Chapter 123
Chapter 123
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 123
Chapter Title: Bluebird (4)
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Jerry blinked at Yuri's story, asking in return.
“A group that buys and sells Cradle intel? What's that supposed to be?”
Her tone was so innocently casual.
Anyone else would have sworn she truly had no idea.
But not Yuri.
“What's with that? You know exactly what I mean.”
“Uh... well?”
“You said it back then—info rated 'top-tier accuracy.'”
In the past, during the Dragon Plaque scramble, Jerry had definitely said as much.
[Ah, anyway, it's info rated 'top-tier accuracy.' High-class stuff, too good to dismiss as mere rumor.]
Yuri remembered that moment crystal clear.
But apparently, Jerry didn't.
“Who said that?”
“You did.”
“Me? When?”
Jerry rolled her eyes, feigning total ignorance.
Yuri couldn't help but snicker.
“You don't remember?”
“Not... a clue what you're talking about.”
“Oh come on, how could you forget our first meeting?”
“......”
“If it's not coming back to you, I can jog your memory. Our sweet little chat during the Dragon Plaque scramble.”
Crack, crack.
Seeing Yuri approach with knuckles popping, Jerry hurriedly raised her hands.
“I remember! I do! You're talking about back then, right? Of course I remember!”
Only after Jerry's near-screech did Yuri stop, flashing a faint smile.
Faced with her teeth, Jerry stared blankly up at the sky.
‘Ha... I got totally screwed.’
If only she could turn back time to that day of the scramble.
If she could, she never would've gone anywhere near that damn guy.
One wrong choice, and now this endless misery.
Jerry felt utterly forlorn.
And what made her even sadder was...
‘Why does this psycho always pick on me...’
With so many others around, this nutcase zeroed in on her every time.
It was enough to drive her insane.
But what could she do?
In this Cradle, raw power came first.
High cohort status?
Useless in a spot like this.
Why else couldn't juniors speak up to seniors here?
Seniors had rolled around a few years longer and grown that much stronger.
Which meant, flipped around...
‘A weak senior can get devoured by juniors just like this. Such is my fate...’
Jerry sighed away her bitterness and finally spoke.
“Haa... There’s this group called Bluebird.”
Yuri's eyes sparkled as Jerry opened up.
“Bluebird?”
“An info-trading outfit run by cohorts. But it's not just any simple trading group.”
“Then?”
“They do all sorts of miscellaneous stuff. Collect Cradle news and publish a monthly mag, or deliver letters between cohorts.”
“Hoo?”
“But their biggest business is brokering direct deals.”
“Direct deals?”
“If there's something you want, they find the owner and hook you up. They take a hefty cut, but once you try it, you'll see it's worth every coin.”
Yuri was impressed by the explanation.
“A single cohort runs an operation like that?”
Just compiling and selling info wasn't something anyone could pull off easily.
But publishing an info monthly and brokering deals on top?
That took more manpower than most could muster.
Unless Bluebird had a massive roster of members.
Jerry nodded, as if understanding Yuri's doubts.
“Bluebird's one of the Cradle's oldest outfits, right up there with the Progeny Society in history and tradition.”
“Progeny Society?”
“A club for descendants of great houses, eighteen and up. Think of it as the Cradle's royal club.”
“Hah? That exists here? What, we here to play around?”
“The Cradle's a living, breathing place, flooded nonstop with heirs from all the great houses. A little clique forming isn't surprising. Birds of a feather, right? Anyway, not the point right now. Uh... where was I?”
“Bluebird's got history and tradition.”
“Right, yeah. Bluebird's historic and traditional—and basically a private outfit run by the Sing family for generations.”
“What's that mean?”
“The head's always been a Sing family heir, and if there's no Sing in the Cradle, they leave the spot vacant till one shows up. Basically their private club.”
“Hoo?”
“Well, honestly, no Sing could run Bluebird anyway. Makes sense.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“But hey.”
“...?”
“Where's this Sing family from? That famous?”
Jerry's face twisted weirdly.
“...You don't know the Sing family?”
“Should I?”
“The Sing family! That Sing family!”
“So where's that Sing family from?”
“Never heard of Silver Ring's Sage House?”
“Ah! That's them?”
Yuri finally caught on.
Silver Ring's Sage House.
The term for the house that had produced geniuses hailed as sages of Silver Ring for generations.
Scholars, tacticians, strategists, managers, you name it.
A great house renowned for dominating every field that required brains.
Yuri had heard of them.
She'd just learned their name was Sing now.
Seeing Yuri get it, Jerry looked relieved.
“Yeah! That's the sage bloodline—the Sing family! Who'd dare touch an outfit run for generations by heirs like that? Even if they did, they couldn't handle it.”
“No wonder they leave the head spot empty without a Sing around.”
Yuri nodded in understanding.
‘Makes sense. With that sage blood, they could run something like this in the Cradle. No—only a Sing could.’
One genius does the work of ten normals.
One prodigy does what ten geniuses do, or more.
Yuri had no clue how Bluebird actually operated.
But the Cradle's top prodigies would figure it out somehow.
In ways only Sings could.
Her questions mostly cleared, Yuri shoved a hand in her pocket.
“So, how do I use Bluebird?”
Jerry flinched at the question, shoulders twitching.
Her eyes betrayed clear conflict.
After agonizing, she let out a soft sigh and spoke.
“...I'll tell you, but one condition.”
“What?”
“Promise you won't cause trouble there.”
“Why?”
“...Normally people just say 'I won't cause trouble.' Why's 'why' come first?”
“I've never caused trouble. Stuff just happens around me. That's not for me to promise.”
“You heartless little...”
“Ah, so why?”
As Yuri cut in with urgent stares, Jerry sighed deeply.
“Haa... Bluebird runs strictly on membership. Newbies need an existing member to vouch for them to become customers. But...”
“But?”
“...If a newbie causes trouble, the vouching member takes the heat.”
Yuri beamed at that.
“Aha, so if Jerry-senpai vouches for me and I wreck the place, senpai eats all the fallout?”
“...Yeah.”
Yuri nailed it.
Meaning he got it perfectly.
Which only made Jerry more uneasy.
‘This is why I didn't wanna say!’
Felt like pledging his soul to the devil.
Jerry's face soured, while Yuri looked utterly refreshed.
“Just trust me, Jerry-senpai!”
“...Would you, if you were me?”
“I'll be good, for real! So let's hit this Bluebird—or Redbird, whatever—now!”
“......”
Jerry's face crumpled as the mannerless junior slung an arm around her shoulders.
* * *
A short while later.
Yuri arrived at the destination with Jerry, eyes widening.
“Here? For real?”
“Yeah, there are others supposedly, but this is the only Bluebird outpost I know.”
“...They're nuts.”
Yuri's highest praise.
The spot they'd reached with Jerry.
It was none other than inside the circular arena.
Through the right passage used by second-years in the north clock tower, Yuri and Jerry arrived at one VIP box.
Faced with the shut door, Yuri whistled in shock.
‘The Cradle lends its facilities to a cohort-run group? How connected are they?’
Just getting access to an arena VIP box was mind-blowing.
While Yuri marveled, Jerry puffed up a bit.
“You're lucky. This is one of Bluebird's more special outposts.”
“How do you know it's special if you don't even know the others?”
Jerry smiled back at Yuri's jab.
“You'll see.”
With that, he rapped lightly on the door.
Tap—tap-tap—tap-tap-tap-tap.
An odd rhythm.
Yuri clocked it as a signal instantly.
Soon the door swung wide.
Click.
Jerry led the way in, Yuri following.
Inside.
Ink scent hit thick as they entered.
Then shelves crammed floor-to-ceiling, barely shoulder-width apart, packed end-to-end with books.
As Yuri scanned the room curiously.
Rumble.
Wheels rolling from deep between the shelves.
Followed by a voice.
“Wow, who's this? Jerry Bee, heart-stealer of our goddess?”
Jerry sighed faintly at the lively woman's voice.
“Haa, Bluebird alright—already in the know.”
“Bluebird or not, everyone knows. It's all over the 49th Cohort.”
Rumble-rumble.
With that, a woman poked her head out from between shelves, clinging to a wheeled ladder.
Now Yuri saw her clearly.
White hair in thick braids, red eyes.
Skin pale enough to show veins.
A beauty who looked frail despite her upbeat voice.
But what grabbed Yuri most wasn't any of that.
Her eyes—red irises.
What made them special: a silver ring around the red.
‘Silver ring... Silver Ring? No way!’
Striking, alien eyes.
Sensing Yuri's stare, the red eyes turned her way.
“Hm?”
The woman blinked repeatedly, mildly surprised.
Her lips parted slightly.
“Ahh!”
Exclaiming, she slid down the ladder smooth as silk.
Thud.
Landing on her feet, Yuri's take was simple.
‘Short.’
Hadn't noticed on the ladder, but up close, tiny.
‘150 cm?’
As Yuri gauged, she scurried right up—tip-tip-tip.
And snatched Yuri's hand.
“The real deal! I wanted to meet you so bad!”
Clutching Yuri's hand tight in both of hers, stars sparkled in her eyes.
“I'm Yulia Sing!”
“...?!”
Yuri had suspected from the silver-ringed eyes, but a direct Sing family member?
Now she got why Jerry called this outpost special.
‘A Sing family direct's here?’
Didn't know about others, but this one? Definitely special, like Jerry said.
Smiling faintly, Yuri opened her mouth.
“Ah, I'm...”
But before she could finish, Yulia unleashed a machine-gun spiel.
“Yuri Holland, age sixteen, took the qualification exam in Irons territory, became the tenth Black Dragon Plaque Lord. Dragon Plaque recommender...”
She trailed off, mouthing behind Jerry's back.
‘Division Sword Johan Redner.’
Reading her lips, Yuri's smile vanished.