Chapter 69
Chapter 69
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 69
Chapter Title: Provocation (2)
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The appearance of the black sword soldiers silenced the chatter among the 50th Cohort.
'They're here.'
'What are they going to say?'
After the Baekbo ceremony, the message delivered to the 50th Cohort members who had awakened from their fainting spells was simply that there would be a regular assembly on Monday at 9 a.m.
There was no explanation of what a regular assembly entailed.
They just figured it was a day to gather periodically, as the name implied.
At the same time, they were looking forward to it.
It was a gathering of the entire 50th Cohort, so there had to be some kind of announcement.
They anticipated it would provide direction on how they should proceed from here.
That was why the cohort members held their breath and watched the black sword soldiers' movements closely.
Step by step.
Finally, the black sword soldiers stood before the cohort.
At their lead was a pale-faced man wearing glasses.
His face suited an office clerk more than a black sword soldier.
He looked cold and calculating, giving the impression of someone extremely conservative.
And that impression was spot on.
Snap.
Standing before the cohort members, the bespectacled black sword soldier immediately assumed the at-ease position.
In a stiff, formal tone, he shouted,
"Announcement. January 20th, Saturday, 9 a.m. The 50th Cohort integrated quest will take place. Any penalties for tardiness or absence will be borne by the individual. That concludes the announcement. Dismissed!"
With those words, the bespectacled black sword soldier turned on his heel right away.
It was clear to anyone that he intended to leave immediately.
The cohort members could only panic.
"...That's it?"
"Is that really it?"
Some had waited hours, others days, for this assembly.
And it ended with just that?
Their confusion and bewilderment bordered on anger.
A few raised their voices in protest.
"What exactly is a quest?"
"Yeah! Shouldn't you at least explain what a quest is?"
"You said January 20th, so what are we supposed to do until then?"
Once one person broke the ice, questions poured in from all sides.
The bespectacled black sword soldier paused briefly.
He turned back, pushing up his glasses with a sneer.
"Why are you asking me?"
"Pardon?"
"You still haven't gotten it through your heads."
"......"
"If you're curious about what a quest is, find out for yourselves. If you don't know what to do until January 20th, then kill time however you want. Unless it's an official academy event, we won't force you to do anything."
A heavy silence fell the moment he finished speaking.
It was shocking news to those who had just become cohort members.
One of them shot back in a voice thick with injustice.
"Then... then why did we even come to the Dragon's Cradle? If you're not going to tell us anything or do anything for us! ...Why are we even here? What are we supposed to learn here?!"
"Yeah! We went through the Forest of Beginnings to become cohort members, and this is too much!"
As voices of agreement rose from around, the glasses-wearing man scoffed.
"Who told you to come?"
"Huh?"
"Did anyone hold a sword to your throat and threaten to kill you if you didn't join the Dragon's Cradle?"
"Th-that's..."
"Entering the Dragon's Cradle was your choice. And once you're in, follow the Cradle's ways. If you don't like it, don't whine to me—leave the Cradle. No one will stop you."
"......"
"And the Cradle does nothing for you? That's ridiculous too. This time, I'll correct that idiotic notion of yours."
The man's sneer deepened.
"It's not that the Cradle does nothing for you. It just doesn't hand things out to everyone."
"Pardon?"
"If you want what the Cradle offers, prove you're worthy. Otherwise, you won't get anything from this place."
With that icy logic silencing the cohort, the black sword soldier turned indifferently and vanished.
The 50th Cohort's first regular assembly ended in less than five minutes.
Those still unaccustomed to the Dragon's Cradle plunged even deeper into confusion.
Meanwhile, Arin and Boppi watched from a corner.
"They're too harsh. Couldn't they explain a little more? Right?"
"I'm hungry!"
They too were frustrated by the black sword soldiers' coldness.
The two turned their heads to one side.
They were seeking agreement from someone.
"...Huh?"
"...I'm hungry?"
But the one who might have agreed had long since vanished without a trace.
Arin marveled.
"Wow, when did she slip away? She was right behind us a second ago."
"......?!"
Yuri had disappeared.
Boppi's pupils shook at the realization.
Tap.
A small hand landed on his shoulder.
Boppi naturally turned his head to find Arin smiling brightly.
"Want help looking for her?"
"I-I'm hungry......"
Boppi's face crumpled into a pout.
* * *
As soon as the black sword soldier finished his announcement, Yuri had quietly backed away.
Taking advantage of the chaos as other cohort members vented their frustrations, he slipped away from Arin and Boppi.
The reason was simple.
'I can't tell those guys about my hideout.'
They were acquaintances at best, but he had no idea why they kept hanging around him.
They'd only met faces a few times and exchanged a few words—that was it. He had no clue about their intentions.
They weren't people he could fully trust yet.
Yuri had no intention of revealing his hideout to anyone less than that.
Of course, the people Yuri had trusted in his life so far could be counted on one hand.
Having shaken off the clingy duo, Yuri ran through the forest with a refreshed expression.
'I have a lot to do, but first things first: set up the hideout.'
The first official quest from the Cradle was on the 20th.
About twelve days remained.
He needed to stockpile a hideout, food, and various supplies in that time.
Time was tight.
'I'm going to be pretty busy for a while.'
Lost in thoughts of his schedule, he arrived at the rift before he knew it.
Yuri darted inside like a shot.
Tap-tap.
Having gone back and forth a few times, his movements were quite practiced now.
But instead of heading to his dwelling, his footsteps led straight to the training ground.
For one reason.
'Now's the time!'
To finish what he hadn't managed that dawn.
Namely, stealing the glowstone.
As he headed to the training ground, Yuri glanced toward Theresia's dwelling.
Confirming no signs of life, he crept to the training ground entrance.
Then, a faint sound from inside made him freeze.
Shk.
"No way......?"
Peering in anxiously, Yuri's face hardened.
There, still in the exact same pose as at dawn, Theresia thrust her spear.
Yuri stared at her in shock.
Same position.
Same stance.
But the spot where Theresia stood.
The black stain from her sweat had grown much larger than when Yuri had seen it at dawn.
Shk.
Even with Yuri there, she remained absorbed in her training. Yuri clicked his tongue in amazement.
'Has she been at it from dawn until now?'
Amazed that she could train motionless in one spot for so long, Yuri slowly approached Theresia.
"Hey, Tessha sunbae."
The closer he got, the more his face stiffened.
"......"
Up close, Theresia's condition was clear.
She looked far more gaunt than the day before.
But what shocked Yuri most was her dilated pupils.
Like the eyes of a dead fish.
"No way......?"
Even as Yuri approached right behind her, she kept thrusting her spear.
Cautiously, Yuri placed a hand on her shoulder.
Then.
Thud.
Theresia's form, which had been vigorously thrusting until then, collapsed as if it were a lie.
Catching her hurriedly, Yuri saw her closed eyes and realized his suspicion was correct.
"You kept training even as you were passing out?"
What kind of obsession lets you thrust a spear while unconscious?
It was just personal training—did she have to go this far?
And how much had she pushed herself to collapse from a mere touch on the shoulder?
'...No way?'
Realizing something, Yuri muttered entranced.
"Since yesterday?"
After their spar, she'd started personal training.
Had she been thrusting nonstop without rest since then?
"......"
Gazing at the unconscious Theresia's wrecked face, Yuri felt a strange stuffiness and irritation creeping up in his chest.
'Why?'
Yuri didn't know what it was.
He couldn't fathom why he felt this way.
All he knew was that looking at the passed-out Theresia deepened the stuffiness and irritation.
"Hoo......"
Exhaling deeply to shake off the inexplicable emotions, Yuri held a hand to Theresia's nose.
'Hope she's not dead.'
She was breathing—thank goodness she wasn't dead.
Soaked in sweat and a total mess, Theresia slept deeply.
He couldn't just leave her like this, so Yuri hoisted her onto his back.
Intending to carry her to her dwelling.
'But first......'
Yuri glanced subtly at the ceiling.
A short while later.
As Yuri exited the training ground, Theresia was on his back, and in his hand gleamed a glowstone.
Tap!
Arriving at her dwelling with Theresia slung over him, the glowstone illuminated the space fully.
A simple bed of layered blankets.
A few dishes—that was all in Theresia's dwelling.
It was so barren it made one wonder how she'd survived here.
"......"
Laying Theresia on the blankets, Yuri stared at her for a moment.
The inexplicable stuffiness and irritation lingered.
In the end, Yuri turned and left her dwelling.
The moment he wordlessly returned to his own, his face hardened.
Yuri drew his sword immediately.
'An intruder!'
There were clear footprints on the cave floor that weren't his.
But they were unusual.
'Just... one footprint?'
Only a left footprint marked the cave floor.
The rest were small marks like from a cane.
'...No way?'
Shocked, Yuri thrust the glowstone forward.
The cave gradually filled with light, and the first thing it revealed was a weathered wooden prosthetic leg.
Clunk.
Followed by a creaky old voice.
"Argh, where've you been gallivanting off to, you rascal! I've been waiting ages!"
Hearing the familiar gruff voice after so long, Yuri unwittingly smiled faintly.
"If you don't like it, make an appointment next time."
"You little punk. That damn blockhead of yours never improves. Tsk tsk."
With a brief tongue-click.
Johann Redner fully stepped into the light.