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Chapter 114

Why did these uniforms only come in “too big” and “too small”?

Still, bigger was better than smaller. I could at least adjust it with rope or the buttons.

The young hero Karis wore clothes much too small for himself, and his pants looked terrible as a result.

My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

“I’m coming in.”

“Okay.”

Clack.

The door opened and Juniang appeared.

I had nothing to hide.

The one who had stopped the knights from swarming me like a cloud was the Instructor of Doctrine—Juniang.

“...”

Juniang looked at me with a complicated expression.

As if on instinct, she moved for a cigarette in her pocket.

Tsch.

“Fuu...”

After letting out a cloud of smoke, she finally spoke. “...Luan Bednicker. Right?”

“Of course. What’s going on? You saw me yesterday.”

“What do you—” Juniang looked at my expression before continuing, “This is the last week of the training camp.”

“What?”

“It’s been four weeks since you went missing.”

What?

***

I received a general outline of what had happened.

To summarize...

That night, not long after being forced to leave the battle, Calzark had brought Juniang and Rook to the open field.

But only the traces of battle had remained. They had found neither Juan nor I nor any trace of our presence.

That made sense—it was practically impossible to find someone in the dark forest—so they’d gone on to perform a wide-scale search and even postponed the special test an additional day...

But naturally, they hadn’t been able to find even our shadows despite searching the whole of the campgrounds for over three days.

“The Instructor of Swords and Blades is still looking for you, in fact. I have frequently seen him venturing out into the forest when he is off duty.”

“Hmm.”

Maybe he felt guilty about me?

I didn’t know what sort of relationship he had shared with Juan in the past, but... if I were to judge this situation more coldly, I would say that the plan had failed because of Calzark’s independent actions.

To be honest, if it had been anyone other than Calzark, I would’ve already gone to smack them over the head.

I owe him my life from the Gem Mountains, so one time is fine.

At this point, Juniang said, “In that situation, I heard a commotion outside and came out to look, and there you were. Tell me, just what happened?”

...Where should I start?

As I hesitated in my indecision, the look on Juniang’s face shifted a little.

“...Among the cult’s sorceries, there is one that allows them to steal the body of a regular person. It is difficult to use against someone who has a blessing, but it is not impossible.”

It had been a while since I’d been suspected of this.

“That’s an extreme misunderstanding. I got it, I’ll talk. So, what happened is...”

I provided a short summary of what had happened to me.

“...”

Juniang’s personality was usually cold and calm, but as she listened to my story, her expression changed a little with each beat.

Starting from suspicion and doubt, she outwardly showed her surprise before clearly becoming shocked.

“...You went to Hell? And you met a demon lord there?”

“Yes.”

“Do you even understand what you’re saying right now?”

“It sounds insane, but I’ve only spoken the truth.”

“Sigh...”

I tried to comfort Juniang, who had flopped back onto her chair while holding her face.

“I know, it’s difficult to believe. If I’d known this was going to happen, I would’ve at least picked up a stone from Hell to—”

Juniang looked at me from between her fingers as she said, “It’s also difficult to not believe you. The Instructor of Swords and Blades told me that he saw you fighting the high priest one-on-one. And if what he said is true, then... I have to accept... I, to accept...” Right as she seemed about to accept my words, Juniang shouted, “No, but—fuck! A demon lord is too much!”

I calmly nodded in agreement. “I understand.”

As a currently active priest, Juniang would have a harder time accepting my words.

If I had heard this story from another young hero, I would’ve told them off for lying to my face.

“A demon lord... Not even the bishops of the main church have seen one...”

“Hmm...”

“But... sure. I can believe that you went down to Hell. If you went to another dimension, then that explains how, despite searching for you for so many weeks, we were unable to find even a trace of your body. It also explains how you suddenly appeared here.”

“Yes. I don’t lie.”

“That’s a lie.”

Ack.

“I understand the situation. It’s a little late to say this... but I’m glad you’re alive, Luan Bednicker.”

“Don’t mention it. By the way, what happened to everything related to Juan? Considering the mood, I can’t imagine it was announced.”

“That’s how it went. If it were revealed that a high priest had infiltrated the training camp, the camp would be turned upside down, so it was just quietly covered up.”

“By whom?”

“Sir Asad.”

Well, since it was the Archmage, Juniang had probably accepted it without much problem.

“So there’s a chance that this incident will just be overlooked...” Juniang looked a bit dissatisfied before looking at me and asking, “Aren’t you angry?”

“Angry about what?”

“You basically killed a high priest by yourself. From what I heard, the Instructor of Swords and Blades—all that man did was get in your way.”

It was true.

“Not even the Lord of Blood and Iron had killed a high priest at your age. If this achievement is made known, your infamy and bad name within the house should disappear instantly. Aiming to become the next family head wouldn’t be a dream either.

“I’m not interested in either of those things.”

I was being sincere. My head was about to explode from just trying to deal with one high priest, so becoming the family head wasn’t tempting at all.

“...You’re humble. So are you saying you’re satisfied just silently dealing with trouble while in the darkness?”

Well, not like that either.

“Luan Bednicker, I’ve been watching you all this time, but I really feel a sense of kinship with you. How about it? Have you not thought about becoming a heretic—”

“I’m fine.”

“...Sure,” Juniang responded, seeming disappointed. “In any case... you’ll need to return to the main house.”

“Pardon? Now?”

“From what I’ve heard, the main house has already started preparing for your funeral. If you don’t return soon, you’ll officially be a dead man.”

That won’t do.

“And you’ll need to explain your situation to the Council of Elders as well.”

“Ehm...”

I’d already lost any sort of positive feelings I might’ve held toward the Council of Elders.

Asad and the Lord of Blood and Iron still had a chance.

“Then what about the training camp?”

“What training camp?”

“Didn’t you say that this is the last week? Then it’s not over yet. If I leave now, won’t I be unable to finish it?”

“Is finishing the training camp the problem right now? And even if you do stay, you won’t be able to complete the training camp.”

“Why is that?”

“You disappeared for over four weeks. You want to complete the training camp after only finishing the first and last weeks? Bednicker isn’t some neighborhood house; don’t even try it.”

“...”

Now that I think about it, I need at least five points in each subject, a total of 20 points.

It would be difficult for me to even attempt with the time remaining.

* * * * *

* * * * *

“Is there anything I can do? I need to complete the training camp.”

“Why?”

“It’s the Lord of Blood and Iron’s order.”

“E-ehm... the Lord of Blood and Iron...” Juniang became a little flustered at the mention of his name. She furrowed her brow a little and began to think. “...There is one way.”

“What is it?”

“You just need to enter the top three in points. If you do that, your attendance and the minimum point requirements for each subject won’t matter.”

I thought for a moment before asking, “Could I perhaps see the total points ranking?”

“It should be on display within the first floor of the young hero’s lodge. Go and check it there.”

“Got it.”

Upon moving to the first floor of the young hero’s lodge with Juniang, I saw the announcement plastered there.

1st: Charon Woodjack, 102 points.

2nd: Zeros Silver, 67 points.

3rd: Hector Bednicker, 65 points.

4th: Sinbar, 51 points.

5th: Sellen Goodspring, 49 points.

“Oh ho...”

The first thing I noticed was Charon’s overwhelming lead at the top.

Next, I noticed that Hector had closed the gap to second place quite a bit, and that Sellen was within the top five.

Since I was looking at the ranks, I checked the points of the others as well.

9th: Evan Helvin, 39 points.

22nd: Mir Giant, 27 points.

And finally, my points...

34th: Luan Bednicker, 14 points.

“Eh? Last time I checked, I had 17 points.”

As I looked at Juniang with eyes that said “give them back,” she pulled something from her pocket.

I was curious what it was, but it turned out to just be a notebook.

Flip.

“Luan Bednicker... It says here that you made a trade with Zeros Silver? It says you bought information for three points.”

“Ah.”

I’d forgotten about that.

“By the way... how am I not last when I have so few points?”

“You’re practically last since there are only 37 people total.”

“Only 37?”

“While you were gone, two more people died.”

“Ah...”

My head felt a little numb. I hadn’t expected that.

Thinking about it now, even though I had stopped the demon lord’s summoning ritual, the training camp hadn’t become any less dangerous.

The 20 percent death rate hadn’t changed.

“What’s with your expression? This is the best we’ve had yet.”

“It’s not like I can smile upon hearing that people died.”

“That’s true, but the number of deaths in this training camp is very low. Everyone has done excellently.”

“It’s not even over yet, so isn’t it too leary to make that conclusion?”

But when I said that, Juniang shook her head.

“Statistically, it is very unlikely that someone will die at this point. Most deaths occur in the first and second weeks while they’re trying to get used to the training camp.”

“I see.”

“In any case, to change the topic... if you want to aim for third, you need to obtain 51 points.”

“...”

I was done for.

Even if I joined the final special test, I wasn’t expecting them to give out that many points at once.

It wouldn’t be fair.

“But if it’s the final special test... you might be able to do it.”

...As expected of Bednicker. I always believed in you.

“Of course, I’ll need to discuss with the other instructors if we can even allow you to participate—” Juniang glanced at me and asked, “But are you really going to join? To be honest, it’ll be very difficult for you. You’ll have to endure quite a few penalties, and despite what I just said, there is still the danger of death.”

“Now that I think about it, I haven’t heard what the special test is about. What is the final special test?”

“To put it simply, it’s just team survival. It started four days ago and lasts for a week.”

If it started four days ago and lasts a week... then I only have three days left?

“Then is the last week set aside just for this one special test?”

“That’s right. It’ll be a cumulative test of everything you learned during the training camp. Hunting, survival, theory, weapon skills, blessings, everything.”

“Aha.”

“Give me a second.”

Juniang pulled out something from her pocket and showed it to me.

It was a round red ball.

“What is it?”

“A ball. This is one point. There is a ball for each color of the rainbow, from red to violet. The various colors are worth 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 points respectively. This ball is one point.”

Toss. Juniang tossed the ball up and then caught it as it fell.

“These balls are hidden all over the forest, and naturally, the higher-point balls are more difficult to obtain. Also, you can only ever have three balls on you.”

“Oh... So if I get three violet balls...”

“A total of 75 points,” Juniang said. “Even if first place is impossible, it is theoretically possible to get second. Of course, it’s not like second and third place are going to sit around and twiddle their thumbs.”

I looked at the ranks again as I asked, “Can I steal balls from other people?”

“Of course. Everything short of killing each other is allowed.”

So it was like the second special test.

“If you’re entering the special test, you’ll have to do it by yourself. Since the test is already underway, it’s not like we can put you in an already established team, right? So unlike the others, you’ll need to move and act alone.

“Since a few days have passed since the start of the test, there might be a few teams who have banded together to oppose the teams hoarding the good balls. But will they accept your presence if you suddenly enter the picture? It’s not like you showed a great performance during the training camp before.”

“...”

“Well... considering you fought a high priest by yourself, I probably don’t have to worry about you.”

Juniang seemed to half-doubt my capabilities, but it didn’t really matter to me.

“It’s perfect.”

“What is?”

I didn’t reveal my inner thoughts.

The emotions I was feeling were all too childish.

...After fighting the high priest and meeting a demon lord, I’d reunited with my eldest senior brother.

Things hadn’t ended well, nor had the process been a cakewalk.

I hadn’t been able to overpower the high priest, and I’d been completely fooled by the demon lord.

Honestly, if Eldest Senior Brother hadn’t intervened in the middle of the demon lord’s act, I had no idea what would’ve happened to me.

If what Eldest Senior Brother had said was true, then Tangtata had basically just been toying with me...

After training relatively hard on Spirit Mountain, I’d returned thinking I had progressed a decent amount. To then be toyed with like that...

Honestly, it had left a deep cut in my delicate heart.

To put it simply, I...

I wanted to throw a tantrum.

Angrily.

Furiously.

Sincerely.

Charon...! Hector...!

Thinking of my two friends who would resolve this problem of mine, I clenched my fists as my heart burned.

Wait for me...!