episode_0015

“So what should we do with these guys..”

“Yeah, they attacked us first, but just leaving them alone is one thing, and if we tie them up and eliminate them all, it will be in the newspaper. ‘Is the second of the Leon family not as good as his brother?’”

Gasp!

“Oh, looks like he’s awake.”

“Yeah. I’ve been awake since earlier.”

Ignoring the fallen figure who had been boasting loudly, there seemed to be a bit of hesitation in getting up. The sword that was proudly displayed was completely missing from the middle, and the neatly combed hair, once shining with pomade, had completely disappeared.

“This man has no hair! Can people really be like this?”

“Rike, being bald doesn’t mean someone isn’t human. He’s just a pitiful person.”

“Who are you calling bald?!”

“Oh. He’s up.”

As soon as he heard the bald comment, he thought it was about him and quickly got up, but with his brightly shining head, he was just pitiful.

“I spend an hour every day meticulously managing my proud blonde hair, and yet, such nonsense!”

“But don’t you feel something missing on your head?”

“Hmph. You think I’m that naive!”

Calce kept saying that while trying to grasp at the once blonde hair, but ultimately had to accept the miserable reality. His slipping hands were something he couldn’t bear to see soberly.

“Tsk..”

“Tsk, you fool.”

“Hahaha. I’ll crawl around”

With a face that seemed to have lost a kingdom or something even more precious, he fell down again, forced to accept reality.

“You!! I won’t forgive you!”

“Calm down, Calce Gongja. So who is the young boy behind you?”

“Hmph. He was just a lad we used by necessity. He doesn’t remember his name, hometown, or anything. He seemed to have some abilities, but he was utterly useless.”

“What! Your reliance on a child was misguided!”

Perhaps Frill Youngae was continually projecting her former self. Watching herself being ostracized and rejected. She might not know what happened after the party, but now she seems determined to change.

“Hey, come here! Let’s go together! Mr. Leon’s son. It wouldn’t be polite to say let’s meet again next time. Please just take care.”

Saying so, Youngae grabbed the boy’s hand and returned to us confidently, embracing like Jeanne d’Arc, and with a welcoming demeanor like Mother Teresa.

“Let’s go. Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Mamang. Hug me..”

“W-what are you saying! Stop talking nonsense and give the kids something to eat!”

“Okay..”

I almost became like Rike and the boy, a child, but I held back. We need to prepare for departure.

“Sellina. Give him some jerky.”

“Yeah, but gather around, everyone. There’s one more star filled in.”

On the brooch Selina flipped, one of the two empty stars was now filled.

“This is.. as expected.”

“Yeah, probably.”

“Right! Now there’s only one left!”

“Who doesn’t know that, David. Just stay quiet, maybe these kids were the means to pass the test. One star remains. Among the remaining stars on the map, the closest one is..”

Pointing to the center of the brooch, Selina said.

“Here where two stars are gathered..”

“It means we’re two people.”

“They probably noticed too. Inevitably, we’ll collide.”

“Rain. It’s coming soon.”

The sky Erin pointed to was heavy and dark, as if it would rain any moment. As sunset approached, establishing a safe camp as soon as possible was more important than anything else.

First, let’s go deeper into the forest, not on flat terrain, and look for a structure with hills behind. It might be raining, but we don’t know when we might be attacked.

“Right. Exploration is my specialty. I’ll take a look around.”

“Oh. In the meantime, Selina and I will gather some branches and camp materials.”

“Sounds good. Let’s move quickly.”

***

“How about here?”

“Yeah, it’s not ideal, but it should suffice for now given the circumstances.”

“The passing grade seems too high. Since the Liches are here, the others will probably find their way with the brooches.”

The Lich and the boy who were chatting from behind seemed to have become close in no time, playing happily.

“Oppa! He said he doesn’t have a name like me, so I decided to give him one! Boksil! How’s that?”

“Yeah. That name doesn’t seem right.”

“Fine. Then why don’t you come up with one, Oppa!”

The boy remained silent, but there was a hopeful look in his eyes. This was a situation where Frill Young-Ae’s naming sense was needed.

“Well.. how about Duke? It means nobleman. A real nobleman even the aristocrats can’t recognize. What do you think?”

“Duke… I like it!”

As they enthusiastically exchanged a high-five, mana suddenly began to surge from their bodies.

“What! Did you do something, Liche?”

“Yeah, I felt something leaving my body when something happened, but it wasn’t just now, was it?”

“Uh-oh. I felt that just now!”

It seems like they’ve picked up another complication.

“Why did you really choose us, Frill Young-Ae? Honestly, if we’re not significantly more capable than Calz Kongja or the rest, and we didn’t have a previous friendship…”

“Selina! You shouldn’t say things like that!”

“Stay quiet, David. I’m sorry, but if we want to keep the team safe until the end of the test, we need to accept that.”

“Just saying… isn’t enough, right..?”

“Yes. I can’t accept it.”

“But it was really just that. The reason was simply because they willingly took on tasks I couldn’t handle, and this time, maybe Selina Young-Ae won’t understand, but the word ‘just’ may be more complex than you think.”

“So, I’ll just try changing once.”

“Hey, is the person you’re talking about by any chance…”

“Shut up, David.”

“Ah. We’re almost there. There’s a star with two points!”

“But, this place seems a bit different from what we saw earlier while coming here..”

Flanca Style, Form 1. Guardian of the Wheat Field.

Clang!

“Ahh!!”

All David could see was a massive sword. It left a large scar on the ground with astonishing speed and precision.

Sweat dripped down his temple at the unbelievable skill of the slender woman before him.

“This seems quite dangerous..”

“David! Frill Young-Ae! Are you okay?”

“We’re fine here! For now, at least..”

“We’re okay here. You. Instead of acting recklessly, how about having a conversation? We don’t wish to fight.”

Her decision was to sheathe her sword back into its scabbard.

Swish.

“That was a good call! Since we can resolve this through dialogue!”

Flanca Style, Form 3. Abundance of Autumn.

Thud.

“Damn, this seems like a bad situation..”

“David! Your arm!!”

“Run away quickly! Go call the others!!”

“But..”

“I’ll hold them off! Hurry and bring the other two!”

“Okay! Just hold on a little longer!”

“Now, what to do with this…”

“Wait and see.”

Oh wind, please take away even this pain. Breeze.

“For now, I’ve only removed the pain, but remember, you need to get treatment as soon as possible!”

“Fortunately. It doesn’t seem like I can shoot that kind of technique like earlier…”

It was a mix of fortune and misfortune, but thanks to blocking the kick with my right arm, which I mainly used, my arm felt like a mop handle as my fingers moved in an amazing way.

“Hey, don’t cowardly shoot from afar like an archer, let’s go head to head with strength!”

“Alright.”

“Huh? You could talk

Ching!

In an instant, leaping forward, he swiftly closed the distance at a speed hard to follow with the eyes.

“What power!”

“Why are you like this? Are those muscles made of water balloons?”

“Don’t underestimate these muscles that I’m proud of!”

Although he said that, even against a speed that was naturally overwhelming, his confidence disappeared when faced with the overpowering force he boasted about. Thinking back, since he mainly relied on his boasting strength rather than skillful techniques, it was obvious that he would be in trouble if his strength was blocked.

“I knew it. Okay, cut one set of squats and swing the sword 10 more times!”

“You’re sharp. There are big gaps.”

At the moment the woman aimed for a gap, her body twitched and stopped briefly.

“David Yeongsik! Now is the time!”

Surely it was Lady Yeongae who created this opportunity. To not miss this chance, he grabbed the sword again and struck down.

Swish!

But there, only the remnants of a reaction like an animal remained, having reacted and avoided the attack with lightning speed.

“Crazy, how do I win this..”

It was truly the epitome of irrationality. Neither strength nor speed was beyond a student level, and even the swordsmanship seemed to be at a Sword Expert level.

“It’s dark, it’s dark. When will Kidney come!!”

***

“Cough, gasp.”

“Sellina, what’s wrong!”

“David, he was attacked!”

“What? Where!”

Sellina gasped for breath and shouted out

“The place with two stars! I accidentally went towards that direction and there was a monster there!”

“Wait here. The stars, their colors are different.”

As Erin carefully observed the stars again, she noticed they had a faint reddish hue unlike the other stars.

“This, even elite mobs are like this in games.”

“This is not the time for that! We need to go quickly!!”

“Let’s depart quickly. The two of them might be in real danger.”