Honestly, I still wasn't sure.
This guy who looked so draining just to look at…
In ten years, would he really become the continent’s worst criminal?