I’m Here to End This Fight

Chapter 49 Special Sale Shop (1)

The black ship carrying the 49th cadets cut through the waves without hesitation.

During the two-day period, the 49th cadets who hadn’t slept while undergoing the Changing of the Dragon Plaque were scattered around the black ship, resting.

However, the overall atmosphere among them wasn’t good.

A few looked somewhat better, but most had annoyed expressions.

Eventually, one of them couldn’t hold back and blurted out in frustration.

“Damn it, we went through all that trouble, but we gained nothing!”

Many of the 49th cadets showed agreement with the curse that echoed on the deck.

Seeing his comrades like that, Jerry could only smile faintly.

“Fools…”

The talk about most of the 49th cadets coming up empty-handed during the Changing of the Dragon Plaque.

Though he had accepted the suggestion, he had been doubtful.

No, to be honest, he had mostly thought it would be a waste of time.

But what do you know?

After the Changing of the Dragon Plaque ended, listening to his comrades’ stories, it turned out everything that guy said was true.

Moreover, the information about the three people he had provided was also accurate, and he was fortunate enough to monopolize them, gaining over 3,000 points.

For a second-year cadet, it might not be an enormous amount of points, but obtaining that many points alone while everyone else came up empty-handed was a significant achievement.

As he felt a sense of gratitude towards Yuri welling up inside him.

‘Oh? Come to think of it, I didn’t see that guy among the successful ones.’

With his dark black hair and unique swagger, he would have surely stood out.

But he couldn’t recall seeing him before leaving the island.

“Did he fail?”

Jerry muttered and then chuckled.

“Nah, no way that guy would fail.”

It was probably because there were an unusually large number of successful candidates among the 50th class this time, and he had simply missed him.

Or…

“Maybe he was late because he was up to some weird antics again? Pfft!”

Muttering jokingly, Jerry soon forgot about Yuri and fell asleep.

* * *

A boy walked surrounded by ten Black Sword Corps soldiers.

He was none other than Yuri, who had headed to the mainland of the cradle two days ago.

Seeing Yuri and the Black Sword Corps soldiers, some of the 50th cadets showed curiosity and glanced at them.

But those who were glancing quickly retracted their gazes in fright.

The aura of the Black Sword Corps soldiers surrounding Yuri was unusual.

The mere sight of them sent chills down their spines.

The 50th cadets who were glancing sweated nervously.

‘What, what’s going on? Why are they like that?’

‘Did something happen?’

Even though the Black Sword Corps were usually stern, it was the first time they had seen them exude such killing intent.

There was definitely something going on, and they were curious about what it was.

But who would be bold enough to go and ask those soldiers in such a state what had happened?

Meanwhile, Yuri, surrounded by those fierce Black Sword Corps soldiers, seemed entirely unaffected.

He merely muttered complaints under his breath, visible beneath his long hair.

“Seriously, isn’t it a bit much to have ten Black Sword Corps soldiers stick to just one kid?”

“……”

“Don’t you think so?”

“…Keep walking quietly.”

“Yes, sir.”

Receiving a fierce glare from a Black Sword Corps soldier, Yuri quickly shut his mouth.

A moment later, a one-eyed man spoke as he stood before Yuri.

“Where is Yuri Holland’s Dragon Plaque?”

“After checking, no issues were found.”

As he had expected, the one-eyed man showed no particular emotion.

He was just curious about where this kid had been and what he had been doing until now.

“Where did you find him?”

“Well…”

At that question, the ones who had brought Yuri looked uncomfortable.

After a moment, the highest-ranking Black Sword Corps soldier spoke in a low voice.

“…It was at the Deputy Commander’s tent.”

For a moment, the one-eyed man thought he had misheard.

He blinked and asked again.

“Where?”

But his hearing was normal.

The abnormal thing was the place where Yuri had been found.

“…We found him at the Deputy Commander’s tent within the encampment.”

“My tent?”

“Yes.”

The one-eyed man turned his head sharply towards Yuri.

Yuri scratched the back of his head and smiled sheepishly.

“Hehe, I thought it looked nicer than the others.”

“You little…”

A complicated expression appeared in the one-eyed man’s single eye.

‘He hid in the encampment? In my tent?’

The journey from the Forest of Beginnings to the cradle’s mainland took a full day by boat.

During the month-long survival test period, countless Black Sword Corps soldiers couldn’t come and go that far every time.

Hence, the temporary encampment outside the northern wall was established…

In fact, the Black Sword Corps hadn’t particularly hidden their encampment from the cadets.

If they wanted to, other cadets could have found the encampment as well.

But who in their right mind would think of sneaking into a place crawling with Black Sword Corps soldiers?

‘…But there was someone.’

Someone who dared to do what everyone else wouldn’t.

Someone who had the audacity to sneak into the Deputy Commander’s tent.

“Heh…”

The one-eyed man’s expression turned peculiar.

‘Did he infiltrate this time?’

The encampment normally had tight security maintained by stationed Black Sword Corps soldiers.

No matter how skilled a cadet was, it wouldn’t be easy to sneak into the encampment.

But for one day a month.

There was a moment when all security would loosen, and the encampment would be empty.

‘Even I leave my post during that time.’

That was when the entire Black Sword Corps entered the Forest of Beginnings for the cleanup after all the tests ended.

In other words, it was the perfect moment for someone with a hidden agenda to infiltrate the encampment.

The one-eyed man glared at Yuri.

“Did you search him?”

“We did, but there were no issues.”

“Is there anything missing from my tent?”

“When we checked… nothing was missing.”

“Nothing? Not a single thing?”

“Yes.”

The one-eyed man’s scar twitched.

‘He went into my tent for no reason?’

Honestly, he couldn’t understand it.

He didn’t think that kid would sneak into his tent for no purpose.

‘What was in there?’

The temporary tent in the Forest of Beginnings encampment was just a place to stay for a month, so there wasn’t much in it.

It was more of a makeshift office than a place to live.

So there were only a few bedding items, some furniture, and a few documents that needed to be handled urgently.

Even those documents wouldn’t be of any interest to a cadet staying in the Forest of Beginnings.

‘So why did he do it?’

The one-eyed man narrowed his eye as he looked at Yuri.

As if trying to see through his intentions.

‘A purpose… a purpose…’

If Yuri Holland’s original purpose wasn’t in his tent, then?

Why had he hidden in his tent?

‘If it’s this kid…’

Suddenly, the one-eyed man’s eye gleamed.

He used mana to send a voice to his subordinate.

[Search the supply warehouse immediately.]

A high-level mana control technique that allowed him to send his voice only to the intended recipient.

His subordinate, who understood instantly why the Deputy Commander had used such a technique, nodded slightly and moved immediately.

The one-eyed man, having given the order, turned to Yuri and asked.

“Just to confirm…”

“……?”

“Do you have a habit of stealing?”

As soon as the question was finished, Yuri protested as if he had been wronged.

“No, what kind of person do you take me for? And what do you mean ‘also’? What else am I supposed to have done?! I was just trying to hide in that tent!”

“……”

“I thought it looked like a high-ranking person’s room, and I figured they wouldn’t search there. How can you think so poorly of me?”

Yuri looked genuinely aggrieved, as if the question had hurt his feelings.

But his expression didn’t stay that way for long.

Clink-.

The ones who had gone to search the supply warehouse came back carrying large sacks.

After reporting briefly to the one-eyed man, they poured out the contents of the sacks in front of Yuri.

Out came small pebbles and dirt.

Clatter-.

As the pebbles piled up, the one-eyed man chuckled.

“You said you don’t steal?”

“What are you talking about?”

“That’s the sack used to store 10-point coins in the supply warehouse. But as you can see, it’s now filled with pebbles.”

Points.

Those perforated silver coins were valuable only to cadets.

To the Black Sword Corps, points were just fake money, an item to be managed.

Especially 10-point coins, which had been in the warehouse for so long that the Black Sword Corps hadn’t paid much attention to them…

‘This kid, he found those.’

Although they were surplus stock, there were still at least 100,000 points worth.

And given that they were the lowest denomination, the quantity was considerable.

‘He couldn’t have taken them all at once, so he must have hidden them somewhere to collect later.’

Since the Forest of Beginnings would be closed for a while after the Changing of the Dragon Plaque, it would have been a good opportunity for him to come back and collect the points later.

But it seemed he had spent too much time hiding the points and couldn’t leave the encampment in time

.

That’s why he hid in the Deputy Commander’s tent.

‘Even if he hid in my tent and stole nothing, I can’t charge him with anything.’

Yuri wasn’t yet an official cadet, and he could claim that his actions were necessary for survival.

In other words, this had all been part of his plan.

Moreover…

“Where are they?”

“What are you talking about? I don’t understand… What’s a point?”

That innocent act.

The one-eyed man barely managed to suppress a laugh.

“Where did you hide what you stole?”

“I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Yuri’s expression was genuinely aggrieved, but to the one-eyed man who had already deemed him the culprit, it was just an act.

It was fortunate if he wasn’t cursing at the shameless face.

But the one-eyed man didn’t dislike Yuri’s shamelessness.

‘Bold kid.’

Even though most of the Black Sword Corps had left, the encampment was still heavily guarded.

Sneaking in was a challenge that no ordinary cadet would even consider.

Yet he had navigated the encampment, found the supply warehouse, and taken the points.

Moreover, he had pretended to hide in the Deputy Commander’s tent to plan his escape.

He had done all this on the fly?

This was beyond bold; it was practically demonic.

Even though he had been caught, many would have fallen for his antics.

The one-eyed man found himself liking Yuri Holland more and more.

Watching Yuri insist he knew nothing, the one-eyed man couldn’t help but smile.

“Hand over what you stole now.”

“I’m telling you, I don’t know anything.”

“Give it now, and I won’t press charges. Moreover, I’ll let you keep half of what you took.”

It was a generous offer from the one-eyed man, who had found someone he liked after a long time.

Half was still worth several tens of thousands of points.

For a newly minted cadet who had just passed the Forest of Beginnings, it was a significant advantage.

It was both a benefit and the one-eyed man’s final warning to Yuri.

I’ve been patient up to this point, so now confess and don’t cross the line.

Yuri accepted that warning.

Faster than anyone in the world.

“…Your insight is truly remarkable! Wow, you have a keen eye for people!”

Seeing Yuri give a thumbs-up in 0.1 seconds, everyone else fell silent.