Weapon-Eating Bastard [EN]: Chapter 38

Weapon-Eating Bastard – Episode 38

After the announcement, the detailed instructions were relayed to the instructors of each class.

Lee Jung-ho approached me and cautiously spoke.

“Young Master, I believe you are already aware, but this promotion exam is…”

“I know. Someone’s influence is at play.”

Gates are isolated spaces where electronic devices malfunction.

In other words, there is no better place to commit deeds without leaving evidence.

“You’ve also noticed the traps in the exam, I presume.”

“To some extent.”

The rules of the promotion exam are simple:

Acquisition, theft, and survival of nameplates.

Losing a nameplate results in a death penalty, and the number of nameplates determines the promotion exam score.

‘Death penalty, that’s the trap.’

There’s a rule that losing a nameplate results in a death penalty, forcing you out, but it’s essentially meaningless.

Even if a nameplate is stolen, the fact cannot be known outside the gate.

A student without a nameplate can continue to operate, steal someone else’s nameplate, or acquire a hidden one.

The student commander described this promotion exam as a scramble, but it was actually closer to a survival battle.

‘Moreover, even the second-year students are participating, and it’s an individual battle.’

The promotion exam location, the survival battle, the joint exam with the second-year students, the increasingly intense scrutiny of Class 5, and the things Lee Seo-hyun mentioned.

Nothing was free from suspicion.

‘Still, with Father’s eyes watching, they won’t go as far as taking my life.’

I slowly exited the conference room.

The promotion exam takes place inside a gate isolated from the outside.

No evidence remains of whatever happens to a despised bastard.

‘That’s what they thought.’

But the same applies to our side.

* * *

Lee Jae-hak, the seventh of the Soongmu Yi family, adjusted his glasses and frowned.

“What is she doing?”

A mysterious woman was grinning above Lee Jae-hak’s desk partition, which was piled high with documents.

“Just watching my cute little brother working his butt off, getting a heat rash?”

“Crazy bitch.”

It was the sixth, Lee Seol-ah, resting her chin on the partition and grinning.

“Crazy bitch? You little brat, talking to your sister like that. Want to die?”

Lee Jae-hak lightly ignored her and continued to approve documents.

Despite his young age, Lee Jae-hak was famous for his administrative skills and business acumen as much as his martial prowess.

Therefore, Lee Jae-hak was always busy.

He was definitely a different breed from his other siblings, who were only interested in training and combat.

“Oh, you’re so similar to our second older brother. Isn’t that boring?”

“Every word you say is so low-class.”

Lee Jae-hak’s brow furrowed slightly.

“Ah, this little punk keeps talking back to his sister… Sigh, the eighth is cuter than you. The way he acts is like a little rabbit… I just want to twist his neck.”

Lee Seol-ah licked her lips.

Lee Jae-hak scoffed and continued to approve documents.

Lee Seol-ah, as if her fun was spoiled, picked up a document from Lee Jae-hak’s desk and pretended to read it.

“Hey, more importantly, what do you think?”

“About what?”

“Mother’s order.”

“……”

Lee Jae-hak put down his signing pen.

“What do you think of the bastard?”

“I don’t think anything of him.”

Lee Jae-hak divides people into two categories:

Useful people.

Useless people.

Whether they are bastards or legitimate children, it doesn’t matter.

Based on that standard, the youngest bastard, Lee Chul, was still useless.

“However, I’ve been thinking that it’s about time to figure him out.”

“You always find everything so bothersome.”

Lee Seol-ah tossed the document away. Lee Jae-hak’s expression soured at the sight of the scattered documents.

“I don’t like it. A bastard wearing a direct line nameplate, acting up without knowing his place.”

Lee Seol-ah smiled slyly.

“So, I’m going to make him realize his place.”

Lee Seol-ah’s eyes caught the light, appearing darker, almost glowing red.

“Adjust it appropriately. Now that he’s in the Student Corps, even Father won’t stand still if you mess with him too much.”

“I’ll just get scolded if I get caught. Have you ever seen me care about that?”

“Well, you’ve always been like that.”

Lee Seol-ah sneered.

“Hiding behind the soft-hearted eldest brother like a fox, pretending to be a tiger [acting weak to intimidate others]. I need to give him a proper lesson this time.”

Lee Jae-hak watched his sister, who was starting to run wild again, and thought.

Unlike him, who was not very keen on their mother’s orders, his seventh sister seemed quite eager to act.

‘Relying on someone’s authority… Is that all it is?’

Lee Jae-hak was about to correct Lee Seol-ah’s words but stopped himself.

She used an old idiom, but that monstrous first brother would not maintain a friendship with the youngest for mere family affection.

Lee Jae-hak suddenly wondered how the youngest would react to this situation.

* * *

Students were given personal time until the promotion exam without any special education or training.

Some instructors provided individual guidance, but that was not the case for me.

‘I have quite a few weapons right now.’

I was in the Soongmu training grounds.

Standing tall in the center of the training ground, I imagined a virtual presence before me.

-Kieeeek!

The Queen of Faces, the monster I encountered earlier this year, stood there.

I faced the Queen, checking my arsenal one by one.

‘First, Mujin.’

A weapon that transforms freely.

The greatest weapon I currently possess was Mujin.

There was no better weapon than Mujin to bring out my combat style.

But Mujin cannot be used in this exam.

‘Next, Cheokma and Manbyeon.’

If Cheokma is a one-hit-kill ultimate, Manbyeon is the framework of my overall movements.

I drew Mujin and slowly moved my body.

Seven Star Sword Lightning Strike.

Thousandfold Spear Rakshasa.

Shindo-ryu Emission of Vigor.

The flow of techniques acquired through Black Qi was connected to Manbyeon.

Even though they were techniques from different martial arts, they flowed together naturally as if they were one movement.

‘Now, even magic.’

Woo woong-!

As magic began to infuse the simple movements, they became so destructive that they could not be seen as being performed by the body of a young child.

Delicate and bold.

The extending magic began to contain a strong force like a whirlwind.

‘Lastly… Magic Eye.’

The moment magic focused on my eyes, my head throbbed, and my light brown eyes began to be tinged with sunset.

The world seen through my eyes changed differently.

The shape of flying dust, the flow of air, the direction of power, and many things I had not seen before began to appear.

Throb-

My eyes felt stiff and strained due to the increased intraocular pressure.

Eyes that can only be opened for a few minutes at most, and eyes that cannot distinguish what they want to see.

But even that was a great ability.

‘Kugh!’

The Queen who appeared before my eyes was now handling her body and power with some mastery.

No matter how quickly I moved away, she approached, and when I barely approached, she sprayed acidic liquid and poisonous mist.

She also occasionally shot out spider webs to tie my limbs and used the mental attacks she had shown me at the end.

“Haaap!”

I finally grabbed Mujin, following the path shown by the Magic Eye.

Ganggi Art, lightning formed on Mujin.

I swung it without controlling my power.

Kwaaaaaaa!

A fierce aftershock swept the ground as if a cannon had been fired.

I imagined the Queen who would have been hit by this attack.

-Kieeeek!

The Queen of Faces screamed and writhed.

But she would not die.

She would have been severely damaged but still have enough strength to rush at me in a solid state.

This was not enough to completely defeat the Queen I had faced.

I took a long breath and closed my eyes.

“Time is precious.”

My magic, the power I wield, and my unique ability, the Magic Eye.

It would have been a little different if my body had grown a little more, but it was still not enough.

‘Don’t be impatient. If I steadily do what I can do now, it will be fine.’

I spun Mujin once and changed it into a ring shape and wore it again.

I paused for a moment and this time took out a training steel sword.

I imagine a new opponent.

Numerous students with their respective weapons stand before me.

Hoo-uk-

I took a short breath and began to swing my sword again.

* * *

As time passed, the promotion exam was approaching more and more.

When I headed to the Student Corps training ground after a long time, I saw students continuing their training.

No matter what, they were not doing it so intensely that their bodies would be harmed, but no student was doing it half-heartedly.

Among them, there was a boy who was meditating with a somewhat nervous expression.

I approached the boy.

“Are you nervous?”

“…You’ve arrived, Young Master.”

The boy who had been meditating, Choi In-ha, opened his eyes slightly and stood up from his seat.

Choi In-ha smiled bitterly.

“You already know about me, don’t you?”

From Soongmu Hope Academy.

Long period of suspension.

A life lived in compromise and resignation.

Choi In-ha, who had a powerless expression, lit up his eyes.

“So, I’m looking forward to it.”

The tension was tension, but it was a slightly different kind.

That was enough.

“Gather the students. Even the ones who aren’t in the training ground.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Choi In-ha brought Kim Han and gathered all the Class 5 students.

The students each brought their tablet PCs or smartphones.

I opened my mouth.

“Start.”

“Yes, if you open the files I sent you, there are a total of 23 first-year students and 34 second-year students who have bothered us so far. Including those who have exerted some kind of pressure on us from outside the Student Corps, the total is…”

Choi In-ha began to report calmly.

The students of Class 5 were not just standing still because they were stupid.

They were just enduring and preparing for the future.

“You’ve organized it well. Now, let’s narrow it down. Seol-ah Noona and Jae-hak Hyung are targeting us. It’s quite easy to identify the forces connected to the two of them. If we find the students connected in any way… it comes out like this.”

I quickly flipped through the list and highlighted the key figures.

It is easy to identify the forces associated with Seol-ah Noona.

Seol-ah Noona has strong support from the younger generation due to her unique personality. However, her skills tend to be somewhat inferior.

On the other hand, Jae-hak Hyung is not difficult to find because most of them are involved in business, except for those hidden externally. In other words, information could be easily obtained without having to investigate.

“So, to narrow it down, there are 13 first-year students and 21 second-year students. Among them, there are 3 class leaders…”

“No, Jae-hak Hyung is unlikely to assign tasks to family members in his forces. We also need to include the family members of forces that have recently had some problems. He may push students in after making some kind of deal.”

One by one.

The cases that the students had directly experienced, various speculations, information obtained by asking the nanny, and stories obtained through the aunt began to gather and create results.

‘Only fools get caught while standing still.’

It became clear that the opponent was targeting me, and the opponent was somewhat ignoring me.

Waiting for the opponent to attack me and then counterattacking is not my way.

I strike first before being hit.

That was my way.