I Have Come To End This Fight

Episode 8. thirst (3)

Yuri narrowed her eyes at Yohan’s answer.

“… Dragon’s Cradle? Why are you there?”

“Why, since I took the test and passed, of course I have to go in.”

“Didn’t you just do that cradle test or something?”

“Heh heh, just? like that?”

“Yeah, just.”

“Are you crazy? Are you going to blow up that precious dragon shield over something trivial?”

At Yohan’s crooked tone, Yuri had an expression that he couldn’t understand.

Yuri tilted her head and asked.

“I am the inspiration for that… … .”

“A test subject?”

“… okay. Shouldn’t you be in the cradle to act as a test subject? If I go into the cradle, can’t we meet?”

“Hoo? It’s pretty, I know how to think about that.”

“… Who do you know as an idiot?”

“Heh, don’t worry about that. I will take care of that matter.”

Yohan, who was smiling humorously, erased his smile and continued.

“And you must go to the cradle, even for experiments.”

“why?”

“Because there is no better place to build skills than there.”

“… … ?”

As if he didn’t quite understand, Yohan smiled again as he saw Yuri blinking his eyes.

“Do you think the smart guys who are said to be born in the world are so impatient that they can’t go into the cradle?”

“why?”

“Because there is no other place where the strong dominate everything.”

“… … !”

“In the cradle, dozens of elixirs that are said to be difficult to obtain even with money are released in a single year. Is that all? There are not only various treasured swords, but also the secret wrestling techniques of the strong men of an era.”

“wow.”

“All of those things can only be won by those who have won in a fair competition. But what if one person stands out unrivaled in the competition?”

“That one person will wipe out all the benefits of the cradle.”

“That’s right, it’s the perfect strongman taking it all.”

Yuri’s face hardened slightly as he listened to Yohan’s story.

At the same time, the voice that was stigmatized as a child came to mind.

[The weak are trampled and eliminated, but the strong… Mangle and evolve. that is… It is the age of the sword.]

The dying knight spat out with a smile.

The world that Yuri has been wandering through for the past few years is not much different from the story of the dead knight.

‘And the dragon’s cradle is a place that is no different from the symbol of the present age.’

In other words, the cradle could be said to be a place where the current era of the strong taking all is concentrated.

That’s why Yuri understood what John said to some extent.

‘It’s definitely a good place to build up your capabilities, as the old man said.’

But even that had to be met with a precondition.

It’s ‘unrivaled strength’.

As John said, in order for the cradle to become a ‘good place to build competence’, Yuri must have the strength to overcome all competition.

In that respect, Yuri was confident.

“So you’re saying you can just go into the cradle and suck on the side of the sweet water that they sprinkle, leaving not a single drop? That’s a good plan.”

Yuri’s confident murmur brought a light flash to Yohan’s eyes.

However, on the contrary, what was on John’s lips was an obvious mockery.

“Phehehe, you’re being so damned.”

“… … ?”

“day.”

“huh?”

“If you go into the cradle now, a day will be enough for you to pack up and run away. It’s fortunate that he walks out with his limbs and body intact, and there’s a nine out of ten chance that he’ll come out in a coffin.”

“… what?”

“What is surprising? Do you know that the cradle is a place where all the kids in the neighborhood are gathered? It is a place where selected and selected talent from all over the world gathers. Even those who have been thoroughly educated for gifted children since childhood.”

“… … .”

“How long can your pitiful body, which has not even built up mana, let alone chess, survive among those geniuses?”

“curse… No, even if you use an incarnation?”

“Considering that, it’s a day. Without him, I wouldn’t have lasted even a minute, let alone an hour.”

It was a pretty harsh assessment.

As Yuri’s brow furrowed slightly at this, Yohan gasped.

“why? Did you even hurt your pride?”

“… … .”

“Hwasin is definitely a great skill. However, no matter how good a master sword is, in the hands of a villager, it becomes just a firewood or splitting knife. You can’t even use the famous sword called incarnation, and you’ve just been stabbing opponents with the power of incarnation.”

“… What do you want to say?”

“Until now, that would have worked. Whether it’s swordsmanship or horsemanship, even if you haven’t mastered it up until now, you probably don’t feel lacking in particular. That’s why you wouldn’t have cared too much about those things.”

That was right.

General swordsmanship can also be learned by attending a martial art.

Even more so, even if the martial arts were at the lowest level, they could barely learn it by paying a large amount of money that the common people could not even dream of.

‘But no matter how hard I tried to learn it, it wasn’t as good as using an incarnation.’

It was not an option for Yuri, who had a hard time earning a living every day.

Yuri and John’s gaze intertwined.

“You are quite out of sync now.”

“I know, my soul is enlarged… … .”

“No, not that sound.”

“then?”

“Now you have the power to kill your opponent in one shot. But I don’t have the strength to defend myself. It won’t matter if you kill all the enemies in one spot. But what if you don’t?”

“… … .”

“Like today, I fell and passed out… What if one of the enemies is still alive?”

Yuri clenched his fists tightly.

Seeing this, John spoke coldly.

“Those who dipped their feet in the cradle… It’s like a terrible ghost. For those guys, you, who have been knocked down after using an incarnation once, are no different from easy prey.”

Things Yuri hadn’t thought of until now.

No, the things that he unconsciously kept away from his thoughts flowed out of John’s mouth.

Yuri’s face hardened slightly.

‘I… Prey?’

It was a story I had never thought about deeply before.

After awakening the curse, that is, incarnation, he was always a predator.

A brawler who goes around putting strength on his shoulders to say he’s using his strength in an area.

A mercenary warrior who learned horsemanship and ate his own knife.

Even articles that have acquired unofficial qualifications.

I have met and experienced many people while wandering the world, but I have never thought that I would be a threat.

In addition, recently, hadn’t the Black Swordsman, who had a great reputation, even been knocked down?

‘Am I the prey?’

The word ‘prey’ scratched Yuri’s pride, and a crooked voice came out as if to protest.

“I don’t think Gunther, who passed the cradle this time, was particularly amazing, right?”

“Did you think that innocuous bastard named Gunther could kill someone like you who can’t use an incarnation with just one finger?”

“Why are you excluding the incarnation before talking about it? Incarnation is also my ability. If you use it properly… … .”

“Are you going to keep using the power that gnaws at your lifeline the more you use it, even after you go to the cradle?”

“… … .”

“If you intend to do so, take a coffin and go into the cradle. If you use incarnation whenever something happens, your lifeline will be cut before you have completed five years in the cradle.”

Yuri bit her lip.

But nothing came to mind to refute.

Because what John said was right every word of it.

John’s voice continued with a mocking laugh as if he knew what Yuri was thinking.

“As you just said, Gunther is a novice. Maybe it’s like a baby prey?”

“… … ”

“And that baby prey… It eats prey like you and grows fast. Phew.”

John, who emphasized what he said just now, by repeating it one more time.

He laughed inwardly and examined the glass.

‘For the sake of the future, I need to moderately break this guy’s spirit.’

Yuri is a vigilant wild beast.

A ferocious beast that growls with its teeth exposed when provoked, and bites the scruff of the neck without hesitation if it seems to be a threat to my safety.

In addition, their pride is so strong that even if they try to heal their wounds, they often ignore them.

So what should be done to tame such a beast?

Do you approach slowly by building intimacy and bonding?

Of course, that was also an option, but it wasn’t Yohan’s taste to leisurely build such warm feelings with Yuri.

‘If you want to deal with a beast, you have to break your pride and expose your stomach.’

Imprinting the difference in overwhelming power and making them follow themselves.

That was John’s preferred method.

John grinned.

“But don’t worry! There’s plenty of time left before this rider’s cradle enters the market!”

“… … .”

“If you continue to roll under me from now on, you will be able to eat at least the anglerfish king in the cradle. You have to be at that level to be able to say that you are serving as a human being!”

Yohan, who was giggling and scratching the glass, waited.

Glass snapped the bait.

‘It’s about time I had a seizure after scratching this much?’

And sure enough.

Sparks flew in Yuri’s eyes as he listened silently.

“Inspiration.”

The golden eyes stared at John with a sad blue light.

“… How strong is your inspiration?”

“ok?”

“I’m not interested in the Preta King. If you’re going to be strong… … .”

A glass of steam for a moment.

The corner of his mouth raised slightly as he looked at John.

“I should at least be stronger than inspiration.”

“Hoo?”

“That way, I’ll be able to put a punch in the old man’s unlucky face.”

Looking at the crooked glass that showed speculation, a strange light flashed in Yohan’s eyes.

‘You asked.’

If so, I’ll have to grab it soon.

John smiled.

“Are you curious? How strong am I?”

Ssuk-.

John disappeared without waiting for Yuri’s answer.

The place where he appeared was none other than Yuri’s back.

“… … ?!”

“Then you should show me.”

Surprised Yuri and Yohan with a deep smile.

In an instant, Yohan grabbed Yuri by the back and ran out of the cave.

At this, the frightened Yuri shouted.

“Hey, inspiration?! What, what are you doing?”

However, John’s movement was faster than Yuri’s cry.

By the time Yuri’s voice rang, the new model of the two had already been thrown out of the cave.

“… … ?!”

The place where Yuri’s hideout is located is a 20m high cliff.

It was only natural that the dizzying scenery unfolded beneath his feet, as he threw himself into such a cave.

Yuri’s face became pale at the height.

But it didn’t take long for that expression to change to surprise.

“… uh?”

Yuri’s eyes widened.

He had to do that too.

“The air… … .”

Yohan grabbed his back.

“… walk?”

was walking in the sky

John slowly steps on the air as if he were stepping down the stairs.

And when his feet finally touched the ground, John threw down the hardened glass in astonishment.

Even in the midst of that, Yuri quickly corrected the shape and looked at Yohan.

Yohan also faced Yuri and opened his mouth.

“Are you going to give me a shot? Then take a good look. Even if I can’t do it, it should be at this level so that I can even put my hand near my mug.”

Having said that, John turned towards the cliff.

At the same time, something misty and fuzzy rose from under his feet.

‘… This?’

pure white smoke? Fog?

Not all.

It was none other than the ‘cloud’ created under John’s feet.

White clouds floating in the sky appeared beneath John’s feet as if to support him.

And Yuri noticed that it wasn’t just a cloud.

Because he had something similar to that.

Although the appearance was different.

‘Is this the incarnation of inspiration?’

If Yuri’s incarnation looked like a fear-inducing monster, John’s incarnation was a pure white cumulus cloud.

When Yuri blankly gazes at the incarnation in the form of a cloud.

Squeak-.

Johan drew his sword and slowly lowered it diagonally.

Then, a stream of air rising from the clouds rode up John’s calves, thighs, body, and arms in that order and gathered at his sword.

A white cloud wriggled around the sword body like a snake.

yes-.

A cloud stem that vibrates greatly while being coiled around the sword body.

The boy let out a violent cry, as if begging him to release himself quickly.

Ugh!

Johan swung his sword lightly to shake off the fluctuating cloud stalks as if they were about to jump out at any moment.

months-.

A sword drawn diagonally from bottom to top, as if cutting down a cliff.

It was a light swing that was really insignificant, but what happened as a result was by no means light.

The white airflow that spread out with fierce force suddenly expanded to a size of tens of meters and even changed its appearance when it reached the cliff.

coogg-.

The dragon’s head and the deer’s horns.

The body of a snake and four pairs of legs.

It resembled the divine beast called dragon that the descendants of the ancient East spoke of.

coo uh oh!

The cloud dragon opened its mouth wide and let out a cry.

Quagga gaga gaga-.

Just hit the cliff.

and.

Wow!

The cloud dragon disappeared with a huge sound, and at the same time the cliff disappeared.

No, not only the cliff, but also the mountain behind it were all blown away.

When the mountain that was blocking the sunset disappeared, the vivid red sun was revealed beyond it.

Yuri pursued the open space with her wide-eyed eyes.

‘This is it… … .’

It was a single hit.

Cliffs and mountains evaporated from that trivial swing.

‘… A spectacle created by a single human being?’

As soon as that thought came to mind, Yuri realized.

That he had been using the incarnation incorrectly until now.

1/1000th of that ability… No, I mean, I couldn’t pull out even 1 in 10,000 properly.

‘I wasn’t dealing with incarnation. I was just dragged around by the power of the incarnation.’

Yuri looked at John’s back.

His back, which seemed dwarfed, now seemed too gigantic for some reason.

‘this… Master’s power?’

Masters, I had heard sorely about their fame.

But I didn’t realize it.

What a reputation for power they built.

‘oh my god… … .’

Because I was still fifteen.

Also, because he has never been defeated in his life.

The childish conceit that was born like that cracked.

low-.

Yuri regretted it.

‘I was a frog in a well.’

As soon as she fully realized the reality, the contempt and conceit that had dwelled in Yuri were shattered and disappeared.

And what took its place was the spark of aspiration.

‘That’s really strong.’

A world created by swordsman Luke Rider.

The absolute power possessed by those who reign within it.

“ah… … .”

Yuri’s eyes grew hazy.

There was only one thing that filled his brain.

‘want to have. that strength… … .’

The strength shown by Johann Redner.

longing for it.

It was the only thing that lingered in Yuri’s head.

‘No, more power than that… I want to get it!’

A seven-year-old who wants a toy, Yuri harbors a hatred with a power that doesn’t match her young age.

An eight-year-old who realized the life of a terminally ill life, instead of hatred for the world, he made up his will to live.

Today, a 15-year-old who has lost his purpose and is slowly getting tired of his unstable life… … .

‘Throat… It’s dry.’

Yuri felt a burning thirst for the pure desire he had for the first time in his life.