The Illegitimate Who Devours Weapons

Weapon-Eating Illegitimate Son

Episode 37

All the cadet corps evaluation announcements have been completed.

32 dead.

78 seriously injured

Many casualties.

Of the seven classes in the entire cadet corps, only five passed the evaluation and succeeded in their mission.

Negative public opinion about the harshness of this quarter’s evaluation grew both inside and outside the cadet corps, but the controversy died down as the main cadets responded strongly.

“… … Therefore, since there was a clause in the contract to transfer personal property from the beginning, there was no problem under the special law.”

“What is the follow-up action for casualties from this evaluation?”

“We are treating them as generously as possible. For the seriously injured, we will fully cover their medical expenses, and for those who have suffered aftereffects that make recovery impossible, we will provide special compensation equivalent to that for casualties.”

Lee Tae-shin nodded softly as he received the documents from Butler Choi.

“What happened to the treatment of the deceased?”

“The joint funeral must be attended by the deputy commanders and above of each military unit of the family and at least 20 warriors. A request for cooperation has also been sent to the Senate.”

“Please keep reporting on the progress. You’ve worked hard.”

Butler Choi bowed his head blandly.

“And… … Here are the materials for each dungeon that we gathered this time.”

Butler Choi turned on the projector connected to the office. At the same time, several more files were placed on Itaesin’s desk.

“It definitely has an impact.”

Lee Tae-shin muttered something incomprehensible while looking at the numbers appearing on the screen.

Those numerous, seemingly insignificant pieces of information seemed to have some kind of meaning to Lee Tae-shin.

“The Forest of Human Faces. It was a dangerous area.”

“Yes. It is located at the northern tip of Gangwon-do.”

Lee Tae-shin’s gaze turned to the image at the very center of the screen.

Video taken by the youngest, Lee Cheol.

It was a very short video.

All that was captured was the video equipment operating inside the cocoon, the appearance of the egg, and the monster walking out of it.

“It’s short.”

“It is reported that this is the extent of the restored footage, but it appears that it is in fact an edited footage. In reality, there must have been a battle.”

Butler Choi carefully examined Lee Tae-shin.

Lee Tae-shin took a sip of the tea that Butler Choi had brought and spoke softly.

“He’s a funny kid.”

Lee Tae-shin spoke in his usual indifferent tone.

However, Butler Choi, who had served him for a long time, read deep interest in his expression.

“What do you think?”

“It was a somewhat unconventional plan, but it was a great feat to overcome the difficult task with your wit.”

Butler Choi continued with a worried expression.

“However… I am concerned that the youngest master has been somewhat neglecting standard tactics and strategies since the naming ceremony.”

It was a valid concern.

The classics and textbooks are not boring and dull, but are the result of the accumulated wisdom of our ancestors.

However, Lee Cheol has always shown a break from the norm.

Ingenuity and irregularities always get pushed aside by the classics.

Those who have been exposed to the taste of unconventionality since childhood are bound to fall into the hands of the solid foundations they have built.

“You saw it that way too.”

“……yes?”

Butler Choi blinked.

Lee Tae-shin shook his head.

“Unconventional, unconventional. They are just a demonstration of the guy’s boldness. All of this was done according to his plan. He knows the basics, so he must know how to swing a trick.”

Lee Tae-shin pushed the documents onto the desk.

“The fact that not only the cadets but even the instructors followed along with such an unconventional plan without any objections proves the youngest’s leadership ability. In fact, no information was leaked, and the plan was a complete success.”

Of course, it’s annoying that they only succeed in their mission and don’t think about the aftermath.

Oh, he’s a fun kid to watch.

“Not just this evaluation, but increase the number of evaluations overall and raise the level. This is to help you gain practical experience quickly.”

“Yes, I will handle it that way.”

Lee Tae-shin turned his head again and looked at the screen.

Butler Choi quietly stood next to Lee Tae-shin.

“The other kids are starting to take notice of the youngest one.”

“Since my relationship with the eldest lord is public knowledge, I will not be able to approach the youngest lord directly.”

“I see, that’s true.”

Lee Tae-shin looked out the window with a meaningful look.

The sound of wind chimes echoed faintly from afar.

* * *

Time has flown by like an arrow since the quarterly evaluation, which was shocking in many ways.

Joint funerals and changes to the cadet evaluation system.

Accordingly, the training became even more rigorous and the training schedule became more rigorous.

Many cadets dropped out, repeated a grade, or fell behind.

But not all students in the class were like that.

“… … Master. You know that we finished our final evaluation yesterday and came back, right?”

Kim Han asked in a trembling voice.

As the end of the year approached, most of the first-year cadets had completed their scheduled training, education, and quarterly evaluations.

“Yeah. So you gave me a break yesterday, right?”

“No, what I mean is… … .”

Kim Han let out a long breath again and shook his head.

“No. I thought it would be like this.”

The cadets, including Kim Han, stood up from their seats, laughing bitterly.

“Now that the final evaluation for the year is over, you may want to take a break, but don’t forget, there’s still the promotion exam left.”

As the end of the year approaches, a strange sense of tension begins to spread throughout the cadet corps.

This is because the promotion match, the final exam for promotion to the next grade, remains.

“I can’t stand seeing someone fail a grade in my class. Do you understand?”

“Yes! I know!”

Kim Han shouted with shining eyes.

“I know, but I think you ran out of magic power during this evaluation. Kim Han. You memorize the spells all day today.”

“Yes, yes?!”

At the training ground, as always, the cadets of Class 5 were gathered.

Even though there were no regular classes or training immediately after the evaluation, the cadets continued training voluntarily.

‘It’s become hard.’

It’s already been almost a year since I started my cadet life.

While many children were leaving, Class 5 did not have a single dropout, except for the first few who dropped out.

They were still children with shortcomings.

Even Kim Han, Choi In-ha, and Kim Bo-seong, who trained the hardest and achieved the best results, were a bit behind the kids in Class 1.

Kim Han lacks magical power, Choi In Ha lacks magical power, and Kim Bo Seong lacks overall combat proficiency.

But it has become stronger.

Not only the body, but also the mind.

Rather than being frustrated by my shortcomings, I learned how to fill them.

“Your Majesty. You are here.”

At that time, Lee Jeong-ho, the instructor of Class 5, approached me.

“What’s going on?”

“I have an announcement to make. It’s about promotion.”

“Okay. Let’s go now.”

I looked back at the cadets in training and then followed Lee Jeong-ho.

* * *

In the cadet corps conference room, instructors, including class presidents from each grade, were gathered.

As I walked towards where the first-year class presidents were gathered, Seohyun Lee, who was sitting in the front row, called out to me.

“Are you here? Sit here, over here. I have something to say.”

Lee Seo-hyun crossed her legs and knocked on the seat next to her.

It’s really a shame that this guy, who is no different from a noble family, is doing this.

“This evaluation. Did you do pretty well?”

“Yeah, I heard that class 1 was great too.”

“Ahem, right? Well, that aside.”

Lee Seo-hyun touched the back of her neatly tied hair with a rare expression of drowsiness.

“Why are you acting so uncharacteristically?”

“Ha, I’m having a hard time deciding whether or not to tell you. I’m scared of what my mother will say if I keep rebelling like this.”

Lee Seo-hyun shook her head and opened her mouth with a stern expression.

“… … You’re going to have a bit of a headache starting from this promotion match.”

“what?”

“My youngest sister and youngest brother… … So my sixth sister and seventh brother were called to my mother’s room a while ago. After that, there was a rumor that they were both hanging out with second-year and first-year students.”

I understand what you are trying to say.

I chuckled.

“Why, are you trying to drop me from my promotion match?”

That was impossible.

I had already achieved so many things in the cadet corps, and my grades were so overwhelming that they were neck and neck with Lee Seo-hyun.

Even if by any chance something unfortunate happened during the promotion match, I was absolutely certain to be promoted.

“It’s natural that they won’t do it, but it’s not scary because you don’t know what they’ll do. Maybe you’re so weird that you can’t feel it, but both your older sister and older brother are really scary people, right?”

I know it well.

At one time, I was afraid of them too.

“It’s a little late to warn you.”

“huh?”

“Because it’s been bothering me since the first evaluation.”

I leaned back deeply against the backrest.

I appreciate what Lee Seo-hyun told me, but it was something I had already expected and was going through.

Class 5 had been receiving minor restraints since the first quarter evaluation.

During the evaluation, poor equipment was provided, and it was common for trouble to arise in small places outside of training hours.

In severe cases, there were instances where instructors intentionally omitted educational content or differentiated classes from other classes.

‘They say that someone approached Boseong a while ago.’

It was a story that Kim Bo-seong quietly conveyed.

It is said that an unidentified person approached them and asked them to disrupt the evaluation of Class 5.

There is only one reason why these things keep happening.

It is to check the success of the underdog.

There is no way I could just watch a second generation from a family with no support or power defeat the children of a powerful family.

‘Especially since I’m in this 5th class.’

It’s probably just a guess for now.

It’s a way to deliberately tease someone by getting on their nerves like a child’s play.

To what extent is it okay, and to what extent can it be restrained?

And that calculation was more likely to be based on my father’s observations than mine.

“It won’t be to the extent that it is now. You said you had direct contact with the cadets?”

“Don’t worry, I understand.”

And since Lee Seo-hyun said it, we can say that the preview is over.

“I already said something to the kids in my class… … You know?”

“Yeah, I know. Class 1 is a pretty complicated class.”

“Thank you for understanding. I’ve said it several times, but I’ll compete with you fairly and win. I warned you, so don’t get caught up in anything weird. This time, I’ll get first place and make sure you call me big sister.”

Lee Seo-hyun’s eyes burned brightly.

“Arthur. That won’t happen. And why are you so obsessed with that nickname?”

While they were talking like that, the second-year class presidents and instructors arrived and the cadet leader entered the conference room.

“The reason I called you today is for another reason. As of today, this year’s quarterly evaluations have ended, so I will be delivering the information and schedule regarding the promotion of this class of cadets.”

Promotion match.

It was an exam for cadets in the cadet corps to advance to the next grade.

The performance in this promotion match is added to the scores from the repeated evaluations over the course of one year, and the cadets’ promotion and retention are determined.

‘This promotion match will be a little different.’

Even without Lee Seo-hyun’s warning, everyone thought so.

The situation has changed since the quarterly evaluation. If the promotion match is the same, it would be even stranger.

“This promotion match will be held at a fixed gate. It is the Y-7 gate, located approximately 3km north of Kaesong.”

The cadet captain said with an indifferent expression.

‘Gate?’

A fixed gate is a gate that remains for some reason even after stabilization has been completed.

Since no monsters or abnormal phenomena occur at the fixed gate, it was essentially an empty land that was spatially isolated.

“The promotion matches for the first and second years will be held here in the same manner. The duration will be three days. Nameplates with the words “Sungmura” written on them will be placed inside the gate. Each cadet will also have one nameplate, and if one is taken away from them, they will be considered dead and must come out.”

The cadet sergeant showed the sergeants a thin hexagonal piece of wood with the inscription “Sungmura” written on it.

“There are no other rules. Just get as many nameplates as you can. You can play as a team or as an individual.”

It may seem like forming a team is a good idea, but that’s also nonsense.

If you form a team, you will have to share the nameplates you earn, and naturally the amount each individual earns will be less.

“Anyway, this nameplate is the goal of this promotion battle. It would be more correct to call it a battle for it.”

The conference room was in an uproar.

“I have a question.”

The class president of Class 1, Grade 2.

I don’t remember his name exactly, but he was a genius from a collateral line.

“Tell me.”

“There is bound to be a difference between first-year and second-year cadets. And how can we possibly be evaluated if we spar with cadets who are one grade lower?”

Until last year, the training course at the cadet corps was like this.

The first year is about basic education and practical training.

The second year is about practical training and hands-on experience.

Third year students enter the six gates to study or enter the Musade as trainees to gain practical experience.

So the difference between each grade was quite large.

“That’s a valid point. That may be true in combat. However, this training isn’t a test where you can win simply by being good at combat. Do you get why?”

The cadet captain smiled brightly.

I looked at the cadet captain and snickered.

“Is this how it comes out?”

The nameplate held by the cadet corps leader sparkled in the light.

I leaned back against the backrest and watched the cadets become more and more disorganized.