LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 34 - Entry (3)
Chapter 34: Entry (3)
Conflicts with competitors in the Cradle were unavoidable.
Frequent clashes with competitors would inevitably lead to rapid wear and tear.
In other words, the more enemies one had, the higher the likelihood of being left behind.
There was nothing better than making competitors allies to reduce competition.
Moreover, the more capable the allies, the better.
Thus, the targets for recruitment were inevitably descendants of prestigious families or renowned geniuses from certain regions.
Gunther Irons fell into the latter category.
“Thanks for the offer, but I’ll have to decline.”
Gunther said the same thing for the third time today.
His polite yet stiff tone made the face of the one proposing to him harden.
“It seems you’ve been rejecting all the offers so far? That’s not a particularly wise choice.”
“I’ll take responsibility for my decisions. It’s not your concern.”
“Is that so? I apologize.”
The boy, who had introduced himself as someone from a certain administrative district and family, did not make another offer after Gunther’s firm refusal.
Instead, he withdrew the friendliness he had shown when he first approached and revealed his hostility.
Gunther sighed, watching the boy turn away coldly.
‘Everyone’s busy.’
If they weren’t allies, they were enemies.
This simplistic, binary thinking was being naturally practiced by kids barely in their early to mid-teens.
Children born in the era of the Sword Master.
To children exposed to competition from an early age, this kind of situation was entirely normal.
Of course, Gunther was no different.
The only difference was that, unlike others, he considered everyone a competitor without making any allies.
Gunther’s gaze turned cold.
‘Most of them are chaff.’
He had heard enough to know.
That there was a donation recommendation in the Cradle besides the Dragon Plaque recommendation.
His father, Ashiraf Irons, had given a harsh assessment of them.
[Gunther, those chaff brought in by donation recommendations are not worth your attention.]
And his assessment was spot on.
Small groups of two or three people.
Even larger groups of ten or more who seemed to have established their own forces looked confident, but to Gunther, they were just social gatherings of no use.
What could twenty chaff do together?
If he wanted to, it would take him no more than ten minutes to dismantle them.
‘The ones I need to be wary of aren’t those guys.’
It was those who, like him, stood alone.
Those who were confident they could win against anyone, considering any sort of alliance a burden.
They were the true competitors he needed to be wary of.
Gunther’s eyes scanned the surroundings.
‘Ivan Baskin, Clarice Van, Nelly Blanc.’
They were descendants of families whose fame had reached even the northern territories where the Irons estate was located.
Apart from them, the heirs of truly prestigious families exuded a noble aura.
And it wasn’t just them.
A young man, incredibly tall and bald, standing over 2 meters.
A beautiful girl with blue hair.
Even if he didn’t know who they were, their unique appearances and unusual auras were undeniable.
‘They might be more challenging opponents than the famous heirs.’
High fame meant a lot of known information.
Thus, it might be more difficult to deal with capable individuals with unknown backgrounds.
‘Interesting. I wonder what kind of people they are.’
Gunther clenched and unclenched his fist, feeling a mix of tension and excitement.
In the large cabin, the air was thick with a sense of impending battle.
Sensing the intense aura emanating from various places, Gunther smiled slightly.
‘They must know that the real competition will start once this voyage ends.’
Not a battle of swords, but a battle of auras.
It was like a small storm brewing in the cabin.
However…
Snore, snore.
The atmosphere in the cabin wasn’t the same everywhere.
Alliances?
Exploratory battles?
A stormy atmosphere?
One person seemed completely detached from all that, as if it had nothing to do with him.
Snore.
Gunther’s head naturally turned at the loud snoring.
A black-haired boy, shivering and talking in his sleep, came into view.
“Don’t… like it… scary…”
What kind of dream was he having?
After muttering in his sleep once, the black-haired boy, frowning as if having a nightmare, twitched for a while before finding peace again and falling back into a deep sleep.
Scratch, scratch. Smack, smack.
Scratching his cheek and smacking his lips.
Hugging his sword tightly between his legs, he slept so soundly.
It was amazing how he could sleep so deeply while everyone else was exuding such a fierce aura.
Moreover, what was even more surprising was…
‘How many days has it been now?’
Since the black-haired boy boarded the ship, he had done nothing but sleep.
The only time he was awake was when the Black Sword Corps distributed lunch boxes.
Except for meal times, the boy slept all day long.
Someone who had been watching him muttered disdainfully.
“As expected, a beggar’s best skill is sleeping anywhere.”
The voice was loud enough for everyone to hear.
Many nodded in agreement with the contemptuous remark.
After all, the black-haired boy had made a strong impression with his appearance.
Wearing clothes that could barely be distinguished from rags.
His face was covered by messy hair, and even the visible parts were so swollen that it was hard to guess his original features.
He smelled as if he had rolled in a garbage dump.
If it weren’t for the Black Sword Corps member guiding him, they might have thought some beggar had sneaked onto the ship.
The ship had quite a few individuals with distinct personalities, but none were as uniquely eccentric as the black-haired boy.
It was hard not to pay attention after such a shocking entrance.
So, the prospective cadets showed interest, wondering who the black-haired boy was, observing him.
But it didn’t last long.
Aside from his shabby appearance, there was nothing special about him.
Always drowsy and sluggish, displaying the height of defenselessness.
Yet, his ability to wake up exactly at meal times and run to the Black Sword Corps members for his lunch box was remarkable.
After ravenously devouring his food, he would go back to sleep.
Repeating the cycle of eating and sleeping like an animal, his actions disgusted everyone.
‘A piece of trash who will be the first to fall when the competition starts.’
‘Not worth paying attention to.’
‘How did someone like him even get into the Cradle?’
‘Does he have no manners at all? So vulgar.’
Those who initially observed him with curiosity lost interest after five days of unchanged behavior.
Only a slight curiosity remained about how long he could continue to sleep.
Thus, the black-haired boy was completely excluded from the prospective cadets’ recognition.
No one approached within a 2-meter radius of him, as if avoiding filthy garbage.
Gunther stared at the back of the black-haired boy lying on the floor.
‘Black hair…’
Seeing the black hair, he naturally thought of that boy.
‘Yuri Holland…’
The boy who, despite being the same age, had defeated a Black Sword Corps examiner.
And a genius who became the disciple of the unparalleled swordsman, Johan Redner.
He also had black hair like that.
‘What is Yuri Holland doing now?’
He was probably undergoing hellish training under Johan Redner’s guidance somewhere on the continent.
He must be getting stronger every day.
With that thought, Gunther clenched his fist slightly.
Crack.
He had never thought he was inferior to anyone.
Until he saw Yuri Holland wielding his Avatar.
The sight of Yuri had been so shocking and left such a strong impression that it ignited Gunther’s competitive spirit, making Yuri his rival to surpass.
‘When we meet again… I won’t lose.’
As Gunther was fueling his determination against the memory of Yuri.
“Snore… smack, smack.”
The loud noise of someone smacking their lips brought Gunther out of his reverie.
At the same time, he saw the black-haired boy’s hand slipping into his pants.
Scratch, scratch.
Watching the boy scratching himself, Gunther’s eyes twisted in disgust.
He apologized inwardly.
‘Sorry, Yuri Holland. I can’t believe I thought of you just because of the same hair color as that guy.’
Feeling genuinely sorry, Gunther shook his head and looked away.
Thus, he missed seeing the black-haired boy’s face gradually returning to its original form as the swelling went down.
He also overlooked an important fact that most others had missed.
The center of a storm is always calm.
Just like how the area around the black-haired boy was quiet amid the stormy atmosphere in the cabin…
Five days later, on December 1st.
Splash, squeak, thud!
The Black Ship, harboring a small storm, docked at the pier.
* * *
“Yawn!”
Yuri stretched with a big yawn.
Crack, crack.
Rising slowly and lightly loosening his stiff body, his bones creaked.
Crack, crack.
The sound would make anyone cringe, but Yuri’s face relaxed like a man soaking in hot water.
Feeling as soft as a rice cake, Yuri smiled.
“Ah… so refreshing. People really need to rest well.”
When he first boarded the ship, his body was a wreck.
Half a year of grueling training to hone his basics.
Following that, he started underwater magic flow training, and knowing the day of entry was approaching, he had to push himself to the limit to move Bung Bung.
In such a state of exhaustion, he desperately used mana to avoid suffocation.
Lastly, he got thoroughly beaten by Johan.
It had been several eventful months.
‘…Thinking back, it’s amazing I didn’t die.’
He hadn’t died, but his body had been pushed to the brink.
Yuri desperately needed time to recover.
Luckily, the environment provided him with time to rest, space to sleep, and free lunch boxes for nutrition.
Yuri took full advantage of it.
Perhaps because he had rested well, his body, which had been worn out, fully recovered, and the swelling in his face almost disappeared.
But that wasn’t all.
Yuri realized the importance of rest just as much as rigorous training.
‘My body is tougher.’
Yuri felt a significant increase in muscle.
Increased muscle meant increased strength.
In other words, just by resting, Yuri had grown stronger.
While others were busy guarding against each other, wasting their energy, Yuri had used his time solely for his growth, indifferent to others considering him a crude beast.
As a result, Yuri was now in the best condition, ready to explore the unknown in the Cradle.