Chapter 24 : Storm’s Breeding Ground – (1)

While continuing the meal, I was able to hear about Sofia’s recent activities.

“So, you see, most of the bad practices that were secretly maintained at the training institute have disappeared. Now even the new cadets can walk freely in the middle of the stairs, and we can talk comfortably like this even in the dining hall.”

“Uh, yeah.”

Although she said we could talk comfortably, no matter how I looked at it, the cadets in the dining hall didn’t seem comfortable at all.

Look at that.

A group of male cadets, who appeared to be in the graduating class, were clearly sneaking glances at Sofia and me, trying to gauge the situation.

I could overhear their hushed whispers thanks to my enhanced hearing.

“Hey, is that them?”

“Yeah. The Leg Crusher and the Sack Girl. Better not get caught by those two.”

How did the nickname “Leg Crusher” even end up sticking?

It was incredibly unfair, but compared to the “Sack Girl” in front of me, I decided to just endure it.

“By the way, Sofi, what’s with your look?”

I asked, seeing Sofia all dressed up.

Sofia bashfully twisted her body and blushed, as if she had been waiting for the question.

“I went down to the village during the last Sabbath and bought a few things. I had some money recently.”

“Money?”

“Yes. I borrowed a little from the other cadets. Thanks to that, I could get a new cadet uniform and get my hair neatly cut.”

I focused my hearing again.

“Especially if you get caught by that girl, it’s over for you. Remember Bella?”

“Oh, that senior who used to be a fixture in Dorm 3? The one who kept the freshmen in line?”

“Yeah. Now she’s wandering around like a beggar, wearing nothing but rags. Apparently, she even pays tribute to that girl every day.”

“That’s insane. Doesn’t the guild intervene?”

“They can’t. It’s all her rightful gains from fair fights.”

“Is that little girl really that strong?”

“She’s not strong, exactly. Honestly, she looks pretty easy to beat, right? Lots of people have tried to take her on this past week. But every single one of them ended up stuck in the infirmary.”

“How?”

“She’s not strong, but she’s tenacious. Once a fight starts, even if she breaks a bone, she clings on and bites back ferociously. Honestly, she’s tougher than a vampire. Even the graduating cadets who should be maintaining discipline prefer to leave her alone rather than risk injuring themselves.”

“Man, the freshmen this year are terrifying.”

Hearing this timely explanation made me feel dizzy.

It seemed that the simple advice I had given to Sofia had had a much bigger effect on her than I expected.

“Well, Sofia, it’s good to see you happy.”

“Yes. It’s all thanks to you, Aiden. Hehe.”

Sofia beamed brightly.

At the very least, her life at the training institute seemed much more comfortable now compared to when I first met her.

That was a relief.

“Oh right, Aiden, how was your first hunt?”

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t my very first hunt, but I didn’t bother correcting her.

“Well, it wasn’t bad.”

“That’s amazing. For a freshman cadet to join an official hunt — that’s really impressive! Could you tell me about it?”

“Why not?”

I shrugged and gave her a rough outline of the story.

Boasting about my own exploits felt a little embarrassing.

After hearing the whole story, Sofia’s green eyes sparkled.

“Wow, that’s really amazing. Aiden, you’re already on par with the graduating hunters, aren’t you? That girl, Luerin, she’s supposed to be an elite at the institute too, right? Being paired with her, doesn’t that make you an elite too?”

“I still think I have a lot to work on.”

As I picked up my glass of water, I recalled my fierce battle with the vampire Viscount, Hoover.

Looking back, there had been no shortage of mistakes.

The vampire viscount Hoover had been disguised as a plague doctor.

If I had realized his true identity sooner, I wouldn’t have been trapped in the chapel.

Moreover, when I ambushed Hoover inside the chapel, if I had aimed more precisely at his neck, I could have prevented him from escaping and causing the great fire in the city.

And it wasn’t just that.

After chasing Hoover into a barn, I had approached him, confident of my victory.

However, Hoover had attempted to use blood magic in a last-ditch effort.

If the undertaker hadn’t pulled me out at the right moment, and if Luerin’s magic hadn’t shattered his orb, I might have suffered fatal injuries.

It wasn’t only me — my mistakes had also caused trouble for my fellow hunters.

In every way, I was still a rookie.

Just like during my days in the mercenary corps, I needed to stay humble and continue learning, step by step.

I had to keep up my sword practice with Sofia, help Eleonora with her research into vampire physiology, and squeeze in blood magic training whenever possible.

However, as Aila had said, blood magic was something I had to master on my own.

Eleonora, too, didn’t seem to know much about it.

“Ah, right! Aiden, would you like to go to the village with me this Sabbath?”

Sofia, smiling brightly, asked me as I was lost in thought.

“The village?”

“Yes. There’s a village near the training institute. It’s closely tied to the guild. They produce ritual weapons for hunters at the forge there, make cadet uniforms, and supply food ingredients too.”

“Hmm…”

Now that she mentioned it, I vaguely recalled seeing a small village when leaving the guild.

“Originally, new cadets weren’t allowed to enter the village. It was one of those bad customs. But now the graduating cadets don’t interfere with freshmen anymore. I’m not sure why, though.”

“…I see.”

Even I knew the reason why, but Sofia didn’t seem aware.

Was she truly clueless?

Or was she just pretending to be innocent?

Judging by her pure expression and untainted green eyes, she seemed genuinely unaware.

“What are we going to do in the village?”

“Well, we can spend money, of course. Don’t worry, Aiden! I have a lot of money now. I can get you anything you want!”

“…”

I recalled how my mother at Stormgate had to pay large sums of money to her pimp.

For some reason, even though she handed over more than half of her earnings, the pimp never showed her the consideration she deserved.

Because of that, Lily and I had been thrown out onto the streets, forced to survive by begging.

Of course, my relationship with Sofia was nothing like that of a prostitute and a pimp.

But still, the fact that she was offering money to me made my heart feel strangely heavy.

“No, Sofi. You don’t need to worry about that. I’ll earn my own money.”

I gently declined and was about to pick up my spoon again when someone suddenly plopped down next to me.

There weren’t many people at the training institute brave enough to sit between the two feared newcomers.

But “not many” didn’t mean “none.”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

It was Luerin.

She sat across from me, casually chewing a piece of bread soaked in soup — right next to Sofia.

“U-Um, Sir Aiden? Who is this person…?”

“Graduating cadet. Luerin.”

“Oh, the one Sir Aiden supposedly crushed the other day?”

Sofia spoke the rude comment as naturally as breathing, and Luerin’s shoulder visibly flinched at the words.

The atmosphere in the dining hall grew tense.

However, instead of getting angry, Luerin simply tossed her bread onto her plate and muttered,

“I just let my guard down.”

“How about a rematch, then?”

“Uh, Sofia? Maybe let’s not…”

For some reason, Sofia was showing instinctive hostility toward Luerin.

Her bright green eyes were filled with wariness.

Well, for Sofia, graduating cadets had always been closer to oppressors.

It was only natural for her to be suspicious, wondering if Luerin had come to cause trouble.

Yet Luerin answered with an indifferent shrug,

“No need. I’m just delivering a message from the Guildmaster. I’m supposed to get along with you.”

“Me? With you, senior?”

“Yeah. We’ll be forming a team together.”

Forming a team.

The word rippled through the dining hall.

While I had already heard the news and wasn’t surprised, it seemed to be a shock to the other cadets.

The murmuring around us grew louder.

A hunter recommended by the Priest and a hunter endorsed by the Guildmaster — the two of us forming a team meant that a new order was about to be established within the training institute.

The cadets who met my eyes gave me awkward, ingratiating smiles, looking eager to curry favor.

I didn’t particularly care.

‘On that note, do you have time tomorrow during the Sabbath?’

Luerin asked nonchalantly, assuming I’d say yes without hesitation.

“Time? For what?”

“There’s training we need to do, just the two of us. It’s better without other eyes around. Come to my private dormitory.”

“Just the two of us, for training?”

I frowned slightly.

It sounded suspicious — like she was inviting me for a secret rendezvous.

I stared hard at Luerin, and she seemed to realize how her words could be misinterpreted.

“Th-That’s not what I meant.”

She waved her hands frantically, her cheeks turning pink, then smacked the back of my hand lightly with a wooden spoon.

“I meant training. Training!”

Then she mouthed the word silently: magic.

Training in blood magic, then.

Exactly what I was hoping for.

Aila had said she had nothing more to teach me, so learning from someone well-versed in magic was a welcome opportunity.

I was about to nod when I felt a burning gaze.

I turned my head — it was Sofia.

“Sir Aiden, you’re supposed to go on a trip to the village with me tomorrow. I told you, I have a lot of money!”

That money isn’t even yours, I wanted to retort, but I couldn’t bring myself to say it out loud under Sofia’s desperate gaze.

“What’s even happening here?”

Meanwhile, Luerin, the one who had thrown the bombshell, blinked in genuine confusion.

It seemed she really had no idea how awkward she had made things.