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Chapter 8
“An Elite Guard got his ass kicked by an applicant? You useless idiot!”
Bedrick viciously kicked the fallen guard.
Although many other guards stood nearby, not one of them tried to stop him.
For an Elite Guard to lose to an applicant for the Regular Guard, in front of hundreds of witnesses…
It was a disgrace unlike anything in the Academy’s history.
Even if the defeated guard was the newest recruit, it was an unforgivable humiliation.
“Damn it…”
Bedrick roughly ran a hand through his disheveled hair.
The exam was supposed to score applicants based solely on how long they could survive.
Instead, an applicant had outright defeated an Elite Guard.
There was no taking that back.
The applicant had to be accepted into the Elite Guard.
The problem was…
This year’s roster was already full.
Orientation was in two days.
Adding another member now made no sense.
Because of one damn nobody, everything had become a mess.
At that moment, someone caught Bedrick’s raised fist.
It was Celine, his most trusted subordinate.
With an expressionless face, she spoke.
“I think you should deal with the situation first.”
“And how am I supposed to do that? The Elite Guard’s roster is already full.”
“There’s one squad with an empty position.”
“An empty position?”
Bedrick frowned.
Celine nodded calmly.
“Yes. Squad Forty-Two.”
“Forty-Two? That garbage dump?”
His face twisted in disgust.
Squad 42 was composed entirely of the people Bedrick hated most.
Everyone called it the garbage dump.
And it wasn’t just Bedrick.
Every Elite Guard avoided Squad 42.
Every single member was a troublemaker.
“Yes. They’re still one member short.”
Normally, every Elite Guard squad consisted of seven members.
Squad 42 only had six.
One of its members had disappeared during a mission.
Their captain insisted he wasn’t dead—only missing—and refused to let anyone permanently fill the vacancy.
“That drunken lunatic would never accept a replacement… Ah.”
A smile slowly spread across Bedrick’s face.
“You’re right.
He won’t accept him.”
“Exactly.”
“I’ll have officially assigned him there.”
“Yes.”
The only reason Squad 42’s captain could behave so freely was because the Commander of the Elite Guard openly favored him.
But after several recent incidents, even the Commander’s position had become unstable.
With the Academy’s entrance ceremony only two days away, all of the school’s higher-ups were on edge.
If Squad 42 caused another incident now…
“Excellent.
As expected of you, Celine.”
Bedrick burst into laughter, his anger completely gone.
Celine pointed toward the unconscious rookie lying on the ground.
“What about him?”
Bedrick’s eyes turned cold.
“Get him out of my sight.”
The moment the order left his mouth, several guards dragged the bloodied rookie away like a sack of garbage.
Watching without emotion, Celine found herself wondering.
Which future was more miserable?
The rookie Bedrick now despised…
Or the man about to be thrown into Squad 42?
The second one.
She didn’t hesitate for even a second.
“Brother! That was incredible!”
Kellin looked like he was the one who had won.
His eyes had even become watery.
Honestly…
It was a bit much.
“Did you see Bedrick’s face? I never thought I’d live to see him panic like that! He can talk all he wants about discussing it internally, but he has no choice except to promote you to the Elite Guard. Even Bedrick can’t overturn an exam after it’s already happened!”
It looked like he would keep shouting forever if I let him.
So I casually changed the subject.
“So…
Are you giving up again this year?”
Kellin immediately fell silent.
A bitter smile crossed his bruised face.
“Watching you made me realize something.
I just wasn’t good enough.
I’m going to join the Regular Guard.”
“So you’re giving up?”
“No.”
He shook his head.
“People sometimes get promoted from the Regular Guard.
I may not be talented…
But I’m genuinely hardworking.
Honestly, I think I have a better chance that way.”
He grinned.
Despite his bruises, he looked strangely relieved.
“I see.”
“You know, most people would say something like, ‘You’ll make it someday.'”
“I don’t say things I don’t mean.”
“Haha…
You’re an interesting guy.”
Kellin laughed.
Just then, the Elite Guards who had disappeared earlier returned.
The goateed examiner, who had looked furious before, was now wearing an unsettling smile.
“Brother…
Looks like he’s plotting something.”
Kellin sounded worried.
I wasn’t.
How dangerous could the schemes of a mere security guard really be?
“Grave.
Congratulations on passing the Elite Guard selection.”
Unexpectedly, Bedrick admitted my success without argument.
His sinister smile only grew wider.
“Turns out there’s a squad with an open position.
I’ll assign you immediately.
You’re joining Squad Forty-Two.”
Squad 42…
Bedrick waved his hand dismissively as though the conversation was over.
The other guards began cleaning up the training ground.
Kellin exploded.
“Damn it!
Squad Forty-Two?!
That bastard really stayed petty until the very end!”
“Is Squad 42 really that bad?”
“Bad?
It’s far worse than bad!
There’s even a saying in the Elite Guard:
‘If you’re assigned to Squad 42, you might as well quit.'”
“Quit?
Why?”
Kellin let out a long sigh.
“Normally, every Elite Guard squad has seven members.
Squad 42’s had only six for years.
Their captain refuses to replace the missing member because he insists he’ll come back.”
“Can someone really just insist on that?”
“Of course not.
There’ve been replacement attempts several times.
Every rookie assigned there has resigned within a week.
Be careful.”
His warning was completely sincere.
Still…
I wasn’t worried.
I’d survived an actual battlefield.
Whatever these people tried couldn’t possibly be worse.
At that moment, loud swearing erupted nearby.
“What the hell do you mean, reinforcement? What kind of bullshit is that?”
Turning around, I saw a rough-looking man with cropped blond hair glaring at Bedrick.
He looked more like a gangster than a security guard.
“Milo.
Mind your manners.”
“Manners?
My ass.”
He spat.
“Think you can handle this?
Our captain won’t let this slide.”
Milo sneered.
For the first time, Bedrick’s smile faltered.
“I merely followed regulations.”
“Our captain isn’t exactly fond of regulations.”
“He’s still a squad captain.
Even he can’t ignore Elite Guard rules.”
“Is that your last will and testament?
You’d better write it down now.”
Milo bared his teeth.
For a brief moment, Bedrick actually turned pale.
Then he simply ignored him.
“Holy crap…
Mad Dog Milo!
Brother, quit while you still can!
People have ended up crippled after crossing him!”
Kellin warned me desperately.
Mad Dog…
Apparently Milo embraced the nickname.
He even wore a steel dog collar around his neck.
“Mad Dog” was a nickname I’d heard countless times on the battlefield.
I’d met dozens who proudly called themselves that.
None of them had actually been mad.
They were just pretending to be.
I wonder about this one.
“Which one’s Grave?”
Milo scanned the crowd with hostile eyes.
Kellin frantically looked at me.
Ignoring him, I calmly raised my hand.
The instant Milo saw me, his face twisted with pure fury.
He looked as though I had murdered his family.
“Follow me.”
That was all he said before turning around.
Kellin grabbed my sleeve.
“Brother!
Mad Dog Milo’s genuinely dangerous!
Run while you still can!”
His voice carried genuine concern.
We’d only just met.
Rarely…
I encountered decent people.
So, equally rarely…
I offered empty reassurance.
“I’ll see you in the Elite Guard.”
Emotion welled up in Kellin’s eyes.
As I walked away, he hurriedly gave me a formal salute.
Ridiculous guy.
“The hell are you doing?
Move.”
Milo cursed impatiently.
I followed him.
His stride was short, as though he couldn’t stand walking slowly.
He kept muttering to himself the entire way.
He almost looked genuinely insane.
Eventually we reached an abandoned warehouse.
One glance told me it had long since fallen out of use.
The atmosphere was unmistakably ominous.
An initiation.
Initiation rituals existed everywhere.
I’d experienced several myself.
Still…
This was the first time anyone had skipped the explanation and gone straight to the beating.
“Get inside.”
Milo walked in first.
The interior was dark.
Despite the gloomy atmosphere, I entered without hesitation.
Unexpectedly, the warehouse was fairly comfortable.
There were liquor bottles everywhere.
Even beds.
Apparently they used it as a hideout.
Thunk.
The heavy door slammed shut.
Milo locked it.
Facing me, he rolled his shoulders.
Several loud cracks echoed.
“This warehouse isn’t used anymore.
The moisture rotted all the supplies.
Nobody comes here.
Someone could die in here…
and no one would even notice.”
A place where nobody would notice a death…
“Nice place.”
“Yeah.
It is.”
Milo pulled out a wooden club.
Dark reddish stains covered it.
It looked anything but innocent.
“Squad 42 has a long-standing tradition.”
He casually swung the club through the air.
“What tradition?”
“We beat the living hell out of new recruits until they quit.”
I’d expected as much.
I simply nodded.
“So it’s an initiation.”
One corner of Milo’s eye twitched.
Initiations weren’t unusual.
Still, one thing puzzled me.
“Why are you so angry?”
“Why am I angry?
Ha…”
He bared his teeth like a rabid dog.
“Because…
you’re not a blonde beauty!”
“…”
The absurd reason made me frown.
Milo spat into his palm.
“The only person who’s allowed to become my junior is a blonde beauty with puppy-dog looks! Cold on the outside! Warm on the inside!”
He shouted with complete sincerity.
An unbelievably specific requirement.
But…
He truly meant it.
Milo was genuinely furious that I wasn’t a beautiful blonde woman.
Hopeless.
Honestly…
That made things easier.
“I suppose this works out.”
“What?”
“I had something I wanted to teach you anyway.”
“…Teach me what?”
“Senior training.”
“Senior training?
What the hell are you talking about?”
“I’ll count to three.
Lie flat on the ground before then, and I’ll go easy on you.
One.”
“The fu—”
“Three.”
My foot buried itself in Milo’s stomach.
He couldn’t even scream.
He simply rolled across the floor.
An ordinary man would have blacked out immediately.
Milo staggered, struggling to stand.
He was tougher than expected.
This should be satisfying.
“Now then, Milo.”
I grabbed him by the hair and whispered,
“Let’s begin your senior training.”
There’s a famous saying:
If you want to know someone’s true nature, give them power.
Power reveals who people really are.
That’s why there are so many terrible seniors in the world.
Still…
Very few of them are born that way.
Most were simply never taught properly.
Even the worst senior can become decent…
with the right education.
After enough senior training, even a hopeless fool who insisted his subordinate had to be a blonde beauty could become an exemplary mentor.
“Isn’t that right, Milo?”
“Woof! Woof! WOOF!”
Milo had become much better behaved.
